Whether in Mass at a local parish or chapel across the world, the Eucharist is something all Catholics share. Some members of St. John the Baptist in Harrison had the opportunity to join in the Eucharist not only at their parish but with their twinning parishes in El Salvador.

St. John the Baptist’s twinning relationship with Santa Cruz and Our Lady of Guadalupe parishes began in 2003 after parishioners, including Deacon Don Meyer, traveled to El Salvador to visit missionaries.

“For my wife, Kathy, and I, it was an opportunity to visit our oldest son, T.J., who had [traveled] there as a Maryknoll lay missioner after his graduation from the University of Dayton,” said Deacon Meyer. “Our pastor, Father Ed Shine, and another parishioner came with us.”

Over the years, St. John the Baptist continued to nurture this relationship, establishing a scholarship program for Salvadoran children. Contributors are fondly known as “padrinos” or godparents.

“The number of past high school graduates and successes of those young ones has been remarkable,” said Deacon Meyer. “But their growth in faith has been equally remarkable because being a participant in the program requires being part of the weekly Eucharist and activities of the parish.”

St. John the Baptist members visit their twin parishes annually, and the pastor travels every three years with three parishioners from the twinning parishes to the U.S. During COVID-19, St. John the Baptist members used Zoom to speak with their sponsored children and celebrate the Eucharist.

The Eucharist is essential to the parishes’ relationship.

Celebrating the Eucharist with our sister parishes, including the sponsored children and their families, is a highlight of the annual visits. “After sharing the ‘Bread of Life,’ we feast together sharing Salvadoran food,” said Deacon Meyer. “The unity of this Eucharist relationship continues with [other shared] fun activities.”

“Sharing in these Eucharistic experiences, receiving the Body and Blood of Christ together, looking into their eyes as I say, ‘El Cuerpo de Christo,’ [and] give them His Body, sharing His word in both languages, and exchanging the ‘La Paz de Christo’ during Mass and before and after [it] unites us in a special way,” said Deacon Meyer. Before leaving El Salvadore, they stand by the altar “at the end of the Eucharist to share with [our sisters and brothers] how they have touched our hearts.”

As the National Eucharistic Revival nears its end, St. John the Baptist’s relationship with Santa Cruz and Our Lady of Guadalupe exemplifies how God uses the Eucharist to heal, renew and unite the Church and world.

“What we have all gained by this special twinning relationship cannot be fully appreciated in words,” said Deacon Meyer. “It is best experienced. But what is unbelievable is that we enrich our faith and our understanding of what it truly means to be a member of the Body of Christ in seeing the beauty of sharing the Eucharist celebration in a new and different way.”

This article appeared in the March 2025 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.