Fr. Henry Nguyen, SCJ, province vocation director, wrote a reflection about his personal Eucharistic missionary journey. He and other members of our vocation team recently took part in the National Eucharistic Congress (National Eucharistic Revival) in Indianapolis July 17-21.
“My Eucharistic Missionary Journey has been a long time in the making since I joined the Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Movement (VEYM.net) when I was eight years old, growing up in California,” wrote Fr. Henry. “I have always attributed the VEYM for my vocation to the priesthood and religious life. At eight I could barely comprehend what it meant to receive the Eucharist and what my journey of faith would look like, but it led me to where I am today…
“In my mid-20s, I found myself unfulfilled in my career and believed that I was made for more. I wasn’t sure of what that meant, but I wanted to give God a chance and see if the vocation to the priesthood and religious life was meant for me. This led me to discern with the Priests of the Sacred Heart (Dehonians). I fell in love with the community because of its communal devotion to the Eucharist and the Dehonians’ service to the poor, the outcasts, and the marginalized. Our founder, Fr. Dehon, stated that our mission ‘in a spirit of love and oblation, entailed Eucharistic adoration’ (CST 31).
“This sense of mission doesn’t only mean foreign missions but simply to go out into the world to proclaim God’s love.
“A few weeks ago, I had the privilege in taking part in the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage in a way I couldn’t have imagined. The pilgrimage made a stop at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology, and I was asked to assist with the benediction and with a part of the procession towards St. Martin of Tours…
“This past weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the 10th National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, IN, promoting our religious community in the Exhibit Hall of the Indiana Convention Center. I joined 50,000 other attendees from all parts of the world. It was beautiful to witness and to be part of a Eucharistic movement where we gathered for the Holy Mass, and spent time exploring our first vocation, the universal call to holiness. I think our Constitution No. 28 speaks of what happened this past weekend where ‘eager for the Lord’s intimacy, we search for the signs of His presence in the lives of people, where His saving love is active.’
“His presence is right in front of us, in the Eucharist and in each other.” Click here to read Fr. Henry’s full reflection.
