"Greetings, my friend. I am the monstrance, crafted in the second half of the 19th century, the bearer of the greatest mystery, the throne for the Body of Christ. My name comes from the Latin monstrare, which means “to show”, because that is my calling: I try to make visible what the eye does not always see, but what the heart may recognise and experience.
Silver and gold may adorn my body, rays curling around my glass window. But it is not my beauty that counts – it is the One I carry. In me rests the Eucharist, the Most Holy Sacrament, the Bread of Life, the Lord who makes himself small in order to be close, who also wants to live in you.
I stand on the altar when the priests lift me up in adoration. My halo reminds us of the sun, the true Sun of righteousness that brings light into the world. My place is in the silence of the chapel, in the hands of the Church, where kneeling hearts find rest and eyes fill with wonder. Here in this cathedral, I am protected and carried by the confreres of the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament. They take care of me so that I do not lose my strength and can always be the bearer of Christ himself.
I am only a shell, a reverent seat. But in me shines the Love that never disappears. Come, look, worship. Not me, but Him who dwells in me."
