July 12, 2024 // Diocese

Praised be Jesus Christ!

Mason Bailey

At each entrance into a diocese and in every parish on this National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, Our Lord has truly been welcomed home. This past Sunday was no different. It was a truly beautiful sight to see so many people from Fort Wayne-South Bend gathered to greet and walk with Jesus from St. Therese, Little Flower to the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame. Hundreds packed into both churches to worship, adore, and process with the Blessed Sacrament. The beauty of our Faith shines in the communal aspects of our worship. Indeed, the Eucharist is called Holy Communion for a reason! We are all bound together by our individual reception of the Eucharist, but also by the act of doing so within a community of believers. We are many, but we are also one in Christ Jesus, by virtue of His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. We find our home in Christ, through the Eucharist, as we journey to our eternal home with Him in heaven.

Mason Bailey
Pilgrims enter the campus of the University of Notre Dame from St. Therese, Little Flower, on the Marian Route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage on Friday, July 5.

This entrance has been a particularly great grace to me! As a seminarian for this diocese walking with Jesus every step of the way to Indianapolis, this past weekend was a homecoming for me as well. I was able to see my parents, parishioners from local parishes like St. Pius X in Granger (where I did my pastoral year), people from college, priests that are great role models to me, and many more. Our diocese, under the leadership of Bishop Rhoades, has been incredibly
supportive of the National Eucharistic Revival, and it is such a blessing to witness the profound graces that have occurred already. Hearts are being set ablaze everywhere we go. People are coming from far and wide to join us for the events in our diocese this week. What a beautiful testimony to the tireless work of the Holy Spirit active through this Eucharistic Revival. 

One unique thing about the route in our diocese is that I have not been to many of the parishes before. This experience is providing me with the opportunity to see parts of the diocese that I otherwise wouldn’t have seen, including in Bristol, LaGrange, Angola, and more. Father Bob Van Kempen and Father Osman Ramos were incredibly hospitable to me and the rest of the Perpetual Pilgrims.

It is also an honor to be able to show our diocese to my fellow pilgrims, who are from all over the country, including California, Colorado, Illinois, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Ohio, and even Germany! Each Perpetual Pilgrim has received a warm welcome, and they have been made to feel at home with us here in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend. Thank you to all of the pastors, volunteers, and diocesan representatives who have done their utmost to ensure the smoothness and reverence of this pilgrimage as it enters its home stretch!

My continued prayer for the diocese is one of revival and rejuvenation. I pray for an increase in vocations to the priesthood, so that there may be more laborers in the field, for the harvest is plentiful (Mt 9:37). I also pray for increased unity in our diocese and an end to any and all divisions that keep us from seeking the Kingdom together. This pilgrimage will bear abundant fruit to those who participate in it. I’m eager to see you!

Pax Christi,
Mason