World Youth Day 2005
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The 20th World Youth Day 2005 (German XX. Weltjugendtag Köln, Italian XX. Giornata mondiale della gioventù Colonia) is a Catholic youth festival that has started on August 16 and will continue until August 21, 2005 in Cologne, Germany. It will be the first World Youth Day and foreign trip of Pope Benedict XVI who is going to join 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 is "We have come to worship Him" (from Matthew 2:2).
About 400,000 young people from 200 countries are attending during the week, more than 800,000 are being expected for the weekend. They will be joined by about 600 bishops and cardinals, as well as by 6,600 reporters.
This year's event is also special because of the presence of Juventutem, a contingent of young Catholic traditionalists who will have the traditional Roman rite of Mass offered for them by several members of the Church hierarchy.
The Pope's Apostolic Journey to Germany
Originally, Pope John Paul II was to attend the World Youth Day in Cologne. After he died earlier in 2005, it will instead be his successor Pope Benedict XVI's first apostolic journey. Before Pope Benedict XVI will lead the central mass, he will meet with several politicians and others:
- August 18
- 12 The Pope arrives at the Flughafen Köln/Bonn
- 16.45 - 18 Journey on the Rhine, the Pope will speak in Köln-Poll
- 18.15 The Pope will visit the Cologne Cathedral
- August 19
- 10.30 The Pope will meet with President Horst Köhler at Villa Hammerschmidt
- 12 The Pope will visit the local synagogue of Cologne
- August 20
- 10 Uhr The Pope will meet with Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, President of the German Parliament Wolfgang Thierse, Chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union Angela Merkel and Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia Jürgen Rüttgers
See also
External link
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