Divine Time

People have knelt before the Eucharist at Immaculate Conception Church in Denham Springs and offered prayers of petitions and thanksgiving, shed tears of suffering and taken an internal gaze at their life with God. 

As the Diocese of Baton Rouge joins in the three-year Eucharistic Revival, ICC celebrated the 25th anniversary of its perpetual adoration chapel on Sept. 24.

Randy and Brenda Fontenot have been adorers since then-pastor Father Cleo Milano dedicated it and urged people to sign up as committed adorers so the chapel could be perpetual.

“We wanted to do something more than go to Mass,” said Randy Fontenot. They became adorers from 10–11 p.m. on Sundays, and now go from 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. on Mondays.  

The couple has accepted pastor Father Matthew Graham’s challenge for people to bring their Bibles to Mass and read and pray with Scriptures. The Fontenots bring their Bibles to daily Masses and to adoration. 

“I take it as a serious challenge,” said Randy. “I love looking at the Old Testament and New Testament.”

Randy also recommended “Moments Divine before the Blessed Sacrament” by Father Frederick Reuter KCBS, which contains true stories, prayers, the Act of Contrition and Sacred Heart and spiritual Communion prayer.

Brenda always felt close to the church, having served as a junior Catholic daughter and in other ministries. She said adoration strengthens those connections.

“It’s a place of peace beyond understanding,” said Brenda. “You can lay down burdens, not saying anything but sitting in the presence of the Lord. There are no interruptions because people know there’s something sacred there.”

One of the couple’s children had drifted from the faith but through the perseverance of a mother’s prayer, the child is now successful and embracing the faith.

“He’s a recipient of my prayers,” said Brenda, who also fervently prayed for a great-grandson who “bounced back” after two major surgeries.

The Fontenots also pray for others coming to the chapel.

“When we were on the night shift, there were people in there and there were tears in their eyes and they were on their knees,” said Brenda. “I pray for them. You can tell they need it.”

Roy Blair, whose wife Lynne, deceased, was Catholic, said the homilies of then-ICC pastor Father Vincent Dufresne inspired him to convert from Protestant to Catholic.

“I fell in love with the adoration chapel,” said Blair, who went “all hours of the day and night” for adoration as he recovered from heart surgery.

 “One night I had my eyes closed. I got the feeling that someone was in the room with me. I didn’t hear anything, but I could sense it,” said Blair. “It’s a miracle I thought as I opened my eyes. Instead of seeing the body of Christ in person, I saw the body of Christ in the Eucharist.

“The impact on me was profound.”

In 2017, Michele Crosby knew her ministry of teaching religious education was concluding and that God was calling her to a new ministry. She considered becoming a committed adorer but none of the times open suited her schedule. 

One Sunday at  Mass she discovered that adorers were needed for the 4 – 5 a.m. time slot. She committed to praying during that time because she knew “God told me that’s my hour and I have to say yes.”

“When I first came in I genuflected, sat down and thought I don’t know what I am supposed to do and right at that time heard ‘be still and know that I am God.’ And God showed me every moment in my life, even those that I wasn’t proud of, but he was there for me and that he still loved me. I remember just crying my eyes out but knowing I was so loved has made (adoration) a priority,” Crosby said.

Kelley Puig said there is power of praying for others before the Eucharist.

Puig occasionally visited the adoration chapel. One day she listened to a podcast which directed her to the international Seven Sisters Apostolate, which calls for the women to commit to a specific adoration hour during the week and if they cannot make it to arrange for a substitute. 

The adorer prays for the intentions of the parish’s priest(s). She recognized the picture of the Eucharist on the website as the one on the ICC website. This led to the introduction of the apostolate at ICC.

“Now I have that longing for adoration to pray before the Eucharist for the parish and the priest’s intentions and needs,” said Puig. “One of the most powerful experiences was one day I was in the adoration chapel, the priest I was praying for walked in.”

In a dinner that followed the anniversary Mass, Father Graham commended adorers for supporting the chapel and talked about ways to grow in faith. He said some people go to the adoration chapel and wonder “What am I supposed to do?” or going to adoration becomes a “routine thing.”

Father Graham said he learned the depth of adoration when he was a seminarian at St. Joseph Seminary in St. Benedict.

With an engineering background, Father Graham went down a list of things he thought would be best and then be “done.”

Over time he was challenged and now challenges others not to think about adoration as “What am I going to do?” as “Who I am going to see?”

Father Graham said adoration should be a corporeal and a spiritual experience. Like approaching a family member, one should share with God “today was a great day” or “today was a horrible day” or “I know this person is struggling.”

He emphasized “give yourself permission just to be and see where the Lord takes you.”

This can include an examination of conscience, reading Scriptures, praying the rosary, journaling, praying the Liturgy of the Hours, etc.

He noted that when churches were closed during the pandemic, people were encouraged to pray a spiritual Communion prayer.

“Have you stopped doing that? If you have, why?” asked Father Graham to underscore its effectiveness in communing with the Lord.

“I encourage you to have structure but keep it flexible,” he said.

“Make sure you always build in a time of silence, because for that week, it may be the only real moment of silence you get.”

For more information about Eucharistic adoration at ICC, call the church office at 225-665-5359.