BANGOR — St. Paul the Apostle Parish has reopened the Adoration Chapel at St. Mary Church, located on 768 Ohio Street in Bangor.
Adoration is the worship of the Eucharist outside of the Mass as the eucharistic host is displayed in a monstrance on the altar so that all can see and pray in the true presence of Christ. The opportunity to pray before the Blessed Sacrament is a chance for each person to respond to the same invitation the Lord Jesus once offered to Peter and the other disciples: “Could you not keep watch with me for one hour?” (Matthew 26:40).
The Adoration Chapel will be open Mondays through Fridays from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon. Those interested in adoring can use the following link to sign up for a weekly slot as well as offer to serve as a substitute: www.signupgenius.com/go/4090c49aaa92aa4f94-adoration.
The chapel ties in the old with the new, both in terms of adorers and its construction. The “new” crucifix in the chapel, located above the beautiful monstrance, is from the old St. Mary Church in Bangor, which burned down in 1978. The chapel’s stained glass is also from the original church, which was dedicated in 1872.
“If you were once an adorer, we welcome you back,” said Monsignor Andrew Dubois, pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Bangor, of which St. Mary Church is a part. “If you have not been an adorer previously, please ask the Lord which hour each week that he desires to draw nearer to you by spending personal time with him at our Adoration Chapel.”
The Adoration Chapel first opened on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Dec. 8, 2012. But on the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary (March 19, 2020), after more than 50,000 hours of adoration, the Adoration Chapel had to close due to COVID-19.
“The reopening will once again allow the community of faith to pray for the needs of the Church and the world before the Blessed Sacrament,” said Evelyn Clark, a youth ministry coordinator at the parish.
“Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is an extension of our community’s Sunday worship. During adoration, we can meditate on sacred Scripture or other spiritual writings, we can pray popular devotions like the most holy Rosary or the Divine Mercy chaplet, or we can simply sit in silence and ‘watch the Lord as the Lord watches us’ (cf. St. John Vianney before the Blessed Sacrament),” said Monsignor Dubois.
For more information, please email evelyn.clark@portlanddiocese.org or call the parish office at 207-217-6740.