For an event as large as the 10th National Eucharistic Congress, of course, Catholic media, including Aleteia, were in full force in Indianapolis. There was also a good representation from secular media, even with competition from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, attention to President Joe Biden’s decision about his future, and other big news stories last week.
The New York Times’ religion reporter Ruth Graham published a major story on Sunday, replete with a lot of photos from the Congress. Graham examined the work of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to restore belief in the Eucharist, leading to the four-day event in Indianapolis. She included a section explaining how the bishops of the country were worried when the Pew Research Center published a survey in 2019 showing how belief among Catholics had plummeted, but mentioned a later survey, conducted by the University of Notre Dame, calling into question some of Pew’s findings.
Graham nicely contrasted the raucous atmosphere that normally fills the Lucas Oil Stadium, home to the Indianapolis Colts, with the near-absolute silence that prevailed when Bishop Andrew Cozzens processed into the arena with the Eucharistic Monstrance on the first night of the Congress.
One interesting aspect of Graham’s report was inclusion of archival footage from a National Eucharistic Congress decades ago, and a photo showing New York Gov. Alfred E. Smith, a Catholic who ran for U.S. president as a Democrat in 1932, on his knees holding a set of rosary beads.
Associated Press also took note of the reverent silence that prevailed in the Lucas Oil Stadium when Catholics were kneeling in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. AP’s Peter Smith mentioned another survey, this one by the Georgetown University-affiliated Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, which in 2022 “used multiple phrasings and found that 64% of Catholics expressed belief in Jesus’ presence in the Eucharist in at least one response, as did virtually all who attended Mass weekly.”
The article, published on Thursday, was picked up by The Washington Post, among others.
Local coverage
Indianapolis’ daily newspaper, the IndyStar, had at least two journalists covering their big local story – reporter Noe Padilla and photographer Brett Phelps.
“As the Eucharist was guided through downtown Indianapolis by Bishop Andrew Cozzens, Bishop Robert Barron and members of the clergy, hundreds knelt as Christ passed them on the streets, prayed to Him and reached out to Him,” Padilla wrote on Sunday.
In a separate piece, Phelps treats readers to a whole gallery of photos he shot at the Congress, including some attendees obviously experiencing some very emotional moments.
Local TV Station Channel 13-WTHR had several spots on the air about the Congress, including one in which reporter Sia Nyorkor interviewed attendees.
“The only reason we’re here is because of Jesus and the Eucharist,” said Justin Victor, who brought his family from Beaver, Pennsylvania.
There were TV stations from other parts of the country doing spots on the Congress as well.
Also of note was The Wall Street Journal’s decision to publish a long essay by Fr. Roger Landry, Catholic chaplain at Columbia University, on his experience of accompanying one of the four routes of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage.
“For the past two months, I’ve carried Jesus 2 inches from my face for several hours a day,” Fr. Landry began, in an article titled “A 6,500-mile walk with Christ.” "The experience, part of a nationwide Eucharistic pilgrimage, has made me the luckiest priest in the U.S.”
