EDITOR”S NOTE: This is Bishop Lucia’s column from our July 18 print edition, prior to his trip to the National Eucharistic Congress. Bishop is back and will write about his Congress experience in his column in the August 1 edition of The Catholic Sun. Just one more great reason to consider becoming a subscriber!
As my column in the Catholic Sun appears in print (7/18 edition), I will be in Indianapolis, IN for the first National Eucharistic Congress in 83 years – only the tenth such event in the 235-year history of the ecclesiastical territory of the United States. This gathering of representatives of Catholic churches from throughout the US will not only be an occasion for prayer, worship, and continuing faith formation; but will also be an actual revival meant to stir into flame the gift of God in our hearts and in our lives.
As the official website of the Congress – eucharisticrevival.org – states: “The National Eucharistic Revival movement is the joyful, expectant, grassroots response of the Church in the United States to the divine invitation to be united once again around the source and summit of our faith in the celebration of the Eucharist. Through the Eucharist, God desires to heal, renew, and unify the Church and the world.”
The theme of these days of national revival in Indianapolis is: “Jesus is calling us back to our first love for a New Pentecost.” Every day at the Congress is designed to facilitate this life-changing encounter with Jesus, regardless of where one is at on their faith journey. Participants have been invited to select impact sessions to attend in the morning and breakout sessions for the afternoon.
During the day, there will be various times for attendees to gather for Holy Mass, celebrate the Sacrament of Penance, and spend time in Eucharistic Adoration. Then each evening everyone will gather in Lucas Oil Stadium for an actual revival session. Three special events will be on Wednesday, July 17th – a day of recollection for the Bishops of the United States; on Saturday, July 20th – an outdoor Eucharistic Procession through the streets of Indianapolis; and on Sunday, July 21st – a closing Eucharistic liturgy presided over by Luis Cardinal Tagle, the personal representative of Pope Francis to the Congress.
I have been to one other Eucharistic Congress, the international one held in Quebec City in 2008. Interestingly enough, the theme of that gathering was: “The Eucharist, Gift of God for the Life of the World.” The next International Eucharist Congress (#53) is actually September 8 – 15, 2024, in Quito, Ecuador and will focus on the theme: “Fraternity to heal the world.”
These themes highlight a significant movement to be found in our own national gathering in July – to become Eucharistic missionaries ourselves. To carry the real presence of Christ into our world today – not just through a Eucharistic procession – but even more by asking the Lord to change us so that we can be the presence of Christ to those we meet on our daily pilgrimage through life.
I can almost hear the groaning as soon as I write these words, but something I have been reflecting on is how little I think of God, and consequently, of myself. What I mean by this statement is brought home to me in words written by the Cistercian monk, Fr. Thomas Keating, and shared with me recently: “Think of God in a very big way. And if you do, that’s too small! You can’t think of anything more wonderful than this God. And you can’t figure out anything about God without a special grace…God is so marvelously good, there is no word for it. So gentle. So considerate. So kind, so tender – so everything marvelous. That is God. And whatever you say is far less than it is. As St. Paul says, ‘It hasn’t crossed the imagination of any human being what God has prepared for those who love him.’”
In other words, rather than make the excuse, “I’m only human,” as if it were a justification for our inaction or lack of participation in the Christian life – these words actually signify our dignity and potential in God’s vision. You and I are made in the very image and likeness of our God, and he gifts us with His very Spirit so that we can go out and invite others to know Jesus Christ, especially at his altar!
In preparation for the Eucharistic gathering in Indianapolis, there have been four pilgrimages carry the Eucharistic Lord in procession from four corners of our nation. Reminiscent of the Road to Emmaus, as our Lord travels the roads of the continental US, he listens to our worries and reveals himself in the breaking of the bread. In Ecuador, a similar pilgrimage as been occurring, but it has been a special Book of the Gospels that is being carried focusing on “the Word became Flesh and made his dwelling among us” (see Jn 1:14).
Unfortunately, we see in our churches the Book of the Gospels not being used, or if used, tossed aside, and even if enshrined, many of us still wonder what it really means. I believe that none of this is meant to be malicious but is indicative of our own need for revival – to return back to our first love (“He who first loved us”) and bring about a new Pentecost in our Church and our world.
The English translation of the hymn for the upcoming International Eucharistic Congress puts it this way:
Chorus:
Fraternity to heal the world
That is what you show us, Lord, from the cross.
You gather us around your table
and you teach us brother to love.
I
With your body and blood, divine mystery,
you make yourself present here at the altar.
You are with us in the bread and wine
that reconcile, that give life and peace.
II
Lord friend, Word of God,
you invite us to be fraternity.
For you here we are and you are food
that fills us with love to heal.
III
Fraternity is more than a word,
It is a hug forgetting the resentment,
is to shake hands with the poor and helpless,
It is to console the brother in affliction.
IV
You teach us to love the least,
You are all brothers, be one.
From Ecuador, for the whole world,
we announce: You are the life, Jesus.
Our own National Eucharistic Congress challenges us to put these words into practice. It states on its website: “The Holy Spirit’s call to renewal can be broken down into four invitations based on the pillars of the Revival: reinvigorate worship, create moments of personal encounter, engage in robust formation, and send forth Catholics as missionaries.” Throughout these days and in the days to come, let us the Lord to come and change us, so that a New Pentecost can become a reality! “Jesus, Sacrament most holy, Jesus, Sacrament divine, may all praise and all thanksgiving be at every moment thine!”
