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By Suzanne Haugh, Special To The Bulletin
ATLANTA-While Catholics in the Atlanta Archdiocese can readily sit before
Jesus present in the exposed Blessed Sacrament by stopping at a church
offering regular or perpetual adoration, this is not available in many
regions of the country. Within the Catholic Church there are some who
hesitate to participate in this form of prayer and others who outright
object to it. Despite its growing popularity now, eucharistic adoration
was "forcibly placed down (after Vatican II), but not by the popes," said
Father Benedict J. Groeschel, CFR, spiritual author, retreat master and
director of the Office of Spiritual Development in the New York Archdiocese.
A founding member of a new order, the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal,
he recently wrote a book on eucharistic devotion entitled "In the Presence
of Our Lord," with James Monti, who researches Catholic historical topics.
In it Father Groeschel underlines that eucharistic devotion is not an
end in itself. What is important is the person's response to the real
presence of Christ. "Adoration is an attitude of the soul," he said. "Exposition
is a liturgical rite to promote adoration." Catholics have participated
in eucharistic adoration for many centuries, Father Groeschel points out
while addressing objections put forth by some contemporary Catholic theologians
and writers. Detractors of eucharistic adoration, according to Father
Groeschel, find no room in today's church for what they consider to be
an archaic and medieval practice that may take attention away from the
Mass. Opponents sometimes cite the grand Corpus Christi processions that
included exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. These events were once more
prevalent worldwide, but later were downplayed or stopped because social
and political overtones often exceeded interest in their sacramental nature.
Liturgical reformers during Vatican II wrote of how this practice was
out of focus, not necessarily meaning that it should be abolished, but
that it should be refined, Father Groeschel writes. To make his case for
the validity and necessity of eucharistic devotion, Father Groeschel refers
to the dogma of the church which clearly and emphatically states that
Jesus of Nazareth, God made man, is mysteriously present in the Eucharist.
He becomes present to us in the Blessed Sacrament and we must make ourselves
available to him. "God is only present to us when we are aware of that
presence and we respond to it," he explains. "Presence above all things
is a knowing response. God is present to us when we actually think of
Him by praying to Him or meditating about Him." Father Groeschel believes
those who participate in the worship of the Eucharist outside of the Mass
understand that "(it) is an extension of the prayer begun at the altar."
"It is to be observed by anyone who takes the trouble to do so that those
who most devoutly participate at the Liturgy are precisely the same people
who place great importance upon the reverent adoration of the Eucharistic
Presence after the liturgy is completed," he writes. He questions the
objections of those who say that eucharistic devotion outside of Mass
is inappropriate. "How can anyone object to meditation and contemplative
prayer simply because the focus of the individual is on Christ as He is
present in the Blessed Sacrament? One might question either the faith
or the emotional balance of anyone who wants to stop a devout soul from
sitting with Mary at the feet of the Savior." At issue as well is the
possible difference between eucharistic devotion before a church's tabernacle
as opposed to before the Blessed Sacrament exposed in a monstrance. Some
would ask, "What's the difference? Jesus is present whether he's in or
out of the tabernacle." "That's perfectly true," Father Groeschel said,
"but there's an obvious psychological, not theological, difference. People
pray more before the exposed Eucharist. When it's not exposed you usually
don't find people praying." Some object to eucharistic devotion on the
basis that it takes the faithful away from performing works of charity
and the pursuit of justice, which are what Christ demands of his followers.
Adorers might become too caught up in meditating before the Blessed Sacrament
and forget about service. He refers to St. Francis of Assisi as one of
the world's "great psychologists" and as one devoted to adoration of the
Eucharist. And as history teaches, St. Francis' faith and love were expressed
in numerous works. Beyond these objections there is one Father Groeschel
considers "the saddest objection of all." "There are a number of people
who, styling themselves Catholic intellectuals, really object to Eucharistic
piety precisely because it does what it is supposed to do-make us more
aware of Christ's fulfillment of His promise to be with us till the end
of the world." Those who speak of having a personal relationship with
Christ as friend and companion can come under fire for their "devotionalistic
saccharine," as one objector puts it, and calls such persons naïve and
theologically uneducated. But Father Groeschel counters that if being
blessed with a personal relationship with Christ "is immature, 'devotionalistic
saccharine,' then what do we do with St. Augustine, St. Francis, St. Teresa
of Avila, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, and most, if not all, of the canonized
saints? . . . all brilliant minds who experienced a deep personal devotion
to Christ as friend and companion? What are we to do with Christ's admonition
that we must receive the Kingdom of God as little children if we wish
to enter it?" Father Groeschel refers to 1 Cor. 1:26-27 in which St. Paul
writes, "For consider your call, brethren; not many of you were wise according
to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth;
but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise." These objectors,
Father Groeschel writes, "might have something to learn from the 'foolishness
of God' that is 'wiser than men.'" While eucharistic devotion has been
suppressed in recent times, Pope John Paul II, as have popes before him,
encourages it, saying that the habitual practice of eucharistic worship
"extends and prepares in the best possible way the meeting with Christ
in the Sacrifice and Eucharistic Banquet." Father Groeschel suggests one
reason for the recent re-emergence of eucharistic adoration is the loneliness
of the times we live in, where people are more apt to sit down with a
computer instead of companions, or live far from extended family. In the
midst of this, one should not be surprised by the "profound human appeal"
of dwelling in Christ's presence. Father Groeschel seeks to calm the concerns
that might arise from this pursuit. "Nor need there be any fear that this
devotion could lead to any kind of spiritual isolation, so long as we
carefully keep the Eucharistic Presence linked with the Paschal Mystery,
which encompasses all men and women, and with Holy Communion, which draws
together all the faithful disciples of Christ."
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