The weeklong faith extravaganza of World Youth Day is underway now with more than a million young Catholics expected to pour in to Madrid.Pope Benedict XVI isn't due until Thursday, but the $72 million celebration is still a hot item. And not all for good reasons, according to The New York Times,
There is also some tension within the ranks. Religion News Service columnist David Gibson points out Catholics for Choice, the Washington-based abortion rights lobby, will be at WYD campaigning for condom use.
A year ago the pope said he considered it morally acceptable for preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS, but the Vatican has clarified repeatedly condoms are not OK for contraception. Gibson says the CfC's program, Condoms4Life, is posting English- and Spanish-language advertisements around Madrid saying,Still, there's always something irresistable about spectacle. If you want to catch a snippet of WYD excitement -- and a two-minute video on cool stats and history of the event -- check Busted Halo this week.