London too is moved” “

“It was a moving experience to see thousands of youngsters gathered at first in front of Southwark Cathedral, then outside Westminster Abbey, the Anglican cathedral and, finally, inside Westminster Cathedral, mother church of English Catholicism”. That’s how the bishop of Newport Howard Tripp recalls the events of 12 January when the cross of World Youth Day (WYD), four days after its arrival in the British Isles, succeeded in bringing the London traffic to a halt. “That really unique participation – continues Bishop Tripp – continued at every stage of the cross in its journey through the 22 dioceses of England and Wales. Over 11,000 youngsters prayed before this powerful symbol of our faith: clear proof of how dedicated they are to Christ”. THE WELCOME GIVEN TO THE CROSS, which has already left for Scotland, where it will remain till 12 February, is proof, according to Tripp, of a faith that dismantles the widespread image of secularised British youth, alienated from the message of the Gospel. “The cross – says Tripp – is the sign of Jesus Christ; following Christ today is a difficult and demanding gesture. Yet the young do not flinch from it. They embrace the message of the Gospel by dedicating themselves to others and by proclaiming God’s love to those who do not believe. It’s an almost heroic conduct that dispels the criticisms of non-commitment often made by adults. The young today have a spirituality of their own that needs to find suitable forms of expression”. One of these is just that of the WYD cross, whose journey through England and Wales was accompanied by liturgies rich in music, singing and dancing, theatrical performances and projections, processions and moments of personal spirituality. THE CATHEDRAL OF WREXHAM, in Wales, held a prayer vigil, attended by people from all over the diocese. “The moment in which they crucified the Lord of light was our darkest hour – said Bishop Edwin Regan – but the light blazed forth from the tomb. Christ is the hope that gives light to the young”. And the organizer of the event, Sister Helen Randles, complementing the young on the dignity, respect and courtesy they had displayed, said: “It was a wonderful experience having the cross and the icon of the Virgin Mary and seeing the young involved in gestures and in words”. AT BIRMINGHAM, in St. Chad’s Cathedral, 200 youngsters approached the cross to venerate it. The episode took place during the mass following a prayer vigil during which the young, together with Bishop Vincent Nichols, reflected on their life of faith. “I was sceptical, but I was deeply touched by the day”, confessed one girl. Maria Robinson of the Catholic Youth Service, the office of the diocese that organised the event, added: “The day was very moving and brought home to me that the cross is a challenge. It brought me towards a deeper sense of my faith. It was a fantastic day, a formidable catalyst for Cologne” (where WYD 2005 is to be held). AT NORTHAMPTON, an hour’s journey to the north of London, the Cathedral was emptied of its traditional furnishings and re-adapted with a series of interactive and multicoloured prayer “grottoes”, divided by muslin curtains. Here, in the blue grotto for kneeling in prayer, the green one with the ‘tree of questions’, the orange one with candles and the purple one enriched with graffiti, the young could stop to reflect on the faith and their life. Many profited from the occasion to confess themselves. THE DIOCESE OF ARUNDEL AND BRIGHTON, in southern England, prepared a book to enable the young who had encountered the cross to recount their experience. In St. Mary’s Cathedral in the diocese of Hexham and Newcastle, in north-east England, last stage before leaving for Scotland, the cross was carried in procession by the young who had participated in WYD in Toronto in 2002. “This cross – said Bishop Ambrose Griffiths – has been venerated by millions of young people and reminds them that they are not alone in their faith. I hope that many will be encouraged to travel to Cologne in August 2005 and experience in person the wonderful atmosphere of WYD”.