NYS Catholics to gather for Eucharistic Congress

Oct. 20—AURIESVILLE — Thousands of Catholics from across the state will gather at the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs in Auriesville today through Sunday for the New York State Eucharistic Congress.

This congress, organized by the eight Catholic Dioceses in New York, is part of the three-year national Eucharistic Revival sponsored by the bishops of the United States, according to a press release.

The Congress, which will feature Mass, talks in both English and Spanish by nationally known Catholic speakers, music, Eucharistic Adoration, and opportunities for fellowship and socializing, will begin at 6 p.m. today and conclude at noon on Sunday.

Bishop Terry R. LaValley, Bishop of the Diocese of Ogdensburg, will celebrate the principal Mass at the Congress at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

The Diocese of Ogdensburg includes Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties, and the northern portions of Hamilton and Herkimer counties.

Bishop Edward Scharfenberger, Bishop of the Diocese of Albany where the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs is located, said: "Think of the Eucharistic Congress as a personal invitation from the Holy Spirit to a mini-retreat, a springboard for your own reflection on the Eucharistic presence of Jesus in your life and in His mystical body, the Church, of which you are a beloved member."

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, said: "Our Lord loves us so much that He chooses to remain with us in the Holy Eucharist. I pray that through this Eucharistic Congress, many will come to better know, love, and serve Him, by strengthening our love and faith in this wonderful gift of His real presence."

'EUCHARISTIC REVIVAL'

"The idea behind holding what's called a Eucharistic Congress is to help generate a Eucharistic Revival meaning people who maybe fallen away from Mass, people who have fallen away from the understanding of what Eucharist is," Anita Soltero, Diocese of Ogdensburg representative on the Eucharistic Congress Planning Committee, said.

"It's an opportunity for the local church in a large setting to really focus on what the Eucharist means, the value of it, and how much it really means to take it seriously to reconnect and to reconnect to what Eucharist really means in order for it to offer fruits out into the world."

SPEAKERS

Among the featured speakers at the Congress will be Bishop Joseph Espaillat, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York, Patrick Kelly, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, famed youth minister Mari Pablo, and Sirius XM Radio host Katie Prejean McGrady. A full list of speakers and topics can be found at www.nyseucharisticcongress.org/speakers.

"There are speakers who are theologians," Soltero said.

"Just like any kind of conference that you would go to, it's an educational opportunity as well as a spiritual opportunity for growth and development as well as connection to a larger population that would never get a chance to meet."

Mari Pablo, currently serving parishes and universities across the country with The Evangelical Catholic and one of the featured speakers at the Congress, said: "We are in need of a revival, to be reminded why the Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith and how our lives are continually transformed by His presence. I am looking forward to gather as the Church on such holy grounds with people from all over the state of New York who desire to encounter the Lord."

Bishop Scharfenberger of Albany will celebrate the Mass marking the end of the Congress at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 22.

INDIANAPOLIS 2024

"This opportunity for this Eucharistic Congress being held in New York state is an offshoot of a national Eucharistic Congress that is being held next July in Indianapolis in 2024," Soltero said.

"There's been a three-year process where the Bishops at large have been trying to refocus on the value of Eucharist and what that means in your local churches. This is kind of the culmination of that three-year period. We knew that this international Eucharistic Congress was going to happen, so a year or so ago, the New York state Bishops met together. There are eight dioceses headed by a Bishop each. They felt that not everyone from their diocese may have the opportunity or the ability to go to Indianapolis, so therefore let's have a New York state Congress with some of the same elements. It's closer to home, so that's how this New York state one developed."

ADORATION

Over the three-day period, there is going to be 40 hours of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament that will take place between Friday night, all throughout the evening Saturday, Saturday night into Sunday morning.

"There's going to be 40 hours of what we call Adoration, which is where we adore the Blessed Sacrament, a Eucharistic procession where the Eucharist is carried around the grounds, which includes prayer and singing," Soltero said.

MARTYRS

Auriesville was chosen for a very specific reason for the Congress as it is the site of the Shrine of Our Lady of the Martyrs, where St. Isaac Jogues, St. Rene Goupil and St. John Lalande were all martyred in the 1600s and where St. Kateri Tekakwitha was born.

St. Isaac is one of the foremost witnesses in history to the love of the Mass and St. Kateri is one of the great figures of Eucharistic Adoration. The Shrine is, therefore, one of the most important places of Eucharistic faith in the nation, according to nyseucharisticcongress.org.

"It's a holy site. There were martyrs who died there that came here to bring Eucharist to the Native people. In North America, there are what's called eight North American martyrs. A martyr is someone who died for their faith. Five of them died in Ontario, Canada, and three gave their life to Christ in Auriesville, where that site is.

St. Kateri Tekakwitha is also known as the "Lily of the Mohawks."

She was also from that area, and there is a shrine to her there as well," Soltero said.

"These martyrs were willing to leave their home. They came from France. They traveled here to the New World facing all types of obstacles in order to bring the Gospel and the sacraments to the Indigenous people of North America. They wanted the world to know that God was with us and very much with us in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist and they were willing to give their life for that.

"By their very lives, they are exemplary Eucharistic witnesses. So visiting that site is very impactful for Catholics from that point of view, and that's the reason they decided to hold the Congress at that site."

THOUSANDS ANTICIPATED

Eleven priests from the Diocese of Ogdensburg and six deacons will be traveling down throughout the weekend to attend.

"We do have quite a number of people traveling there over the three days," Soltero said.

"Most people are going down by bus on Saturday. I know they have over 100 buses registered from throughout the state, from downstate, New York City, Long Island, Rochester, Syracuse, Buffalo.

"We have, I think, one or two traveling from this area. They had anticipated that they would have 10,000 people and they have 7,500 people registered for Saturday. That's the maximum capacity they can hold on Saturday. Then they have another couple of thousand for Friday evening, as well as Sunday morning."

Email: rcaudell@pressrepublican.com

Twitter@RobinCaudell