Archbishop Sheen's cousin reflects on his Eucharistic devotion and daily Holy Hour, as new film 'Adore Him: He Is Here' honors his memory and witness.
“When will the bishop have his Holy Hour?” was always the question that was asked, when Archbishop Sheen was visiting our family. We expected it. We always knew it was going to happen, similar to, “When are we going to have dinner?”
It was just something that happened every day in Archbishop Sheen's life. We knew it, we saw it, and we often participated in it. It seemed like a very normal thing, especially for Archbishop Sheen. When I think about Adoration, I automatically think about Archbishop Sheen.
[Note: This article is submitted by Archbishop Sheen's cousin, Rosemarie. She speaks about her memories of the archbishop in the film Adore Him: He is Here.]
It was just part of the puzzle that we would put together when Bishop Sheen (as he was then) was visiting. There were a lot of things that were always going to be happening, and we had to find a time for the bishop to make his Holy Hour.
I remember, as a child, thinking, Well, this is a special thing that Bishop Sheen does because he's a priest. And we knew a lot of priests, growing up, and I guess I kind of assumed that they all did that. It wasn't until I was older that I realized not everyone did that. I understood the importance of it, though. I remember, very, clearly, having a Holy Hour with Bishop Sheen and my mother, and it was a beautiful, prayerful time. I was probably in the 6th grade when it happened.
It was clear to me how not only special it was to the bishop, but also very important to him. That particular time was something that I'll never forget.
An invitation to adore
I have been participating in my parish’s 24-hour Adoration since its inception, about 12 years ago. I remember, when it was announced, they passed around a basket with papers and pencils and a list of days and times for anyone interested to sign up. I immediately knew that I was going to do it, because I just thought, What would the bishop think? How could I not take that opportunity to make a Holy Hour once a week, when he made a Holy Hour every day of his life? So I signed up.
I am still adoring on the same day and at the same time: Tuesday night at 10 o'clock, for one hour, at my parish, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Edmond, Oklahoma. We have a lovely Adoration Chapel, and I enjoy being there late at night, even though I get tired sometimes.
I remember the bishop talking about falling asleep during Adoration once, and he said he woke up, and he looked up at Our Lord on the altar, and he said, “Does that count, Lord?” He said that he could hear in his head, “You're not the first one that fell asleep on me.” I think about that, too, when I start feeling sleepy in the Adoration chapel. I love the peacefulness, the darkness surrounding me, in the church, the quiet. It’s a beautiful time for me to be present with Our Lord.
"When you pray, don't do all of the talking"
The archbishop would say, "When you pray, don't do all of the talking." You have to listen. And that's hard to do. Sometimes I try to just sit there and listen, and I ask Our Lord to help me, to just try to listen to him. And sometimes it really happens. So I thank Archbishop Sheen for that beautiful reminder.
I remember the archbishop visiting us and having retreats, not just with Catholic priests or Catholic groups (and he did that often), but also with different Protestant ministers and Jewish rabbis.
In his essay "The Hour That Makes My Day," he said, “I preached three retreats to Protestant ministers... I asked them to make a continuous Holy Hour of prayer in order to combat the forces of evil in the world, because that is what our Lord asked for the night of His Agony. I addressed them: ‘You are not blessed with the same Divine Presence in your churches that I believe we possess. But you do have another presence that we do also, and that is the Scripture... You could make the Hour before the Scriptures.’”
'Adore Him: He Is Here'
Archbishop Sheen often remarked that he received all of his power from his hour. That’s when he thought of his sermons, and wrote his books, as he would be inspired as he prayed in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
The new film Adore Him: He Is Here (in theaters October 4 - 8) allows us to hear amazing stories as various people relate what a Holy Hour means to them, and that's so powerful. I am honored to be a part of it. I think that Archbishop Sheen would be very happy with this film and with the Eucharistic movement that we are experiencing right now. You can see the trailer here.
Our Lord was the most important thing in the archbishop’s life. He wanted to bring Christ to everyone, through his teaching, his sermons, his books, his radio program and his television show.
Regardless of what time of day it was, wherever he was around the world, he made sure that he made his Holy Hour.
His last moments on Earth were in front of the Blessed Sacrament. That is where he was found. With his arm outstretched to Our Lord, in his chapel. What a beautiful example of an incredible, saintly life that this wonderful, holy, loving man lived.
Soon-to-be Blessed Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, pray for us.
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Rosemarie Holliger Costello is a cousin of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. She is a wife, mother, and grandmother and writes from Edmond, Oklahoma. Costello appears in the new docudrama 'Adore Him: He Is Here' playing in U.S. theaters nationwide Oct. 4 - 8.
