Thanksgiving Day South Padre trip

Mom came to visit this year extra early, 6th of Nov, because her visa was expiring on the 10th. And Zoran is finishing his thesis these months, so we can't do a family trip until he is done. So, I decided to give him quiet time and take mom to South Padre Island. Zoran and I went there last year with couple of friends, and I really enjoyed it. We booked a room right on the beach, a one bedroom apartment.
It took us the usual 6 hours to get here, which was good considering it was the busiest travel holiday weekend. We left cloudy and drizzling weather in Austin, and came to an unseasonable warm and sunny weather on the coast. The room was really nice, right on the beach, with large living room and balcony facing the sea. Mom told me she can't remember ever staying in a room this close to the water (but later she remember the one time it happened).

We quickly changed and went to the beach. We ate dinner there that we brought with us. Then we went for a stroll along the miles long sandy beach. The waves were high, and there was breeze, which made a thought of swimming not very appealing at the moment. Since this side of the island is facing east, the beach is all in shade by 5-ish, so we didn't stay too long. Later we drove through the entire island, all the three parallel boulevards, and many sideways streets that are facing the bay. We saw many beautiful homes there, many for sale. Almost all stores and even restaurants were closed, and there were very few people on the street, probably because it was the Thanksgiving day.
The next day started early, since we didn't sleep well - I guess new bed is to blame. We had coffee and went for a walk along the beach,, again, together with many other locals and visitors. We saw a couple with their amazon parrot on the lady's hand, and had a little chat with them. After breakfast, we took our chairs and went to sit on the beach. The wind was really picking up that day, and I was too cold to sit in the swim suite. Even with a shorts and t-shirt I was still too cold when the sun was hiding behind the clouds. So, I went for a walk, to catch up with mom who went beach-walking half and hour earlier. We then went for a drink to a beach bar not far from our condo. I had a crazy idea that we can go for a swim in the 'chilly' water and then run for the jacuzzi. To my surprise, the water was really not that cold, but it was hard to stand, much less swim, because of all the waves. But we didn't need to run out because of the cold (I think it was around 70 degrees water temp). We actually needed more time to adjust to the hot jacuzzi, and I didn't really enjoy it that much. After cleaning up, we had coffee on the balcony, and then went to sit on the beach again for half an hour until the sun was behind the building.
Since it was still day light, we decided to check out the other side of the island to try and find beaches there that would probably have less waves. But, we didn't find any public access. There was a reason for it, we found out later at the visitor's center; the bay side is very muddy and shallow, and is only used by fisherman. The visitors center had a Christmas lights lighting 'ceremony' at 6, which turned out to be not more than flipping of a switch on lights in a small backyard-size park. They also had Santa come with his reindeer on one of those four-wheel, custom, open cars, and then picture op for many kids that were in line (I guess anyone could have had their picture taken). We also used that time to stop at nearby McDonald's that had internet connection (since our condo didn't, at least not the first day, but I was able to connect later to a weak unsecured network for couple of hours), and talk to Zoran, download pictures and Hayat news.
Afterwards, we went grocery shopping for few items we didn't bring with us.
I am glad we have one more full day here, and I hope the weather serves us well like it did so far.

New Associate Pastor For St. William's Parish

Today I met a priest who was also at WYD with a group of 14 from Brenham, TX. His name is Fr. Alberto Borruel, and he is the new associate pastor at St. William's parish.
He was ordained just two years ago, at the age of 43. His excitement after experiencing WYD and concelebrating as a new priest a mass with the pope and 4000 other priests was very evident. I also loved how he celebrated the mass: giving a powerful homily while walking in front of the altar without any paper; holding up the host high up for a long time and showing it to the people on the side of the church too; and his very prayerful demeanor throughout the mass.
I stayed afterwards to greet him and tell him that just as they (priests) were excited to see us young people full of joy at the WYD, that we were also feeding off of the excitement of so many priests celebrating the mass with our pope.
I think I will go to St. William's more often now. :)

Recitation of the Angelus Domini at Randwick Racecourse, Sun 20 July 2008

Dear Young Friends,

In the beautiful prayer that we are about to recite, we reflect on Mary as a young woman, receiving the Lord’s summons to dedicate her life to him in a very particular way, a way that would involve the generous gift of herself, her womanhood, her motherhood. Imagine how she must have felt. She was filled with apprehension, utterly overwhelmed at the prospect that lay before her.
The angel understood her anxiety and immediately sought to reassure her. “Do not be afraid, Mary…. The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Lk 1:30, 35). It was the Spirit who gave her the strength and courage to respond to the Lord’s call. It was the Spirit who helped her to understand the great mystery that was to be accomplished through her. It was the Spirit who enfolded her with his love and enabled her to conceive the Son of God in her womb.

This scene is perhaps the pivotal moment in the history of God’s relationship with his people. During the Old Testament, God revealed himself partially, gradually, as we all do in our personal relationships. It took time for the chosen people to develop their relationship with God. The Covenant with Israel was like a period of courtship, a long engagement. Then came the definitive moment, the moment of marriage, the establishment of a new and everlasting covenant. As Mary stood before the Lord, she represented the whole of humanity. In the angel’s message, it was as if God made a marriage proposal to the human race. And in our name, Mary said yes.

In fairy tales, the story ends there, and all “live happily ever after”. In real life it is not so simple. For Mary there were many struggles ahead, as she lived out the consequences of the “yes” that she had given to the Lord. Simeon prophesied that a sword would pierce her heart. When Jesus was twelve years old, she experienced every parent’s worst nightmare when, for three days, the child went missing. And after his public ministry, she suffered the agony of witnessing his crucifixion and death. Throughout her trials she remained faithful to her promise, sustained by the Spirit of fortitude. And she was gloriously rewarded.

Dear young people, we too must remain faithful to the “yes” that we have given to the Lord’s offer of friendship. We know that he will never abandon us. We know that he will always sustain us through the gifts of the Spirit. Mary accepted the Lord’s “proposal” in our name. So let us turn to her and ask her to guide us as we struggle to remain faithful to the life-giving relationship that God has established with each one of us. She is our example and our inspiration, she intercedes for us with her Son, and with a mother’s love she shields us from harm.

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After the Angelus:

Dear Friends,

The time has come for me to say good-bye – or rather, to say arrivederci! I thank you all for your participation in World Youth Day 2008, here in Sydney, and I look forward to seeing you again in three years’ time. World Youth Day 2011 will take place in Madrid, Spain. Until then, let us continue to pray for one another, and let us joyfully bear witness to Christ before the world. May God bless you all.

Source: Vatican

Full text of the Holy Father's homily in the final Mass at Randwick Racecourse, Sun 20 Jul 2008

Dear Friends,

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you” (Acts 1:8). We have seen this promise fulfilled! On the day of Pentecost, as we heard in the first reading, the Risen Lord, seated at the right hand of the Father, sent the Spirit upon the disciples gathered in the Upper Room. In the power of that Spirit, Peter and the Apostles went forth to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth. In every age, and in every language, the Church throughout the world continues to proclaim the marvels of God and to call all nations and peoples to faith, hope and new life in Christ.
In these days I too have come, as the Successor of Saint Peter, to this magnificent land of Australia. I have come to confirm you, my young brothers and sisters, in your faith and to encourage you to open your hearts to the power of Christ’s Spirit and the richness of his gifts. I pray that this great assembly, which unites young people “from every nation under heaven” (cf. Acts 2:5), will be a new Upper Room. May the fire of God’s love descend to fill your hearts, unite you ever more fully to the Lord and his Church, and send you forth, a new generation of apostles, to bring the world to Christ!

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you”. These words of the Risen Lord have a special meaning for those young people who will be confirmed, sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit, at today’s Mass. But they are also addressed to each of us – to all those who have received the Spirit’s gift of reconciliation and new life at Baptism, who have welcomed him into their hearts as their helper and guide at Confirmation, and who daily grow in his gifts of grace through the Holy Eucharist. At each Mass, in fact, the Holy Spirit descends anew, invoked by the solemn prayer of the Church, not only to transform our gifts of bread and wine into the Lord’s body and blood, but also to transform our lives, to make us, in his power, “one body, one spirit in Christ”.

But what is this “power” of the Holy Spirit? It is the power of God’s life! It is the power of the same Spirit who hovered over the waters at the dawn of creation and who, in the fullness of time, raised Jesus from the dead. It is the power which points us, and our world, towards the coming of the Kingdom of God. In today’s Gospel, Jesus proclaims that a new age has begun, in which the Holy Spirit will be poured out upon all humanity (cf. Lk 4:21). He himself, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin May, came among us to bring us that Spirit. As the source of our new life in Christ, the Holy Spirit is also, in a very real way, the soul of the Church, the love which binds us to the Lord and one another, and the light which opens our eyes to see all around us the wonders of God’s grace.

