‘God always outdoes us’
Downtown parish welcomes thousands of Super Bowl visitors
As a zip line rider zooms over thousands of pedestrians filling Capitol Avenue, Keith Echternach, left, a member of St. John the Evangelist Parish in Indianapolis, welcomes Super Bowl visitors into his parish’s historic church on Feb. 3. (Photo by Sean Gallagher)
By Sean Gallagher
Thousands of people filled Capitol Avenue and Georgia Street around St. John the Evangelist Parish in Indianapolis on Feb. 3, two days before the playing of Super Bowl XLVI in Lucas Oil Stadium, just down the street from the historic faith community. (Related: See our Super Bowl page)
Pedestrian traffic sometimes came to a standstill while riders of an 800-foot zip line zoomed overhead and filled the air with screams of excitement.
With the massive front doors of the parish’s 140-year-old church wide open to the crowd outside, a steady stream of visitors made their way inside.
Some took tours of the historic church. Others asked questions about the faith at the parish’s “Ask a Catholic” booth. At one end of the church’s narthex, visitors had their photo taken next to a life-size cutout of Pope Benedict XVI. At the other end, they enjoyed hot chocolate and cookies.
Many, though, sat quietly in the church, soaking in its peacefulness after spending time in all of the noise and endless activity on the surrounding streets.
That’s what Gary Driver of Denver did when he visited the church. He was in Indianapolis to assist his brother who is a cameraman for NFL Films.
“It’s like night and day,” Driver said. “I was out here watching the zip line, and I was at ESPN with so much activity going on. And then to come in here and see the church—it was just like a peace came over you.
“I went in and lit a candle for my grandmother and father who passed away several years ago.”
As a Catholic, Driver was happy that a parish had opened its doors to so many visitors.
“It’s fantastic what they’re doing,” he said. “Why close the doors when you know you’re going to have a million people walking by throughout the entire weekend?”
Father Rick Nagel, St. John’s administrator, was emotional when reflecting on the volunteer service given by more than 100 parishioners in the days leading up to the Super Bowl and of the thousands of visitors who came into the church.
“God always outdoes us and beyond what I could have imagined,” Father Nagel said. “We’ve had people that have reconciled with God. We’ve had fallen away Catholics who’ve said that they would come home to the Catholic Church. We’ve had non-Catholics ask about how to become Catholic.”
Patrick Sullivan was a volunteer who helped answer some of those questions. He is serving at St. Monica Parish in Indianapolis in the University of Notre Dame’s Echo program, which helps train people to enter catechetical ministry in the Church.
He enjoyed listening to and seeking answers to the questions of a wide array of visitors.
“That really speaks to your heart,” said Sullivan, who is from Bay Shore, N.Y. “They’re not just looking at the stained glass or taking pictures of the altar. They have genuine questions that they want to know about.”
Keith Echternach, 27, stood at St. John’s open doors and greeted the many visitors who came into his parish’s church. He wasn’t surprised by their large numbers.
“Sports and faith go hand in hand,” Echternach said. “You tend to see where people who are in or interested in athletics have some form of faith.”
Many prayers were offered up by those visitors. Some, like the ones said by Driver, were for deceased loved ones. Others were more directly related to the Super Bowl.
Janet Ringuette, a Catholic from Scituate, Mass., lit a candle in St. John and said prayers for various intentions, including for a victory for her beloved New England Patriots.
“I cannot lie,” said Ringuette with a laugh. “Of course, it was part of my prayers.”
God may have answered her prayer in a way that she didn’t expect as the New York Giants defeated the Patriots 21-17.
Ringuette, who arrived in Indianapolis on Feb. 3, made definite plans to visit St. John once she learned about it.
“I absolutely love it,” she said. “The first thing I said was, ‘We have to go in and say a prayer.’ It’s beautiful. The Stations of the Cross are breathtaking.”
Later in the evening, St. John’s doors were closed in anticipation of a holy hour of eucharistic adoration for vocations—a regular service that takes place on first Friday evenings at the parish.
Father Nagel said that ordinarily about 50 to 75 people attend. On Feb. 3, approximately 200 participated, despite the many logistical challenges of simply getting to the parish.
One of the people taking part was Annie Putzier, a sophomore at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis who is from Burnsville, Minn.
Like many young adults enjoying the festivities, she could have stayed in the Super Bowl Village on the streets surrounding her parish. But she chose instead to come in and spend time in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
“Adoration is just a wonderful way to be really present with the Lord,” Putzier said. “I love spending time with the Lord. … It just seemed like a good way to spend the night. Then we’ll go out and see more of the Super Bowl [activities] afterward.”
Sharing a reflection during the holy hour was Chris Godfrey of South Bend, Ind., a starting member of the 1987 Super Bowl champion New York Giants.
Godfrey is also founder of Life Athletes, an organization of professional and amateur athletes who promote chastity and respect for the dignity and sanctity of life.
He shared spiritual lessons that he learned in his NFL career, and exhorted people to strive for goals that will give them a lasting happiness.
Godfrey also reflected on the years of dedication of Giants and Patriots players that led to their being in Super Bowl XLVI.
“The Super Bowl is admittedly a pretty high goal,” he said. “But, you know what? There will be another Super Bowl champion next year. There have been 25 since this one [pointing to his Super Bowl ring]. So follow their example, but apply it to a heavenly goal, which is long lasting and much bigger than a ring.”
Heaven is where Father Nagel expects to see the fullness of the fruits of the ministry that he and his parish volunteers carried out among the thousands of visitors to St. John during the week leading up to the Super Bowl.
“We have seen some of the fruits,” he said. “And I’m blessed by that. But one day, in heaven, I have a feeling that there will be a lot more stories being told because of this week.” †
