The Vatican has unveiled this Friday, February 2, the details of what will be the first World Children’s Day, set to take place in Rome and globally on May 25 and 26, 2024, as desired by Pope Francis.
Pope Francis has often expressed his affection for children and the innocence they embody. Proof of this is the establishment of a day dedicated solely to them, announced last December 8 during the Sunday Angelus.
At this morning’s press briefing at the Holy See Press Office, Cardinal Tolentino de Mendonça, Prefect of the Dicastery for Culture and Education, participated and indicated that the day will be celebrated “on a universal level with headquarters in Rome and the Vatican, where various national delegations will converge, but also at the diocesan level, leaving the organization to local churches.”
The title of this festivity will be “Behold, I make all things new,” an invitation — as the cardinal specified — “to become like children, agile in welcoming the novelties brought forth by the Spirit of Christ.”
For the cardinal, “one of the extraordinary characteristics of children is their disruptive novelty,” hence he stated that “their very birth is an event, a new life arrives, a new person, a new presence so intense that it renews the identity of the people around them.”
He also noted that “the Pope wishes to meet boys and girls to listen to the Gospel that springs from them at the initial stage of life.” Additionally, at the press conference, the logo for this significant date was unveiled, featuring an image that represents colorful handprints of children, reminiscent of the typical drawings made when little ones learn to express themselves.
The various colors also represent “the multiplicity of cultures that converge in a unity that welcomes and values differences.”
A minimalist graphic line that represents the stylized profile of St. Peter’s Dome, with the cross and the lantern, can also be seen.
“The dome that embraces, welcomes, and protects the little ones” and the lantern is a metaphor for “Christians as bearers of light.” Meanwhile, the cross appears as a symbol of the passion and resurrection of the Son of God, who became man for us.