Here in Australia, this “great south land of the Holy Spirit”, all of us have had an unforgettable experience of the Spirit’s presence and power in the beauty of nature. Our eyes have been opened to see the world around us as it truly is: “charged”, as the poet says, “with the grandeur of God”, filled with the glory of his creative love. Here too, in this great assembly of young Christians from all over the world, we have had a vivid experience of the Spirit’s presence and power in the life of the Church. We have seen the Church for what she truly is: the Body of Christ, a living community of love, embracing people of every race, nation and tongue, of every time and place, in the unity born of our faith in the Risen Lord.

The power of the Spirit never ceases to fill the Church with life! Through the grace of the Church’s sacraments, that power also flows deep within us, like an underground river which nourishes our spirit and draws us ever nearer to the source of our true life, which is Christ. Saint Ignatius of Antioch, who died a martyr in Rome at the beginning of the second century, has left us a splendid description of the Spirit’s power dwelling within us. He spoke of the Spirit as a fountain of living water springing up within his heart and whispering: “Come, come to the Father” (cf. Ad Rom., 6:1-9).

Yet this power, the grace of the Spirit, is not something we can merit or achieve, but only receive as pure gift. God’s love can only unleash its power when it is allowed to change us from within. We have to let it break through the hard crust of our indifference, our spiritual weariness, our blind conformity to the spirit of this age. Only then can we let it ignite our imagination and shape our deepest desires. That is why prayer is so important: daily prayer, private prayer in the quiet of our hearts and before the Blessed Sacrament, and liturgical prayer in the heart of the Church. Prayer is pure receptivity to God’s grace, love in action, communion with the Spirit who dwells within us, leading us, through Jesus, in the Church, to our heavenly Father. In the power of his Spirit, Jesus is always present in our hearts, quietly waiting for us to be still with him, to hear his voice, to abide in his love, and to receive “power from on high”, enabling us to be salt and light for our world.

At his Ascension, the Risen Lord told his disciples: “You will be my witnesses … to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Here, in Australia, let us thank the Lord for the gift of faith, which has come down to us like a treasure passed on from generation to generation in the communion of the Church. Here, in Oceania, let us give thanks in a special way for all those heroic missionaries, dedicated priests and religious, Christian parents and grandparents, teachers and catechists who built up the Church in these lands – witnesses like Blessed Mary MacKillop, Saint Peter Chanel, Blessed Peter To Rot, and so many others! The power of the Spirit, revealed in their lives, is still at work in the good they left behind, in the society which they shaped and which is being handed on to you.

Dear young people, let me now ask you a question. What will you leave to the next generation? Are you building your lives on firm foundations, building something that will endure? Are you living your lives in a way that opens up space for the Spirit in the midst of a world that wants to forget God, or even rejects him in the name of a falsely-conceived freedom? How are you using the gifts you have been given, the “power” which the Holy Spirit is even now prepared to release within you? What legacy will you leave to young people yet to come? What difference will you make?

The power of the Holy Spirit does not only enlighten and console us. It also points us to the future, to the coming of God’s Kingdom. What a magnificent vision of a humanity redeemed and renewed we see in the new age promised by today’s Gospel! Saint Luke tells us that Jesus Christ is the fulfilment of all God’s promises, the Messiah who fully possesses the Holy Spirit in order to bestow that gift upon all mankind. The outpouring of Christ’s Spirit upon humanity is a pledge of hope and deliverance from everything that impoverishes us. It gives the blind new sight; it sets the downtrodden free, and it creates unity in and through diversity (cf. Lk 4:18-19; Is 61:1-2). This power can create a new world: it can “renew the face of the earth” (cf. Ps 104:30)!

Empowered by the Spirit, and drawing upon faith’s rich vision, a new generation of Christians is being called to help build a world in which God’s gift of life is welcomed, respected and cherished – not rejected, feared as a threat and destroyed. A new age in which love is not greedy or self-seeking, but pure, faithful and genuinely free, open to others, respectful of their dignity, seeking their good, radiating joy and beauty. A new age in which hope liberates us from the shallowness, apathy and self-absorption which deaden our souls and poison our relationships. Dear young friends, the Lord is asking you to be prophets of this new age, messengers of his love, drawing people to the Father and building a future of hope for all humanity.

The world needs this renewal! In so many of our societies, side by side with material prosperity, a spiritual desert is spreading: an interior emptiness, an unnamed fear, a quiet sense of despair. How many of our contemporaries have built broken and empty cisterns (cf. Jer 2:13) in a desperate search for meaning – the ultimate meaning that only love can give? This is the great and liberating gift which the Gospel brings: it reveals our dignity as men and women created in the image and likeness of God. It reveals humanity’s sublime calling, which is to find fulfilment in love. It discloses the truth about man and the truth about life.

The Church also needs this renewal! She needs your faith, your idealism and your generosity, so that she can always be young in the Spirit (cf. Lumen Gentium, 4)! In today’s second reading, the Apostle Paul reminds us that each and every Christian has received a gift meant for building up the Body of Christ. The Church especially needs the gifts of young people, all young people. She needs to grow in the power of the Spirit who even now gives joy to your youth and inspires you to serve the Lord with gladness. Open your hearts to that power! I address this plea in a special way to those of you whom the Lord is calling to the priesthood and the consecrated life. Do not be afraid to say “yes” to Jesus, to find your joy in doing his will, giving yourself completely to the pursuit of holiness, and using all your talents in the service of others!

In a few moments, we will celebrate the sacrament of Confirmation. The Holy Spirit will descend upon the confirmands; they will be “sealed” with the gift of the Spirit and sent forth to be Christ’s witnesses. What does it mean to receive the “seal” of the Holy Spirit? It means being indelibly marked, inalterably changed, a new creation. For those who have received this gift, nothing can ever be the same! Being “baptized” in the one Spirit (cf. 1 Cor 12:13) means being set on fire with the love of God. Being “given to drink” of the Spirit means being refreshed by the beauty of the Lord’s plan for us and for the world, and becoming in turn a source of spiritual refreshment for others. Being “sealed with the Spirit” means not being afraid to stand up for Christ, letting the truth of the Gospel permeate the way we see, think and act, as we work for the triumph of the civilization of love.

As we pray for the confirmands, let us ask that the power of the Holy Spirit will revive the grace of our own Confirmation. May he pour out his gifts in abundance on all present, on this city of Sydney, on this land of Australia and on all its people! May each of us be renewed in the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgement and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence, the spirit of wonder and awe in God’s presence!

Through the loving intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, may this Twenty-third World Youth Day be experienced as a new Upper Room, from which all of us, burning with the fire and love of the Holy Spirit, go forth to proclaim the Risen Christ and to draw every heart to him! Amen.

Source: Vatican

Pope Benedict's address to the young people at Randwick Racecourse, Sat 19 Jul 2008

Dear Young People,

Once again this evening we have heard Christ’s great promise – “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you”. And we have heard his summons – “be my witnesses throughout the world” – (Acts 1:8). These were the very last words which Jesus spoke before his Ascension into heaven. How the Apostles felt upon hearing them, we can only imagine. But we do know that their deep love for Jesus, and their trust in his word, prompted them to gather and to wait; to wait not aimlessly, but together, united in prayer, with the women and Mary in the Upper Room (cf. Acts 1:14). Tonight, we do the same. Gathered before our much-travelled Cross and the icon of Mary, and under the magnificent constellation of the Southern Cross, we pray. Tonight, I am praying for you and for young people throughout the world. Be inspired by the example of your Patrons! Accept into your hearts and minds the sevenfold gift of the Holy Spirit! Recognize and believe in the power of the Spirit in your lives!
The other day we talked of the unity and harmony of God’s creation and our place within it. We recalled how in the great gift of baptism we, who are made in God’s image and likeness, have been reborn, we have become God’s adopted children, a new creation. And so it is as children of Christ’s light – symbolized by the lit candles you now hold – that we bear witness in our world to the radiance no darkness can overcome (cf. Jn 1:5).

Tonight we focus our attention on how to become witnesses. We need to understand the person of the Holy Spirit and his vivifying presence in our lives. This is not easy to comprehend. Indeed the variety of images found in scripture referring to the Spirit – wind, fire, breath – indicate our struggle to articulate an understanding of him. Yet we do know that it is the Holy Spirit who, though silent and unseen, gives direction and definition to our witness to Jesus Christ.

