Back From Quebec

I'm still utterly drained from getting way too little sleep last night, from switching time zones, and from having had a really full week in general, but while I'm getting about ready to head to bed, I feel I should probably get some thoughts down about the Eucharistic Congress while I still have the passion for it. It was entirely too important and central to my entire year to pass over.

In case it's not crystal clear already, let me state that it was the most awesome week of my life. It had everything: good company, awesome catechesis, beautiful liturgies, spiritual revelations, exotic locales, gorgeous churches, awe-inspiring music... the list just goes on and on.

I spent most of the week in the company of Roger, Matthew, and/or Paul, three of the other seminarians from St. Joseph Seminary, and for me especially, it was really good to spend a lot of time with my brothers, since because I go to Concordia I really don't get the same kind of bonding time during the regular school year. And we had a hoot, let me assure you.

But I would also wander off on my own, hang out with Edmonton pilgrims, meet new people. Indeed, that was another awesome part of the Congress: it was like a giant family in some respects. Everyone was willing to talk to (or try, at least) everyone else, and despite its size (25,000 registered people), it was still possible to keep bumping into the same people over and over and over again. The religious brothers and sisters, in particular, were amazing to see, with young vocations in their habits, visible signs of the sanctity of the Church.

But at the centre of everything, of course, was the Eucharist. We had Mass daily, there was adoration available in multiple churches and chapels throughout the city, and on Thursday we had a massive Eucharistic procession through the city. It was so large, in fact, that the end of the procession was barred from continuing into the old city. That unfortunately included my group, but even so... we had an awesome evening stumbling on a massive art-piece movie that played nightly along the side of the grain terminals in the harbour, commemorating the 400th anniversary of the province.

And the heritage of Quebec City is itself amazing. It was like being back in Europe... except it was in Canada. And it is so thoroughly Catholic in its history. Churches dot every skyline, many of them, and the city is full of old convents. Of course, this means that the drop in numbers at the church is all that more sharply illuminated, but coming from the prairies, it is awesome to see somewhere so monolithically Catholic in its visual aesthetic.

Can you tell I had an awesome trip?