"I feel that this is what young people should look for," he said. "To know what is the plan that God has for us in order to be able to prepare it."
"We are waiting for them with open arms," he said, explaining that he plans to prepare with a lot of prayer and community events, by trying to make his life "an example for others" and by trying "to follow the Pope gives us."
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, said WYD – which will be held in Panama Jan. 22-27, 2019 – needs to be prepared in tandem with the synod on youth "because WYD is for the youth. WYD has a history and a tradition, and now we're having the first synod on the youth."
Speaking to journalists during an April 9 meeting on synod and WYD preparations, he said that "We need to prepare with consultation from the youth," explaining that at nearly 70 years old, "I don't think like the youth do," so there is a need to speak with them as well as the priests and bishops who are closer to their reality.
And this means speaking not just with youth who are constant Church-goers, but also those who are perhaps atheists or who no longer go to Church, he said, referring to comments Pope Francis had made on this point during the prayer vigil.
Perhaps the most difficult part of preparing, he said, will be to "enter into contact with the youth, but it needs to be done (and) we need to change the system that we use." Rather than just sending out letters to bishops, Cardinal Farrell said the dicastery is looking to develop ways for youth to contribute online.
"We need to do what Pope Francis says: go out, go beyond the doors of the Church and of all the organizations" in order to reach especially those who are far off.
For his part on the diocesan level in Panama, Cardinal Lacunza said that at this point, things are already moving forward and "there's no going back."
"We remain with the task of raising awareness, to make everyone see that they should participate and that everyone can open their doors to welcome pilgrims so that no one feels like a stranger," he said, explaining that since the country is so small, part of their preparations involve asking locals to open the doors of their homes to those who come for the global event.
To have the synod on youth happen just before WYD, he said, "is another blessing from God." On the journey from Krakow to Panama "you pass through the synod," he said, explaining that for him, the synod will be an opportunity for WYD to be "even more meaningful and impactful."
While there are only a few months in between the October synod and the WYD gathering in January, Cardinal Lacunza said that "if the Pope proposed it and insists, it can be done and it will be a wonderful opportunity to deliver to WYD the result of the synod."
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Elise Harris was senior Rome correspondent for CNA from 2012 to 2018.