I couldn’t help but notice that there wasn’t much secular news coverage of this year’s World Youth Day celebration in Lisbon. Maybe it’s because the media couldn’t twist Pope Francis’ words out of context as easily as they usually do with our Holy Father? Throughout the week, Pope Francis shared some really powerful words with over 1.5 million Catholic youth. Here’s a collection of a few of our favorite quotes. Make sure you follow our social media pages so you don’t miss more of our favorites in the coming days!

10 Pope Francis Quotes From World Youth Day

“Dear friends, we too need a burst of light if we are to face the darkness of the night, the challenges of life, the fears that plague us, and the gloom that often overtakes us. That light, the Gospel tells us, has a name. Yes, the light that has come to illumine the world is Jesus himself (cf. Jn 1:9). He is the sun that never sets, but continues to shine even amid the darkness of the night.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023 Mass

“Curiously, the prayer of adoration – we have lost it. We…have to recover it. It’s to be in silence, before the Lord…Only before the Lord do we regain the taste and passion for evangelization.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“Whenever we feel discouraged, we can feel tempted to leave the boat and become entangled in the nets of resignation and pessimism…This is not the time to stop and give up, to drag the boat to shore, or to look back…Now is the God-given time of grace to sail boldly into the sea of evangelization and of mission.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“We become luminous, we shine, when, welcoming Jesus, we learn to love like Him. To love like Jesus: that makes us luminous, that leads us to do works of love.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“It was good what we experienced with Jesus, what we lived together, and how we prayed. But after these days, we aks ourselves: What will we take with us when we return to the valley of daily life? From the Gospel we have heard, I wan tot answer this questions with three verbs:…To shine, to listen, and, finally, not to fear.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“We, too, need light, a burst of light that is hope to face so much darkness that assails us in life. That light is Jesus, because He is the light that does not go out, the light that shines even in the night. It is Jesus that enlightens our eyes, enlightens our heart, enlightens our mind, enlightens our desire to do something in life, always with the light of the Lord.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“Close your eyes for a moment and imagine a tree, a magnificent, towering tree…How does that tree withstand the storms and winds that shake it? How does it stand firm? Because of its roots. The same thing is true for us: our roots give us solidity and stability that we need in life. They are the secret springs that water our soul. Young friends, let us always be worthy of those roots, of those gave us life, faith, and love! And let us remember that we too are called to be roots of joy for other people.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“I leave you with this thought: walk, and if you fall, get up. Walk with a purpose; train every day of your life. Let us walk in hope, look to our roots, and strive ahead fearlessly.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

“What is more, I tell you something very beautiful: It is no longer me, it is Jesus Himself who is looking at you, at this moment. He is looking at us. He knows you, He knows the heart of each one of you, He knows the life of each one of you. He knows your joys, He knows your sorrows, your successes, and your failures. He knows your hearts, and He says to you today, here, in Lisbon, at this World Youth Day, ‘Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. Take heart, do not be afraid.”

—Pope Francis | World Youth Day 2023

Photo by Barbara Provenzano on Unsplash