WYD 2005 News and Links

I am among those who would love to be at WYD 2005, especially as so many of my friends (now deacons and priests) will be there. It's also held in a city I love and know well, a city prominent in the Dominican history. And of course, the one man I so admire and respect, Pope Benedict XVI will be there! But family obligations require me to stay here in Malaysia and so I must...

Thankfully, there is no shortage of news from those who are in Cologne.

For WYD 2005 views, refer to Amy Welborn's comprehensive list of contributers and bloggers.

For news, refer to Pultizer.de's page with contributions from an international team of freelance journalists. Very innformative indeed.

For live coverage, there's EWTN for those who have it!

And of course, don't forget the Official WYD 2005 site and do check out the Dominican WYD site.

I do feel very sorry for the Filipinos (and other nationalities) who wanted to travel to Germany for WYD 2005 but had their visa applications rejected. This is a great shame and an injustice. The bishops of the Philippines, aware of the discrimination against their countrymen, had already culled a Manila contingent from 8000 to 3000 and finally to 600. But even these 600 applicants were denied and so no major contingent from Asia's largest and only Catholic nation will be at WYD 2005 in Cologne.

This is outrageous! On a more positive note, at least 100 Chinese Catholics from the 'underground church' are expected to make it to WYD.

Do also read John Allen Jr's article this week on the significance of WD 2005. Insightful as ever.