PRO-LIFE PRAYER POWER:
PERPETUAL EUCHARISTIC ADORATION APPEAL
by Fr. Jim Whalen
2001, Issue 3
When our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, personally opened a chapel for Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, on December 2, 1981, he was showing us how to put our faith into practice. He was making us aware of the fact that there is a need for more intensive prayer involvement in the spiritual warfare between the ‘culture of life’ and the ‘culture of death’. He was stating clearly that time for Eucharistic evangelization is now.
If we truly want to make a difference, to build a civilization of love, to increase vocations to the priesthood, sisterhood and married life, and to have peace in the world, we need, as in times past, a divine invitation. If we really want to bring about a radical change in our parishes, personal sanctification, openness to the transmission of life and respect for life at all stages, Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration (PEA) is a proven, powerful prayer for priests and people of God: "The witness which we give to the people of God in celebrating the Eucharist depends in large part upon our own personal relationship with the Eucharist" (Pope John Paul II, Holy Thursday Letter to Priests, 2000). At the 45th International Eucharistic Congress in Seville, Spain, June 1993, he called upon every parish to have Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration with exposition: "I hope that the fruit of this congress results in the establishment of Perpetual (continual) Eucharistic Adoration in all parishes and Christian communities throughout the world".
At a recent retreat for priests of the Archdiocese of Ottawa, Bishop J. Faber MacDonald of the diocese of St. John, NB indicated that his diocese has seen a tremendous increase in new vocations since Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration was initiated there. Bishop MacDonald is to be commended for initiating this effort.
Mother Teresa of Calcutta echoed repeatedly that the answer to our needs for conversion, to the present crisis in faith and to respect for life is a return to adoration and prayer. "What we need is for every parish to come before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament in Holy Hours of prayer. The Eucharist involves more than receiving. It involves satisfying the hunger of Christ. When you look at the crucifix, you understand how much Jesus loved you. When you look at the Sacred Host, you understand how much Jesus loves you now".
We are called to a personal relationship with Jesus, our Saviour, in the Blessed Sacrament. Without coming before Him in quiet moments of prayer, we diminish our faith in His real presence. If we take time out to be with Him in the Blessed Sacrament, our relationship with our Lord will increase and grow and blossom. In going before Him in the Blessed Sacrament, we go before Him who is with us in person. Perpetual Adoration helps build community. A culture of life makes us more personally involved with Christ and His Church and the people of God. Through personal love, we come to grasp what it means to be one with the whole Body of Christ. Every Holy Hour draws the world and everybody in it closer to Christ. We come to understand and respect all of life, from conception to natural death.
When we go before the Blessed Sacrament, we stand on behalf of that one person in the world in most need of God’s love and mercy, whether it is the unborn child, the pregnant mother, the abortionist, the handicapped, or the chronically ill. By our Holy Hours of Prayer, we can contribute to the radical transformation of the world. At this stage in our history, we have reached a stage which is beyond human remedy. We need divine intervention. This is possible through the Blessed Sacrament. When we go before the Blessed Sacrament, we touch the heart of Jesus with our faith and release His power, His healing love, His graces and blessings upon the whole world.
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque heard Jesus say to her: "I have a burning thirst to be honoured by men in the Blessed Sacrament". Our Lord’s own words cry out for our attention, our presence: "Could you not watch one hour with Me?" (Mt 26:40).
Mother Teresa describes the effectiveness of Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration: "We cannot separate our lives from the Eucharist. The moment we do, something breaks. When we started Holy Hours in 1973, our vocations doubled. The time you spend with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the best time you will spend on earth".
Bishop John Magee of Cloyne, Ireland, reports that vocations tripled since he started Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. In 1990, there were sixteen vocations to the priesthood; in 1993, the number had risen to forty-five.
Cardinal Vidal, Archbishop of Ceba, Philippines, said, "Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is the solution to our problems of declining vocations".
