CSF Exclusive Interview Part III: Entering the Year of Mission

This is the third in a series of reflections by the Perpetual Pilgrims from the St. Junipero Serra Route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage. Included here are the stories of San Francisco seminarians Dereck Delgado and Jimmy Velasco, as well as Charles East, a Columbia University doctoral student from Roanoke, Virgina.

CSF: Did you encounter people who were not Catholic on your journey?

Delgado:
Yes, I remember we were in downtown Salt Lake City. We had just left the Cathedral of the Madeleine, and I was walking at the back of the procession acting as a “caboose,” as they call us, just to make sure everybody’s okay at the back. And as we crossed the street, there was a gentleman who came up to us and asked “So what is this? What’s going on here? Is this a protest or something?” I answered, “No, you know the scripture verse that says, ‘this is My body, this is My blood’? As Catholics, we really believe that. That there, under that canopy, inside that golden frame of the monstrance, that is Jesus Christ Himself present.” And he said, “Well, I’m Mormon, so this is all new to me, but I know what the Mass is. I know what you’re saying. And if you really believe that, I’m going to follow along.” And so, he walked with us for a few blocks.

Velasco:
Another time, when we were traveling in Reno, we had a photographer who was following us throughout the week, and he was so inspired by what we were doing. No one had known whether he was Catholic or not, but by the end of that week, he told one of the pilgrims that he was entering RCIA that weekend. He said he was so inspired by what we were doing, and by the character of our group.

CSF: What a testament to your witness!

East:
And the number of people we were encountering kept increasing. I remember in Illinois we had one procession where we were going through a neighborhood. We weren’t planning for anything big to happen there. It was not a major town or anything, the procession was just from one church to another. And as we passed through the residential neighborhood, people kept on walking out to see what was happening. And then we had some of the perpetual pilgrims explain the procession and the pilgrimage. And then the people would join, which is exactly what was happening in Israel at the time of Jesus. Not all the people following Him knew what was going on, or knew He was the Lord. They would ask, “What is going on here? What’s this guy doing?” And then just followed along for a while to try and figure out what was happening. That’s exactly what it felt like. The crowds were gathering around trying to figure out, who is this? What is happening? There’s something different about this. I’m not sure where those people are now, but for a while, whether they knew it or not, they were walking with Jesus.

CSF:  And then on Tuesday [July 16], walking into Indianapolis, how did that feel completing the journey?

Delgado:
Honestly, personally, it hasn’t hit me yet. There’s so much to process. There’s so many experiences, so many faces that we met along the way, just so much to unpack. And I think it’s going to take us a little longer before it finally just hits us that this is done. I can’t believe we’re in Indianapolis. It feels like the pilgrimage is still happening. I am just thinking, next week, okay, what diocese are we going to be in next week?

And I think once we get back home, once we just sit in silence and just rest in our places of origin, like in our homes, I think that’s when it’s going to hit us. Wow, we just did something incredible. And the Apostles, when our Lord left them and they were just sitting together in the upper room, can you imagine? Saying to themselves, “Can you believe what just happened?” I don’t know. Maybe our Lord will come to us and say, “Yeah, that happened.”

Velasco:
I think for me, as we were processing onto that bridge, you could see the city in the background and the stadium. I was just saying to myself, “That’s the promised land. We’re almost there.” And right as we make it to the church, the bells are chiming Tantum Ergo. And our friar, who was with us that week, gave a simple blessing outside of the church.  Following the blessing, only the Serra Route pilgrims were allowed into the church.

And then, that’s where I felt so much emotion—that we had finished this long, long journey for two months and that we accomplished the impossible. Bishop Cozzens mentioned that at the final Mass too, that, quite frankly, he was convinced this pilgrimage was impossible. For us to make it to the church finally, after so many days of exhaustion, of heat, of driving, we had made our goal. It was very emotional, at least for me. And then, yesterday [July 17], walking into the stadium on the first night of the Congress with thousands of people there, it made it more emotional for me, considering all that we went through, for everyone to welcome us. It was incredible.

CSF: And Dereck, what did it feel like for you walking in? There were 50,000 people there to welcome you.

Delgado:
It was electrifying because there was just so much energy that was there. Everybody was just so happy. I was thinking of how unworthy I am as everybody was standing and clapping. I was thinking, I don’t think this is for us. I don’t think this is for the pilgrims at all. I think there’s something deeper here. Because right behind us is the Creator of the universe, who created all things, created us, who organized all of this here. We cooperated with His grace, and He’s going to follow us in. I think I just want to point back to Him like, this isn’t it. I’m here because of Him, not because of me, and we’re just His instruments. That’s what I felt walking in. I’ll never forget it.

