An Invitation from a Pope

The summer of 2000 was an explosion of faith exploration for me. In the midst of this Jubilee Year, I studied on a Catholic Apologetics course, I spent time in Lourdes on pilgrimage with family and friends, I travelled with other young pilgrims to Rome for World Youth Day  – and it’s there that I encountered Pope John Paul II for the first time in real life.

It’s a strange thing to look back on, but I remember feeling so unexpectedly moved as he spoke to the millions of young people gathered. In spite of the crowds, his fatherly and loving invitation for each of us to encounter Jesus felt personal, and so inspiring that I wanted to act. He had said:

Young people of every continent, do not be afraid to be the saints of the new millennium!

Message of the Holy Father on the Occasion of the 15th World Youth Day

At 18 years old, I didn’t fully know what this would mean, but I knew viscerally that I wanted to respond to his invitation. I think it was probably at this point that I began to explore the lives of the saints more intentionally, discovering that when they offered the ‘ordinary’ of their lives to God, extraordinary things began to happen.

My Second Encounter with Pope John Paul II

A few years later, I found myself back in Rome with friends and in the cool November sun, it was clear that Pope John Paul II’s health had significantly declined. He struggled through the text of his Wednesday Audience, and then I remember vividly him taking a huge intake of breath as he raised his hand to give the blessing at the end. He was ill. He could have delegated. But we mattered to him. That personal connection was made again between a crowd and this holy man.

Intercession of the Saints

After witnessing to the world what it looks like to die with dignity and hope in spite of illness and suffering, Pope John Paul II died in April 2005. His beautiful witness inspired me to ask him for his intercession, particularly for my dad who had Multiple Sclerosis and for me as I discerned my vocation during my university years and beyond.

I actually believe it’s through his intercession that I ended up marrying my husband! Therefore it was a great joy to visit Pope John Paul II’s tomb in our first year of marriage to ask for his continued intercession.

Encouraging the Next Generation to Be Inspired By the Saints

It’s particularly these personal encounters with the now St Pope John Paul II that have fuelled my desire to create new resources inspired by the lives of saints.

For many schools, finding time and confidence to plan meaningful prayer and liturgy can be a challenge. Our new Journeying Together: Unstoppable resources offer ready-made, high-quality materials that enable staff and students alike to participate in authentic prayer experiences.

I believe that through these resources students will be inspired by the lives of St Pier Giorgio Frassati, Blessed Chiara Luce Badano and St Carlo Acutis. My hope is that through these saints they will encounter more deeply the love of Jesus, so that maybe they too will consider the invitation of St Pope John Paul II to become ‘saints of the new millennium’!

What’s Included?

Journeying Together: Unstoppable

  • This is Ten Ten’s new subscription-based Prayer & Liturgy programme for Catholic secondary schools.
  • It features six assemblies, each centred on a modern saint (St Pier Giorgio Frassati; St Carlo Acutis; Bl. Chiara Luce Badano), paired with a virtue, varied prayer styles, opportunities for student leadership, and guidance for use.
  • The subscription for 2025-26 will also include the Jubilee Journey assemblies. Though originally released for the Jubilee Year, these will be adapted for continued use beyond the Jubilee.

Primary School subscriber?

Did you know that the Content Library in your Prayer and Liturgy: Loving Jesus subscription contains resources on saints? Check out the latest resource celebrating St John Henry Newman being declared a Doctor of the Church.

On 1st November 2025, Pope Leo XIV officially proclaimed the English saint, St John Henry Newman, a Doctor of the Church. This title acknowledges the saint’s great contribution to the Christian understanding of God and the teaching of the Church.

Inspired by St John Henry Newman’s life and prayers, children are invited to have a heart to heart with God in prayer and reflect on how they can be ‘a link in a chain’ spreading God’s love like a beautiful fragrance.