Countdown to WYD begins in earnest for Vincentians!
Click read more for essential information. “We ( Preparatory Commission of the International Meeting of Vincentian Youth preparing for the XXVI World Youth Day) are writing this letter in order to communicate to you more information with regard to our preparations for the Vincentian Youth Gathering and for World Youth Day which will be celebrated in Madrid (Spain), August 12-21, 2011.”
The Vincentian Youth Gather and World Youth Day are special events that enable us to come together as Church and as the Vincentian Family and to strength our unity and sense of belonging. Therefore we encourage all the members of our large family to participate with us in both events. We hope that you will read this circular letter carefully and then confirm as soon as possible your participation in these events by filling out the enclosed forms and sending them back to us by April 1st, 2011.
The full text of this letter follows…
October 12, 2010
To the National, Provincial and Local Councils and Groups of the Vincentian Family
Dear Family:
May the grace of the Lord be always with us!
Receive this fraternal greeting from the Preparatory Commission of the International Meeting of Vincentian Youth preparing for the XXVI World Youth Day. We are writing this letter in order to communicate to you more information with regard to our preparations for the Vincentian Youth Gathering and for World Youth Day which will be celebrated in Madrid (Spain), August 12-21, 2011.
The Vincentian Youth Gather and World Youth Day are special events that enable us to come together as Church and as the Vincentian Family and to strength our unity and sense of belonging. Therefore we encourage all the members of our large family to participate with us in both events. We hope that you will read this circular letter carefully and then confirm as soon as possible your participation in these events by filling out the enclosed forms and sending them back to us by April 1st, 2011.
We offer you the following information:
1)   The International Meeting of Vincentian Youth: As has occurred on previous celebrations of World Youth Days, the Director General of the Vincentian Family, Father Gregory G. Gay has convoked an International Meeting of Youth who are members of the different branches of the Vincentian Family. This meeting will take place before the celebration of World Youth Day, that is, from August 12-15, 2011.
2)   Registration with the General Organization of World Youth Day: We have already carried out a pre-registration survey with the Vincentian Family. Because of the number of participants that we foresee we are unable to provide lodging to everyone in the same place but will be able to offer lodging to everyone (by language groupings) in places that are centrally located and near to one another.
3)   Lodging: We will be lodging the participants in the school of the Daughters of Charity that are located in Madrid (classrooms and gymnasiums). Therefore each participant will need to bring a sleeping bag. Lodging will be very simple and we hope that this will enable you to have a more profound experience of fraternity and solidarity. There will be no special lodging for priests, religious, adults or religious women who accompany the groups (except for cases of true necessity). The participants will sleep outdoors on the nights of August 20-21, 2011 (after the celebration of the Vigil) in the area called Cuatro Vientos (Four Winds).
4)   Person Responsible for the group: Every group that registers ought to have a person who will accept responsibility for the group. All communication and practical matters will be sent to this person through email. This person will be responsible for the group during the Vincentian Youth Gathering and during the activities for World Youth Day.
5)   Registration Form: We have attached a registration form and we ask that after you have read this carefully you fill this out and return it by email (jum2011fv@gmail.com before April 1st, 2011. When we have received your registration information we will assign you to a sub-group which will formalize your registration. For logistical reasons it is very important to know as soon as possible the final number of participants and the language that each participant speaks. Please be sure that the information that is sent to us is correct and accurate.
At this time we hope that your participation will be accompanied with a great spirit of service, availability, solidarity and joy, qualities that characterize us as Vincentians.
Since the activities of the Vincentian Youth Gathering and World Youth Day are planned and organized for young women and men the age of the participants should be between 16-35, but with one exception: young people between the ages of 16-18 will be admitted in the order in which the registration forms arrive and the number of young people in this age group will be limited to a total of 300 (it is understood that 16 years of age means that the individual has celebrated their 16th birthday before August 1st, 2011). There is no limit on numbers for youth between the age of 18-35.
Adults older that 35 can accompany the participants as the person responsible for the group (we estimate that there should be one adult for every 10 participants)
For those participants who are minors (16-18) it is necessary that their parents or guardians fill out the permission form that we have attached.
This gathering is open to young women and men who are studying in the schools of the Daughters of Charity and the Congregation of the Mission, as well as young women and men who are parishioners in the parishes that are administered by the Congregation of the Mission (even though these young people might not be directly involved in any branch of the Vincentian Family it is presumed that these individuals have embraced a Vincentian lifestyle).
6)   Finances: On the registration form we have provided all the information with regard to the costs of the Gathering (this cost varies depending on the country of origin). At the end of this letter we have included a classification of the countries. All payments should be made in euros and deposited in the following bank account:
Juventudes Marianas Vicencianas
Banco Santander Central Hispano (Madrid, España)
0049-4664-11-2916566058
Swift Code (BIC) BSCHESMM. IBAN: ES21
Indicate the country and the Branch of the Vincentian Family. Â For Spain, add the Canonical Province.
Once this transfer has been made we ask to inform us of this activity through email and also provide us bank receipt number, thus making it easier for us to locate your deposit. Once payment is made (before May 15th, 2011), the registration forms cannot be changed.
The Preparatory Commission of the Vincentian Youth Gathering has opted for the following ways of registration:
A. Participation in the Vincentian Gathering and World Youth Day: from Friday, August 12th in the afternoon until Monday August 22nd in the morning.
B. Participation in the Vincentian Gathering: from Friday, August 12th in the afternoon until Tuesday, August 16th in the morning.
