Young Dutch people visit the Pope in Brussels

It is not a cathedral or a large church, but a football stadium is the setting for the mass that Pope Francis will celebrate in Brussels on Sunday morning. Many Dutch people go to the Belgian capital to experience this special moment in the King Baudouin Stadium. The last papal visit to Belgium was in 1995, John Paul II visited the Netherlands ten years earlier.

Lisanne de Bruijn is one of the fifty young people in Brussels from Young Catholic, an initiative of the Catholic Church of the Netherlands. “The Pope travels a lot outside of Europe, so the fact that he is coming here is very special,” explained the 19-year-old medical student.

The group left Utrecht on Saturday morning with a full bus. That same evening, many things were organized for young Catholic people in Brussels. Under the name Hope happens they could attend a concert, lectures by Catholic leaders and take part in a walking tour.

But Sunday morning mass is the ultimate destination according to De Bruijn: “It really makes seeing the Pope very special.” Moreover, she finds it amazing to experience this with so many. of peers. “I’m going there with a good friend, but I’m especially hoping to meet a lot of new people.”

Zaklina Melis is a project director at Young Catholic and enthusiastic about the arrival of the Pope in Belgium. “These kinds of visits show that the church also gives many wonderful things to young people. You see that they are still searching and that is very good to experience together.”

She didn’t have to think long on the question of whether she should go to Brussels with the group: “Of course you can always go to Rome, but Brussels is so close to home. ” Melis explains that the group is mixed. “The youngest partner is twelve years old and the oldest is thirty.”

The fifty young people are not the only Dutch people who attend the mass. “All the dioceses were interested in going here with believers. In total we are going there with a group of about 250 Dutch people, and many people will also come alone, of course,” Melis said.

She prefers to focus on the younger generation: “I look forward to seeing how God will make these young people think when they see the Pope.”

Not only is it popular among the general public among the Dutch. According to the Belgian broadcaster VRT Catholics from France and Germany also come to the stadium. Of course, there are many Belgian visitors in the majority. The 35,000 tickets available were quickly used up. They could order for free from the Ticketmaster ticket website. The mass was fully booked within one morning, reports VRT.

During the previous papal visit, the atmosphere was very different. History program Other Times It was once called ‘a disaster’ when Pope John Paul II came to the Netherlands in the 1980s. During that visit, several exhibitions and public sections were empty when the Pope arrived at the airport. Moreover, it became a protest song Poppy Poppypun on the name of the pope at the time, he played a lot.

The images of the riots in the Netherlands went around the world:

But De Bruijn is proud of her faith: “It is special to be Catholic at this age. I hear from friends that they can see that it gives me a lot of peace and joy.” So the Pope has a special place for the 19-year-old. “It really symbolizes the unity of the church. In such a majority, Jesus is much more visible and you can build a strong bond with him.”

In her environment, De Bruijn sees that interest in the Catholic faith among her peers is also increasing: “Last Easter, two of my friends were baptized in Rome. I realizing that more people are looking for meaning these days.”

This morning’s mass is the conclusion of the pope’s trip to Belgium, after which he returns to Rome from Melsbroek air base.