Month: September 2015

Last week in Part 1, I defined what adoration and Eucharistic adoration are. In addition, I shared a brief history about it, the purpose as to why Catholics adore Jesus in the Eucharist and how to pray during a holy hour. Now I would like to share with you the details on this important and upcoming parish event. On Wednesday, September 30th, through the leadership of our Director of Religious Education (D.R.E.), Karen Clor, our parish will offer Eucharistic Adoration. It will be a chance to rest with Jesus in silence. Jesus says, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mk. 6:31). Jesus also says in Mt. 11:28, “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” All you need to do is show up with an open heart, a restful spirit and be prepared to sit with Jesus in the silence… something we all need at times to refresh our minds and souls. Who better to do it with than with our Divine Physician and King of Kings, Jesus Christ.

The evening will entail adoration of the Blessed Sacrament that will be available not just for our catechism students and their parents, but also for the whole parish. Since the theme of adoration will be Family Night, the focus will be on praying to Jesus for our families, which is timely because of Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S. which will include a gathering for the World Meeting of Families on September 26th-27th in Philadelphia. Speaking of time, it starts at 6:00pm. I (Fr. Jeff) will give a brief, 5-10 minute presentation on what adoration is followed by Nancy Trudell, who will discuss the spirituality of adoration on how we can effectively spend our time during the holy hour. Adoration will begin at 6:20pm and will go on until about 7:00pm when our catechism students will come over from the school to join us for adoration in church at the St. Stephen site. Benediction (blessing) will follow and conclude around 7:15pm when the Eucharist will be reposed (or put back) in the tabernacle. At that time the catechism students and their parents will be dismissed from church.

What can I expect to experience at this adoration event? You will see how the Eucharistic Jesus will be placed in a monstrance which is like a metal sunburst that sits on the altar. How long will Jesus be present in the monstrance? About an hour… But on Tuesday mornings from 9am – 12pm, Jesus is present in the St. Stephen’s chapel for three hours thanks to Frank and Judy Elliott who organize it. All are welcome to attend that weekly event too. If you are free then, I encourage and challenge you to set a goal to spend one hour with Jesus per week. You might not be able to do that right off the bat. Like someone who just starts to exercise by running or lifting weights, you start out small and slow just like with adoration. The same principle applies, whether physical or spiritual. You may need to start at five or 10 minutes and build up from there. At this evening adoration event, be ready to use your senses as rich elements of incense, music, candles, and different-than-normal, priestly vestments will be used to make your adoration prayer more fruitful.

St. John Paul II wrote in an encyclical letter on the Eucharist that all Catholics are called to contemplate the Eucharistic face of Christ (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, no. 7). This is a faith opportunity for you to behold the face of Jesus truly present in the Eucharist. “By worshipping the Eucharistic Jesus, we become what God wants us to be! Like a magnet, the Lord draws us to Himself and gently transforms us. In its fullest essence… Eucharistic Adoration is ‘God and Man reaching out for each other, at the same time!” (Source: http://catholic-church.org/kuwait/eucharistic_adoration.htm). May we reach out to Jesus with a heart full of desire that can only be filled by his mercy and love. Amen.

Fr. Jeff Allan

Resources:
Boer, Paul A. and St. Peter Julian Eymard. The Real Presence.
Flynn, Vinny. Seven Secrets of the Eucharist.
Groeschel, Fr. Benedict. Praying in The Presence of Our Lord: Prayers for Eucharistic Adoration.
Racine, Fr. Florian. Could You Not Watch With Me One Hour: How to Cultivate A Deeper Relationship with The Lord Through Eucharistic Adoration.

One day St. Teresa of Avila heard someone say: “If only I had lived at the time of Jesus… If only I had seen Jesus… If only I had talked with Jesus…” To this she responded: “But do we not have in the Eucharist the living, true and real Jesus present before us? Why look for more?”

The “Real Presence” of Jesus, who is truly and substantially present to us in the Eucharist under the appearance of bread and wine, makes himself vulnerable and available to be consumed by those prepared to properly receive Him at Mass during Holy Communion. Jesus also humbles himself under the appearance of bread in the Eucharist for the purpose of allowing us to praise and honor Him in adoration outside of Mass too. Before we move further into the adoration of Jesus through Eucharistic adoration, we must first ask ourselves, “what is adoration?” The Catechism defines adoration as “the acknowledgement of God as God, Creator and Savior, the Lord and Master of everything that exists. Through worship and prayer, the Church and individual persons give to God the adoration which is the first act of the virtue of religion. The first commandment of the law obliges us to adore God (Catechism 2096, 2628, 1083), which we do at Mass and during other liturgical seasons of the year. For example, you may recall this familiar quote on Fridays during Lent at the Stations of the Cross in which we respond: We ADORE you O Christ, and we praise you. Because by your holy cross, you have redeemed the world.”

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the Eucharist began with the Feast of Corpus Christi (The Body of Christ). Eucharistic adoration in public can at least be traced back to the 13th century when on September 11th, 1226, King Louis VII of France ordered the Blessed Sacrament to be exposed for adoration at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Avignon, France in order to give thanks for victory after a battle.

What is Eucharistic adoration? It is the recognition and honor given to Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. It is an encounter with Christ that strengthens our relationship with the Risen Lord in which we receive a sort of “suntan on the soul.” “In a deeper sense, it involves ‘the contemplation of the Mystery of Christ truly present before us.’ During Eucharistic Adoration, we ‘watch and wait,’ we remain ‘silent’ in His Presence and open ourselves to His Graces which flow from the Eucharist” (Source: http://catholic-church.org/kuwait/eucharistic_adoration.htm). Silence is key for this encounter to take place. Mother Teresa once said, “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature – trees, flowers and grass grow in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.” Silence is key. But what is the purpose of the silence and adoration in general?

There are three purposes for Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. There are as follows:

1. To acknowledge Christ’s marvelous presence in the sacrament;
2. To lead us to a fuller participation in the celebration of the Eucharist, culminating in Holy Communion; and
3. To foster the worship which is due to Christ in spirit and in truth.

(Source: http://www.sanctuaryofthedivinemercy.org/Adoration/What-is-Eucharistic-Adoration-23.html)

When we participate in adoration by praying to Jesus, we don’t pray by ourselves. Though a community may join us along with the angels and saints, we need the help of the Holy Spirit who comes in “spirit and truth” (Jn. 4:23-24). St. Paul says, “the (Holy) Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groaning” (Rom. 8:26). How can I pray to Jesus during this holy hour? In other words, what kinds of prayer would you recommend? Fr. John Hardon, a deceased Jesuit priest, would say you can pray either by adoration, petition, love or reparation (prayers to repair for personal sins or the sins of the world). While I talked about the history of adoration, what it is, it’s purpose and how, stay tuned next week for further details about adoration at our parish on the evening of September 30th.

– Fr. Jeff