CV Newsfeed // Utah’s minority Catholic community made an impressive showing at a stop on the National Communion Pilgrimage in a community along the Junipero Serra Western Route.
The pilgrims stayed in Utah from May 31 to June 5. There are an estimated 300,000 Catholics in the state, making up 10 percent of the state’s population, according to the Diocese of Salt Lake City.
Reflecting on her experience on the Utah pilgrimage, Intermountain Catholic editor Marie Michel wrote:
Every parish had a fantastic turnout for the event, and while the 50 people who took part in the procession in Bernal may not seem like a lot, it is a large number considering the large Catholic population in the area, that it was at 5pm on a weekday when many people have to work, and that it took place in over 80 degree heat.
Michel explained that there would be ample opportunities to receive the sacraments, take part in processions and liturgies, and even attend lectures on the Eucharistic theology of Thomas Aquinas. He also mentioned that pilgrims would have the opportunity to receive a plenary indulgence.
According to another Michelle report, the largest pilgrimage in Utah took place in Park City, led by a First Communion recipient scattering rose petals. The pilgrimage included participants from several local parishes, the Knights of Columbus Honor Guard, and members of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
Michelle described her experience on the final day of her pilgrimage in Utah:
And on the final day, a service was held just hours before the pilgrims departed for Colorado.
Kneeling before the monstrance, I was overcome with the certainty that Jesus was there forgiving my sins, and that brief moment of grace erased all my frustrations and gave me a peace that still comforts me today.
As of the publication of this article, pilgrims on the Junipero Serra Route are passing through Nebraska.
