2024 National Eucharistic Congress
National Eucharistic Congress ends with prayer for ‘new Pentecost’ for U.S. Church
Indianapolis, Ind., Jul 21, 2024 / 14:00 pm
The National Eucharistic Congress concluded Sunday with a Mass with tens of thousands of people in an NFL football stadium, where the crowd prayed for “a new Pentecost” in the U.S. Church.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle presided over the closing Mass in Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium on July 21 as Pope Francis’ special envoy for the event. He shared that the pope told him that he desires the congress to lead to “conversion to the Eucharist.”
“The presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is a gift and the fulfillment of his mission,” said the cardinal pro-prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Evangelization.
“Those who choose to stay with Jesus will be sent by Jesus,” Tagle added. “Let us go to proclaim Jesus zealously and joyfully for the life of the world.”
The nearly 60,000 Eucharistic congress attendees were sent out with “a great commissioning” on Sunday morning in which keynote speakers urged participants to proclaim the Gospel in every corner of the country.
“What the Church needs is a new Pentecost,” Mother Adela Galindo, the foundress of the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary, told the crowd.
“The Church must be faithful to the Gospel … not watering down the message of the Gospel,” the Nicaraguan sister said. “We were born for these times. It is a time to go out in haste to a world that urgently needs to hear God’s word and God’s truth.”
“Here is what we need to proclaim,” the diminutive Nicaraguan sister said. “That no darkness is greater than the light of the Eucharist. That no sin is greater than the merciful heart of the Eucharist.”
“Basically, brothers and sisters, that love is greater than death!” exclaimed the nun, who received an enthusiastic standing ovation from the crowd.
More than 1,600 priests, seminarians, bishops, and cardinals processed into Mass in the Indianapolis Colts’ stadium in a dramatic opening procession lasting 25 minutes. An additional 1,236 religious sisters and brothers were praying in the stands, according to the event organizers.
The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra played the classical hymns “Panis Angelicus” and “Ave Verum Corpus” as Communion was brought to tens of thousands of people in the stadium.
Many people commented on the incredible energy, positivity, and hope among the congress participants who traveled from all 50 states to take part in the five-day event July 17–21.
“I don’t want to sound dramatic, but the National Eucharistic Congress has been something of a triumph — a crowded, crazy, and occasionally chaotic triumph. Peace and joy reign,” Stephen White, the executive director of the Catholic Project, commented on X.
“His presence is palpable and pervasive. The Lord is here,” White added.
Father Aquinas Guilbeau, OP, predicted that the legacy of the National Eucharistic Congress will be like that of the 1993 World Youth Day held in Denver for the Church in the U.S.
“Its grace will shape the Church for the next 50 years,” Guilbeau said.
Nearly 60,000 tickets were sold for the National Eucharistic Congress, according to organizers, including the day passes that were sold after the start of the event.
Tagle began his homily by greeting the crowd in more than five languages, including Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish, French, and Italian.
“The Holy Father prays, as we all do, that the congress may bear fruit, much fruit, for the renewal of the Church and of society in the United States of America,” Tagle said.
In his homily, the cardinal noted that “where there is a lack or a weakening of missionary zeal, maybe it is partly due to a weakening in the appreciation of gifts and giftedness.”
“If our horizon is only that of achievement, success, and profit, there is no room to see and receive gratuitous gifts. There is no place for gratitude and self-giving,” he added. “There will only be a relentless search for self-affirmation that eventually becomes oppressive and tiring, leading to more self-absorption or individualism.
Tagle underlined that the Eucharist is “a privileged moment to experience Jesus’ mission as a gift of himself.”
At the end of Mass, Bishop Andrew Cozzens announced to roaring applause that the U.S. bishops are planning to hold another National Eucharistic Congress in 2033, the Year of Redemption marking 2,000 years since Jesus’ crucifixion.
The bishop of Crookston, Minnesota, who spearheaded the Eucharistic revival, also announced that another Eucharistic pilgrimage from Indianapolis to Los Angeles will take place in 2025.
“What do you say as you come to the end of the 10th National Eucharistic Congress?” Cozzens said. “It has been my experience and I hope yours that we’ve lived an experience of heaven. Of course, the Eucharist is a foretaste of heaven.”
