For the eight “perpetual pilgrims” who traveled the 3,300-mile journey on the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage from Indianapolis to Los Angeles, the end of the trip has to be a relief, to their feet at least. But while the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is over, also ending the three-year National Eucharistic Revival, the impact the journey had on the pilgrims is only beginning.
The pilgrimage took them to places unimaginable, both physically and spiritually, while encountering plane crash victims, those who lost their homes in fires, prison inmates, the homeless, and the poor.
They walked with them. They prayed with them. They evangelized to them. But most importantly, they witnessed that, no matter the situation people might find themselves in, Jesus Christ is the answer.
Some of the pilgrims spoke with Angelus about their experiences.
The beginning
The four pilgrims interviewed by Angelus came from different places with different backgrounds, but all had similar desires: To have a connection with Jesus Christ and to see how that manifested itself to others on the journey.
Leslie Reyes-Hernandez was from Chicago but found herself teaching high school algebra in Phoenix. Arthur “Ace” Acuña was born and raised in Las Vegas, but after attending Princeton University, he was working in campus ministry in New Jersey. Stephen Fuhrmann is currently a student at Texas A&M University. Rachel Levy grew up in a small town in Indiana, now works for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.
The idea of becoming a perpetual pilgrim first came to Reyes-Hernandez when she attended the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis in summer 2024. When she learned of applications for the 2025 pilgrimage, she knew it was a sign.
“I knew that our Lord had been planting that seed in my heart, and that's when I knew right away, this is it,” she said. “This is what my heart has been prepared for. So right away, I knew I wanted to apply.”
Acuña was also inspired by attending the 2024 congress, but through watching the perpetual pilgrims on social media.
“Just to see all these people following Jesus in the Eucharist was just amazing,” he said. “So when I heard that they were going to do it again this summer, I thought that if I was in the New Testament and Jesus was walking by my house, and I saw a bunch of people following him, like the logical answer would be to follow him, too.”
Fuhrmann and Levy’s reasons were simple: They had a profound experience with Jesus Christ while in college and wanted to convey that feeling to those they encountered along the way.
“My desire to join the pilgrimage was simply to share what I have received from our Eucharistic Lord and my personal relationship with Jesus,” he said. “I want to share that with the world.”
“A deep love for our Lord and the Eucharist, and just a devotion to the Eucharist that has grown over the last several years,” Levy said.
Making an impact
The 2025 pilgrimage was notable for stopping at places of suffering along the route — in addition to parishes, shrines, and cathedrals — which led to moments for the perpetual pilgrims to feel uplifted.
Reyes-Hernandez’s most inspirational moment happened at a Texas prison, where she saw God present for the male inmates.
“I remember, as soon as it was announced that there were confessions available, approximately 50 men stood up right away,” she said. “My initial reaction is I thought they were leaving, but they were rushing to confession. That moving in haste and that zeal to receive our Lord's graces was so inspiring.”
Acuña had a surreal moment while the pilgrimage was at the Outlets in Orange, an outdoor mall in Orange County.
“There were people who joined us as we went through, and it’s crazy to see people’s openness and willingness to just follow Jesus,” he said. “Just how much hope his presence brings to them, like they didn't need a fancy speaker on a stage or even a conversation with a pilgrim. It was just Jesus walking by and that was enough to draw them.”
Fuhrmann was also galvanized by seeing the number of people who came out to watch, no matter how small the town or city.
“What's inspiring to me is the people that come when we're processing through towns or cities, the people that come out on their porches,” he said.
To be able to witness, there’s “still hope in this country and that there’s a lot of open hearts,” is inspiring for him.
For Levy, more than the people coming out is the respect and piety shown.
“Seeing crowds of people … welcome us and welcome our Lord as we arrive, and then the same crowd with great reverence coming in and sending Jesus off,” she said. “It's just been inspiring to me to see the reverence of the communities that we've been encountering recently.”
Overcoming challenges
Beyond the physical rigors of walking through 10 states across the country, the pilgrims also encountered other trials and tribulations, including anti-Catholic protesters in Texas and Oklahoma.
But no matter the ordeal, each pilgrim learned something from the experience.
Reyes-Hernandez faced the protesters and realized her faith must come in good times and challenging ones.
“I'm truly thankful for the protesters because we had a choice, and I felt like I had the question like, ‘Will you follow me?’ she said. “That's when I was like, ‘Whoa, God. I am choosing you.’ This is not the perfect circumstance. This is not a walk in the park, but I will still follow you. So it guided me and drove me to more focus and more attention, to love our Lord, and also just to recognize that people carry heavy hearts and sometimes they're externalized in different ways.”
Fuhrmann likened the experience with the protesters to “walking with Jesus in some ways to Calvary.”
“When you're with our Lord all the time, there's a lot of grace, but also, when you're doing something this good, the devil doesn't like it, and so that can come in a lot of ways like hardships and struggles,” he said. “We are able to represent the Church and, more specifically, walk with our Lord to Calvary as pilgrims.”
Levy agreed.
“Just like the apostles, there's this sense of rejoicing to be able to suffer for the sake of the name of Jesus Christ,” she said.
The last word
In the end, Acuña said that the pilgrimage showed him how much people are craving something real.
“The sacrament is a visible sign of that heavenly reality that we're all yearning for,” he said. “As Catholics, we call the Eucharist the source and summit of our faith. And at least for the American church, we see this need for remembrance of that and a re-recognition of that. I think that's why so many, especially young people, are hungry to see the faith lived up to radically and in its fullest form.
“So when Jesus comes through your streets, it's nothing like people who think truth has to come from an argument or a debate or something like that. But when Jesus is presented to people, it’s truth being shown to them.”
