In an informal address to a crowd of around 2,000 people, Pope Benedict XVI told listeners that adoring God means recognising his presence as creator and lord of the universe and ensuring that God is the most important part of one’s life.

The Pope made the comment in the courtyard of his summer home in South Rome, where several thousand more were gathered in the square outside to hear his speech.

The focus of his speech was the upcoming World Youth Day, due to be held in Cologne, Germany, from 16 to 21 August, and which runs under the theme “We Have Come to Worship Him”.

Pope Benedict said an attitude of worship and adoration is the attitude that has marked the lives of saints throughout Christian history.

The hallmark of worship is, according to the Pope, recognising the greatness of God and the gift of salvation in Jesus with gratitude that “arises from the depths of one’s heart and marks one’s whole being.”

The Pope hopes for the church to help youngsters attending the World Youth Day to reach the “peak of love” and to bring about the realisation that with God at the centre of their lives the purpose of their existence will become clear.