Notre Dame’s Eucharistic Pilgrimage Weekend Marked by Theology, Theater and Prayers for Renewal
The University of Notre Dame is a world-renowned, albeit somewhat controversial, center of Catholic thought and culture.
So it’s fitting that when the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage came to campus this past weekend, things got creative.
Theology and theater marked the NEP Marian Route’s two-and-a-half-day presence at the Northern Indiana university, including a panel discussion on the Eucharist’s capacity to transform the Church and the world, and the debut of a brand-new musical on God’s Eucharistic love, inspired by the “mystery plays” of the Middle Ages.
Entitled “Behold God’s Love: A Eucharistic Musical,” the goal of the musical, which was performed publicly for the first time on July 6, is “to provide audiences with a new way of encountering the story of salvation, the person of Jesus Christ, and the mystery of the Eucharist” through the medium of theater, said composer Carolyn Pirtle.
“Through the beauty of the music, the scriptural language of the lyrics, the humanity and humor of the dialogue, and the sheer joy of the performers, we wanted to communicate to our audience the love that God has for each and every one of them,” said Pirtle, who directs the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy, with the hope that the play might spark a greater love for God and desire “to live and love more like Christ.”
Notre Dame’s contributions to the pilgrimage made the northern route’s July 5-7 stop at the Catholic university unique. The Marian Route will conclude its voyage in just a couple weeks when it intersects with pilgrimage routes from the east, west, and south in Indianapolis for the National Eucharistic Congress, July 17-21.
But traditional Eucharistic devotions, Masses and plenty of prayers for renewal were also offered over the weekend at Notre Dame, which is often in the national spotlight over questions of its fidelity to its Catholic identity and mission.
