By Jessica Easthope
The logistics are everything when you’re coordinating a celebration of faith.
The Eucharistic Revival is coming to Brooklyn.
Father Joseph Gibino, the vicar for evangelization and catechesis, said the event is a way for Catholics in the Diocese of Brooklyn who have roots in communities all over the world to reconnect with the roots of their faith.
“It is the first truly large, major event that we’re holding post-COVID and it really is exciting to put it all together,” Father Gibino said. “This representation is gathering in a large number to say to the world we believe in the real presence of Jesus Christ.”
The National Eucharistic Revival was launched by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops as a response to a 2019 Pew Research poll that showed only 31% of American Catholics believe in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.
It’s a statistic that Father Alonzo Cox, the director of liturgy in the diocese of Brooklyn, said he hopes to see a change after the Eucharistic Revival in Brooklyn.
“It’s my hope and my prayer that our Eucharistic revival here in Brooklyn will be a rejuvenation of that reality,” Father Cox said.
Nearly 7,000 people are invited to come to Maimonides Park in Coney Island for Mass, a Eucharistic procession, and family catechesis.
“Many adults feel that they don’t know enough, that they need more faith formation in order to communicate the faith,” Father Gibino said.
“I think this day is an opportunity for the faithful to give witness to who we are in Brooklyn and Queens, to the many blessings the Eucharist has bestowed upon us as Catholics,” Father Cox said. “We get to go out and proclaim that and celebrate that.”
Bishop Robert Brennan wants to get the faithful excited about the Diocese of Brooklyn’s Eucharistic Revival event. He’s been covering the dioceasanwide revival on his podcast, Big City Catholics, where he’s advised anyone who is planning to attend the event to reflect on an important question: Where is my relationship with Jesus Christ?
To listen to Big City Catholics just go to podcast.dioceseofbrooklyn.org or search for Big City Catholics on Spotify, Apple, and Youtube.
If you want to watch the Mass from the Diocesan Eucharistic Revival event you can watch it live on Saturday, Oct. 7, at 9:45 AM on NET-TV.
Be sure to stay tuned to Currents News and read The Tablet for continuing coverage of the revival, the local preparations, for both the Diocese of Brooklyn’s event, and the national campaign.