THE LIVING WATER ON THE BAYOU

John 6: 19-20   When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. But He said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” They wanted to take him into the boat, but the boat immediately arrived at the shore to which they were headed.

The Gospels are filled with writings of fishermen, the sea, water and boats.  It is evident that Christ Jesus’s ministry was directly and closely tied to the waterways of the communities He and the apostles were evangelizing.  He preached from the shores and from boats.  His message was that He was the Living Water and “no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of Water and Spirit.” John 3:5.

It is providence and true to the teachings of Jesus, that each year on August 15^th, the Feast Day of The Assumption, a eucharistic procession takes place on the waterways, the bayous, of South Louisiana.

In order to understand this beautiful and unique procession, it is necessary to look back to the ancestors of this region, the Acadians.  Acadia, present day Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, was the homeland of these French, devout Catholics. Their land was captured by the British in 1710. 1755 began the Great Expulsion of the Acadians, who for forty years held fast to their Catholic faith despite Britain’s efforts to transform the colony into a Protestant community.

Thousands of Acadians were deported by ships to France and American colonies.  One third of the Acadians did not survive the deportation.  Families were separated, their homes and farmlands destroyed in an effort to thwart any thoughts of returning.  They were not allowed to travel or hold a job for 10 years.  Hardship, disease and death took its toll on these faithful; however, it did not conquer.

Once the survivors were released from their forced servitude, the Acadian people began reuniting in areas where they were free to practice their Catholic faith.  The largest group landed in southern Louisiana in 1765. Traveling down Bayou Teche, they landed in the St. Martinville area.  It was hot, humid and treacherous.  They were accompanied by Father Jean-Louis de Civrey, who became the first resident priest.  A church was built which replicated the Catholic Church of their homeland.  The land they settled became known as Cajun country.  It is a culture rich with unique food, music, and a devout Catholic population of over a half million in the diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana.

The national feast day of the Acadians was proclaimed to be the Feast Day of the Assumption, August 15^th.  The Holy Day is celebrated in present day New Brunswick with a parade of people dressed up with colors of the Acadians.  In south Louisiana, the celebration is called Fete-Dieu de Teche and consists of a 3.8- mile Eucharistic Boat Procession down the bayous!  The lead boat holds the Blessed Sacrament affixed to an altar under a canopy.  Another boat holds a statue of the Assumption of the Blessed Mother.  These boats are joined by many people traveling by boat and also many who travel by car, gathering on the banks of the bayous at planned stops for the Rosary and Benediction.

 Once again, Jesus will be on the water this August 15^th.  The hot, humid Louisiana weather will not deter the faithful.  There will be thousands of ancestors of the original Acadians,  who traveled the bayous in search of a home where their children and grandchildren could practice their Catholic faith.  Their descendants honor their sacrifice and perseverance, as they flock to adore Him on the bayous of south Louisiana!

John 7:37-39  Jesus stood up and exclaimed, “Let anyone who thirst come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me as scripture says, ‘Rivers of Living Water’ will flow from within him.”

For more information on Fete-Dieu du Teche: fetedieuduteche.org