Bishop Anthony Taylor presided at the inauguration of Sacred Heart’s Adoration Chapel on November 16, 2013.  Over 300 parishioners have signed up for a particular hour to be with Jesus in The Blessed Sacrament every hour of every day in quiet prayer, meditation or spiritual reading.  Pope John Paul II encouraged this ministry after establishing an Adoration Chapel at St. Peter’s in Rome in 1981.  Since then, many hundreds of Adoration Chapels have been opened in the U.S. with continuous prayer being offered for 15 to 20 years and more.

In Eucharistic Adoration we are giving Jesus respect and worship—as we believe he is truly present in the appearance of the Eucharistic host displayed in the monstrance.  Acknowledging this, we are brought to a deeper spiritual union as we are exposed to His grace, mercy and love.  There are three purposes to the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament: 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.

There are many fruits derived from Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration: often people experience a deeper devotion to Jesus which may lead to repentance, conversion, and increased charity.  Some have felt greater reverence at Mass, an increased desire for personal holiness and a stronger sense of union with the parish and whole Church.

Jesus challenged his disciples to “watch one hour with me” in the Garden of Gethsemane.  We are answering that challenge.  There are many ways to pray and whether we simply meditate, speak to Jesus from our hearts, read scripture, or rely on the rosary or litanies, we are expressing our desire to develop a deep and personal relationship with him.  Not only that, we are praying for the whole world!  When Mother Theresa was asked, “What would save the world?” she replied, “My answer is prayer.  What we need is for every parish to come before Jesus in an Adoration Chapel in holy hours of prayer.”