World Youth Day officially began at the stroke of midnight with an electronic greeting to pilgrims at one of the main venues for celebrations in the week-long Catholic carnival. The giant WYD countdown clock outside St Mary’s Cathedral in central Sydney ticked over to “G’Day”, drawing a cheer from thousands of flag-waving pilgrims. Masses of believers were also expected to take part in the first event on the WYD calendar from 8am (AEST) until midday today, with a pilgrimage to the Cathedral. The WYD’s opening Mass will take place from 4.40pm and organisers expect more than 140,000 believers to attend. The Mass will be celebrated by Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell, from atop a two-storey dais across the CBD at the city’s dockside Barangaroo.

Further events are being staged across the city, including a major “Vocations Expo” in nearby Darling Harbour, to begin six days of WYD events which pilgrims expect to be both testing and rewarding. “Downtown Sydney will become a lot more crowded,” a pilgrim from Germany, 27-year-old Diana Naterman, said last night. “Thinking of the last WYD in Cologne (2005), it was extremely crowded but everybody was in a good mood because we all have the same goals.” Ms Naterman was among the thousands of international pilgrims taking in the sights of the city last night. She said the pilgrims’ focus up to today had been on “sightseeing and greeting all of the other crowds from the other nations”. “Starting tomorrow we all have a program … tomorrow everybody will not be waiting, everybody will be extremely active.” It would be spiritual, she said.

Fellow German Ronny Guenker, 32, said he was looking forward to seeing Pope Benedict XVI, who will make his first public appearance in a “boat-a-cade” on Sydney harbour on Thursday afternoon. “It’s a good sign from the Pope that he come and visit us, the youth church, because we are the church of the future,” Mr Guenker said. A series of World Youth Day road closures in and around central Sydney come into force from today, with more to follow later this week. Road closures around Randwick Racecourse, where the Pope will deliver the WYD’s closing Mass on Sunday, will be rolled out from Thursday. Traffic was reduced by up to nine per cent in key city areas yesterday as motorists heeded warnings to avoid the city, but the Roads and Traffic Authority has warned “with what we’ve got coming we still need to get those 20 or 30 per cent reductions”.

Sydney Harbour was the focus of the first major event of the celebrations yesterday, The Australian reported. The 40kg wooden World Youth Day cross and the accompanying icon, a picture of the Madonna with child, were brought to the city by devout youth after travelling through almost every diocese in Australia. The pilgrims shouldered the cross and carried it onto a harbour ferry in howling wind. Those who could get close enough to the wooden cross pressed their fingers against it, and wept. The cross was accompanied on its journey by Christian rappers, and happy clappers. A Spanish speaker with dark hair and doe-like eyes sang a beatific version of Ave Maria, but there also were boisterous young Australians chanting: “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi, oi, oi!”

XXIII WORLD YOUTH DAY 2008 OPENING MASS AND CEREMONY (3 HOURS)
Sydney’s Dockside Barangaroo
July 15, 2008 2PM Manila Time
(4PM AEST / 2AM ET / 11 PM PT)

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BLOG COVERAGE UPDATED BY THE MINUTE (All times based on Manila timezone [+8:00]. Sydney is 2 hours ahead of Manila)

• (6:52 AM) POPE Benedict XVI sent his first text message hours before the opening of WYD to Catholic pilgrims who signed up to receive divine direction direct to their phones, as World Youth Day officially kicked off. “Young friend, God and his people expect much from u because u have within you the Fathers supreme gift: the Spirit of Jesus – BXVI,” the message, due to have been sent at around 10am (AEST), read. Pilgrims will also be able to send special messages to four giant prayer screens that have been set up around Sydney. Extra capacity has been set up to help cope with the extra weight on the phone systems.

• 10:30 am – Traffic has been halted in Main streets of Sydney while cars parked on the side streets are empty. The Streets began to fill with Pilgrims from all over the world singing and dancing to religious songs as they wait for the official opening Mass of the event.

• 10:42 AM – TWO Sydney activists have won a Federal Court challenge to special World Youth Day laws carrying $5500 fines for protesters who “annoyed” pilgrims. NoToPope Coalition members Rachel Evans and Amber Pike took the New South Wales Government to court over the police powers granted for the month of July, seeking a declaration that they were unconstitutional. Sydney Justices Catherine Branson, Robert French and Margaret Stone today ruled a specific clause relating to annoying and inconveniencing pilgrims went beyond the intention of state Parliament.

• 10:56 am – A flu-like illness has struck down eight World Youth Day (WYD) pilgrims staying at a Sydney school. Their nationality has not been confirmed and WYD organisers refused to comment on the matter

• 1:08 PM – Thousands of pilgrims sang and danced their way through Sydney today to the World Youth Day opening mass at Darling Harbour. Central Sydney streets were filled with Catholic pilgrims, greeting each other and chanting, as they made their way down to the foreshore site at Barangaroo, which was bathed in winter sun. Organisers were expecting more than 150,000 pilgrims to attend this afternoon’s service, the first major event on the six-day World Youth Day calendar.

• 2:08 PM – World Youth Day theme songs from 1985 to present are being played in the East Darling Harbor, Barangaroo while Pilgrims wait for the opening Mass.

• 2:13 PM – Official welcome greeting has been addressed by a voice over – Pilgrims cheered. Flags of different countries carried by different costumed Pilgrims of different nationalities, enters towards the Altar. Official theme song of WYD 2008 is being sung on stage by various artists as the Flags enter the stage…. Goosebumps!!!!!! . Ang dameng tao Grabe.

• 2:20 PM – Pilgrim Cross and Icon enters the Alter carried by Aussie Youth. Aboriginal Hymn being sung.

• 2:35 PM – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd welcomes and addresses young People

• 2:41 PM – Procession of the Celebrant, George Cardinal Pell enters the sanctuary. Opening Mass officially begins

• 2:47 PM – George Cardinal Pell welcomes the Youth in four major languages, with emphasis on the Pilgrims from the United states as Australia’s “most important friend and ally”

• 4:10 PM – Eucharistic Communion begins, Eucharist distributed among the Pilgrims

• 4:14 PM – Dana Scallon sings her original the WYD 2002 Toronto official theme “We are one body” as a communion song during the Eucharistic communion.

• 4:27 PM – 7 New Zealand Pilgrims sings song of thanksgiving after the Communion in their native Mauri Language.

• 4:35 PM – Final Blessing and Prayer by George Cardinal Pell