Rexband is the first Catholic band from the Indian subcontinent to be invited to the World Youth Day performance in 2002 at Toronto. From then, they have been consistently invited for the later World Youth days in 2005 at Cologne, in 2008 at Sydney and in the 2011 at Madrid. In the most recent 2013 held at Rio de Janeiro, the Rexband had the blessing of performing at the WYD main stage – right before the Holy Father’s message at the night vigil.
The Indian subcontinent, is a southern region and peninsula of Asia, mostly situated on the Indian Plate and projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geologically, the Indian subcontinent is related to the land mass that rifted from Gondwana and merged with the Eurasian plate nearly 55 million years ago. Geographically, it is the peninsular region in south-central Asia delineated by the Himalayas in the north, the Hindu Kush in the west, and the Arakanese in the east. Politically, the Indian subcontinent includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
World Youth Day (WYD) is an event for young people organized by the Catholic Church. The next, World Youth Day 2022, will be held in Portugal.
The 17th World Youth Day 2002 (WYD2002) was a Catholic youth festival held July 23-July 28, 2002, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. World Youth Day is a celebration of faith begun by Pope John Paul II held on an international level every two to three years, and WYD2002 was the 10th such event. Although WYD is designed for Catholics, it attracts sizable numbers of youths from other faiths and denominations and was presented as a multi-faith celebration of young people from all over the world.
Rexband was established in the late 1980s and early 1990s by a group of young musicians who experienced a life-changing encounter with Jesus through the Jesus Youth movement. It was during this period in Kerala, the southern most state of India, that Catholic Charismatic Renewal started, prompting these young people to ask God how they could use their talent in music and theater to reach out to youth. The answer for them was Rexband, a musical outreach of Jesus Youth, which has today grown into a worldwide ministry of over 25 artists with a distinctive talent in music or theater. The signature sound of Rexband is a fusion of ethnic and contemporary elements. Rexband has released over 10 albums in different languages over the last decade.
Jesus, also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus Christ, was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity, and is widely described as the most influential person in history. Most Christians believe he is the incarnation of God the Son and the awaited Messiah (Christ) prophesied in the Old Testament.
Jesus Youth is an International Catholic Movement approved by the Holy See. The Movement evolved as an outcome of the Charismatic revival that spread across India in the mid-1970s. As of 20 May 2016, it has been granted recognition by the Vatican as an international private association of the faithful with juridical personality. The movement invites its youth to follow a lifestyle considered to be based on the life of Jesus Christ, based on what it calls 'six pillars'.
Kerala is a state on the southwestern, Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions. Spread over 38,863 km2 (15,005 sq mi), Kerala is the twenty-second largest Indian state by area. It is bordered by Karnataka to the north and northeast, Tamil Nadu to the east and south, and the Lakshadweep Sea to the west. With 33,387,677 inhabitants as per the 2011 Census, Kerala is the thirteenth-largest Indian state by population. It is divided into 14 districts with the capital being Thiruvananthapuram. Malayalam is the most widely spoken language and is also the official language of the state.
Katharine, Duchess of Kent, is a member of the British royal family. Her husband, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, is a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II.
Carlton Earl "Carl" Anderson was an American singer, film and theater actor best known for his portrayal of Judas Iscariot in the Broadway and film versions of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Anderson and singer-actress Gloria Loring performed the duet "Friends and Lovers", which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1986.
Life Teen is a Catholic youth ministry organization and movement originating in the United States. Life Teen believes that "Eucharist-based ministry has the power to transform teens, transform parishes, and transform culture." "Inspired by pope John Paul II's call for a New Evangelization, Life Teen believes that youth are the key to this new springtime in the Church."
