More than 75 churches across the five counties of the Diocese of Allentown will be open late into the evening on Holy Thursday, part of an ancient ritual that offers the opportunity for a mini pilgrimage of prayer.
Visiting other churches on Holy Thursday is a chance to spend quiet time before the Most Blessed Sacrament at one of the holiest times of the year.
On Holy Thursday, parish priests celebrate the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, when Catholics remember the Passover Meal at which Jesus shared bread and wine with His disciples, saying “Do this in memory of Me.” Following the Mass, there is a procession with the Holy Eucharist to a temporary altar, where the Most Blessed Sacrament is placed in a vessel called a repository. The faithful then spend time in prayer and Adoration.
This is when the visitation of other churches begins. The faithful journey to seven churches if possible, but fewer is OK, too – to visit the Altar of Repose and spend a few minutes in prayer. The tradition is said to have begun in ancient times when Catholics traveled this night to the seven basilicas of Rome.
The Holy Thursday church visitation also is a time when Catholics can keep a late-evening vigil, remembering that Jesus asked His disciples to stay awake with Him in the Garden of Gethsemane before His arrest.
To plan your visits, here is a list of Diocese churches and visitation hours.
Berks Deanery
Most Blessed Sacrament, Bally – 8:15-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. Columbkill, Boyertown – 8:15-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
Immaculate Conception, Douglassville – 8:15-10 p.m.
St. Mary, Hamburg – 8:15-9:30 p.m., Night Prayer 9:15 p.m.
St. Mary, Kutztown – 8-11 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m.
St. Benedict, Mohnton – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 9:45 p.m.
Holy Guardian Angels, Reading – 8:15-11 p.m., Night Prayer 11 p.m.
Holy Rosary, Reading – 7-9 p.m., Night Prayer 8:45 p.m.
St. Catharine of Siena, Reading – 8:15-10:30 p.m., Night Prayer 10:30 p.m.
St. Joseph, Reading – 6:30-11 p.m.
St. Margaret, Reading – 8:30-11 p.m.
St. Paul, Reading – 8:30-11 p.m.
St. Peter the Apostle, Reading – 8:30-11 p.m.
St. Francis de Sales, Robesonia – 8:15-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. John Baptist de la Salle, Shillington – 8:30-10 p.m.
St. Ignatius Loyola, Sinking Spring – 8:15-midnight, Night Prayer midnight.
Sacred Heart, West Reading – 8:30-11 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m.
Carbon Deanery
Immaculate Conception, Jim Thorpe – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. Peter the Fisherman, Lake Harmony – 8-10 p.m.
Ss. Peter and Paul, Lehighton – 7:45-11 p.m., Night Prayer 11 p.m.
Sacred Heart, Palmerton – 8:15-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. Joseph, Summit Hill – 7:45-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
Lehigh Deanery
Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena, Allentown – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
Immaculate Conception BVM, Allentown – 8-9:30 p.m.
Our Lady Help of Christians, Allentown – 7:30-10 p.m.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, Allentown – 8:30-midnight.
St. Francis of Assisi, Allentown – 8:15-10 p.m., Night Prayer 9:45 p.m.
St. John the Baptist, Allentown – 8-10 p.m.
St. Paul, Allentown – 8:45-11 p.m.
St. Thomas More, Allentown – 9 p.m.-midnight.
Annunciation BVM, Catasauqua – 8:15-10 p.m.
St. John Fisher, Catasauqua – 8:30-11 p.m.
St. Joseph, Coopersburg – 8-9 p.m.
St. Peter, Coplay – 7:30-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. Ann, Emmaus – 8:15-10:45 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m.
Assumption BVM, Northampton – 8-10:30 p.m., Night Prayer 10:30 p.m.
Queenship of Mary, Northampton – 6-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. Joseph the Worker, Orefield – 8:15 p.m.-midnight, Night Prayer 11 p.m.
Assumption BVM, Slatington – 8-9:30 p.m.
Holy Trinity, Whitehall – 8:15-11 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Whitehall – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. John the Baptist, Whitehall – 7:30-10 p.m.
Northampton Deanery
Sacred Heart of Jesus, Bath – 8:30 p.m.-midnight.
Assumption BVM, Bethlehem – 8:30-10 p.m.
Holy Ghost, Bethlehem – 8 p.m.-midnight.
Holy Infancy, Bethlehem – 8:30 p.m.-midnight.
Incarnation of Our Lord, Bethlehem – 8-9:30 p.m. (convent chapel).
Notre Dame of Bethlehem – 8:15-11 p.m., Night Prayer 11 p.m.
Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Bethlehem – 8:15 p.m.-midnight.
Sacred Heart, Bethlehem – 8-10:30 p.m., Night Prayer 10:30 p.m.
St. Anne, Bethlehem – 8:30 p.m.-midnight.
SS. Simon and Jude, Bethlehem – See Our Lady Help of Christians, Allentown.
Our Lady of Mercy, Easton – 8:30-10:30 p.m.
St. Anthony of Padua, Easton – 8:15-10 p.m.
St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Easton – 8:45 p.m.-midnight, Night Prayer midnight.
St. Ursula, Fountain Hill – 7 p.m.-midnight.
St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, Hellertown – 8-10 p.m.
St. Rocco, Martins Creek – 8-10 p.m.
Holy Family, Nazareth – 8:15-11 p.m.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Pen Argyl – 8-10 p.m.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Roseto – 8:15-10 p.m.
St. Nicholas, Walnutport – 8:15-11 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m.
Schuylkill Deanery
St. Charles Borromeo, Ashland – See St. Joseph the Worker, Frackville.
St. Richard, Barnesville – See St. John XXIII, Tamaqua.
St. Joseph the Worker, Frackville – 8:30-11 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m. (at St. Ann Church).
All Saints, McAdoo – 8:15-9:30 p.m., Night Prayer 9:30 p.m.
St. Teresa of Calcutta, Mahanoy City – 8-10 p.m. (Catawissa St. Chapel).
Holy Family, Minersville – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m. (at St. Michael)
Holy Cross, New Philadelphia – 8:15-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. John the Baptist, Pottsville – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
St. Patrick, Pottsville – 8-11 p.m., Night Prayer 10:45 p.m.
St. Mary, Ringtown – See St. Joseph, Sheppton.
St. Clare of Assisi, St. Clair – Adoration at Holy Cross, New Philadelphia.
St. Ambrose, Schuylkill Haven – 8:15-9:30 p.m., Night Prayer 9:30 p.m.
Divine Mercy, Shenandoah – 7:45-8:30 p.m.
St. Joseph, Sheppton – 8-10 p.m.
St. John XXIII, Tamaqua – 8:15-10 p.m.
Most Blessed Trinity, Tremont – 8-10 p.m., Night Prayer 10 p.m.
Photo: Caravaggio, The Taking of Christ, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.
Copy Permalink
