Madison parish plans host of events to mark Year of the Eucharist

MADISON  The Scripture story of the Woman at the Well recently taught Bible-study students at St. Vincent Martyr Parish here a surprising lesson about the Eucharist as the parish kicks off a full schedule of observances for the diocesan Year of the Eucharist, which runs through Sunday Nov. 20.

About 40 participants in the St. Vincent’s five-session “I Am the Bread of Life” study series learned last week that even though Jesus had not instituted the Eucharist yet, the Samaritan woman recognizes that he is the Messiah over the course of their conversation at the well. So, she runs to tell the townspeople. The students learned that her zeal and courage — as a woman of questionable reputation — to spread the Gospel should inspire us to share Jesus’ love with others after receiving the Body of Christ, in their two Bible-study groups, led by Jan Figenshu, St. Vincent’s pastoral associate.

The “I Am the Bread of Life” series is one of the first in a series of activities that St. Vincent’s has plan­ned for the Year of the Eucha­rist from two angles: liturgical and religious formation.

Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney opened the Year of the Eucharist for the Diocese during a Mass at the Evangelization Center at St. Paul Inside the Walls in Madison. The special year will help Catholics cultivate a renewed appreciation, understanding, and devotion of the Eucharist on both diocesan and parish levels.

The Morris County parish’s observances started Jan. 22, the memorial of St. Vincent Martyr, when the pastor, Msgr. George Hundt, commissioned seven lay Eucharistic missionaries “to work with me to celebrate this beautiful diocesan project in our parish.”

“I hope that the Year of the Eucharist helps people of our parish renew their love of the Eucharist and prayer life and inspire them to come to Mass more often. I also hope it promotes the Eucharist and Holy Hours, which involve visiting a friend, Jesus, and spending time with him. It also unites our Christian family,” said Father Christopher Liwarski, parochial vicar, who is coordinating the Year of the Eucharist in parish. He also is leading a planning committee, which consists of the Eucharistic missionaries that Msgr. Hundt commissioned last month. “The committee members are smart and spiritual. From the first meeting, we were all going in the same direction as to our approach to the Year of the Eucharist,” he said.

From the religious formation angle, St. Vincent’s is sponsoring the “I Am the Bread of Life” Bible series, which explores many of Christ’s teachings in John’s Gospels that contain Eucharistic themes. Other activities include another Bible series, “A Biblical Walk through the Mass,” and an exploration of “Eucharist,” a book by Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles, founder of Word on Fire Ministries, Figenshu said.

In April, Msgr. Hundt plans to hold a teaching session in the church, where he will explain the parts of the Mass. Father Liwarski will hold short weekly lessons about the Eucharist, the Mass, and Holy Hours for students of the parish school and religious education, including those studying for First Holy Communion, and young people who are involved in the parish’s youth ministry. St. Vincent’s also started a “Eucharistic Corner” column in the bulletin to help educate parishioners and set up a page on its website devoted to Year of the Eucharist with resources that the faithful can access when time permits, Figenshu said.

From the liturgical angle, the parish will add a second Holy Hour on every third Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m., starting on Feb. 15. It will be meditative with lots of time for silence in the “Taize spirit” in front of the Blessed Sacrament. It will join an already established Holy Hour that takes place on Thursdays from 12:45 to 1:45 p.m. Participants pray the rosary and the Divine Mercy chaplet. Holy Hours are livestreamed on St. Vincent’s website, https://www.svmnj.org. At all Masses, the parish added “Remembrance,” for the Eucharistic song, and a Year of the Eucharist prayer, written by Msgr. Hundt. It also printed cards with prayers related to the yearlong observance, said Father Liwarski, who added that the parish also will be participating in the diocesan events for the Year of the Eucharist.

St. Vincent’s is planning “24 Hours for the Lord” Eucharistic Adoration, a papal initiative, to include quiet adoration, rosary, the Divine Mercy chaplet, and the Stations of the Cross, which will be held from after the noon Mass on Friday, March 25 to before the noon Mass on Saturday, March 26, during Lent. Then the parish will hold a Mass, in English and Spanish, and a Holy Hour on Saturday, June 18, starting at 5 p.m., Father Liwarski told The Beacon.

“The Eucharist is the center of our lives and defines us as Catholics. I’m glad that St. Vincent’s is taking a multidimensional approach to helping our parishioners gain a greater understanding of and devotion to the Eucharist,” Msgr. Hundt said.

Plans to develop events for the Year of the Eucharist started with St. Vincent’s asking parishioners for ideas and to volunteer as Eucharistic missionaries as Bishop Sweeney asked parishes to do. On Jan. 22, Msgr. Hundt commissioned the following missionaries, who also serve on the Year of the Eucharist planning committee: Liz Vacchiano, Kathy Larkin, Valarie Friedman, Michael Liddy, Sam Rafter, Alberta Walsh, and Marie Toto.

As a parish, “St. Vincent’s is excited about the Year of the Eucharist,” Figenshu said.

“To understand the Eucharist — the source and summit of who we are as a Catholic people — is to understand what it means to be a follower of Christ. The Year of the Eucharist will help call our parishioners’ attention to that, which is a good thing,” Figenshu said. For a list of diocesan events for the

Year of the Eucharist, go to

https://rcdop.org/year-of-the-eucharist