Religion

By PATRICK BUTLER
Religion Editor

A portion of the youth group at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception will travel Saturday to the World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia. Pope Benedict XVI will speak to an expected 500,000 youth from around the world attending the gathering July 15-20.

The event’s theme is “Acts 1:8” the Biblical passage where Jesus promises the Holy Spirit to those who will be his “witnesses.”

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.”

“I expect the pope to speak on this current generation to strengthen their relation ship with Christ, and share Christ with the world and be witness it; to live out our faith, not just keep it hidden to ourselves,” said Matt Olxer, 29, the youth director at the Cathedral.

Nine of the youth group, ages 17-years-old and older, raised $3,000 each to make the trip to Sydney, said Oxler.

The event, a “call to pilgrimage” for youth, was begun by Pope John Paul II in 1987 and held every one to two years, said Oxler. Making the pilgrimage from Tyler are 17-year olds Bailie Water and Pat Russell, along with Ian Murillo, Paulo Navarro and Andrew Harvey, 18-years old. Kim Harmon, 19 and Mary Anne Estacio, Joanna Garcia and Mario Sosa, all 23-years old, round out the contingent. Monsignor Joe Strickland, rector of the Cathedral, will travel with the group to Australia.

World Youth Day gatherings have been held in Denver, Toronto, Canada, Cologne, Germany and now Sydney. Up to four million youth have attended some of the bigger events.

“Australia is a little harder, understandable, for many young people to get to,” Oxler said.

The group from the Cathedral held car washes, sold hamburgers and hot dogs, held spaghetti dinners and sent letters asking for aid to raise money.

“I guess the miracle would be the $7,000 that came in just two weeks before the deadline,” Oxler said. All in the youth group wanting to go to World Youth Day, are he said.