Buenos Aires, Argentina, Aug 23, 2005 / 22:00 pm
Auxiliary Bishop Jorge Lozano of Buenos Aires, who heads the Youth ministry office of the Argentine Bishops’ Conference, acknowledged this week that Pope Benedict XVI had “challenging words” for the young people at World Youth Day in Cologne, but that “perhaps that is what attracted and captivated them.”
“Young people usually tend to get seductive messages inviting them to indulge in consumerism and to take the easy way,” the bishop said. “In contrast, Benedict XVI called them to follow the path of overcoming selfishness and individualism, and it’s very possible that it was the truth that impressed so many thousands of young people in Germany.”
Bishop Lozano noted that “emotion, joy and prayer are the words that best describe what took place last Sunday at Marienfeld.” “If anyone had any doubts about how the Holy Father would communicate with the youth, they should be completely cleared up by now,” he concluded.