Maryrose Oguezuonu of Middle River pressed forward as a procession bearing the Eucharist — the sacramental bread and wine that Catholics consider holy — passed by on the hot streets of downtown Indianapolis last weekend. She was among more than 50,000 other Catholics from across the United States in town for a nationwide revival, the 10th National Eucharistic Congress of the U.S.
Catholic Church. And as an attendant in the processional handed her a rose, she said she sensed a powerful spiritual presence. “I knew immediately that that was what Jesus had sent to me,” said Oguezuonu, a longtime parishioner at Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church in her hometown.
“He told me, ‘This is the meaning of your name — Mary that is surrounded by roses.’ And roses are symbolic of the love of Jesus.” Oguezuonu was one of about 175 Catholics from greater Baltimore who made the trip to Indiana’s capital city for the five-day event, the first of its kind since 1941 and the culmination of a three-year campaign of renewal within the American church.
“It was a powerful moment in the history of the Catholic Church in the U.S.,” says Edward Herrera, the executive director of the Institute for Evangelization, an initiative of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, who also made the pilgrimage.
“There hasn’t been a Eucharistic Congress since the time of Fulton Sheen and Dorothy Day. Now we’ve enjoyed this beautiful event, an exciting moment for the people of Baltimore and for.