Like the young St Francis, on the way

On the 6th August, 2026, the final day of the Go! Franciscan Youth Meeting 2026. At the end of Mass presided over by Pope Leo XIV, the young participants received the invitation to become witnesses of the Gospel. 

Amongst the young people who will return home today, eager to continue living in their daily lives what they have experienced in these days in Assisi, there are Tobiáš, Matúš and Jozef: they are originally from Pezinok, a town 30 km from Bratislava, Slovakia. Together with their families, they attend the Monastery of the Capuchin Friars of Pezinok, which has been in the area for over 350 years. It was the Capuchins who proposed that the children participate in the event. 

Tobiáš is convinced that Franciscan values are universal and speak even to those who are far from the faith: "I know many non-believers fascinated by the figure of St. Francis and his message, sometimes even more than those who profess to be Christians" - he says - "Perhaps it is we who must keep this interest alive in them and indeed, revive it even more". 

Matúš grew up in a deeply Catholic family but believes that having an authentic relationship with God is an experience that goes beyond the education received: "There were significant moments in my life," Matúš confides, "when I thought it was really worth following the Lord and his ways. I learned it along the way, when I thought I had all the answers and instead I was only at the beginning of my journey of faith." 

Matúš hopes, once back home, to witness the beauty breathed in these days in Assisi and has enthusiastically accepted the missionary mandate, which will allow him to transform this experience into a concrete commitment in his daily life. 

Jozef is convinced that vocation is not a prerogative of religious life but concerns everyone: "I am a teacher and I think that, today, my vocation is to be a point of reference for my students. This is how it takes shape, through the choices I make every day." 

If Tobiáš, Matúš and Jozef have breathed Franciscan spirituality since childhood, for Mauro, who arrived from Treviso at the invitation of his fiancée, the journey of faith represents unexplored territory. Mauro has nevertheless decided to participate in "get outside of my borders, enlarge the tent and start to feel a little uncomfortable, even if I struggled to sleep in the gym - he confides with a smile - We think we are distant islands and divide the world into believers and non-believers, good and bad: in reality it is just an illusion."   

To the young people present at the Holy Mass, Pope Leo XIV reminded them that the figure of St. Francis is still so relevant for his "magnificent humanity". In fact, the young St Francis had the courage to abandon the path already traced by his family and by the society of his time, to undertake a new one, unknown to him, entrusting himself to the Lord. 

For the Holy Father, the "Go!" of the Meeting is in fact the mission: a road to be travelled, with no maps to guide us, but it is the breath of the Holy Spirit that propels us to move forward. 

So now, the young people are returning home open to the future and to Jesus Christ, who, as the Pontiff recalled, "He trusts you".