Charity registration No. SC002876
Sunday January 8th. 2012
Catholics so powerfully: 
"Adoration is primarily an act of faith - the act of faith as such.
God is not just some possible or impossible hypothesis concerning
the origin of all things. He is present. And if he is present, then I
bow down before him. Then my intellect and will and heart open
up towards him and from him. In the risen Christ, the incarnate
God is present, who suffered for us because he loves us. We enter
the certainty of God's tangible love for us with love in our own
hearts. This is adoration, and this then determines my life. Only
thus can I celebrate the Eucharist correctly and receive the body
of the Lord rightly.
These words encourage us to carry within ourselves the sense of
wonder and awe in the Lord's presence when we come to the
Eucharist itself, thus participating in its celebration as fully as we
can with voice, mind, and body, and especially with our hearts,
united with the Lord and in communion with our brothers and
sisters. Our own ability to adore the Lord in the Eucharist is
strengthened by the time we spend with him in prayer before the
tabernacle or when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed on the altar.
As suggested by the Holy Father our sense of adoration should be
particularly strong as we prepare to receive Holy Communion,
saying the words "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter
under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be
healed", and bowing before receiving the sacrament as it is now
recommended that we do.
In bringing to your attention what Pope Benedict sees as a
particularly important aspect of our faith which young people are
drawn to and want to experience more deeply, we have to work in
our Diocese, in our parishes, schools and church-groups, to win the
hearts of our young people for Christ.
We need the young as active and joyful participants in the life of
the Church, and we have to reach out to them with faith and
courage. We can draw some inspiration from special events and
great gatherings, because we see there that the young take the
lead in showing their love for their faith and how good they feel
about being part of the Catholic Church. They like what the
Church offers - its apostolic tradition and world-wide
membership, its beautiful Liturgy and deep prayerlife, its
commitment to Christ and the living of the Gospel values and
moral norms, its hope of eternal life and its firm trust in the Lord
in the uncertainties and troubles of this world. Let us build on
what we have at present and ask the Lord to be with our young
people and all who lead them in the ways of faith and Christian
living.
Contemplating the scene presented in the Christmas crib we see,
together with the wise men, Mary and Joseph and the shepherds,
all adoring the child in their own hearts, united in their prayer
and attentive to the mystery of God become man. They will all
leave Bethlehem soon - the wise men more discerning of the best
path to return home by, the shepherds happy to pass on the Good
News of the Saviour's birth, Mary and Joseph to protect and care
for the child as loving parents. As we leave the Christmas season
behind may we live our own vocations to the full, filled with the
Lord's grace and goodness, and may we carry with us always the
spirit of adoration and prayer that draws us to the Lord's presence
in the Eucharist and accompanies us as his witnesses in the
world. May the Lord's blessing be with you, and your families,
throughout the year ahead.
With my prayers and good wishes
Yours in the Lord
+Joseph
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