July 11, 2007
World Youth Day Anthem Premieres
SYDNEY, Australia, JULY 6, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The World Youth Day anthem was performed for the first time publicly by Australian musicians Guy Sebastian and Paulini.
"Receive the Power" was launched July 1 at a free outdoor event in Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbor, as the official song for next year's World Youth Day, to be held in Sydney, July 15-20, 2008.
Sebastian, who wrote the song with Gary Pinto, has woven the lyrics around the event's theme chosen by Benedict XVI: "You will receive the power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses" (Acts 1:8).
"'Receive the Power' is a wonderful work, a foretaste of that day next year when by the power of the Holy Spirit divisions between peoples will be set aside and 'every nation, every tribe' will come together for the World Youth Day," said Bishop Anthony Fisher, the event's coordinator.
The song, produced in collaboration with SONY BMG Music Entertainment, is also available in an international version with verses in Italian, Spanish and French.
The video, which features footage from the previous World Youth Day in Cologne, can be viewed on the event's official Web site. On the same site, both the English and international versions of the song can be downloaded.
