Forty Hours Adoration
6 pm Thursday 30th November until
10 am Saturday 2nd December.
Adoration 2023
This will be an opportunity to pray before the Blessed Sacrament, which will be exposed on the altar, day and night, for forty hours. Each hour has a particular intention, an aspect of parish life or a particular concern assigned to it, and parishioners will be invited to come and pray for that intention alongside their own needs and concerns.
Sign-up sheets are available in the church porch, detailing the intentions to be prayed for and asking people to sign up in half-hour slots, guaranteeing that there will always be someone praying before the Blessed Sacrament, ideally a minimum of two people at all times.
If the sheets already have names assigned to a particular time, this doesn’t mean you are not welcome to attend at the same time. The more people attend, the greater the adoration, and you can of course attend more than once during the 40 hours of exposition.
During the 40 hours, the downstairs café and toilet area will be open, accessible from inside the church only during the night hours, for the safety of all attending.
There will be times of complete silence and some periods where suitable music will be heard; there will be times of communal prayer and times reserved for individuals to pray quietly. Time of course for all attending to gaze upon the Blessed Sacrament, the Eucharist, the source and summit of the Christian life CCC 1324
This time of 40 hours, is an invitation to the whole parish community, to attend if able, and spend some time before our Lord. It is happening just before the start of Advent, a season of reflection, change and preparation. We are, in this life, too often focused on ourselves, and we cannot be fully prepared to receive the good news of Christs’ birth, if we are looking inwards; we must change our gaze towards Christ, we must look outwards, and reflect on what the annual celebration of his birth means to us, not just as a parish community, but individually, in our hearts, our minds and our souls.
These 40 hours provide us with a moment in time, hours where we can gaze outwards, upon him who gave his all, for all of us. When we truly reflect on this, and take it to heart, we can see the world and it’s peoples differently. When we allow Christ to live in ourselves, we are better abled to be his eyes, his voice, his hands and his feet, in a world that needs them evermore.
If you are a regular at exposition on a Saturday morning, you are welcome; if you have experienced adoration only a few times before, you are welcome; if you have never sat before the Blessed Sacrament before, you are especially welcome.
I know the cry already, I don’t have time, I’m busy, I’ve a lot on my plate at the moment… all this may be true, but if Jesus made time for us upon the Cross, surely we can make time for him? We just need to decide to do so.
To assist you, if needed, in time of adoration, printed materials will be on hand to help you focus, and for further assistance, there is a reflection here, which will also be printed and available during the 40 hours.
Come, the invitation has been made, even if just for 30 minutes, come, and take the better part, come…
Additionally, we will be ‘Sharing the Light’ by inviting those passing the church, the opportunity to come in, light a candle, and maybe write a prayer, just to take a moment to be on sacred ground, and be still, who knows what might be on their mind, who might be on their mind, or what God might want to say to them.
Reflection
Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” Luke 10:40–42
In many ways, this statement of our Lord summarises the most important and central message of the Gospel. We are all called to choose “the better part” and to choose it every day, not just on Sundays.
Jesus was close friends with Martha, Mary and Lazarus and he often visited their home, which was only a short distance from Jerusalem. On this occasion one of these siblings, Mary, had placed herself at Jesus’ feet, she was ‘listening to Him’ and ‘conversing with Him’. Martha was busy with the important details of hospitality and appeared to be upset with Mary, so she confronted Jesus, asking Him to tell Mary to help her. But in so doing, she was also unknowingly trying to dissuade Mary from the most important purpose of her life, a purpose we can all learn to follow, if only we allow ourselves to try.
As Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, she gave us an example of the most important focus we must have in life, being centred on God. Though our days will be filled with many necessary duties such as cooking, cleaning, working, entertainment, and caring for others, we must never forget that which we were made for, and that which we will be doing for all eternity: adoration of our glorious God, ‘listening to Him’ and ‘conversing with Him’, being in right-relationship with him in who’s image and likeness we are made.
Consider all that occupies your day. Though most of what you do may be important, do you daily take time out to adore our Lord, listen to Him and glorify Him through your prayer? We can make time for many other important duties in life, as well as those that are not so important. We may spend hours on chores, immerse ourselves in movies, devote whole evenings to reading, fulfil our duties in the workplace, but only devote a minute or two each day, if even that, to silent prayer and adoration of our God! What would happen to your life if you chose “the better part” for a full hour every day?
What if you decided that the first hour of your day would be dedicated to an imitation of Mary in the Gospel passage and that you would do nothing but adore Jesus through silent prayer and meditation? At first, you may think of the many other tasks you could be doing at that moment. After careful reflection, you may decide that you do not have the time for a full hour every day, but start with 15 minutes, and build up to an hour; it might be easier than you think possible at first.
Perhaps you are actually being Martha to yourself, saying to yourself that you should do more important things with your time and that Jesus will understand if you do not spend time with Him alone in adoration and prayer every day. If that is you, then be very attentive to this Gospel passage. In many ways, Jesus deeply desires to say this about you. He wants to say of you that you have chosen the better part for an extended period of time every day and that this will not be taken from you.
Reflect, now, upon that which is most important in life. Dispel excuses and temptations to simply fulfil all the other important duties of life, neglecting that which is most important. Reflect upon the simple truth that Jesus does want you to devote much time to Him every day for silent prayer and adoration. Do not give into excuses and distractions. Commit yourself to remain at the feet of Jesus, adoring Him, listening to Him and loving Him. If you do, you will find that your life is more ordered and that the time you spend in prayer bears more good fruit than every other important duty you fulfil every day.
My inviting Lord, I do believe that adoration of You in silent and devout prayer is the most important duty I have to fulfil every day. May I never be deterred from adoring You every day, devoting as much time as You desire to silent and loving prayer. May I discover this gift of prayer, dear Lord, and sit at Your feet with Mary and with all the glorious saints. Jesus, I trust in You.