(LifeSiteNews) — Archbishop John Wilson of Southwark led over 100 South London primary school children on March 13 in Eucharistic adoration at St George’s Cathedral as part of an initiative to revive the devotion.
Archbishop Wilson encouraged the students to take the time to build a relationship with Christ.
“Most importantly is that you look, look at the presence of Jesus and speak to him from your heart,” Wilson told the children during adoration.
Wilson explained to the children that the Holy Eucharist is really the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ. He also explained the story of the Last Supper, where Jesus performed the first Mass.
“What the Lord Jesus was telling his disciples, he’s telling us now that in the Eucharist, which is the gift of his body and blood, Jesus is telling us, ‘I am here,’” he said.
“When he said, ‘This is my body and this is my blood,’ he meant it,” Wilson revealed. “He is the way, the truth and the life.”
“He spoke the truth, and this is why the Eucharist is at the heart of our faith because Christ is really and truly present here,” he continued.
Wilson encouraged the children to speak to Christ in adoration, telling them, “He wants to know what it’s like to be you today. He wants to know what’s going on in your life. He wants to know whether you’re feeling happy or whether you’re feeling sad.”
“He loves you and he’s your friend, and in his presence, we can speak to him from our heart like we do to other friends that we know and that we love,” he continued.
The adoration was part of an archdiocese initiative called “Hope in Adoration” that aims to “make Eucharistic adoration a part of your prayer life.”
“It is by understanding that the Lord Jesus is present in the Eucharist that we can begin to understand why worship before the Blessed Sacrament provides such fulfilment,” Wilson explained.
