Eucharistic Procession on river 'just made sense' for St. John the Baptist Parish

By ROB HERBST
The Catholic Week
MAGNOLIA SPRINGS — Many Catholics throughout the world hit the streets to display their faith in Eucharistic processions on June 19, the Solemnity of Corpus Christi.
Pastor Fr. Nicholas Napolitano and parishioners of St. John the Baptist in Magnolia Springs decided to go to the water. The parish held its Eucharistic procession by boat on the Magnolia River. With the Eucharist in a monstrance held by Fr. Napolitano on one boat, more than a dozen boats that included the faithful followed in public display of faith in the Real Presence of Jesus.
The river procession was appropriate because the water is vital to Magnolia Springs’ past and present. 
The town has the only year-round water delivery mail route in the country. The river was also the major “highway” in the past. 
“Water is such a part of life here,” Fr. Napolitano said. “Everybody got around by boat. The church was founded by boat. People arrived to the church by boat. The priests came over from Mobile by boat. It just made sense to bring the Eucharist back in the water – how it originally arrived here.”
“In the actual liturgical documents of the Church, the Church asks of us to do a Eucharistic procession (on Corpus Christi) – to bring the Eucharist to the people, that they would experience Him and have a newfound love of Him in the Blessed Sacrament. In Magnolia Springs, it just made sense to do it on water.”
The current church however does not sit on the water. Therefore after Mass concluded, those participating drove about one mile down the road to a resident’s home as Fr. Napolitano held the monstrance while sitting on the back of a trailer. 
Participants then walked down a dock and began boarding boats for the 30-minute round trip procession. Traditional Eucharistic procession hymns played from a loudspeaker on a boat as the faithful passed by curious boaters enjoying the sun-soaked morning. 
Fr. Napolitano would then bless those witnessing the procession. After boats returned to the dock, the celebration closed with an outdoor Benediction.
The procession and the Solemnity of Corpus Christi also coincided with the kickoff of the three-year National Eucharistic Revival, a three-year event sponsored by the USCCB. The revival aims to “renew the Church by enkindling a living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist,” capped by a National Eucharistic Congress in 2024.
“I hope people get a newfound and profound respect, reverence and awe of the Eucharist. The Eucharist is what it’s meant to be – something that transforms our lives and belongs in our lives. It’s not only part of it, but very central,” Fr. Napolitano said.