On May 29, 2024, Number 2 son, Rainbow Baby and I drove two hours to meet up with the National Eucharistic PilgrimageNational Eucharistic Pilgrimage in ElCampo, Texas.
I saw this as a once in a lifetime opportunity that I was not going to miss. My biggest regret is NOT going to San Antonio to see St. Pope John Paul II. I was in graduate school and didn't think I could get away.
Poppie had family in ElCampo, we used to go visit a few times a year and when we got to their house, his aunt served us homemade doughnuts! When Nana and Poppie were dating, she would go to church in ElCampo, sometimes the Mass was not in English! I think it was in Czech, but it might have been in German or Polish, I'm still researching the churches.
The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage website said that the procession, "Christ in the Countryside," was starting at St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Church and ending at St. Philip the Apostle Catholic Church nope, it was the other way around! We made it to St. Philip's at about 6:05 and we quietly creeped into a pew for Adoration. It was exactly as it should be, all of us down on our knees in Adoration. The short procession between St. Philip's and St. Robert's began and a wave of calmness and belonging came over me. We were walking with Jesus and it just felt right. We prayed the Rosary in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese!
On May 29, 2024, Number 2 son, Rainbow Baby and I drove two hours to meet up with the National Eucharistic PilgrimageNational Eucharistic Pilgrimage in ElCampo, Texas.
I saw this as a once in a lifetime opportunity that I was not going to miss. My biggest regret is NOT going to San Antonio to see St. Pope John Paul II. I was in graduate school and didn't think I could get away.
Poppie had family in ElCampo, we used to go visit a few times a year and when we got to their house, his aunt served us homemade doughnuts! When Nana and Poppie were dating, she would go to church in ElCampo, sometimes the Mass was not in English! I think it was in Czech, but it might have been in German or Polish, I'm still researching the churches.
The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage website said that the procession, "Christ in the Countryside," was starting at St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Church and ending at St. Philip the Apostle Catholic Church nope, it was the other way around! We made it to St. Philip's at about 6:05 and we quietly creeped into a pew for Adoration. It was exactly as it should be, all of us down on our knees in Adoration. The short procession between St. Philip's and St. Robert's began and a wave of calmness and belonging came over me. We were walking with Jesus and it just felt right. We prayed the Rosary in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese!
The walkthrough ElCampo was lovely, people were sitting in their front yard greeting us and one very memorable gulf coast accented, "God Bless you all!"
As we finished the short walk at St. Robert's, the church bells were ringing and ringing! We found a place to sit after the Pastor and Deacon tapped people on the shoulders and had them move to the aisles. After another period of Adoration, the Pastor announced that there would be Mass! One of the Pilgrims was a Franciscan priest who grew up as a Protestant in Dallas, Texas. The bilingual Mass was beautiful and Father's homily about St. Anthony and the donkey were especially memorable, I love that story!
After Mass, the Pastor invited everyone for a potluck meal in the Parish Hall! This was certainly a blessing for us since I had $16 in my wallet to feed the three of us before driving two hours home. Number Two son ate beans, rice, pork, green stuff, red stuff, pizza, and fried dough! He kept going back for more! Rainbow Baby and I had the most amazing cucumber lime agua fresca. She found fruit and rice to eat and I had some Mac-and-cheese, garlic bread, fruit, and fried dough.
We met some people who had driven in from Victoria and they offered to drive us back to St. Philip's (where our car was parked.)
I am so glad we went, it was an amazing adventure with my two youngest and Jesus.
"Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked them, but Jesus said, "Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."
Matthew 19:13-14
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