JESUS IN ECUADOR

 

This Sunday (Sept. 8 to Sept. 15), the 53rd INTERNATIONAL EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS will gather thousands of faithful from around the world in Quito, Ecuador, to celebrate the Eucharistic presence of Christ in the Most Blessed Sacrament.

In July, the United States held its first National Eucharistic Congress in 83 years.

This is the first time an Andean country has hosted an international congress and coincides with the 150th anniversary of the consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus made in 1874.

The very first international Eucharistic congress was held in France in 1881, and since then, they have occurred every one to five years. The only time that pattern was broken was in the years following World War I and World War II, with a gap of eight years and 14 years.

The theme for this year’s international congress is “Fraternity to Heal the World”. This certainly is a fitting one to address the widespread hatred and strife that seems to grow in the world with each passing day. The aim is to strive for unity in Jesus Christ. 

The “Basic Text of the 53rd Congress” states, “Fraternity is a dream that the whole of humanity is experiencing. It is not a utopia, but rather, the opportunity to fulfill the vocation of each person: the call to meet with others. For this reason, in our historical time everyone has the task to explore the theme of fraternity: the depths of Christianity, religions, politics, philosophy and science must be plumbed. Apart from fraternity all can be lost”.

“The Eucharist offers healing to the world wounded in fraternity. Where sin has caused us to ignore each other as brothers and has placed us in a relationship of opposition and rivalry, the Eucharist calls us to sit at the same table of the Body and Blood of Christ as children of the same Father and, therefore, brothers and sisters of one another.”

 According to the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses, “The first congresses were inspired by a lively faith in the Real Presence of the Person of Jesus Christ in the sacrament of the Eucharist. As a consequence, Eucharistic worship was expressed particularly in solemn adoration and in grand processions intended to celebrate the triumph of the Eucharist.”

The first congress was amazingly enough, organized by a laywoman. Following the French Revolution in the late 18th century, the Church in France was on the decline due to the growing prevalence of secularism.  Marie-Marthe-Baptistine Tamisier, under the inspiration of Bishop Louis Gaston de Ségur and with the help of Pope Leo XIII, began to plan an event that would gather people to glorify the “source and summit” of the Christian life. (Marie’s first cousin, Jean Tamisier, would bring that love for the faith to America, settling in Missouri).

Marie’s idea to hold such a congress was spurred by her encouragement of the French people to make pilgrimages to sites where Eucharistic miracles were commemorated, such as Avignon, Ars, Douai, Paris and Paray-le-Monial. After witnessing 60 members of the French Parliament kneel before the Blessed Sacrament in St. Margaret Mary Alacoque’s chapel at Paray-le-Monial and pledge to resist the secularist policies of the French government, Marie was convinced of the power of faith in the Eucharist and realized her dream in 1881. 

It seems not much has changed in 140 years as our world is still in turmoil, yet throughout the years, international Eucharistic congresses have served as key moments in the life of the Church, gathering together the mystical body of Christ as one in the Eucharist. They are characterized by large open-air Masses, Eucharistic processions through city streets,  catechetical sessions and public adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. We pray those who attend the events during this week, return to their countries, spreading a deeper love and reverence for our Eucharistic Lord.

The theme on Monday, Sept. 9, will be “A Wounded World.” Juan Manuel Cotelo, a Spanish Catholic filmmaker and journalist, will present his film “El Mayor Regalo” (“The Greatest Gift”), which talks about forgiveness as a way to heal the world’s wounds and achieve fraternity.

 On Tuesday, Sept. 10, Sister Daniela Cagnavina, secretary-general of the Latin American Confederation of Religious, will share testimonies of the lives of great witnesses of faith in the Americas.

 On Wednesday, Sept. 11, the topic “The Eucharist and the Transfiguration of the World” will be discussed with the participation of one of the foremost leaders of the National Eucharistic Congress initiative in the United States, Bishop Andrew Cozzens of the Diocese of Crookston, Minnesota.    In the afternoon, Bishop José Ignacio Munilla of the Diocese of Orihuela-Alicante in Spain will speak about the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

 On Thursday, Sept. 12, the theme “For a Synodal Church” will be the focus with the presence of Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, and Mari Wu, adviser to the Council for the Lay Apostolate of the Archdiocese of Taipei. On this day there will also be Masses in several languages, highlighting fraternity in diversity.

On Friday, Sept. 13, the theme to be discussed will be “Eucharist: Psalm of Fraternity” followed by a concert with Argentine singer-songwriter Pablo Martínez along with Marco Antonio Espín, author of the hymn for the International Eucharistic Congress, as well as the group Solideo. This will be a time dedicated especially to young people.

 On Saturday, Sept. 14, at 4:30 p.m., a Mass will be celebrated outside St. Francis Church in the St. Francis Plaza, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1978.

 After the Mass, the Blessed Sacrament will be carried in procession through the streets of the Colonial Quarter, which will be “decorated with carpets of roses, to the Basilica of the National Vow, where a special blessing will be given for Quito, Ecuador, Latin America, and the world.

 Finally, on Sunday, Sept. 15, on the day of the closing ceremony, also at 10 a.m. on the esplanade of the Bicentennial Park in Quito, the Statio Orbis or final Mass will be celebrated by the pontifical legate, Cardinal Baltazar Porras, archbishop emeritus of Caracas, Venezuela.

 In addition to the main events, there will also be an exhibition of relics of saints who loved the Eucharist, which will allow the faithful to venerate those who have lived their faith in an exemplary manner.

Top poster from Eucharistic Congress held in Amsterdam 100 years ago- Artist- Jan Toorop

Middle  photo- Cathedral in Quito Ecuador