Forty Hours Devotion 2026
“The most brilliant ideas come from meeting God face to face (at adoration). The Holy Spirit that presided at the Incarnation is the best atmosphere for illumination.” - Blessed Fulton Sheen
Forty Hours Devotion is a special time for our parish every year. It is a time for each of us to come before the Blessed Sacrament and to thank God for his graces, to make reparation to Him for our past sins, to pray for the sick, and to beg God’s protection of our nation.
St. John Cantius Church will hold our annual Forty Hours Devotion beginning Sunday, October 18th through Tuesday, October 20th.
Adoration sign ups will be available soon!
40 Hours Schedule
Sunday, Oct. 18 - Mass of Solemn Exposition
12:30pm - Solemn High Mass (Votive of Blessed Sacrament)
(Commemoration of Twenty first Sunday after Pentecost)
2:15pm - Solemn Vespers Coram Sanctissimo
4:45pm - Simple Reposition
5:00pm - Mass/Compline
6pm - Simple Exposition
Monday, Oct. 19
6:00am - Simple Reposition (15 hrs)
6:30am - Low Mass (Missa pro Pace) (commemoration of St. Peter of Alcantara, Confessor)
7:30am - Matins and Lauds (Blessed Sacrament)
8:00am - Conventual Mass w/incense (Votive Mass for Peace)
9:00am - Simple Exposition
Adoration -
4:30pm - Rosary/ Solemn Vespers Coram Sanctissimo (1st Vespers of Dedication)
7:00pm - Compline
10:00pm - Simple Reposition (28 hrs)
Tuesday, Oct. 20 - Dedication of a Church
6:30am - Low Mass (Commemoration of St. John Cantius)
7:30am - Matins and Lauds
8:00am - Conventual Mass w/incense
9:00am - Simple Exposition
Adoration -
4:30pm - Rosary/Solemn Vespers (Dedication of a Church)
7:30pm - Solemn High Mass Coram Sanctissimo
Indoor procession with Blessed Sacrament
Benediction (40 hrs)
In the Bible the number 40 is associated with a sacred period of time: the rain at the time of the flood of Noah lasted 40 days and nights. The Hebrews wandered in the desert for 40 years on the way to the Promised Land. And most significantly, Jesus fasted for 40 days before beginning His public ministry.
In the celebration of the Forty Hours Devotion, we are able to witness a fuller expression of our Catholic faith in the Eucharist. It is first and foremost about our participation in the Paschal Mystery through the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. In the Mass, we participate directly in the saving acts of Christ, and by the grace of the Holy Spirit we unite the sacrifices of our lives with the one sacrifice of Christ on the Cross. It is in this way that we give praise and thanksgiving to God the Father for His Son Jesus and participate in the true worship of our God by which we are sanctified as His holy people.
