By Josh McDermid
If one pays close attention to such things, from time to time one will find criticism of the practice of Eucharistic adoration. Generally, the criticism will be that Eucharistic adoration is passive, and should be left as a relic of the past so that we can focus on the dynamic presence of the Eucharist in transforming the lives of those who receive it. For years, this view has slightly bothered me. It is not because I want to force my devotion onto others. Nor is it because I have a series of theological arguments in support of my view. It is because in my lived experience, the time I have spent in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament has led me to make major changes in my life, and so, at least for me, it seems like a false dichotomy.
Prior to entering the seminary, I was a secondary school teacher in Adelaide. I was particularly ambitious, held leadership positions in my twenties, and was always looking for the next opportunity for career advancement. But in 2016, the thought came to me that I may be called to the priesthood. From this time on I would look around Adelaide for churches that were holding Eucharistic adoration, I discovered that there was a holy hour for young adults at the cathedral and begun attending, and it was during adoration when I heard God speak to me through a priest reflecting on the story in Luke’s Gospel in which the would-be followers of Jesus want to go back to bury the dead and say goodbye to their families, to which Jesus responds: “No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” In his reflection, the priest pointed out that burying the dead or saying goodbye to one’s family are not inherently bad things; in fact, they are good things. He reflected, however, that sometimes in life there are choices between two goods, and you have to choose which one is primary.
Hence, I concluded that I had to choose the good of the priesthood over my teaching career and in 2019 I resigned my position, sold my unit in Adelaide and joined the seminary in Melbourne. I am not saying that Eucharistic adoration is the sole reason for me discerning a priestly vocation, but it did play a large role, and, furthermore, it animated my desire to feed the Eucharist to God’s people. So, while for some Eucharistic adoration may seem passive, for me it has been the most incredible source of dynamism.