When a Poor Clare of Perpetual Adoration nun professes her vows, she dedicates herself “to perpetual adoration of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Most Blessed Sacrament on behalf of the Holy Church.” Commissioned to pray in, with, and for the Catholic Church, she shares in the specific mission of spreading devotion to the Holy Eucharist.

As part of fulfilling that mission, the nuns of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville maintain an Adoration Sodality that includes members from all 50 U.S. states and 20 countries.

Established in March of 2023, the Adoration Sodality is a group for laity, priests, and religious brothers and sisters that joins with the nuns in their prayers, adoring our Lord on behalf of all humanity and offering reparative thanksgiving for those who do not believe. 

Pope St. John Paul II once wrote that “through adoration, the Christian mysteriously contributes to the radical transformation of the world and to the sowing of the Gospel. Anyone who prays to the Savior draws the whole world with him and raises it to God. Those who stand before the Lord are therefore fulfilling an eminent service. They are presenting to Christ all those who do not know Him or are far from Him; they keep watch in His presence on their behalf.” 

In his 1979 encyclical Redemptor Hominis, the late pontiff points to the Eucharist as the cornerstone of the Christian faith. “The Eucharist builds the Church … as the authentic community of the People of God [and] the assembly of the faithful, bearing the same mark of unity that was shared by the Apostles and the first disciples of the Lord.”

Adoration Sodality members commit to an hour of eucharistic adoration on a monthly, weekly, or daily basis at any monstrance or tabernacle. The only other commitment is to recite at some point during that hour the “I Adore Thee” prayer, which was written in the mid-1800s by Mother Marie de Sainte Claire Bouillevaux, the founder of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration. Members are not required to travel to the shrine for adoration, but they can make their holy hour before any monstrance of tabernacle. Members are also not obligated to set aside an additional devotional hour besides their already established hour(s).

St. Peter Julian Eymard, a 19th century Marian priest from France who founded the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament and the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, contended that “eucharistic devotion is the most necessary mission to the Church,” while St. Clare of Assisi noted, “We become a support for the weak members of the Church” in eucharistic adoration.

The Adoration Sodality at the shrine hosts a Day of Recollection on the third Thursday of each month, during which a guest priest gives a talk on the Eucharist in the morning and presides over a Eucharistic Healing Service in the afternoon. This year, Fathers Gerald Murray, Joseph Tuscan, George Elliot, Glenn Sudano, John Broussard, Mark Mary, and Wolfgang Seitz have all spoken as a guest speaker at a Day of Recollection. Bishop Emeritus Robert Baker of the Diocese of Birmingham is scheduled to speak at the next Day of Recollection on Nov. 20. 

“Even one hour of eucharistic adoration each week can change a soul, a family, a parish, and an entire community,” said Father Tuscan during his talk this past August. “A parish with perpetual adoration becomes a powerhouse of grace.”

The Day of Recollection also includes breakfast, lunch, a Mass offered for all Adoration Sodality members, the sacrament of reconciliation, tours of the shrine and Pope John Paul II Eucharistic Center, and midday prayer and the Rosary with the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration Nuns. Pilgrims may also explore the recently opened St. Carlo Acutis International Eucharistic Miracles Exhibit.

In addition, Adoration Sodality members receive an “I Adore Thee” prayer card, an enrollment certificate, a blessed sodality medal, and a sodality e-newsletter subscription. However, the most important benefit of membership is sharing in the good works of the nuns.

“We are witnessing the construction of new chapels set aside exclusively for this purpose (eucharistic devotion),” said the Poor Clares in their book A Manual for Eucharistic Devotion. “Along with that, we are seeing the establishment or reestablishment of the 40-hour devotion and a flourishing of religious orders and lay associations dedicated to eucharistic adoration.” 

Mother Angelica, the founder of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery and the Eternal Word Television Network and the driving force behind the construction of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament, put it in layman’s terms when she advised people: “Go to your church, say ‘Hi, Jesus, I love You,’ and pray to Him in the Holy Eucharist.”

To learn more or to join the Adoration Sodality, please visit iadorethee.com.