Young People with Disabilities and Young Prisoners To Pray The Rosary With the Pope in Fatima

Young People with Disabilities and Young Prisoners To Pray The Rosary With the Pope in Fatima

In the Little Chapel of the Apparitions, 112 young people and 128 attendants will be present.

Pope Francis will pray the Rosary in Fatima on Saturday with 98 young people with disabilities and young prisoners who, due to their situation, will not be able to attend WYD in Lisbon.

They will be joined by 14 young people with disabilities who have come to Lisbon, supported by the “Vem para o Meio” programme, an initiative of the Shrine of Fatima promoted by the house of the Silent Workers of the Cross (SOC) in Fatima.

A total of 112 young people and 128 attendants will accompany the Pope to pray the Rosary for the intention of the young people participating in WYD, for the sick and imprisoned young people, for peace and for the Pope.

In addition to 20 individual requests from young people with disabilities, there will be 10 young people from the John Paul II Support Centre for the Disabled in Fatima, 17 young people from the Fatima Rehabilitation and Integration Centre and 6 from the Good Samaritan House.

There will also be 18 young people from the Italian Association of the Silent Workers of the Cross (2 Colombians) and 19 from the Polish SOC.

Six young prisoners from the prison school in Leiria and two young collaborators of the Shrine of Fatima will complete the group that will pray with the Pope.

The Association of the Silent Workers of the Cross (SOC) in Fatima, during the months of July and August, promotes a week-long holiday programme for young people with disabilities, which also provides a period of rest for their parents and carers.

According to Sister Marta Couto, between 20 and 25 young people are welcomed each week. The “Vem para o Meio” programme also includes an invitation to young people and adults to volunteer.

PHOTOS: © Lusa | António Cotrim