Since I announced that the parish would be having an “All-day Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament” seven days a week, many parishioners have given me positive responses and offered to pray for this beautiful activity. When I mentioned this good news to our brothers and sisters in Canada, Lilian Barnes, a visionary who has the Five Wounds of Jesus in her, suggested that we could start the all-day adoration on just one or two days of the week, and I accepted her suggestion.<br/><br/>
Starting May 30, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the parish will have a “48-hour Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament” two days a week from 7:30 a.m. on Friday to 7:30 a.m. on Sunday. Our goal is still to have the all-day Eucharistic adoration every day of the week, so please pray for this to happen.<br/><br/>
So how should we adore the Blessed Sacrament? We should remember what Jesus said to the three disciples with him when he went to the Mount of Olives to pray: “My soul is sorrowful even to death. Remain here and keep watch with me.” (Mt 26:38). In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus also said, “Pray that you may not undergo the test.” (Lk 22:40)<br/><br/>
Eucharistic adoration is not a time to rest and relax. Therefore, spend enough time resting before starting the adoration; otherwise, Jesus may say to us, too, “So you could not keep watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test.” (Mt 26: 40-41)<br/><br/>
To start the adoration, we can ask for the Holy Spirit to enter our hearts and souls so that we will focus on what is truly important in God’s eyes. Some people also try to pay attention to their breathing or recite some short prayers in order to get into a quiet state. Keep in mind, though, adoring the Blessed Sacrament is not the same as doing yoga. In yoga, the goal is to get oneself and nature together and, thus, is self-focused; however, in the Eucharistic adoration, our intention is to share Jesus’ sorrows. For me, I like to say the rosary and allow myself to focus on specific episodes of Jesus’ earthly journey during Eucharistic adoration. When we are with Jesus like this, the most important thing is to have a sense of joy and longing.