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The Shocking Burden of the Eucharist Express Train

by Jason•
The Shocking Burden of the Eucharist Express Train: A detailed, vintage engraving-style illustration in 16:9 format. A massive steam train marked "REAL PRESENCE" travels on an elevated track above a solemn Catholic procession (labeled "ROMAN CATHOLIC VIEW" and "NAPA INSTITUTE"). Thick smoke rising from the train is labeled "BURDEN OF WORKS" and "CYCLE OF RITUALS." In stark contrast on the right, a figure of Christ lies peacefully resting, representing the "THE GOSPEL PROMISE: REFORMED VIEW" and rest through Sola Fide.
The Shocking Burden of the Eucharist Express Train, by Jason. | Does the Eucharist lead to freedom, or a cycle of works? This image visualizes the theological tension between the perceived burden of works in sacramental action and the radical rest offered by the Gospel promise of Sola Fide. The image depicts the 2025 NYC Eucharistic Procession contrasting with the Reformed view of Christ's finished work.

After 5,000 gathered in Manhattan, we ask: Does the Eucharist lead to freedom, or a cycle of works? Highlighting the event and the Gospel promise.

The recent NYC Eucharistic Procession, which gathered over 5,000 Catholics on October 14, 2025, sparked a crucial theological discussion regarding the nature of Christian freedom. Organized by the Napa Institute, the event saw priests, bishops, and lay faithful marching the consecrated host from St. Patrick’s Cathedral, proclaiming the “real presence” of Christ in the Eucharist through public ritual. While impressive in its devotion, this focus on sacramental action, celebrated by figures like Cardinal Timothy Dolan, inevitably raises a concern from a Reformed perspective: Does this level of religious zeal and emphasis on physical ritual create a heavy burden of works, or does the Gospel offer a radical, immediate rest in Christ’s finished work alone? This article will examine the event’s claims against the enduring promise of Sola Fide.

Key Figures and Public Testimony

The event featured several prominent figures:

  • Cardinal Seán O’Malley (retired Archbishop of Boston) presided over the Mass, emphasizing the Eucharist as Christ’s enduring promise: “For 2,000 years, he has kept his promise. He is with us.”
  • Cardinal Timothy Dolan (Archbishop of New York) celebrated the march as a potent walk “with Jesus through the streets of this great metropolis.”
  • Jonathan Roumie (actor portraying Jesus in The Chosen) was a surprise guest, leading meditations and speaking passionately. Adapting St. Carlo Acutis’ words for New York flair, he declared:

The Eucharist is my express train to heaven… By making the Eucharist part of our daily life if we can. And if you’re not Catholic and become Catholic. That’s all you got to do.

He urged the faithful: “You don’t have to play Jesus on TV to be Jesus to the world around you,” tying mission to frequent reception and sharing his personal story of finding stability through daily Eucharist and confession.

The event’s zeal—stopping for confessions and meditations—drew cheers, but it spotlights the deeper concern we must address: devotion channeled through ritual as the path to heaven, a system that risks burdening participants with sacramental dependency rather than direct, resting trust in Christ’s finished work.

The Shinto-Japanese Connection: Parallels in Religious Burden

This procession’s fervor mirrors the pressures I’ve observed among Japanese Christians, where Shinto and Buddhist customs impose unbreakable family ties. Believers in Japan often honor ancestral shrines or observe Obon festivals to avoid shunning, much like Catholics feeling compelled to weekly Mass or processions to maintain communal standing.

Shinto lacks Christ’s name but demands ritual purity and offerings for harmony (wa), echoing Rome’s sacramental obligations for grace. Both systems, from what I’ve learned, foster guilt over unmet duties—Shinto’s seasonal cleansings parallel Catholic penance—trapping souls in cycles of effort that exhaust without eternal assurance.

For Japanese Christians, the burden is relational: Rejecting a family butsudan (Buddhist altar) risks estrangement. Yet Scripture frees us from such yokes: “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). In both contexts, sincere hearts seek God amid customs, but the weight persists until they hear the Gospel’s truth: Rest in His finished work, not ancestral or ecclesiastical demands.

Unpacking the Burdens: Catholic Doctrines vs. Gospel Freedom

These events and parallels reveal Catholic teachings that, while rooted in historical piety, add layers Christ never intended. We contrast five key concerns with the freedom of the solas. Each burdens consciences with human effort, yet Scripture offers release through faith alone.

1. Transubstantiation: Ritual Renewal or Christ’s Finished Work?

  • The Burden: The procession centered on the host as Christ’s literal body via transubstantiation. Roumie’s “express train” metaphor implies daily reception is essential for heaven—tying salvation to repeated ritual, much like seasonal rites for merit.
  • The Freedom: Christ’s sacrifice is “once for all” (Hebrews 10:10; 7:27). The Supper is a memorial sealing faith (1 Corinthians 11:24-25), not a transformative necessity. Rest in justification by belief alone (Romans 5:1), unburdened by frequency.

2. Priestly Power: Divine Creators or Sole Mediator?

  • The Burden: St. Alphonsus Liguori claimed in The Dignity of the Priest that priests are “creators of the Creator” through consecration. The procession elevated clergy as essential channels—burdening laity with dependence, akin to Shinto priests mediating kami blessings.
  • The Freedom: God alone creates (Isaiah 44:24); Christ mediates solo (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 7:24-25). Ministers proclaim, not produce, God. Approach Him directly (Hebrews 4:16), free from hierarchical chains.

3. Marian Devotion: Advocate or Christ Alone?

  • The Burden: Rome’s Theotokos title fuels prayers like the Rosary, casting Mary as “Advocate” (CCC 969)—a burden of divided loyalty, paralleling homage to ancestral spirits for familial peace.
  • The Freedom: Mary humbly pointed to Jesus (John 2:5), but mediation is His alone (1 Timothy 2:5). Worship solus Christus, redirecting hearts to the Savior (Acts 4:12).

4. Indulgences: Earning Relief or Grace Alone?

  • The Burden: Rooted in purgatory (unbiblical per Hebrews 9:27), indulgences remit temporal punishment via acts (CCC 1471), burdening with works—like offerings to appease spirits—promising what only Christ provides.
  • The Freedom: His atonement satisfies fully (Hebrews 10:14; Ephesians 2:8-9). No merits to buy; sins are nailed to His cross (Colossians 2:14). Assurance is found in grace alone.

5. Symbolic Rituals: Sunburst Glory or Simple Worship?

  • The Burden: The monstrance’s radiant design evoked sun-like worship during the march, historically blending with pagan motifs—burdening with visual pomp, much like Shinto torii gates demanding reverent passage.
  • The Freedom: Christ shunned splendor (Matthew 8:20); true worship is in spirit and truth (John 4:24). Reformed austerity focuses on the Word and the heart (1 Peter 3:3-4), guarding against idolatry (1 John 5:21).

A Call to Rest: From Burden to Bold Freedom

Beloved friends in the procession’s crowds or Shinto’s shadows, your seeking honors God—but lay down the weights. Jesus invites: “Take my yoke upon you… for my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:29-30).

The Reformation recovered this essential truth: Sola Scriptura cuts through human traditions, freeing us to follow the Lamb unhindered (Revelation 14:4). Freedom awaits in Christ alone.

What yoke will you exchange for His easy burden today?