Address at the end of ACYF Final Mass
Melbourne Convention Centre, 2 December 2025
Over these days something powerful has been moving among you. The hunger for God, the courage to seek Him, the joy in finding Him have been tangible—unmistakable signs of the Holy Spirit at work in this country.
More than a feeling, an enthusiasm, an experience: something is being awakened in our Church, in our land. Your presence, faith, friendship, passion, worship: all testify to your faith, they show that God is raising up this generation to lead with hope.
So I’m here, first, on your behalf, to thank Archbishop Comensoli and the Church of Melbourne for hosting us for this beautiful festival of faith, of hope, of love. Didn’t they do so well! So well by us, so well by God!
And I’m here to invite you to the next ACYF, in Sydney 2028, when it will be a crucial strand of the International Eucharistic Congress. If there are 6,000 here for this festival, multiply that in your imagination by ten, to 60,000, then multiply that by ten more, to 600,000: how’s that for a goal?! We need each of you to be there and to each bring just a hundred of your closest friends!
Everything you experienced this morning at Adoration, this afternoon at Mass, throughout our days together—the faith & idealism, the meaning & purpose, the closeness to each other & to God—all flows from one source: Jesus Christ. And He is most intimate with us in His Eucharist.
The Eucharist is not just a symbol. It is an encounter with the living Christ. His flesh and blood. His body and soul. His humanity and divinity. Everything He is: really present, all for you. Our friend Pope Leo chose as the theme for our 2028 Congress from Jesus’ words at the Last and First Supper: “This is my body, given for you.”
That gift is personal. It is for you—and the hundred closest friends and relatives you bring with you to the IEC. In the years of preparation there will be many things for you online, in your parishes, dioceses and groups, to help get you ready. Pray, pray, above all pray for the Congress and its fruits. And take part in the catechesis and adoration and processions and the rest in your local church in the next 33 months.
And get ready for a wonderful week of celebration with Pope Leo, pastors and faithful from all around the country, Oceania and the world, but above all with our Eucharistic Lord.
What God has begun in you in these days at ACYF must not fade. Carry this fire home. Share it with your families, your friends, your peers at school or university, your world. Let these days of ACYF Melbourne be the start of something beautiful in you, not the end.
I’m so looking forward to seeing you all in Sydney! Get ready for the spiritual ride of a lifetime at the ACYF and International Eucharistic Congress in Sydney in 2028!