Samuel Lawrence Lopez Concepcion is a Filipino singer, dancer, actor, VJ and host. Concepcion emerged as the winner for the Big Division of Little Big Star`s Season 1 in April 2006. Concepcion currently has a contract under STAGES and ABS-CBN's Star Magic. Concepcion began with a total of 12 theater roles and participated in various plays even at a young age, including the role of Edmund Pevensie in the local stage adaptation of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe and Mr. Noah’s Big Boat. He has been in the role of Peter Pan from 2002 to 2012. Aside from theater roles, he has acted in movies including Way Back Home and Shake, Rattle & Roll 13. He acted in his first lead role in 2012 in the first Filipino musical-film entitled, I Do Bidoo Bidoo: Heto nAPO Sila!. He had his first role in television in ABS-CBN's Mga Anghel na Walang Langit, and his major break as Boy Bawang in the fantasy series Super Inggo.
Contemporary Catholic liturgical music encompasses a comprehensive variety of styles of music for Catholic liturgy that grew both before and after the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. The dominant style in English-speaking Canada and the United States began as Gregorian chant and folk hymns, superseded after the 1970s by a folk-based musical genre, generally acoustic and often slow in tempo, but that has evolved into a broad contemporary range of styles reflective of certain aspects of age, culture, and language. There is a marked difference between this style and those that were both common and valued in Catholic churches before Vatican II.
"For the Strength of Youth" is a pamphlet distributed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that "summarizes standards from scripture and from the writings and teachings of Church leaders." The pamphlet's target audience is young men and young women of the LDS Church, although its principles are applicable to all age groups and non-church-members alike. It is available on the Internet and in print form. The pamphlet was first published in 1965, and its 9th and most recent edition was released in 2011. The pamphlet was meant to be put "in the hands of every young person in each ward".
David Robert Haas, is an American author and composer of contemporary Catholic liturgical music. His best known songs include "Glory to God”, "Blest Are They", "You Are Mine", "We Are Called", "We Have Been Told", "Now We Remain", "The Name of God" and "Song of the Body of Christ".
John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls' High School is an all-girls Roman Catholic high school located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
The Cactus Theater is a theater in Lubbock, Texas. It hosts live music productions, musicals, and theatrical plays.
Stephen Devassy is an Indian musician hailing from Palakkad, Kerala. He started his career at an early age, and has performed on stage around the world. He also holds the record for being the highest Asian scorer in Piano exams from Trinity college of music, London. Stephen is the founder of Musik Lounge, an audio technology school and studio in Chennai.
World Youth Day 2000 was a Catholic youth festival held from August 15–20, 2000 in Rome, Italy.
A Christian music festival is a music festival held by the Christian community, in support of performers of Christian music. The festivals are characterized by more than just music; many feature motivational speakers and evangelists, and include seminars on Christian spiritual and missions topics, service, and evangelism. They are often viewed as evangelical tools, and small festivals can draw 10 times the crowd of traditional revival meetings. While the central theme of a Christian festival is Jesus Christ, the core appeal of a Christian music festival remains the artists and their music. Critics point out that the dichotomy of business and religious interests can be problematic for Christian festivals. In similar ways as the Christian music industry in general, festivals can be drawn away from their central theme and gravitate toward commercialization and mainstream acts in an attempt to draw crowds.
The Missionaries of God's Love (MGL) is a Roman Catholic religious congregation that came into being in Canberra, Australia in 1986. It is partnered with a lay organisation which is now called The Disciples of Jesus Covenant Community.
Craig Lodge Community is a lay community of the Roman Catholic Church based in Dalmally, Argyll in the west Highlands of Scotland.
The Copa Amsterdam, formerly known as the Gestion Copa Amsterdam, is an annual youth football tournament, organized and hosted by AFC Ajax for under-19 youth teams which takes place at the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam. The tournament has been contested by some of the strongest under-19 teams in football, with FC Barcelona, Chelsea and Cruzeiro amongst the participating clubs. The tournament is named after its main sponsor, the insurance company AEGON and was formerly named after the publishing company Gestion, and is broadcast online in over 59 countries via Eredivisie Live, Eurosport and Fox Sports.
World Youth Day 2019 was the 16th World Youth Day, an international event organized by the Catholic Church and focused on faith and youth. Taking place 22 - 27 January in Panama City, Panama, it was the first of its kind celebrated in Central America.
Park Ock-Soo or Ock Soo Park is the founder of Good News Mission. He is currently the head pastor of the Good News Gangnam Church and is the advisor to the IYF.
