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‘You will receive the power when the
Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my
witnesses’ (Acts
1:8) |
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Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney, will preside
at the Opening Mass on Tuesday 15 July. There will
then be three days of preparation for the Vigil and
Papal Mass. On the afternoon of Thursday 17 July, the
Holy Father is due to arrive at Sydney Harbour for the
Welcome Ceremony. He will preside at a Vigil on Saturday
night 19 July and the Papal Mass on the morning of
Sunday 20 July at the Randwick Racecourse.
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The Holy Father is
pictured here at WYD Cologne in 2005 |
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Thanks and congratulations to Bishop Paul ...
... for
completing the Castelli walk on 23rd April 2008
to raise sponsorship to defray the costs of diocesan
pilgrims
to World Youth Day.
He has written a
short report about his experience and
recorded an audio diary. He also took photos along his
route.
Please click here to see
this page and listen to the audio diary
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Pope Benedict looks forward to World Youth Day
'See you in Sydney'
On 16th March 2008, the Holy Father celebrated Palm
Sunday Mass and the diocesan Youth Day.
After the
Angelus, speaking in English, he said: 'I welcome the
English-speaking pilgrims and visitors here this Palm
Sunday, when we acclaim Jesus, model of humility, our
messiah and king. In a special way I greet all the young
people gathered in Rome. I am looking forward to seeing
many of you, together with thousands of others across
the globe, at World Youth Day in Sydney. Let us all pray
for our young people, that World Youth Day will be a
time of deep and lasting spiritual renewal.'
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Themes of
World Youth Day to focus on the Holy Spirit and mission
The organisers of WYD08 have unveiled the themes for the
three days of catechesis that bishops from around the
world will lead in over 300 locations in Sydney.
July 16th: The call to live in the Holy Spirit
from Galatians 5:25: 'Since the Spirit
is our life, let us be directed by the Spirit.'
July 17th: The Holy Spirit as the soul of the Church
from 1 Corinthians 12:13: 'In the one
Spirit we were all baptised, Jews as well as Greeks,
slaves as well as citizens, and one Spirit was given to
us all to drink.'
July 18th: The Holy Spirit as the
principal agent of mission
from Acts 1:8: ' ... you will receive
power when the Holy Spirit comes on you,
and then you will be my witnesses ...'
Bishop Anthony Fisher, WYD08 coordinator said:
'Catechesis represents the spiritual heart of World
Youth Day, when young people from various backgrounds
and circumstances unite to listen, reflect, discuss and
pray in harmony.' He encouraged all pilgrims to begin
reflecting on the themes now so that they will be
spiritually prepared to witness to the Spirit and gain
as much as they can from their WYD08 experience.
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Facts and Figures
The Catholic
Communications Network has compiled a UK Media Fact
Sheet
containing many details about World Youth Day.
Please click here to
read the Fact Sheet
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Bishop Paul to walk in aid of WYD
This is one of
the scenes along the thirty mile walk that Bishop Paul
will be making in the hills south-east of Rome on or
around
23rd April 2008. He is being sponsored to defray the
costs of
Southwark pilgrims to World Youth Day.
Read his letter, download the
map and see more photos
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World Youth Day - 2008
The World Youth Day event is a fantastic
opportunity for our young people to
experience the universality and diversity of
the Church, whilst celebrating unity within
our common Roman Catholic faith. Inaugurated
by Pope John Paul II, it was designed so
that the Pope could meet representatives of
young people throughout the global Catholic
Church, and in this encounter, celebrate,
deepen, and strengthen our young people in
the active living out of their Christian
faith. Through catechesis, through
liturgical celebration, through social
interaction, acts of service and exposure to
the cultures of the host country, our young
people will encounter the face of Christ
among them and with them. World Youth Day
Sydney 2008 will be the Twenty-Third such
event and will be a life-changing experience
for the 90 pilgrimages who will be
travelling with the Archdiocese of Southwark
to The Great South Land of the Holy Spirit,
Australia.
Information for Pilgrims from
Southwark
The World Youth Day pilgrimage from the
Archdiocese of Southwark is being
coordinated through the Southwark Catholic
Youth Service. The pilgrimage travels out to
Australia on
Tuesday 8th
July. For our first days in
Australia we will be hosts of the friendly
and welcoming diocese of Maitland &
Newcastle, for the ‘Days in the Diocese’.
From
Tuesday 15th- Sunday 20th
July we will be participating in
the WYD events held in Sydney, culminating
in the overnight vigil and Papal Mass on the
Sunday morning. Monday and Tuesday following
will be used for local excursions before the
return to the UK on
Tuesday 22nd
July, arriving back in the UK on
Wednesday
23rd July.
Included in the overall price are all
travel, excursions and WYD fees. The
pilgrimage is open to any young person
between the ages of
17-30 years
old. There are still some places
left but our deadline for any further
applications is
1st
March 2008.
For more information
contact 01227 272900 or
geoff@scys.org.uk
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Links |
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Southwark Catholic Youth Service
Information from the Vatican website
World Youth Day 2008
official website |
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