World Youth Day 2008

XXIII World Youth Day 2008

Date	15–20 July 2008
Location	Sydney, Australia
Theme	"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses" (Acts 1:8)

World Youth Day 2008 was a Catholic youth festival held from 15 to 20 July in Sydney, Australia. It is the twenty-third World Youth Day celebration and was attended by Pope Benedict XVI. The occasion will mark the fourth Papal visit to the country, as well as Benedict XVI's first visit.

Schedule of events

The festivities of WYD began on 1 July 2007, when a large 3.8-metre-high wooden Cross and a large 15-kilogram Icon of the Virgin Mary arrived in Sydney to travel around the country. The relay-style event, known as the Journey of the Cross and Icon (or JCI for short) saw the cross and icon go on a pilgrimage around the dioceses of Australia, engaging with a variety of Catholic parishes and communities.

The WYD Cross was entrusted to the youth of the world by Pope John Paul II in 1984 as a sign of peace and hope. The Pope told the young people of the world to take it around the world as "a symbol of Christ's love for humanity". In 2004, Pope John Paul II commissioned the large icon of the Virgin Mary to accompany the Cross's pilgrimage. It is a symbol intended to represent Mary's maternal love for young people. From the announcement of the host World Youth Day, the Cross and Icon travel ceremonially around the world similar to the Olympic Torch Relay.

In the week preceding the main event, many young Catholic pilgrims spent time in different parts of Australia and New Zealand, staying with a local parish as part of the Days in the Dioceses. After their stay, they travelled to Sydney for the Opening Mass of the week-long main event.

On Tuesday 15 July, World Youth Day 2008 began with the Opening Mass, celebrated by George Cardinal Pell, the Archbishop of Sydney, at East Darling Harbour. This was followed by a concert.

Each morning from Tuesday 15 to Thursday 17 July, Catechesis was held in approximately 300 locations. Pilgrims received teachings from a Bishop and also celebrated Mass. In the afternoons, pilgrims journeyed into the city and attend the Youth Festival consisting of a series of art exhibitions, concerts, seminars, and conferences.

Pope Benedict XVI arriving at Barangaroo, Sydney

On Thursday 17 July, Sydney 500,000 attendees from around the world were present at Barangaroo to welcome Pope Benedict XVI on a day dubbed Super Thursday by the press. The Pope actually arrived on Monday 14 July, but only appeared in public for the first time on the 17th. The event involved the Pope travelling around Port Jackson in a "boatacade" where pilgrims lined the shores to see him. The Pope then spoke extensively to the pilgrims and greeted them in five foreign languages. In order to let the pilgrims see him better the pope was driven around Barangaroo in his Popemobile.

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On Friday 18 July, there was a live re-enactment of the Stations of the Cross at major city landmarks with an estimated number of 270,000 participants. Around 500 Million people around the world followed the stations on television.

On Saturday 19 July, around 235,000 pilgrims embarked on a 10-kilometre pilgrimage walk, beginning at the Mary MacKillop Chapel in North Sydney, over the Sydney Harbour Bridge and across the city to attend an overnight Vigil before the Mass at Randwick Racecourse.

Approximately 250,000 pilgrims slept overnight at Randwick, and about 350,000 participants attended the Final Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday 20 July. Pope Benedict will continue a tradition of Australian papal Masses at Randwick Racecourse, following in the footsteps of Popes John Paul II and Paul VI. At the conclusion of the final mass Pope Benedict XVI announced that the 2011 World Youth Day will be held in Madrid, Spain.

Web 2.0

WYD 2008 will be the first World Youth Day to take full advantage of telecommunications, with Pope Benedict sending daily text messages to the pilgrims and the launch of a new registration social networking site called xt3, and will aim to connect young Catholics before, during and after World Youth Day 2008.

