The Poland-wide Youth Meeting Lednica 2000 (known as Lednica) is an annual gathering of

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. Yo ...

, organized near

Gniezno Gniezno (; german: Gnesen; la, Gnesna) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. One of the Piast dynasty's chief cities, ...

in Pola Lednickie (near the Lednica lake, which is believed to be the place where the first Polish

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power i ...

, Mieszko I was baptized in 966). It is the largest regular

religious Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

youth meeting in the world (with exception of those attended by the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

). Lednica gatherings were initiated in 1997 by the Poznań-based

Dominican friar The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of Cal ...

Jan Góra. Since then, they are organized every year and always take place on the first Saturday of June. Pope

John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

sent an annual special message to participants of Lednica. This tradition was continued by his successor,

Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

. After his

papal resignation A papal renunciation ( la, renuntiatio) also called a papal abdication, occurs when the reigning pope of the Catholic Church voluntarily steps down from his position. As the reign of the pope has conventionally been from election until death, pap ...

, the tradition is continued by pope Francis.

The meetings

* 2 June 1997, (20 000 participants) – ''We have to go'' * 30 May 1998, (50 000 participants) – ''Never alone'' * 4 June 1999, (60 000 participants) – ''To see the reason'' * 10 June 2000, (70 000 participants) – ''Choose Christ!'' * 2 June 2001, (90 000 participants) – ''Duc in altum!'' * 18 May 2002, (100 000 participants) – ''Wedding in Cana of Galilee'' * 7 June 2003, (140 000 participants) – ''The talent liturgy'' * 29 May 2004, (180 000 participants) – ''Let us be caught in the net of love!'' * 4 June 2005, (150 000 participants) – ''Let us meet by the Source'' * 3 June 2006, (70 000 participants) – ''Christ is the way'' * 2 June 2007, (45 000 participants) – ''Send me'', with the presence of Cardenal Stanisław Dziwisz * 7 June 2008, (70 000 participants) – ''I called you friends!'', with the presence of Archbishop

Kazimierz Nycz Kazimierz Nycz (born 1 February 1950) is a Polish prelate of the Catholic Church who has been the Archbishop of Warsaw since 2007. He was Bishop of Koszalin-Kołobrzeg from 2004 to 2007, after serving more than fifteen years as auxiliary bishop ...

* 6 June 2009, (97 000 participants) – ''Recognize a time!'' * 5 June 2010, (80 000 participants) – ''The Gift and Mystery of Womanhood'' * 4 June 2011, (80 000 participants) – '' JP2 - Sanctity is what counts'' * 2 June 2012, (60 000 participants) – ''Love will find You!'' * 1 June 2013, (80 000Papież Franciszek do młodych na Lednicy
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/ref> participants) – ''In the name of the Father'' * 7 June 2014, (60 00018. Spotkanie Młodych Lednica 2000 z nowym prymasem Polski
participants) – ''In the name of the Son'' * 6 June 2015, (75 000 participants) – ''In the name of the Holy Spirit'' * 4 June 2016, (85 000 participants) – ''Amen'' * 3 June 2017, (90 000 participants) – ''Go and love!'' * 2 June 2018, (100 000 participants) – ''I am'' * 1 June 2019, (60 000 participants) – ''You know that I love you'' * 6 June 2020, (130 000 online participants) - ''All Yours #LednicaAtHome'' * 5 June 2021, () - ''Hear'' * 4 June 2022, (20 000 participants) - ''To the edge of the world'' * 3 June 2023, (20 000 participants) - ''Follow the Lamb''

References

External links

Official website of Lednica 2000
(English section) {{Catholic Youth Ministry Recurring events established in 1997 Christianity in Poland Catholic lay organisations Catholic youth organizations Child-related organisations in Poland