Teologiczne wymiary adoracji eucharystycznej

Abstract

In many countries, the adoration of Jesus Christ present in the Blessed Sacrament is experiencing a great crisis. In others, it is experiencing its renaissance. In the context of the Year of the Eucharist, pope John Paul H’s apostolic letter, Mane nobiscum Domine, and the Instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments give a new insight on Eucharistic adoration. Firstly, the author of this article approached this topic from a historic point of view. It turns out that, in the first millennium of Christianity, the cult of the Eucharist concentrated on underlining communion as a foundation for unity. Even though various gestures accompanied the receiving of Holy Communion by the faithful during this time, one cannot speak of different forms of this cult. The second millennium of Christianity, however, underlined the presence of the Glorified Jesus in bread and wine. That is why the second millennium may be called the “millennium of the Presence” Unfortunately, the many different processions, forms of adoration and expositions of the Blessed Sacrament did not go hand in hand with the receiving of Communion by the faithful. The contribution of the recent past, especially the pontificate of John Paul II, is the connection of adoration with the Paschal Mystery. Adoration is not simply a religious practice; it is the consequence of the Paschal Mystery. In the fullest sense of the word, adoration is experienced during the Eucharistic celebration. Therefore, the structure of adoration should reflect the communal mystery of the Eucharist. The essential elements of experiencing adoration are discussed in the second part of the article.