40-Hours Devotion, Avoyelles Deanery

The next 40-Hour Devotion is scheduled for the Avoyelles Deanery at St. Joseph Church in Marksville, from Feb. 23-25. If you would like to participate, touch the graphic above to go to the sign up page. Though we ask that you to sign up online, it is not necessary in order to participate. It is just a way for us to assure there will be at least one person present at all times during adoration. We hope to see you there.

Throughout this event, people participate in Adoration, Mass, Eucharistic Talks by clergy, Divine Mercy, Morning and Evening Prayer, and/or the Holy Rosary. The comments from participants so far has been very positive and many graces were received from spending time with our Lord.

What is the 40-Hours Devotion?
The 40-Hours Devotion is an opportunity to gather as a community before the Blessed Sacrament and to pray before the Lord in solemn adoration. It gives us time to deepen our appreciation of the importance of the mystery of the Eucharist in our lives. Traditionally, it begins with a celebration of Mass. At the end of this opening Mass, the Blessed Sacrament is exposed and over a period of a few days the faithful are given the opportunity to assemble in prayer before the exposed Blessed Sacrament. The form of prayer to be prayed can be done in diverse ways. The celebration then normally ends with the celebration of the Mass.
In the celebration of the 40-Hours Devotion, we are able to witness a fuller expression of our theology of the Eucharist. It is first and foremost about our participation in the Paschal Mystery through our celebration of Mass. In the celebration of Mass, we participate directly in the saving acts of Christ and by the grace of the Holy Spirit unite the sacrifices of our lives with the one sacrifice of Christ on the cross. It is in this way that we give praise and thanksgiving to God for Jesus and participate in the true worship of our God by which we are sanctified as His holy people. This leads us then to live out our lives more fully in Christ. This devotion also gives an opportunity to give voice to our belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharistic elements. As the community gathers in prayer before the exposed Blessed Sacrament, it witnesses to our belief, as a Church, that what is before us is bread no longer but truly the Body of Christ.

Why are we celebrating the 40-Hours devotion now?
The Holy Father has designated this year as the Year of the Eucharist. With this, Pope Francis is presenting the Church with a wonderful opportunity to explore, develop, and deepen our appreciation of the Eucharist. The primary setting for the promotion of a life centered in the Eucharist is, of course, the celebration of Mass, but the Church also offers other means of deepening a Eucharistic-centered faith. One such practice is adoration, where we gather to pray before the Lord as his presence is revealed to us in the mystery of the eucharistic bread which is truly the Body of Christ. The 40-Hours Devotion gives us the opportunity to come as a community to pray before the Lord in solemn adoration.

Again, though we do not require you to sign up online in order to participate, it is a way for us to assure that at least one person will be present at all times during the event, even overnight.