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Papal Message for World Youth Day '08

"You Must Be Holy and You Must Be Missionaries"

VATICAN CITY, JULY 24, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a Vatican translation of Benedict XVI's message for World Youth Day, to be held in Sydney, Australia, July 2008.

MESSAGE OF THE HOLY FATHER BENEDICT XVI TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE OF THE WORLD ON THE OCCASION OF THE XXIII WORLD YOUTH DAY, 2008

"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;
and you will be my witnesses " (Acts 1:8)

My dear young friends!

1. The XXIII World Youth Day

I always remember with great joy the various occasions we spent together in Cologne in August 2005. At the end of that unforgettable manifestation of faith and enthusiasm that remains engraved on my spirit and on my heart, I made an appointment with you for the next gathering that will be held in Sydney in 2008. This will be the XXIII World Youth Day and the theme will be: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses" (Acts 1:8). The underlying theme of the spiritual preparation for our meeting in Sydney is the Holy Spirit and mission. In 2006 we focused our attention on the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth. Now in 2007 we are seeking a deeper understanding of the Spirit of Love. We will continue our journey towards World Youth Day 2008 by reflecting on the Spirit of Fortitude and Witness that gives us the courage to live according to the Gospel and to proclaim it boldly. Therefore it is very important that each one of you young people -- in your communities, and together with those responsible for your education -- should be able to reflect on this Principal Agent of salvation history, namely the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of Jesus. In this way you will be able to achieve the following lofty goals: to recognize the Spirit's true identity, principally by listening to the Word of God in the Revelation of the Bible; to become clearly aware of his continuous, active presence in the life of the Church, especially as you rediscover that the Holy Spirit is the "soul", the vital breath of Christian life itself, through the sacraments of Christian initiation -- Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist; to grow thereby in an understanding of Jesus that becomes ever deeper and more joyful and, at the same time, to put the Gospel into practice at the dawn of the third millennium. In this message I gladly offer you an outline for meditation that you can explore during this year of preparation. In this way you can test the quality of your faith in the Holy Spirit, rediscover it if it is lost, strengthen it if it has become weak, savour it as fellowship with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ, brought about by the indispensable working of the Holy Spirit. Never forget that the Church, in fact humanity itself, all the people around you now and those who await you in the future, expect much from you young people, because you have within you the supreme gift of the Father, the Spirit of Jesus.

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VATICAN CITY, MARCH 11, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The mystery of God's love is most fully revealed in the cross, Benedict XVI told university students from 12 cities in Europe and Asia with the help of a satellite linkup.

The Holy Father made these comments Saturday to thousands of students gathered for a prayer meeting in Paul VI Hall on the theme "Intellectual Charity, Path for New Cooperation between Europe and Asia." The event was held as part of the 5th European Day for Universities.

Via satellite, the Vatican Television Center connected those gathered in Rome with young people in Bologna, Italy; Calcutta, India; Coimbra, Portugal; Krakow, Poland; Hong Kong; Manchester, England; Manila, the Philippines; Prague, the Czech Republic; Tirana, Albania; Turin, Italy; and Islamabad, Pakistan.

Benedict XVI said in the message: "Intellectual charity can unite the existential journey of young people who, despite their living at great distances from one another, are able to feel united by their interior search and testimony."

Putting his papers aside, the Pope added: "I should write a new chapter of my encyclical 'Deus Caritas Est,' on intellectual charity!"

Interrupted on numerous occasions by applause, the Bishop of Rome greeted the young people in various languages.

At the end, the Holy Father gave the young people this advice: "Students, and with greater reason Christian professors, interpret all reality in the light of the mystery of the love of God, which has its highest and fulfilled revelation on the cross."

"Dear young people," added Benedict XVI, "I again entrust to you the cross of Christ: Receive it, embrace it and follow it. It is the tree of life!"

The Holy Father then gave to some of the young people copies of the apostolic exhortations "Ecclesia in Europa" and "Ecclesia in Asia" in which John Paul II gathered the conclusions of the Synods of Bishops of those two continents.

After the meeting, the young people present in the Paul VI Hall carried a cross in pilgrimage to LUMSA University, near the Vatican.

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SYDNEY, Australia, JAN. 15, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The monthly newsletter preparing young people for Sydney's World Youth Day '08 focuses on sexuality in its January issue.

On the front page of this month's E-pilgrimage, Sydney Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Fisher asks, "Is sex just a recreational activity? Is the body just a product to be bought and sold? Do I have to be sexually active in order to be really happy? What is the meaning of this kind of 'body language'?"

"There are many voices in the modern world that overestimate the importance of sex -- as if no-one could be happy who had not had sex in the last few hours -- or trivialize or underestimate its power -- as if it were no more humanly significant than any other bodily function," Bishop Fisher writes.

"But deep down most people know the body, sexuality and fertility are precious and important things which can be used to express some of the noblest things about human relationships, or which can be used instead to hurt and exploit," he adds.

This month's issue of E-pilgrimage explores various ways that "this very positive message about human bodily life and love have been expressed in the Catholic tradition -- right back to the Song of Songs in the Bible through to Pope Benedict XVI's recent encyclical 'God is Love.'"

The eight-page newsletter also includes a prayerful reading of the Song of Songs and a biography of the first married couple to be beatified together.