His Holiness, Pope Francis visited the German Nazi Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp near Krakow, Poland on July 29 2016. The Righteous Among nations individuals who risked their own lives in helping Jews, were in attendance for the ceremony. Pope Francis visited and prayed at the sites where Poles, Jews and other nationalities were murdered during World War II. Among the victims, are Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe and Saint Theresa Benedict of the Cross, and the Polish patriot Witold Pilecki. World Youth Day was initiated by St. John Paul II in 1997 and meant to be a series of gatherings, celebrating the community of the Catholic Church and its faith. The patrons of the Krakow World Youth Day are Saint Sister Faustina and St. John Paul II. (Photo by Anna Ferensowicz / Pacific Press)//PACIFICPRESS_1537.033