Preparation for the 2024 National Eucharistic Congress Procession
Christ our Light – Day 3 of the NEC
“God is light. In Him there is no darkness.”
With these words, his Eminence Wilton Cardinal Gregory, Archbishop of Washington DC, opened his homily to begin the Mass on Day 3 of the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis.
His words accurately convey my own experience of the eucharistic services here at the Congress. The Light of Christ has shown brilliantly here in each and every Mass, adoration, benediction and procession. To be in a stadium with 50,000 people praising God with the most uplifting spiritual music during Mass or adoration is an experience that will remain with me for the rest of my days.
The displays of faith and love for our Eucharistic Lord on the part of my fellow pilgrims have, on more than one occasion, brought me to tears. Young people, kneeling on the concrete floor of the stands of football stadium, praising our Lord, gives me hope for the future of our Church. Mothers holding toddlers sleeping on her shoulder while wrapped in prayer during Mass give me joy contemplating the life of this child. The exuberant voices of my fellow pilgrims lifting the roof off of the stadium with arms raised to our God fill me with the Holy Spirit in a way I have seldom encountered.
I believe that this National Eucharistic Congress was undertaken to revitalize our love and adoration of Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament. In so many ways, I see evidence of resounding success in accomplishing that objective.
Cardinal Gregory concluded his homily “God has indeed separated the dark from the light, and his Son is the light.” How true! May we all renew our vision of Christ the Light in the Eucharist.
National Eucharistic Congress Reflection Day 2
By Jessica Rinaudo
When scrolling through the list of National Eucharistic Congress (NEC) offerings, I gravitated to a series of talks on “Renewal”—sessions for those who work for the Church. And while I certainly expected the wonderful advice shared about taking time to care for ourselves spiritually, there was one talk in particular that took me completely by surprise.
Danielle Brown, a lawyer who also works with the U.S. bishops to address the Church’s role in the context of race as it relates to the Great Commission, stepped onto the stage to popular secular band Imagine Dragon’s hit song “Paradise.” Already a sharp deviation from the Catholic-based hymns and praise and worship music at the Congress, it caught my attention and I sat up a little straighter, intrigued. I was ready for her words to charge me up and send me back home ready to take on my mission working for the Church.
Instead, she challenged our room of 5,000 church and diocesan workers to consider what would happen if we stepped away from our ministries for 40 days.
Silence filled the room, interrupted only by some nervous chuckles. After all, as she pointed out, many of us get so caught up in our sense of self when carrying out these ministries that we don’t believe they could continue without us. But, that challenge alone wasn’t big enough. Next she challenged us to consider what would happen if our ministries went away to make room for something greater that God wanted.? How would we handle it?
These were uncomfortable questions, especially for a room full of ministry workers who had just been charged up after attending Mass with 40,000 other on-fire Catholics that morning. But I sort of loved the question. What would life look like if we were forced to step away from something we are so completely wrapped up in? Would our personal faith continue? Would our ministry work continue in the same form it does now? Would we be okay if God directed a different path for our work?
And, so, I walked away with Brown’s words haunting me, pushing me to prayer and contemplation. I challenge you to do the same. What would you do if you had to walk away from your ministry or job for 40 days? What would happen and how would you respond?
DAY 1: Reflection on the 2024 National Eucharistic Congress
How much am I willing to sacrifice for Jesus? While this theoretical question has many answers, it came to mind today – the first day of the National Eucharistic Congress – as I waited in the intense sun in a line that extended 4 city blocks, just to check into the Congress along with 50,000 other pilgrims.
Actually, I pose that question kind of tongue in cheek. It was a somewhat exasperating experience to start off the Congress that I’ve been so much looking forward to. The check-in process, let’s say, left a lot to be desired.
The good news is that the organizers recognized the difficulty and the gravity of the situation. Thousands upon thousands of pilgrims who were here in plenty of time before the start of the day’s scheduled events were going to miss some or all of Day 1. So a message went out from the organizers that they were going to permit pilgrims to get into the venue without their official credentials. This saved the day for me (and so many others as well)! I abandoned my spot in the blocks-long check-in line and made my way directly to Lucas Oil Stadium. The Eucharistic Procession was just about to begin followed by the first Revival session, and I wasn’t going to miss it! A small “Eucharistic miracle”? Maybe not officially, but I kind of think so!
