After last week’s financial report, we return to our journey through Mediator Dei by Pope Pius XII, written in 1947. We left off with the pope’s reminder to spend time in personal prayer after the Mass. Again, I encourage everyone to make this a regular practice and to observe reverence inside the Church so that people can pray (you can talk in the vestibule/foyer, just try not to talk in the middle of the Church).
Now Pope Pius moves onto another favorite topic: adoration. You see, adoration of the Eucharist is not something the Church has always done. For the first 1000 years the Eucharist was only kept in the tabernacle for sake of bringing communion to the sick when needed. Gradually, people began spending time near the tabernacle as a way of honoring the presence of Jesus’ Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. Eventually, this devotion increased and developed into the practice of exposing the sacrament in adoration the way we do today. The first recorded instance of this is September 11, 1226 when the king of France, Louis VIII, asked it to be done in thanksgiving for a victory in battle.
Well, because it wasn’t a practice in the early Church, some scholars began to question this practice. Some even said it was a sin to do adoration! The pope rejects that nonsense and strongly affirms that this devotion is right and just, not to mention abundantly beneficial for the Church and for the faith of individual Catholics. So, Pius XII recommends the continued practice of Solemn Adoration, Eucharistic Processions, Benediction, and frequent visits to the tabernacle to pray in the presence of God in the Eucharist. As some of you may remember, a lot of people after Vatican II tried bringing back the same argument that we should stop doing adoration and a lot of places did stop doing it. But the truth has won out and adoration is a common practice is most parishes throughout the world. It’s especially frequent in Acadiana, thanks be to God. Do not be ashamed of this devotion. Great saints and popes are on your side!
Pope Pius XII then turns to discuss the Divine Office, also called the Liturgy of the Hours. This part of the Church’s liturgy began with ancient monks who gradually developed a set of prayers at specific hours of the day. They became the literal embodiment of “praying always.” Based especially on the Psalms, this practice – which is required for priests, nuns, and monks – ties us to the ancient history of praying to God with the very words he gave us in Scripture. Just as King David and ancient Jews prayed the psalms, so do we. Quoting St. Ambrose, the pope tells us that the collection of Psalms is “a blessing for the people, it is the praise of God, the tribute of the nation, the common language and acclamation of all, it is the voice of the Church, the harmonious confession of faith, signifying deep attachment to authority; it is the joy of freedom, the expression of happiness, an echo of bliss.” The full range of human emotion experience can find some expression in the psalms, allowing us to pray with inspired words from God to express our human longings and needs.
In older times of the Church, many of the laity would visit Churches and monasteries to witness and participate in this rich liturgical prayer. That practice had fallen off by the time of Pope Pius XII, so here he recommends that the lay faithful take it up again. He is clear that lay people are not obligated to pray it like priests and religious are, but encourages them to do it all the same. The Second Vatican Council also repeats this encouragement. That’s one reason we offer a public opportunity to pray the Liturgy of the Hours every Thursday evening after the 5:15pm Mass. It’s why, if you look, you’ll see that more and more parishes in the diocese are trying to offer Liturgy of the Hours at least sometimes. And if you’re looking for a structured, tried-and-true form of praying in your own life, I recommend trying the Divine Office (aka Liturgy of the Hours). It takes some getting used to, but once you’ve got it, it really is a great source of devotion. You can even go to our website and find “Mass Readings and Daily Prayer” under the “Sacraments” tab in our menu. There you’ll find a link to use iBreviary, which is probably the easiest way to get started with this kind of prayer.
In addition to being a good rhythm of prayer, if you pray the Liturgy of the Hours regularly, it can help you get a more robust sense of the different liturgical seasons and saints’ feast days. The various changes throughout the year reinforce a sense of the difference for each occasion and help us more fully breathe in the patterns of spiritual life. Speaking of seasons, we’ll pick up next week with Pope Pius XII’s brief summary of each liturgical occasion. Until then, try adoration and/or the liturgy of the hours and see what God has in store for you!