At the end of the the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress in Quito, the much anticipated news of whether Sydney would host the next one in 2028 was revealed.
“I announce that the 54th International Eucharistic Congress will take place in the city of Sydney,” announced the delegate for Pope Francis at the final Mass in Quito, as Australians erupted with joy.
And at the end of the closing Mass, a delegation took to the podium to present their first message. A painting by Paul Newton that shows a piece of history, the first Catholic community in Sydney praying before the Eucharist at the beginning of the 19th century, when the English authorities hindered the celebration of the sacraments to the few Catholic priests present on the island.
“Super, super exciting. It’s been an amazing week here in Quito to see what the congress is about. And I just cannot wait until Sydney has it in 2028. It’ll be just fantastic.,” said an Australian pilgrim.
“It’s been a while since we’ve had a big Catholic conference, so this is just going to be incredible. And we feel incredibly blessed. And I know we’re going to put our own spin on it and make it the best it will be,” added another pilgrim from Australia.
The Archbishop of Sydney acknowledged that hosting an International Eucharistic Congress is a great opportunity to revive the faith.
“It was very exciting. We’ve been trying for several years now, negotiating with the Vatican about being a potential host, and at last it has come to fruition,” Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP said.
“Now, the big job begins. I think that in all sorts of ways, it will help to renew our parish life in Australia and in the period post-Covid.
“We’ve not quite got back to normal and our normal isn’t good enough anyway, because there’s many people not there on Sunday, that this will be a chance to get the whole community together, celebrating with our Lord.”
2028 marks 100 years since Australia hosted its last International Eucharistic Congress. It is an opportunity for the whole church to place the Eucharist at its centre. And Australia also hopes that it will renew the faith of the country’s own Catholics.