There is more material I could publish in the future. I wrote notes on
my conversations with Francine Bell. I cut out much material on
discussions about Catholic theology. Sanitarium emailed me a media
statement made to WYD. Also all pastors in my conference received
an email from the president, a forward of a conversation between a
concerned church member and church representatives. It was interesting
reading! My friend Judy took notes on subtle elevation of the pope,
e.g. "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" being used of
the Pope. Also a Catholic guy presented a two-page article, "Changes in
the Catholic Church" for one small group at Wantirna Adventist church.
Other trivia:
Two Adventist friends of mine who attend a Catholic high
school also attended some Days in the Dioceses events
Llewellyn Jones' son drove a bus of Catholics down
for WYD
Apparently Sydney Adventist College hosted something (as did the MacLaurin hall, named after my relative). See PDF map
Do you know of any other Adventist trivia? Did any host pilgrims, "homestay"?
I appreciate the several small groups who have invited me to share my experiences.
Links
There was some good articles about Catholicism in the Record, coinciding
with WYD: [They are online; the provided links aren't working for me]
They published my letter to the editor (PDF) in Record113:36
(September 20, 2008), p12, with some editing. It was a reponse to
"What's the difference?" above. I mentioned I went to WYD, and
have received no flak for it whatsoever. I pointed out the
irony
that some
Adventists have held the "Catholic" view of salvation (although they
would be mortified to think so)! The stirrer Robert Brinsmead (*link)
read Catholic authors and was shocked to discover his views there! He
converted to the Protestant Reformers' view. (Lowell
Tarling, The Edges of
Seventh-day Adventism
p193 (1st edn), p144 (2nd edn). I notice also that Milton Hook made a
similar assertion about Adventists generally in his Ford biography)
"How our cynical city got swept up by the spirit” by Claire
Harvey, Sunday
Telegraph
July 20, 2008, speaks of the joy WYD brought. While the
paper was an official supporter, I do affirm its
content personally, based on my
firsthand experiences.
Priest is Father Paul Anthony Newton (website). He
is the author of Making
Sense of Private Revelations.
On our journey up he called up the radio station (ABC?) -
perhaps
it's online somewhere. I listened to his sermon about spreading the faith, which was
brilliant
Francine Bell is a singer/performer and Adventist (website;
see also her film
appearances according to the Internet Movie Database). The
Newcastle Herald
(Australia), 10 June 2008 mentioned her.
InFocus Adventist News of 20 June 2008 mentions her (see 3:26-3:57 in the YouTube clip below):
She sang at the Stations on the Cross also.
Here is Francine singing the hymn "Taste and See" at the final mass on Sunday,
uploaded from SBS television coverage:
How on earth did an Adventist end up singing at World Youth Day?! If
you want to know, read my article!
1993 Denver WYD The Adventist church was a step ahead of hard-core types who attempted to place
anti-Pope billboards. See "Denver and the Pope: Adventists on Alert" by
Colleen Anderson and Ed Gallagher. Adventist Today 1:3 (September-October 1993), p20-21
"In fact, local Adventists have
volunteered in several ways to help World Youth Day, the international
Catholic meeting Aug. 11-15 that will bring Pope John Paul II to Denver
for four days." -Denver newspaper Rocky Mountain News 29 July 1993. As quoted in Half a Century of Apostasy by the Standish brothers. Chapter 81,
"Assisting Catholicism".