One of the most beautiful aspects of the Catholic faith is the Eucharist. God desires to be so close to us. Not only did He send his only Son, Jesus Christ, to us in human form in order that we might draw closer to Him (the Incarnation would be miracle enough!), and not only did God suffer and die for us and rise again on the Third Day in order that we might have eternal life with Him (the passion, death and resurrection of Christ would be miracle enough!). But Christ gave us the Eucharist as a pledge of His enduring presence through the ages! God draws close to us so that we can always be close to Him.

How can we draw closer to this wonderful gift of the Eucharist? Obviously, the most important and most powerful way is by fully, actively and consciously participating in the Mass. This year of Eucharistic revival is focused on helping us, as a local Church, become more engaged in the Mass. But there are also ways outside of Mass that we can draw close to the Eucharist. One such way is by adoring the Blessed Sacrament that is exposed in a monstrance. This is called Eucharistic Exposition and Adoration, and it is a special liturgy the Church offers where a priest or deacon places a consecrated host in a large vessel called a monstrance where it can be seen and adored by all present. It can be a simple liturgy, with the priest or deacon simply exposing and later reposing the Blessed Sacrament in the monstrance, or it can be more elaborate with incense, singing, altar bells, Benediction and readings from scripture.

Did you know, though, that you can adore the sacramental presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament without a priest or deacon exposing the consecrated host in a monstrance? I think this is a hidden gem of our faith that is not often utilized. The lit candle near the tabernacle indicates that the Blessed Sacrament is present in that tabernacle. Whenever we are present before the tabernacle, even if we cannot see the Blessed Sacrament physically, we know that we are in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament and can offer our prayers in the presence of Christ. The Blessed Sacrament need not be exposed in the monstrance for us to be able to adore Christ. In fact, the normative way adoration takes place in our churches is for the faithful to spend a few moments before Christ in the tabernacle. It is available to us anytime the church is open.

This Lent, we are making an effort to have our churches unlocked for private adoration every day, at least for a few hours. May I offer two Lenten “challenges” to you? The first is to come early to Mass or spend a few extra minutes after Mass in prayer before the tabernacle. If the tabernacle is in the main body of the church, sit in a pew closer to it. If it is in a separate chapel, make it a point to stop in the chapel, if only for a few minutes, before or after Mass. If you pray before Mass, bring your intentions before God. If you pray after Mass, offer your thanksgiving for God’s presence in your life through the Eucharist. Or simply be silent.

The second challenge? Find out when your church is open for private prayer during the week and take some time in prayer before the tabernacle. It need not be long; pay a visit for 10 minutes if that’s all you can afford. Come experience the gift of Christ’s presence in the Eucharist in a very intimate, personal way.

— Josh Perry is director of the Office of Worship for the Diocese of Burlington.

—Originally published in the March 11-17, 2023, edition of The Inland See.