5,000 expected at Catholic conference in Mankato

Jan. 11—The Free Press

MANKATO — A major Roman Catholic gathering sponsored by the Diocese of Winona-Rochester is expected to draw 5,000 to Mankato on June 10.

The Diocesan Eucharistic Congress, titled "This is My Body," was announced Wednesday by Bishop Robert Barron, the leader of the diocese encompassing the 20 southernmost counties of Minnesota. It will be held at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in downtown Mankato.

A Eucharistic Congress brings together priests, other religious and lay members of the church to celebrate a central belief of the Roman Catholic Church — that Jesus Christ is present in the appearance of bread and wine during the sacrament.

An International Eucharistic Congress, something held every few years, can draw hundreds of thousands of Catholics to open-air events, the most recent being in Hungary in 2021. Barron noted that his hometown of Chicago was host to a Eucharistic Congress in 1926, the first in the United States.

"There were 400,000 who attended the opening Mass held in and around Soldier Field and even more who attended a procession held at St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary," Barron wrote.

The smaller-scale diocesan event in Mankato will include talks on the importance of the Eucharist from several speakers. It will also offer "opportunities for Eucharistic Adoration and Confession" and conclude with a Mass and a Eucharistic Procession, according to the announcement.

The Diocese of Winona-Rochester serves more than 130,000 Catholics in 99 parishes, four high schools, 30 elementary schools and the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary on the campus of St. Mary's University in Winona.

Registration for the Congress is available now for members of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester and will open up to the general public April 1. Opportunities to register and more information can be found at www.eucharist.dowr.org.