Perpetual adoration of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is flourishing in Brisbane. MATT EMERICK reports
THE seeds of perpetual adoration have taken root in Brisbane archdiocese with hundreds of people uniting to offer unending adoration to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.
Since Pentecost Sunday 2009, hundreds of Catholics from across Brisbane and south-east Queensland have been making the pilgrimage to the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Villa Maria in Spring Hill to pray before the Blessed Sacrament.
The adorers are following the call for perpetual Eucharistic adoration by Blessed Pope John Paul II and the support of Pope Benedict, which had led perpetual adoration to become one of the fastest growing movements in the Church.
Two Brisbane couples – Kate and Kieran Hobbs and Roy and Fiona Pires – organise the roster of adorers, a massive task in itself.
Mrs Hobbs said they did the organising, but Jesus provided the adorers.
“By Pentecost (2012) adorers (had) been perpetually adoring Jesus, truly Present in the Blessed Sacrament, for three years except for about 36 hours during the major flooding in the city in January 2011,” Mrs Hobbs said.
“We know there has been so much grace granted to ourselves, our families, the diocese, the Church, and the whole world through being committed to this apostolate.
“It has truly been a blessing and is fortifying the Church in Brisbane.
“There are too many stories, miracles, conversion, to recount, but we also know we need to spread this apostolate to help strengthen the Church in Australia.”
Mrs Hobbs said the idea of beginning an adoration chapel 24 hours per day, seven days every week, seemed like an enormous task.
“One thing that is remarkable is the number of young people who volunteer for adoration, or who just drop in randomly during the day when they know the chapel is open,” she said.
“This gives great hope for the future.
“However the corps of adorers comes from an entire range of the population, from retirees through to full-time employees dropping in after work, down to students in term or on vacation.”
Mrs Hobbs said the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration had warmly welcomed the assistance of lay adorers.
“The sisters are absolutely delighted, it has given them hope,” she said.
She said the sisters had been unable to maintain perpetual adoration for seven years before 2009, but they had assisted during the first six months of the new phase of adoration and were thrilled to see perpetual adoration flourish in Brisbane.
Mrs Hobbs said at the Adoratio 2011 conference in Rome she learned that adoration was part of the New Evangelisation.
“Our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, said that ‘our essential commitment in life is to persevere and advance constantly in Eucharistic life and piety and to grow spiritually in the climate of the Holy Eucharist’,” she said.
“One sees that it is Jesus who leads the community.
“He draws the people to Him.”
Mrs Hobbs said adoration drew people from all parts of the Catholic faith including Charismatic, traditional and many different ethnic communities.
“People just keep coming; it’s amazing how adorers keep showing up,” she said.
“People still comment on seeing the different sorts of people coming.
“It’s not just any particular group. I think that’s actually been part of the success.”
Brisbane-based project manager and Indian migrant Thomas Manimala is one Catholic who adores almost every day after a busy and stress-filled day.
“At first, I found adoration as an incredibly meaningless and unengaging experience,” he said.
“Even 30 minutes before Our Blessed Lord was a hard yard for me.
“I tried to engage myself with the Bible or a spiritual book.
“As time went by, I started engaging myself with conversational prayer before Our Blessed Lord and I found myself sinking slowly into the ocean of God’s love.
“Words in the Psalms started making sense. I was slowly starting to get more focused with my life.
“I realised that I was breaking myself unknowingly, emulating my Blessed Lord who broke Himself for my sake in the Blessed Eucharist.
“Kneeling for an hour before Our Blessed Lord in the Eucharist makes my day.”
Mr Manimala said what made a Catholic church a church was the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.
“These days whenever I travel overseas, if I find myself in a church, I start looking for the tabernacle rather reflexively, without much effort or thought,” he said.
Young Brisbane Catholic Jo Hayes said she was grateful for the presence of perpetual adoration at Villa Maria.
“I signed up to a weekly hour of adoration when it first started, and was truly amazed at the grace that came from spending that one hour with the Lord each week,” Jo said.
“Before that time, I’d only done ‘adoration’ occasionally (and rarely for a whole hour), but I came to really look forward to this time to just ‘be’ with our Lord.
“It is so rare to take time out from our busy life, but it’s very clear in scripture how important it is to set aside time to be with and listen to God.
“I’ve experienced tremendous grace, healing, guidance and inspiration from spending this time with the Lord – and I’ll often just ‘pop in’ to Villa Maria when I’m in the city/(Fortitude) Valley area to spend a bit of quiet time alone … it’s so refreshing.
“I think the city of Brisbane has been blessed by perpetual adoration.”
Where:
23 Warren Street
Fortitude Valley
During the public hours, entry can be obtained through the main chapel doors off Warren Street. For after-hours access a swipe card is need.
adoration24.7bris@gmail.com
