Catholics Planning Pilgrimages Throughout U.S.

(NEWSnet/AP) — A series of Catholic pilgrimages is underway in the U.S.

National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is beginning with events in California, Connecticut, Minnesota and Texas. Each of four routes will follow country roads and travel through city centers, with stops at parishes, shrines and other sites.

Each procession is being led by a priest holding a monstrance, typically a sunburst-patterned vessel that displays the host, or bread wafer, consecrated at Mass.

“The Eucharist is actually Jesus, so for us to walk with Jesus is actually a witness to our faith in a prayerful action for unity, for peace,” said Tim Glemkowski, CEO of National Eucharistic Congress.

Some pilgrims were embarking Sunday from the headwaters of Mississippi River in Minnesota. Others planned to depart from a cathedral in Brownsville, Texas, or cross San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge.

In New Haven, Connecticut, commemoration began Saturday with Mass and a mini-procession around St. Mary’s Church.

Glemkowski said the pilgrimage is not a march and will avoid politics.

“(The) message of unity and peace and just focus on Christ is paramount,” he said.

The pilgrimage revives a tradition that began to fade by the mid-20th century.

“We just kind of lost track of this tradition,” Glemkowski said. “We’re bringing it back in a way that fits this time.”

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