Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki
Archbishop of Milwaukee
 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The major celebration of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee took place this past Sunday at the Source and Summit Eucharistic Procession, beginning at the 9 a.m. Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, Milwaukee. I arrived approximately 20 minutes before the start of Sunday Mass and the Cathedral was filled with standing room only. There have been very few times in the last few years that the Cathedral was filled. This Sunday, even the annex, set up for overflow, had multiple people there. Needless to say, I was shocked. Everyone was there to celebrate the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. This was not an ordinary Sunday, although it was the 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Instead, it was a statement of our willingness to witness to Jesus Christ.

I was privileged to celebrate the Mass and offer my reflections on the readings. The power of the Lord was evident to the disciples when He calmed the sea, but His power to calm the raging waters of life’s problems would be evident in the calming presence He would bestow on us in His presence – His Real Presence in the Eucharist.

What made this Sunday different was that right after Mass, a 6.7-mile Eucharistic Procession followed to four different parishes and Saint Francis de Sales Seminary, and all were invited to join us. I took the first leg of the journey to Our Lady of Guadalupe, Milwaukee, some 1.6 miles. We took the monstrance and processed through the streets of Milwaukee. The Eucharistic presence was before me. I am sure that some wondered what the bearer of the Eucharist is thinking as we walk the streets in public. So, I would like to share some thoughts.

I thought of the walk of Jesus in the streets of Jerusalem as He carried the cross. Some pitied Him, others ignored Him and still others ridiculed Him. But He carried the cross for all of them: the good, the bad and the ugly.

I recalled the walk with the disciples on the way to Emmaus, discouraged because Jesus was not what they wanted Him to be. Instead of rejecting them in their disappointment and despair, He taught them using the scriptures that led them to know Him in the breaking of the bread.

I remembered the Christians being led to the amphitheater. They knew their death was imminent, yet they sang hymns of praise to God’s Son. They were being martyred because they refused to burn incense to the gods on Sunday. Sunday belonged to the One God the Father, whose Son sacrificed His life for them.

I recalled the many saints who held dear the Eucharist. One in particular was Tarcisius, a young boy in the early days of Christianity who was bringing the Eucharist to those imprisoned. He would not surrender his treasured passenger, the Lord Jesus in the Eucharist. So instead, he surrendered his life.

I envisioned the many Corpus Christi processions I have led, one in particular that took me with the monstrance next to a barn. As the Eucharist passed, the cows came out to observe the Lord’s passing; it appeared to me that some even bowed – and they call them dumb animals. Another procession on a Sunday at Our Lady of Sorrows Basilica in Chicago, Ill. took us past a field of soccer players. They stopped their game and came to the fence, kneeling in adoration as the Eucharist passed.

During this Sunday’s procession, I contemplated and prayed for the many people who accompanied the Lord all the way to Saint Francis de Sales Seminary. The throngs of people were edifying as they made their way up the beautiful tree lined road and to the final stop on Sunday’s journey.

It is my ultimate prayer that this Eucharistic Revival ignite a fire that burns for the love of God in the Real Presence. This Real Presence in the name of Jesus Christ leads us to LOVE ONE ANOTHER.    

Sincerely,

Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki

Archbishop of Milwaukee          

Note: This blog originally appeared as the June 25, 2024, "Love One Another" email sent to Catholics throughout the Archdiocese of Milwaukee by Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki. If you are interested in signing up for these email messages, please click here.