51st International Eucharistic Congress And The Pilgrim Symbol

Here comes another post for this day. Sorry I have so many pending posts to publish this week so please bear with me. Anyway, I’m so lucky that I was chosen to be one of the delegates to attend this very important event in behalf of our organization (Legion of Mary). It’s the 51st International Eucharistic Congress. It is an international gathering of people aimed at promoting an awareness of the central place of the Eucharist in the life and mission of the Catholic Church. The Congress normally takes place every four years in different counties around the world and the Philippines was lucky enough to be chosen for the 51st Eucharistic Congress venue. The Congress proper will take place this coming January 20-22, 2016 in Cebu Philippines but prior to it, the Pilgrim symbol will be carried over from one diocese to another all over the country. It started in Dumaguete City on January 25, 2015 and it is currently on the diocese of Imus Cavite where the Pilgrim symbol was transferred from one church to another. Yesterday (July 13, 2015), the Pilgrim symbol was carried to the Parish of Sta Cruz.
 The entrance to the historical church, the Centennial ArchSteel plate design with etched images depicting the historical oathtaking in Tanza Cavite.
The welcome banner for the IEC 2016 symbol. The Sta Cruz Church beside the Convent.
Interestingly, the Pilgrim Symbol is inspired from the popular Magellan Shrine in Cebu. The International Eucharistic Congress over the years has developed the tradition of choosing a symbol, with the inspiration of the World Youth Day Cross, that will embody and represent the spirit and identity of the place where it is to be held.
They have chosen such symbol for many reasons, first of all, the Cross of Magellan symbolizes the Christianization of the Philippines, whose beginnings can be traced to the year 1521. The Cross of Jesus Christ, a relic of which is embedded within the Cross of Magellan, is truly our hope of glory. It is when we embrace the Cross of the Lord that Jesus comes to be in us, thus the theme of the Congress: “Christ in us is our hope of glory.”
The shrine that contains the Cross of Magellan symbolizes the Church which is the mystical Body of Christ. When the Church celebrates the Eucharist, Christ is truly in us, our hope of Glory.
The Cross of Magellan symbolizes the call to mission to all the Gentiles. Although the means of evangelization in the past need to be purified, the Cross, itself a symbol of contradiction, will be the principle of its purification. The Cross of Christ becomes the way of the New Evangelization – proclamation of the love and compassion of Jesus through the witness of our lives. [ Source of info taken from http://iec2016.ph/]
The speaker for the Congress was Rev Fr Eleomer Deldiego.