Parishioners at area churches keep prayer vigils all day and night

Every night -- even in the darkest, coldest and snowiest hours -- people are praying at some area churches.

And they're praying during daylight hours, too, doing their part to maintain 24-hour prayer vigils.

At Fountain of Life Church in Lombard and Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic Parish in Naperville -- at any time during the day or night -- people are spending an hour praying, meditating, writing in journals and entering names into prayer request books.

The 24-hour prayer has been ongoing at Ss. Peter and Paul for nearly five years. Participants sign up for an hour that they cover every week at the church's Pastoral Center, 5 N. Brainard St., Naperville.

"It's an opportunity for meaningful prayer outside of Mass," said Barb Hoyt of Naperville. "We started in late 1999 with just one day a week, but five years ago we had the support to go to seven days a week, 24 hours a day."

The project is managed by the parish's Perpetual Adoration Committee, whose members ensure that all 168 weekly shifts are covered.

One early shift is covered by a runner who normally gets up at 5 a.m., but once a week awakens at 4 a.m. for prayer. Neighbors volunteer to watch each other's children while they pray, Hoyt added.

Prayers take place inside the convent building at the church complex, in the St. Francis Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel.

"The chapel is quiet and peaceful, and I remember praying after events like 9/11," said Hoyt, who prays from 5 to 6 p.m. every Friday.

"It's a movement that's resurging. And when someone moves away or gets a new job, we never have trouble finding people to fill in and take their shifts."

At Fountain of Life Church, 2S361 Glen Park Road, Lombard, members of a ministry program called The Edge have staffed a 24-hour prayer vigil that started Jan. 1 and will continue through the end of February.

Participants have joined a worldwide prayer movement, 24-7 Prayer, feeling united with fellow Christians around the world who are also praying around the clock, said Kristina Johnson of Naperville.

"It's a very humbling thing. You feel like you're part of something bigger than yourself," Johnson said. "It's a time to cry out to God, to pray for other people or your own personal things."

A prayer room is at Fountain of Life Church with items to make the experience meaningful for each person. Art supplies allow for creative expression, along with a boom box, guitar and piano for musical worship.

Also on hand are a journal to record thoughts and prayers, and a world map of the location of missionaries. Some people use their time to read their Bibles.

Fountain of Life and the Edge, a group of young adults who gather Saturday evenings for worship and fellowship, have held other prayer vigils, Johnson said.

"It takes discipline and patience," Johnson added. "But it has affected me so deeply."

For details about participating in prayer vigils at these churches, visit www.findingtheedge.com or www.ssppadoration.org.

A similar program at Visitation Parish in Elmhurst celebrated its 10th anniversary of perpetual adoration in June. That location, known as the Perpetual Adoration Chapel of Our Lady, is staffed by volunteers from other Catholic churches, as well as Visitation parishioners.

Other participating churches include St. Philip the Apostle, Addison; St. John Cantius, Chicago; Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Darien; Immaculate Conception, Elmhurst; St. Petronille, Glen Ellyn; St. Matthew, Glendale Heights; St. Domitilla, Hillside; St. Isaac Jogues, Hinsdale; St. Louise, LaGrange Park; St. Eulalia, Maywood; Ascension of Our Lord, Oakbrook Terrace; St. John of the Cross, Western Springs; and Holy Trinity, Westmont.