You are already well aware that our Christian witness is offered to a world which in many ways is fragile. The unity of God’s creation is weakened by wounds which run particularly deep when social relations break apart, or when the human spirit is all but crushed through the exploitation and abuse of persons. Indeed, society today is being fragmented by a way of thinking that is inherently short-sighted, because it disregards the full horizon of truth– the truth about God and about us. By its nature, relativism fails to see the whole picture. It ignores the very principles which enable us to live and flourish in unity, order and harmony.

What is our response, as Christian witnesses, to a divided and fragmented world? How can we offer the hope of peace, healing and harmony to those “stations” of conflict, suffering, and tension through which you have chosen to march with this World Youth Day Cross? Unity and reconciliation cannot be achieved through our efforts alone. God has made us for one another (cf. Gen 2:24) and only in God and his Church can we find the unity we seek. Yet, in the face of imperfections and disappointments – both individual and institutional – we are sometimes tempted to construct artificially a “perfect” community. That temptation is not new. The history of the Church includes many examples of attempts to bypass or override human weaknesses or failures in order to create a perfect unity, a spiritual utopia.

Such attempts to construct unity in fact undermine it! To separate the Holy Spirit from Christ present in the Church’s institutional structure would compromise the unity of the Christian community, which is precisely the Spirit’s gift! It would betray the nature of the Church as the living temple of the Holy Spirit (cf. 1 Cor 3:16). It is the Spirit, in fact, who guides the Church in the way of all truth and unifies her in communion and in the works of ministry (cf. Lumen Gentium, 4). Unfortunately the temptation to “go it alone” persists. Some today portray their local community as somehow separate from the so-called institutional Church, by speaking of the former as flexible and open to the Spirit and the latter as rigid and devoid of the Spirit.

Unity is of the essence of the Church (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 813); it is a gift we must recognize and cherish. Tonight, let us pray for the resolve to nurture unity: contribute to it! resist any temptation to walk away! For it is precisely the comprehensiveness, the vast vision, of our faith – solid yet open, consistent yet dynamic, true yet constantly growing in insight – that we can offer our world. Dear young people, is it not because of your faith that friends in difficulty or seeking meaning in their lives have turned to you? Be watchful! Listen! Through the dissonance and division of our world, can you hear the concordant voice of humanity? From the forlorn child in a Darfur camp, or a troubled teenager, or an anxious parent in any suburb, or perhaps even now from the depth of your own heart, there emerges the same human cry for recognition, for belonging, for unity. Who satisfies that essential human yearning to be one, to be immersed in communion, to be built up, to be led to truth? The Holy Spirit! This is the Spirit’s role: to bring Christ’s work to fulfilment. Enriched with the Spirit’s gifts, you will have the power to move beyond the piecemeal, the hollow utopia, the fleeting, to offer the consistency and certainty of Christian witness!

Friends, when reciting the Creed we state: “We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life”. The “Creator Spirit” is the power of God giving life to all creation and the source of new and abundant life in Christ. The Spirit sustains the Church in union with the Lord and in fidelity to the apostolic Tradition. He inspired the Sacred Scriptures and he guides God’s People into the fullness of truth (cf. Jn 16:13) In all these ways the Spirit is the “giver of life”, leading us into the very heart of God. So, the more we allow the Spirit to direct us, the more perfect will be our configuration to Christ and the deeper our immersion in the life of the Triune God.

This sharing in God’s nature (cf. 2 Pet 1:4) occurs in the unfolding of the everyday moments of our lives where he is always present (cf. Bar 3:38). There are times, however, when we might be tempted to seek a certain fulfilment apart from God. Jesus himself asked the Twelve: “do you also wish to go away?” Such drifting away perhaps offers the illusion of freedom. But where does it lead? To whom would we go? For in our hearts we know that it is the Lord who has “the words of eternal life” (Jn 6:67-68). To turn away from him is only a futile attempt to escape from ourselves (cf. Saint Augustine, Confessions VIII, 7). God is with us in the reality of life, not the fantasy! It is embrace, not escape, that we seek! So the Holy Spirit gently but surely steers us back to what is real, what is lasting, what is true. It is the Spirit who leads us back into the communion of the Blessed Trinity!

The Holy Spirit has been in some ways the neglected person of the Blessed Trinity. A clear understanding of the Spirit almost seems beyond our reach. Yet, when I was a small boy, my parents, like yours, taught me the Sign of the Cross. So, I soon came to realize that there is one God in three Persons, and that the Trinity is the centre of our Christian faith and life. While I grew up to have some understanding of God the Father and the Son – the names already conveyed much – my understanding of the third person of the Trinity remained incomplete. So, as a young priest teaching theology, I decided to study the outstanding witnesses to the Spirit in the Church’s history. It was on this journey that I found myself reading, among others, the great Saint Augustine.

Augustine’s understanding of the Holy Spirit evolved gradually; it was a struggle. As a young man he had followed Manichaeism - one of those attempts I mentioned earlier, to create a spiritual utopia by radically separating the things of the spirit from the things of the flesh. Hence he was at first suspicious of the Christian teaching that God had become man. Yet his experience of the love of God present in the Church led him to investigate its source in the life of the Triune God. This led him to three particular insights about the Holy Spirit as the bond of unity within the Blessed Trinity: unity as communion, unity as abiding love, and unity as giving and gift. These three insights are not just theoretical. They help explain how the Spirit works. In a world where both individuals and communities often suffer from an absence of unity or cohesion, these insights help us remain attuned to the Spirit and to extend and clarify the scope of our witness.

So, with Augustine’s help, let us illustrate something of the Holy Spirit’s work. He noted that the two words “Holy” and “Spirit” refer to what is divine about God; in other words what is shared by the Father and the Son – their communion. So, if the distinguishing characteristic of the Holy Spirit is to be what is shared by the Father and the Son, Augustine concluded that the Spirit’s particular quality is unity. It is a unity of lived communion: a unity of persons in a relationship of constant giving, the Father and the Son giving themselves to each other. We begin to glimpse, I think, how illuminating is this understanding of the Holy Spirit as unity, as communion. True unity could never be founded upon relationships which deny the equal dignity of other persons. Nor is unity simply the sum total of the groups through which we sometimes attempt to “define” ourselves. In fact, only in the life of communion is unity sustained and human identity fulfilled: we recognize the common need for God, we respond to the unifying presence of the Holy Spirit, and we give ourselves to one another in service.

Augustine’s second insight – the Holy Spirit as abiding love – comes from his study of the First Letter of Saint John. John tells us that “God is love” (1 Jn 4:16). Augustine suggests that while these words refer to the Trinity as a whole they express a particular characteristic of the Holy Spirit. Reflecting on the lasting nature of love - “whoever abides in love remains in God and God in him” (ibid.) - he wondered: is it love or the Holy Spirit which grants the abiding? This is the conclusion he reaches: “The Holy Spirit makes us remain in God and God in us; yet it is love that effects this. The Spirit therefore is God as love!” (De Trinitate, 15.17.31). It is a beautiful explanation: God shares himself as love in the Holy Spirit. What further understanding might we gain from this insight? Love is the sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit! Ideas or voices which lack love – even if they seem sophisticated or knowledgeable – cannot be “of the Spirit”. Furthermore, love has a particular trait: far from being indulgent or fickle, it has a task or purpose to fulfil: to abide. By its nature love is enduring. Again, dear friends, we catch a further glimpse of how much the Holy Spirit offers our world: love which dispels uncertainty; love which overcomes the fear of betrayal; love which carries eternity within; the true love which draws us into a unity that abides!

The third insight – the Holy Spirit as gift – Augustine derived from meditating on a Gospel passage we all know and love: Christ’s conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well. Here Jesus reveals himself as the giver of the living water (cf. Jn 4:10) which later is explained as the Holy Spirit (cf. Jn 7:39; 1 Cor 12:13). The Spirit is “God’s gift” (Jn 4:10) - the internal spring (cf. Jn 4:14), who truly satisfies our deepest thirst and leads us to the Father. From this observation Augustine concludes that God sharing himself with us as gift is the Holy Spirit (cf. De Trinitate, 15, 18, 32). Friends, again we catch a glimpse of the Trinity at work: the Holy Spirit is God eternally giving himself; like a never-ending spring he pours forth nothing less than himself. In view of this ceaseless gift, we come to see the limitations of all that perishes, the folly of the consumerist mindset. We begin to understand why the quest for novelty leaves us unsatisfied and wanting. Are we not looking for an eternal gift? The spring that will never run dry? With the Samaritan woman, let us exclaim: give me this water that I may thirst no more! (cf. Jn 4:15).

