Asian Cardinals Highlight Hopes, Challenges, and Opportunities Ahead of World Youth Day 2027 in South Korea

Asian Church leaders expressed excitement, hopes, and concerns for the upcoming World Youth Day (WYD) 2027, to be hosted in Seoul, South Korea, the first time the global gathering will be held in East Asia. The reflections were shared during a press conference of the Great Pilgrimage of Hope in Penang, coordinated by Daniel Roy, Head of the Social Communications Office of the Diocese of Penang.

Four cardinals, Cardinal Philip Neri, Cardinal Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, Cardinal Pablo Virgilio “Ambo” David, and Cardinal Sebastian Francis, offered distinct perspectives on how WYD 2027 can shape the spiritual and cultural landscape of young Catholics across Asia.

“Youth are the Present of the Church” – Cardinal Philip Neri

Cardinal Philip Neri, FABC President,  emphasized the immense significance of WYD 2027 for Asia’s Church, especially as young Catholics prepare across different countries. One symbolic preparation already underway is the pilgrimage of the WYD Cross, which is traveling from nation to nation to ignite prayer and enthusiasm.

“This cross is going around precisely to get the youth ready,” he said. “Youth are not only the hope of the Church, not only the future—they are the present.”

While acknowledging that concrete preparation programs vary and some details are not yet fully visible at the local level, Cardinal Neri stressed that the momentum has begun. He expressed hope that more structured pastoral formation and spiritual activities would be established as 2027 approaches.

“A Global Gathering Rooted in Asian Culture” – Cardinal Kikuchi

For Cardinal Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi of Japan, hosting WYD in a minority-Catholic country like Korea is an extraordinary opportunity for engagement through culture, hospitality, and joy.

Reflecting on his recent participation in the Jubilee of Youth in Rome, Cardinal Kikuchi noted how Asian youth excel in creative expressions, music, dance, and cultural performances, that draw not only committed Catholics, but nominal believers and even non-Christians. “In Rome, youth from Asia organized events full of music and dancing, and young people from all over the world joined in,” he recalled. “This is the beauty of youth gatherings, they attract everyone.”

He believes Korea, with its growing Catholic population and vibrant cultural scene, will be able to welcome diverse young people not only from Asia but from across the world. “For those of us in countries where Catholics are a tiny minority, Japan, Thailand, etc., WYD in Korea is a moment to show our presence, our joy, and our identity,” he added.

Korean Storytelling – Cardinal Ambo David

Cardinal Ambo David offered a cultural and theological perspective, highlighting how Korea’s global storytelling power, especially through film and dramas, already transmits Gospel values in subtle but profound ways.

“Koreans are known for being good storytellers,” he said. “Their films and telenovelas show unconditional love, sacrifice, compassion, and solidarity. They share the gospel without preaching.”

As a Bible scholar, Cardinal David drew connections between Korean creativity and the tradition of imaginative storytelling in Scripture. He emphasized that the youth of today learn and connect through stories, visuals, and shared narratives.

He pointed to projects like The Chosen, a dramatization of the life of Jesus, as examples of how storytelling can bring the Gospel alive for new generations.

“When you engage imagination, people begin to feel they belong,” he said. “That sense of belonging, communion, leads to participation and sharing of the good news.”

For him, WYD 2027 presents an opportunity for Asia to tell its own stories of Jesus, human, compassionate, close to the people, and to share them with the world.

A Witness of Hope Amid Demographic Decline, Cardinal Sebastian Francis

Cardinal Sebastian Francis highlighted a demographic dimension often overlooked. Many East Asian countries hosting or sending pilgrims to WYD, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and China, are experiencing drastic declines in birth rates.

“Korea and Japan are seeing birthrates go down, down, down,” he said. “To have millions of young people gathered in Korea will be a powerful witness.”

“We need children, otherwise there is no future,” the cardinal declared.

He shared that 300 youth from just one parish in Rome, the parish assigned to him as a Cardinal, are already preparing to travel to Korea. After WYD, many of them will come to Penang for rest and pilgrimage, echoing the growing East–West connections among youth.

“What we will see in 2027 is a living sign that the Church is young,” he said. “A reminder that Asia must continue nurturing and valuing its young people.”

A Moment of Encounter for Asia and the World

As the Great Pilgrimage of Hope continues in Penang, the reflections of the Asian cardinals reveal a shared conviction: World Youth Day 2027 is more than an event, it is an encounter, a cultural celebration, an act of storytelling, and a prophetic sign of hope.

For Asia, where cultures, religions, and youth dynamics are uniquely diverse, Seoul 2027 stands as a pivotal moment, one that could shape the future of the Church across the continent and beyond.