I received a note yesterday from my mother. She mentioned that she had visited the parish of my teenage years, which I attended over thirty years ago. At that time, the parish had just erected a new building, offered many programs, and consisted of a large number of families. After moving out of state, I'd heard that as the years passed, the initial luster of a new church building wore off, and numerous parishioners had transferred to other parishes, for whatever reasons. When I occasionally visited the parish for Mass while on vacation, people commented that it seemed the life was slowly fading out of the parish.

About a decade ago, this parish made a commitment to eucharistic adoration. Over time, it evolved into perpetual adoration, 168 hours a week. My mother writes: "Boy, has that parish changed. It's packed; there are lines at Confession; people are in the adoration chapel, etc. The Holy Spirit is alive and well there."

Jesus Himself is the Bread of Life (Jn 6:35). He alone is Life (Jn 11:25; 14:6). Life means Jesus (Phil 1:21). Jesus, the Bread of Life, gives life to us and to our parishes (Jn 6:33). Without the eucharistic Jesus, we have no life in us (Jn 6:53). The eucharistic Jesus promises: "Indeed, this is the will of My Father, that everyone who looks upon the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life. Him I will raise up on the last day" (Jn 6:40).

Adore Jesus regularly in the Eucharist. Gaze on the Lord Jesus and be transformed into a new and glorious life (2 Cor 3:18).

Rescript:  †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, October 16, 2006

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