We encourage groups to participate in pilgrimages with their bishop or diocese or eparchy.
When this is not possible, we are happy to welcome your group as part of the Mission Jeunesse MTL delegation of the Archdiocese of Montreal.
To register with the Mission Jeunesse MTL delegation, simply follow the same procedure.
If you are a representative of your dioces or Eparchy who coordinates the participation of several groups from your diocese but does not travel, you must appoint a leader for each group. You will be put in CC in all communications concerning group leaders.

Each pilgrimage group must have a PILGRIMAGE GROUP LEADERSHIP TEAM. This team ensures the internal group coordination, at the service of pilgrims.

We strongly encourage young adults (20-35 years old) to take an important responsibility in their pilgrimage group. Young people are an integral part of our Church-Body of Christ and of Society. It is therefore important to encourage them and to concretely propose that they be involved in both, the organization of local activities and in large-scaled projects.

Get in touch with young people through various networks:
parishes, CEGEPs, universities or movements.
Introduce the project to your Christian community.
Invite members of the Christian community to talk about the project to young people in their families.
Organize an information session about the pilgrimage and invite one or more young people (the dynamic is better together) who have already taken part in a similar pilgrimage to share their experience.
If you’ve already been on a pilgrimage, share your experience! Don’t just talk about the pilgrimage. Be living witnesses to the graces you received. Let your inner joy inspire young adults to attend an information session!

The aim of this session is to inform potential pilgrims and invite them to discern their participation in the pilgrimage. Pilgrimages can be a great faith experience for these young people. The desire to take part in a pilgrimage must come from the pilgrim personally. You who invite young people can accompany them in this discernment process. It’s important to emphasize that the pilgrimage begins even before the decision to join.

The content of this meeting should include the following elements:

• Background and history of the proposed pilgrimage
• Proposed spiritual preparation
• Presentation of packages
• Testimonials from young people who have taken part in other pilgrimages
• Responsibilities of the group, young people and group leaders
• Technical information
• Approximate budget
• Meetings to be organized with group leaders

Whatever means of information you use, it’s important to give a realistic presentation of the project, so that each young person knows what he or she is committing to.

In addition to the information session, a discernment evening or retreat can help young people discern their participation in the pilgrimage.
The pilgrimage experience is lived not only by those who go, but also by the whole community, which supports them through prayer and financial support. We suggest that you invite various members of your community to get involved in leading or coordinating this session. This is a great opportunity to involve young adults who have participated in past pilgrimages.
In addition to the elements of an information evening, this session can include:
Animated prayer moments
Animation on the themes covered
Presence and testimonies of young adults who have participated in past pilgrimages, etc.

On the other hand, you need to be discerning before inviting someone. A pilgrimage is demanding on many levels, and you need to make sure that the person you invite is well-balanced, mature and with a good spirit of faith and communion.
Plan
Personal meeting to clarify the commitment.
Ask the person to write a letter of motivation that personally expresses and explains their desire and what motivates them to take part in the pilgrimage.
Introduce the pilgrim’s profile and responsibilities.
Introduce the group’s Service Teams.
Sign a contract between the pilgrim and the movement (or group). Both parties agree to respect the instructions for the success of the project.
Keep the letter and contract on file for the duration of the pilgrimage. In the event of a problem, refer to these two documents.

Choosing your package is an important step in preparing for your pilgrimage. The Mission Jeunesse MTL coordination team suggests the following criteria for choosing your package:
It is strongly recommended that the choice of package be approved not only by the group leader and the pilgrims who will be traveling, but also by the community, which encourages this project through prayer and financial support.
If you want to ensure that all the pilgrims in your group travel and stay together: You must choose a common package for the whole group. All pilgrims in your group must register and submit their 1st registration payment at the same time.

On international pilgrimages, certain services will be assigned according to the language indicated in the group’s registration. It is therefore important to choose either FRENCH or ENGLISH for your group, even if your group communicates bilingually internally.

A major part of the pilgrimage is an experience of communion and fellowship. To make the pilgrimage more enjoyable, the Mission Jeunesse MTL coordinating team suggests groups of 10 pilgrims or less.
We strongly recommend that large groups form sub-groups of 10 pilgrims or less, with assistants to help the group leader. They can register as a single group, choose the same package, and travel together, but once they arrive at the pilgrimage site, the coordination and experience in small sub-groups will be more enjoyable.