Students from the University of Notre Dame Australia and Australian Catholic University will embark on a transformative spiritual pilgrimage to Portugal for World Youth Day 2023.
Notre Dame announced yesterday that 35 of its students, along with nine students from Australian Catholic University, will take part a 22-day pilgrimage under the theme “Saints, Scholars and Notre Dame”. The theme reflects Notre Dame’s mission to embrace the rich heritage of our faith while nurturing the intellectual growth of our students.
The pilgrimage departs in late July and will take participants through Europe, retracing the footsteps of early saints and scholars during which students will visit prominent contemporary Catholic university sites as well as historical locations in France and Spain, culminating in the vibrant city of Lisbon for what promises to be one of the largest World Youth Day celebrations.
Head of the School of Philosophy & Theology, Renee Kohler-Ryan, said the pilgrimage offered an unparalleled opportunity for students to experience the relationship between faith, reason and culture first-hand.
“Students will integrate their spiritual and academic appreciation of what it means to be Catholic, getting to know saints and scholars across France, Spain and Portugal,” Professor Kohler-Ryan said.
“We will walk in their footsteps, praying where they prayed, thinking where they thought and forming relationships that will bring us more into the dialogue between faith and reason. Along the way, we will pick up the theme of World Youth Day seriously – ‘Mary arose and left with haste’.
“World Youth Day will connect students with the universal Church in its range of expressions. The whole pilgrimage provides a transformative experience.”
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Notre Dame Sends Students on Life Changing Journey to World Youth Day 2023 (UNDA)
