The NEChronicles~stories of the New Renaissance    Day One

Mary and I had long looked forward to the National Eucharistic Congress, being super early ticket buyers Nov 2023; having been a part of 100+ retreats, director through cook over 35 years, I know how important early seed funds can be.

Fortuitously, my wife and stepmom to 11, Mary, has an excellent friend who lives in Indianapolis who is searching for the Savior; she did the Corporal Mercy Work #4 of “sheltering the homeless”.  OK, we could have taken a hotel but her hospitality was such a blessing we can never repay.

Our adventure had begun on July 13th, flying to Cincinnati via LAX, and finding out while in the air that our future president came within an earshot of dying…the first desty was 4 three fosters and a married couple: our son headmaster’s the Chesterton Academy in Dayton and Nate and Jen are looking to completing adoption of their four amazing kids.  We spent a few days with these blessings before heading to Chicago for a long overdue reunion, after 40 years, with our Polish cousins (mom Irene was a Maciejczyk) who turn out to be pretty much awesome too!

But on to the long awaited NEC, after 83 years since 1941 in Minnesota

We arrived at the Indianapolis Colts playground and looked for a parking solution; we found it, providentially, at the Hurst building that abuts the stadium parking lot & charged only $10/day for our expected five day stay in Indianapolis.  Perfect only 4 miles from Han’s home. My 100% prediction is the Colts will NOT lose week 14 this season: you can’t bet on it!

Words for the ages, from Philippians 2:3, a road map to today’s much needed active Catholic witness: 

Indy Registration: When Mary and I got to the registration line, it wrapped around buildings before entering the Exhibit Hall and the St. Max style turnstile cell, weaving back and forth in the great room.  That room was as dense as Kolbe’s 10×10 cell filled with 100 of his closest friends in the 1940s. But it did move, considering the 60,000 participants.

Having been diagnosed with a form of ADHD (never touched Ridlin) called A-DAD, I left Mary and others in line and walked back and forth talking to groups of sisters, families with small kids, grabbed waters for those in need, Socratic dialogued with a protestant apologist trying to save us Catholics from hell~ the typical NEC registrants.

Wait!  Nothing typical, since the last NEC was 84 years previous when Anne of Minnesota was 7 years old in St Paul NEC 1941.  Funny thing about aptly named  protestant brother Noah with four kids less than 5 years old, he’s got the start for a modest sized modern Catholic fam already in gear.  Pray for him…

Apparently, noticing we were looking at hours not minutes, I had “volunteered” to be one of the concierges of hospitality, helping young kids waiting hours to make the 10 second sign in at the end of the serpentine sign in process.  NEC was overwhelmed but we didn’t pay $700 to be spectators at a football game, we came to be involved.  Priest, prophet and king doesn’t apply just to Jesus.  As Catholics, you see a need, you work hard to solve, fix or complete it. One definition is the Church is NOT a mausoleum for saints but a hospital for sinners.  A song I used to play at Mass in the 60s was “They will know that we are Christians by our love.”  Yup.

Inside the Max Kolbe room, things changed up:  I saw an 80s something walker walker walking; so I asked her, “How long have you been in line?”  When she said 2 1/2 hours, this is insane at a Catholic focused on Jesus the Eucharist event.

I immediately asked “Would you like to leave and go to the front for the 20 second check-in?”  Maybe I should have asked permission, but who do you ask?  Volunteers are volunteering, the reg desk was packed, though less than 20 seconds and you were done.

With relief in her eyes, our octagenarian walker got the award for Walker of the Day.  OK, peeps, she got registered!

I lifted up the first turnstile cross bar, then the next until she was 10 feet to the computers and label printers; to the front she went. 

NEC leadership, we know it’s not easy to plan for everything, but thank you for trying.  And if anyone is making notes for 2033, you might include an Ambassador to the Ailing, the frail, drunken sailors, the lame, blind. Even the armless with club feet.  OK, the ‘drunken sailor’ comment is more for the reasons the Colt Cops were zero tolerance, independent practitioners of kick out anyone…or at least one…who didn’t match the usual 90 yr old brass rosary bearing front row church lady or anyone not intimidated by giving up fearlessness and joy.  They are used to Sunday brawls by fans with too much adult beverage.

