“Brothers and sisters: The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.” – 1 Cor 10:16-17
Church bells rang throughout the Diocese of Gary as the Year of Parish Renewal began with Eucharistic Processions honoring the Solemnity of Corpus Christi on June 11.
From Hammond to Michigan City, and in a number of communities in between, Catholic faithful numbering in the hundreds walked behind a priest reverently carrying the Holy Eucharist in a monstrance through the streets of their town or city, singing hymns or reciting prayers to demonstrate their love for the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.
The parish Eucharistic Processions were held in concert with the National Eucharistic Revival, a three-year initiative sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops “to renew the Catholic Church by enkindling a living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist” – the source and summit of the Catholic faith. The Revival officially launched in June 2022, and its milestone event will be a National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, from July 17-21, 2024.
A sampling of the events:
Hammond
Raindrops stopped falling just in time for congregants to pour out of St. Casimir church following the afternoon Spanish-language Mass and join a procession that circled north before following Johnson Avenue south a mile to All Saints church for benediction and a reception featuring food and music.
Both Father Eduardo Malagon, pastor, and Father Stephen Gibson, associate pastor, took a turn carrying the Holy Eucharist under a gold cloth canopy as flower petals were strewn in their path by young members of the Valadez family – Paulina, Natalia, Teresa and Mariana – accompanied by their parents, Martin and Alma, and siblings Martin, Mateo and Nathaniel.
Tom Mudy, a St. Casimir parishioner who has participated in several annual processions, joined the walkers heading south to All Saints. “If Jesus walks with me, I can walk with him,” Mudy said. “We believe in the Body and Blood of Christ, and by walking with the Eucharist, we are witnesses to that belief.”
St. Casimir parishioner Lorena Sanchez, walked the entire route with her four daughters. “I love Jesus and have so much passion; I walk every year,” she said.
Jade Tapia, 9, recalled that “It was hot” for last year’s march as she shivered in 55-degree temperatures waiting to join this year’s procession with her mother, Maria Munoz. “Jesus is special because he helps the whole entire world. We walk because we love Jesus and want to help everyone to get along,” said Tapia.
“The weather doesn’t matter – I walk because I love the Eucharist and Jesus,” added Munoz.
“In my 23 years in the diocese, this is the coolest June weather I can remember, but we asked the Lord for no rain and cool temperatures, and he gave us both,” said Father Malagon. “The procession is an act of evangelization, an act of adoration, an act of loving God and a renewal of our faith. Everyone experienced a blessing today.”
The pastor also thanked all of those who participated and added, “May what we have done be for our good and the good of the Church.”
Michigan City
Rain didn’t dampen the mood of hundreds who walked in two LaPorte County Corpus Christi Eucharistic processions on June 11.
The four Michigan City parishes came together for the city’s first Eucharistic Procession, which began at Queen of All Saints, stopped at Ames Football Field, where Notre Dame parish set up a temporary altar, and then went on to St. Stanislaus Kostka church before concluding a nearly two-mile procession at St. Mary the Immaculate Conception. LaPorte’s Holy Family parish hosted through the streets of LaPorte.
Thirteen-year-old Elijah Arnold acknowledged it was a little cold because of the rain. “It didn’t dampen my mood. I felt a sense of warmth during the procession,” he said.
Many of the 350-plus walkers expressed the importance of the procession to bring a sense of hope to the community. “We live in a time where there’s so many people who have no faith whatsoever. This is like a public expression of evangelization, to show that there are (still) Christians in (our) communities and we want to show them we’re here and we’re here to make the world a better place,” said Father Keith McClellan, pastor of Notre Dame parish.
Father Dave Kime, pastor of Queen of All Saints and St. Mary, was pleased with the turnout. “I think about Jesus walking around the streets of Jerusalem and how fortunate those people were to walk with him throughout the streets of their city. That’s what happened today, we walked with Jesus through the streets of our city and it was beautiful. I’m sure his presence in the Eucharist, walking through the streets being praised by 350-400 Catholics, is enough to bring grace to the whole city.”
Juan Temores, a member of Holy Family parish, called it an honor and a privilege to not only walk in the LaPorte procession, but to recite a decade of the Rosary. “I was a little nervous as English is my second language,” he admitted before his flawless recitation.
Crown Point
The day before the Solemnity of Corpus Christi was sunny with the temperature in the 80s. On the morning of the scheduled Eucharistic Procession from St. Mary to St. Matthias, the faithful were greeted with rain and breezy conditions in the 60s.
Those arriving in raingear were greeted at the south door of St. Mary by newly-ordained Deacon Zachary Glick, who directed them to drive to St. Matthias, where Eucharistic adoration, benediction, a Rosary and a reception would all be hosted.
About 150 people gathered at St. Matthias where Father James Wozniak, pastor, delivered remarks during the service, tipping his hat to fellow Crown Point priest Father Kevin Huber, pastor of St. Mary, who led the benediction and praying of the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary.
"So many people worked to make this happen today,” Father Wozniak said. “The Blessed Sacrament helps us to realize we are all one in the Body of Christ.
While inclement weather led to the cancellation of the long-anticipated event, he applauded the dynamic of cooperation between crosstown churches as a good sign for the future of “saving souls” in Crown Point.
Sporting athletic shoes and jackets, brothers Thomas Cipowski, 14, and Gavin Cipowski, 12, joined their mother Laura Cipowski at the Eucharistic liturgy with her parents, Jerry and Linda Craven, sitting near the boys’ cousin, William Sullivan, 12.
Though the decision was made to err on the side of caution, there was some disappointment in not being able to publicly process through the streets with the Holy Eucharist.
“I got a lot out of this, but I probably would have gotten a little bit more out of it because we would have walked the distance,” said Thomas Cipowski of the 1.8-mile route between the Crown Point parishes.
Carol Andras, of St. Mary was present for the indoor devotion and reception, accompanied by the youngest of her 14 children, Carrie Andras, 13, and Regina Andras, 11, Like a Boy Scout, Andras was prepared for any weather. “I was willing to walk; I had an umbrella,” she said gamely.
Contributors to this story include Anthony D. Alonzo, Bob Wellinski and Marlene A. Zloza