WEIRTON, W.Va. (WTRF) — It was a Walk with Jesus event along the streets of Weirton.
American Catholics are renewing their faith in their most sacred traditions, and they’re calling it not just a journey across thousands of miles but a journey to rediscover God’s love.
If you want to understand the devotion of Christians to their faith, look no further than the center of the monstrance.
It contains what Roman Catholics believe to be the actual body of Christ after ordinary bread has been blessed in the sacrament of Holy Communion.
For the Church, it is a sacrifice that God has made in a material way for the world.
But because the believers themselves do not fully understand this, the church is conveying the message in stages.
“Flesh, blood, soul and divinity appear as bread and appear as wine, but it is His very presence. That is our belief.”
Father Dennis Schuelkens, pastor of the Sacred Heart of Mary and St. Joseph the Worker Church
The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage preachers are on a 60-day journey from New Haven, Connecticut, to Indianapolis.
Carrying the monstrance and singing all along the way, they hope to arouse wonder at the sacrament in non-believers and to reawaken faith in those who are.
Weirton was the halfway point on their journey, where they invited Catholics from St. Joseph the Worker Parish to Sacred Heart of Mary.
The one-mile journey was muggy, but the procession said they have worshipped in warmer temperatures and over longer distances.
“Some days I’ve walked 17 miles in 95-degree weather with the sun beating down. My longest trip was 19 miles, but I’ve walked more than 15 miles on a few occasions.”
Father Roger J. Landry, National Eucharistic Pilgrimage
And they say the enthusiasm of the devotees is invigorating, even in the exhausting heat.
At a time when millions have lost sight of why they kneel, those same millions are rediscovering the boundless love contained in those eight words: “This is my body, given for you.”
“Every human heart yearns for God and wonders, ‘Why doesn’t God come to us?’ And 2,000 years ago, God came in the person of Jesus Christ, and Jesus wanted to make sure his presence was always with us.”
Father Dennis Schuelkens, pastor of the Sacred Heart of Mary and St. Joseph the Worker Church
There is still a month before the eternal pilgrims reach Indianapolis.
Tomorrow they will cross the Ohio River to spend the weekend in Steubenville before a spiritual revival moves downriver to Berea.
