worship at the cathedral 13: commitment

So far, only a few have signed up for the Lord, "one hour once a week".  Except for the 5:00 AM and 7:00AM slots all the hours are filled on Sundays.  But on Mondays, of the 19 slots available, only 6 were filled up.  On Tuesdays, only 5 slots were filled u; on Wednesdays, only 6; on Thursdays, only 6; On Fridays, 2; and on Saturdays, 10.  Well, I know many of you are probably one of the many who visit our Lord even more than "one hour, once a week."   Some, I know, come daily.  Or you are one of those who prefer to be anonymous, not wanting to have your name published, not wanting to be recognized for a good deed.  But we are doing this campaign not just to have people "keep watch with the Lord".  We are doing this for two things. 

First, we need to form commitments for Jesus and for the parish - a public commitment from people in our parish to spend one hour each week before the Blessed Sacrament.  Commitment entails sacrifice and it is always more meritorious than spending time with the Lord "if my schedule allows".  In a commitment the Blessed Sacrament is not just one of the things I passed by in my day to day activities.  Rather, in a commitment, this visit at this certain hour on a certain day of the week become one of our more important goals.  We give way to it, we look forward to it, we plan our schedule around it.  My date with the Lord is a highlighted part of my week.

Second, commitments made in this signing up raise a consciousness on our part that we are adoring the Lord as a parish and not as individuals, because we need to take turns.    Taking turns involve a consciousness that we are doing this as a community, not as an individual.  I have to be on time so that I can relieve the person ahead of me.  I have to wait a little for the person who will replace me.  This consciousness is important in forming in us a parish life, the consciousness that I am not alone and that we are in this together, as a church, as a community.

Hopefully, by the feast of Corpus Christi, we could already complete our list, filling up the slots available, committing ourselves to the service of the Lord and our parish.

In the initial list I received there are entire families signing up for the Lord, there is also one religious organization, a couple who identified only by their nicknames, a barkadahan, and one who signed up for two hours.  From this Sunday onwards, we will be placing the sign-up sheet at the entrance of the Adoration chapel.  Please sign up for the Lord "one hour once a week."