Iconic Polish Catholic youth meeting that gathers thousands cut short by massive storm

(OSV News) -- Over 20,000 young people were evacuated June 7 from Lednica in northwestern Poland after a massive storm hit the iconic youth meeting. The prayer was interrupted "by the weather, not the Holy Spirit," participants said.

Heavy rain, impetuous winds and lightning made it impossible to continue the program of one of the largest evangelization events in Central and Eastern Europe.

The Lednica meetings, which have been held since 1997, are the spiritual legacy of World Youth Day 1991 in Czestochowa. They were initiated by Dominican Father Jan Góra, who for almost two decades personally gathered young people from all over Poland under a gigantic gate shaped in the symbol of the fish -- the sign of Christ. The legacy of the meetings continued after his 2015 death.

The island on Lake Lednica, near Gniezno, is mentioned among the places where Mieszko I, the first ruler of Poland, may have been baptized in 966, marking the beginning of Polish statehood. The symbolism of this place and the participants' passage through the symbolic fish-shaped "Gate of the Third Millennium" is a personal act of entrusting oneself to Christ.

The event focuses on prayer, singing and conferences, and is an opportunity to participate in the sacraments.

The June 7 meeting was organized under the theme of a personal motto of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati -- "Verso l'alto," or "to the heights."

Dubbed the "Man of the Beatitudes" by St. John Paul II, Frassati -- born in Turin in 1901 to an influential family -- began receiving daily Communion at a young age, while serving the poor through the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and evangelizing his friends.

A lay Dominican, Frassati also participated in demonstrations to defend his faith against the Communist and Fascist parties in Italy. His passion for outdoor activities such as mountaineering has made him a patron of athletes. Frassati died in 1925 at age 24, having contracted polio, which doctors speculated he may have contracted from serving the sick.

A coffin with his body was flown to Lednica for the June 7 meeting, marking a special occasion to pray to Frassati two months before his Aug. 3 canonization in the Vatican.

Bishop Artur Wazny of Sosnowiec was out on the Lednica field praying with youth when the storm came.

"When the relics of Pier Giorgio Frasatti were brought in, we began to pray together with two young people. Then the storm came. Now I see those moments differently -- the theme of this year's Lednica was 'to the heights.' ... The highest and most difficult paths are usually traveled alone. This is an invitation to young people: go! Go upward," even in the midst of difficulties, Bishop Wazny told OSV News.

After the prayer by Bishop Wazny was interrupted for security reasons, most of the participants returned to the buses, while some took shelter in a large tent hall.

The relics of saints and blesseds, which had accompanied the participants throughout the day, including Frassati's coffin, were also secured and moved from the gigantic open meeting field.

But despite the evacuation, the atmosphere of spiritual unity remained -- participants spontaneously continued to pray in buses and tents. In many places, the rosary was recited, Lednica songs were sung, and testimonies were shared.

"When the Lednica fields were evacuated, we invited young people ... to participate in the holy Mass, which was to take place in the retreat house. The chapel is upstairs, and looking at these young people, I thought: yes, upwards! Now we are going upstairs to the chapel to experience the most sacred time together. I see these young people willing to take on challenges -- always upwards, to the heights! I am grateful to them for their commitment," Archbishop Zbigniew Zielinski of Poznan told OSV News.

After moving to the safety of the chapel, Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Zielinski with Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe, a British Dominican elevated to cardinalate by Pope Francis during his last Dec. 7 consistory, preaching the homily.

"Our society is obsessed with safety, and we are tempted not to take risks," Cardinal Radcliffe said. "But if you don't take risks, you won't experience love. Jesus says in today's Gospel: Whoever is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Don't settle for a little love. Thank God for your love for your family and friends and ask for more, for love without limits," said Cardinal Radcliffe.

"Climbing a mountain is defying gravity," he said, referring to the Frassati-inspired theme of the meeting. "And we like to defy gravity because we have a tremendous desire to transcend limitations. And the most difficult force of gravity to overcome is the force of one's own self. This can only be achieved with God's grace," said the cardinal.

Although the main celebration had to be interrupted, many participants left Lednica with a deep sense of spiritual experience. The organizers have already announced the continuation of the meetings in the coming years, and many dioceses have begun organizing "Lednica on the road" initiative -- community events continuing the spirit of the meeting.