A United States bishop has endorsed Australia’s bid to host the 2028 International Eucharistic Congress, promising “if Sydney does it, I will be there”. Source: The Catholic Weekly.
Chairman of the US’s 10th National Eucharistic Congress, Bishop Andrew Cozzens, was speaking on the eve of the first major Catholic event to be held in the US since the COVID pandemic, declaring a Sydney-based International Eucharistic Congress would be gift to the world.
“I think it would be wonderful. I think it would be a wonderful thing for Australia in general to host such an important event and I am sure while it will be a lot of work, the fruit that comes from that kind of event is incredible,” Bishop Cozzens said.
As the leader of the Crookston Diocese in Minnesota, Bishop Cozzens said the Australian and American churches share a common bond, facing many shared challenges in an increasingly secularised world.
“It has to do with the direction of the culture in general, since the culture has become secularised, that’s really affected the Church,” he said.
However, Bishop Cozzens believes that the challenges are only making the Church stronger, citing a growing Eucharistic revival in both the US and Australia.
“That’s kind of an ironic truth, the Church always goes stronger when its resisted and so it’s in some ways better for the Church to be counter cultural.”
Like in Australia, the US Church has seen a resurgence following the COVID-19 pandemic, with more Catholics passionately looking for opportunities to gather in celebration and prayer.
“I think the COVID crisis was a bit of a wake-up call for all of us for all of us about the centrality and importance of the Eucharist and how much we need it, and how it’s the source of our strength,” Bishop Cozzens said.
As the Australian Catholic Bishop’s Conference delegate to the congress, Sydney Auxiliary Bishop Richard Umbers said he was in awe of the size and scope of the US event.
“I fully expect to see joy, faith and goodness in spades on display here in Indianapolis – all fruits of the Church alive with the Holy Spirit,” Bishop Umbers said.
The 10th National Eucharistic Congress begins in Indianapolis today.
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Leading US Bishop supports Australian bid to host International Eucharistic Congress (By Marcus Middleton, The Catholic Weekly)
