The Mater Dei Adoration Society organizes parish-wide visitation hours during which the Most Blessed Sacrament is exposed for adoration. The principle recurring adoration events are on the First Friday of every month, the Third Friday of every month, and the First Sunday of every month.
First Friday Adoration, also known as the “All-Night Vigil of the Two Hearts,” was begun by the Sisters of the Carmelite Monastery in Dallas. Mater Dei carries on this vigil on the First Friday of every month with all-night adoration beginning after the Friday evening Mass and devotions, and concluding the next day before the Saturday morning Mass. The special purpose of this vigil is to beg God’s mercy and Our Lady’s intercession for America.
Third Friday Adoration, also known as “Adoration Vigil of the Holy Cross,” occurs on the Third Friday of every month, and it also begins after the Friday evening Mass and devotions, and concludes the next day before the Saturday morning Mass.
First Sunday adoration occurs on the first Sunday of every month. It begins right after the 1:30 p.m. Mass (approximately 2:30 p.m.) and continues until 4:30 p.m., the start of Vespers. First Sunday adoration concludes with Benediction.
Additional adoration events are scheduled as they come up throughout the year.
One need not be a member of the Adoration Society to make adoration hours, nor to sign up for adoration using the online sign-up calendars. Adoration events are always open to everyone at all event times, however, the society strives to ensure that Our Lord is attended adequately at every event hour by arranging appropriate commitments prior to each event. Members of the Adoration Society make different levels of commitment for this purpose, as can be viewed in the Adoration Society Sign-Up Form further down this webpage. We encourage all parishioners, who are able, to join us in helping to make reparation for sins against the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary in this special way.
This webpage is arranged as follows:
- Current Adoration Sign-Up Calendar (adoration sign-up)
- Adoration Society Sign-Up Form (membership sign-up)
- Providing Food & Drink During Adoration (help info)
- Help With SignUpGenius Sign-Up Form (help info)
Current Adoration Sign-Up Calendars
Both the First Friday all-night vigil and the Third Friday all-night vigil use a sign-up calendar on the SignUpGenius website (where all adoration calendars are implemented) to help ensure Our Lord is accompanied at all vigil hours.
Click on the link directly below if you would like to sign up for the next First Friday vigil:
Sign up for FIRST Friday All-Night Vigil
Click on the link directly below if you would like to sign up for the next Third Friday vigil:
Sign up for THIRD Friday All-Night Vigil
For assistance in navigating the SignUpGenius sign-up process, see Help With SignUpGenius Sign-Up Form further down this webpage.
Adoration Society Sign-Up Form
If you would like to become a member of the Adoration Society, please fill out the requested information on the form below and submit it. You will be contacted by the Adoration Society coordinator via email to confirm your desired commitments. Members are able to opt for automatic sign-up of specified vigil hours. (If you need to change your selections any time after signing up, just send an email to the Adoration Society coordinator at adoration@materdeiparish.com.)
Providing Food & Drink During Adoration
The St. Anne room, the parish hall and the kitchen are open for adoration participants during the First Friday vigils. The kitchen may be used to prepare coffee, tea, etc., and modest snacks may be brought and set out for participants. All provisions are served in the St. Anne room.
Coffee and tea are available in the kitchen and may be prepared anytime up to about two hours before the start of a vigil and then throughout the vigil as quantity demands. Those who prepare coffee should make no more than 30 cups at a time. Coffee is best stored for serving in the large coffee urns, and it may be brewed either in the urns or by using the smaller systems in the kitchen.
Snacks and additional drinks may be brought at any time during the vigil and at any time prior to the start of a vigil, as long as they are properly stored. Items to be stored need to be clearly marked, e.g., “Adoration Vigil”, and placed in an appropriate location – in the kitchen or in the St. Anne room. A modest amount of refrigerator space in the kitchen is usually available. If you would prefer that an item not be served until a specific time during the vigil, please also clearly mark its set-out time, e.g., “Set out at 2:00 a.m.” This will help to ensure snacks are available throughout the vigil.