Dear young people, we have seen that it is the Holy Spirit who brings about the wonderful communion of believers in Jesus Christ. True to his nature as giver and gift alike, he is even now working through you. Inspired by the insights of Saint Augustine: let unifying love be your measure; abiding love your challenge; self-giving love your mission!

Tomorrow, that same gift of the Spirit will be solemnly conferred upon our confirmation candidates. I shall pray: “give them the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgement and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence… and fill them with the spirit of wonder and awe”. These gifts of the Spirit – each of which, as Saint Francis de Sales reminds us, is a way to participate in the one love of God – are neither prizes nor rewards. They are freely given (cf. 1 Cor 12:11). And they require only one response on the part of the receiver: I accept! Here we sense something of the deep mystery of being Christian. What constitutes our faith is not primarily what we do but what we receive. After all, many generous people who are not Christian may well achieve far more than we do. Friends, do you accept being drawn into God’s Trinitarian life? Do you accept being drawn into his communion of love?

The Spirit’s gifts working within us give direction and definition to our witness. Directed to unity, the gifts of the Spirit bind us more closely to the whole Body of Christ (cf. Lumen Gentium, 11), equipping us better to build up the Church in order to serve the world (cf. Eph 4:13). They call us to active and joyful participation in the life of the Church: in parishes and ecclesial movements, in religious education classes, in university chaplaincies and other catholic organizations. Yes, the Church must grow in unity, must be strengthened in holiness, must be rejuvenated, must be constantly renewed (cf. Lumen Gentium, 4). But according to whose standard? The Holy Spirit’s! Turn to him, dear young people, and you will find the true meaning of renewal.

Tonight, gathered under the beauty of the night sky, our hearts and minds are filled with gratitude to God for the great gift of our Trinitarian faith. We recall our parents and grandparents who walked alongside us when we, as children, were taking our first steps in our pilgrim journey of faith. Now many years later, you have gathered as young adults with the Successor of Peter. I am filled with deep joy to be with you. Let us invoke the Holy Spirit: he is the artisan of God’s works (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 741). Let his gifts shape you! Just as the Church travels the same journey with all humanity, so too you are called to exercise the Spirit’s gifts amidst the ups and downs of your daily life. Let your faith mature through your studies, work, sport, music and art. Let it be sustained by prayer and nurtured by the sacraments, and thus be a source of inspiration and help to those around you. In the end, life is not about accumulation. It is much more than success. To be truly alive is to be transformed from within, open to the energy of God’s love. In accepting the power of the Holy Spirit you too can transform your families, communities and nations. Set free the gifts! Let wisdom, courage, awe and reverence be the marks of greatness!

And now, as we move towards adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, in stillness and expectation, I echo to you the words spoken by Blessed Mary MacKillop when she was just twenty six years old: “Believe in the whisperings of God to your heart!”. Believe in him! Believe in the power of the Spirit of Love!

Source: Vatican

Full text of the Holy Father's speech at Barangaroo, Thr 17 Jul 2008

Dear Young People,

What a delight it is to greet you here at Barangaroo, on the shores of the magnificent Sydney harbour, with its famous bridge and Opera House. Many of you are local, from the outback or the dynamic multicultural communities of Australian cities. Others of you have come from the scattered islands of Oceania, and others still from Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas. Some of you, indeed, have come from as far as I have, Europe! Wherever we are from, we are here at last in Sydney. And together we stand in our world as God's family, disciples of Christ, empowered by his Spirit to be witnesses of his love and truth for everyone!
I wish firstly to thank the Aboriginal Elders who welcomed me prior to my boarding the boat at Rose Bay. I am deeply moved to stand on your land, knowing the suffering and injustices it has borne, but aware too of the healing and hope that are now at work, rightly bringing pride to all Australian citizens. To the young indigenous - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders - and the Tokelauans, I express my thanks for your stirring welcome. Through you, I send heartfelt greetings to your peoples.

Cardinal Pell and Archbishop Wilson, I thank you for your warm words of welcome. I know that your sentiments resonate in the hearts of the young gathered here this evening, and so I thank you all. Standing before me I see a vibrant image of the universal Church. The variety of nations and cultures from which you hail shows that indeed Christ's Good News is for everyone; it has reached the ends of the earth. Yet I know too that a good number of you are still seeking a spiritual homeland. Some of you, most welcome among us, are not Catholic or Christian. Others of you perhaps hover at the edge of parish and Church life. To you I wish to offer encouragement: step forward into Christ's loving embrace; recognize the Church as your home. No one need remain on the outside, for from the day of Pentecost the Church has been one and universal.

This evening I wish also to include those who are not present among us. I am thinking especially of the sick or mentally ill, young people in prison, those struggling on the margins of our societies, and those who for whatever reason feel alienated from the Church. To them I say: Jesus is close to you! Feel his healing embrace, his compassion and mercy!

Almost two thousand years ago, the Apostles, gathered in the upper room together with Mary and some faithful women, were filled with the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 1:14; 2:4). At that extraordinary moment, which gave birth to the Church, the confusion and fear that had gripped Christ's disciples were transformed into a vigorous conviction and sense of purpose. They felt impelled to speak of their encounter with the risen Jesus whom they had come to call affectionately, the Lord. In many ways, the Apostles were ordinary. None could claim to be the perfect disciple. They failed to recognize Christ (cf. Lk 24:13-32), felt ashamed of their own ambition (cf. Lk 22:24-27), and had even denied him (cf. Lk 22:54-62). Yet, when empowered by the Holy Spirit, they were transfixed by the truth of Christ's Gospel and inspired to proclaim it fearlessly. Emboldened, they exclaimed: repent, be baptized, receive the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 2:37-38)! Grounded in the Apostles' teaching, in fellowship, and in the breaking of the bread and prayer (cf. Acts 2:42), the young Christian community moved forward to oppose the perversity in the culture around them (cf. Acts 2:40), to care for one another (cf. Acts 2:44-47), to defend their belief in Jesus in the face of hostility (cf Acts 4:33), and to heal the sick (cf. Acts 5:12-16). And in obedience to Christ's own command, they set forth, bearing witness to the greatest story ever: that God has become one of us, that the divine has entered human history in order to transform it, and that we are called to immerse ourselves in Christ's saving love which triumphs over evil and death. Saint Paul, in his famous speech to the Areopagus, introduced the message in this way: "God gives everything - including life and breath - to everyone ... so that all nations might seek God and, by feeling their way towards him, succeed in finding him. In fact he is not far from any of us, since it is in him that we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17: 25-28).

And ever since, men and women have set out to tell the same story, witnessing to Christ's truth and love, and contributing to the Church's mission. Today, we think of those pioneering Priests, Sisters and Brothers who came to these shores, and to other parts of the Pacific, from Ireland, France, Britain and elsewhere in Europe. The great majority were young - some still in their late teens - and when they bade farewell to their parents, brothers and sisters, and friends, they knew they were unlikely ever to return home. Their whole lives were a selfless Christian witness. They became the humble but tenacious builders of so much of the social and spiritual heritage which still today brings goodness, compassion and purpose to these nations. And they went on to inspire another generation. We think immediately of the faith which sustained Blessed Mary MacKillop in her sheer determination to educate especially the poor, and Blessed Peter To Rot in his steadfast resolution that community leadership must always include the Gospel. Think also of your own grandparents and parents, your first teachers in faith. They too have made countless sacrifices of time and energy, out of love for you. Supported by your parish priests and teachers, they have the task, not always easy but greatly satisfying, of guiding you towards all that is good and true, through their own witness - their teaching and living of our Christian faith.

Today, it is my turn. For some of us, it might seem like we have come to the end of the world! For people of your age, however, any flight is an exciting prospect. But for me, this one was somewhat daunting! Yet the views afforded of our planet from the air were truly wondrous. The sparkle of the Mediterranean, the grandeur of the north African desert, the lushness of Asia's forestation, the vastness of the Pacific Ocean, the horizon upon which the sun rose and set, and the majestic splendour of Australia's natural beauty which I have been able to enjoy these last couple of days; these all evoke a profound sense of awe. It is as though one catches glimpses of the Genesis creation story - light and darkness, the sun and the moon, the waters, the earth, and living creatures; all of which are "good" in God's eyes (cf. Gen 1:1 - 2:4). Immersed in such beauty, who could not echo the words of the Psalmist in praise of the Creator: "how majestic is your name in all the earth?" (Ps 8:1).

And there is more - something hardly perceivable from the sky - men and women, made in nothing less than God's own image and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26). At the heart of the marvel of creation are you and I, the human family "crowned with glory and honour" (Ps 8:5). How astounding! With the Psalmist we whisper: "what is man that you are mindful of him?" (Ps 8:4). And drawn into silence, into a spirit of thanksgiving, into the power of holiness, we ponder.

