Headed from Sacred Heart Parish, Hawi, to the International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu are, from left, Sally Castillo, Phyllis Malasig, Dione Fernandez, Lee Rivera, Lorraine Glory and Father Elias Escanilla. Missing is Paula Hall. (Photo courtesy of Lee Rivera)
Bishop Larry Silva is traveling with 13 island Catholics to the International Eucharistic Congress Jan. 24-31 in Cebu, Philippines. Several others are making the trip from the Big Island’s Sacred Heart Parish in Hawi.
Organized by Faith Journeys, an Arizona-based religious tour company, the bishop’s group will be traveling Jan. 22 to Feb. 2.
A small group of women from the parish in Hawi is also making the congress pilgrimage. The parish helped raise money to have their pastor Father Elias Escanilla join them.
The Congress is a weeklong series of seminars and activities that focus on Christ in the Eucharist attended by Catholics from around the world.
According to the Catholic News Service, Philippine church officials said as of mid-December, more than 8,500 people had registered for the event.
Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu, where Catholicism took root in the Philippines nearly 500 years ago, said organizers were hoping more foreign pilgrims would sign up. He said about half of those already registered are from overseas and most are from Asia and the rest were local, but organizers wanted a broader reach.
A new, 14,000-seat International Eucharistic Congress pavilion has been completed, the archbishop said.
Manila Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle at a Dec. 14 news briefing on the event said, “Humanity cries out for the gift of a loving, forgiving, merciful presence, and we hope that the International Eucharistic Congress may add to the Year of Mercy.”
“May we find in Jesus in the Eucharist, the presence of a merciful, humble God in our midst,” said the cardinal.
