“This side of paradise, never are we closer to the Lord than when we receive Holy Communion.”
Timothy Cardinal Dolan, who was the chief celebrant at morning Mass at the National Eucharistic Congress on July 18, quoted these words from St. Pius X in his homily. The Eucharist was the central theme of his homily, which was characteristically magnetic, featuring a few jokes, a few anecdotes, and a powerful message.
“To recover the centrality of Sunday Mass has to be the resolve of this great congress,” the cardinal continued.
The Mass took place at 8:30 a.m. in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, after a Family Rosary Across America led by Father Rocky Hoffman. Bishop Barry C. Knestout was one of dozens of bishops to concelebrate Mass.
The Mass featured music led by Dave Moore, co-founder of Catholic Music Initiative. Gospel songs, contemporary songs, and traditional Latin chants were interwoven seamlessly through the Mass, as the harmonies of a 36-person choir led the way in each piece of music.
“The bread I will give is my flesh for the life of the world,” was the refrain of the solemn communion motet; it was followed by a joyful Gospel song proclaiming over and over, “Jesus is the bread of life.” Next was “Adoro te Devote,” the Eucharistic hymn composed by St. Thomas Aquinas, all verses sung in Latin and English.
Debra Beaudet was one of ten parishioners from the cluster parishes of Sacred Heart, Prince George; St. James the Greater, Hopewell; and St. John Nepomucene, Dinwiddie, who attended the Mass.
“I wanted to come because I knew there would be so many Catholics gathered in one place,” said Beaudet.
“Where we are, there are smaller gatherings of churches. But to come here with people around the world is amazing,” she continued. “We want to take something back as well, and hopefully bring it more alive in our church.”
Immediately after Mass, Father Mike Schmitz, the popular priest from Duluth, Minnesota, who hosts the “Bible in a Year” podcast, spoke with media ahead of his keynote address, to be delivered at the Revival session.
Father Mike said that though he is at the congress in an official capacity, it is an opportunity for his own personal spiritual growth as well.
“Every time that I get to speak about the Lord, I have to wrestle with: What am I going through? Where am I saying no to the Lord?” said Father Mike.
“There’s a call tonight to repentance – how can I ask others to repent without thinking about how God calls me to repent?” Father Mike continued. “Whenever I get to speak about the Lord, I have to understand where he and I are in order to communicate that.”
After three separate liturgies in the afternoon – a Mass in English at the Indiana Convention Center, Mass according to the Byzantine Rite at the convention center, and Mass according to the 1962 Missal at Holy Rosary Church – a performance of “Bernadette de Lourdes, the Musical” will precede the second Revival session. Father Mike and Mother Olga of the Sacred Heart are scheduled to speak after Eucharistic adoration, which begins at 7 p.m.