.- Pope John Paul II today called on the youth of the world to converge in Cologne, Germany, for the 20th World Youth Day this August. “I invite the youth of Germany and their contemporaries around the world to begin their spiritual journey toward this important meeting to discover in Christ, as the Magi did, the will of God,” he said during the Angelus in St. Peter’s Square this morning on the Feast of the Epiphany.
The Pope made the link between the Epiphany and the upcoming youth event.
“‘We have come to adore him’ (Mt 2:2). These words of the Magi that we have heard today in the Gospel reading are the theme of the next World Youth Day,” he said. Earlier reports have stated that the Pope is planning to attend the international youth event.
The Pope expressed once again his faith and belief in young people. “Children are the present and the future of the Church,” he said. “They have an active role to play in the evangelization of the world and, with their prayers, they contribute to saving and bettering it.”
