When I was a nominal Catholic, I didn't know what an adoration chapel is. Who cares about that round, flat and white "bread" unless one consumes it during communion at mass, right? Nobody ever told me about any kind of worship in terms of the Eucharistic Body of Christ.
Despite being given basic catechism in elementary and educated in a Catholic high school, the nuns or parish priest never talked about adoration at all! We had religion subjects yes but it didn't cover anything of the sort.
Like, duh, we don't even have any Adoration chapel in our parish in the province. I don't even think the cathedral in the capital city of the province has one back then (or even now?). I wouldn't know because nobody told me about such things until I found out about it two years ago.
What's in the Adoration Chapel?
Just like me (before Lent 2023), even my sibling didn't know what Eucharistic Adoration/Devotion is. 😂 We went to church last month and it was our first time going to mass together, ever!!! How sad right?
Of course eventually the topic of adoration chapel came up and such a place is unknown to a non-practicing Catholic like most of our clan/family members. So I explained what we do inside: people worship God and pray to Him in there. A consecrated host is placed in front in/on an altar and adored by everyone who goes there. It is a place where we can talk to Him about anything too!
The Holy Eucharist in a monstrance (a container/vessel where the consecrated host is placed during adoration) | photo source
I actually did not know to say it must be the consecrated one that should be put in there. Had no clue about it at the time. Haha. I previously thought any unconsecrated communion wafer/bread can be placed there. Oh boy, the things I am so ignorant of for being a longtime lukewarm Catholic. 😂 Thank God and Mama Mary that I am learning more and more about Catholicism everyday!
Why Must We Do Eucharistic Adoration?
Well why not? We wanna get physically close to Jesus/God as much as we can, right? Unfortunately only a few have a pure heart so we can never physically see Jesus or Mama Mary.(Matthew 5:7) Only some saints have been granted the grace of seeing apparitions of our Lord and His Blessed Mother.
This is why we have statues and photos/images of such to represent them here on Earth but the real deal is being able to see Him face to face. Guess how we can do that while still alive?
Aside from consuming the Body of Christ regularly (we Catholics should become what we eat!) every Sunday and Holy Days of Obligation (or everytime we take communion in or outside of mass) we can actually pray to Him in person!
From Catholic Memes FB page | source
Praying in the Adoration Chapel regularly is like getting our crucial dose of God for our soul instead of just the important sunshine our body needs when we go outdoors. When we go in to adore, we expose ourselves to the Holy Trinity, not just Jesus Himself. We bask in His glory and we receive grace, especially if we spend a lot of time with the Lord in there.
Anyway I'll write something more extensive about this soon. For now feel free to do your own research on this subject. And let's go to the main topic of this post...
Which Adoration Chapels are Worth Visiting?
Here are some of the holy places worth visiting in Metro Manila! Of course I haven't seen all Adoration Chapels in the many cities of the National Capital Region but I can share some that I found and a few I frequent.
I only started visiting various ones this year actually (back in March)! 😂 As mentioned, I used to not know nor care about much of Catholic religious practices. Now that I know how valuable visiting Jesus as a Eucharist is, I make it a point to check if any church I visit has one! Surely I haven't seen 'em all but there are those I've been to which I like more than the rest.
Any idea which ones I will mention here? Drumroll please!
❤️ Most Welcoming / Inviting: St. Joseph Shrine in Quezon City
I used to go to this church as a kid. A parent would bring me along to mass and I thought then that it's pretty massive! Haha. Of course when I grew up and came back to visit, it wasn't that huge anymore even if it's still sizable.
Back then I don't think they had any adoration chapel. Well I had no idea about such things so I wouldn't even notice anyway. 😂 Fast forward to late 2022 and voila! Suddenly there's a really bright and well-lit place with a shiny gold and silver monstrance... And wow Jesus as the Blessed Sacrament is there!!! 😍
It was blessed and opened to the public back in Oct. 19, 2022. The first time I saw it in November of that year, I felt amazed at how beautiful everything is! Of course I prayed there for the first time and the rest is history! Haha. I've never prayed in any such place before until the day I saw it there. And I've been coming back ever since! I'd even look for one in other churches! 😆 Oh I love it.
I mean, just watch the video above. Isn't it visually warm and so very inviting? ♥️ I've never seen a more welcoming adoration chapel than this one. For me, nothing compares to this place, ever. It never runs out of visitors because it's openly visible to all, even from the street!
This is what must be done in all other churches imho. Jesus Christ as the Holy Eucharist doesn't need to be hidden in a corner room, He must be visible to everyone within the church premises!
😱 Largest I've Ever Seen!: Chapel of the Eucharistic Lord in Mandaluyong City
Next up... have you ever gone to a church inside a mall? Well, welcome to the Philippines where you can find everything inside malls! 😂 Why not when it draws so many people, of course businesses will put one inside their commercial buildings. 🥴
Anyway first time I ever went in there was just last month and I was like, whoa! It's BIG! Lol, I mean the Eucharist is like a "moon" from afar. You know, like those really large ones being raised high in certain masses.
Photo I took, of course I added some photo filters. 😁
I think I've only seen a few big ones being consecrated at mass in my entire life. Haha. I rarely see such a sizable Holy Eucharist, how much more a container for it during adoration? I mean look at the size of this. I'm guessing it's like 6" in diameter but of course I don't know for sure. Didn't get in front of it to really look because there were several other people praying. YouTube Shorts here if you wanna see a video instead: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LoxjROBIA1U
Even the monstrance looks like something from 3.5 to 5 ft. in diameter. With a size like that, it indeed takes the chapel name seriously! Haha. It is truly a church for the Eucharistic Lord!!! ♥️
☝️ Special Mentions
Most adoration chapels are "hidden" from view. Some are not even highlighted at all and don't have a big signage for anyone to see. These are some of them. You won't notice these unless you really look for 'em.
Most "Complete"
1. Archdiocesan Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Mandaluyong City 🤍
Here's one which is complete with the image of Jesus as Divine Mercy. Didn't realize it's there until someone was touching the glass outside of the room and I was like, huh? 😆
Church social media announcement in 2023. | image source
2. National Shrine of the Sacred Heart in Makati City 💓
If the above is the Divine Mercy Jesus, can you guess what you will see in the Adoration Chapel of this church?
Any idea what it will look like?
I'll give you a few seconds... 😁
I just went there yesterday to join the Feast mass for the Sacred Heart. Of course I had to ask around to find it.
Are you ready to see the difference? Haha.
Tada!!!
Yep, it's the Holy Eucharist as the Sacred Heart indeed. First time I've seen a "red" Blessed Sacrament representing Jesus' suffering heart. Haven't seen any actual Eucharistic Miracles yet so this indeed is quite different than the rest.
Most Wow Experience: Parish of the Divine Mercy in Sikatuna Village, Quezon City 🤩
And last but not the least we come to where my personal testimony to the amazing experience of praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament happened. ♥️
Do you wanna hear a fantastic story? But wait, this is getting too long so I will share it in another post. 😉
How about you? Do you have any favorite Adoration Chapel in Metro Manila and the Philippines or anywhere in your country? Have you ever been to one and how was the experience?
XOXO,
@artgirl
