It is easy to say that I have been on a pilgrimage. However, the action of making a pilgrimage does not end when the geographical destination has been reached. From there, the pilgrimage has to carry on inside the heart continually leading toward conversion.

This is the lesson I have learned from attending World Youth Day 2005 in Koln, Deutschland (Cologne, Germany).

Before boarding the plane to Europe, I was very excited to meet Pope Benedict XVI because I was one of the few chosen to participate in the International Liturgy Group. Our task was to lead the pilgrims in prayer at the welcoming ceremony, the vigil and the concluding Mass.

Each bishops' conference and international Catholic youth organization were invited to send two representatives. There were more than 150 representatives from 70 countries in the group. I represented the International Movement of Catholic Students, a group that educates students about the global social condition.

Though I was eager to meet the Holy Father, I forgot the real reason why I wanted to make this pilgrimage. I did not go only to meet the church's spiritual leader, but I wanted to have an encounter with Jesus Christ. Being part of the group, we did not have the same schedule as the majority of the pilgrims. In fact, it was a totally different itinerary, mostly full with rehearsals.

Members of our group also wanted to feel like we were pilgrims. We kept our faith at the center of what we did and built our own community of pilgrims. There was a song offered by a young man from Sudan and it quickly became one of the songs we sang all the time. It goes, "We (blank) together, we are a family." The blank space was replaced with "sing," "pray," "eat," "practice," "wait," "dance," etc.

Being together brought the group really close. As we got to know each other, we realized that though we are separated geographically and divided by political boundaries, we are not so different after all. We really were a family.

At the World Youth Day, I had the unique opportunity to greet Christ in everyone I met. It was an experience that I will never forget.

When you hear the testimonies of people who made this pilgrimage, pay special attention to the intonation of their voice. It will be evident that they had an encounter with Jesus Christ and, like the Magi, have been changed.

Christopher Derige Malano, a Roman Catholic, is a graduate of the University of New Mexico who lives in 'Ewa Beach.