SHEEPSHEAD BAY — Put hundreds of pre-teens and teens in one spot, and there’s bound to be a ruckus, but the opposite happened March 3 at St. Mark Church.
The church opened its doors to 500 seventh- and eighth-grade Catholic school students for a Eucharistic rally — one of 10 planned this academic year in the diocese.
RELATED: USCCB Calls For Adoration Hours, Works Of Mercy To Celebrate America’s 250th Anniversary
The rally involved praise and worship music, reciting the Rosary, and silent prayer before a monstrance containing the Eucharist on the altar.
After the event, Deacon Kevin McCormack, the diocese’s superintendent of schools, marveled at how the students adhered to quiet reverence during the period of silent prayer.
“The kids bought into it,” he said. “Maybe I was (fidgeting), but the kids weren’t. They were focused. They experience the majesty and the mystery of the Eucharist.”
Salvatore Palmeri, an eighth-grade student from St. Bernard Catholic Academy in Mill Basin, said the event brought him peace.
“I really appreciated that we were quiet,” he said. “I do feel like I meditated for two hours. With everything that’s going on, it’s really nice to have a break and just relax.”
John O’Brien, associate superintendent, said six of the Eucharistic rallies are scheduled for some time during Lent, four during Advent.
Middle schoolers from seven diocesan schools attended, including the host school, St. Mark Catholic Academy. Others were Our Lady of Grace Catholic Academy, Gravesend; Good Shepherd Catholic Academy, Sheepshead Bay; St. Edmund Elementary School, Sheepshead Bay; St. Bernard Catholic Academy, Mill Basin; Midwood Catholic Academy, Marine Park; and Our Lady of Trust Catholic Academy, Canarsie.
Father Robert Mucci, pastor of The Parish of St. Mark-St. Margaret Mary had a pointed question for the youthful congregation.
“Boys and girls,” he asked, “do you believe in miracles? You’d better say yes!”
He reminded them that the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is no “mere symbol.”
“It’s not just a remembrance,” he added. “At every Mass, we witness a miracle as our gift of bread and wine are transformed. We truly believe that once those words of consecration are uttered, those substances truly become the body and blood of our Lord.”
Victoria Charles, an eighth grader at Our Lady of Trust, said she is a Baptist, but the rally helped prepare her heart for Lent.
“For me, it was a bit of a surprise,” she said. “I didn’t expect this many people to be here, and I think it was cool to see how we were all, in unison, praying. I think it was a great time to reflect on what I want to improve during this Lenten season.”
After the rally, Father Mucci agreed that the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist can be hard for children to understand because it’s also a mystery to many adults.
But these students, he observed, were on a journey to discover the mysteries of faith.
“They’re bombarded with so many things on social media and TV and everything else,” he said. “So, learning how to do this doesn’t come naturally. They have to learn.
“But it’s so very beautiful, and so very necessary.”
