PROSPECT HEIGHTS — In an effort to localize the U.S. bishops’ National Eucharistic Revival, the eight New York dioceses have come together to sponsor a statewide Eucharistic Congress. 

The event will take place at Our Lady of Martyrs Shrine in Auriesville, New York, Oct. 20-22, 2023. It will include a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, speakers, and “opportunities for prayer and adoration before the Blessed Sacrament, and time to socialize,” according to Bishop Edward Scharfenberger of Albany, a chair of the event. 

“We look forward to welcoming upwards of 10,000 people to the Eucharistic Congress, who want to draw closer to Jesus and share in this historic three-day event,” Bishop Scharfenberger said in a statement, adding that the congress “will be a wonderful time to renew our faith in Jesus, and share that faith with others.” 

The National Eucharistic Revival is a an initiative sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops that “aims to restore understanding and fidelity to the great mystery of Jesus really and truly present in the Eucharist and to encourage all Catholics to make the Eucharist the source and summit of their faith.” 

The initiative was launched on Corpus Christi Sunday last June, and will culminate with a National Eucharistic Revival in July 2024 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, with more than 80,000 Catholics expected to attend. 

For the New York Eucharistic Congress, the location — just outside of Amsterdam N.Y. —  is the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs, is the site of the 17th-century martyrdoms of Jesuit missionaries Sts. Isaac Jogues, Rene Goupil, and Jean Lalande and the birth of the first Native American saint, St. Kateri Tekakwitha. St. Jogues is famous for his love for the Mass and St. Tekakwitha for her love for Eucharistic Adoration. 

The Shrine’s Coliseum, built in 1931 in response to the canonization of the martyred Jesuit missionaries, is the largest church building in the United States, holding 10,000. 

Interested Catholics can go to https://nyseucharisticcongress.org for more information and to register for the New York Eucharistic Congress. The website, launched by the bishops of New York state, will be regularly updated with information, including a complete schedule of events, speakers, and religious services, according to a news release announcing the event.