The Italian dioceses estimate that more than 50,000 people will participate in an encounter the pope will have with young people in Rome in August.
It will take place in the symbolic and spacious Circus Maximus at 6:30 p.m. Pope Francis will hold dialogue with the youth and pray for the Synod in October, which will be dedicated to them.
However, the event will not end there. On Sunday at 11 a.m., before praying the Angelus, the Holy Father will meet with them again. This time it will take place in St. Peter's Basilica, where the youth will be celebrating Mass. The pope is not expected to preside over the ceremony, but he will bless the gifts the young people will bring to World Youth Day in Panama: the San Damiano cross, associated with Italian patron St. Francis of Assisi, and a sculpture of Our Lady of Loreto.
This will be one of Pope Francis' important encounters in the month of August, which include his trip to Ireland to participate in the World Meeting of Families.
