Youths Await Pope Ceremony

TORONTO —  Roman Catholic youths from around the globe sang hymns and exchanged greetings in dozens of languages as they met in Canada for religious unity and to encounter like-minded people from other cultures.

Most of all, though, they came to see and hear Pope John Paul II.

“We believe this could be the last World Youth Day with this pope,” said Ariane Vieiraleite, 23, one of 3,000 pilgrims from Brazil. “He will be a messenger, a prophet for God.”

The pope rode a golf cart Wednesday morning along some of the tree-shaded trails of the remote island where he was resting for a few days, according to the Canadian Embassy to the Holy See. His first public event will be a welcoming ceremony today.

Catholics from myriad cultures and countries have journeyed by plane, bus and train to be close to their spiritual leader.

The pilgrims, most 16 to 35, have come for activities that include catechism classes with bishops, a reenactment of the Stations of the Cross along a downtown avenue, and an all-night vigil followed by the final Mass on Sunday.

Leon Mamgark, 24, a Catholic from the northern Canadian territory of Nunavut, wore a traditional jacket and boots to meet the 82-year-old pope in person during an airport ceremony Tuesday.

“It was an enormous experience,” said the librarian and volunteer firefighter. “I was inspired by him. At his age, I don’t know if I would be able to go on like that.”