Brasilia, Brazil, Jul 1, 2011 / 12:02 pm
The Archbishop of Sao Paulo announced June 26 that 10,000 Brazilians are registered to attend World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid, Spain.
In a reflection, Cardinal Odilo Scherer explained that the theme of World Youth Day refers to a passage from St. Paul’s Letter to the Colossians in which he speaks of his trials and struggles as a missionary of the Gospel. St. Paul then encourages the community to remain firm in what they learned from Christ.
Cardinal Scherer said St. Paul’s warning to the Colossians came after “that Christian community had been infiltrated by false ‘preachers’ and ‘teachers’ who presented obscure theories and ideas from Greek mythology and cosmology about different divinities and cosmic forces that governed peoples’ lives.”
These false “teachers” are also present “in our times and they draw in people who are not firm in the faith,” he said.