Holy Hour () is the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

devotional tradition of spending an hour in Eucharistic adoration in the presence of the

Blessed Sacrament The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of th ...

. A plenary

indulgence In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins". The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission before God of ...

is granted for this practice. The practice is also observed in some Lutheran churches and some Anglican churches.

History

The inspiration for the Holy Hour is .Peter Stravinskas, 1998, ''Our Sunday Visitor's Catholic Encyclopedia'', OSV Press page 498 In the

Gospel of Matthew The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and form ...

, during the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before his crucifixion, Jesus spoke to his disciples, saying "My soul is sorrowful even to death. Remain here and keep watch with me." (Matthew 26:38) Returning to the disciples after prayer, he found them asleep and in Matthew 26:40 he asked Peter:"So, could you men not keep watch with me for an hour?". He did not ask for an hour of activity, but for an hour of companionship.Sheen, Fulton J., "The Hour That Makes My Day", ''Treasure in Clay: The Autobiography of Fulton J. Sheen'', (1980, Doubleday & Co.)
/ref> In 1673 Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque stated that she had a vision of Jesus in which she was instructed to spend an hour every Thursday night to meditate on the sufferings of Jesus in the

Garden of Gethsemane Gethsemane () is a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem where, according to the four Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus underwent the agony in the garden and was arrested before his crucifixion. It is a place of great reson ...

. This practice later became widespread among Roman Catholics. In 1829, the ''Archconfraternity of the Holy Hour'' was established by Père Robert Debrosse at

Paray-le-Monial Paray-le-Monial is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. Since 2004 is Paray-le-Monial part of the Charolais-Brionnais Country. It is nicknamed the "city of the Sacred Heart" a ...

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...

, France. In 1911 it received the right of aggregation for the entire world. A similar society called "The Holy Perpetual Hour of Gethsemani" was formed in

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

in 1885 and was canonically erected in 1907. In 1909 it received indulgences from

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of ...

Maundy Thursday

On Maundy Thursday (also known as Holy Thursday), the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church provides for the transfer of the Blessed Sacrament in a procession to a side altar or a sacrament chapel after the

Mass of the Lord's Supper The Mass of the Lord's Supper, also known as A Service of Worship for Maundy Thursday, is a Holy Week service celebrated on the evening of Maundy Thursday. It inaugurates the Easter Triduum, and commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus with his di ...

. This holy hour, during which the faithful remain in silent worship for "a suitable time", is to last at least until midnight, but be without any solemnity after the dawn of Good Friday. The holy hour on Maundy Thursday commemorates the prayer and vigil of Jesus on the Mount of Olives, when he asked his Father to spare him his suffering in view of his approaching death, as well as the admonition to his disciples "Watch, and pray, that ye enter not into temptation" (Mt 26).

Slang meaning

In the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...

and

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...

, the "holy hour" () was the term applied to the closing of

public houses A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

between 2.30 and 3.30 p.m. on Monday to Saturday in the cities of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

and

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

. It was introduced by

Minister for Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Justi ...

Kevin O'Higgins Kevin Christopher O'Higgins ( ga, Caoimhghín Críostóir Ó hUigín; 7 June 1892 – 10 July 1927) was an Irish politician who served as Vice-President of the Executive Council and Minister for Justice from 1922 to 1927, Minister for External ...

in the 1920s to curb afternoon drinking by workers. It was removed in 1988. On Sundays, pubs in Cork and Dublin had to close between 2 and 4 p.m.; this restriction was not removed until 2000. Pubs often merely locked the doors, allowing those in the pubs to continue drinking during the holy hour.

References

{{Authority control Catholic devotions Eucharistic devotions

History

Maundy Thursday

Slang meaning

See also

References