A holy hour is an hour of prayer spent with Jesus, usually before the Blessed Sacrament, in answer to his question in the Garden of Gethsemane: “Could you not watch one hour with me?” It can be made alone in a quiet church or chapel, or together at a parish holy hour with exposition and Benediction. Below is where the holy hour comes from, a simple plan for spending the hour, prayers to use, and the holy hour of reparation on Thursdays and First Fridays.
Where does the holy hour come from?
On the night before he died, Jesus took Peter, James and John into the Garden of Gethsemane and asked them to stay awake and pray with him:
Then he saith to them: My soul is sorrowful even unto death: stay you here, and watch with me.
And going a little further, he fell upon his face, praying, and saying: My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me. Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
And he cometh to his disciples, and findeth them asleep, and he saith to Peter: What? Could you not watch one hour with me?
Watch ye, and pray that ye enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh weak.
In 1674, at Paray-le-Monial, Jesus asked St. Margaret Mary Alacoque to spend an hour in prayer every Thursday night, between eleven and midnight, to share his sorrow in the garden and to make reparation for sin. From that request came the devotion of the holy hour, and in 1829 a confraternity of the Holy Hour was founded at Paray-le-Monial. Today the holy hour is usually made before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, either reserved in the tabernacle or exposed in the monstrance.
Venerable Fulton J. Sheen made a holy hour every day of his priesthood and urged everyone, especially priests, to do the same.
How to make a holy hour: a simple plan
There is no single required form. Many people divide the hour into four parts of about fifteen minutes, following the four purposes of prayer:
- Adoration. Kneel, greet the Lord, and adore him present in the Sacrament. Pray slowly the prayers below, or simply rest in his presence.
- Thanksgiving. Thank God for specific gifts: people, graces, answered prayers, the day itself.
- Contrition. Examine your conscience and tell the Lord you are sorry, asking for the grace of conversion. See the examination of conscience.
- Petition. Bring your needs and the needs of others: the Church, your family, the sick, the dying, the souls in purgatory.
Throughout the hour you can also read and meditate on the Gospel (the Passion, or John 6 on the Bread of Life), pray the Rosary or the Divine Mercy Chaplet, or sit in silence. The important thing is to stay and to “watch” with him.
Prayers for a holy hour
To begin:
O Sacrament most holy! O Sacrament divine! All praise and all thanksgiving be every moment thine.
The prayer taught by the Angel at Fatima:
My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love you.
I ask your pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love you.
If you cannot receive Communion, make a spiritual communion. At the end of the hour many people pray the Divine Praises (“Blessed be God…”).
A closing prayer (written for this page):
Lord Jesus, thank you for letting me stay with you this hour.
Keep me close to your Heart when I leave this place,
and let my whole day be a continuation of this prayer.
I will come back to you soon. Amen.
A holy hour of reparation
A holy hour of reparation unites us with Jesus’ agony and offers love and prayer for the sins of the world. It is often made:
- on Thursday evening, in memory of the agony in the garden, as Jesus asked St. Margaret Mary;
- on the eve of the First Friday of the month, as part of the devotion to the Sacred Heart;
- during Holy Thursday night, at the altar of repose after the Mass of the Lord’s Supper.
See the Chaplet of the Sacred Heart and the Sacred Heart novena.
A parish holy hour
Many parishes hold a public holy hour, often weekly. It usually includes exposition of the Blessed Sacrament with the hymn O Salutaris, Scripture, silent prayer, perhaps the Rosary or Evening Prayer, and ends with Benediction: the Tantum Ergo, the priest’s blessing with the monstrance, and the Divine Praises. See Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.
Frequently asked questions
Does a holy hour have to last a full hour?
An hour is the tradition, in answer to Jesus’ words in Gethsemane, but any time spent with the Lord is precious. Begin with what you can, and grow.
Can I make a holy hour at home?
Yes, you can pray for an hour anywhere. A holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament in a church or adoration chapel is the fullest form, because Jesus is truly present there.
Is there an indulgence for a holy hour?
Yes. A plenary indulgence may be gained, under the usual conditions, by adoring the Blessed Sacrament for at least half an hour.
More Eucharistic prayers
- First Friday devotion
- Litany of the Blessed Sacrament
- Eucharistic adoration prayers
- Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament
- Spiritual communion prayer
- Divine Praises
- Chaplet of the Sacred Heart
- Compline (Night Prayer)
Texts and sources
- Scripture: Matthew 26:38–41, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
- “O Sacrament most holy”: F. X. Lasance, With God (1911), public domain (Wikisource).
- The Angel’s prayer at Fatima: our translation from the Portuguese.
- Manual of Indulgences (Enchiridion Indulgentiarum), grant on Eucharistic adoration.
- The closing prayer was written for this page.