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 Sydney Holy Hour: Pilgrims united in prayer
With thousands of pilgrims having already arrived in Sydney, tonight's final young adults Holy Hour before WYD will be held with pilgrims gathered from every continent on earth.
For 72
consecutive weeks Catholic young adults have gathered to pray and
prepare for WYD at St Mary's Cathedral. But with construction
continuing around the clock to complete renovations ahead of the Pope's
arrival next week, the Holy Hour finale has moved to St Peter's for
tonight's final prayerful gathering.
Eddie Agwara, 35, from Nigeria will be coming to the Holy Hour
tonight to gather with other pilgrims and pray in front of the Blessed
Sacrament.
"Holy Hour is a unique
opportunity for all Catholics and Christians to experience Jesus Christ
and encounter God in His real presence," he says encouraging everyone
to attend tonight.
Agwara has been praying for WYD and "will definitely be there [at WYD]" he says.
The
Holy Hours have been counting down to WYD by framing each week as part
of a 16 week countdown to the arrival of His Holiness, Pope Benedict
XVI.
"Each week we've had an emphasis on one of the 16 Pope Benedicts
and tonight we will focus on Pope Benedict XVI who will now be here in
a matter of days," says Kieran Walton the events
coordinator of Towards 2008.
"As well as this there is also
time for quiet reflection, hymns, confession available adoration and a
Gospel reading from St Mark."
"For tonight's Holy Hour, we expect over 100 local and
international pilgrims," he says. "And it will be great for some of
them to meet each other before WYD actually starts."
Overseas pilgrims will be present representing several countries
including Australia, Phillipines, USA, Mexico, Canada, France,
Switzerland and Nigeria. There will also be several overseas priests
from the Legionaries of Christ, nuns from the Sisters of Life and lay
missionaries and volunteers from Regnum Christi and the Jesuits.
Meanwhile local WYD pilgrims' spirits are soaring in anticipation of the Pope's arrival and hundreds of flights rolling in.
"I'm so exited about WYD. It's finally here, and you can really
feel the energy of the city changing," Mr Walton says.
Image courtesy of www.wyd2008.org
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