BRAINTREE -- Christian Norena never expected that a "kid from Revere" like him would be in the presence of the pope.

Christian, 17, joined over a million young pilgrims at a Mass celebrated by Pope Leo XIV on Aug. 3, concluding the Jubilee of Youth as part of the Jubilee Year of 2025.

"It just goes to show that God wanted me here," Christian said. "I still can't believe it."

Hundreds of pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Boston journeyed to Rome for the Jubilee, which took place from July 28 to Aug. 3. On the night of Aug. 2, pilgrims from throughout the world attended an outdoor evening prayer service with Pope Leo in Rome's Tor Vergata neighborhood.

Christian and fellow pilgrims from Immaculate Conception Parish and School in Revere walked around the campus, dubbed "Catholic Woodstock" by the media, signing t-shirts and trading bracelets with other pilgrims. The group was led by former pastor Father Wellington Oliveira and Immaculate Conception School Principal Donis Tracy.

"It was pretty surreal to see all these differences -- all the different languages, the different cultures," Christian said.

He said he talked basketball with a group of Irish pilgrims and was offered cookies by a group of Argentinian pilgrims.

"I found it really impactful how everyone celebrates their faith differently, and how willing they were to interact and how friendly they were," he said.

Christian is used to sleeping in a bed, so sleeping under the stars with a million other young people as they awaited the pope's arrival the next morning was a new experience for him.

"That's powerful," he said. "All these people, present together."

When the music turned off at night, the sea of pilgrims was completely quiet.

"I got to actually talk to God, pray during the night," he said.

When the pope arrived for Mass at Tor Vergata, 22-year-old Rosa Molina of Revere saw him bring together people representing hundreds of countries, languages, and points of view.

"Especially in this time where there's so many divisions, we all gather for one reason, to pray to God," she said. "In one faith, united in love. That's how the world should be. It should be so easy to get along."

She said she was amazed to see the pope in person, after so many years of only seeing popes on a television screen.

"Just seeing him, through his look, you can see how humble he is, how he represents God's love," she said, adding: "You can feel the love of God through him."

Molina said she went on the pilgrimage because she wanted to be more committed to her faith. She attends Mass every Sunday, but she is often distracted from God by her work.

"I wanted to get very close to God," she said. "I feel like spending two weeks fully dedicated to God was really good for me."

Allan Martinez, also from Revere, went on the pilgrimage to "rekindle" his relationship with God.

"It made me spiritually involved," the 20-year-old said.

He enjoyed seeing Rome's grand churches and exploring the tombs of the saints.

"It's been beautiful," he said. "I see a lot of the rich history, the culture."

On the pilgrimage, he said he realized that God has always been with him, even if he didn't realize it.

"Being able to see the pope and celebrate Mass with him really helped me in my spiritual journey," he said.

Father Carlos Flor, pastor of the Catholic Parishes of Jamaica Plain, led another group of pilgrims from the communities of the Neocatechumenal Way from Revere and Marlborough.

"It's been a source of great consolation and joy not just for me as a priest, but also seeing the joy and experience of these young men and women who have regained lots of hope," Father Flor said.

Among the sites his group visited was the basilica that houses the incorrupt body of St. Rita in Cascia, Italy. There, 20-year-old Melissa Gallego prayed for St. Rita's intercession so that she may follow God's will and be "super happy" doing so.

"You never know what the will of God is for you," she said, adding: "For me, to accept the will of God was very difficult, but when I went to St. Rita, it allowed me to have a lot of peace in my heart."

She said it was "super amazing" to see Pope Leo XIV.

"It was really beautiful seeing him because he was able to incorporate English, Spanish, and Italian, and he spoke a lot to the youth," she said.

Gabryel Rodrigues of the Neocatechumenal community of Revere said that he went on the pilgrimage because he felt "lazy, when it comes to the word of God."

"I was looking for the grace of being a Christian man, and I definitely have seen it through this pilgrimage," he said.

He visited Rome with Luisa, his girlfriend of two years. The pilgrimage made Rodrigues realize that God was calling the two to be married. At first, Rodrigues was discerning the priesthood and his girlfriend was discerning religious life.

"Before this pilgrimage, we obviously had tough times, questioning if God really meant to put us together, clashing heads, the devil always lurking in," he said. "But through this pilgrimage together, we realized that this vocation of marriage is for us."

Father Chris Hickey, pastor of Our Lady of the Angels Parish in Hanover, accompanied 32 young pilgrims to Rome.

"The experience was unbelievable, to be with a million people all there for the same reason," he said. "Everyone's just singing and getting along. It's really, really beautiful."

He said much of the excitement among the youth was to see Pope Leo XIV, and for the pope to see them.

"He was clearly, clearly moved by this response," he said. "I don't know if anyone can be ready to have a million young people cheering for them."

In the past, Father Hickey has seen such experiences inspire young men to consider the priesthood. He hopes that this pilgrimage will do the same.

"This is a very intense spiritual journey," he said.

The Hanover pilgrims, led by Father Hickey, spent two days in Assisi, touring the city and trying Gelato, before spending 10 days in Rome.

"We saw many cool churches, including St. Francis Basilica, which is beautiful," said Katie Cedrone, 16.

In Rome, they saw the Colosseum, the catacombs, St. Peter's Basilica, and the Sistine Chapel.

"It was beautiful," Katie said. "It was honestly hard to take everything in, because it was so much beauty."

"To see those paintings and those buildings in person was incredible, and really changed my perspective of the beauty of our church," she added.

Twenty-year-old Olivia Oxner, who has been a member of Our Lady's LifeTeen SMASH ministry since she was 12, went to Rome as both a pilgrim and chaperone for her younger peers.

"I know what they're going through and I'm able to give them direction," she said, "and it's also been strengthening my faith seeing their faith blossom, and they're experiencing all this history, and it's really strengthening their religion, too."

She has been to Rome before, but she said this pilgrimage was different. She was able to connect spiritually with what she was seeing, and hear Pope Leo XIV speak on how faith forms friendships.

"We're all connected through faith and the friendships that we've formed," she said.

Joe Lynch, also a member of LifeTeen, said it was "really cool" to meet new people at Tor Vergata.

"One thing that opened my eyes during the pilgrimage was to see how many people you connected to with your faith," the 17-year-old said.

He said he had conversations with pilgrims from South Korea and Canada, and recalled seeing thousands of people "sprinting through the streets" for the chance to see Pope Leo XIV.

"It showed me that the church is much bigger than you think it is," he said.