By S.L. Hansen
for the Register
An impressive number of religious orders were visibly present at the National Eucharistic Congress (NEC), including the Marian Sisters, the School Sisters of Christ the King, and the Knights of the Holy Eucharist from the Diocese of Lincoln. Sister Cecilia Joseph Nguyen, CMRM, also attended. Back home, many members of these orders were able to watch the Congress via EWTN.
Organizers have not yet determined how many different religious orders were there. Bishop Andrew Cozzens joked, “There’s a saying in the Church that even God does not know how many religious orders there are.”
Among various orders wearing grey habits were three Marian Sisters, including Sister Kathryn Maney.
One of the things that struck Sister Kathryn about the Congress was the wide array of people she saw there.
“I kept thinking, these people are from all walks of life in the United States and elsewhere, who all want to know the Lord and grow in their love and knowledge of Him and share that with others,” she said. “I will never know the magnitude of what I just experienced, especially on the supernatural level.”
Just two days before boarding the bus to Indianapolis, Sister Kathryn had celebrated her 25th jubilee with the community—the 25th anniversary of her final profession of vows —so her heart was already full of gratitude for her vocation when she arrived. However, the celebration had just begun, because everywhere any religious sister went during the congress, people would thank her for her vocation.
Then, as Sister Kathryn and all the other religious sisters assembled to take their part in Saturday’s Eucharistic procession, more than a thousand priests spontaneously erupted into grateful applause to see so many women who had answered the call to be a visible sign of the Church, the Bride of Christ.
“It’s humbling, because all I did was say yes,” Sister Kathryn said.
She and other religious remained faithful to their daily rhythms of prayer and adoration, despite an unusual schedule. Plus there was the inevitable decibel level of more than 60,000 people in a one space. So much did Sister Kathryn long for silence that when she found herself alone for the first time all day, she felt the Lord prompting her to go to perpetual adoration across the street at St. John the Evangelist parish for a much-needed break in the excitement.
“It was packed,” Sister Kathryn recalled. “Every day, we began with Mass and closed with adoration. Since it was a Eucharistic Congress, it was completely fitting that those two would be bookend. Perpetual Adoration helped keep the Eucharist centered during the day.”
Mother Margaret Mary, C.K., agreed. “All day long, every day, there were hundreds and hundreds of people in the church adoring our Lord…continuous streams of people so that it was difficult even to genuflect when enter or leaving.”
Mother Margaret Mary was among the 23 School Sisters of Christ the King who went to Indianapolis for the NEC to experience what she described as “a beautiful initiative for renewal” in our country.
“The Holy Spirit moved my heart to a deep desire for all my sisters to participate, to support and to experience this congress,” she said. “We want to see Jesus known, loved and adored.”
Mother Margaret Mary also knew that the Congress would be an opportunity for the sisters to grow and deepen in every aspect of their charism.
“Our charism is joyful fidelity to Christ the King,” she explained. “One of the five elements of our charism is by developing an ever-growing love for Christ, our Eucharistic King, instilling this love in our students and bearing witness to this love in our daily lives.”
She found every single aspect of the NEC helpful in this, from Mass and adoration to the speakers and procession. She relished the opportunity given to the School Sisters and other religious to serve as Communion ushers in the stadium.
“Our people need the witness of vibrant and joyful religious life,” she said.
As the sisters returned to their motherhouse near Lincoln, Mother Margaret Mary could see joy, gratitude, awe, and a deepened love for the Eucharist King, as well as a greater seal to spread His Kingdom.
“I could go on and on about what a grace-filled and moving experience this was for each of us!” Mother Margaret Mary exclaimed. “The fruits will surely flow forth!”
Brother Michael Mary, vicar of the Knights of the Holy Eucharist, participated in the Congress along with nine of his brother Knights. As their charism is to adore Jesus the Eucharistic King while striving to observe the Gospels in imitation of Saint Francis through a life of poverty, chastity and obedience, he said attending was a “no-brainer.”
“Why miss the opportunity to be among fellow Catholics, revitalizing our churches and fostering reverent devotion to the Holy Eucharist?” he mused.
Brother Michael said having such spiritually rejuvenating experiences is important for the Knights’ ongoing formation. “Just like any other human, we have strengths and weaknesses, and we praise God for both.”
He continued, “We all have to have that courage to hear God’s call. For all of us in this moment it is to help revitalize Eucharistic awareness and Eucharist adoration.”
As the brothers attended different impact sessions, they gleaned helpful information to share with each other and a renewal of their own passion for this vocation.
“To see how people who have been in ministry in 20, 40, 60 years, and we all have the same need to go back to the source and to be filled with Jesus so that what pours out from us is not giving from our emptiness, but from the abundance of God’s Grace living within us,” Brother Michael mused.
Several of the Knights enjoyed running into people they knew from other parts of the country and collecting prayer intentions from the laity. They also found themselves running low on business cards as young men expressed an interest in knowing more about the order.
Brother Michael expressed encouragement at seeing so many different religious sisters and brothers in all their different habits at the Congress. “That’s the apostolate of presence,” he said. “We’re able to witness that we are ordinary people called to an extraordinary vocation.”
SNR photos | Corbin Hubbell
