Logo of World Youth Day Lisbon 2023

Logo of World Youth Day Lisbon 2023

‘Mary Arose and Went with Haste’

The logo of World Youth Day Lisbon 2023 was unveiled on Friday, October 16, 2020.

The new WYD (JMJ) logo was inspired by the theme chosen by Pope Francis for the event, which will take place in Lisbon (“Mary arose and went with haste”, LC1, 39), and by the Portuguese cultural and religious features. This will be the first WYD in Portugal.

The winning logo was chosen in an international contest that was promoted by the Local Organizing Committee (LOC), with the participation of hundreds of contestants from 30 countries across the five continents.

The first analysis of the work was done by an academic team of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, which selected the 21 best suggestions. These were, then, evaluated by professionals on marketing and communication, from communication agencies in Portugal, that elected the three finalists. After this, the Dicastery for the Laity selected the winning suggestion.

The working teams, following a constant dialogue with the Holy See, are carrying on the preparation of this meeting that has been a sign of hope, unity, and solidarity for over three decades.

After releasing the logo, and still during this year, the Local Organizing Committee, together with the Portuguese dioceses, is preparing a set of actions based on the theme “Mary arose and went with haste” (Lc1, 39). These initiatives of youth mobilization will be taking place locally.

It was on the 27th January, when celebrating the WYD in Panama, that Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect for the Dicastery of the Laity, Family, and Life from the Holy See, announced that Lisbon would be the next hosting city for the event.

Previous WYDs took place in 1986, in Rome, and the WYD (JMJ) has been in the following cities since then: Buenos Aires (1987), Santiago de Compostela (1989), Czestochowa (1991), Denver (1993), Manila (1995), Paris (1997), Rome (2000), Toronto (2002), Cologne (2005), Sydney (2008), Madrid (2011), Rio de Janeiro (2013), Krakow (2016) and Panamá (2019).

The new logo of the WYD Lisbon 2023, inspired by the theme “Mary arose and went with haste” (Lc1, 39), has the Cross as a main element. This is crossed by a path where the Holy Spirit arises. It is an invitation for young people so that they do not stand still and asking them to be the main agents in building a fairer and more fraternal world. The colours (green, red, and yellow) evoke the Portuguese flag.

The passage of the Visitation is the theme of the WYD Lisbon 2023, and it reveals us that Mary was ready to live according to God’s will, being available to serve Elizabeth. This movement underlines the invitation made to the young people to renew their “inner strength, their dreams, the enthusiasm, the hope, and the gratitude” (Christus Vivit, 20).

Next to the path, there is also a shape that evokes the Holy Spirit.

The choice of the rosary celebrates the spirituality of the Portuguese people in their devotion to Our Lady of Fátima. This is placed on the path to recall the pilgrimage experience which is so remarkable in Portugal.

Mary is depicted as a young girl to represent the figure of the Gospel of Saint Luke (Lc 1, 39) and to enable a resemblance with the youngest. The drawing expresses the juvenility of her age, a characteristic of someone who was not a mother yet, but who is carrying the light of the world inside Her. This figure has a slight inclination, to show the compelled attitude of the Virgin Mary.

Beatriz Roque Antunes, a 24-year-old Portuguese designer, is the author of the WYD Lisbon 2023 logo. She studied Design in London and she is currently working on a communication agency, in Lisbon. “As the theme passage of the WYD Lisbon 2023 says, Mary doesn’t conform to and she decides to visit her cousin. That is the invitation for the young people: do not stand still, make it happen, build the world, and do not let it in someone else’s hands. We all need everybody to take the world in their hands”, says the winner of the contest that elected the WYD logo.