Thousands of TY students attend Knock Youth Gathering

Over 3,000 teenagers celebrated the feast of the Holy Rosary in Knock

Over 3,000 teenagers from almost every diocese on the island of Ireland descended on Knock Shrine last week for the second annual Knock Youth Gathering (KYG).

The purpose of KYG is to bring young people (transition years and first year A-level students) to Knock on the feast of the Holy Rosary to celebrate and deepen their faith. The idea for the event came from Máirín Ní Shúilleabháin, co-ordinator of the study of adult study of the catechism, who wanted to encourage young people to study the catechism.

The day involved testimonies from Tyrone football manager, Mickey Harte; Gerard Hanley from Youth 2000 and Sr Monica from the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal. The Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Charles Brown celebrated Mass, and each student received a pack with a copy of YouCat, rosary beads and a prayer card.

Study

“Our hope is that all those YouCats will not lie on shelves, but will be utilised in study groups, because transition years have the time to do this, with assistance from adults,” Ms Ní Shúilleabháin said.

Stephen O’Hara, chaplain in Schull Community College, Cork said it was “an excellent endeavour to being that amount of young people from all over Ireland to Knock for feast of Holy Rosary and give them the experience of faith and spirituality among their peers”.

“I don’t think my students would have experienced anything like that faith experience before or maybe again, but I hope it might sow seeds that could be reaped later down the line.”