Inspirational Congress held many lessons for parents, families

The 10th National Eucharistic Congress was a pivotal and galvanizing moment for the Church in the United States, our beloved Diocese of Metuchen, and in my family life. My wife Jennifer, daughters Nennolina (3 years old) and Liliana (6 months) and myself were so blessed and grateful to be a part of this historic experience.

The Congress had so many opportunities to listen to great speakers, to participate in great programs, and several opportunities to worship and pray. However, those were not the greatest fruits for myself as a father and husband and for my family. In between talks, break out sessions, and other scheduled events, my family experienced much affirmation from our fellow pilgrims for simply being a family.
 
We were greeted with smiles while also being encouraged and thanked for choosing to be married, for choosing to have children, and for choosing to incarnate our Catholic faith in the life of our family. One religious sister came up to us and thanked us for having children! How uplifted we felt because of her kindness! These simple acts of love and affirmation from our fellow pilgrims left us with a sense of belonging and an acknowledgment that we are a gift to each other and to others.
 
In the busyness of our lives in our families, work places and even ministries, how often do we forget to affirm one another through words, actions and even the simple gesture of a smile? In these small, seemingly insignificant ways, we build relationships and a culture where we can lift one another up in the midst of the challenges we face in the humdrums of daily life. And may I say, not only do our families and fellow lay people need to be affirmed in our time and culture, but our priests, religious, and bishops need our encouragement as well.
 
In these small, seemingly insignificant interactions, a fire began to rekindle in my heart as a father and husband in a way that I was not even aware that I needed. Going into the Congress, I faced an interior struggle that I think many of us are far too familiar with: getting caught up in the busyness of our daily lives.
 
In my life, I am so grateful to God for giving me everything that I have: being a father, a husband, a principal, and the opportunity to work and serve in the Church. In all of these wonderful roles, they entail great responsibilities that call me to lay down my life every day. However, in living my “ideal” life, I knew I was experiencing tiredness, frustration, and even sadness because of my challenge to enjoy life in the midst of all the things that life required of me. It was during Saturday night Adoration at Lucas Oil Stadium when my daughter Nennolina reminded me of my first love that I unknowingly lost.
 
During Adoration, we were fortunate to find ourselves right at the feet of the altar where our Lord was exposed in the Blessed Sacrament. I was searching to understand my lack of interior peace in spite of my “ideal life.” Nennolina turned to me as she was kneeling before Jesus in the Eucharist and said matter-of-factly, “Jesus is glad that I am here!”
 
My heart melted in her profound simplicity and in that moment God helped me call to mind the story of Martha and Mary. I was living the life of Martha where I was busy with many things that are good and needed, but Nennolina demonstrated to me the gift and peace that Mary had sitting at the feet of the Master and recognizing his joy when we come to spend time with him in the Blessed Sacrament.
 
Our children are a great gift and God often uses them to teach us as mothers, fathers, priests, and religious, many truths of the Christian life. As Catholic fathers and husbands, we ought to lead our wives and children by going to Jesus as often as we can who is truly present to us in the Blessed Sacrament, not simply because we need him or need things from him, but because he finds great gladness in being with us and in all that we do.
 
The Eucharist is God’s most perfect gift where he can be present to us and close to us so we can receive his love. In doing so, we incarnate his love in and through our daily life and in our family, work place, and ministries in the hope of fulfilling Jesus’s great commandment: to love one another as I have loved you.
 
Dr. Jay Locquiao serves as principal, St. Francis Cathedral School, Metuchen.