28th International Eucharistic Congress

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28th International Eucharistic Congress
General meeting at Soldier Field on June 21
DateJune 20–24, 1926
LocationChicago, Illinois, United States
TypeEucharistic congress
Organized byRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago

The 28th International Eucharistic Congress was held in

Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary. Some sources claim that approximately 1 million people attended the closing day mass held at the seminary in nearby Mundelein, Illinois
.

The congress is considered a major event in the

Protestant
United States.

Background

Protestant elites.[6] At the time, Chicago was home to slightly over 3 million people,[7][8] of whom 880,000 were Catholic, prompting historian Thomas Doherty to refer to the city as "the nation's most Catholic city."[9]

Preparations for the event

Soldier Field, one of the venues for the congress

In March 1925,

American flags were flown prominently throughout the stadium,[13] which, according to historian Liam T. A. Ford, represented "Cardinal Mundelein's wish to emphasize the loyalty of U.S. Catholics to their country."[14]

In February, the congress was discussed in a bulletin published by the

National Catholic Welfare Conference, with dates for the event set for June 20–24 of that year.[15] In the leadup to the event, Catholic officials from around the world began to make preparations for attending. A meeting of all the bishops in Poland occurred in March, where they selected a bishop, a priest, and a professor from the University of Lublin as their primary ambassadors, while in Mexico, church officials planned for what was later described in a 2009 book as their "largest pilgrimage ever to a foreign country".[6] In all, over 900 Catholics from Mexico arrived in Chicago from chartered trains.[3][4] In April, members of the German delegation had already arrived in the city and began actively planning their events for the congress. Among the venues that were used, the French delegation was to use the 16th Street Armory, the German delegation was assigned the Broadway Armory, and the Italian delegation used the Municipal Pier.[6] The pier also hosted a Catholic art exhibition.[3]

Also starting in early 1926, the

Orchestra Hall movie theater in the city played The Miracle at Lourdes, a 1926 French film that dramatized the story of Our Lady of Lourdes.[19]

Papal delegation arrives

On June 6, a group consisting of 6 cardinals and 60 bishops, serving as the Pope's delegation to the congress, embarked from France to the United States aboard the

city aldermen. Large crowds gathered to see the delegation, and while there was police presence to prevent disorder, multiple members of the crowd managed to kiss Bonzano's ecclesiastical ring. Bonzano was escorted by Mundelein to Holy Name Cathedral, where he gave a blessing.[10] Speaking later to the Chicago Tribune, Bonzano had the following to say regarding the city and the importance of the event:[25]

I join with the rest of the world in offering to Chicago my heartiest congratulations on the proud pinnacle of success to which it has attained. … From an outpost on the shore of Lake Michigan to her present size, she shows a development for which history has no parallel. … Her unprecedented growth offers a field for the utmost rational conjecture. Be that conjecture as each one wishes it, may not the selection of your city by the vicar of Christ for the first Eucharistic Congress in the United States indicate the beginning of its realization; for I consider no greater blessing has ever come to your city than the one the Holy Father conferred upon her when he selected Chicago for this congress.

A program for the congress listed the arrival of the papal legate as the "unofficial opening" of the congress.

sight-seeing tour of the city.[22]

Course of the event

Holy Name Cathedral, site of the opening mass for the congress

On June 20, a Sunday, at churches throughout the

Quigley Preparatory Seminary, 500 monsignors, 300 bishops, 60 archbishops, and 10 cardinals. The procession was watched by approximately 250,000 spectators and was regarded as being one of the largest gathering of prelates in modern times outside of Rome. Loudspeakers, a relatively recent invention, were used in the procession, which was also broadcast via radio and aired at churches across the United States.[5] The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, accompanied by a choir composed of choral members from both Saint Mary of the Lake and Quigley, performed for the congress's opening mass at Holy Name Cathedral, playing a piece written by New York City-based composer Pietro Yon.[3]

