In the Eucharist, we peer into the mystery which is at the heart of all creation. Through such adoration, our lives slowly begin to imitate the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Entering into this dynamism of transformation changes the way we see reality. Although we still gaze upon ourselves and the world with the limits of our human reason, little by little our limited human faculties begin to participate in the Divine wisdom.

Sin and its effects keep us from participating in the vision of Christ. Sin should not be reduced simply to a kind of score card understanding. Sin is not simply a series of check marks in the bad category that leaves no lasting effect. Even understanding sin in terms of the development of bad habits is insufficient. A soul that is not in a state of grace does not see reality in all its fullness. Reality can only be perceived accurately through the lens of faith.

Faith should be understood not only as the assent to a series of propositions, but rather as the surrender to Divine grace which is available to all people at all times. This surrender finds its pattern and fulfillment in the person of Jesus Christ. Although Jesus Christ does not have faith in the same sense that us creatures do, the dynamic of faith finds its model in the eternal relations of the Father to the Son. The son receives everything from the Father in perfect self-forgetting. Faith for us must participate in this self-forgetting.

As we move out of ourselves and are brought into communion with the Trinity, reality becomes charged with meaning and excitement. All of creation becomes transfigured by the light of Christ, and we awaken to truth, goodness, and beauty in ways that our lives are marked the spontaneity of the Spirit. It is this spontaneity that the heart longs for; a spontaneity in which the heart lies completely open to the Father’s will.

The path to this vision is frequent adoration, but this is adoration understood in the broadest sense. In its most immediate sense, adoration is gazing upon our Lord present in the Eucharist. However, our adoration must move beyond the time we spend before the Blessed Sacrament. Our vision must be constantly renewed by seeking the Lord’s presence in all things and at all times. Eucharistic adoration trains our eyes to see this presence.