Participants in St. Vaclav’s Feast of Corpus Christi pictured on Sunday, June 11, 2023. TELEGRAPH FILE PHOTO

CLUTIER – The Feast of Corpus Christi, also known as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, celebrates the real presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist. During Holy Week, the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper is observed on Maundy Thursday.

Juliana of Liege, a 13th century Nobertine Canoness Nun is recognized as the promoter of the feast. From her youth, Juliana longed for a feast emphasizing the joy and focused solely on the Holy Eucharist being the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ. The Feast of Corpus Christi was first celebrated in Liege, Belgium in 1246. Thomas Aquinas proposed the feast to the Pope. In 1264, Pope Urban IV instituted the Solemnity of Corpus Christi on the Thursday after Pentecost and extended it to the entire church.

The feast will be celebrated at St. Wenceslaus Church west of Clutier on Sunday, June 22, at 10 a.m. At the end of Holy Mass, there is a procession of the Blessed Sacrament displayed in a monstrance. The procession is led by a band with stops at the three chapels around the cemetery. The chapels are decorated with yellow, pink and purple flowers.

There is a pause at each chapel where there is a gospel reading and music by the choir. The procession and readings at each chapel and the church is symbolic of the gospel is to be preached in all four corners of the world. Thomas Zinkula, Archbishop of Dubuque will preside. The St. Wenceslaus Oratory is also celebrating its 125th anniversary.

A notable procession is presided over each year by the Pope in Rome. Many churches celebrating the Feast set up temporary altars along the procession route and Corpus Christi Wreaths made of flowers are hung on the doors and windows of the faithful along the route. Locally, the chapels are decorated with flowers and little girls drop flower petals along the procession route.

A cemetery walk featuring the Mike and Bessie Cizek family will begin at 8:45 a.m. on Sunday and conclude before Mass. The Society of St. Vaclav, a group of Czech Catholic people in south Perry and Carroll townships purchased three acres of land from Mike Cizek in March 1899 with the intent of establishing a church and cemetery. Mike and his wife Bessie (Kopriva) Cizek also donated one acre. Vaclav is the Czech version of Wenceslaus.

The Czech people brought the tradition of the Corpus Christi Celebration with them to America. Holy Trinity was a predominantly Czech church established in northern Otter Creek township in 1875 and celebrated a Feast from the beginning of the church on the official Thursday feast day.

St. Vaclav began celebrating the feast on the following Sunday in 1900. Many people attended both celebrations in the early years. The early chapels were made of rough native wood. In 1925, the current chapels were built of hollow brick tile with an exterior coating of stucco and plaster interior.

A picnic dinner for parishioners was established early on. Later the women of the church prepared a traditional Czech dinner as a fundraiser. They used wood burning cook stoves to prepare and serve meals in the rectory east of the church. The early meals sold for 25 cents per person. As the event grew, a tent was set up in the church yard as a dining room. In the 1950s the dinner was moved to the Community Hall in Clutier and to the new church social center in 1967.

After St. Wenceslaus Church became an oratory in 1999 and regular services ended, a group of parishioners has continued to organize and carry out the annual Corpus Christi mass and procession. The parishioners joined neighboring churches. The St. Paul church in Traer has helped to continue the tradition. The fundraising dinner, box dinners, bingo and country store ended when the church became an oratory.

On Sunday, there is a dinner following at the St. Paul parish center in Traer. Ham, chicken, potatoes, table service, and beverages are provided. Those who attend are asked to bring a salad, vegetable or dessert and consider a free will donation for the food provided.

St. Vaclav is one of the few churches still celebrating the Feast of Corpus Christi. All are invited to come and experience this most special day.