The First Friday vigil sign-up calendar not only supports signing up for adoration, it also has additional sign-up sections to help facilitate providing snacks and drinks during vigil hours. These sections are arranges as follows:
- Snacks Set-Up
- Bringing Snacks
- Snacks Clean-Up
Snacks Set-Up
If you have the time and desire to prepare coffee before a vigil begins (9:00 p.m), please use this section to sign up. It is anticipated that 2 or 3 persons will sign up for this task at every vigil to provide back-up depth as needed. Please also boil water for tea when available, and set out any available drinks & snacks that are marked for the beginning of the vigil. (Any items that are not marked with a particular vigil time should be set out at the beginning of the vigil or as early as possible.) Please also open chairs around 1 or 2 eating tables to help present a welcome atmosphere.
Bringing Snacks
Three sign-up times are provided for bringing snacks: 9pm – 12am, 12am – 3am, 3am – 6am.
These time slots are set up simply to help ensure that snacks are made available throughout the vigil hours. If you intend to bring a snack item to be served during one of these time slots, please sign up for that slot. It is not necessary to bring snack items right at a designated time, since items can be brought to the kitchen or St. Anne room at any time and marked for a specific set-out time. (Any items that are not marked with a particular vigil time will be set out at the beginning of the vigil or as early as possible.)
Snacks Clean-Up
Naturally, cleaning up after snack time is important. If you have the time and desire to help with clean-up, please use this section to sign up. It is anticipated that at least 3 persons will sign up for this task at every vigil to provide back-up depth as needed. Clean-up can begin as early as 7:00 a.m. Saturday morning.
Help with SignUpGenius Sign-Up Form
All adoration sign-up calendars will be using the sign-up form available through the www.SignUpGenius.com website for the foreseeable future. A link to current calendars is usually provided on the Adoration Society webpage and in parish emails announcing adoration events. Becoming a SignUpGenius member by creating one’s own SignUpGenius account prior to signing up on a calendar is highly recommended in order to make changes most easily. This need only be done once for any subsequent calendars. To create a SignUpGenius account, go to www.SignUpGenius.com, select Login/Join in the upper right-hand corner, and fill in the information fields in the left-hand column.
Selecting a link to a calendar will take you to the associated sign-up form, where it is possible to view all sign-ups that have already been recorded, and to sign up for time slots. Signing up is accomplished by checking the boxes associated with the desired time slots. Once all desired boxes are checked, then select the large Submit and Sign Up button at the bottom of the form to have your selections recorded. However, if you signed up for time slots previously and would like to change those slots, then select the I need to change my sign up button near the top of the form.
Selecting the Submit and Sign Up button takes you to a different webpage where you may change Qty (the number of persons in your party) and add Comments as desired. Next, if you are currently logged in to your account, just select the Sign Up Now button to complete the operation. If you are not logged in, you will need to validate your user status on this page by selecting either:
1) I’m a SignUpGenius member, or
2) I do not have a SignUpGenius account
Then fill in the user information as prompted, and complete the operation by selecting the Sign Up Now button.
Selecting the I need to change my sign up button takes you to a different webpage where you are prompted to identify how you signed up originally, either:
1) as a SignUpGenius member, or
2) without a SignUpGenius account, or
3) someone else signed you up.
Make the appropriate selection. If you signed up originally as a SignUpGenius member, you will be prompted to log in, and once done, you can make changes to the original entries. If you signed up originally without a SignUpGenius account, follow the instructions for the option most convenient for you. If someone else signed you up, also follow the instructions for the option most convenient for you. Please note that #3 can most easily be completed if one has a SignUpGenius account just by logging in and making the edits directly (see below).
Rather than following a link to a calendar, it is also possible to log in to your SignUpGenius account, if you have one, and find all calendars to which you have been added on the Sign Ups page in the block called Sign Ups I’ve Been Invited To. To log in, go to www.SignUpGenius.com, select Login/Join in the upper right-hand corner, and fill in the Member Login fields.
Also, if someone signs you up on a given calendar but you would like to change it, proceed as follows. If you do not have a SignUpGenius account, create one (be sure to use the email address that was used by the person who signed you up). Log in to your SignUpGenius account. On the Sign Ups page (the default page), find the associated calendar in the block called Sign Ups I’ve Been Invited To. Click on that calendar to view it, and make the desired edits directly. If you are prompted to enter a comment for the sign-up administrator, simply leave the comment field blank.