Food

Pilgrims were served a traditional Aussie menu. Over the six-day event, 3.5 million meals were served. To cater for the masses, 210,000 slices of bread, 425,000 chocolate bars, 200,000 meat pies and 300,000 servings of Weet-Bix Crunch were ordered. "We want to provide pilgrims with a good feed and a little bit of an Australian taste" WYD director of services Geoff Morris said. "We have tried to do that by including some of our more iconic items such as Tim Tams, Weet-Bix Crunch, Vegemite, lamingtons and good old baked beans" Mr Morris said. Organisers also held a "Big Aussie BBQ", which will see 200 barbecues lit up simultaneously across Sydney.

Souvenirs

Pilgrims and the public were able to to buy 470 different products including papal mementos such as special WYD rosary beads, Pope Benedict XVI baseball caps and rugby jerseys. Catholic church leader Cardinal George Pell said the Church was not looking to make a profit and that there was "nothing immoral with a little commercialism". "Our way of life is built on commercialism, on trade, on industry, on finance and people have got a right to make a living out of doing a good thing, which is spreading Christ's message in a modern way," he said. Any remaining merchandise will be given to Catholic charities and surplus clothing will be sent overseas to developing nations.

Attendance

The Final Mass held at Randwick Racecourse (dubbed Southern Cross Precinct specifically for the event) drew 350,000 pilgrims.

World Youth Day organisers revised the expected number of attendees downwards during the lead-up to the event. In October 2007 the Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, George Pell, claimed that "over half a million" people would attend the final mass at Randwick. The World Youth Day site later claimed likely attendance of "up to" half a million. Similarly, the projected number of overseas attendees was 150,000 people in 2006. This was later altered to a projection of "over 125,000" people from overseas. 65,000 visas were granted as at 12 days before the start of the event.

It has been claimed that initial estimates were justified with around 500,000 welcoming the pope to Sydney and 270,000 watching the stations of the cross. Around 235,000 pilgrims embarked on the pilgrimage walk and attended the Vigil. The final attendance reported by the media for the closing mass was "up to" 300,000 pilgrims.

Indulgence

The Pope has announced that pilgrims at World Youth Day 2008 and those from around the world who pray for the ‘spiritual goals of this meeting and for its happy outcome' will be able to receive indulgences. In Roman Catholic teaching an indulgence is believed to erase the temporal punishment (time spent in purgatory) which results from sin.

There are two types of indulgences available

• plenary (full) indulgence - for attendees
• partial indulgence - for those who pray

Controversies around the World Youth Day

Public funding

While the NSW State Government has claimed World Youth Day will have a direct economic benefit in excess of $150 million, there has been widespread concern regarding disruption to traffic and businesses as well as NSW state government public funding of $129 million. Some have called this a "promotional event" for the Catholic Church. The Federal government is providing an extra $55 million in public funding. $35 million straight to the organisers, and $20 million to subsidize the NSW state government funding.

Use of Randwick Racecourse

The use of the Randwick Racecourse for this event has been criticised and legally challenged by the racing industry in Sydney. Industry representatives have argued that alternative sites, such as the former Olympic facilities at Homebush Bay, were more suitable venues for World Youth Day. However, the NSW and Federal governments and the event organisers insisted that Randwick Racecourse was the only location suitable for an event of this scale.

The World Youth Day committee initially offered to pay an agreed settlement to the racing industry. However, after some complaints, the Federal government and the State government stepped in and jointly pledged $40 million in compensation to the racing industry — more than triple the previously agreed upon amount. In exchange, the industry will relocate its operations to the Warwick Farm and Rosehill Gardens racecourses, with infrastructure at these sites and at Randwick to be upgraded as part of the compensation package. In addition, the Australian Jockey Club's lease at Randwick will be extended by 50 years.

World Youth Day legislation

The Parliament of New South Wales passed the World Youth Day Act 2006 especially for the event. The regulations made under this act however have been the source of some controversy, mainly in the operation of various provisions of the World Youth Day Regulation 2008 within hundreds of so-called declared areas across Sydney. These areas include over 40 city locations, including popular tourist spots the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, as well as at numerous public transport stations and schools.

