Nicole Reardon

If you have been flicking through the national newspapers lately you would notice many stories involving World Youth Day (WYD) have popped up — most of them controversial.

Unpack the issues...

• Discussion points
• Further reading

Major issues have ranged from the cost of the event to Australian taxpayers to the current lack of toilet facilities available at Randwick racecourse, where many of the important events occurring over the week are to be held.

You’d have every reason to think that the very idea of hosting this Catholic youth event should have been forsaken months ago, yet thousands of Australian youths and young people from overseas are still signing up, booking flights and handing over cash to attend this event¬- why is this? Well, for a number of very interesting reasons…

For many Australians, WYD is a bit of a mystery. They perceive it as a giant ‘Catho’ get-together, with the main attraction being a little old white haired man who rides around in a miniscule bullet proof van. But this isn’t really what this week long event is about.

In 1984, the then Pope, his Holiness John Paul II, announced that 1985 was the Jubilee Year for the Catholic Church. In an endeavor to recognize the increasing number of youth in the Church, he invited them from all over the world to journey to Rome for Palm Sunday. He proclaimed this day as the first World Youth Day, and that young people should travel back to their homes and communities and rejoice in their new-found fellowship and to continue this event annually.

Since its initial beginnings, WYD has grown in size and stature, with the last event being attended by over 1 200 000 people. Its location has also varied widely- from the United States to the Philippines, from Italy to Canada- countries from all regions of the world have hosted this event. But perhaps most interestingly, while the event itself celebrates the Catholic faith, young people are invited without discrimination- people from all walks of life and with different views on Christianity are always found in attendance.

So apart from the final mass given by the Pope at Randwick Racecourse (which racing authorities are still up in arms about) what can we expect from World Youth Day 2008? Well, after morning church services with a Bishop things start to really kick off…pilgrims will then journey into the city of Sydney and attend the Youth Festival which will consist of a series of art exhibitions, concerts, seminars and conferences, providing something interesting for people open to exploring new ideas on spirituality as well as traditional forms of religious study and worship. There is one event called ‘Resonaxis’, which is described as being a fusion of the secular and the sacred- Acid Jazz meets Gregorian Chant…it sounds alternative to say the least!

Following a faith steeped in tradition, I began to wonder what aspects are really motivating Australia’s young Catholic population to attend this week long celebration. With this in mind, I attended Saint Michael’s Catholic Church in Baulkham Hills, Sydney, to ask one simple question of the youth: Why are you attending World Youth Day? There were a mixture of answers however, there was one underlying response: to celebrate God and the Holy Spirit with other Christians. As one young man named Matt commented:
“this is a once in a lifetime chance to get together with others and share our faith and Jesus said ‘For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them,’ so I’m guessing he should definitely be there.”

While this is only the perceptions from one church, the seemingly open views of the young adults of Saint Michael’s suggests that WYD’s attendants need not be simply made up from Catholic pilgrims. What many people don’t realize is that almost all the WYD events throughout the week are available to the public for free. Consequently, there is an opportunity for the youth of Australia- Christian, non-Christian, Catholic, non-Catholic- to put aside all the controversy supplied by the media and instead turn the focus back to the purpose which the event was originally created to serve: to celebrate the chance to create fellowship with one another. With such a large opportunity to explore ideas on spirituality on our front doorstep, why waste it?

Unpack the Issues...

• What do you consider the real reason so many youth are attending World Youth Day?
• How has the media effected your perception of World Youth Day?

• Article on ending negative coverage of WYD- 'For heaven's sake, end the negativity'
• Official World Youth Day website

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written by Mark, July 15, 2008

I agree that the Catholic Church is unfairly targeted. Pentecostal churches talk about what they are going to do and the Catholics just go out and do it. I dislike it when evangelicals say its important to be in a bible based church. As opposed to all those churches run on something else. Most of the time they are referring about the Catholic Church.
The head of the Hillsong is a Kiwi and the Pope is German, difficult choice...

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