CSF: Have you been able to talk with the other perpetual pilgrims on the different routes about their experiences?

Delgado:
We had a dinner together and the routes were able to share their stories about what happened, their experiences, the highs and the lows. We got a little bit of that, but right now we’re all really sitting in silent prayer. I think everybody is unpacking the pilgrimage as well, not just us.

CSF:  Are there plans to come back together and stay in contact?

Delgado:
The  Franciscan Friars of the Renewal are organizing a retreat in April for the perpetual pilgrims who can make it for a reunion. And they’re also giving us some homework to do, just some things to process and work through and see how we’ve grown from now until that point.

This whole pilgrimage is ending at this Congress, but it’s going beyond that. The whole point of the Eucharistic Revival is to lead beyond this Congress, to be missionaries in our homes, and to bring the Eucharist to others, to bring that revival to others.

CSF:In this Year of Mission, how do you plan to bring your experience back to St. Patrick’s Seminary & University and the Archdiocese of San Francisco?

Velasco:
We want to share our experience and stories with the community at St. Patrick’s Seminary and with our parishes. I would also like to encourage our parishes to really consider doing processions more frequently, because it’s through Eucharistic processions that we take Jesus Christ Himself to the streets. In this Year of Mission, we are tasked to bring others along with us in this journey. We could start just by doing a procession. Whether that’s a block or two blocks or a mile or two miles, it doesn’t matter how long, Jesus will bless your parish abundantly.

Delgado:
I think our takeaway for both of us is going to be processions. I’d love to see more processions in the Archdiocese. It’s a very Catholic thing to do. Over time, as parishes adapt, we lose those things. We lose sight of the important things that have invigorated our faith. And I think Eucharistic processions, walking with Jesus, is something I hope to bring back to parishes, to help them see the importance of it, not just on Corpus Christi, but for other special events, like the feast of their patron saint. Let’s do a Eucharistic procession. Let’s bring our Lord out into the streets, not just around the church. Let’s go into the streets. People will see our faith. Our faith is not meant to be hidden, it’s meant to be shown, shown to others. I think I’d like to promote that. I really hope that this will be a life-changing moment for our Archdiocese, to see how Eucharistic processions and public witness of our faith have changed others in this Eucharistic Revival.

CSF: And what have you learned about our Lord in the Eucharist that you would want to bring back to the Archdiocese and work into your charism as a future priest?

Delgado:
I would go back to the wounded healer. That just sticks with me. That our Lord is someone who’s going to lay down His life for me. And that’s the meaning of friendship, the meaning of love, to not only have this passing emotion to share with somebody, but to actually be willing to give your life for them and will the good for them. Someone who understands that fully and infinitely as our Lord Jesus Christ does, and He does it for us on the cross, I think I just want to bring that to others.

Velasco:
I would say the same thing. Many people have asked us to pray for their healing, whether that be spiritual, physical, psychological, or whatever it may be. Jesus Christ desires to give us that healing if we ask for it. That’s something that I have learned from this pilgrimage, as long as you ask Him full of faith, and if you desire it, He’s waiting to give it to you.

CSF: Well, I think those are all my questions. Is there anything else that you want to share with the Archdiocese of San Francisco?

Delgado:
I think, as we traveled, a lot of people were very surprised that it started in San Francisco. And I think this is a moment for everyone to see the faith in San Francisco, the city of St. Francis, and the whole West Coast. Our Lord has consecrated this land. Our Lord has consecrated California.

There’s a lot of healing we’re going to bring to our country, but also to our state with this Eucharistic Revival. And I think we just need to trust in our Lord—that He can work even through the most difficult circumstances, and that we don’t despair. There is always hope. I think our work in the Church will be stronger, bringing that love to others, it’s going to be stronger.

I also want to thank St. Stephen’s parish. They’ve been praying for me the whole way, and I’m just so grateful, because I think that sustained me in the most difficult moments.

Velasco:
I want to, again, express my gratitude to all the parishioners and all the people of our Archdiocese for remembering us in their prayers and for thinking about us as we traveled these months. There were many days that were very challenging. Obviously, being in a van for two months is not easy. So, I thank our people at the Archdiocese for remembering us, for thinking about us daily and praying for us and offering their own sacrifices for us and their prayers that they asked us to carry. Thank you especially to everyone at the Church of the Epiphany, St. Matthew’s parish, Monsignor Talesfore, and all the staff for remembering me as well. A profound gratitude to them, to the Archbishop, to our priests, just to everyone. We made it. We did it.

Photos: Jacob Bentzinger