Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Madrid (Agenzia Fides) - 100 days after the opening of the World Youth Day (WYD) in Madrid, a meeting attended by more than eight thousand people, characterized by moments of prayer and celebration took place in the Spanish capital last Sunday. Pope Benedict XVI sent a message to the participants, inviting them to "intensify their prayer for the outcome of the World Youth Day and to enhance the work of evangelization of the younger generation, which is expected for this important ecclesial event."
Fides received the Letter by the Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, where he calls for serious preparation and depth of this "new Pentecost. " In his words, "the World Youth Day is a great gift and a huge responsibility, and that is why it is urgent to make a generous commitment to this meeting, which will be for many the occasion of a meeting, deep and authentic, with Jesus Christ. "
In another paragraph of the letter the Archbishop of Madrid says, in reference to young people: "There is no other attitude towards them if not that of brotherly love, polished and ready for delivery in the service of a true apostolic commitment: in the evangelization and sanctification of young people in this age where the Church fully lives the missionary commitment and the hope that the Risen Lord Jesus Christ will triumph. "
At the end of the letter, the Cardinal urges young people not to postpone the registration for the WYD: So far more than 340,000 people from over 170 countries have registered. (EC) (Agenzia Fides 05/10/2011)
