News Release #387

Bishop of New Ulm Catholic Diocese
to lead local group to World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany

New Ulm - A total of sixty-nine persons from various groups throughout the Catholic Diocese of New Ulm will make a pilgrimage to World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany August 10- 22, 2005.  An estimated 800,000 are registered for the event along with Pope Benedict XVI and bishops and other world religious leaders. The Most Reverend John C. Nienstedt, bishop of the New Ulm diocese and eighteen members of the diocese will make up the New Ulm diocesan group attending this historical event. Also from the area, twenty-three parishioners from the Church of St. Anastasia in Hutchinson; approximately 20 persons from the local Catholic Aid Councils, a Catholic fraternal organization; five from Watkins; a young man from New Ulm, and a young lady from Sleepy Eye will also be making the journey.

Although each group has differing itineraries and varied stops along the way, all roads lead to Cologne for the last week. The parish in Hutchinson has planned a pilgrimage in the spirit of St. Francis with a stop in Rome and Assisi. Bishop Nienstedt has chosen to build on the Sister City connection already in place between the American city of New Ulm and the German cities of Ulm and Neu Ulm. His group will spend August 11-15 staying with the host parish of St. Michael zu den Wengen. Young people from Italy, France and Latvia will join the New Ulm group at a huge Mass and outdoor concert the evening of August 13. Bishop Nienstedt will celebrate an English Mass for the group but because of the international flavor of the gathering, readings and prayers will also be offered in Latin, French and German. Bishop Nienstedt will also be leading his group on a pilgrimage to the original Schoenstatt Shrine in Vallendar, Germany.

An opening Mass, a welcoming ceremony for the Holy Father, an all-night prayer vigil and the closing Mass with the Pope are just some of the events taking place in Cologne, Bonn and Dusseldorf the week of August 15-22. 

World Youth Day is an international gathering of youth started by the late Pope John Paul II in 1986.  He was inspired to begin these encounters by the youth themselves. Since then, every two or three years the World Youth Days are held on an international scale in one central place in the world. Past locations include Toronto in 2002, Rome 2000 and Denver 1993.

For further information, please contact the diocesan Office of Communication, (507) 359-2966; email : dnu@dnu.org