Corpus Christi Procession
Please join us as we bring Christ to the streets of Torrington on Sunday, June 7, the Solemnity of Corpus Christi.
Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 am at St. Francis Church, 160 Main St. (We are combining the 10 am Mass at St. Francis and the 11:30 am Mass in Spanish.)
Immediately following Mass, a multicultural CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION will begin from St. Francis Church to Coe Park (roughly 11:30 am-12 pm). We will conclude with Adoration and Benediction, ending no later than 12:45 pm.
ALL ARE WELCOME! All ministries are invited to join in the procession with their banners. The Mariachi band group has been invited to accompany us with music.
“The procession with the Blessed Sacrament…reminds us that we are called to go out and bring Jesus to others. To go out with enthusiasm, bringing Christ to those we meet in our daily lives.” — Pope Francis
Feast of Corpus Christi, Eucharistic Miracle Origins
Peter of Prague, a German priest, was having doubts about the true presence of Jesus in the consecrated Eucharist. In 1263, he decided to make a pilgrimage to the tomb of his patron saint at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. On the way he stopped in Bolsena, Italy, to celebrate Mass at the tomb of Saint Cristina, a martyr, in the church dedicated to her. Right after Father Peter consecrated the Eucharist, the host began to bleed down his arm and onto the altar cloth. He stopped the Mass and traveled to see Pope Urban IV who, at the time, was in Orvieto, a short distance from Bolsena. The Pope asked clergy officials to bring the host and the corporal to Orvieto. On August 11, 1264, after a year-long investigation, Pope Urban IV wrote a papal bull, Transiturus, in which he instituted the Feast of Corpus Christi. The Pope asked Saint Thomas Aquinas to compose the Office of the Mass for this feast.
Saint Thomas also composed two hymns, O Salutaris and Tantum Ergo, which we sing today during Adoration of the Eucharist. The corporal from this miracle is in the Cathedral of Orvieto.