Walking As Pilgrim

This summer, I initially thought I would be working at Panda Express, but God had other plans. Instead, what I received was a 12-passenger van packed with the king of the universe and 6 (soon to be 7) strangers on a one-way trip to Indianapolis. I had the privilege of being a perpetual pilgrim for the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage. I got to take two months of my life to walk with Jesus across the country and bring Him to others. Authentically, this summer was an extension of Jesus’ earthly mission here in the United States. Jesus and His disciples would go from town to town preaching the Gospel and be witnesses of the resurrection. This was exactly what the pilgrimage aimed to imitate.

There were many stories of encounter, but I want to begin with the first stop of the pilgrimage: Brownsville Texas. What made this small town beautiful was not its landscape nor its exquisite churches but rather the people of God. You could see the fire of faith burning within the people of Brownsville as they processed with our Lord through the streets. To paint you a picture of how devoted these people are, we had to end our first public procession early because many faithful pilgrims were undeterred by the blistering heat and would have kept following our Lord till they dropped. One woman in particular, named Patricia, deeply inspired us by her great faith. She could not walk very well and used a cane but despite this, she committed herself to joining the processions. She even bought a tricycle and rode it throughout Texas! There were so many more encounter stories that could be told, but Brownsville still holds a special place in my heart.

I experienced this great love for Our Lord in so many ways and so many churches this summer. Jesus set the country on fire with much longing to see the flames leap up. In recent memory, it has been very easy to be inundated with discouragement because of the sins and failures of bishops, priests, and laymen.. However, this summer was a much-needed breath of life for our Church here in America. Everywhere the team and I went, we could see the mystical body of Christ come together to build new hope for the next generation. Jesus drew all people to Himself so that he might bring us back to life and restore our hope. The pilgrimage and congress brought over 60,000 pilgrims and put our Eucharistic Lord as the heart and center of the world.

The pilgrimage made me realize how much I desired to be a priest and how much I longed to return to the seminary. The pilgrimage itself was very priestly by nature: as a pilgrim, I brought Jesus to His people. He could have chosen anyone else, but instead, He chose me to participate in His priestly love for His people. I accredit this strengthening of the desire to how much time I spend with the Lord Jesus in the Eucharist. Though most times I do not feel like anything is going on, Jesus the divine surgeon is transforming my heart to be more and more like His. This is what Jesus did to the country this summer, and this is what He wants to do to the whole world and to your own heart. 

Dylan Young is a College II Seminarian for the Archdiocese of Washington