What do we discover? Perhaps reluctantly we come to acknowledge that there are also scars which mark the surface of our earth: erosion, deforestation, the squandering of the world's mineral and ocean resources in order to fuel an insatiable consumption. Some of you come from island nations whose very existence is threatened by rising water levels; others from nations suffering the effects of devastating drought. God's wondrous creation is sometimes experienced as almost hostile to its stewards, even something dangerous. How can what is "good" appear so threatening?

And there is more. What of man, the apex of God's creation? Every day we encounter the genius of human achievement. From advances in medical sciences and the wise application of technology, to the creativity reflected in the arts, the quality and enjoyment of people's lives in many ways are steadily rising. Among yourselves there is a readiness to take up the plentiful opportunities offered to you. Some of you excel in studies, sport, music, or dance and drama, others of you have a keen sense of social justice and ethics, and many of you take up service and voluntary work. All of us, young and old, have those moments when the innate goodness of the human person - perhaps glimpsed in the gesture of a little child or an adult's readiness to forgive - fills us with profound joy and gratitude.

Yet such moments do not last. So again, we ponder. And we discover that not only the natural but also the social environment - the habitat we fashion for ourselves - has its scars; wounds indicating that something is amiss. Here too, in our personal lives and in our communities, we can encounter a hostility, something dangerous; a poison which threatens to corrode what is good, reshape who we are, and distort the purpose for which we have been created. Examples abound, as you yourselves know. Among the more prevalent are alcohol and drug abuse, and the exaltation of violence and sexual degradation, often presented through television and the internet as entertainment. I ask myself, could anyone standing face to face with people who actually do suffer violence and sexual exploitation "explain" that these tragedies, portrayed in virtual form, are considered merely "entertainment"?

There is also something sinister which stems from the fact that freedom and tolerance are so often separated from truth. This is fuelled by the notion, widely held today, that there are no absolute truths to guide our lives. Relativism, by indiscriminately giving value to practically everything, has made "experience" all-important. Yet, experiences, detached from any consideration of what is good or true, can lead, not to genuine freedom, but to moral or intellectual confusion, to a lowering of standards, to a loss of self-respect, and even to despair.

Dear friends, life is not governed by chance; it is not random. Your very existence has been willed by God, blessed and given a purpose (cf. Gen 1:28)! Life is not just a succession of events or experiences, helpful though many of them are. It is a search for the true, the good and the beautiful. It is to this end that we make our choices; it is for this that we exercise our freedom; it is in this - in truth, in goodness, and in beauty - that we find happiness and joy. Do not be fooled by those who see you as just another consumer in a market of undifferentiated possibilities, where choice itself becomes the good, novelty usurps beauty, and subjective experience displaces truth.

Christ offers more! Indeed he offers everything! Only he who is the Truth can be the Way and hence also the Life. Thus the "way" which the Apostles brought to the ends of the earth is life in Christ. This is the life of the Church. And the entrance to this life, to the Christian way, is Baptism.

This evening I wish therefore to recall briefly something of our understanding of Baptism before tomorrow considering the Holy Spirit. On the day of your Baptism, God drew you into his holiness (cf. 2 Pet 1:4). You were adopted as a son or daughter of the Father. You were incorporated into Christ. You were made a dwelling place of his Spirit (cf. 1 Cor 6:19). Baptism is neither an achievement, nor a reward. It is a grace; it is God's work. Indeed, towards the conclusion of your Baptism, the priest turned to your parents and those gathered and, calling you by your name said: "you have become a new creation" (Rite of Baptism, 99).

Dear friends, in your homes, schools and universities, in your places of work and recreation, remember that you are a new creation! Not only do you stand before the Creator in awe, rejoicing at his works, you also realize that the sure foundation of humanity's solidarity lies in the common origin of every person, the high-point of God's creative design for the world. As Christians you stand in this world knowing that God has a human face - Jesus Christ - the "way" who satisfies all human yearning, and the "life" to which we are called to bear witness, walking always in his light (cf. ibid., 100).

The task of witness is not easy. There are many today who claim that God should be left on the sidelines, and that religion and faith, while fine for individuals, should either be excluded from the public forum altogether or included only in the pursuit of limited pragmatic goals. This secularist vision seeks to explain human life and shape society with little or no reference to the Creator. It presents itself as neutral, impartial and inclusive of everyone. But in reality, like every ideology, secularism imposes a world-view. If God is irrelevant to public life, then society will be shaped in a godless image, and debate and policy concerning the public good will be driven more by consequences than by principles grounded in truth.

Yet experience shows that turning our back on the Creator's plan provokes a disorder which has inevitable repercussions on the rest of the created order (cf. 1990 World Day of Peace Message, 5). When God is eclipsed, our ability to recognize the natural order, purpose, and the "good" begins to wane. What was ostensibly promoted as human ingenuity soon manifests itself as folly, greed and selfish exploitation. And so we have become more and more aware of our need for humility before the delicate complexity of God's world.

But what of our social environment? Are we equally alert to the signs of turning our back on the moral structure with which God has endowed humanity (cf. 2007 World Day of Peace Message, 8)? Do we recognize that the innate dignity of every individual rests on his or her deepest identity - as image of the Creator - and therefore that human rights are universal, based on the natural law, and not something dependent upon negotiation or patronage, let alone compromise? And so we are led to reflect on what place the poor and the elderly, immigrants and the voiceless, have in our societies. How can it be that domestic violence torments so many mothers and children? How can it be that the most wondrous and sacred human space - the womb - has become a place of unutterable violence?

My dear friends, God's creation is one and it is good. The concerns for non-violence, sustainable development, justice and peace, and care for our environment are of vital importance for humanity. They cannot, however, be understood apart from a profound reflection upon the innate dignity of every human life from conception to natural death: a dignity conferred by God himself and thus inviolable. Our world has grown weary of greed, exploitation and division, of the tedium of false idols and piecemeal responses, and the pain of false promises. Our hearts and minds are yearning for a vision of life where love endures, where gifts are shared, where unity is built, where freedom finds meaning in truth, and where identity is found in respectful communion. This is the work of the Holy Spirit! This is the hope held out by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is to bear witness to this reality that you were created anew at Baptism and strengthened through the gifts of the Spirit at Confirmation. Let this be the message that you bring from Sydney to the world!

Source: Vatican

Interesting facts about Australia

I will post a collection of some interesting factoids I learned about Australia and will update as I remember them more, in no particular order.
- Ozzies: how Australians like to call themselves.
- Ozzies drive on the left side of the street, which is a well known fact, but there is more to it when you actively participate in the traffic. When crossing the street, you have to look to the right first. This is very important, and a very strange thing to get used to for us right-side-of-the-road-driving people. (some street crossings actually have a sign on the asphalt: "look right") To catch a bus, look for the one coming on your right - it looks strange coming into the bus through a door where we'd expect the driver to sit. When on a highway, and you look to the car right of you, it's ok if you don't see a driver in the left-side seat - he is on the other side. I haven't tried driving there, but even sitting as a passenger in a car that makes a wide right turn is very, very confusing.
- More on driving:
There is no "left-turn-on-red", unless there is a specific sign for it, which we didn't see in the city.
Use of cell phones while driving, without a hand-free device, is against the law.
Most intersections have sound enhanced traffic lights, but they make different noises in different cities. Sydney lights make a really loud, high pitch sound when the light turns green.
- Restaurant:
Tipping is not expected.
Water is served in glass label-less bottles, and each person pours his/her own glass. Ice you'll get only if you ask for it.
- Water:
Safe to drink from faucets (in Sydney and Melbourne at least).
Toilets have half and full flush buttons, for #1 and #2 - very echo friendly country
I examined all the toilets I used in Australia to find out which direction does water spin in the southern hemisphere (I know, I am strange sometimes). None of the toilets had a spinning flush - water just went straight down. The water in the sink was turning in the clockwise direction.
- Kangaroos and emus are the only two native animals that cannot go backwards, only forward, and that is why they are chosen to be on the national symbols (like coins) - as a symbol for the country to only go forward.
- Ozzies are very easy going people. "no worries, mate" we heard a lot. My other favorite words are "rubbish", which they use for both trash and to say that something is like junk, and "bugger", which is what they say when they are upset by something.
- They are also very nice. With all the thousands of pilgrims that were on the streets in those days, locals were very polite and welcoming. Although we met some people who told us they don't agree with the Catholic church's teachings, they were still nice and told us they were glad that all the young people who were there enjoyed the WYD.
- Shopping:
Prices are rounded; there are no .95 and .99 deals.
It's ok to bargain, in both flea markets and touristy shops. Didn't try boutiques.
We saw many "Xmas in July" sale signs and several Christmas trees through the apartment windows.

