Another photo...

... from the International Eucharistic Congress in Chicago, 1926.



We need our Catholic identity back. We need people who practice their faith inside and outside a church building. We need people who know what it means to be Catholic. We need people who know what it means to be part of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. In an age where the most simple, unlearned but pious peasant woman sometimes seems to know more about her faith than an educated theologian (if not priest or even bishop), we need Catholic heroes, witnesses, martyrs. And we need them now. The only places in Europe where the faith seems not to be dying are traditional communities or monasteries with a history that goes way back. This is not enough. So I encourage you to pray. I will.

Once upon a time in France...

This magnificent photo is from France. The Cardinal in the middle is Louis-Henri-Joseph Cardinal Luçon, Archbishop of Reims from 1906 to 1930. The Cardinal to his right looks like Francis Cardinal Bourne, Archbishop of Westminster from 1903 to 1935. The prelate in watered silk on the far right could be Bonaentura Ceretti, Papal Nuncio to France from 1921 to 1931.

More from Munich 1960

27 Cardinals 82, archbishops and 329 bishops from all over the world were present at the International Eucharistic Congress. Here are some photos from a procession.

The List

Here is the list of the cardinals you can see in the group-shot.

From left to right:

1.) Chiarlo
2.) Cento
3.) Fietta
4.) Giobbe
5.) Urbani
6.) Montini
7.) Ciriaci
8.) Agagianian
9.) Copello
10.) Tappouni
11.) Cicognani, G.
12.) Mimmi (Borgangini-Duca died in 1954)
13.) Aloisi Masella
14.) Pizzardo
15.) Micara
16.) Tisserant
Blessed John XXIII
17.) Canali
18.) Ottaviani
19.) di Jorio
20.) Julien
21.) Morano
22.) Heard
23.) Bea (never would have figured that one out)
24.) Bacci
25.) Traglia
26.) Muench
27.) Testa
28.) Marella
29.) Tardini
30.) Confalonieri
31.) Cicognani, A.

Thanks to Fr. Selvester and a whole bunch of anonymous readers for contributing!

Group-Shot

If anyone is able to name all these cardinals, he or she will receive the title of "Cardinal-Recognizer Supreme". I find the one to the right of Testa and the one to the left of Heard especially hard.

Eucharistic Congress in Lourdes, 1914

“Jesus Christ, past, in the historical truth of the evening in the Upper Room, to which every celebration of holy Mass leads us back.

Jesus Christ, present, because he said to us: ‘Take and eat of this, all of you, this is my body, this is my blood’. ‘This is', in the present, here and now, as in every here and now throughout human history. The real presence, the presence which surpasses our poor lips, our poor hearts, our poor thoughts. The presence offered for us to gaze upon as we do here, this evening, close to the grotto where Mary revealed herself as the Immaculate Conception.

The Eucharist is also Jesus Christ, future, Jesus Christ to come.

When we contemplate the sacred host, his glorious transfigured and risen Body, we contemplate what we shall contemplate in eternity, where we shall discover that the whole world has been carried by its Creator during every second of its history. Each time we consume him, but also each time we contemplate him, we proclaim him until he comes again, donec veniat. That is why we receive him with infinite respect.”

Benedict XVI, September 14th 2008, Lourdes

Fleamarket-Find

Every once in a while I browse through fleamarkets or garage sales or second hand stores looking for old postcards with "far sight"-material. I was very surprised when I found a whole album full of private photos from church ceremonies in Germany. There was a series of pics showing Julius Döpfner from the years before he became a cardinal, probably from his Berlin years.







"Note to self: Get bigger car or smaller hat!"

Clemente Cardinal Micara in Cologne

In an earlier post I wrote about Clemente Cardinal Micara and the impact he made on the people of Cologne when he came to the still war torn town on occasion of the 700 year anniversary of the cathedral in 1948 (The faithful called it "The red feast" because of all the cardinals who participated in the ceremonies).

I once met an old lady, who was there in 1948. She told me that "If you don't count the Divine persons, the cute fat Italian guy definitely was the star" (She had forgotten his name).

Here are some more pictures from these days:


The Cardinal arrives (killer car in the back!)


Same day, same occasion, but suddenly the cushion on the kneeler is gone.


Walking in procession. You can see how messed up Cologne still was in these years.


You can also see how many of the thousands of people who wanted to get a glimpse of the cardinal even climbed the heaps of rubble.


The procession, again.


Under a canopy with Joseph Cardinal Frings to the right (and in the shade).


"It would be so un-Christian, but if this guy doesn't lay off my rochet, I'm afraid I will have to smack him!"


"That's all, folks!"

The 28th International Eucharistic Congress

It would be tempting to call what happened in Chicago between the 20th and the 24th of June in 1926 an "event", but I wont do it, because the term "event" is applied to pretty much anything nowadays.

The 28th International Eucharistic Congress was the largest religious meeting America ever witnessed. 13 cardinals, about 500 bishops, approximately 5000 priests from all corners of the world, 12.000 nuns and one million of Catholics turned Soldiers Field into the heart of the world. Here are some (rather small) images I found:

The Papal Legate, Giovanni Cardinal Bonzano:





The Cardinals:










The masses:






Apparently the faithful consumed ten tons of hot dogs during the congress. Trains started to bring the crowds to the ceremonies as early as 4 a.m., running at two-minute intervals. Photos from services held in near-by Mundelein (yes, as in "Cardinal") were published in newspapers already two hours after being taken because of airplane delivery and all kinds of people working like crazy. The choir that sung during opening Mass was made up of 60.000 parochial school children. Fox Films, which distributed a 96 minute movie on the congress, refused to accept any remuneration. Man, that sounds like a healthy Church in a healthy society.

Those were the days...

Wonderful photos from an ordination in the Sint Janskathedraal in 's-Hertogenbosch / Netherlands from 1951. The ordaining bishop was Wilhelmus Mutsaerts, who you've already seen in the previous post and who will probably one day get his own post.