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(Originally published by the Catholic Peace Broadcasting Corporation on October 13, 2025. Reposted with permission.)

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【Seoul, KOREA】 “I hope the prayer includes Scripture passages like, ‘I have overcome the world.’”

“What if we added words that could bring comfort and hope to non-believers as well?”

These were among the voices heard on September 28 at the St. Imbert Center, where priests, religious people, and young people gathered to review a draft prayer projected on a screen. Their task: to help compose the official prayer for the 2027 Seoul World Youth Day (WYD), which young Catholics worldwide will recite together. Some offered single phrases, others entire paragraphs. But all were united in the desire to create a prayer that would console and inspire.

The scene was part of the two-day “2027 Seoul WYD Official Prayer Preparation Retreat,” held September 27–28. About 70 people—priests, religious, and young volunteers from dioceses and religious orders across Korea—took part, joined by young Catholics from the Philippines, Vietnam, Nigeria, Argentina, Nicaragua, and Venezuela now living in Korea. Their participation ensured the work reflected voices beyond national boundaries. Organizers stressed that this was more than a drafting session: it was a lived practice of what it means to be “a Church that walks together.”

The drafting process began with each participant composing an individual prayer. These were then shared in ten small synodal groups, which produced collective drafts. The groups' contributions were brought together in a plenary session, where participants debated, refined, and ultimately shaped a single draft prayer. Throughout the retreat, they sought guidance in Eucharistic adoration, the Liturgy of the Word, and Lectio Divina.

The resulting draft was offered at the retreat's closing Mass, concelebrated by priests from dioceses and religious orders nationwide. It will serve as the foundation for the official 2027 WYD prayer, which will undergo further revisions and approval by the Holy See. Pope Leo XIV is expected to announce the final text by the end of this year.

“This kind of gathering with young people—listening to their voices and their diverse opinions—is not easy,” said Father Lee Hee-cheon, director of the Seoul Archdiocese WYD Pastoral Office, who oversaw the retreat. “But it is essential if we are to grow as a synodal Church. It was also an opportunity to move beyond the perspective of the Korean Church alone and incorporate a wider range of voices.”

For participants, the process itself was as meaningful as the outcome. “Working groups from dioceses and religious orders around the country came together, listened, and created a prayer with a shared intention,” said Park So-yoon (Sabina), a Salesian volunteer. “Though our realities differ, it was a moment to reaffirm that we are all striving toward the same goal.”