TO YOUTH: DO NOT BE AFRAID OF ABANDONING YOURSELF TO GOD

VATICAN CITY, APR 2, 2004 (VIS) - Yesterday afternoon in St. Peter's Square, the Pope participated in a gathering with 20,000 young people from Rome and the region of Lazio in preparation for the 19th World Youth Day which will be celebrated this Palm Sunday.  The event also commemorated the day twenty years ago that the Pope handed the Cross to young people at the end of the Holy Year of the Redemption. In those 20 years it has been traveling around the world.

  The gathering included performances by pop singers, dancers from the Theater of the Opera of Rome, break-dancers and actors who recited texts by Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Young people from Spain, Argentina, France, Poland, the United States, Canada, the Philippines and Italy - countries which have hosted World Youth Day in previous years - participated in the event.

  "Dear young people: be united to the Cross," affirmed the Holy Father. "Your hearts bear so many wounds, often caused by the adult world! ... I invite you to believe that we have so much faith in you, that Christ has faith in you and that only in Him is there the salvation that we are searching for!"

  After emphasizing that today more than ever it is necessary "to figure out a way to reach young people in order to announce the Gospel to them," the Holy Father urged everyone present not to be afraid "to find new ways of total abandonment to the Lord and to mission. ... Think of how you can carry the Cross in the world!"

  John Paul II added that they should not be afraid of traveling on this path and, after recognizing that young people love the world "and rightly so, because the world was made for man," he added that at a certain point in life "we must make a radical choice," and, without "rejecting" the talents and gifts that God has given us, "we must know how to be on Christ's side in order to bear witness to His love before all."

  "Following Christ," he continued, "does not mean stifling the gifts that He gives us; it means choosing the path of radical giving to Him! ... Do not be afraid to trust in Him."

  The Holy Father referred to the change in today's youth compared to twenty years ago.  "The cultural and social context that we live in has changed so much!  But Christ has not changed. He is the Redeemer of man yesterday, today and always!" In the midst of applause, he added, "The Pope is with you! Believe in Jesus, contemplate the face of the crucified and risen Lord! That face that so many want to see but is so often hidden by our insufficient passion for the Gospel and by sin!"

  "Since then youth have changed, as I too have changed, but your heart, like mine, is thirsty for truth, joy and eternity, and therefore, always young. This afternoon," he concluded, "I put my faith once again in you, the hope of the Church and society! Do not be afraid!"
AC/.../YOUTH                VIS 20040402 (540)