Eucharistic Adoration After Vatican II by Edward Foley

Abstract

Reviewed by: Eucharistic Adoration After Vatican II by Edward Foley Michael Brummond Edward Foley Eucharistic Adoration After Vatican II Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2022 123 pages. Paperback. $16.95. The Church in the United States is currently in the midst of a National Eucharistic Revival intended to deepen the faithful's understanding of Jesus' Eucharistic presence, and to intensify devotion to, and worship of, the Eucharistic Lord. This is therefore an opportune time to reflect on the relationship between Christ's presence in the liturgy and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament outside Mass, a question with a somewhat checkered history. Pope Benedict XVI wrote in Sacramentum Caritatis that, shortly after the reforms of Vatican II, "the inherent relationship between Mass and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament was not always perceived with sufficient clarity. For example, an objection that was widespread at the time argued that the eucharistic bread was given to us not to be looked at, but to be eaten. In the light of the Church's experience of prayer, however, this was seen to be a false dichotomy" (Sacramentum Caritatis, no. 66). Two years later, however, Fr. Richard McBrien could still write that, given the reformed liturgical rites now more accessible to the laity, "there is little or no need for extraneous Eucharistic devotions. The Mass itself provides all that a Catholic needs sacramentally and spiritually. Eucharistic adoration, perpetual or not, is a doctrinal, theological, and spiritual step backward, not forward" ("Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration," National Catholic Reporter, September 8, 2009). Edward Foley's Eucharistic Adoration after Vatican II continues this conversation, seeking to offer historical foundations and sound theological principles by which to ground liturgically centered Eucharistic spirituality and devotion in a post-conciliar Church. Fr. Foley is a Capuchin and retired professor of liturgy and music at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, and author of over thirty books. Much of his work is practical in orientation, directed toward liturgical praxis, and this book is no exception. Foley notes that while the council brought in its wake far-reaching liturgical reforms, "my multiple experiences of Benediction and other Eucharistic devotions [End Page 117] after the appearance of these innumerable reformed rites seems to be identical to what had been in place in the 1950s" (viii). This book is his attempt to articulate the relationship between Vatican II and contemporary Eucharistic adoration and other devotions. Unlike McBrien, however, for Foley, "a foundational belief behind this writing is that devotions of every kind contribute in a unique and essential way to my personal faith and that of the wider church" (ix). The book begins with a succinct history of Eucharistic devotions from the biblical and patristic ages through the reforms of Vatican II, considered both within the liturgy itself and as they eventually developed in extra-liturgical contexts. Written in a compelling and accessible manner, this chapter highlights not only the theological issues and controversies that prompted varied forms of Eucharistic devotion, but also the role played by cultural influences, other pious practices such as the veneration of altars and relics, and the desire of the lay faithful to see the consecrated host. In this historical survey, Foley naturally highlights the norms contained in Sacrosanctum Con-cilium. Unencumbered by excessive detail or minutiae, this historical review may be too concise for the trained academic, while being of greatest interest and value to the curious non-historian of liturgy. It is also refreshing that Foley generally refrains from value judgements regarding devotional excesses throughout history. "Instead, these ancient testimonies provide a vital context for pondering the present" (1). The chapter concludes with the pointed summary of the historical data, "Eucharistic devotions are honored preparations for and extensions of the Eucharistic liturgy" (34). The second chapter draws from the liturgy itself as a primary source, along with the dogmatic teachings of the Church, to formulate five theological principles to guide authentic Eucharistic devotion. Such devotions, Foley argues, will 1) center on Christ and 2) his Paschal Mystery as a visible sacrament of God's love; they will 3) have an ecclesial or communal dimension; and these devotions ought to 4) draw us to be missionary disciples, and 5) call us to reverence...