This is the Eucharistic Revival parish year

Pray and know Jesus in the Eucharist during adoration, holy hour

By Jeff Hines
Special to Arkansas Catholic

The parish year of the Eucharistic Revival begins on the feast of Corpus Christi, Sunday, June 11.

During the parish year, every Catholic in Arkansas will be invited to participate in local activities focused on bringing each person into a deeper encounter with Christ in the Eucharist that transforms life.

The parish year consists of four areas, called pillars, in which every Catholic is invited to gain a deeper relationship with Christ in the Eucharist. The four pillars are:

• Reinvigorate worship
• Personal encounter
• Robust faith formation
•Missionary sending

Reinvigorate worship

Parish priests will lead the Eucharistic Revival by taking the first step, to renew their faithfulness to the ars celebrandi (the art of celebrating). Through their leadership, we all participate in the celebration of the sacred liturgy through which Christ is made present to us.

Personal encounter

All parishes are invited to host “Encounters” that help parishioners encounter Jesus in the Eucharist personally. For example, parishes may host Encounter Nights or holy hours monthly, during which every parishioner will have the opportunity to meet Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Robust faith formation

The National Eucharistic Revival committee announced a new seven-session video series for group study, titled, “Jesus and the Eucharist.” All parishioners can attend the study at their parish. The study will be organized locally by pastors and parish leaders, using training and materials provided by the national committee. Dates and times will be announced locally at each parish.

Missionary sending

The natural response to encountering Christ in the Eucharist is to share him with others. During the parish year, all Catholics will have opportunities to invite others to know Christ for the first time or return to following him.

A Playbook for the Parish Year

The National Eucharistic Revival committee has published a “playbook” to guide parishes through the year. The playbook was published and distributed online to pastors and parish leaders in May. It is available in English and Spanish on the diocesan website at dolr.org/parish-revival.

The need for a Eucharistic Revival in the United States arose in response to the 2021 bishop’s document, “The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church.” In this document, the bishops said the way to begin to address the urgent needs of our Church is for all Catholics to come to a deeper understanding of Christ’s gift to us in the Eucharist and our response to it.

The first year of the Eucharistic Revival was the diocesan year, June 2022-June 2023. Every Catholic diocese in the U.S. took the opportunity to encounter Christ in the Eucharist through focused opportunities for study, sharing, and liturgy. In the Diocese of Little Rock, more than 500 catechists and parish leaders attended Formation Days to study Scripture and the catechism regarding the Eucharist. The priests’ continuing education was led by Father Leo Patalinghug on eucharistic adoration and the intimacy of Christ’s self-giving as a meal.

The second year of the Eucharistic Revival is the parish year. The third year will be the National Year of Eucharistic Revival, highlighted by local mission-oriented responses to bring people closer to the Eucharist in our communities, local and national Eucharistic processions, and a National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis in July 2024.

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