A group of 17 young Bangladeshis travelled to Portugal for WYD but also on a journey to discover the land and the roots of their faith, to be proclaimed back home. In Fatima this morning, Pope Francis described the Church as a “mother”, noting that Our Lady is “in a hurry” to be close to us.

Fatima (AsiaNews) – Portugal is the land where young people have come from all over the world to experience the life “they live today” thanks to Pope Francis’s call; for Bangladeshis, it is also c the “motherland" of the Christian faith.

The group from the South Asian country is fully involved in the activities underway for the 37th World Youth Day, from 2 to 6 August, in Lisbon, led by Fr Cizar Costa, a young priest, who spoke to the Catholic weekly Pratibeshi about the value of this experience.

"From Portugal we got our faith,” the clergyman explained. “This is why we can say that this land is the motherland of our religion. [Portuguese] missionaries came to our country to proclaim the Gospel" and "we pay tribute to them” here.

From the explorer Vasco da Gama to the first missionaries, Portugal played a crucial role in the spread of the faith in the Indies between the late 15th and the early 16th centuries.

Today in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country, Christians number around one million, half of them Catholics.

A youth leader in the Archdiocese of Dhaka, Fr Costa hopes the WYD in Lisbon can provide an opportunity to "strengthen" the faith.

Bikash Rebeiro, a youth commission coordinator, heads the delegation; he explains that "24 young people asked if they could participate" but "we got visas for 17”.

This is "a pilgrimage of faith. Our young people have come to gain a missionary spirit; after returning to Bangladesh, they will be able to preach” the Gospel “to other people" and better understand “the meaning of life”.

One youth said he was "moved" by the love and respect he felt for Francis. "We saw the pope up close and we listened to his inspiring words [...]. I shall take his message to the youth in Bangladesh."

For his part, the pontiff this morning travelled to Fatima, the land of Mary’s apparitions, where he recited the Rosary with young people, along with a group of sick people and prison inmates to whom he gave a golden chaplet with the Virgin.

Francis spent some time in silent reflection before Our Lady, accompanied by prayer and (at times) the applause of the crowd, with a final greeting to a group of sick people. In the evening, he is scheduled to hold a vigil and pray with young people at Parque Tejo.

For the pope, Fatima is associated with the quest of peace, an issue that is dear to his heart. He has repeatedly called for an end to what he calls a piecemeal World War III, in particular the war in Ukraine.

In an interview with the Spanish weekly Vida Nueva, published yesterday, the pope said the he was appointing a "permanent representative” to act as a bridge between Moscow and Kyiv.

He also renewed his support for Card Matteo Zuppi, archbishop of Bologna, expected to travel shortly to Washington - and perhaps soon Beijing - to mediate peace.

Francis also announced plans for a peace summit with world religious leaders in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, ahead of the UN climate summit.

In Fatima, at the end of the silent prayer before Our Lady and the recitation of the Rosary, the pope underlined how the chapel of the Virgin offers a "beautiful image" of the " Church: welcoming, without doors.”

The Church is "the mother's house,” facilitating the encounter with God because “a mother's heart is always open to all her children,” while the pilgrimage represents the “Marian trait" that connects "the mysteries” prayed in the Rosary.

Putting aside his prepared speech, as he did yesterday, Francis spoke more about Mary's presence and "vocation" with respect to problems, illness, and hardship.

“Every time there is a problem, every time we invoke her, she does not delay. She comes. She hurries. Our Lady in a hurry,” he said.

Mary “accompanies the life of Jesus, and does not hide after the Resurrection. She accompanies the disciples, waiting for the Holy Spirit and accompanies the Church that begins to grow after Pentecost. Our Lady is in a hurry and our Lady who accompanies. She always accompanies. She is never the protagonist. [. . .] she points to Jesus. And she does this in a bit of a hurry.”

Our Lady “made herself present in a special way. So that the unbelieving hearts of so many would be opened to Jesus. [. . .] Today I would like us to look at the image of Mary and each one of us to think about what Mary is saying to me.”

Calling for a moment of silence, the pontiff urged those present to turn to Our Lady to know what she wants from each of us, “What is there in my life that concerns you? What is there in my life that moves you? What is there in my life that interests you?”

Finally, “let us feel today the presence of Mary, our mother. The mother who always looks at what Jesus tells her. She points us to Jesus. The mother who tells Jesus to do what people are asking of Him. That is Mary. That is our mother. Our Lady in a hurry to be close to us. May she bless us all.”

(Sumon Corraya contributed to this article)

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• lisbon
• fatima
• vatican
• pope francis
• world youth day
• peace
• war
• our lady