The next National Eucharistic Congress will be held in Indianapolis in 2029, a return to the city that hosted the last gathering in 2024.
Bishop Andrew Cozzens, chairman of the National Eucharistic Congress Inc., and Archbishop Charles Thompson of Indianapolis announced the location of the next gathering on Tuesday.
“The Lord has already shown us what can happen when we place Jesus Christ in the Eucharist at the center and surrender our lives to Him,” Cozzens said in a press release. “I believe the Lord wants to do even more than He did before. I believe He is bringing about a great movement of evangelization in our country.”
Sarah Houde, COO for the National Eucharistic Congress, Inc., cited the foundations laid during the 2024 event as a factor in the decision to return to Indianapolis for the next gathering.
“The city’s existing infrastructure and our established local relationships provide a strong foundation for the next Congress to be successfully hosted here once again,” she said in the press release.
“Perhaps most importantly, returning to Indianapolis helps establish a lasting rhythm for the life of the Church in the United States,” Cozzens added. “With the support of my brother bishops, we expect the National Eucharistic Congress has now become a gathering that Catholics can anticipate, prepare for, and carry forward together for many years to come.”
The 2024 National Eucharistic Congress was widely praised as a successful effort to promote Eucharistic devotion and reinvigorate the faith of attendees.
The 2024 gathering – which was actually the 10th National Eucharistic Congress, but the first to be held in more than 80 years – attracted more than 60,000 attendees, according to organizers. It was held as part of a three-year National Eucharistic Revival, planned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and included several pilgrimage routes through various parts of the country.
Organizers announced afterward that they wanted to build on the gathering’s success with future events, creating an ongoing movement within the U.S. Church to promote Eucharistic devotion.
Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, chairman of the 2024 event, initially floated 2033 as a likely date, suggesting it would be fitting as “the 2,000th anniversary of the Year of Redemption.”
However, organizers said in February 2025 that the next event would be held in 2029, four years earlier than Cozzens’ initial proposal.
It is not clear whether the 2029 event will draw as many participants as the 2024 event did.
Organizers said Tuesday that the 2029 event “will not simply recreate the experience of 2024,” but will build on its success.
The press release cited data indicating increases in Eucharistic adoration and confession connected to the previous Eucharistic Congress and Eucharistic Revival, as well as a stronger sense of reverence for the Eucharist and greater confidence among priests and deacons in preaching about the Eucharist.
“New adoration chapels have opened, local Eucharistic initiatives have flourished, seminarian enrollment has grown, religious vocations have been born and increasing numbers of people have entered the Church through OCIA,” the press release said, adding that the 2029 Eucharistic Congress “will seek to build upon these fruits and invite the Church into an even deeper encounter with Christ and a renewed commitment to mission.”
Sign me up, again! And I certainly hope for anther JD/Ed appearance for another live edition of the Pillar Podcast!
Lets gooo!! Come one, come all! We'll gladly welcome the masses again at St John the Evangelist. See you all in 2029!