Fête-Dieu du Teche set for Aug. 15

Fête-Dieu du Teche 2020, a unique 40-mile eucharistic procession by boat and foot, will take place on the Feast of the Assumption, Saturday, Aug. 15.
All are invited to a Mass in French with Bishop Douglas Deshotel and concelebrating priests at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church in Leonville. At the end of Mass there will be a procession with the Blessed Sacrament and a statue of Mary and St. Joseph to the nearby boat landing.
At 9:30 a.m., boats will depart in procession down the Teche toward St. Martinville, retracing the voyage made by the Acadians 255 years ago. The boat procession will stop at churches in the towns along the Teche for Rosary and Benediction (arriving at Arnaudville behind St. Francis Regis at 10:20 a.m.; arriving behind St. Joseph Church in Cecilia at 11:45 a.m.; arriving at the Pavilion behind St. Bernard Church in Breaux Bridge at 1:35 p.m.; arriving at the park behind St. Joseph Church in Parks at 3:15 p.m.; and arriving at Old Market Street in St Martinville at about 4:45 p.m.).
Upon arriving in St. Martinville, a foot procession will commence to Notre Dame de Perpetual Secours for Benediction, then to St. Martin de Tours for Benediction, and finally down main street to Mater Dolorosa Chapel for Solemn Vespers and Benediction at 5:30 p.m. Confessions will be heard in mobile units at each of the stops along the way.
Pope Francis has granted participants of Fȇte-Dieu du Teche a Plenary Indulgence.
The indulgence is valid on Aug. 15 for those who attend the 8 am French Mass in Leonville, those who make the procession by boat, and those who participate in the devotions at one of the many stops along the Teche. Those who are impeded for a serious reason from physically attending the procession may also gain the indulgence by spiritually uniting their prayers and trials.
The pope asks participants to pray for fidelity to the Christian vocation, for the good of the family, and for priestly and religious vocations. If you have a boat, register it now at www.jesuscrucified.net/events/fete-dieu-du-teche-2020/form
If you don’t have a boat, follow by vehicle and join us at one or all of the stops for the Rosary and Benediction.
For more information or to register a boat visit our website at www.jesuscrucified.net, visit us on FB at www.facebook.com/CommunityofJesusCrucified, send us an email at fetedieuduteche@gmail.com, or call 337-394-6550.