CHARLOTTE, N.C. (OSV News) ─ In his homily for his first Eucharistic congress as shepherd of the Charlotte Diocese, Bishop Michael T. Martin encouraged the approximately 10,000 attendees to go out into the world and share the presence of Jesus with everyone they encounter -- especially people they do not know.
This was the Diocese of Charlotte's 20th annual Eucharistic congress and Bishop Martin's first since his episcopal ordination to head the diocese in May.
The new bishop marveled at the size and passion of the near-record crowd that gathered for the Eucharistic congress Aug. 30-31.
"I didn't know what to expect, but I didn't expect this!" he said.
The cavernous hall of the Charlotte Convention Center echoed with sacred music and choral voices singing hymns to greet more than 100 colorful banners representing parishes and ministries from around the diocese, followed by flags of more than 20 nations and a procession of more than 100 clergy.
The two-day celebration was a joyful mix of worship, music and fellowship, all centered around the Eucharist as the source and pinnacle of Catholic faith. The closing Mass tied it all together as a standing-room-only crowd heard Bishop Martin's homily focused on the Eucharist as a source of unity that can draw the church's -- and the world's -- diverse community together.
During his homily, the bishop reflected on the Gospel reading from Luke which featured the episode on the road to Emmaus, where two disciples do not recognize the risen Christ. They invite him to share a meal with them, and only then do their eyes open to the fact that Jesus is with them. This moment, the bishop said, shows the power of welcoming the stranger.
"We live in a world that is so frightened … let's understand how the brokenness of the world has distanced us from the stranger and has made us leery of the stranger," he said. "Fear born out of sin and born out of brokenness has distanced us and detached us, so it's harder and harder to remain with each other and to remain in him," echoing this year's congress theme: "Remain in Me."
People can take a lesson from how the disciples acted on their way to Emmaus, he said.
Receiving the Eucharist as part of a larger and diverse community, alongside people they do not know, can help Catholics learn how to bring God's love to all they encounter in the world.
"May that teach us something about what the Eucharist means, about what the Eucharist can do and can be," he said.
The Eucharistic congress began Friday night with what organizers estimated was the largest opening night attendance ever in its 20-year history.
The night included evening prayer with the Benedictine monks of Belmont Abbey, two praise-and-worship concerts -- including a rousing performance from Sarah Kroger, fresh off her performance at the National Eucharistic Congress -- and a keynote address from Bishop Martin, who urged people to reconnect through faith in Christ.
Bishop Martin assured the crowd, "You belong here," saying people from across the diocese and the world can all find a place as followers of Christ.
"We claim a space among the people of God and not one of us can be left out," he said. "We must first acknowledge that we belong here, that this is our rightful place. God desires us to be here. God desires you and me to recognize our sacred calling as His children, and to give witness not just in the streets tomorrow morning, but throughout each and every day of our lives."
The Eucharistic congress offers a chance not only for Catholics to connect with Christ through the Eucharist, he said, but also learn ways to offer that vital connection to others who are searching for meaning.
"We have the power to transform that, to make a difference here in western North Carolina," he said. "You belong here. I belong here. May we bring that message to our world that needs it so much. It will be the Eucharist that will remind us daily of who belongs, and the answer to that is always -- everyone."
This was the third Eucharistic congress for Martha Fenn from Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Monroe, North Carolina. She also attended the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis in July and noted that it was a special experience to participate in both.
"Coming from the national event, I really felt like we have to support our local Eucharistic congress," she told the Catholic News Herald, Charlotte's diocesan newspaper. "I moved from another diocese, and they have tried to imitate the Diocese of Charlotte because it's all organized and well thought of. It goes with the theme: ‘You belong here.'"
"The bishop's message," she added, "goes with the times because people are feeling lonely and anxious, and there are a lot of mental health issues, but people belong, they have a purpose, and that's a good message."
The diversity of the Charlotte Diocese -- over half a million people strong and growing -- was on display Saturday morning as approximately 10,000 people filled the streets of uptown Charlotte for a mile-long Eucharistic procession that took nearly two hours to complete.
The procession -- a signature event of the congress and one of the largest of its kind in the United States -- ended inside the convention center and was followed by a Holy Hour and bilingual homily delivered by Father Juan Miguel Sanchez, priest-secretary for Bishop Martin.
Father Sanchez's overall message was shaped by the Gospel reading about the vine and branches (Jn 15:1-8) as he encouraged the congregation to remain close to Jesus.
"We don't make a procession with the Blessed Sacrament to be seen in the streets of Charlotte, but it is good to be seen in the streets of Charlotte walking with our God," he said. "The more we adhere to Jesus' Divine Will, the more we will be able to give fruit and the more we will be one with him."
This prayerful morning led straight into a full day of educational talks in English, Spanish and Vietnamese; all-day Eucharistic adoration; and activities for families, young people, and individuals with special needs.
The Eucharistic congress drew thousands of people from all parts of the diocese, shown by a map set up in the main hall where attendees could place a pin on their parish location. Hundreds of pins were spread out to all corners of western North Carolina -- from Asheboro to Asheville, Mount Airy to Murphy, and every parish in between.
Attendees were also hungry to receive the sacraments.
Lines for confession stretched more than 100 yards, with penitents lining up in two areas of the convention center, waiting for their moment with one of four dozen priests to listen and absolve them.
The standing-room-only crowd at the closing Mass was so large that toward the end of Holy Communion, clergy at the 36 Communion distribution stations were breaking consecrated hosts into smaller and smaller pieces so that everyone could receive the sacrament.
At the closing Mass, Bishop Martin invited the crowd back for next year's Eucharistic congress Sept. 5-6, 2025, which will echo the church's Jubilee Year theme: "Pilgrims of Hope." He also thanked Bishop Peter J. Jugis, who retired as Charlotte's bishop in May, for his inspiration to start the Eucharistic
congress in 2004.
Bishop Martin also smiled as he looked at the people filling the convention center, noting, "We are busting at the seams," and joked that next year the diocese may need to move the event to the Carolina Panthers stadium.
He encouraged the crowd to take their experiences from the Eucharistic congress out into the world.
"May this Congress not stop here," he said, "but rather, go out into the world that needs so much the real presence of Jesus, that needs to know where to be connected, that needs to know what true life is, and may we bring that with our encounter of the stranger -- the poor, the orphan, the enemy -- and may we recognize him in the breaking of the bread."
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Christina Lee Knauss is a staff reporter for the Catholic News Herald, the newspaper of the Diocese of Charlotte. Fellow staff Annie Ferguson, Kimberly Bender and Liz Chandler contributed to this story.
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