Back in Austin

I got back early Saturday morning, actually just after midnight. It took us almost 36 hours and 4 flights; Melbourne-Sydney-Los Angeles-Denver-Austin. I am thankful that I had this weekend to recuperate and switch to new time zone. I am still in the spirit of WYD, and will try to keep it strong in my memory as long as I can, so it can inspire my daily actions.
I don't know when I will post again on this site - when the Spirit moves me I guess.

Phillip Island tour

On Thursday we have scheduled a tour to the Philip Island. They weren’t picking us up until 11, so we went for a walk to the (flea) Market. It was nice to sip my coffee while walking through the aisles watching locals as they were setting up their tables. The day started foggy, but quickly cleared up and was really nice, sunny and warm.
Our tour bus took about an hour picking up people around the city, which gave us an opportunity to see different areas. Then it was about an 1.5 hour to the first stop, a winery. The wine testing was just about 15-20 min which was fine with me. Then we went to a wildlife park. It was much smaller than the one we went to two days before, and more limited. We were not allowed to pet a koala; apparently there is a law in Victoria against touching the koalas. They only allowed us to pose for a picture they took, which then they were selling to us. The kangaroos and wallabies were neat, and we got to feed and play with them. We also had lunch at that place. Since we stayed there longer than we were supposed, we had to skip the next stop, the beach. We headed to the Nobbies, a small town where we got to see the little penguins in wild and take pictures of them. This was our last opportunity for photographing them, because all cameras are prohibited on the Philip Island parade. The parade was a neat experience. We were seated on a platform on the beach, an waited for sundown for penguins to start coming out of the water. It was completely clear night, we got to see the southern cross star formation, and it also made it more pleasant to be outside than what I was afraid it might be. The penguins appeared on the horizon about 6pm. First only a few, they stayed in a group at the water edge gathering courage to run across the beach. They would pass our platform, which only had soft lights on it, and then walk through their run ways through the bushes toward their boroughs. They are so cute, only 30 cm tall, and wobbling as they walk. When they first get out of the water, they make a quaking sound, and then are silent as they run across the send. When they get into the bushes, they make a different sound, which sound more aggressive, like they are protecting the nests. We saw maybe 40 penguins come through; the biggest group had maybe 15 of them. We were able to see few of them along the boardwalk as we were coming back to the parking lot. After a pizza dinner, we headed back toward the city and were in our room by 10.30. I was completely exhausted by that time, and went straight to bed. Our 4 set of flights trip back home started at 7am, and we won’t be home until after 8pm on Friday. That will be more than 24 hours of daylight, so I am really glad I have a weekend to recuperate.

Melbourne

Wednesday morning we arrived in Melbourne, pronounced with silent 'r' by Ozzie's. It was hour and a half flight, and we left our bags in a storage at the Sydney airport.The shuttle from the airport took about 50 minutes, and there was not much to see during the ride; country side with sheep. The temperature is definitely colder than in Sydney, and when we first arrived it was overcast, foggy, and drizzling. Our hostel room at the Nunnery is nice, all 7 of us are together. I had to put 5-6 layers of clothes to warm myself, because there was no heat in the room. We went for a stroll in the Fitzroy neighborhood, which is an artsy type of place, with many boutiques, cafes, and restaurants. We had dinner there, a $4 pizza, and then went walking toward the town. We first stopped at one church where they were praying the rosary. I stayed there for a little bit, and then with another continued with another girl, Sarah toward the city, while the other 3 stayed to finish the rosary. Our next stop was at St. Patrick's cathedral, which is the largest cathedral in Melbourne. A group of WYD pilgrims from Mexico was in there about the start the Mass with the priest from their group. So we looked around a bit, beautiful church, and then left as the spanish Mass was starting.
We were already in downtown, and the weather was clearing and getting a bit warmer (I only needed 3 layers of clothes at that time). We then went on a city circle tram, which is a free train ride around the CBD (central business district) where they explain the highlights, and then hopped off at the main train station. After walking for a few blocks we then noticed another beautiful church and decided to visit and warm up a bit. A service was in progress, and we thought to stay for, what we thought, the end of mass (since we missed the one at St. Patrick’s) After just a few moments we realized this wasn’t a catholic church, because the main minister was a woman. Right after the service, they were closing the church so we continued our walk. On the next intersection we run into the other 3 people from our group, and then walked together for a bit. We ended the evening at a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown, which wasn’t my favorite meal. It was so nice to sleep in a real bed that night.

Blue Mountains tour

On Tuesday we went on a full day tour to the Featherdale Wildlife Park and the Blue Mountains. The shuttle picked us up at the school at 7am. After picking up other members of the group we then first rode around the Rocks. This is the oldest area of the town, where the first settlers, mostly family members of convicts, lived. These days it is an upscale neighborhood, with most expensive rents. Then we went north west of the city toward the wildlife park. We were supposed to arrive there 1 hour before the park opened and have it just for ourselves, but the driver missed the exist, and since we were already running late, we got there just 15 min before the opening. Even that little time made a big difference before a huge bus group arrived; we were able to play with the animals without the crowd. We first saw a wombat, and even though a sign said “we bite” he was letting me pet his belly. After that we played with koalas (which means “needs no water” and they virtually drink not water and can stay up on the trees for days just eating eucalyptus tree leaves. Those are very toxic, so in order to process that out, they have to sleep up to 19 hours a day). They had few koalas up on short tress, and gave them leave branches, so we were able to feed them and pet them. They are super cute, like a stuffed animal. Next were the kangaroos (which means “I don’t know”. Apparently, when first settlers came they had a guide explaining them different animals, and since he wasn’t from the region when kangaroos live, he didn’t know about them. So when they asked him which animal it was he said “kangaroo”=I don’t know, and that’s how they named the animal) Kangaroos were just walking and hoping around us. We had some cones with grass mix to feed them with, and they would just come up to us and let us pet them. One had a little baby in the pouch, super cute.We saw a dad come up and lick the baby, until mom got tired of it and simply pushed him away. After the park we went up on a 1 hour ride toward the mountains. We stopped at couple of sites to see the views, and it was very windy and cold. There was another kangaroo standing on his back lags, who let me scratch him under his arm, then belly and neck. When he then he started scratching his back, and I helped scratch him at that spot, he liked my hand as to tank me. I also saw several cool birds there, a dingo, and albino kangaroo, but those above were the highlights.
The weather is still fantastic, with no clouds. After taking pictures at three sisters, we went on 3 cable car rides over the falls and cliffs. Then of to warm and delicious lunch at a country club followed by a hike in a subtropical forest. At the end of the day, we stopped shortly at the Olympic Park and came back to the city via ferry. We had dinner at the Australian hotel pub; kangaroo and emu pizzas.
Our visit in Sydney is over. Tomorrow we go to Melbourne.

Monday after WYD

Today was a liberating day, when I didn’t have any set plans. We had to be out of our rooms by 9am, but where we were to go we didn’t know, so I went with the flow. Our group decided to first go to the Sydney tower, which is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere, one sign said it is as tall as 60 giraffes! It gave us spectacular 360 degree views of the city. The day was wonderful for this. There was no clouds in the sky, even though we had heavy rain during the night. We spend good hour up there, waiting to go to OzTreck, which is some 3D show. It was taking too long, so when we realize we can use the same ticket to do it tomorrow, we decided to leave. The group went to McDonalds, and I went to an Aboriginal store to get a dijeridoo, and I met them after the lunch. We then all went to Bondi beach, a very famous beautiful beach. It was cold and windy, but sunny. Some people dipped their feet in water, but there was some brave ones who were swimming in their regular swimming suits. Crazy if you ask me. We hang out at the beach for a while, laid on a lawn and watched a plane write “grazia” in the sky twice. Then we head back to the city, took another bus to our neighborhood, and ate dinner at a Portuguese restaurant. Wonderful food after a week of pilgrim food.
Tomorrow we go to the Blue Mountains.

