Saturday, July 14, 2007
Youth Day Cross Arrives to Australia
(via Zenit)
Hundreds Gather to Welcome Symbols
SYDNEY, Australia, JULY 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The arrival of the World Youth Day cross and icon of Our Lady to Australia were welcomed by hundreds at an airport gathering in Sydney.
The cross measuring 3.8 meters (12.5 feet) and the icon of the Mother of Christ and the Child Jesus were welcomed Sunday by Australia's Prime Minister John Howard, New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma, and numerous youth, clergy and laity.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Howard said: "The cross and the icon [are] a reminder that next year World Youth Day will be a magnificent opportunity for the young in their thousands, not only from Australia, but around the world, to reaffirm their faith and to remind the world and to remind this nation of the enduring relevance and resonance about the Christian message.
"It's an occasion not only for Catholics, but for all who profess the Christian faith and the Christian belief, to celebrate the marvelous message of the Christian religion and its continuing importance to our country and the life of all of its citizens."
Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Fisher, the coordinator of World Youth Day, said that "these symbols will herald the coming of World Youth Day to Australia next year. In the meantime, they will be carried upon the shoulders of young Australians and touch the hearts of us all."
Meaning
Cardinal Pell, the archbishop of Sydney, called the cross "the Olympic torch of World Youth Day," and spoke of its importance.
In his weekly column published in the Sunday Telegraph the day that the symbols arrived, the 66-year-old cardinal explained that the "cross is the best known symbol of Christianity. Jesus was executed on it between two thieves in Jerusalem. But it has lost its power to shock."
He continued: "Only slaves and foreigners were put to crucifixion in the Roman Empire. St. Paul, as a citizen of Rome, could not be crucified and was beheaded instead.
"The cross was originally a horrifying image, standing for the triumph of brute force and death over everything good. By his resurrection, Jesus broke the power of death and showed that love is stronger."
"For more than 20 years," Cardinal Pell explained, "the World Youth Day Cross has traveled to parish churches, youth detention centers, prisons, schools, universities, national historic sites, shopping centers, nightclub districts and parks throughout the world.
"It has even been taken to the German parliament and to Ground Zero in New York. It has been carried by a commercial airline, light aircraft, dog sled, pick-up truck, tractor, sailboat, fishing boat and on shoulders. It has been accompanied by the icon of Mary since 2003."
These two symbols are reminders, said Cardinal Pell, that it "is not death that has the last word over human life, but love."
After the welcome at the Sydney Airport, the cross and icon traveled to the shrine of Blessed Mary MacKillop in North Sydney, beginning a 12-month pilgrimage across Australia.
Deo Juvante: Any readers planning to attend the WTD '08 in Sydney?
Hundreds Gather to Welcome Symbols
SYDNEY, Australia, JULY 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The arrival of the World Youth Day cross and icon of Our Lady to Australia were welcomed by hundreds at an airport gathering in Sydney.
The cross measuring 3.8 meters (12.5 feet) and the icon of the Mother of Christ and the Child Jesus were welcomed Sunday by Australia's Prime Minister John Howard, New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma, and numerous youth, clergy and laity.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Howard said: "The cross and the icon [are] a reminder that next year World Youth Day will be a magnificent opportunity for the young in their thousands, not only from Australia, but around the world, to reaffirm their faith and to remind the world and to remind this nation of the enduring relevance and resonance about the Christian message.
"It's an occasion not only for Catholics, but for all who profess the Christian faith and the Christian belief, to celebrate the marvelous message of the Christian religion and its continuing importance to our country and the life of all of its citizens."
Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Fisher, the coordinator of World Youth Day, said that "these symbols will herald the coming of World Youth Day to Australia next year. In the meantime, they will be carried upon the shoulders of young Australians and touch the hearts of us all."
Meaning
Cardinal Pell, the archbishop of Sydney, called the cross "the Olympic torch of World Youth Day," and spoke of its importance.
In his weekly column published in the Sunday Telegraph the day that the symbols arrived, the 66-year-old cardinal explained that the "cross is the best known symbol of Christianity. Jesus was executed on it between two thieves in Jerusalem. But it has lost its power to shock."
He continued: "Only slaves and foreigners were put to crucifixion in the Roman Empire. St. Paul, as a citizen of Rome, could not be crucified and was beheaded instead.
"The cross was originally a horrifying image, standing for the triumph of brute force and death over everything good. By his resurrection, Jesus broke the power of death and showed that love is stronger."
"For more than 20 years," Cardinal Pell explained, "the World Youth Day Cross has traveled to parish churches, youth detention centers, prisons, schools, universities, national historic sites, shopping centers, nightclub districts and parks throughout the world.
"It has even been taken to the German parliament and to Ground Zero in New York. It has been carried by a commercial airline, light aircraft, dog sled, pick-up truck, tractor, sailboat, fishing boat and on shoulders. It has been accompanied by the icon of Mary since 2003."
These two symbols are reminders, said Cardinal Pell, that it "is not death that has the last word over human life, but love."
After the welcome at the Sydney Airport, the cross and icon traveled to the shrine of Blessed Mary MacKillop in North Sydney, beginning a 12-month pilgrimage across Australia.
Deo Juvante: Any readers planning to attend the WTD '08 in Sydney?
Labels: News, World Youth Day 2008
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