June 15, 2026

Holy Hour held at Our Lady of Fatima to prepare for National Eucharistic Pilgrimage

REGIONAL
Story and photo by Carolee McGrath

Franciscan Friar Pedro de Oliveira, OFM Conventual, the pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Ludlow, prays before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament during a Holy Hour at the outdoor chapel, Sunday, June 14.

LUDLOW – Fifty people gathered at the outdoor chapel at Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Ludlow for a Holy Hour, Sunday June 14. The Holy Hour, organized by Lisa Saloio, the director of youth ministry for St. Elizabeth Parish in Ludlow, was an effort to prepare for the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage which will visit the Diocese of Springfield June 18-120.

“We wanted to bring together area youth before the Blessed Sacrament and make people aware of the events of the national pilgrimage. We also wanted to gather in a different environment and utilize the beautiful grounds of Our Lady of Fatima,” Saloio said.

The pilgrimage will arrive in Massachusetts by way of Stockbridge on Thursday, June 18. There will be a eucharistic procession at 12 p.m., followed by a Holy Hour and Benediction, Rosary for Life, Mass, and Chaplet of Divine Mercy.

A continuation of the landmark National Eucharistic Revival Congress held in 2024, the pilgrimage is in honor of the 250^th birthday of the founding of the United States. Several events will be held in the Diocese of Springfield.

“We are honored to be the first stop in New England, welcoming the pilgrimage to New England with a visit to the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy. The shrine is such an important place for both our diocese, but also all of New England, a spiritual oasis for so many,” said Joe Austin, the director of the Office of Missionary Discipleship. He gave a short talk during the Holy Hour.

The pilgrimage began on Pentecost Sunday, May 24, in St. Augustine, Florida, near the site where the first Catholic Mass was celebrated in what later would become the United States.

It has been making its way up the East Coast making stops in most of the 13 original colonies, concluding in Philadelphia Independence Day weekend.

“What this moment represents for all of us, for each one of us, is a profound historic moment to welcome the light of Christ, present body and blood in the Eucharist, into our hearts and into our homes. Much like the farmers-turned revolutionaries, who first fought for freedom in their own backyards in the 1700s, who fought for American Independence, so too are we called to be revolutionaries for Christ, to fight for God in our homes and our hearts,” he said.

Franciscan Friar Pedro de Oliveira, OFM Conventual, the pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Parish, led Benediction and also encouraged all present to love and adore Jesus.

Following the Holy Hour, people gathered for refreshments, provided by St. Elizabeth Parish youth ministry.

To learn more about the pilgrimage, visit diospringfield.org