Pilgrimage to the St. Mary's Cathedral

After Randwick, we headed to our rooms, even though they told us they won't be open until 5pm. When we arrived, the gate was open, and someone from the staff was here and opened us the room. We had plans to go to the town, so we wanted to leave our camping stuff in the rooms first. There was no line at the shower, so it was very tempting to just stay and shower, and not go anywhere for the evening. But, I didn't want to waste any time, and decided to go with another group to the Paddingtons market first, which is opened only on weekends and closes at 5pm. After that, my plan was to go to the Cathedral and then eat dinner.
The market was interesting, but not too exciting. Basically it is a flee market indoors. I got few souvenirs in 30-40 min I had to spend there. Then I had to wait for the rest of the group. They were taking too long, and they weren't sure if they'll go to St. Mary's anyway, so after about 20 min of waiting I decided to go by myself. This is my third attempt to go to the Cathedral. The first one was on the first day we were here, and they closed the entrance once we got there. The second was after the papal motorcade, when we actually had a booking for a particular time slot, but the streets were packed and we were not able to make it. So tonight was the night, because tomorrow is no longer WYD week and I don't know what kind of schedule they would have in the Cathedral.

The streets were still partially blocked and traffic chaotic from thousands of pilgrims making their way home from Randwick. So, I went on a walking pilgrimage and prayed the rosary along the way. It took about 30 min. Once I got there, the front square still had all the fencing around, and the security person told me to go to gate A1. Once there, another uniformed person told me they closed the Cathedral for the night! I was devastated. So much that tears went into my eyes. I started pleading to please let me in. They said I can come back tomorrow morning at 8, but I told them we are leaving tomorrow. They also said the relics are probably not going to be here tomorrow. Again I was pleading, but they were firm - 'sorry we are closed'. When he told me they closed the Cathedral just 30 min ago, realizing this was the time I lost at the market, I got even more upset that I didn’t choose to come to the Cathedral first instead of the market. But that was not getting me any closer, so I just prayed – thy will be done. I came this close, I tried my best, and it was His will I wanted to believe He will open the doors for me.
I wanted to give it more try, so I first thought to sneak in through tent where people are exiting. That didn't work, so then I went to the main exit of the church. The entire area is fenced in, and security guards are everywhere. The exit personnel told me the same thing - closed. I tried pleading with him, too, more like trying out my charm. I told him how nobody will know that he let one person in, if he looked the other way it would not be his fault, I tried sneaking in behind him while talking with him,…it didn’t work. Lying to first and charming the second guard did not get me in. Then one lady came with the group who had a booking for that time, and tried to explain they have to let them in because they have scheduled the pilgrimage during that time. This guard sent them back to A1, but said he still doesn’t think it will work. I tried lying to the guard again and told him that I too had the booking during that time but didn’t have the printout, but he said without a proof they would not let me in. I realized that this group was my only chance. I run after them to gate 1. There was another smaller group already there, also with the booking, and the security person asked the group for their total number. The other group only had 4, so I got closer to the group I ran after. One man in the group whispered to me just to stay with them. The group was from Indonesia, 12 of them. I really didn’t blend in with them. I also had to disguise myself, because I just spoke to that security guard few minutes ago, so I put my jacket and hat on. Fortunately, there was also a priest and a young man with him, who were from Spain, so although they didn’t look Indonesian, they were in the same way adopted by this group at the spot. When the security guard asked the group leader for their number, the girl said 15, which included me and the two Spaniards. The guard counted us in, and all 15 of us were on the other side of the fence now! Yay! We rushed through the maze of fences, toward the security check point, only to be sent back to another tent we missed because they already closed it. We had to leave our bags there – security measure. They too didn’t want to let us in, telling us the Cathedral is closed, but we were able to convince them they already approved us, and we just need to leave the bags. The staff girl looked at me a bit funny among all those Indonesians, but I slipped quickly out of her sight. Then we went through one security that scanned us, and another that checked the content of our pockets. And not we were walking toward the main entrance. Once we got it in, it was surreal. I took so many obstacles, that now that I was in, I was so overwhelmed. I knelt down and started crying – of course. I finished the last decade of the rosary, which I was still praying along the way, still not over the awe of how I was able to get in.
I then walked around the church, and saw a casket in one area of the church, but it was roped off. I figured this must be the blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, so I asked one of the volunteers if that area was ever accessible by pilgrims, and she told me no. I thought I won’t be able to touch my rosary beads to the casket after all, but at that moment I was at peace. God’s providence got me this far, and it wasn’t meant to be, I figured, for me to get that close. I walked around and so some relics displayed on another altar, but it too was roped off. I don’t know whose relics where those. After reading several stations that had the life of the blessed Giorgio, by which I was truly amazed, I went back and knelt by the roped off casket. I was so thankful to be there, and amazed how simple it looked. It was just a wooden casket with a simple cross on it. In front of it was a sign that simply said “the body of the blessed Giorgio Frassati”. As I was kneeling, the guard came around the rope, and touched rosary beads in her hand to the casket. My eyes perked. “I want that too”, so I jumped up and went to her as she was coming out and asked her to do the same for me. She then just touched her rosary to the three rosaries in my hand, gave them a good rub, and then returned the rosary to a sister who apparently asked her for that favor. So, that is how my rosary, indirectly, came in contact with the body of the blessed Giorgio Frassati. Now, isn’t God awesome!
This was a perfect ending, I was just a player in this saga. This was a perfect ending to my pilgrimage to the cathedral, and the ending to the pilgrimage part of my visit to Australia.
The rain started to sprinkle. I headed home with a huge grim on my face. Tomorrow is a new week.

Sunday – World Youth Day

It is here – the 23rd world youth day!
We had a rain-free night, which is something we were a bit afraid of based on the prognosis. We have had a beautiful weather in Sydney so far, with barely any clouds in the sky-the nuns who were praying for the good weather did a good job. . I had two sleeping bags a thermal blanket (aluminum foil), inflatable mat and a tent. I got a bit chilly during the night, and pulled out the hand warmer pouch, and that did the trick of keeping me warm. Sunday morning the sky was cloudy and wind was picking up.
We had to wake up early to put up all our stuff, so that people can come closer for the mass, which was at 10. The toilets were still not flushing, and there was not water on the facets, so we were not able to even wash our faces. We were packing during the morning prayer, in and didn’t get to participate the liturgy of the hours. Once all our stuff was put up, I set by the fence to claim my area for the mass. I really didn’t want to get all worked up before the pope’s coming like at the Domain, so I just stayed seated close to the fence and was reading the liturgy of the hours on my own.
The pope came in to the racecourse in his popemobile a little bit before 10. He moved slowly, but only in the inner circles, so we didn’t see him up close. He then walked through the priests section that was in front of us. It was really, really neat to see all the priests so excited; they got up on their chairs to see the pope, were taking pictures, waving and chanting. There were probably more than 500 priests. We were able to see the pope for the first time when he started to walk up the ramp toward the altar in the mass procession, with several dozens of cardinals. We were able to see him directly, and on the big screens, and this time even better than last night because it was daylight. Even though the mass was very solemn, it was few times interrupted (at appropriate times) by pilgrims chanting “benedeto” and “viva el papa”. Again, I will look for an official transcript of the Holy Father’s homily, and not try to find my own words to explain it.
The homily was flowed by the rite of confirmation of 24 candidates from different part of the world. One of them was a young man from St. Margaret Mary parish in Austin, Juan, who was the only one representing US. The mass was mainly in English, but some reading and prayers were in different languages. We had all translations in our Liturgy Guide we received.
At the end of the mass, the pope announced the location for the next world youth day in 2011 – Madrid, Spain. Apparently, Spaniards found out about this right before their trip to Sydney, but were not allowed to share it with anyone. Cardinal George Pell gave official thanks to the pope, and the Holy Father gave us the final blessing. And during that time is when I was able to get The one good shot of the pope, which I will try to post later. The pope left the stage through the back, and we saw him no longer.
By the end of mass, the clouds were really building up, and we were afraid the rain will start any minute. The cardinal at the end did ask the pope to, now that WYD is over, pray for the rain in Australia which really needs it after a period of draught. We stayed and ate lunch there, canned meals and candy, and waited for the first wave of pilgrims to leave. Our walk back was via a closer route, but it still took us a long time to get through streets blocked by pilgrims on both sides. We were really glad we were so close, and didn’t have to walk miles to get to first running buses.
We were dirty and very tired when we got to our rooms. But I had one more mission for that day – pilgrimage to the cathedral.

