Handover to Sydney

Hello again!First off I would like to say a big thank you to a large group of people who helped the Journey of the Cross and Icon and handover happen so smoothly:

* Dave Mullin (Hugo!), who was just brilliant the entire time in Sydney and throughout the JCI in New Zealand also

* the College group who travelled to Sydney too - you guys were culturally inspiring and made me really proud to be a New Zealander!

* my fellow ambassadors :D , you are all such beautiful people and I loved the way that we all got along so well, truly God inspired relationships which I will treasure for life

* Areti for his help in Australia,

and also thanks to everyone else involved in our part in the Journey of the Cross and Icon - Jamie, Peter, Kerry, David, Lisa, Alice, Renee, students at the Catholic Colleges we visited along the way and everyone else involved!!! :D

This blog is basically about the handover of the Cross and Icon to Australia. It will probably be quite similar to that of my fellow ambassadors' but here it is from my point of view anyway...On Saturday afternoon we all gathered in Auckland to fly out to Sydney for the handover of the Cross and Icon from New Zealand to Australia.

The group was made up of: the 6 Kiwi Ambassadors, Dave Mullin the project manager, Archbishop John Dew and a school group made up of representatives from each of the three Maori Catholic Colleges in New Zealand. We arrived in Sydney late Saturday night and were billeted with families from Earlwood Parish. Early on Sunday morning we met for the official handover at Sydney Airport. The New Zealand group gathered on a Qantas plane with the cross and icon. We were called off the plane by the Maori Catholic group singing a beautiful chant. They formed a guard of honor on the ground and the Ambassadors carried the cross down through the students.

The native Aboringine people then performed a welcome dance and while the digeridoo played we stood the cross up for the crowd then gave it into the hands of the Australian delegates.After this we traveled to Mary MacKillop Place for a beautiful service with the Josephite sisters. We had a short lunch here then gathered outside the church ready to walk to Darling Harbour. There was quite a large crowd walking the 5 or 6 k’s across the Harbour Bridge and everyone was enthusiastic about the task at hand.On arrival at Darling Harbour the New Zealand Ambassadors took the cross and walked it in through the people.

There were about 8000 people in the crowd and we had to walk the cross through the entire group. It was a really special moment because everyone was reaching out to the cross and trying to touch it. It did get a little rough at times but the six of us supported each other and made our way to the front. There were a few speeches then a repeat of the handover at the hangar. The New Zealand group was allowed the chance for final veneration of the cross and icon before the crowd was also given this opportunity. We then moved on to St Mary’s Cathedral in the center of town for the evenings mass.

This Cathedral is apparently the 6th largest Cathedral in the world and it was just amazing to walk into. We had reserved seats up in the front row so had a perfect view of the service. The Church was full and there were also lots of people sitting on the ground. The Cross and Icon were processed in and the Australian Delegates commissioned to begin the pilgrimage in Australia. This was officially the end of our job in Australia and it was actually quite sad to be finally leaving the cross.

Monday was basically a free day for the New Zealand group so the girls and I went into Sydney to do a bit of shopping. We then met up with the boys, Dave and Archbishop John for lunch. Dave surprised us by taking us up the Sydney Sky Tower for the afternoon where we had coffee, cake and enjoyed the beautiful views of the city. We flew out from Sydney airport on Tuesday afternoon and arrived back in Auckland about 9:30 that night.

Before traveling to Sydney I spent some time with the Cross and Icon traveling around the Hamilton Diocese and looking back it feels like I have had the most amazing couple of weeks. What has made my experiences along this pilgrimage so memorable have been the people I met along the way. That to me is what pilgrimage is about; the people, the relationships you form, and the bonds you make with fellow pilgrims on the same journey. There is a strong sense of unity created and that feeling is inspiring. I have really felt the strength of the Catholic Church as a united force for our God and am proud to be part of it.

It makes me feel more enthusiastic about playing my part and doing everything I can for our almighty God. I would like to invite and encourage you all to make the decision to come to World Youth Day next year. It will be a once in a life time experience that you will never ever forget. What I experienced in Sydney and have shared with you just now is just a snippet, a preview of what next year will be like and my only wish now is that everyone can be a part of it.