Toronto, July 25: Pope John Paul, fresh from two days rest on an island retreat, makes his first appearance at a Catholic youth festival on Thursday before as many as 200,000 young faithful eager to welcome the aging Pontiff with prayer and song. The 82-year-old Roman Catholic leader will arrive in the afternoon by helicopter to take part in a two-hour pageant of choral songs, readings and prayer before heading back to his retreat on Strawberry Island, about 60 miles outside Toronto, for another day of rest before the weekend's events.

The official welcoming ceremony will set the stage for the Pope's other appearances during World Youth Day celebrations that include a Saturday evening vigil and culminate with a huge outdoor mass on Sunday. John Paul's advisers, mindful of his Parkinson's disease and painful, sometimes crippling arthritis, have scheduled plenty of down time between events. Bureau Report