Adoration Under the Stars draws the faithful
By Jillian Lange
The scene was picturesque. A hazy Kansas sunset and endless fields framed the large stone crucifix in the cemetery of St. Joseph Parish in Ost. More than 1,000 people gathered on the evening of July 2 with chairs, blankets, journals, and bibles to spend an hour with our Lord, present in the Blessed Sacrament under the stars. As the sun set on an evening of fellowship and community, people of all ages crowded closer to the Eucharist, displayed in the heart of a radiant monstrance shaped like Our Lady of Grace.
The monstrance, courtesy of the Adoratio Foundation, was created from a vision found in St. Maximillian Kolbe’s journal. Foundation President Andrew Niewald notes the organization began as a response to a Pew Research study showing 75% of Catholics do not believe in the Real Presence. “We needed to do something practical to stir up devotion,” he said. “Mary was the first monstrance.”
Adoratio Foundation’s mission – to equip parishes to increase their devotion to adoration – harmonizes well with an event such as Adoration Under the Stars. “We run spiritual campaigns to robustly increase participation in Eucharistic adoration,” Niewald said. “We give all the marketing materials for a four-month campaign.”
For the first time, Austin Lager’s Lager Audio Visual Services provided the event’s sound and lighting. The lights cast hues of red and blue across the altar. The colors of Jesus and Mary blended to create a royal purple, bringing in a symbolic element and setting the tone for the experience.
“We decided to keep it simple this first year, but add a concert and dinner,” Lager said. “I saw the monstrance in Hays and thought it would be cool to bring it down here.”
Attendees were treated to a hot dog dinner, a small ministry fair, and live music by J. Michael and Enkindle Worship before adoration. Lager expresses high hopes for the event’s future. “We are hoping to turn this into a Eucharistic retreat next year and are asking for free-will donations to make it happen,” he said. “We need funds to pay musicians, AVS, and more.”
The music was led by Christopher Rowden, whose passion is devotional music – a term he uses for praise and worship. He describes his goal as offering supplemental experiences to fill the gaps between big events that offer radical encounters with God. He also marveled at the efforts and expertise that went into the event and said that Lager was “knocking it out of the park, because the mechanics of everything have to be there to get to the starting line. You have to have good sound, and it helps to have people playing who have a heart for devotional music and understand the potential. I like to choose music that focuses on relational aspects with highly relational lyrics; things that shoot for the heart of what we’re aiming for – a relationship with Jesus.” Enkindle Worship’s next big event is scheduled for Sept. 28 in Andale and will include a workshop on music and time for praise and worship.
Presiding over the whole event was Fr. Bernard Gorges, who spent the evening greeting participants, leading adoration, and hearing confessions. This is his third year heading Adoration Under the Stars, and Fr. Gorges says he hopes to intensify Eucharistic focus among the faithful and offer an experience of the Eucharistic presence of Christ.
“It was the first time I ever saw that monstrance,” he said. “It was profound. The monstrance truly symbolizes that we receive Jesus through the heart and womb of Mary. Being a few feet away from it was really impressive.”
More than two-dozen priests came to the event to hear confessions. The line extended through the entirety of the cemetery immediately after exposition and continued through the hour.
Attendee Andrew Vishnefske marveled at the event’s outpouring of fellowship. “I love the community and the people I see every year,” he said. “I have been coming since I was a teenager. It’s a place that increases faith and friendship.”
People connected, shared spaces with family and friends, and many remained reverently kneeling on the hard ground the whole evening. Fr. Gorges expressed extra appreciation for the strong turnout, and specifically, the youth who come to worship and adore. “There seems to be a revival among the youth,” he said.
Adoration is powerful. Adoration Under the Stars takes it to another level. Creating an atmosphere is one thing, but the people in it bring it to life. It shows that when people who are passionate about Christ come together with their gifts, there is great fruit.
Jillian Lange is a parishioner at St. John’s Clonmel and the co-founder of Wholly Surrender.”
