World Youth Day: Thoughts from Day 3
This has been an incredibly significant day for me.
I was animator (emcee) of a catechetical site with a Nigerian bishop as the catechist: Bishop John Ayah of the diocese of Ojoga. He moved me with stories of Catholicism in his homeland. I'm still loving the kids from the UK! :)
After the catechetical session, I grabbed a meat pie and cappuccino at a bakery and hit the train . . . fast! Like clockwork, I made it to Darling Harbor and the Barangaroo venue for the arrival of Pope Benedict. I got there at 12:45 and he arrived at 3:30. For almost three hours, I hung out with a group of Canadians from Ottawa. We prayed the rosary, and talked worship and music. And we waited. Finally, I was there. 50 meters from my theological hero: Pope Benedict XVI. I cried as I ran through the streets of Sydney just like I cried when he was elected. The flags waved and I cried. The people of Sydney took pictures of the odd site of pilgrims and I cried as I thought of the witness that we were to the un-churched. But when I saw him leave the boat and come on the stage, I laughed ... laughed with pure joy.
His words were meant for me. His message reminded me of my need to have my spirit mix with the Lord on a daily basis. His message had my spirit yearn for art as a source of beauty. I can respond in a strange way to things, but I recommitted to producing good art at spiritandsong.com. The pope urged us to pursue goodness, truth, and beauty. He urged us to art. He urged us to be evangelists. He called us to be better Christians.
I left Barangaroo feeling like the most blessed person in Sydney. We are blessed, blessed people.
Cry the Gospel with your life!
Read all of Robert's World Youth Day reports:
