INDIANAPOLIS – The confluence of the four pilgrimage routes in Indianapolis representing U.S. Catholics and the subsequent call from Church leaders for the faithful to “go out … to the ends of the Earth,” showed religious practice on a large scale.
A historic series of events, the 10th National Eucharistic Congress also spoke to people in personal terms where sacred liturgies, inspiring presentations and nurturing fellowship ushered in a deepening of faith for many, and, in some cases, life-changing conversions.
Laughter and cries of “Amen!” punctuated talks in the Indiana Convention Center, such as by Catholic author Edward “Ted” Sri, S.T.D, a Munster native and St. Thomas More School and Bishop Noll Institute alumnus. At Lucas Oil Stadium, when Father Boniface Hicks, OSB, passed by a group of pilgrims with the large processional monstrance, some raised their hands to greet the Eucharistic Lord, while others reverently prayed, with hands cupping their face.
After experiencing two revival sessions, St. Thomas More parishioners gathered together to break bread together. Well, actually, most waited for their plates of pasta at a restaurant just north of Pan Am Plaza. One member of the contingent of nearly two dozen had a lot to say about a recent experience.
Michael Rousselle sat at the long table continuing in a talkative fashion while others got acclimated with their menus. He was excited that the power of the Holy Spirit overcame him during Mass in the stadium.
“The only thing I can say is my body was vibrating and on fire. It was the Holy Spirit,” said Rousselle, who holds a master’s degree in theology. “Everything broken in me spiritually and emotionally and physically was gone.”
Rousselle’s girlfriend, Patricia Salinas, also a St. Thomas More member, confirmed that he had been affected in a most radiant way.
“His body was shaking with tears coming down his face … and people were coming around touching him,” said Salinas, noting that presenters at the revival said to expect certain manifestations to occur.
Rousselle, a native of Houston, said he had one similar conversion experience when he was a young man but that the power of the Holy Spirit was more pronounced this time. Displaying the gift of faith since that initial Godly encounter, he spoke more of the gift of healing when those around him in the stadium recognized a certain warmth and reached out to touch him.
“People will read in the Bible about all these miracles and say, ‘Oh, that was 2,000 years ago,’” Rousselle said. “I say ‘no,’ it’s all still alive after 2,000 years; miracles still exist. The Eucharist is a miracle, every Mass is a miracle. Christ is present in each and every one of us. You see it in the testimonies here.”
Amidst the throngs of people moving about downtown, a common thread of Catholic Christianity, respect for life and civic responsibility melded to produce engaged believers. They shed some of the Catholic stereotypes including reticence to engage others, evangelize and sing.
Emboldened by her faith-affirming experiences, one woman from Kansas stood blissfully beside a line of communicants on the concourse of the football stadium, made eye contact and, in short order, explained that her presence there represented a total 180-degree turn in her life.
“I kind of saw this (NEC) come up and I thought, hey God, if I could come here, if it’s in your will for me to come here then please send me there because I don’t have much money,” said Halli Brunton. “One of my friends who is here with me today told me about a group to sign up through who would pay for the hotel and fees.”
She added with a smile, “I sat there talking to God and said, ‘You would, you would answer me right away.”
Back in her home state of Kansas, a few short years ago, Brunton said she found herself coming under the influence of the wrong group of people practicing the wrong sort of things at a vulnerable time in her life. Struggling to make ends meet and find reliable friends, she associated with some women who introduced her to tarot card reading.
What she thought would be an enlightening pastime turned into a nightmare. Though she said she was open to making a connection with God, the entities that she became haunted by were far from holy.
“I felt so lost and I had nowhere to go. I was under demonic oppression and I didn’t know it at the time; I thought I was losing my mind. I went in and out of mental institutions and I was bed-ridden for a year,” explained Brunton, 29.
Brunton’s sister saw it was time for a change and intervened, recommending her to see a friend, Deacon Bill Graveman. Over a short period, the Catholic clergyman helped her build a protection from the wicked forces with which she had been entangled.
“I know God worked through (my sister). She found a deacon who lived close to me,” said Brunton. “And thanks be to God, because I saw Jesus through him because he was the first person with whom I felt hope after four years of just no hope, thinking I was going to die every day.”
She went from hesitantly accepting some general tenets of Christianity to becoming a fervent Catholic and a person who cannot get enough of delving into the Word of God and consuming the Bread of Life.
“Some friends were shocked and asked, ‘Why Catholic?’” Brunton explained. “And I didn’t really have an answer at the time, but that’s where God led me. That’s where I had to go.”
With some short words of thanks for Deacon Graveman, Halli offered a hug and then disappeared into the crowd of Mass participants returning to their stadium seats after Holy Communion.
Caption: A worshipper raises their hands as the Blessed Sacrament is displayed on an altar in a large monstrance at Lucas Oil Stadium during a revival and adoration session of the 10th National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis on July 17. Pilgrims at the congress shared memorable moments in communal prayer, private devotion and lively fellowship among experiences some spoke about as life-changing manifestations of the Holy Spirit. (Anthony D. Alonzo photo)