The Forty Hours Devotion is a special forty-hour period of continuous prayer made before the Blessed Sacrament in solemn exposition.  The focus is upon our Lord in the Holy Eucharist.  It begins with a Solemn Mass of Exposition, which concludes with the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and a procession.  The Blessed Sacrament remains on the altar in a Monstrance during the next forty hours while the faithful gather for personal or public prayer in adoration of our Lord.  Forty is reminiscent of the forty hours Jesus remained in the sepulcher before the Resurrection. 

Affirming the Catholic Church’s belief in the Real Presence of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, Vatican Council II upheld and encouraged the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament outside of Mass.  Of course, such devotion derives from the Sacrifice of the Mass and moves the faithful to both sacramental and spiritual communion with our Lord (Lumen Gentium, #11).

St. John Neumann, (1811-60) the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia, was the first in this country to promote this devotion.  He had a tremendous devotion to our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament and desired to foster such a spiritual life in his people.  Three special dimensions have also surrounded this devotion:  the protection from evil and temptation; reparation for our own sins and for the Poor Souls in Purgatory; and deliverance from political, material or spiritual calamities.  Here the faithful implore our Lord to pour forth his abundant graces not only for themselves, but also for their neighbors, not only for their own personal needs, but also for those of the world.

The Forty Hours Devotion provides a wonderful opportunity for the spiritual growth of each person and the parish as a whole.  In a world where temptation and evil abound, where devotion to the Mass and our Lord in the Holy Eucharist have declined, where the practice of penance and confession have been forgotten, we need the Forty Hours Devotion more than ever. (Excerpts taken from www.CatholicHerald.com - 40 Hours with Jesus Christ).

The Forty Hours Devotion can be seen almost like a parish mini-retreat or mission.  A guest priest may be invited to give a series of homilies.  Confessions should be offered and encouraged.  Consequently, an appropriate time to schedule Forty Hours may be either Advent or Lent.

Testimony from one parish in the Diocese of Oakland:

On Thursday, March 4, Forty Hours Devotion began in our parish with a solemn celebration of the Mass at 12:05 PM.  It concluded on Saturday, March 6 with a solemn 8:30 AM Mass and candlelight procession.  The monstrance was placed on the main altar during the forty hours.

Each ministry in the parish took an hour of adoration and was allowed to conduct their Holy Hour as they so desired.  The parish school children also took an hour each afternoon. These ministry Holy Hours were scheduled until 10 PM each night, followed by all-night silent adoration.  From 12:00 AM to 6:00 AM both nights there was at least one member of the Knights of Columbus scheduled for each hour.  However, there ended up being at least about eight adorers for each hour during the middle of the night.  

During the ministry Holy Hours, some did songs of praise, Scripture readings, Rosaries, Scriptural Rosaries, Chaplet of Divine Mercy, Petitions, Meditations of the Last Supper and Stations of the Cross. 

There were 140 people who signed the register that was available from 10:00 PM to 8:30 AM each day.  This does not include all the ministries and people who attended during the day. There were many comments on how much it was appreciated by so many people.  It was a great success.  It brought our whole parish together being united in prayer with Jesus as the center.