2008-07-19 15:45:07

A Long Night at the Racecourse


(19 July 08 - RV) The so-called “Pilgrimage Walk” began at 5 o’clock on Saturday morning.

That’s when tens of thousands of young people started trickling across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. By lunchtime the youthful flow had become an impenetrable flood.
Their goal was Randwick Racecourse, venue of the Evening Vigil with the Pope.

Their purpose was to spend time with the Holy Father, enjoy the great entertainment, dance, sing, yell until they were hoarse – and eventually even get some sleep before Sunday morning’s closing Mass.
In a word - it was one big party.

So when almost 200,000 partying, singing, yelling young people fell absolutely silent during the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, the silence was truly deafening.
It was just one of the more moving moments (including the candle-lighting ritual) in an event that allowed the Pope his second opportunity to address the youth directly, after his arrival speech on Super-Holy-Thursday.

Benedict XVI took full advantage of this opportunity: he greeted the festive crowd in different languages and spoke to them at length about the Holy Spirit and what it means to be witnesses in a world where individuals and communities often suffer from an absence of unity.

The Holy Spirit – he said, quoting St Augustine – is the bond of unity within the Blessed Trinity: unity as communion, love, and giving.

The Pope went on to explain how communion sustains unity and fulfils human identity, how love is the sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit, and how God gives Himself to us endlessly. “In view of this ceaseless gift - he said – we come to see the folly of the consumerist mindset”.

This, in essence, was the Pope’s message to his young audience: “Let unifying love be your measure, abiding love your challenge, self-giving love your mission...
In accepting the power of the Holy Spirit you too can transform your families, communities and nations”.

Judging by the applause, it was a challenge the youth appeared to accept willingly. Meanwhile, as the Pope left the venue to return to St Mary’s Cathedral where he is staying, a few of the young people crawled wearily into their sleeping bags.
Most of the others went back to just having fun.

The long night at the racecourse was only just beginning. RealAudioMP3








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