The most significant and contentious amendments to the regulations were announced by the Deputy Premier John Watkins on 25 June 2008 and came into effect on 1 July 2008. People entering or exiting declared areas are subject to being searched, including vehicles or baggage, if so requested. According to The Australian newspaper this may include either general clothing inspections, partial strip searches, or even arrest. The regulations are being enforced by police, with the Rural Fire Service and the State Emergency Service having enforcement power over some provisions. The authorisation of Rural Fire Service and State Emergency Service has been especially controversial, as such granted enforcement powers normally available only to police. The new powers have caused concern to those organisations, who do not consider enforcement to be their role.

Of the most contentious of the regulations, a maximum fine of A$5,500 was able to be imposed for causing 'annoyance or inconvenience' to WYD participants. This was challenged in the Federal Court of Australia on the grounds of violating the implied constitutional freedom of political communication and/or exceeding the regulation making power of the World Youth Day Act 2006 (NSW). The Full Court agreed with the latter argument, declaring Clause 7(1)(b) regarding the specific prohibtion of causing "annoyance or inconvenience to participants in a World Youth Day event" invalid.

Protests within the Australian community

A number of activist groups protested against the Catholic Church on World Youth Day. Various atheist and secular cooperated to form the NoToPope Coalition for WYD. The coalition rallied against the Churches stances on homosexual marriage, abortion, and contraception. Additionally groups representing some victims of sexual abuse protested prior to WYD. On Saturday, the day of the pilgrimage walk approximately 300 protestors positioned themselves on a street corner to chant slogans and wave banners at the over 200,000 pilgrims walking to Randwick. A strong police presence seperated them from the pilgrims who vastly outnumbered the protestors.

Protest organisers had planned to use T-Shirts with anti-catholic slogans such as "Religion harms us by privileging faith over reason.", "Badly needed community services were robbed to pay the Pope". and "107 Catholic clergy convicted".

There were few physical confrontations between the pilgrims and protestors. NSW police arrested an Australian for allegedly lunging at a protestor however he was released soon afterwards. Additionally a Sydney small business owner alleges that he received an anonymous threat against him and his family for producing "annoying" T-Shirts.

Australian responses to transport concerns

Public transport was another area of concern for many Sydney-based residents, with many claiming that the city's infrastructure was ill-equipped to cope with the thousands of pilgrims that were predicted to descend upon the harbour-side city for the festivities. Many residents felt that road closures in Sydney's CBD, including to parts of George Street, a key arterial road, were likely to exacerbate the strain for commuters. While additional train and bus services had been commissioned for the event, critics argued that peak-hour services would have been at capacity, particularly because the event was not a Public Holiday in New South Wales. Threats to strike on Thursday July 17, in the heart of the celebrations, made by disgruntled rail workers have been withdrawn following negotiations with the State Government.

Apology and Meeting with Victims

In Sydney's St. Mary's Cathedral, Pope Benedict XVI made a historic full apology for child sex abuse by predatory priests and clergymen in Australia, on July 19, 2008. Before a 3,400 congregation, he called for compensation and demanded punishment for those guilty of the "evil": "Here I would like to pause to acknowledge the shame which we have all felt as a result of the sexual abuse of minors by some clergy and religious in this country. I am deeply sorry for the pain and suffering the victims have endured and I assure them that, as their pastor, I too share in their suffering." The Pope added: "Victims should receive compassion and care, and those responsible for these evils must be brought to justice. These misdeeds, which constitute so grave a betrayal of trust, deserve unequivocal condemnation. I ask all of you to support and assist your bishops, and to work together with them in combating this evil. It is an urgent priority to promote a safer and more wholesome environment, especially for young people." On the 21st of July before flying out of Australia Pope Benedict met with a group of four victims of sexual abuse. He met them at St. Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, listened to their stories and celebrated mass with them.

But the Broken Rites support group representing Australian victims said: "Sorry may be a start but we want to see a lot more. We want the victims to be treated fairly, we don't want them to feel that they have been shut out, we don't want them to be re-abused by church authorities." It reported 107 Catholic priests and religious brothers sentenced in Australian courts on sex charges, and in 2002, Australian bishops had already apologised for past abuses.

External links

• Official World Youth Day 2008 website
• World Youth Day Photo Slideshows, Themesongs and Small Movie (English/Dutch/German)