“There are indeed many different callings that we hear in the bustle of many voices,” he said. “The calling of God always demands courage precisely because he means exactly us, without us being able to change or trade places”.
‘Lamp of God’ shines still in youth’
At the Hofgarten in Bonn, Bishop Bode shared the German people’s desire to journey with the young pilgrims in faith.
“The lamp of God is not yet extinguished. And this week you are showing the whole Church and the whole world that the Church is alive and that young people are willing to listen to God,” he said.
“You have come from over 160 countries around the globe; you have come to our Europe, to our country, where Christ is not always easy to find and where one can easily lose sight of the star,” he said.
“But we in Germany will not be your ‘Jerusalem’, your Herod, or your scribes, who knew where the Christ child was, but did not themselves set out to find Him, preferring instead to stay in their towers of power and knowledge.
“No, we in Germany want to walk with you, want to set out with you, want to seek and find with you, want to let ourselves be guided by the star that God has shown us, and want to go with you to Bethlehem to find Christ,” he continued
During the offertory procession in Cologne, young people brought objects that represented the life of the region: coal to represent the importance of the mining industry in the region; a small barrel of beer to represent the fruit of the harvest; a typical hat used during carnival to represent the people’s spirit of celebration; and bread and vegetables to represent what the young people would like to give to those in need.
The pilgrims began their festive singing and dancing at the end of the nearly two-hour mass. They took their celebration onto the streets, and packed the trains, buses and tramcars to return to their lodging.
At one point, the public transportation system gave out under the pressure and vehicles stood at a standstill for long periods of time. It took some pilgrims more than three hours to return to their lodging.