The Real Presence

The Sacrament of the Most Holy Eucharist, which appears outwardly as simple bread and wine, is Jesus Himself in His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist is one of the most consoling Catholic beliefs and the foundation of our practise of Eucharistic Adoration.

Catholic belief in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is not made up by the Church: it comes from Jesus Himself. During His public ministry, the Lord Jesus taught His disciples: “My flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.” Then, at the Last Supper, Jesus instituted the means by which His disciples in every age could access His Body and Blood. Taking the bread, He declared: “This is my body.” Then, taking the cup filled with wine, He declared: “This is my blood.” Jesus then commanded the Church to continue to make His Body and Blood present throughout history by repeating His words and actions: “Do this in memory of me.” Saint Luke reports that when Jesus celebrated Mass for two disciples on the road to Emmaus on the day of His Resurrection, “they recognised Him in the breaking of bread.” In other words, at that moment, the disciples realised that Jesus was really present in the Eucharist.

Eucharistic Adoration

Adoration is the highest form of human love for God. In Eucharistic Adoration, we adore God present in the Eucharist. It is a time of prayerful intimacy and friendship with God.

Silence is important to Eucharistic adoration. Silence can be challenging for us, since we live in a very noisy world. This noise deafens us to the voice of God. With patience and perseverance, we learn to value the silence of adoration and discover a deep peace which comes from heart-to-heart contact with the Lord.

The Most Holy Eucharist is reserved in the tabernacle in the sanctuary of the church. The presence of the Eucharist is indicated by a red lamp nearby. We can adore Jesus in the tabernacle whenever we are in the church.

The Holy Hour

The most important opportunity to adore Jesus in the Most Holy Eucharist is the Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration. The practice of adoring the Eucharist for an hour is our response to Jesus’ request on the night of His arrest: “Could you not watch with me one hour?” During the Holy Hour, a consecrated Host is displayed in the monstrance (a sun-like stand). Holy Hour involves the recitation of set prayers, the singing of hymns, and the burning of incense. At the end of the Holy Hour, the priest blesses the people with Jesus in the Eucharist.

Holy Hour is held at Corio at 6pm on Tuesday evenings.