Reuters/Madrid
Pope Benedict XVI urged 1.5mn young Catholics at a Sunday mass in an aerodrome to spread the gospel to others on the last day of a four-day visit to the Spanish capital marked by violent protests.Hundreds of Spaniards, including priests, took to the streets earlier in the week to object to the cost of hosting a private religious event at a time of spending cuts. A march ended in clashes with police on Wednesday night.The Pope told pilgrims from 193 countries yesterday that they have been given the extraordinary task of being missionaries of Christ in other countries filled with young people looking for better values.“We cannot encounter Christ and not want to make him known to others. So do not keep Christ to yourselves! Share with others the joy of your faith,” he said in a sermon read from a white throne under a stylised golden tree.Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, bearing flags from their countries and wearing hats to protect themselves from the sun, prayed, applauded and cheered during the service.A choir and orchestra dressed in blue and adorned with white lilies accompanied the mass, while Spain’s King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia watched.“When you’re at home, you just think you’re alone in your faith, but when you pray with over 1mn people, it just changes things,” said Katharina Eisen, 18, from Germany.Pilgrims had been at the Cuatro Vientos aerodrome since Saturday evening, when Benedict led a prayer vigil.Madrid emergency services said it had treated more than 2,500 people during the vigil – a record for a programmed event – as sweltering heat was followed by a storm on Saturday night.Saturday’s heavy rain prevented Benedict from reading a prepared speech in which he had made a veiled criticism of Spain’s legalisation of gay marriages and abortion.Spain became the third country in the world to legalise gay marriage in 2005 and Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero made it easier for women to terminate unwanted pregnancies in 2010.Critics put the cost of hosting the visit at around 100mn euros, mostly due to the heavy security which has surrounded the pontiff, with roads cut off to traffic and thousands of police on the streets.The hoards of young people attending the events were put up in state schools and given subsidised public transport tickets at a time when the cost of Madrid metro and bus tickets are rising by 50% for residents.Organisers said the event cost the taxpayers nothing due to corporate sponsorship.The next World Catholic Youth Day will be in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2013.
Pope decided to stay on through storm, says spokesmanPope Benedict XVI never considered abandoning his prayer vigil during a violent storm that struck a World Youth Day ceremony for more than one million pilgrims, the Vatican spokesman said yesterday.“Benedict XVI had decided, solidly decided, to stay there, like the young people who stayed,” Federico Lombardi told AFP. “He never had the slightest doubt. The storm is a parable of Christian life in which, in the most difficult moments, things are overcome by the strength of faith.”The storm lashed the open-air service at the Cuatro Ventos (Four Winds) airbase near Madrid late on Saturday, forcing the 84-year-old Pope to cut short his speech and drenching the faithful who had waited for hours in blistering heat.One of 17 tents set up for the “Eucharist Adoration”, in which the faithful adore the holy sacrament, collapsed, injuring seven people who were taken to hospital, including a girl who suffered a broken leg, Lombardi said.He said police estimate that 1.5mn pilgrims packed the esplanade – the size of 48 football pitches – at the airbase, spilling out onto the surrounding area as there was not enough space.“Today, the Pope is calm, very favourably impressed by the endurance of the young people and their prayers,” Lombardi said.When the storm hit during World Youth Day celebrations, Benedict’s skullcap was swept off and an assistant struggled to shelter the 84-year-old with a large white umbrella.The sound system on the stage where the Pope was speaking broke down, contributing to the roughly 20-minute delay during the service on Saturday night, Lombardi later told a news conference.When the rain eased some 20 minutes later, the Pope declared to cheers: “Thank you for your joy and endurance. “Your strength is greater than the rain.”