Today, Fr. Kevin Grove, C.S.C., the associate pastor of Christ the King Parish in South Bend, Ind., shares with us about a beautiful prayer for vocations at their parish using a traveling monstrance blessed by the late Pope John Paul II. If you want to receive the monstrance at your school or parish, here is more information.

At Christ the King Parish, our community prepares each year for our patronal feast, Christ the King, by praying a forty hours devotion—adoration before the Blessed Sacrament—for the intentions of our parish and for vocations. The monstrance we used for adoration this year marked this prayer in a special way; it was one of six monstrances that Pope John Paul II blessed in 2004 to be used as traveling monstrances in adoration for more vocations.

The monstrance that came to Christ the King has traveled over 140,000 miles and been in around 100 different North American cities in the last six years. At Christ the King, we began on Thursday evening with the votive Mass of the Holy Eucharist and then prayed in continual adoration through Thursday night, Friday, Friday night, and Saturday. Parishioners, school students, and priests prayed in the presence of Jesus Christ.

Pope John Paul II, began his letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, by explaining that, "The Church draws her life from the Eucharist." Christ the King has been committed to praying for vocations. Now its pastor, Fr. Neil Wack, C.S.C., is one of the priestly vocations from its pews. He presided at benediction, blessing his flock on this special day. May our Church continue to draw the new life of vocations from our source and summit in the Eucharist!