A leper came to adore Him.
Through the Eucharist we have the opportunity to adore the same Lord that this leper came to adore. In the Church we have the beautiful expression of faith which is known to us as Eucharistic adoration. It is here that we have the opportunity to remain with the Lord in prayer as He is present with us in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
The centurion came to state, “Lord, I am not worthy that Thou should enter under my roof: but only say the word and my servant shall be healed.” These are the same words which we exclaim with the confidence of faith prior to receiving Holy Communion. The USCCB reminds us that Eucharistic adoration is an extension of this invitation that comes to us during the Mass. As they state, “Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament flows from the sacrifice of the Mass and serves to deepen our hunger for Communion with Christ and the rest of the Church.”
Saint John Paul II understood the importance of the Eucharist in writing “Dominicae Cenae” “On the Mystery and Worship of the Eucharist.” Here he wrote, “Jesus waits for us in this sacrament of love… Let us be generous with our tine in going to meet Him in adoration and in contemplation that is full of faith and ready to make reparation for the great faults and crimes of the world by our adoration never cease.” These words are so true for they remind us of Christ who is present with us in the Eucharist and remind us of the importance of coming to adore Him.
Within this world there is so much to which we devote our time. Christ is indeed the answer to which our heart longs. The leper longed for Him and came to be healed. The centurion understood the importance of the one to whom he invited to enter into his home. So too we have the opportunity to dwell with Christ. There is indeed a lot which is going on within this world, but may we always make Him the priority of our life. There is always time if only we would make Him the priority.
At one time our parish was able to sustain perpetual adoration. Due to COVID-19 we had to close our chapel and since it has been hard to fill the various hours of the day. Let us continue to pray for the restoration of perpetual adoration to our parish. When we are able let us respond to by filling the various hours of the day with adores. Currently we are able to fill Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. Very soon I hope to move towards adding an additional day to the schedule. Hopefully, we will place our trust in the Lord and one day be able to reopen our perpetual adoration chapel by filling the 24 hour period for each day of the week.
Therefore, like the leper let us come to adore Him. Let us invite Him under our roof and from this encounter be moved towards adoration of our Lord and God. There is no greater reality then this for the Eucharist should be the source and summit of our life. Even when exposition is not taking place we can pray before the tabernacle; even when we are unable to come before the tabernacle in prayer we can allow our mind to go there. Let us adore the Lord always in thought, word, and deed.
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