U.S.-based Filipinos highly visible in Int’l Eucharistic Congress

From left to right: Evelyn Delfin, CPA, Moises Selma and his spouse, Evelyn Dira Selma flanking Father Mar Balili, who was in charge of the liturgy, and Father Jan Limchua, a visiting Vatican City diplomat who traveled all the way from Benin, West Africa. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

CEBU CITY—U.S.-based Filipinos were highly visible at the 51st International Eucharistic Congress.

Shirley Figueroa Lascano, one of the many “pilgrims” representing Brooklyn and Queens, New York, noted on TheTablet.org:  “On the final weekend of the pilgrimage, we participated in a Mass for 5,000 first communicants, celebrated by Archbishop Emeritus of Cebu, Cardinal Ricardo Vidal, who received his First Communion during the 33rd Eucharistic Congress, in the Philippines in 1937.”

Following the IEC, organizers were guests at a luncheon hosted by one of Cebu’s furniture designers, Vito Selma, at the House of Lechon on Acacia Street, Cebu City.

The congress, which took four years to plan, was all about “the experience of faith”, that in spite of poverty, the Catholic spiritual festival expressed its faith through singing, eating and celebrating the Filipino way. There were 15,000 registered delegates from at least 73 countries who attended the IEC’s activities.

Those who could not attend the symposium went to the outdoor masses, estimated at more than a million attendees. Another highlight was an “evening torch-light procession stretching over 5 kilometers and witnessing the participation of nearly two million people.” The African delegation traveled the longest distance while the largest group came from Taiwan, 600 delegates who chartered a plane.

Pope Francis, during his videotaped message to the IEC, announced that the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress will be held in Budapest, Hungary, in 2020. For more information: www.IEC2016.ph.

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