51st International Eucharistic Congress <br>held in Cebu; RGS apostolic & contemplatives participate in activities | Religious of the Good Shepherd

Submitted by regina on Sun, 01/24/2016 - 15:35

The 51st
International Eucharistic Congress will be held in Cebu City, Philippines
January 24-31, 2016. The congress will open at 4 p.m. on January 24 with a
Eucharistic Celebration at the Plaza Independencia.

Good Shepherd
Sisters, apostolic and contemplative in Banawa Hills, Cebu will be among the
thousands expected to participate in the international eucharistic congress. It
has been 79 years since the 1937 International Eucharistic Congress was held in
the Philippines.

According to the
official website of the IEC: The work of International Eucharistic
Congresses began in France in 1881 as a fruit of the Eucharistic apostolate of
Saint Peter-Julian Eymard, “the apostle of the Eucharist” (1811-1868), and of
other outstanding figures such as Blessed Antoine Chevrier (1826-1879), Léon
Dupont (1797-1876) and Bishop Gaston Adrian de Ségur (1820-1880). Thanks to the
insight and commitment of Miss Émilie-Marie Tamisier (1834-1910), her idea of
“Eucharistic pilgrimages” gradually changed into Congresses of Eucharistic
Works, which later came to be known as “Eucharistic Congresses”.

The last international Eucharistic Congress was held in 2012 in Dublin,
Ireland.

IEC
is an international gathering of people which aims to:
• promote an awareness of the central place of the Eucharist in the life and
mission of the Catholic Church
• help improve our understanding and celebration of the liturgy
• Draw attention to the social dimension of the Eucharist

Photo: Good Shepherd Sisters from Cebu and Manila after the symposium

Before the IEC, a theological symposium was held at the Cebu Doctors University from January 20-22. Speakers included Fr. Timothy Radcliffe OP who shared on The Christian Virtue of Hope, Fr. Francis Moloney SDB on The Eucharist and the Gospel of St. John, Fr. Mark Francis CSV on Liturgy and Inculturation, Abp Piero Marini on A History of the Novus Ordo, Fr. Thomas Rosica on Evangelizing a Secular World and Dr. Josefina Manabat on A Cathechesis on the Sunday Eucharist.

Concurrent sessions were held in the afternoon that touched on: Track 1- The Eucharist: Source and Goal of the Church's Mission; Track 2 - The Eucharist and the Mission In Asia, Integrating Dialogue and Proclamation, Track 3 - The Eucharist in the Church's Dialogue with Cultures; Track 4. The Eucharist in the Church's Dialogue with Religions and Religious Traditions; Track 5- The Eucharist in the Church's Dialogue with the Poor and the Marginalized; Track 6- The Eucharsit in the Church's Dialogue with the Youth; Track 7- Mary and the Eucharist in the Contemporary Mission of the Church.