C. Participation in World Youth Day: from Monday, August 15th in afternoon until Monday, August 22nd in the morning.
D. Participation in World Youth Day (weekend): lodging but no meals, from Friday, August 19th in the afternoon until Sunday, August 21st in the afternoon.
The Preparatory Commission recommends Modality A, which includes participation in both events (the International Meeting of Vincentian Youth and World Youth Day). The cost of registering for these events according to the modalities outlined above is the following (in the table below EJV is the Vincentian Gathering, JMJ is World Youth day).
| A | B | C | D | |
| Country | EJV + JMJ everything included … |
EJV everythingincluded |
JMJ everything included |
JMJ FINDENo meals |
| Group A | 280.00€ | 70.00€ | 220.00€ | 65.00€ |
| Group B | 223.00€ | 60.00€ | 173.00€ | 50.00€ |
| Group C | 172.00€ | 50.00€ | 132.00€ | 40.00€ |
All the options that include participation in World Youth Day have included in the cost a donation of 10 euros (this cost is included in the above table). This money represents a donation to the Solidarity Fund which facilitates the participation of young people from countries whose financial situation is most difficult. This money will be used exclusively for participation in World Youth Day and not for participation in the Vincentian Youth Gathering
Each method of registration includes lodging, food (except Modality D), accident insurance, public transportation during the Vincentian Gathering and World Youth Day, a pilgrims backpack (includes t-shit, map of Madrid, baseball cap, book of celebrations, handkerchief and other complimentary articles), free entrance into the cultural activities of the Youth Festival (concerts, expositions, visit to museums, etc) and priority access to the areas reserved for those registered for the central activities of the Vincentian Youth Gathering and World Youth Day.
7)    Vincentian Youth Festival: As in previous International Youth Gatherings we will offer the opportunity for a Vincentian Youth Festival that is open to all the participants in this gathering. This provides a wonderful opportunity to make the Vincentian Charism and the different branches of our large Vincentian Family known to young people from different parts of the world.
8)Â Â Â Visas and Insurance: We will speak more about this matter in the next circular letter.
9)Â Â Â Blog Information: We want to inform you that on the following blog
http://jmj2011famvin.99k.org you will find all the information that is included in this letter as well as information that was sent in previous letters. We recommend that you visit this site frequently to insure that you have the correct information. There also you will find links with information about World Youth Day and everything related to the Vincentian Gathering, e.g. schedules, registration forms, catechesis, circular letters and other interesting information. The blog is available in Spanish, English, French, and Portuguese.
The Preparatory Commission foresees the publication of five Vincentian catechetical lessons. We encourage you to work with your groups on the first lesson which is entitled: Prayer. On the blog you will find questions that will enable you to share your reflections with young people throughout the world.
10) Donations: For those branches (or anonymous donors) who wish to collaborate financially with the organization of this Vincentian gather we invite you to make you donations into the account mentioned earlier in this letter. The Preparatory Commission will designate these donations according to the needs that arise.
11) Practical advice:
- Each country will plan their travel to and from the events at the time that seems most opportune for them. Expenses for lodging and food while traveling to these events (for example if traveling by bus or train) is the responsibility of the group.
- We advise against traveling to Madrid by car since we are unable to offer you free parking. It is best to use public transportation such as train, bus, plane.
- Because of the way in which we have adjusted the prices for your participation in the Vincentian Gathering we cannot offer financial assistance to individuals. However we advise those participants who might have difficulty in paying for your trip to consult with and speak with the individuals responsible for the specific branch of the Vincentian Family to which you belong.
Appendix – Classification of the countries (according to the General Organizing Committee of World Youth Day).
The countries are distributed into three zones:
Countries in Zone A:
Germany, Andorra, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, Canada, South Korea, Denmark (includes Greenland and Faroe Islands), United Arab Emirates, Spain, United States (includes Guam), Finland, France, Holland, Hong Kong (China), Iceland, Caiman Islands, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lichtenstein, Luxemburg, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Monaco, Qatar, United Kingdom (includes, Gibraltar, Jersey Islands, Man, Guernsey, Falkland and dependents), San Marino, Singapore, Switzerland, Sweden.
Countries in Zone B:
Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, Dutch Antilles, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Brazil, Brunei, Â Darussalam, Chile, China, Cypress, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Greece, Guadalupe, Mariana Islands, Mauritius Island, Turks and Caicos Islands, Hungry, Virgin Islands (US), Israel, Kuwait, Macao (China), Malaysia, Malta, Martinique, Mexico, New Caledonia, Puerto Rico, Czech Republic, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Pierre and Miquelon (fr.), Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago.
Countries in Zone C
Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Algiers, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belize, Bierlorrusia, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Botswana Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cape Verde, CambodÃa, Cameron, Chad, Colombia, North Korea, Comoros, Congo Republic, Costa Rica, Ivory Coast, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Micronesia Federation, Philippines, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Granada, Guatemala, Guinea-Conakry, Guinea-Bissau, Equitorial Guinea, Guyana, French Guyana (Fr.), Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Cook Islands, Maldives Islands, Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Reunion Island, Iraq, Iran, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kirobati,  Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Letonia, Lebanon. Libya, Liberia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Maldives Islands, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mayotte, Moldova, Mongolia, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Palestine, French Polynesia, Peru, Republic of Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominican Republic, Rumania, Russia, Rwanda, Samoa, Saint Helena and Dependencies (UK), Saint Thomas and Prince Island, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Syria, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, St. Vincnet and the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Thailand, Tajikistan, Tanzania, East Timor, Togo, Takelau, Tonga, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Ukraine, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Wallis and Futuna Islands, Yemen, Yibuti, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
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