National Eucharistic Pilgrimage Brings Christ Through Rainy Streets of Historic Baltimore| National Catholic Register
Thousands gathered at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on June 10 for Mass and a Eucharistic procession through downtown Baltimore.
BALTIMORE — About 300 Catholics gathered at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Wednesday, June 10, for Mass and a Eucharistic procession through downtown Baltimore as the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage’s St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Route continued through the nation’s first Catholic diocese.
Following the morning Mass, pilgrims processed several blocks in the rain from the basilica to Baltimore’s Washington Monument, one of the city’s most recognizable civic landmarks, praying and singing as they accompanied the Blessed Sacrament through the city’s historic streets.
The Baltimore stop is part of the 2026 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, which is traveling under the theme “One Nation Under God” as the United States prepares to mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
In his homily, Monsignor Jay O’Connor reflected on the meaning of pilgrimage and the public witness of carrying the Eucharist through cities, towns, highways and waterways across the country.
“This National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, which is of Jesus through the streets and the highways and the plains and the waterways of our country, brings the blessing of the Real Presence of Jesus into the heart and soul of our fellow citizens and our country,” he said.
The basilica, completed in 1821, is the first cathedral constructed in the United States. It was built under the leadership of Bishop John Carroll, the first bishop of the United States, making the Baltimore stop a significant moment for a pilgrimage moving through many of the original 13 colonies during the nation’s semiquincentennial year.
Msgr. O’Connor said pilgrimage is not meant to be easy, citing St. John Paul II’s teaching that God uses the challenges of the journey to form his people.
“Through the challenges of the journey, God forms us into the people he calls us to be — a community of missionary disciples,” he said.
The celebrant also recalled a previous Eucharistic procession in Baltimore, when a man came out of his home and asked what was happening as the procession passed through his neighborhood.
“One pilgrim responded, ‘Jesus is walking through your neighborhood,’” he said. “The man asked, ‘Can I join you?’ And he was invited to walk the rest of the way with the pilgrims. That’s what a pilgrimage is.”
For the perpetual pilgrims accompanying the Eucharist along the Cabrini route, the journey has included long days of travel, prayer, public witness and constant movement.
“It’s been very busy,” said John Paul Flynn, one of the perpetual pilgrims. “But it’s through that busyness, I think, that you start to lean more into it and lean more into the graces that are there.”
He said the experience of traveling with the Blessed Sacrament has been unlike anything else.
“Getting to be with Jesus all the time is a really unique experience,” he said, noting that the pilgrims even have adoration in the van as they travel.
The pilgrimage was scheduled to continue through Maryland with stops in Severna Park and Annapolis before crossing the Chesapeake Bay by boat to Kent Island and the Diocese of Wilmington.
The Cabrini route is named for St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, the Italian-born missionary sister who became the first U.S. citizen to be canonized a saint. Cabrini dedicated her life to serving immigrants, orphans, the sick and the poor, founding schools, hospitals and orphanages across the United States and beyond.
The route began over Memorial Day weekend in St. Augustine, Florida, and is traveling north along the Eastern Seaboard before concluding in Philadelphia over Independence Day weekend.
