Madrid, Spain, Aug 18, 2011 / 15:01 pm
Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston has encouraged young people faithfully attend Sunday Mass and to bring their friends to Jesus Christ.
"We live in a culture that is addicted to entertainment but we don't come to Mass to be entertained," he told World Youth Day pilgrims at a morning catechesis session in central Madrid August 17.
"Our presence there, gathered as a family, is of crucial importance. It is at the Sunday Eucharist that we learn our identity as Christ's family, where we witness to each other that we are believers and that we want to live as Jesus' disciples."
Cardinal O'Malley was addressing over 1,000 young English-speaking pilgrims who were crammed into the church of San Antonio. With pews at a premium, most of the young people had to make do with the marble floor.
Throughout his catechesis, the Archbishop of Boston likened the Church to a family - with the Eucharist at its heart.
"The Eucharist is Christ's saving presence in our community. It's our spiritual food. It's the most precious possession which the Church has in her journey through history. It is God's love taken to the extreme," he said.