The video below is, well, a very poor example of Eucharistic Adoration. I suppose the most charitable thing that we can say is that it’s good to see Catholics rejoicing and happy. However, as with most things, there is a proper time and place for the particular sort of rejoicing seen here, but this is not one of those times.

In Eucharistic Adoration, the fundamental focus is Jesus himself. The norms generally indicate

Exposition of the holy eucharist, either in a ciborium or in a monstrance, leads us to acknowledge Christ’s marvelous presence in the sacrament and invites us to the spiritual union with him that culminates in sacramental communion. Therefore it is a strong encouragement toward the worship owed to Christ in spirit and in truth.

In such exposition care must be taken that everything clearly brings out the meaning of eucharistic worship in its correlation with the Mass. There must be nothing about the appointments used for exposition that could in any way obscure Christ’s intention of instituting the eucharist above all to be near us to feed, to heal, and to comfort us (CDW. Eucharistiae Sacramentum, 82).

It is also interesting to note that the word “monstrance” (the large and usually golden sunburst in which the Host is placed in order to be seen) comes from the Latin verb monstrare, meaning “to show.” Hence one of the main points is to see the Lord, to see the Sacred Host.

The word “adoration” also bespeaks a very personal, intimate relationship between the believer and the Lord. As Pope Benedict noted in the encyclical Deus Caritas Est, the word adoration bespeaks a sort of kiss (ad (to) + oro (the mouth). Etymologically then, adoration paints a picture of a kiss on the lips. It thus bespeaks intimacy.

So the key concepts in Eucharistic Adoration are visibility and intimacy.

Another interesting historical fact is that until recently, when preaching took place during Eucharistic Adoration (say during the Forty Hours’ Devotion), the Sacred Host was veiled while the preaching took place. The thought was that when Jesus was so visibly present in the Sacred Eucharist, it would be irreverent to turn our attention elsewhere, in this case toward a preacher. And while this practice is no longer required, it is still widely followed, and it emphasizes reverence and the kind of instinct that our focus should be wholly on the Lord when He is exposed for adoration.

Unfortunately, all these principles seem set aside in the video below. As our Lord is placed in the monstrance, dancers and waving, gesticulating clergy vie for attention. Meanwhile, seemingly no attention at all is upon the Sacred Host. The altar servers seem to have a hard time getting through to bring incense, and though they finally do, the celebrant seems to have no interest in reverencing the sacred host with the incense, as is properly done.

Whatever the focus is supposed to be in this rather chaotic scene, it is clearly not on Jesus.

I do not wish to speak uncharitably of anyone in this video (and ask that you do not either). It does not seem to me that anyone is being intentionally irreverent. But liturgical sensibilities are clearly poor, and the actions are inappropriate to the setting. None of what is taking place here fits the purpose, meaning, or focus of Eucharistic Adoration.

Charismatic forms of worship, while not preferred by everyone, do have a place in the Church. But even those who appreciate such forms of worship will surely admit that this is not the proper context for charismatic worship of this sort. Time and purpose are important governing principles for Liturgy.

None of this is to insist that there be tomb-like silence during the entirety of Eucharistic Adoration. Here too the norms generally state,