He said seeing the enthusiasm of the people they have encountered, whether in big cities like St. Louis or in small towns, has offered him constant reminders of the reason they are doing the pilgrimage in the first place — Christ himself.
“The Lord has given us, at least for me, the gift of remembering why I’m here and the beauty of it. It’s given me energy, through encountering other people and seeing masses of people that are excited,” Fayad said.
The parish also hosted Eucharistic adoration after Auxiliary Bishop Mark Rivituso of St. Louis processed the Eucharist from the Missionaries of Charity to the magnificent church (originally St. Teresa of Avila Church) that serves as the primary worship site for St. Josephine Parish.
Augustus “Gus” Lewis has attended the church that is now part of St. Josephine Parish since he was 5 years old. He was present for lunch with the pilgrims and wore a shirt depicting the faces of several prominent African-American Catholics who are being considered for sainthood, including Father Augustus Tolton.
Despite his name, Gus says he wasn’t named after Tolton — “I was named after my grandfather,” he said, laughing. He said he very much hopes that the Catholic Church will soon recognize as saints the holy men and women his shirt depicts.
White, who is planning to attend the National Eucharistic Congress with a handful of her fellow parishioners, said one of her favorite things about Eucharistic adoration is the opportunity to sit in silence with Jesus.
“When I first started adoration, I was really filling it up with things like the rosary and reading … but you should really be listening to God. My focus when I get there is, ‘Lord, what do you want me to do? Lord, how am I doing with what it is you want me to do?’”
“I’m just really excited to bring this [adoration] to our church. There were some older Catholics here that hadn’t ever been to Eucharistic adoration,” White told CNA.
(Story continues below)
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Jonah McKeown is a staff writer and podcast producer for Catholic News Agency. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has worked as a writer, as a producer for public radio, and as a videographer. He is based in St. Louis.
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