World Youth Day

The WYD08 theme, received from The Holy Father is:

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

This passage occurs after the death and resurrection of Jesus, just before his ascension to the Father. It represents the birth of the Church.

The disciples had questioned Jesus about the time of the restoration of Israel. His words ‘You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you’ were somewhat surprising – they referred to a new meaning of the word “power”. Jesus promises a different kind of “power” to help the Jews from under the yoke of Roman occupation. The power He promises to give is the very Spirit of God, the dynamic potential for transformation, the very condition of living according to the manner of Jesus’ life.

This Spirit is not a vague ambiguous force, rather it is a Divine Person, the true Self Gift of the Father to the Son, and the Son to the Father, and hence the gift of the Father to us in the Son – with Him we say “Our Father”. Only with the reception of the Spirit of Jesus can we exercise the authentic passion of the Heart of Christ, and hence by being set on fire with it do we as persons become witnesses to Him and everything for which He stands.

The ultimate witness we can make is to follow in the pattern of His life through the total self gift of our lives, lived authentically in truth and love for Him and at the service of others.

WYD08 Logo Explained

The logo distils the essence of the theme for WYD08:

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

It highlights the promise made by Jesus to set fire upon the Earth by the power of the Holy Spirit which inspires the Pilgrims who come to Australia, to believe and witness to Him.

Central to the logo is the Cross raised in victory, representing Christ and the life of witness which the Holy Spirit enables. It is the passion of the heart of Christ, poured out into the world from the Cross, which consumes the young people of Sydney, of Australia and of the world. The whiteness of the Cross indicates that Jesus is the light of the world.

The flames of the logo represent the Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost in tongues of fire. They evoke the Sacrament of Confirmation and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The colours of red, orange and yellow flowing throughout symbolise the Trinity and Unity of God. They also bring to mind the colours of the Australian outback.

The blue of the logo represents the oceans that surround Australia, the waters of Baptism, the sea of humanity and Mary, full of grace.

The Opera House is the symbol of Sydney, the host city for World Youth Day 2008.

For information about the Diocesan Pilgrimage to WYD08 contact Christine Riddoch at the Youth Office youthoffice@paisleydiocese.org.uk 

Visit the WYD08 site at www.wyd2008.org 

Pope Benedict's Talks and Homilies during the World Youth Day in Cologne 2005

From 18th-21st August, Pope Benedict was in Cologne for the World Youth Days. The texts of all his talks can be found by clicking on the logo below.