Tonight, after five adventurous weeks of blazing through the dioceses of Western Australia, the Journey of the Cross is set to spend its last night in Broome in Western Australia – 5112 km away from Sydney.

Accompanied by the Icon of Our Lady and Indigenous Message Stick the 3.8 m Cross has travelled over 70,000 km around Australia, visited over 400 communities and been touched or carried by over 400,000 Australians after landing in Australia less than a year ago.

In Western Australia alone – its most adventurous leg yet – the Cross travelled over 8,000 km over the last five weeks.

Perth Diocese WYD Co-ordinator, Anita Parker has followed the Cross through its journey through Perth Diocese and says that one of the major highlights was the night the Cross & Icon went to a public shopping mall in Perth.

“It was a Friday night, which is late night shopping in Perth, there were bands and festivities in the city centre there for it – so that was a huge public witness,” Ms Parker says of the successful event.

Another highlight was that after making a visit to the maximum-security prison in Perth, two prisoners asked to be baptised.

Kalgoorlie was the furthest distance the Cross & Icon travelled in the Perth Archdiocese  - a seven hour drive through the outback.

Stops in Fremantle, saw several thousands of school children process with the Cross in prayer and devotion.

One major highlight for the Diocese of Perth was Day 12 when the Cross & Icon were carried in Stations of the Cross pilgrimage for five hours, travelling ten km in a journey around Swan River, [in Western Australia].

The Chinese Community and Ukraine Communities as well as others joined in, making this journey particularly unifying.

Pope John Paul II gave the Cross to the youth of the world to be carried as a symbol of Christ’s love for humanity in 1984.

From Broome, the Cross will go to Darwin, where it will catch a plane to Sydney. On 1 July, the Cross & Icon of Our Lady will begin their 15 day tour through greater Sydney, beginning in Wollongong.

Image courtesy of World Youth Day Perth Office . 

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