Newlyweds volunteer at National Eucharistic Congress as ‘co-workers in the vineyard’

Newlyweds Claire and Shaughn Phillips, members of St. Joan of Arc Parish in Indianapolis, pose in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on July 17 after the first revival session of the National Eucharistic Congress. The couple volunteered for the entirety of the July 17-21 gathering, including the day before and the day after the congress. (Photo by Natalie Hoefer)

By Natalie Hoefer

Shaughn and Claire Phillips did not register to attend the National Eucharistic Congress on July 17-21 in Indianapolis. There simply wasn’t enough time as they planned for their June 22 wedding at St. Joan of Arc Church in Indianapolis.

Yet here they were, signed up for the entirety of congress—donning the yellow T-shirts of volunteers.

“We knew we wouldn’t be able to register [for the event], so we decided why not serve?” said Claire.

That call to serve is a value shared by the newlyweds. Claire is coordinator of religious education at St. Joan of Arc, where the couple are members. Shaughn is director of campus ministry for Brebeuf Jesuit, a college preparatory high school in Indianapolis.

The Phillips were spotted holding hands, walking through Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on July 17 at the end of the congress’ first evening revival session.

“We were able to catch the tail end of it” after a long, 12-hour shift helping people check in, he said.

The five-day National Eucharistic Congress—the first in 83 years—had only just begun. But already the couple were impressed by the experience.

“What’s struck me is the diversity of the body of Christ, yet the unity that still remains,” said Shaughn. “Just being able to hear different people’s life stories, to get different encounters in very small ways was very beautiful. I love the line from [the musical] Les Miserables: ‘To love another is to see the face of God.’ ”

Claire was moved by “a line that kept coming up at registration, people saying it felt like a big family reunion,” she said.

Her husband agreed.

“It really is a family reunion,” said Shaughn. He saw a bishop who was a pastor at a parish in the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. in 2008 that Shaughn’s parish partnered with to attend World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia.

“That is why I’m serving the Church now, was going to that World Youth Day with [the priest who is now] Bishop [Mark E.] Brennan from the Diocese of Wheeling, West Virginia.”

Whether a familiar face or that of a stranger, Claire commented that “just being able to see everyone in one place has been really beautiful.”

She recalled a particular group she “had the privilege of checking in”—about 40 Missionaries of Charity sisters.

“Their volunteer said the sisters never come to things like this,” said Claire. “This is huge for them to be here.

“So, the thought occurred to me while the bishops were standing during praise and worship [at the first evening’s revival session] was, ‘They don’t get to see this side of the Church very often.’ At NCYC [National Catholic Youth Conference], teens, youth ministers and parish priests get to come and see this. But to see all of the religious here and seeing how vibrant the Church is in this moment—it’s beautiful to see everyone coming together.”

The couple confirmed that the volunteer experience was not their honeymoon—that time was spent at a place in Ohio “sort of like Brown County” in Indiana, Shaughn said.

But volunteering for the entire National Eucharistic Congress was an experience the couple was glad to share.

“We’re co-workers in the vineyard,” said Shaughn. “We thought we might as well be here to support other people in seeking Christ.” †

 

(See all of our coverage of the National Eucharistic Congress at www.archindy.org/congress.)