A voice from sydney

Today in Sydney,  with 500,000 young people in a kaleidoscope of colour  from every nation under the sun I saw the Pope! All one can see are flags, hats, banners and joyful faces that would touch the most strident  non believers, Even those who were full of anger and annoyance about the road closures and disruptions, turned to  admire and watch in amazement.

The best thing so far for me has been the impromptu singing, especially, Fijian, French and Italian. Sydney the previous week was a city, like all other 'big smokes' across the globe – with its hustle and bustle, sleaze and loneliness, drugs and vagrancy but now  transformed into a place where everyone has true freedom to be themselves

 "500,000 people all in a spirit of peace because of an old man”   seems a strange summing up on the news when said like but that is what is happening.    This “old man” Pope Benedict,  has held us all in the palm of his hand and will always remember us as a young community of faith.