32 Days to Sydney

(13 June 08 - RV) There are only 32 days to go to World Youth Day, the largest youth event in the world, this year being held in Sydney Australia from Tuesday 15 to Sunday 20 July.

For the days leading up to WYD08 the dioceses of Australia and New Zealand will welcome the youth of the world in an initiative called Days in the Dioceses.

Maronite diocese in Australia will be hosting a special forum entitled “A Church of new Horizons for New Times”. Events include a mass celebrated by Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir to welcome the thousands of youth from the Eastern Catholic Rite across the world to Australia.

Maronite Bishop of Australia, Bishop Ad Abikaram, says he hopes this forum will help young people, from both the Latin and Maronite rite to spiritually prepare for the event and their encounter with Pope Benedict XVI.

“We are preparing together with our patriarch and with at least a dozen bishops from around the world, as well as the 250 thousand Maronites present in Australia, to welcome Pope Benedict XVI. We are not living by ourselves here, a big, big percentage of the Maronites are present in the Latin Churches helping in the parishes, we are all one church here to live the Gospel together and we are looking forward to marking the Way of the Cross together with the Pope and the celebration of World Youth Day Mass at Randwick Racecourse”.