The Church of the Annunciation in Shelbyville, Ky., conducted a 40-Hour Devotion May 30 in advance of the solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ.
The devotion began with Mass and was followed by a Corpus Christi Procession of clergy, the Knights of Columbus and a host of parishioners that tread a 1.5-mile route through Shelbyville. Afterward, the Blessed Sacrament was available for adoration through the night and the next day.
Father Jean Gonzalez, pastor, said the event was part of the parish’s effort to join in the National Eucharistic Revival, a three-year initiative of the U.S. bishops centered on the Eucharist as the source and summit of the Catholic faith.
Father Gonzalez said the church especially needs gatherings like the 40-Hour Devotion in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. “I think, after Covid, we lost many people,” he said. “We need to work very hard to help the people encounter Jesus again, spend time with him, open their hearts to him.”
