Perpetual Adoration questions

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Margaret33

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I found good resources in both www.therealpresence.org and www.perpetual-adoration.org, as well as searching prior threads here on adoration.

I have never been to perpetual adoration and have still have some questions. After searching online I found that we have one church in our area that offers perpetual adoration, but it is not the one I belong to.

Can I just show up when I need to go? Or is it expected that all make an appointment/sign up for an available hour?
Also, when going, should I expect that the doors will be open?

Please excuse my ignorance…
 
Perpetual Adoration is supposed to mean that the doors will be open around the clock, and a church or chapel is not supposed to offer it if that is not going to be the case. In reality, there may be times when the last visitor has to lock the door because no one else showed up, but if it happens to often they may have to limit their hours. PA can also mean that among several churches in the area, one will always be open at any given time, and the hours will be posted and advertised.

You can sign up for a regular time slot, but don’t do it if you are not sure you are willing and able to keep your commitment. However most will have a sign-in book, and you should sign in every time you come, so they have an idea how many people are availing hemselve of this privilege.
 
puzzleannie said:
Perpetual Adoration is supposed to mean that the doors will be open around the clock, and a church or chapel is not supposed to offer it if that is not going to be the case. In reality, there may be times when the last visitor has to lock the door because no one else showed up, but if it happens to often they may have to limit their hours. PA can also mean that among several churches in the area, one will always be open at any given time, and the hours will be posted and advertised.

You can sign up for a regular time slot, but don’t do it if you are not sure you are willing and able to keep your commitment. However most will have a sign-in book, and you should sign in every time you come, so they have an idea how many people are availing hemselve of this privilege.
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Ok… thank you… one more question… please excuse my lack of knowledge on the subject - Can I assume that if I go, I will not be left alone to keep watch if only one person is there? (embarrased to be asking this, but from what I’ve read I am a little confused)
 
Our church has to be locked at night for safety reasons. Nighttime adorers have a key. You might want to call the parish office of the church that has adoration to find out how they handle it. That way you can request a key if you will be going at hours when it is locked.

Ideally, you should not be left alone to keep watch. But this is not a perfect world, and in reality some people do not always show up for their hour, and they do not always remember to get a substitute. A sad situation. There really should be at least two adorers assigned to each hour. Sometimes it is hard to keep all the hours filled with even one!
 
Margaret33 said:
Ok… thank you… one more question… please excuse my lack of knowledge on the subject - Can I assume that if I go, I will not be left alone to keep watch if only one person is there? (embarrased to be asking this, but from what I’ve read I am a little confused)
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Your chapel should have scheduled adorers, who are in charge of the chapel. You will not be left alone.

Jim
 
Margaret33 said:
Thank you all… As it is not my church, I was not sure what the protocol was…
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BTW, the chapel is probably staffed by members of parishes in your deanery. So, you can volunteer to be a scheduled adorer yourself. However, I would advise you to get use to going on a regular basis. Eventually, you’ll find a time slot that works for you and can volunteer your time.

And old women and her husband, who my wife and myself replaced at our adoration chapel, said these words that I’ll never forget. “This is such an easy sacrifice.” The poor woman had scleroderma. Her husband had cancer, which was inoperable. At the time they were both in their 90’s. They’re now in the Kingdom of Heaven, I’m sure of it.

Jim
 
Hi Margaret, here is a link you may find helpful … I’m one of those who likes to prepare myself before I go to PA, and the info was helpful to me. (It may be on one of the sites you offered links to.)

mafg.home.isp-direct.com/holyhour.htm

The parish (St Martins) that has PA here in Louisville has security guards, so safety isn’t an issue.
I live a bit too far away to commit to a certain time, so when I do go, I just sign as “visitor”. My parish has Holy Hour w/Benediction on Saturdays followed by Mass. If not for that, I’d probably commit to an hour at PA.

I like my Rosary, my St Anthony Chaplet, and also have my favorite prayers, but Adoration is, IMO, the ultimate devotion. 🙂

God Bless,
Charles
 
JimR-OCDS said:
And old women and her husband, who my wife and myself replaced at our adoration chapel, said these words that I’ll never forget. “This is such an easy sacrifice.” The poor woman had scleroderma. Her husband had cancer, which was inoperable. At the time they were both in their 90’s. They’re now in the Kingdom of Heaven, I’m sure of it.

Jim
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Touching story Jim. Thanks for sharing that. Compared to what He suffered for our sake, it is an easy sacrifice indeed.

Charles
 
Thank you all 🙂

As I already work for my local parish in two other capacities as well as contributing my time to a regional (albeit, non-denominational) charity, I was wondering what my responsibilities would be to the other parish if I wished to attend their Adoration.

You are right, it is a small sacrifice; however, I wanted a chance to experience the Adoration for the first time first before the responsibility of keeping watch over the Blessed Sacrament would be something I took on.

Plus, I suppose my primary interest in attending the Perpetual Adoration offered was so that I could go when in a state of despair, as has happened a couple times in the past few years and I had no where to turn when it did. And I was not sure I would be able to go should such an occasion arise, if I hadn’t signed up first.

Thanks again for all of your explanations, information and kindness 🙂

Bless you,
M
 
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