CV NEWS FEED // Catholics hoping to attend the National Eucharistic Congress in Indiana will have the opportunity to apply for scholarship passes and purchase weekend and day passes, according to the U.S. bishops.
The Congress, which will be the first national Eucharistic Congress in 83 years, will be held in Indianapolis at the Lucas Oil Stadium on July 17–21. Almost 30,000 tickets have already been purchased and 80,000 Catholics total are expected to attend. To make the conference more accessible, weekend passes and single-day passes are also available.
At the November 15 bishop’s conference, Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, MN, announced that more than $750,000 has been raised for a “Solidarity Fund” to help Catholics attend. Scholarship applications will open January 4, according to the Eucharistic Revival website.
“We have heard well the concerns of some, that they find the length or the cost [of the congress] difficult, and we’ve worked hard over the last year to find ways to make it affordable and accessible, so that it can be a gathering of the whole church, so that we can literally open wide the doors to Christ for people to come,” said Cozzens, who is chairman of the National Eucharistic Congress and chairman of the USCCB Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis.
The Congress is part of the three-year National Eucharistic Revival and will follow four nationwide Eucharistic pilgrimages. The four pilgrimages will begin in Minnesota, Connecticut, Texas, and California and gather in Indianapolis to begin the Congress.
Cozzens said that the Apostolic Penitentiary will grant plenary indulgence to anyone participating in one of the conferences or the pilgrimage.
Sr. Miriam James Heidland, SOLT, and Fr. Josh Johnson will emcee the event, among others, and speakers include Bishop Robert Barron, US apostolic nuncio Cardinal Chrisophe Pierre, and Sr. Bethany Madonna, of the Sisters of Life.
Each day will feature a theme, beginning with gathering “From the Four Corners” and ending with going out “To the Ends of the Earth” on Day Five.
Day Two will highlight “The Greatest Love Story,” focusing on Christ’s personal love for each person and salvation.
“We will uncover how the story of our lives can be truly understood within the context of salvation history—the greatest love story ever told,” stated the Eucharistic Congress website.
Day Three, “Into Gethsemane,” will focus on sin and healing, and Day Four, “This is My Body,” will focus on communion.
“Using the early Church as a model, this day will build up participants as disciples through Jesus Christ to live out the Gospel in their love of both God and neighbor,” the website continued.