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Nineteen-year-old Philip Oldham is a Boy Scout, so he plans to pack lightly: a large wool blanket, several water bottles, T-shirts and, of course, his Bible.

“Only the essentials,” he said.

His destination? Cologne, Germany, where he and 600 young people from Denver will join an expected 800,000 young pilgrims from around the world Tuesday through Sunday in celebrating Pope Benedict XVI’s first World Youth Day as the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

“It almost feels like his coming- out party,” Oldham said Friday.

And Benedict has big shoes to fill.

World Youth Day, the Catholic revival that draws hundreds of thousands of Catholic young people from all over the world, was started by Pope John Paul II and sparked a passionate bond between the pope and the youngest members of his flock. In 1993, it was held in Denver.

John Paul was charismatic, traveled often and used big stadium rallies to energize Catholic youth. Benedict, on the other hand, is known more for his shyness. A conservative doctrinal watchdog, as he was known among Vatican circles before gaining the papacy, Benedict has said he aims to be a church unifier. It is a message local young people are clinging to as they make the journey to Germany for the six-day holy festival.

“I’m excited to see how he does it,” Oldham said.

Oldham, who stood within 8 feet of John Paul at the 2002 Toronto youth day, has no doubt the new pope can unify the church. He said Catholics will be looking to World Youth Day for a first impression of the pope. “As a cardinal, he was a strict enforcer of dogma. He was the ‘no’ man. He put a nix on things coming through that didn’t line up with Catholic dogma,” Oldham said.

This is Benedict’s chance to light a new fire under the Catholic youth revival, he added.

And he wants fellow members of the Shrine of St. Anne youth group in Arvada to remember that as they venture overseas – including his younger sister, Abby.

“Some people just think, ‘We’re going to Germany,’ not ‘We’re going to see the pope.’ We need to keep focused on the reason we are there, and that’s Jesus,” he said.

Thirteen people from the Shrine of St. Anne will make the pilgrimage to Germany.

Karen Wasinger, youth minister at the church, said John Paul will always have a special place in Catholics’ hearts, but that young people are excited to have someone new to look up to.

“I think Pope Benedict’s really looking to continue the call upon young people to be the light of Christ,” she said.

Wasinger is no stranger to World Youth Day. She was a junior in high school when she stood among 90,000 at Mile High Stadium as Denver welcomed John Paul for youth day.

“It didn’t matter how far away were from the pope. We could see the little white dot … so we could see him,” she said. Despite her distance from John Paul, Wasinger was in awe.

She anticipates a similar awe to inspire members of her youth group as they witness Pope Benedict celebrate Catholic Mass on the final day of the festivities.

Staff writer Abbe Smith can be reached at 303-820-1201 or asmith@denverpost.com.