The events of the evening were among the most powerful and spiritually emotional of my life. Videos of each of the four eucharistic processions – one from each geographic region of the country – presented the incredible journey of the Blessed Sacrament from the four corners of the country to Indianapolis.
But without a doubt, the highlight of the opening ceremony was the procession of the monstrance containing the Blessed Sacrament. Led by a crucifix and torches, and with the entire stadium of 50,000 worshipers on their knees in the stands of Lucas Oil Stadium and joining the choir as they sang O Salutaris Hostia, I was brought to tears. I have never witnessed a worship event like this. It was clear that “Jesus is Here”, the motto of the Congress. Followed by several amazing hymns, a reading of the Bread of Life discourse from the Gospel of John, a beautiful reflection by the presiding priest, and concluding with the Tantum Ergo during the benediction, the presence of the Holy Spirit filled that stadium in a way that made me pray that it wouldn’t end.
If this is a prelude of the rest of the National Eucharistic Congress, we are all in for an amazing four days here in Indianapolis!
-Deacon Mark Machuga
By Courtney Mares
CNA Newsroom, Jul 15, 2024 / 09:00 am
More than 50,000 people will gather in Indianapolis this week for the National Eucharistic Congress, which bishops hope will be a culminating moment in the U.S. Catholic Church’s three-year revival to inspire people to encounter Jesus in the Eucharist.
The five-day congress in the NFL’s Lucas Oil Stadium and the Indiana Convention Center will be the first National Eucharistic Congress held in the United States since World War II.
U.S. bishops launched the multiyear National Eucharistic Revival in 2022 in response to concern about waning belief in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist among American Catholics.
The goal of the revival has been to “renew the Church by enkindling a living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ in the holy Eucharist.”
Organizers told CNA that 51,000 people had bought tickets for the congress as of a week before the event.
“There is a lot of energy and excitement to finally be on the precipice of this moment that we’ve been building up to for so long,” said Tim Glemkowski, the chief executive officer of the congress.
The event is the climax of four Eucharistic pilgrimages that have traversed the United States over the past two months, carrying the Blessed Sacrament across the nation.
Leading up to the congress, more than 100,000 people participated in four pilgrimage routes originating in California, Connecticut, Minnesota, and Texas, respectively, and traveling a combined total of 6,500 miles.
The pilgrimage groups will meet in Indianapolis as they process into the Lucas Oil Stadium during the opening ceremony of the Eucharistic congress on Wednesday night, which will feature U.S. nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre, Sister Bethany Madonna of the Sisters of Life, and Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, as keynote speakers.
During the opening ceremony, Cozzens will carry the Blessed Sacrament in a massive monstrance created specifically for the congress through the football stadium as tens of thousands of people pray together in Eucharistic adoration.
The congress will also feature liturgies, service opportunities, Eucharistic adoration, confession, and impact sessions aimed at fostering deep spiritual renewal and unity among attendees.
Breakout sessions each morning will give clergy, families, young people, and ministry leaders the chance to meet among themselves for formation tailored to their state in life and mission.
EWTN will offer television and livestream coverage of the main events and speakers at the National Eucharistic Congress with Relevant Radio providing live radio broadcast coverage.
Speakers at the congress include Father Mike Schmitz, Bishop Robert Barron, Chris Stefanik, Sister Josephine Garrett, Dr. Scott Hahn, “The Chosen” actor Jonathan Roumie, and musician Matt Maher.
Catholics attending the congress will also have the unique opportunity to pray with the relics of Sts. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Manuel González García, Paschal Baylon, Junípero Serra, Juan Diego, and Blessed Carlo Acutis, as well as part of a relic from Chartres, France, known as “the Veil of Our Lady,” at a specially designated reliquary chapel within the Indiana Convention Center.
Cardinal Luis Tagle, the pro-prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Evangelization who was appointed by Pope Francis to serve as the papal envoy for the event, will offer the closing Mass for the congress on July 21.
Pope Francis extended a special blessing to all those attending the National Eucharistic Congress in a letter published by the Vatican in Latin earlier this month.
The pope expressed his hope that “all participants in this event will be encouraged so that, united with Jesus in the Most Sacred Sacrament of our redemption, they are fully aware of the universal gifts they receive from heavenly food and can impart them to others.”
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