DUBLIN – The 9th World Meeting of Families is taking place from 21 to 26 August, 2018, in Dublin, Ireland guided by the theme “The Gospel of the Family: Joy for the World.” On Sunday, 26 August 2018, Pope Francis will close the meeting with a solemn Eucharistic celebration that will gather thousands of people from Ireland and all over the world.
The WMOF 2018 program includes a conference where participants will reflect on the theme chosen for the meeting, entitled “The Gospel of the Family: Joy for the World” and will include an enriching main program for adults of keynote speaker, workshops, talks, testimonies and discussions; an engaging and exciting program for young people as well as fun activities for children. The Congress will also include daily celebration of Eucharist, prayerful activities, exhibitions, cultural events and music performance.
On Saturday, 25 August, a Festival for Families will be held, compromising a special concert style event. Bishop Boulos Marcuzzo, patriarchal vicar for Jerusalem and Palestine and the coordinator for the Assembly of Ordinaries for Families, is participating in the meeting with families coming from Nazareth, while families from the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Jordan could not be present, due to problems obtaining travel visas. Moreover, the meeting has coincided with the opening of a new academic school year 2018-2019.
Also participating in this event is Sr. Bridget Tighe, Executive Director of Caritas Jerusalem, where she will present her role in Faith, Family and Development, the witness of women in leadership.
The World Meeting of Families started in 1994, when Pope St. John Paul II asked the Pontifical Council for the Family to establish an international event of prayer, catechesis and celebration that would draw participants from around the globe and that would help to strengthen the bonds between families and bear witness to the crucial importance of marriage and the family to all of the society.
