Deandra
Kaiser’s head rested in her hands which were grasping white rosary beads.She
was kneeling in quiet prayer as sunlight cast light through the stained glass
windows.It was
Wednesday of Holy Week and Kaiser had made a personal commitment to come to the
Adoration Chapel, just inside the Church of the Holy Cross, every day of the week before Easter.
She was dressed in her scrubs headed to work as an X-ray technician.“Here they have the Eucharist,” Kaiser said. “The Lord is here and during Holy Week I want one-on-one time with him.”Catholics, Anglo-Catholics and Lutherans believe Jesus Christ is present in the Holy Eucharist. But, not all have adoration chapels, where the chain of prayer is never broken except for 72 hours during Holy Week.
That’s the only break in the constant prayer at the Adoration Chapel at Holy Cross and Our Lady of Guadalupe.St. Teresa has a chapel but it isn’t 24/7. At the other two they shut the door at 6 p.m. on Maundy Thursday and don’t open again until 6 p.m. Easter night.Father Joe Eckberg entered the chapel at Holy Cross and in a private moment removed the monstrance, a vessel in which the consecrated Host is exposed for the adoration of the devoted. Then following the Maundy Thursday service Eckberg and the acolytes, followed by the congregation, proceeded out of the church, as he carried the Eucharist. They entered the gymnasium of the Holy Cross School where a make-shift adoration chapel had been set up, allowing members of the congregation to come and pray until midnight.At Holy Cross on Wednesday afternoon there were two other people in the chapel. They were there for their hour of prayer, part of a rotation that keeps someone always in the chapel in silent prayer for the sick and sorrowful in the community and for the church and all of God’s family.There has been someone praying day and night since 1989.
While those on the adoration schedule for Thursday evening through Sunday evening had a reprieve, it would be back to silent prayers Sunday evening.Like monks who have taken a vow of silence, those in prayer offer their petitions quietly.When they are done praying and the hour isn’t up there are devotionals to read or the Bible.There is a blanket for anyone who might become chilled.After all, sometimes in the middle of the night it might get chilly in the chapel.But the commitment to pray comes from Jesus, Eckberg said.While Jesus was going through his agony in Gethsemane he found his disciples sleeping, and he asked could you not pray with me for one hour?In this hectic world it is sometimes difficult to find one hour to devote to prayer, especially in the middle of a cold, dark night.But, Deborah Castaneda said that at Our Lady of Guadalupe, she is humbled by some of the elderly parishioners who come at 2, 3 or 4 in the morning.“The elderly are so devoted. They find the strength to get up and go,” she said. “Some of them can do three or four hours.”In the past she has prayed the midnight hour and really liked it. She liked the total silence.“The town is asleep and you are in the moment.
It’s just you and God late at night,” she said.She had to change her schedule, however, because she doesn’t have a car and the middle of the night is a difficult time to find a ride.“My time is 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.,” she said.If someone is going to be away they must find a replacement.Sometimes people trade hours, but there are people who only want to be substitutes.Castaneda says she needs the spiritual time she gets from her adoration hour.“I love Mass, but sometimes I need to be alone. At home there are distractions. Sometimes when you learn to be quiet you can hear answers from God. I can feel so beat down sometimes and I might not feel worthy of sitting in front of the Eucharist. But, I can go in there and let it all out.”She said staring at the painting of Jesus on the wall is like looking him in the eye.“I leave all my troubles and petitions there and go out the door with renewed strength to fight the good battle.”Ref: http://www.hutchnews.com/lifestyle/religion/offering-one-hour-for-jesus/article_d6ca2cec-15a9-518c-9ee2-a7b92e4f3317.html
She was dressed in her scrubs headed to work as an X-ray technician.“Here they have the Eucharist,” Kaiser said. “The Lord is here and during Holy Week I want one-on-one time with him.”Catholics, Anglo-Catholics and Lutherans believe Jesus Christ is present in the Holy Eucharist. But, not all have adoration chapels, where the chain of prayer is never broken except for 72 hours during Holy Week.
That’s the only break in the constant prayer at the Adoration Chapel at Holy Cross and Our Lady of Guadalupe.St. Teresa has a chapel but it isn’t 24/7. At the other two they shut the door at 6 p.m. on Maundy Thursday and don’t open again until 6 p.m. Easter night.Father Joe Eckberg entered the chapel at Holy Cross and in a private moment removed the monstrance, a vessel in which the consecrated Host is exposed for the adoration of the devoted. Then following the Maundy Thursday service Eckberg and the acolytes, followed by the congregation, proceeded out of the church, as he carried the Eucharist. They entered the gymnasium of the Holy Cross School where a make-shift adoration chapel had been set up, allowing members of the congregation to come and pray until midnight.At Holy Cross on Wednesday afternoon there were two other people in the chapel. They were there for their hour of prayer, part of a rotation that keeps someone always in the chapel in silent prayer for the sick and sorrowful in the community and for the church and all of God’s family.There has been someone praying day and night since 1989.
While those on the adoration schedule for Thursday evening through Sunday evening had a reprieve, it would be back to silent prayers Sunday evening.Like monks who have taken a vow of silence, those in prayer offer their petitions quietly.When they are done praying and the hour isn’t up there are devotionals to read or the Bible.There is a blanket for anyone who might become chilled.After all, sometimes in the middle of the night it might get chilly in the chapel.But the commitment to pray comes from Jesus, Eckberg said.While Jesus was going through his agony in Gethsemane he found his disciples sleeping, and he asked could you not pray with me for one hour?In this hectic world it is sometimes difficult to find one hour to devote to prayer, especially in the middle of a cold, dark night.But, Deborah Castaneda said that at Our Lady of Guadalupe, she is humbled by some of the elderly parishioners who come at 2, 3 or 4 in the morning.“The elderly are so devoted. They find the strength to get up and go,” she said. “Some of them can do three or four hours.”In the past she has prayed the midnight hour and really liked it. She liked the total silence.“The town is asleep and you are in the moment.
It’s just you and God late at night,” she said.She had to change her schedule, however, because she doesn’t have a car and the middle of the night is a difficult time to find a ride.“My time is 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.,” she said.If someone is going to be away they must find a replacement.Sometimes people trade hours, but there are people who only want to be substitutes.Castaneda says she needs the spiritual time she gets from her adoration hour.“I love Mass, but sometimes I need to be alone. At home there are distractions. Sometimes when you learn to be quiet you can hear answers from God. I can feel so beat down sometimes and I might not feel worthy of sitting in front of the Eucharist. But, I can go in there and let it all out.”She said staring at the painting of Jesus on the wall is like looking him in the eye.“I leave all my troubles and petitions there and go out the door with renewed strength to fight the good battle.”Ref: http://www.hutchnews.com/lifestyle/religion/offering-one-hour-for-jesus/article_d6ca2cec-15a9-518c-9ee2-a7b92e4f3317.html
No comments:
Post a Comment