However,  there were more who needed a Fast Pass outta da line.  Back to work, now a blue suited Revival less shirted Volunteer, making me look official?, I guess; we went back and asked a wheel chair lady with her entourage if she’d like to go to the front?  Her team let it slip she was age 7 at the most recent NEC, back in 1941 when the school children played a part in the massive 100,000+ gathering to honor the Proud GodFather’s Eucharistic Son.

She told me her name (Anne)  and we whisked her to the reg tables of no return…through the zany lineage like a bank promotion giving away free $2 bills to the first 50,000 or so.  I alerted Sara Houde, ex wedding planner extraordinaire, the incredibly well organized organizer~director and she said later she would chase her down.  Great story of hope.  Hope they find her before 2033, age 99.  I’m sure the amazing cast/line up at Relevant Radio, from Fr Rocky on up, can find her.

I needed a script: back to the mass of humanity, I loudly asked “If you are a wheel chaired, walkered lady or man, lame, blind, drunken sailor and want to get out of line, give us a sign!”  25 did benefit from the NEC’s new Concierge for the Crippled program.

The blind guy was very content to weather the line; remarkably he said “No!” to special treatment and wanted to continue the back and forth; his attendant signaled he was determined. So I moved on to the next and the next until the embarrassment of NOT ministering first to the least, the lost, the lame, the crippled, walkered and wheeled Catholics, you know the St Lawrence “I’m done on this side, turn me over” Treasure keeper of the Church, the in need of assistance had subsided. 

No one complained, everyone cooperated including those watching, seeing the less ambulatory cut out of line.  I never was carded, nor added my name to the Volunteer Registry wherever it might be.  Which is, as it should be: “See a need, meet the need and move on to the next without fanfare”. Serving our brothers and sisters, the Mercy Works, a requirement of ALL Catholics.  Somehow I do suspect Big Colt security brother was watching, but you do what you gotta do.  Become the “Surprise with Joy” Catholic…

The Pilgrim Fest and First  Adoration

What an incredible scene: four different Eucharist Pilgrim groups from 4 sides of the country converging, with appropriate saints and flavor, at the Adoration hour just after 7pm Wed July 17th.  My beloved son Matt says “Dad you and your numbers!” but 17 IS the number of victory often cited in Scripture.  55,000-60,000 people anticipating a worshipful evening kickoff to 5 days of celebrating (I found out, due to ‘misunderstandings’ between NEC and the Colt Cops, I was on the 2.5 day plan as it turns out).  Celebrating what our GodFather heralded 4600 years ago, through the daily bread manna in the desert and other external and written signs, like 600 prophecies:

His Eucharistic Only Son.

Sunday’s gospel for Aug 11th, (my parents 73rd anniversary) we heard at the Abbey with celebrant Fr Edmund:

The Jews murmured about Jesus because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven, “ and they said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? Do we not know his father and mother? Then how can he say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” Jesus answered and said to them, “Stop murmuring among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from Him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is My Flesh for the life of the world.”

Day ONE ended joyfully on a high note!

Good news is the videos are out there on Relevant Radio and thru the NEC site, available for purchase, but I truly believe this revival, already bearing fruit, is forging into the Neo~Renaissance long awaited AND NEEDED!   You’ll hear about Springtime and more.  But get BACK to weekly Mass IN THE CHURCH, upper or lower room!  Daily IF you are interested in EXTRA grace and blessings. Confessions.  AND PLEASE: Surprise with Joy; as Fr Spitzer puts it the 4 levels of happiness have flipflopped to codified depression. Become Bold, filled with Truth and Speaking it in LOVE>  

It is in you, in the guise of Jesus the Christ; make serving others instinctive not a chore.  Begin NOW or Yesterday!

 

~Len

Dad of 11 PapaLen to 22 grandkids 40+ years Catholic based home educator  (Ambassador for Home schoolers)

  35 years on staff at three parishes in the OC as the YM, dirYM, DRE, RCIA.   AKA:

  “Roses delivered by air male to the Rose of Lila” and “Tony Melendez Hugger”; bizarre yes, but interesting.  More in part and day two.