By Colleen Pressprich
This July, Catholics in the United States will gather together for the first National Eucharistic Congress in 83 years. Even if you can’t make it to St. Louis for the event, there are still many ways you can get involved and participate in the Eucharistic Revival.
What’s a Eucharistic Congress?
Eucharistic Congresses are a way for Catholics, laity and clergy both, to gather together in worship, conversation, and prayer as a way of building a deeper Eucharistic faith. Congresses typically last a few days and contain mass, talks by world-renowned speakers, praise and worship, and adoration.
The first Eucharistic Congress was held in France in 1881. The first Congress in the United States was in 1895. This will be the 10th National Eucharistic Congress here in the United States.
But I can’t make it to the Eucharistic Congress!
So many of us want to be able to participate in this important moment in the Church. I know I’d love to be able to be there with my family, but it’s just not feasible. This doesn’t mean that we can’t be involved and participate or that we can’t help our children come to a deeper understanding of the Eucharist.
Here are 6 Easy ways to increase your family’s Eucharistic faith this summer.
Check out the Resources Available: Ahead of the Congress itself, the Bishops have called upon local communities (and families) to participate in a year of Eucharistic Revival. The national website contains talks, blog posts, and resources to help you learn and engage.
See if your local diocese is running it’s own Congress: Here in Detroit, as part of the Unleash the Gospel initiative, there are 4 local Eucharistic Congresses happening. Spaced throughout the summer, they are designed to help families who can’t attend the Congress in St. Louis encounter Christ in a similar way.
Be a prayer partner: We can’t all attend the Congress, but we can all pray for those who will. We can pray that the Holy Spirit descends on the Church in a new way and that there is a greater reverence and love for Christ in the Eucharist.
Visit the Lord in the Eucharist (and if you can’t stop in, say hello as you drive by): Find a time to attend adoration as a family. Get your kids into the habit of spending time with Jesus. Even if you don’t have time on a given day for a full hour, get into the habit of stopping in for a quick prayer. Let your kids see that Jesus is an important person in your life.
Say hello if you can’t visit: It’s important to me that my kids learn to recognize that Christ is physically present in a Catholic (or Orthodox) church in a way that He isn’t in other churches. If we drive by a Catholic church but cannot stop, we make the sign of the cross and call out, “Hello Jesus! We love you!” It’s a quick and easy way to acknowledge an important truth.
Consciously choose to add resources to your day that help your kids understand the gift that the Eucharist is. There are tons of children’s books, a Brother Francis Episode that can help, as well as coloring books, toys, and other products from Brother Francis to help!
I hope that this summer is a prayerful and fruitful one for your family, whether you are blessed to travel to St. Louis or not!
Colleen Pressprich is a homeschooling mom of five and the author of Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children, The Women Doctors of the Church, The Jesse Tree For Families, and God the Father’s Love: A Journey Through Scripture for Catholic Families. You can learn more about her, order her books, and read more of her writing at elevatortoheaven.com.
