Corpus Christi processions sweep the nation amid National Eucharistic Revival

CNA Staff, Jun 3, 2024 / 17:02 pm

Catholics across the United States took to the streets over the weekend to celebrate the solemnity of Corpus Christi and share their faith by processing with Jesus in the Eucharist.

The Corpus Christi processions took place at a time when the Catholic Church in the U.S. is embarking on a National Eucharistic Revival in an effort to foster a greater understanding and appreciation that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist. As part of the initiative, four different pilgrimages were launched last month to bring the Eucharist across the U.S. and converge at the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis from July 17–21.

Latin for “Body of Christ,” the Corpus Christi feast was popularized in France in the mid-13th century until Pope Urban IV extended it to the whole Church in 1264. This feast highlights two manifestations of the body of Christ, the Eucharist and the Church.

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Hundreds processed into the evening on the feast of Corpus Christi through the streets of Tulsa in eastern Oklahoma.

A Eucharistic procession at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Payne County, Oklahoma:

Chicago

St. John Cantius in Chicago held an outdoor Eucharistic procession with the Blessed Sacrament in the parish garden accompanied by flowers, incense, and chalk designs on the pathways. Volunteers have painted the steps for the feast of Corpus Christi in recent years. 

Houston 

As part of the Juan Diego Route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, parishioners and pilgrims gathered for a Eucharistic procession for the solemnity of Corpus Christi on Sunday. The procession began with a Mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Galveston, Texas, with Cardinal Daniel DiNardo and ended at Sacred Heart Church. Pilgrims will continue to Beaumont, Texas. 

Philadelphia  

Pilgrims and local Catholics celebrated a Eucharistic procession in Philadelphia. The eastern leg of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Route, began in Connecticut and arrived in Philadelphia for the feast of Corpus Christi.

Hanceville, Alabama

A Eucharistic procession took place at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in northern Alabama. The shrine is celebrating its 25th anniversary, while the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration, an order of cloistered Franciscan nuns who live in the adjoining Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, are celebrating a second year of a worldwide prayer apostolate known as Adoration Sodality. Eucharistic pilgrims will arrive at the shrine later this summer. 

Richmond, Virginia 

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The Knights of Columbus helped organize a Eucharistic procession at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Richmond, Virginia.

Denver

In downtown Denver, the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception held a procession with about 80 attendees the evening of the feast of Corpus Christi. The cathedral basilica is the starting point for next weekend’s procession through downtown, a stop along the Serra Route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage.

Hartford, Connecticut

Seminarians joined Auxiliary Bishop Juan Miguel Betancourt of Hartford at a Corpus Christi procession in Hartford, Connecticut. 

Destin, Florida

A Eucharistic procession along the white sandy beaches near the vacation destination of Destin, Florida:

Bonus: around the world 

In Sydney, Australia, a record 15,000 people gathered for a “Walk with Christ” Eucharistic procession.

A Eucharistic procession at St. Martin de Porres in the Mzuzu Diocese in Malawi:

Thousands attended a Eucharistic procession in London. 

This story was updated June 4, 2024, at 2:41 p.m. ET with information about the Denver procession.