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Liturgies at St. Thomas More
Church
West Church
1550 Summit Avenue
Tuesday - Friday,
8:00 AM and Liturgy of the Word with Communion
on Mondays at 8:00 AM.
Saturday,
4:30 PM
- Sunday Anticipatory
East Church
1093 Summit Avenue
Sunday,
8:00 AM & 10:30 AM
Reconciliation
Saturday, 3:30 PM, West Church
Worship Space or by appointment: 651/227-7669, ext. 302
Centering Prayer
Tuesday, 5:30 PM - East Curch
Eucharistic Adoration
Tuesday,12:30-9:00 PM - East Church
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What is Eucharistic
Adoration?
Catholics believe that during the Mass which we
attend each week (for some of us daily), the priest (during the consecration)
speaks these words as he holds the communion host, "...He took bread and gave
you thanks. He broke the bread, gave it to his disciples, and said: Take this
all of you, and eat it: this is my body which will be given up for you". When
the priest says "this my body", it is at that instant when, through the miracle
of transubstantiation, the bread and wine which we offer as the bloodless
sacrifice to our Lord truly become the Body, Blood , Soul and Divinity of Jesus.
It is His true Presence in the form of bread and wine. It is Christ.
Perpetual Adoration is when the priest takes a
consecrated host, such as the one described above, and places it in a
monstrance. (monstrance comes from the Latin "monstrare" to show, to expose to
view.) The monstrance is then placed in front of the tabernacle (an ornate box
which holds the monstrance and any consecrated hosts) or on the altar of the
church or chapel for adoration.
What do you actually do during adoration? You may
sign up to be an "adorer" which allows you to schedule yourself for one or more
hours per week to pray before the very presence of Our Lord, exposed in the
monstrance. It means that you can have some time alone with Jesus to recite your
favorite prayers, read the bible, contemplate acts of faith, hope, charity,
thanksgiving, reparation, pray a rosary or do whatever type of prayerful
devotion that suits you before Our Lord. You can just sit and say nothing simply
keeping Him company, just as you would with a dear friend.
Eucharistic Adoration by:
Pope John Paul II
I encourage Christians regularly to visit Christ
present in the Blessed Sacrament, for we are all called to abide in the presence
of God. In contemplation, Christians will perceive ever more profoundly the
mystery at the heart of Christian life.
Teach young people the value of Eucharistic
Adoration
I urge priests, religious and lay people to
continue and redouble their efforts to teach the younger generations the meaning
and value of Eucharistic adoration and devotion. How will young people be able
to know the Lord if they are not introduced to the mystery of His presence? Like
the young Samuel, by learning the words of the prayer of the heart, they will be
closer to the Lord, who will accompany them in their spiritual and human growth.
The Eucharistic mystery is in fact the "summit of evangelization" (Lumen Gentium)
for it is the most eminent testimony to Christ’s resurrection.
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Centering Prayer
Centering Prayer is a method of prayer, which
prepares us to receive the gift of God's presence, traditionally called
contemplative prayer. It consists of responding to the Spirit of Christ by
consenting to God’s presence and action within. It furthers the development of
contemplative prayer by quieting our faculties to cooperate with the gift of
God’s presence.
Centering Prayer facilitates the movement from more
active modes of prayer - verbal, mental or affective prayer - into a receptive
prayer of resting in God. It emphasizes prayer as a personal relationship with
God. At the same time, it is a discipline to foster and serve this relationship
by a regular, daily practice of prayer. It is Trinitarian in its source,
Christ-centered in its focus, and ecclesial in its effects; that is, it builds
communities of faith.
Centering Prayer is drawn from ancient prayer
practices of the Christian contemplative heritage, notably the Fathers and
Mothers of the Desert, Lectio Divina, (praying the scriptures), The Cloud of
Unknowing, St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila.. It was distilled into
a simple method of prayer in the 1970’s by three Trappist monks, Fr. William
Meninger, Fr. Basil Pennington and Abbot Thomas Keating at the Trappist Abbey,
St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts.
For further information, visit
Contemplative Outreach
Ltd.
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Muriel
Ries
