KRAKOW, Poland – The youthful face of God's mercy can change the hearts of people who have lost hope, Pope Francis said.

KRAKOW, Poland – Pope Francis held up the life of a young man who designed the World Youth Day graphics as a gift to the church.

Proudly representing our beautiful nation of Canada, my friend and I had the opportunity to perform a hip-hop routine called Project Pursuit at World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland. Inspired by Philippians 3:12-14, we sought to portray the journey that every Christian goes through in their relationship with God: messy beginnings, spiritual highs and lows and growth in our love for God as we become more receptive to His love for us.

VATICAN CITY – As Pope Francis was getting ready to head to Poland this week, he had this message for the hundreds of thousands of young pilgrims gathering there for World Youth Day.

KRAKOW, Poland – Poland's Catholic bishops spent 90 minutes meeting with Pope Francis, but the meeting was private so people could speak freely.

KRAKOW, Poland – Young people can show the world love through actions of caring and service to others in a world where even priests are not safe while celebrating Mass, said the president of Caritas Internationalis.

KRAKOW, Poland – Poland's memory and identity are the two catalysts that will lead the country forward and turn hopeless situations – such as those facing migrants – into opportunities for future generations, Pope Francis said.

KRAKOW, Poland – Jesus did not stop talking about mercy even though he was nearly thrown from a cliff after his first public talk in a Nazareth synagogue, and the rest of his life can serve as an example for people of faith to follow, Boston Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley told an energized World Youth Day audience.

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis is urging young people to have courage and enjoy life to the full, in a personal video message he sent to a Texas diocese before leaving for World Youth Day in Poland.

KRAKOW, Poland – St. John Paul II's former secretary urged young Catholics to share their faith, experiences and hopes and spread a "message of divine mercy" worldwide during World Youth Day.

As a teenager from a small town in a small province, the whole concept of World Youth Day is exciting. I get to travel to a different country, I don't have to work for a few weeks, I'll meet new people, the list goes on.

KRAKOW, Poland – Polish police have raised the official security threat level at World Youth Day in Krakow, after an Iraqi man was arrested with traces of explosives.

Cześć! Greetings from Kraków! My name is Vanessa, and I am one of the 40-odd pilgrims traveling with Jesuits Canada to World Youth Day 2016. It is not my first World Youth Day experience, but it has certainly been a very unique one so far. The spirituality of the Jesuits has been one that has resonated with me since I first learned about Ignatian contemplation, and I already had several friends traveling in the Jesuits Canada delegation, so it felt like a good fit. And thus far, I can only say that our group, made up of young adults from all over Canada, has been pretty awesome.

Canada is a place with a deep multicultural heritage. In the same way that Canada is important to those who live there, one’s ancestral home country is just as or more important. This year, my ancestral homeland, Poland, is hosting World Youth Day. As someone very connected to their heritage and religion, you can imagine why World Youth Day 2016 is so important to me.

PHILADELPHIA – It takes just over nine hours to fly from Philadelphia to John Paul II Airport in Krakow, Poland, for travellers who want to attend World Youth Day July 26-31 in that city.