The Eucharistic Revival is underway — and you’re invited

Each parish and Catholic community is being asked to take part in celebrating love of the Eucharist

By Deacon Jim Bello and Emily Booker

Catholics across East Tennessee are invited to reflect and deepen their connection to Jesus in the Eucharist during the National Eucharistic Revival, now underway.

The revival is a movement to restore understanding of and devotion to the mystery of the Eucharist in the United States.

One of the prompts for a national revival was a 2019 Pew Research study that found 69 percent of Catholics don’t believe the Church’s teaching that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist.

Overall, 43 percent of Catholics believe that the bread and wine are symbolic and also incorrectly think that this reflects the position of the Church.

Still, one-in-five Catholics (22 percent) reject the idea of transubstantiation even though they know the Church’s teaching.

This lack of understanding of the source and summit of the faith can seem discouraging.

But this revival offers Diocese of Knoxville faithful an opportunity to improve understanding and foster a genuine love of the Eucharist.

During this time, every Catholic is invited to explore the meaning of Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist—body and blood, soul and divinity—and to respond to the gift of the Eucharist. Each Catholic also is being called to go out and invite others so that they may come to know and love Jesus, too.

The revival is designed to impact every level of the Church, from the home and parish to the national stage. The plan for the revival, according to the national planning committee, includes five pillars: n To foster encounters with Jesus through kerygmatic proclamation and experiences of eucharistic devotion. n To contemplate and proclaim the doctrine of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist through the truth of the Church’s teaching, the beauty of the Church’s worship, and goodness of a life of service.

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States, read a message from Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, issued on behalf of Pope Francis, who imparted his blessing on all those participating in the March for Life.

“His Holiness trusts that Almighty God will strengthen the commitment of all, especially the young, to persevere in their efforts aimed at protecting human life in all its stages, especially through adequate legal measures enacted at every level of society,“ the message said.

The Mass was followed by a “Holy Hour for Life“ at the basilica, which launched a series of holy hours of eucharistic devotion throughout the night in dioceses across the country. Auxiliary Bishop Joseph L. Coffey of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services celebrated Mass at 8 a.m. on Jan. 20 to close the vigil.

Meanwhile, hundreds of teens and young adults from the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., gathered at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle for the Youth Mass of Celebration and Thanksgiving for Life, where homilist Father Robert Kilner of Solomons, Md., urged them to be “witnesses to life, witnesses to the truth that every life matters.“

“Pray and be confident that God can and will do great things,“ he said. “Witness by the way you love your family, and especially the smallest, most helpless around you. Witness by your words in defense of the unborn, witness to God's mercy, inviting everyone back to the joy of confession.“

Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory of Washington, D.C., the principal celebrant of the youth Mass, said it was “a special joy for me to be able to celebrate this Eucharist with you, our young, youthful, joyful, happy Church.“

Across town, at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington's Congress Heights n To empower grassroots creativity by partnering with movements, apostolates, educational institutions, and parishes. n To reach the smallest unit: parish small groups and families. n To embrace and learn from the various rich intercultural eucharistic traditions.

There is an unmistakable excitement around the Eucharistic Revival in the Diocese of Knoxville and a curiosity about practical ways to neighborhood, another new premarch event welcomed a sold-out crowd of pro-lifers. Sponsored by the Sisters of Life and the Knights of Columbus, the early morning Life Fest drew some 4,200 people most of them teens and young adults for a program of prayer, worship music, and personal testimonies that concluded with eucharistic adoration and Mass.

“The law has changed … (but) hearts need to change toward advancing a culture of life in this nation,“ Sister of Life Mariae Agnus Dei told OSV News. “Some of the biggest battles are in front of us.“

Celebrating “the gift of life and the beauty of the human person“ is essential to that task, she said.

The thousands of attendees at these events then streamed into the National Mall, where they assembled at the noon rally and prepared to begin marching an hour later.

With the overturn of Roe, organizers had planned for a reworked march route, resulting in a new final destination: the East Front of the U.S. Capitol, symbolizing the movement's new goals. However, restrictions on the use of sticks for signage put in place by the U.S. Capitol Police after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol resulted in the route instead passing by the West Front. For the 50th time, the national march ended in the same spot: before the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Morgan Ehlis, a student from the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D., told OSV News that being in Washington with “like-minded people“ was an “overwhelming experience.“

“I'm grateful to be pro-life,“ the North Dakota student said. “It's swimming upstream for sure, but (this is a) big support group we have.“ ■

Julie Asher, Gina Christian, Marietha and Kurt Jensen contributed to this report. participate. The Office of Christian Formation is offering resources to help parishes and individuals embrace this revival and promote the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

One of the prompts for a national revival was a 2019 Pew Research study that found 69 percent of Catholics don’t believe the Church’s teaching that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist.

Throughout the revival, the diocese will be organizing processions, gatherings, and likely at least one diocesan eucharistic gathering in 2024.

Parishes also will be hosting special eucharistic events, talks on the Eucharist, and an increase in adoration. Parish missionaries in each parish will be available to help implement a renewed focus on the Eucharist in every Catholic community.

The Eucharistic Revival in the Diocese of Knoxville should be one of communio, or unity and community, that serves to bring God’s children together with Christ at its center.

Parishioners can participate by personally inviting others to small groups, book studies, and sharing personal experiences. Parish ministries can begin to include a few minutes of eucharistic adoration in meetings, and parishioners can form prayer groups to pray for the success of the revival.

A calendar of events for significant parish and deanery activities, as well as resources designed to facilitate eucharistic evangelization and catechesis, is available at dioknox.org/revival in English and dioknox.org/avivamiento in Spanish.

The webpages also feature testimonials of eucharistic experiences from parishioners, resources to help guide small groups, and information about the National Eucharistic Revival and Eucharistic Congress.

In July 2024, the National Eucharistic Congress will be held in Indianapolis, calling tens of thousands of people from all over the country Revival continued on page A19