World Youth Day

The Pope's heading to Australia and guess what?  (what?)  The OYM is too!  We will be joining thousands of young people from all over the world in bearing witness to Christ!

Join the Office of Youth Ministry along with Archbishop Burke and Bishop Hermann this Palm Sunday March 16, 2008 from 1-5 as we celebrate YOU- the youth.  This will conclude the pilgrimage of the World Youth Day pilgrim cross throughout our diocese.    Holy Mass will be celebrated along with a talk, praise and worship, and time to recognize the youth for their dedication to following Christ. 

Most of your questions should be answered by looking at our WYD brochure, below you will find a few questions that are commonly asked about WYD. If you have any other questions please contact Liz Buncher at the Office of Youth Ministry

What is World Youth Day?
WYD was created by our late Holy Father Pope John Paul II when he noticed a decline in attendance of youth in the Catholic Church. WYD is a gathering of youth from all over world. They come together for pilgrimage, prayer, and to experience the love of God. While at world youth day the young people will have a true experience of the Universal Catholic Church, and grow in their own faith, becoming witnesses of Christ to the world.

World Youth Day 2005

In August of 2004 a group of teens from our Diocese had the privilage of attending World Youth day in Cologne Germany.  We spent several days with host families in the Netherlands, learning lots of Dutch and eating lots of Hagelslag. Then we travelled to Dusseldorf and Cologne, Germany to join 800,000 worldwide Catholics in long lines, crowded trains, and crazy food-hunts, but we learned lots of national chants and can all easily identify Italians when we see one - they were everywhere! The pilgrimage to Marienfeld, where the vigil and Papal Mass were held, was truly an experience nobody will forget. And seeing and listening to our Holy Father inspire us to love Christ more made every suffering worthwhile. So, thanks for the prayers, and now surf around to find all the gems we did like the magi, you must search to find the Christ-child!

“You will receive the power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses.” Acts 1:8

Imagine you, a few kangaroo’s, hundreds of thousands of young Catholics and the Pope all heading Down Under to celebrate the universality of our amazing faith. In July of 2008 you may not have to use your imagination. The Office of Youth Ministry in collaboration with Youth in Europe will be hosting a trip to World Youth Day in Sydney Australia. We will have the chance to make some great Australian friends through “Days in the Diocese”, four nights spent with an Aussie host family. Then we will head to the World Youth Day festivities joining the thousands gathered in Sydney. With daily mass, prayer, Catechesis sessions, guided tours, and the presence of our Holy Father this will be a pilgrimage worth taking. The cost will be $3500, so start your fundraising and saving up now! It’s a trip that will be well worth the cost. Memories will be made that will never be forgotten, you will make friends from all corners of the planet, and you will have a profound experience of the Universal Church. Come let the Holy Sprit work in your life and be a witness of Christ to the World.

By Crikey!
The next World Youth Day will be in the gorgeous city of Sydney Australia. The OYM is planning a trip Down Under. More information will be available in the near future. If you would like information about the trip please contact Liz Buncher at the Office of Youth Ministry.

Did you know that World Youth Day is celebrated all over the globe on Palm Sunday? This year the Holy father has called us to reflect on part of Psalm 119 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path”. In preparation for World Youth Day 2008 Pope Benedict is challenging all youth of the world to come to know Christ through the Sacred Scriptures. Over the next three years the themes of the World Youth Days will be the Holy Spirit of truth, love, fortitude, and witness. Whether we plan on taking the big trip in 08’ to Sydney or not, we shouldn’t take this challenge lightly. The more we know scripture, the more we will know Christ and be able recognize the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

In only 4 days a group of 177 people from our Archdiocese will be heading to World Youth Day. Starting next week, you can check out our travel log at www.stlyouth.org and follow our adventures!

Late Pope John Paul II. is the grandfather of World Youth Day. It was him, who – in 1984 - initiated the first world meeting of young people in Rome. His idea: Every two years, the Pope invites young people from all over the world to come to one town to experience Christ and his living church.

It was late Pope John Paul II.’s wish to come to Cologne, Germany in August and to celebrate the World Youth Day 2005 with the youth of the world.

We want to say thank you to the inventor of the World Youth Day: By means of the biggest mosaic portrait the world has ever seen. To accomplish this, we need your photograph. From thousands of portrait photographs, your portraits, we will build an image of late Pope JP II. Join us in this challenging endeavour and unique project!

Take from Zenit.org BERLIN, JUNE 7, 2005- Youth requesting visas to visit Germany for World Youth Day should study their catechism.

More than a million young people are expected to attend the event in August, and the German government wants to make sure illegal immigrants, especially from the Balkans, aren’t among them. German embassies abroad have developed a test to sort out the true pilgrims from those seeking to take advantage of the fast-lane regulation visas. The questionnaire asks, among other things, how and when Jesus died, the seven deadly sins and the sacraments. A passing score is 70.