Crikey

It’s not a sin to cash in. The Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal Pell, said yesterday there was nothing immoral about commercialism as he opened the first official World Youth Day venue: a merchandise tent in Hyde Park.The “WYD on Hyde” tent features caps, scarves, “I love Jesus” T-shirts, a Receive The Power CD set, stainless-steel dog tags, sticker packs and much more. — Your Democracy

Priest slams World Youth Day - A Catholic Priest has slammed the upcoming World Youth Day as an embarrassment and a scandal. Father Peter Confeggi told Fairfax Media that he believed there was a “large amount of dissatisfaction” with the overall direction of the event.However Father Confeggi of Sydney’s Mount Druitt says the money involved in putting on the event is embarrassing, along with it’s overall strategic direction. The event will cost taxpayers $86 million, and the Catholic Church about $150 million. — Scopical
How the NSW government has made World Youth Day into a problem - The government has so incensed people, including many prominent Catholics, that demonstrations and protests are far more likely than they would otherwise have been. Given that current laws governing such events were, according to many commentators, quite sufficient to deal with any really bad examples of disruption to the event, the NSW government has been very foolish to have foreshadowed issues that probably would not have arisen. — Floating Life

World Youth Day inspires “annoying” t-shirts. Given the rules of the game laid down by Morrie Dilemma and his friends, Ninglun Fashions of Surry Hills has come up with a range of tasteful plain t-shirts that may perhaps be acceptable under the special law. — Ninglun’s Specials

Annoying t-shirts Part 2. Top 10 anti-World Youth Day t-shirt slogans: Anti-World Youth Day t-shirts are selling fast, following the NSW government’s ban on ‘annoying’ pilgrims. Take a look at some of the most popular slogans. — SBS