Missed out on the Bishops' Catechesis from World Youth Day in Madrid? You can listen to the audio from some of the English catechesis talks right here on Xt3! On Wednesday 17 August, all the Bishops spoke on the topic 'Firm in the Faith'. On Thursday 18 August, the Bishops spoke on the theme of building a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. On Friday 19 August, the catechesis talks focused on the teaching “that every baptized person is called to mission”. Enjoy!

……

Fr. Robert Barron attended World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid. In this video, Fr. Barron reflects on the new wave of evangelisation that he could see in the young people who attended, and notes the negativity of the mainstream media surrounding the event.

Some 3,000 World Youth Day participants in Madrid last week attended the celebrations with Magis, a Jesuit pastoral program that prepares and accompanies young people in the WYD experience. The youth began the Magis itinerary on Aug. 5 in Loyola, the birthplace of the founder of the Jesuits, and concluded with the papal events in Madrid. Visit this article to read more.

The highpoint of World Youth Day was a moment that has been little-discussed, according to the leader of the Spanish episcopal conference's youth ministry department. For Bishop José Ignacio Munilla Aguirre of San Sebastian, the climax of World Youth Day occurred Saturday night, when Benedict XVI consecrated the youth of the world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

……

The Pope has returned from Madrid to his summer residence at Castel Gandolfo just south of Rome. He was greeted by a number of pilgrims that were also with him at this year's World Youth Day in Madrid.

……

The official numbers for World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid have been released. Around 2 million people participated in the event, ranking Madrid as the third most attended World Youth Day. The events with the most people were in Manila, in the Philipines in 1995 and Rome in 2000.

We cannot follow Jesus on our own, Pope Benedict XVI told more than 1.2 pilgrims at World Youth Day 2011's Final Mass which was celebrated at Madrid's Cuatro Vientos airbase on Sunday, 21 August.

Benedict XVI concluded his third visit to Spain with a ceremony at the Barajas Airport in Madrid.

……

After a day of temperatures reaching a sweltering 40 degrees, Madrid's weather suddenly changed and a violent storm ripped across the city, lashing Cuatro Ventos Air Base where more than 1 million World Youth Day pilgrims had gathered for Saturday's WYD Vigil.

Celebrating Mass with nearly a thousand seminarians from all over the world today, Benedict XVI emphasized the importance of discernment in preparation for the priesthood.

……