By Pilgrim Madeleine Vella
If anything could have prepared us for the week we were about to experience, it was the flight from Tel Aviv to Madrid! One excited pilgrim after the next filed on to flight LY 397 and together we sang hymns and made up chants which only elevated the anticipation. As the plane landed on the runway and our excitement erupted into cheers and applause, it finally sank in that we had arrived in MADRID!
Throughout the week, I began to appreciate and understand the universality of our faith and the church. Surrounded by thousands of people that I had never met at the Papal arrival in Cibeles Square, I was hit with this confronting reality. All around me were people from countries I had only heard about or seen on a map; but there they were, in front of me, introducing themselves and discussing the mysteries of our faith. It began to really sink in how through our faith in Christ, we are united!
Walking the streets of Madrid as pilgrims, patriotically displaying our Australian flags, this universality was reinforced yet again. Stopping to take photos with Italians, swapping Facebook names with Polish pilgrims and learning a very fast-paced clapping game with Venezuelans encouraged me to celebrate our faith. At times it was difficult for me to comprehend that 2 million people had journeyed to this one city, as pilgrims for one unifying reason... FAITH. Faith in God, Faith in Christ, Faith in the Holy Spirit. This thought was extremely comforting and essential to the core of World Youth Day and the message it holds.
‘Planted and build up in Jesus Christ, Firm in the Faith!’ - the intermingling of cultures, races, languages and appearances, complimented with an overall Spanish influence brought the youth of the church to one place – Madrid. I definitely feel as though I was able to become firmer in the faith and I am now ready to share my experiences with others!
No comments:
Post a Comment