Development of Eucharistic Veneration and Reservation

The speaker provides an overview of the historical development of veneration and reservation of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church. Early Christian worship and the teachings of the Church Fathers laid the foundation for a strong sense of adoration and reverence for Christ's presence in the Eucharist. Biblical references to prostration and kneeling in the presence of God influenced early Christian prayer gestures. The adoption of kneeling in prayer and worship during the Patristic period exemplifies the reverence and humility before God. The veneration of the Eucharist and the practice of reserving it for the sick and dying emerged during Christian antiquity, with various forms of reservation in churches. The development of the Feast of Corpus Christi in the Middle Ages further enhanced Eucharistic devotion and led to popular practices of procession, exposition, and adoration.