By Natalie Romano
The spirit of revival was evident…
Joyful crowds were talking, praying, singing; all rejoicing in their Catholic faith and deepening their connection to Christ in the Eucharist.
This was the scene at the diocese’s first Eucharistic Congress in more than two decades and the first tied to the larger National Eucharistic Revival called for by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The June 24th event was held at Aquinas High School in San Bernardino and drew some 1,300 people.
The day-long celebration had a packed agenda; Adoration, Confession, which was extended due to high demand, worship music and breakout sessions in four different languages; English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and American Sign Language. Bishop Alberto Rojas celebrated the closing Mass outdoors on the football field. He told the crowd that the secular world may be against them, but the Savior is at their side.
“Living a life of virtue and grace as Catholic Christians is very possible because we don’t go about living our lives alone,” said Bishop Rojas. “Jesus is with us and he promised to be with us until the very end of times. He’s with us for real with his body, soul and divinity every single time we celebrate the Mass, every single time we celebrate the Eucharist.”
George Turner is a Eucharistic Minister at Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral in San Bernardino. He says he came to the Congress because the Eucharist is “everything.”
“We want to be with Jesus in the end and anything I can do to be with Jesus I try to do,” explained Turner. “Instead of saying ‘no’ I don’t have the time, I try to make the time. I’ve learned to say, ‘yes’ to Jesus.”
Others came to get inspired so they in turn can spread the faith.
“I want to get my heart inflamed with the knowledge, the wisdom, that God has for me,” said Teresa Lozada, parishioner of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, Rancho Cucamonga. “This is to remind me of what my mission is. My mission is to proclaim that God is alive.”
Attendees walked around campus to attend different talks of their choosing. The keynote speakers were Sister Leticia Salazar O.D.N., Chancellor of the Diocese of San Bernardino, Father Michael Barry, S.S.C.C., Mary’s Mercy Center Founder and President, and Father Agustino Torres, C.F.R., Founder of Corazon Puro, EWTN show host, and traveling preacher for the Eucharistic Revival. Standing before the large audience in his habit and sandals, the almost always smiling Franciscan spoke about what he calls “Extravagant Faith.” Fr. Torres said our diocese showed exactly that by turning out for the January Eucharistic Procession despite the pouring rain. He encouraged the crowd to keep it up.
“You cannot live a Eucharistic Revival by just showing up for one hour on Sunday. It’s not enough,” charged Fr. Torres. “You need to get involved…is it Bible study, is it Catechism, is it service? …You don’t need the parish to organize it. Get a couple extra sandwiches, go to the street corner, hand them out and say Jesus loves you!”
Audience members like Collista Reed say they took his words to heart. Although she already serves in various lay ministries, she feels galvanized to do more.
“We shouldn’t be afraid to be out and say who we are,” stressed Reed, parishioner of St. Thomas the Apostle Roman Catholic Church, Riverside. “We don’t have to be preaching but we can say who we are by the way we behave, by the way we speak. We can just invite people in.”
The National Eucharistic Revival is a three-year campaign created by the USCCB. It was launched after a 2019 Pew Research study revealed only 31% of Catholics believe that during the celebration of the Eucharist, bread and wine are literally transformed into the Body and Blood of Jesus. Currently, the Revival is in its second year which focuses on Eucharistic devotion in the parishes.
Breakout sessions offered in the Aquinas classrooms addressed topics like getting more out of Mass and finding healing through the Eucharist. Father Bryant Rivas, ordained only a month before, gave his talks in American Sign Language which allowed deaf Catholics to participate.
“I was blown away by the overwhelmingly positive response by both the deaf and hearing communities,” said Fr. Rivas. “My hope is that this inclusion of the deaf community at a diocesan event will be the first of many more to come in the future.”
A special feature of the Eucharistic Congress was a relic room for veneration. The collection included a first-class relic of hair from Blessed Carlo Acutis, the event’s Patron Saint as well as a first class relic of blood from Saint Pope John Paul II. The relics on display were largely borrowed from local parishes but Blessed Carlo was a different story. Monsignor Gerard Lopez, Vicar General of the Diocese, procured the loan of the relic from a parish in the Diocese of Sacramento but someone had to pick it up - shipping a relic was just too risky. So, Father Andres Rivera, a member of the event’s planning committee, made the unusual and somewhat stressful journey.
“It was a little nerve wracking because you have a relic,” laughed Fr. Rivera, Parochial Vicar at St. Peter and St. Paul, Alta Loma. “Getting through the TSA was a little scary…They asked, ‘What is this all wrapped up?’ Oh, it’s just a priceless religious artifact…They said ‘Ok, cool.’..So Blessed Carlo was incognito but he made it.”
Blessed Carlo, now on the path to sainthood, is best known for creating a website documenting the Eucharistic miracles. In 2006, the teen known as “God’s Influencer” died from leukemia. He was only 15 years old, but his short life was of great interest to many in attendance. Noemi Rutiaga came all the way from Ensenada, Mexico with two of her children.
“We’ve been following his story and came here on pilgrimage,” said Rutiaga. “What an example for our youth. I tell my children; he was just like you.”
Her son, Jesus, and daughter, Nati, participated in the breakout sessions that were provided especially for kids, where they say they had fun hearing stories about their faith and making arts and crafts.
“I think it’s pretty cool. I’m learning stuff I didn’t know before,” said Nati, age 10. “We call Jesus the Good Shepherd because He is like our protector. He keeps us away from harm like what a shepherd does with his sheep.”
The last diocesan Eucharistic Congress was held in 2000 to mark the Jubilee Year of the Church. Vice Chancellor and Director of Communications John Andrews coordinated the planning of the event this time around. He says attendees fully embraced the revival experience.
“The response of the people to the Congress shows their devotion to the Holy Eucharist, and also their joy in just being together in community to celebrate our faith,” stated Andrews. “Fr. [Agustino]Torres remarked that he felt like he was at a family wedding. That’s a pretty good metaphor for the day.”
For those who weren’t able to attend or generally feel alone or burdened, Fr. Torres wanted to leave a parting message.
“To the people of the Diocese of San Bernardino, if by any chance you feel left out or overlooked, not seen, know that God sees you and loves you.”
Natalie Romano is an award-winning freelance writer and a parishioner of The Holy Name of Jesus in Redlands.