A new film focusing on the transformative power of the Eucharist will be hitting the big screen this June.
Jesus Thirsts: The Miracle of the Eucharist will take viewers on a journey to rediscover and revive the importance of the Eucharist through dialogue with notable Catholic figures by exploring the biblical origins of the Eucharist and sharing personal stories from those whose lives have been impacted by the Blessed Sacrament.
The film will be shown in theaters nationwide June 4-6 through Fathom Events. Each date will consist of 4 and 7 p.m. showings in each given time zone.
Several well-known Catholics make an appearance in the film including Marian Father Donald Calloway, Scott Hahn, Jim Wahlberg, Curtis Martin, Chris Stefanick, Jesuit Father Robert Spitzer, Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, and Tim Gray.
Deacon Steve Greco is the executive producer of the film. He spoke with CNA about the inspiration behind the film and what he hopes viewers will take away from it.
Greco explained that amid the ongoing Eucharistic Revival in the U.S., he felt it was “very critical that we have a movie focusing on the real presence of Jesus with top Catholic theologians and leaders across the country and across the world.”
“The movie is going to change people’s lives because the most important thing for us right now is to understand how much God loves us,” he said. “And what the movie talks about is that Jesus is the personification of love through the Mass and through the Eucharist.”
“I believe the Holy Spirit has guided us in making this movie.”
He added that the film has a special focus on young adults due so many leaving the Church and their lack of belief.
“Hopefully, and we believe, they will realize that this is real. This isn’t just a symbol. This isn’t just a tradition. This is real. This is Jesus,” Greco emphasized.
Another important demographic highlighted in the movie is the Hispanic population. Greco pointed out the fact that the Catholic Hispanic population is one of the fastest-growing populations in the Church and “is on fire in many places.”
Oscar Delgado, a former NBC journalist-turned film producer, who is also bilingual, speaks in Spanish in the film about an adoration chapel he helped build in Chicago, which is home to the largest monstrance in the world.
Greco added that they partnered with the Knights of Columbus to add an 18-minute adjunctive film, produced by the Knights of Columbus, titled Our Lady of Guadalupe: Woman of the Eucharist.
The short film will air after Jesus Thirsts and explores the centrality of the Eucharist in that famous Marian apparition.
Greco said he has three hopes for what people will take away from watching this movie: that people know how much they are loved by Jesus, that they go to Mass more frequently, and that more people will feel called to go to adoration and, because of this, that there will be an increase in religious vocations.
“To have Eucharistic adoration changes you,” Greco said. “We know for a fact that many vocations come from Eucharistic adoration.”
He added: “So we hope there’s an uptick, if not a dramatic uptick, in religious vocations that come out of this film. We hope that the attendance at church, the attendance at adoration, the prayer life is transformed and that people, again, are transformed by the love of Jesus.”
“We really believe that every priest, every deacon, every bishop, every Catholic needs to see this.”