WILMINGTON – A whirlwind 24 hours came to a close on June 12 at the Cathedral of St. Peter in Wilmington, where a full church gathered for the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage and for the consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The streets surrounding the cathedral came to life as Catholics from around northern New Castle County awaited the arrival of the van carrying the Eucharist and the perpetual pilgrims who have accompanied it since the launch in St. Augustine, Fla. The pilgrims and diocesan officials began the day in Ocean City, Md., with a procession along the boardwalk.
The cathedral bell rang for the occasion as Bishop Koenig and the diocesan seminarians were joined by several diocesan priests for Mass.
After Deacon Anthony Gallo proclaimed the Gospel, Bishop Koenig opened his homily with a story about Secretariat, the legendary racehorse who won the Triple Crown in 1973, setting speed records in all three races and winning the final leg, the Belmont Stakes, by 31 lengths. After “Big Red” died, a necropsy revealed he had a heart three times the size of other Thoroughbreds, the bishop said. People speculated that gave the horse the capacity to run with strength and endurance other horses couldn’t match.
“We sometimes describe people as having a large heart,” Bishop Koenig said. “We, of course, aren’t referring to the physical size of that heart, but rather how they run. Or better, it be said, lived differently from other people,”
These people are marked by generosity, kindness and compassion, he continued. Some of our great saints come to mind, including St. Frances Cabrini, to whom the pilgrimage is dedicated, and St. Therese of Lisieux.
“Today, we celebrate the greatest heart the world has ever known,” he said, “the heart of Jesus.”
It is a heart large enough to embrace every sinner and nation. It never grows tired of forgiving and never ceases seeking out the lost or stops loving, he said.
It is through his heart that Catholics in the United States consecrate themselves and their country on this day, he said. The late Pope Francis said we are invited to place our hearts in the heart of Jesus. We can do this in ordinary ways – volunteering, being an employee who works with integrity. We can be a source of inspiration to others, Bishop Koenig said.
We should also keep a few things in mind as we consecrate our country to the Sacred Heart, he added. As easy as it is to feel that the national division and strife has never been this bad, a study of our history would show other difficult times. One of the great illusions is to believe that with the right leader, the right economic conditions and the right social system, everything is going to be perfect, Bishop Koenig said.
“By consecrating our country to the Sacred Heart today,” he said, “we’re acknowledging that as important as good leadership and strong institutions are, what we need most are hearts transformed by the love of Christ.”
The congregation was a mix of folks, including many young families who made the trip. One was the Marley family, members of St. Mary Magdalen Parish in north Wilmington. Josh Marley, who brought his children, said they try to get to one Mass a week other than Sunday.
“We were actually going to go up to the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal up in Philly, but I saw in The Dialog that this was going on. It’s kind of a once in a lifetime thing,” he said. “It was nice to see the church packed. You don’t see that too often anymore.”
The full house also impressed Lisa Kennedy, who was part of a group that took a bus from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Bear. Kennedy called the experience “breathtakingly beautiful. Very moving, very touching. Goosebumps.
“I had no idea what to expect. It’s lovely to know that there are that many people that this is that important to them that they would take their Friday afternoon and come and pay homage and be part of this pilgrimage,” she said.
Fellow Seton parishioner Mary Holmburg said she wanted to be at the Mass to pray for peace locally and nationally.
“The Sacred Heart calls us to love, and I think without love we have nothing,” she said.
Holmburg, a longtime youth minister in the Diocese of Wilmington, was encouraged by the number of young people at St. Peter’s, and by the faith of the pilgrims, who are young adults.
“For me, that’s something that’s been at the forefront of my ministry since the beginning,” she said. “It’s very nice to see them doing that. I think we’ve got a bright future. I really do. And we have to keep spreading the word of love and faith and hope, and I think we’ll be OK.”
Following Mass, the van carrying the monstrance and pilgrims made the short trip to the Wilmington riverfront. There, Bishop Koenig and other diocesan officials boarded a boat to accompany the pilgrimage to its next stop, Fort Mott State Park in Pennsville, N.J., in the Diocese of Camden. The pilgrimage will continue through several more dioceses along the northeastern seaboard before it ends over the July 4 weekend in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia as the country celebrates its 250th birthday.