Today we are in a great crisis: abortion… divorce… abuse… contraception… euthanasia… lack of vocations… to name a few. There are repeated attacks on the unborn, the family, youth, mothers, and fathers. There are concerted efforts to infuse relativism into our education systems, and the Sacrament of Marriage is constantly under threat. Jesus looks to us to come to Him and return love to Him. This is difficult. Sacrifice is the language of love. The spirit of sacrifice is the spirit of all Christians. Jesus pleads for an hour of friendship, not activity, an hour of being present with Him. We share in the work of redemption, making reparation for the great faults and crimes of the world. (Pope John Paul II, Dominicae Cenae, Ch. 1, Sec. 2). We are called to be prayer warriors for peace, to reject the culture of death and evil, and build a culture of love, life, and justice. Peter Kreeft helps us to understand the great forces released in perpetual adoration of the Eucharist: "Adoration is more powerful for construction than nuclear bombs are for destruction".
The prayer taught by Our Lady to the children of Fatima is to the point: "O Most Holy Trinity, I adore Thee. My God, I love Thee in the Most Blessed Sacrament". Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration is the perfect fulfilment of the requests for prayer, penance, and sacrifice for which Our Lady has asked.
At Mass, the sacrificial and communal aspects of the Eucharist are emphasized. "Communion only reaches its true depths when it is supported and surrounded by adoration. The Eucharistic Presence in the tabernacle does not set another view of the Eucharist alongside or against the Eucharistic celebration but simply signifies its complete fulfilment" (Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, The Spirit of the Liturgy, 2000, p. 90). In Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration, the Real Presence is emphasized - the presence of the whole Christ, Body, Blood, Soul, Divinity and Humanity. He gives Himself completely and personally to us. Jesus waits for us in this sacrament of love. "Our communal worship at Mass must be together with our personal worship of Jesus in Eucharistic adoration in order that our love may be complete" (Pope John Paul II, Phoenix Park, Dublin Ireland, September 29, 1979.
The reasons for Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration are many. Mother Teresa reminds us: "We cannot underestimate the power of prayer and the difference it will make in our world. The time you spend with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the best time you will spend on earth". St. Peter Julian Eymard pointed out clearly: "Let us never forget that an age prospers or dwindles in proportion to its devotion to the Holy Eucharist. This is the measure of its spiritual life and its faith, of its charity and its virtue".
In the past two decades, over 1500 chapels of Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration have been established world-wide in Europe, North and South America, Asia, Africa, and Australia. In Canada, churches in Toronto, Kingston, Belleville, Hamilton, Windsor, Sudbury and Combermere, among others. have been established recently. The newest Chapel opens its doors at St. Margaret Mary’s Bilingual Parish, Cumberland, Ontario, in the Diocese of Ottawa, on September 14, 2001. This adoration is possible with the cooperation of neighbouring parishes of St. Edith Stein and Holy Trinity. Other parishes are also being approached to become involved, with a special challenge to the Legion of Mary, Catholic Women’s League, and the Knights of Columbus. Fr. Jim Whalen, pastor of the parish, and national director of Priests for Life, Canada, recognizes the appeal by the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II.
The need for more intensive perpetual prayer in building a culture of life is especially critical for the new Priests for Life, Canada pro-life centre opening in Ottawa on September 29, 2001. This work must be supported by strong prayer warriors if we are to make any progress. We need to encourage pro-life vocations to the single life, family life, priesthood, diaconate, sisterhood, and brotherhood.
Special thanks are extended to the Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament, who have been very helpful in providing spiritual support, assistance and resource materials for Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration (www.acfp2000.com for more information in English, French and Spanish ). Thanks are also extended to the Congregation of Notre Dame Sisters, Ottawa, for their prayers and support in setting up the chapel, as well as to the committed members of the Perpetual Adoration Chapels whom we have approached for prayer and assistance.
We ask for your prayers and support in this new endeavour. We hope and pray that all bishops and priests will accept the appeal of our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, that all parishes establish Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. ¤