You are invited to spend an hour each Friday in the presence of Our Lord, Jesus Christ.   Since the early Middle Ages, when monasteries reserved the Holy Eucharist, people have been drawn by Our Lord's Presence in the Blessed Sacrament. Priests and nuns were the first so privileged, but within a couple of centuries, the laity, too, was being directed to come before the Sacrament of Love in adoration.

In the past century, devotion to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament has been promoted by several popes and is enriched with indulgences.

Pope Paul VI, in urging the promotion of Eucharistic adoration, wrote passionately of "the value of conversation with Christ, for there is nothing more consoling on earth, nothing more efficacious for advancing along the road of holiness."

Writing and speaking extensively on the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, Pope John Paul II has said, "Jesus awaits us in this Sacrament of Love. Let us not refuse the time to go to meet Him in adoration, in contemplation full of faith, and open to making amends for the serious offenses and crimes of the world . . . Our communal worship at Mass must go together with our worship of Jesus in the Eucharistic adoration in order that our love may be complete." In 1991 the Pope set an example himself by establishing exposition of the Blessed Sacrament in St. Peter's.

In the gift of the hour, so much is received.  In recent years, perpetual Eucharistic adoration has spread rapidly around the world. More than a thousand chapels have been established in the U. S. alone. Some parishes of only 150 to 200 families are sustaining perpetual adoration; some large parishes have up to 1,000 committed persons coming before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament each week.

The following is a random sampling of replies from 500 Eucharistic adorers who were asked by their pastor to respond anonymously to the question, "How has Perpetual Adoration affected your life?"

• "It's the best thing that ever happened in our parish."
• "My adoration hour is where I get my priorities straight -- at the feet of Jesus."
• "After my hour I come away refreshed, recharged, renewed. I need that constantly, since I'm the mother of three teenagers."
• "It's an awesome experience to meet Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament -- words cannot explain it."
• "I used to talk all the time at prayer. Now, I'm quiet, just there!"
• "Some people spend a hundred dollars an hour on a psychologist. I got mine -- no fees, no appointment needed, and He's the best in the business!"
• "Since I came to perpetual adoration, my prayer, my lifestyle, my attitudes, have changed."
• "This is where I get fed. My adoration hour is a must. I have missed only a few times over the past four years."

At the Eucharistic Congress in 1993, Pope John Paul prayed for "the establishment of Perpetual Adoration in every parish and Christian community in the world."

Fr. Martin Lucia, Director of the Apostolate for Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration, attributes to the establishment of a parish Perpetual Adoration program, an increase in Mass attendance; the return of fallen-away Catholics and an increase in the number of confessions; an increase in religious and priestly vocations; a renewal of Catholic family life; a desire and courage to spread the "good news" to others; and a greater community spirit, centered as it is on the heart of the parish, Jesus' presence in the Blessed Sacrament.

Perpetual adoration is "the ideal and grace-laden program for both the parish and the individual members," says Fr. Lucia. It is the hoped-for evolvement of any program of partial adoration.

Pope John Paul II has said that all the evils of the world could be overcome through the great power of adoration of our Lord in the Eucharist. Likewise, Mother Teresa was once quoted as saying, "Perpetual adoration is what will renew the Church and save the world!"

Will you say, "Yes!" to a weekly visit with our Lord, exposed in the monstrance, toward this effort?