The second day, deemed Children's Day, featured a large mass held at Soldier Field. With over 400,000 participants either in the

Knights of Malta, led the procession for the mass.[5] The third day, Women's Day, saw a general meeting held again at Soldier Field attended by approximately 250,000 women,[5] which included approximately 20,000 religious sisters.[3][4] Two choirs composed, respectively, of 6,000 nuns and 3,500 women members of local choirs sang a mass written by composer Vito Carnevali.[3] In the evening, approximately 225,000 men (with approximately 50,000 more outside the stadium) processed into Soldier Field, each holding a candle, which was the only source of light as they listened to sermons.[5] On June 23, deemed Higher Education Day, a mass written by Johann Baptist Singenberger was performed by 3,000 high school and college students.[3]

June 24 was the final day of the congress, with closing events scheduled to take place at the

first aid tents were set up around the campus, as were several drinking fountains. At 4 a.m., when the gates of the seminary opened, 12,000 were waiting to enter.[5]

The

Blessed Sacrament. The procession stretched for nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) and consisted of 12 cardinals, 275 archbishops and bishops, and 100 monsignors, among many others.[5] The Chicago Daily News, which covered the closing day ceremony, was able to print photographs of the event in their paper that same day by transporting the photographs via airplane.[30] The poet Carl Sandburg was also in attendance throughout the congress as a journalist of the Chicago Daily News.[31]

Newsreels

The congress as a whole was covered by two

Attendance

While exact figures for the attendance at the congress are debatable, almost all sources agree that the congress attracted several hundred thousand attendees. In his request to Pope Pius XI, Mundelein stated that the congress would attract 1 million attendees.[1] This number was repeated in a 1926 issue of Railway Age and subsequently claimed in a 2009 book by historian Liam T. A. Ford.[34][2] A 1926 article published in The New York Times states that up to 1 million people were expected to attend the closing ceremony at Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary.[35] A 2017 article in the Chicago Catholic similarly claims that "[a]bout 1 million people" attended the closing mass.[3] However, a 1999 article in the National Catholic Register claims that the closing session was attended by approximately 850,000 people, while the opening session was attended by approximately 1.5 million individuals.[28] A 2019 article published by the University of Saint Mary of the Lake uses a similar value of "more than 800,000" attendees at the closing ceremony.[5] In a 2007 book, historian Thomas Doherty claims that the city at the time was home to approximately 880,000 Catholics and attracted over 500,000 additional Catholics to the city.[9] According to contemporary records from the Chicago New World, approximately 8.3 million people participated in the congress from the arrival of the papal delegation on June 17. However, this number is most likely inflated due to double counting.[3]

Impact and legacy

The congress was considered a significant moment in the

graduation ceremony." He argues that the success of the event helped push Catholics in the country from the margins of society to the mainstream.[36] A 2000 article in the Chicago Tribune echoes these sentiments, stating that "the 1926 Eucharistic Congress ushered in an era of cultural power and institutional success for the church in Chicago".[37] The University of Saint Mary of the Lake claims that this event, along with the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893 and the Century of Progress world's fair of 1933–34, "put Chicago 'on the map' in its early life."[5] Doherty makes a similar connection between the congress and the city's world's fairs, saying "Not since the storied World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 had the Second City hosted such first-class festivities."[9] Ford claims that a mass held at Soldier Field during the congress may actually hold the record for largest single event held at the stadium, a record officially held by a Catholic Holy Hour event that happened in 1954.[2]

Convent for the Benedictine Sisters in Libertyville, Illinois

Following the congress, the

Militia Immaculata.[28]

While attending the congress, Bishop

Notes

  1. David Kertzer claims that the cardinals arrived in Chicago on June 11.[21] However, this is refuted by contemporary sources, including the program for the conference and an article in The New York Times, that state that the delegation arrived on June 17.[22][23] Additionally, Kertzer gives the year for the congress as 1927 instead of 1926.[24]

References

Sources

Further reading

External links