The opening Mass took place at the original city airport, which was converted in 2013 to a convention center for the city.
There were a few key highlights of the Mass:
• One thousand seven hundred children from the city parishes of Quito received their First Communion in a new ritual created for the event.
• The special hymn for the Congress sounded magnificent, with the 1,000-voice choir, superb orchestra, and organ;
• Pope Francis gave a special pre-taped video welcome and reminded us that to be the Eucharist, we must be the theme of the Congress: Sisters and brothers together for the world.
• The Universal Prayers highlighted the many languages of the Congress, especially the aboriginal language of Quitu, of which the name of the city and people became “Quito.”
We are staying at a lay institute retreat center – the Institute of the Holy Spirit. This is different from a religious order or group, like our Servitium Christi. These women live in a community together and work for their mission of hospitality, providing space for the Holy Spirit to work.
