The Penn-Drexel Newman Center at St. Agatha-St. James Parish in Philadelphia’s University City section hosted the city’s first ever “Church to Cheesesteaks” event on the crisp fall day of Sunday, Nov. 1 featuring a eucharistic procession through the West Philly neighborhood and the University of Pennsylvania campus.
The procession and luncheon were held in collaboration with the archdiocesan Office for Ministry with Young Adults, and UPenn’s Collegium Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture.
The event was a confluence of the Solemnity of All Saints and the beginning of a month dedicated to the Eucharist for the parish and Newman Center.
The “Church to Cheesesteaks” theme was planned as a Philadelphia twist on the “Pizza to Pews” movement that has gained popularity in New York and other major cities.
The day began with a packed church attending Mass celebrated by Bishop Christopher Cooke. Concelebrants included Father Stephen DeLacy, the archdiocesan Vicar for Youth and Young Adults, and Father Remi Morales, pastor of St. Agatha-St. James.
The altar was adorned with images of saints for the solemnity, and in his homily, Bishop Cooke spoke about the saints as people completely centered on Christ who lived a life of profound self-gift. He spoke of the excitement that the love of Jesus would pour onto the streets in the day’s procession.
“Love is the act of self-gift,” he said. “The pouring out for another, just as our Blessed Lord does for you and me today, giving Himself on our sacred altar. And we’re so excited today about this, that we will not let this reality stay only in church. We will go out into the streets, and with joy and the intercession of the saints in heaven, we too will witness to the reality of Christ’s love.”
As Mass concluded, the monstrance containing the Blessed Sacrament was processed out of the church followed by the 250 people in attendance—mostly college students from Penn and Drexel universities. The canopy over the monstrance was flanked by eight student altar servers and four priests, and was followed by several Sisters of Life and the lay faithful prayerfully singing the hymn “Anima Christi.”
Father Remi Morales, pastor of St. Agatha-St. James Parish in Philadelphia, carries the Blessed Sacrament during a Eucharistic procession through University City Nov. 1 as part of the “Church to Cheesesteaks” event hosted by the Penn-Drexel Newman Center.
Bishop Christopher Cooke carries the Blessed Sacrament during a Eucharistic procession through University City Nov. 1 as part of the “Church to Cheesesteaks” event
Sisters of Life join young adults for a cheesesteak lunch following a Eucharistic procession through University City during the “Church to Cheesesteaks” event Nov. 1.
Young adults gather for a cheesesteak lunch following a Eucharistic procession through University City during the “Church to Cheesesteaks” event Nov. 1, hosted by the Penn-Drexel Newman Center at St. Agatha-St. James Parish in Philadelphia. (Photo: Jule Coppa Heffernan)
As the procession made its way down Chestnut Street, passersby stopped in their tracks as they heard the singing, smelled the incense, and saw the radiant monstrance reflecting the fall sunlight.
From a woman making the sign of the cross as she walked out of a Wawa store, to Penn students snapping photos, to an elderly man genuflecting as the canopy passed by, the sight of the procession impacted many of the people it passed.
The Eucharist also was carried down Locust Walk at the center of Penn’s campus. Although Penn is known for being the first secular university in the United States, it is also home to the first Newman Club in the country, which has been making Christ present on campus since 1893.
“There is nothing like seeing Jesus himself walk through the campus where you take classes every day,” said Lindsey Najera, a Penn junior. “It’s a reminder that that’s exactly who God is: someone who meets me where I am, and who wants to be present in every part of my life.”
Dr. Daniel Cheely, executive director of Penn’s Collegium Institute, observed the poignance of the event falling on All Saints Day.
“All Saints Day is not so much about the canonized all-stars. That is what almost every other day of the liturgical calendar is for,” he said. “But today we celebrated the otherwise ordinary women and men who let Christ shine brightly in their own circumstances. They show us that sainthood is possible for all of us.
“And what better way to communicate that here in University City than by letting Christ lead us down Locust Walk, the main thoroughfare we plod down every day, where we have our ordinary opportunity to make the love of Christ visible? It was an honor and a blessing for Collegium to be a part of this experience.”
After the procession, everyone gathered in the church hall for a bountiful cheesesteak lunch prepared by the Newman Center operations team. It was directed by Chris George, a former restaurateur and chef at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.
He and his team prepared 250 cheesesteaks for the hungry crowd, and the luncheon was a joyful conclusion to a beautiful morning.
“We are seeing more and more young people being drawn to the Catholic faith and wanting to share it,” said Patrick Travers, director of the Newman Center. “Today’s event was a beautiful sign of that.”
“This procession is emblematic of what we hope to do every day at the Newman Center,” said Father Michael Gokie, parochial vicar of St. Agatha-St. James Parish. “That is, to bring Jesus into the neighborhood and onto campus—into a world that really needs him.”
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To learn more about St. Agatha-St. James and the Newman Center, visit saintsaj.org or follow them on Instagram at @saintsaj, @penncatholic, and @dragoncatholic.
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