The Office of Liturgy will be hosting a seminar at Saint Joseph’s Seminary on Friday, February 16, from 7:00-8:30pm, entitled,“‘I Am With You Always’: The Liturgy of Eucharistic Adoration.” This presentation will discuss the ways in which Eucharistic adoration arises from the Mass and ultimately leads the worshipper back to the Eucharistic celebration. Beginning with a description of the Old Testament antecedents of Eucharistic worship, this seminar will explore the development of the rites of Eucharistic exposition, benediction, and processions of the Blessed Sacrament from the eleventh century to today. The rites of Eucharistic worship associated with the liturgies of Holy Thursday and Corpus Christi, as well as the customs of a holy hour, the Forty Hours devotion, and perpetual adoration will be presented. Local practices from Spain and Latin America, Portugal, Poland, Germany, and Italy will also be introduced. Additionally, this presentation will address the pastoral and theological dimensions of these observances and offer answers to practical questions that can often arise in parishes.
This seminar will be presented by James Monti, historian and author of In the Presence of Our Lord and Sense of the Sacred: Roman Catholic Worship in the Middle Ages. Registration is $10 and may be accessed on the Liturgy Office website.