Pilgrimage to Randwick and vigil with the pope

We left for Randwick on Saturday morning about 9, which is when the gates of our school were closing. Since we were told that the gates will not open until 11, we decided to stop for a coffee in our neighborhood, while two people from our group who are regular backpackers went ahead of us.Randwick racecourse is really close to where we are staying, but since the roads were blocked we had to walk a bit around to get to where our entrance way was.It took us about an hour, and when we got there at 11, we realize that they’d been letting people in since early morning. It was a good thing our two backpackers left early, as they were able to find us a really good spot. Our location was gate 14 A4, which is The closest one could get to the stage and the altar, we were positioned between the priests and the VIP and media section. We were ecstatically excited when we saw how close we were. After our disappointment few days earlier at the Domain, we now knew we were for sure get to see the pope close. We spread out our tarp, which the Seals brought, and lined up our mats, sleeping bags and tents. The pope was arriving at 6.30 and the vigil was at 7-9, so we had several hours to spend. There were different concerts in between, including the Matt Maher. We walked around the site a bit, but it was so crowded and it was getting harder to walk between the sleeping bags that we soon realized we should not go too far. We found where the reconciliation and adoration tents were, but Jesus was not there yet. One big mishap that happened was that after few hours the water at the toilets and facets was no longer running, so we were afraid we will run out of drinking water. Our area had some plastic/rubber ground covering, but most of the racecourse didn’t so we could see a cloud of dust over pilgrims in the distance, which too made us drink more water. In the end, we rationed water and between 13 of us we had enough water to share.
As pope’s arrival was approaching, it was getting more and more harder to move around, so we just went back to our area. At one point it became a bit hectic, because more and more people were moving into the area, and although it was already very packed a rumor came that another 200 were expected to come into our section for the night. So when the security asked us to put our tents down so that people can come for standing room only vigil, we were afraid all our stuff will get trampled over. So we gathered around and prayed, and the prayer was answered. The security opened the priests section that had chairs, and the priests were not seated there for the vigil, and many people from our section went there.
The people first circled in a helicopter over us for few minutes; they told us he was giving us a blessing from above. There were another 6-10 helicopters in the air around his. Around 7 he showed up on the altar, coming from the back. His entrance was accompanied with “Entry of the Light”, with a dance by girls with dresses that had lights on the bottom edge. Next there was a procession of the WYD cross and icon, followed by the official welcome of the Holy Father I think by one of the cardinals. Invitation to Prayer included lighting of candles when all people in other sections of the racecourse lit up candles (we didn’t get them probably because we were too close to the stage). Next was the testimony of the pilgrims from different regions of the world, each focused on some gift of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Father would respond by asking prayers from a particular WYD patron saint that is most relevant to that testimony. The pope than addressed us all in his speech. I wish I could explain what all he was saying, but as my explanation would not give it justice, I would rather look up the official transcript of his address and link it here later.
After his speech, the Blessed Sacrament was placed in a huge, probably 4 feet wide monstrance up high on the altar. I was already dark by this time, and getting colder, but we didn’t even notice it. We were praying and singing with the pope. It is hard to explain in words, but it felt like it is all alright. We, hundreds of thousands of us, are gathered here around Jesus and the pope is with us. It felt like we are all at home, and papa is there….
He gave us benediction and left us for the night at around 9. It was all very peaceful. I then found a way to the adoration chapel again, that was organized by the sisters of charity (mother Theresa’s sisters). It was so cute to see so many of them in their simple white with blue stripe dresses. It was a very large tent, size of a smaller church, and people were sitting on the carpet floor in circles around the high altar with again a really large monstrance. It was serene and prayerful moment, and everyone in there seemed focused in prayer. The priests were all aligned up along outside and inside the tent, hearing confessions. I went to reconciliation with one holy priest from Australia, who gave me a relic of peace of cloth that touched, I think, the casket of mother Theresa. (I will have to double check this) I made it back to my tent at around 11 and as I was tacking into my sleeping bag, there was an international rosary over the loud speakers. It was a very nice end of a very nice day.

Stations of the Cross

Friday was out last day for the catechises at the St. Paul's chapel. This time it was led by bishop Rocco from Papua New Genia. His grandfather was brother of blessed Peter To Rot, and most of their family is in some religious order. Bishop Rocco is a very energetic priest and a good preacher. That morning I woke up with a sore throat. I took some medicine, but still was feeling not myself, tired, sleepy, and not having energy for much. After the bishops talk, we had adoration before the Mass. (the day before it was after the Mass). I set there really not hard time praying. I just wanted to be there present and offer up the way I was feeling, and not have to say much. I was pitting myself and in a way complaining to myself that I am here in Australia and not having the desire for anything but take a nap at that moment. When the adoration was over, I lower my head to the pew until the start of the Mass. Just as I did that, a girl came up to the microphone to give witness. She shared how day before during the papal arrival she felt similar like I felt at that moment. She felt fluish, laid down on the ground, and complained how she is too tired to participate. That is exactly how I felt. And then she saw the faces of her friends, full of joy. She realized, and I at that moment too, how blessed we are to be here, how undeserving, and how what we feel right now is passing and we should take advantage of every moment. Something just light up inside me, I got up, and was like new. I heard what I needed to hear at that moment, and all my troubles of the moment went away. God is good.
At Mass we again had the company of 6 other priests next to the bishop, and the group from New Zealand sang a song in some language native to the bishop.
The only two events of the day were the Stations of the Cross, which were to be all around the city, live, and the performance at the opera in the evening. Our allocated location was Barangaroo, but we really didn't feel like going there again. It was all cement, dirty and not well connected with the city.We went over to the Sydney Opera to pick up the tickets, just to find out we have to wait until 6.30. We decided to stay around that area, and participate in the stations there. Even though my tag said Barangaroo, I was able to get inside the pilgrim viewing area, and be close to the 3 stations performed there. (pictures later) The first station was at St. Mary's Cathedral, where the pope was as well. Then Jesus, and other actors in the stations moved around the city for other stations. These were not ordinary 14 stations, but they were "scriptural" stations, that are used on special ocasions only. At the opera we viewed Jesus in front of Pilate, Scourging and taking up the cross.
Afterwards, we set in a cafe next to the opera house. The group didn't feel like eating the provided dinner (stew in a bag) and wanted to go to a restaurant. I felt so inclined to fast from the full meal that evening, and just joined for a stroll around the harbor.
We ended the evening with the Bethowen's Missa Solemnis at the Opera House. Wonderful performance. I was able to take few pictures inside as well.
Today, Saturday, we go on a pilgrimage to Randwick racecourse, and won't be back until Sunday evening.

Papa is here!

Pope Benedicts the XVI arrived to Sydney on Thursday afternoon via a boat-a-cade, something we were hoping to get a ticket to, but didn't get picked, which turned out to be not so bad. Boat-a-cade is a flotilla of boats, the pope's boat, and 12 boats following that one. All pilgrims get their assigned location for the big events, and ours was in a park with large screens, and not in the harbor. So, we saw the arrival and the opening ceremony (welcoming by the prime minister, gospel reading and pope address to the people) from that park. We arrived there early, around 12.30 to get good seats, even though the pope's arrival wasn't until 4.30. After that, the pope was going on a motorcade through the city. He first was moving slowly in his popemobile through the crowd at Barangaroo, which is the harbor where he arrived. They then speed up a bit through the city streets. The excitement was building up in the park as we saw on the screens where he is moving through the city. And then he showed up, proceeded by security vehicles. Everyone was taking pictures, waving flags, chanting,...and he went by soooo fast. None of us in the group got any good pictures.
I don't think I even saw him except through the camera. We were all disappointed, to say the least.
But, the good news is that for the Sunday mass at the Randwick racecourse, we are assigned a really good location up front close to the altar, so hopefully we'll be able to see him then, and he won't be moving. :)
Thursday morning, we also had a catechises at the St. Paul's chapel. This time we had auxiliary bishop of Sydney, fr. Terri giving a talk, and I really enjoyed his honest and heartfelt sharing of his personal faith. It was followed by 30 min adoration with some music. I don't know if I mentioned before, but this chapel is part of the monastery of the missionaries of the sacred heart. There are about 40 friars and brothers there. The bishop was presiding the mass and 6 other priests joined him. I got to chat with a bishop a bit afterwards, and asked him to bless some rosaries.
On Thursday evening, after the dinner in the park, Stacie (girl from College Station who joined our group) and I went to see a multimedia production called Testigos (witnesses). It was about 10 people of the last century who are true witnesses of our faith. They showed a slide show with narrator telling of the life of that person (not all of those are saints - yet) and then performers would dance to a song that was in Spanish but English translation was on a screen. They did a really good job with the slideshow part, but the music and dancing was so slow, and we so tired, that we had a hard time staying awake.
A side note - we found out yesterday that we won't have to move to the Olympic Park on Monday, as was originally in our itinerary, and we can stay at this school for Monday and Tuesday evening. We are going to Melbourne on Wednesday morning, so that works out well, especially because the Olympic Park is a rough place to stay, with halls for thousands of people on concrete floors. I also was able to get the sleeping bag that we ordered for the girl in our group who wasn't able to come, so I now I won't be called for the vigil sleep out.