World Youth Day 2005
Encyclopedia
The 20th World Youth Day 2005 was a Catholic
youth festival that started on August 16 and continued until August 21, 2005 in Cologne
, Germany
. It was the first World Youth Day
and foreign trip of Pope Benedict XVI
, who joined the festival on August 18. This meeting was decided by the previous pope, John Paul II
, during the Toronto World Youth Day of 2002
. The theme was "We have come to worship Him" (from Matthew 2:2
).
About 400,000 young people from 200 countries attended during the week, and more than 1,000,000 came for the weekend. They were joined by about 600 bishop
s and cardinals
, as well as by 6,600 reporters.
Originally, Pope John Paul II
was to attend the World Youth Day in Cologne. After he died earlier in 2005, it was instead his successor Pope Benedict XVI
's first apostolic journey. Most pilgrims to the World Youth Day made their plans to come while John Paul II was still Pope, and had hoped to see him. Before Pope Benedict XVI led the central mass, he met with several politicians and others.
The Pope issued a plenary indulgence
for those attending World Youth Day, with a partial indulgence available to all who pray fervently, with a contrite heart, that Christian youth
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
youth festival that started on August 16 and continued until August 21, 2005 in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It was the first World Youth Day
World Youth Day
World Youth Day is a youth-oriented Catholic Church event. While the event itself celebrates the Catholic faith, the invitation to attend extends to all youth, regardless of religious convictions....
and foreign trip of Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
, who joined the festival on August 18. This meeting was decided by the previous pope, John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
, during the Toronto World Youth Day of 2002
World Youth Day 2002
The 17th World Youth Day 2002 was a Catholic youth festival held from July 23 to July 28, 2002 in Toronto, Canada. World Youth Day is a celebration of faith begun by Pope John Paul II held on an international level every two to three years, and WYD2002 was the tenth such event. It was also Pope...
. The theme was "We have come to worship Him" (from Matthew 2:2
Matthew 2:2
Matthew 2:2 is the second verse of the second chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. The magi travelling from the east have arrived at the court of King Herod in Jerusalem and in this verse inform him of their purpose.-Text:...
).
About 400,000 young people from 200 countries attended during the week, and more than 1,000,000 came for the weekend. They were joined by about 600 bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
s and cardinals
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
, as well as by 6,600 reporters.
The Pope's Apostolic Journey to Germany
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
was to attend the World Youth Day in Cologne. After he died earlier in 2005, it was instead his successor Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
's first apostolic journey. Most pilgrims to the World Youth Day made their plans to come while John Paul II was still Pope, and had hoped to see him. Before Pope Benedict XVI led the central mass, he met with several politicians and others.
August 18
- 12:00 The Pope arrived at Köln-Bonn Airport
- 16:45–18:00 Journey on the Rhine, the Pope spoke in Köln-PollKöln-PollPoll is a quarter of the city of Cologne, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is part of the borough of Porz.Poll was already inhabited during the New Stone Age; etymologically the name originates in a meaning like Swamp. The first documentary mentioning of Poll was on 1. April 1003 by monks...
- 18:15 The Pope visited Cologne CathedralCologne CathedralCologne Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church in Cologne, Germany. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and the administration of the Archdiocese of Cologne. It is renowned monument of German Catholicism and Gothic architecture and is a World Heritage Site...
August 19
- 10:30 The Pope met with German PresidentPresident of GermanyThe President of the Federal Republic of Germany is the country's head of state. His official title in German is Bundespräsident . Germany has a parliamentary system of government and so the position of President is largely ceremonial...
Horst KöhlerHorst KöhlerHorst Köhler is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union. He was President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU and the CSU, and the liberal FDP, Köhler was elected to his first five-year term by the Federal Assembly on...
at VillaVillaA villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
HammerschmidtHammerschmidt VillaVilla Hammerschmidt was designated the official residence of the President of Germany in 1951. Located in the former West German capital of Bonn, it remained the official residence of the President until the government offices were returned to the recently-reunified Berlin in 1994...
in Bonn - 12:00 The Pope visited Roonstrasse SynagogueRoonstrasse SynagogueRoonstrasse Synagogue, located in Cologne, Germany, is one of the five pre-Nazi synagogues of the locality, which was destroyed on November 9, 1938 during nation-wide attacks on Jewish interests when Germany was under Nazi rule. The synagogue was subsequently rebuilt during the 1950s...
in CologneCologneCologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. The synagogue was destroyed by the Nazis in 1938 and was rebuilt in the 1950s. - 5:00 The Pope met with and prayed vespersVespersVespers is the evening prayer service in the Western Catholic, Eastern Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran liturgies of the canonical hours...
with seminarians from over 80 nations at St. Pantaleon.
August 20
- 10.00 The Pope met with Chancellor Gerhard SchröderGerhard SchröderGerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...
, president of the Federal DietBundestagThe Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
Wolfgang ThierseWolfgang ThierseWolfgang Thierse is a German politician .- Early years in the GDR :Thierse was born in Breslau . He is a Roman Catholic and grew up in East Germany. After his A-levels he first worked as a typesetter in Weimar...
, Chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union Angela MerkelAngela MerkelAngela Dorothea Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000, and chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary coalition from 2002 to 2005.From 2005 to 2009 she led a...
and the minister-presidentMinister-PresidentA minister-president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments, in which a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government prevails, who presides over the council of ministers...
of North Rhine-WestphaliaNorth Rhine-WestphaliaNorth Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
Jürgen RüttgersJürgen RüttgersJürgen Rüttgers is a German politician and former Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia, widely known for his views on immigration and the much-discussed phrase "Kinder statt Inder" which was a media interpretation of "Statt Inder an die Computer müssen unsere Kinder an die Computer"...
The Pope issued a plenary indulgence
Indulgence
In Catholic theology, an indulgence is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the Catholic Church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution...
for those attending World Youth Day, with a partial indulgence available to all who pray fervently, with a contrite heart, that Christian youth
- be strengthened in the profession of the Faith;
- be confirmed in love and reverence towards their parents; and
- form a firm resolution to follow "the holy norms of the Gospel and Mother Church" in living out their present or future family life, or whatever vocation they are called to by God.
August 21
- An estimated 1,000,000 people, after camping outdoors all night, joined Pope Benedict XVIPope Benedict XVIBenedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
for the concluding MassMass (liturgy)"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
in the vast MarienfeldMarienfeldMarienfeld is a large grassy field on the reclaimed site of a former open-pit lignite mine about south-west of Cologne Cathedral in the city of Cologne, Germany, straddling the towns of Frechen and Kerpen...
near the village of KerpenKerpenKerpen is a town in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia. Germany. It is located about 30 kilometers southwest from Cologne.-Division of the town:...
. Participants too far away to see the pope in the vast field watched the services on more than 15 large television screens.
Attending groups
Numerous interest groups attended World Youth Day: schools, universities, church groups, and new movements were all well represented by their attendance.External links
- Current information on World Youth Day
- Documents of the Apostolic Journey of His Holiness Benedict XVI. from the Vatican
- Official Website of the XX World Youth Day 2005
- Better World Links on the World Youth Day 2005 (German)
- World Youth Day News and Background from the Deutsche WelleDeutsche WelleDeutsche Welle or DW, is Germany's international broadcaster. The service is aimed at the overseas market. It broadcasts news and information on shortwave, Internet and satellite radio on 98.7 DZFE in 30 languages . It has a satellite television service , that is available in four languages, and...