Quotes On The Importance Of Eucharistic Adoration

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Bl. Raymond of Capua (1303 to 1399)
Dominican Order Master General and spiritual director of St. Catherine of Siena
"I exhort you...to be very diligent in visiting the Blessed Sacrament and in receiving it often, for it is the food of the soul and the medicine of every infirmity. And do not be afraid to approach it, for it is sweeter than honey and more desirable than gold and silver."

(Source: "Epistolario di Raimondo da Capua, Maestro Generale dell’Ordine dei Predicatori" book by Fr. Angelo Dalmasso, O.P., 1931, p.88 (transl. by Bing AI 2023) )

St. Dorothea of Montau (1347 to 1394)
Hermit and Visionary
In her "Septililium" she writes of an intense desire to look upon the Most Blessed Sacrament 'exposed'.  Although earlier Saints had the desire to adore our Lord, this is one of the earliest recorded writings of the saints to say they want to adore with the Eucharist exposed.

(Source: Wikisource Catholic Encyclopedia - https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page:Catholic_Encyclopedia,_volume_15.djvu/546)

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Bl. Jan van Ruysbroeck (1293 to 1381)
Flemish Mystic and Canon Regular, called John the Admirable
One of the most important medieval spiritual writers and mystics of his era, he held a profound devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. He fiercely defended the Real Presence against medieval heresies, writing that the Eucharist is a daily coming of Christ our Bridegroom that renews our soul with an increase of grace.

"When these persons know, taste and feel this, they come down quickly in great disdain of themselves and, with a humble heart and true displeasure, regarding their life and all their works, they say: 'Lord, I am not worthy but I am truly unworthy that I should receive Thine glorious body in the blessed Sacrament, into the sinful house of my body and soul. But be gracious to me, Lord, and have mercy upon my poor life and all my transgressions.'"

(Source: Translated and quoted from his celebrated spiritual treatise, "A Mirror of Eternal Blessedness" / "Een spieghel der eeuwigher salicheit", and his confirmation of cult by Pope Pius X in 1908)

St. Catherine Of Siena (1347 to 1380)
Doctor of the Church, Virgin, Third Order Dominican
"We humbly adore Thee in this Sacrament of Thy power and love. We will ever honor Thy adorable person by coming into Thy sacred presence with due reverence, and will strive to repair the outrages offered to Thee by loving and venerating Thee with all our hearts."

(Source: Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament website - http://www.acfp2000.com/index.php)

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St. Bridget of Sweden (1303 to 1373)
Widow, mystic and founder of the Bridgettines
"One night, when I was praying before the altar where the body of Christ was reserved, I saw a great light coming from the tabernacle, and I heard a voice saying to me: 'Come closer to me, my bride and my friend. I am your God and your Lord, whom you worship and adore. I am the same one who created you and redeemed you by my blood. I am the same one who loves you more than anyone else, and who desires your love more than anything else. I am the same one who gives you my body and blood as food and drink, as a pledge of my love and a sign of my presence. I am the same one who listens to your prayers and grants your petitions, according to my will and your good. I am the same one who is with you always, until the end of the world'."

(Source: "Life And Selected Revelations" by Brigitta of Sweden, edited by Marguerite Harris, transl. by Albert Kezel, 1990, p. 226, Paulist Press, New York (According to Bing AI) )

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Bl. Sibyllina Biscossi (1287 to 1367)
Blind Dominican Virgin and Recluse
Orphaned very young and completely blind by age 12, Sibyllina accepted her blindness and became a recluse at age 15, being sealed into a tiny cell next to the Dominican church in Pavia, Italy, where she lived alone in prayer and severe penance for over 60 years. She possessed a lively sense of the Real Presence and a deep devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. One day, a priest was passing her window carrying a ciborium to bring Viaticum to a sick person. Sibyllina suddenly called out to him, warning him that the host he was carrying was not consecrated. Upon checking, the priest confirmed he had indeed accidentally taken an unconsecrated host from the wrong container.

(Source: Preserved in her early hagiography written shortly after her death by Thomaso of Bozzolasto, Dominican monastic records, and her confirmation of cult by Pope Pius IX in 1854)

St. Peter Thomas (1305 to 1366)
Archbishop of Crete and Latin Patriarch of Constantinople
St. Peter Thomas "was not hindered by the many occupations of his busy life from spending several hours each night before the Blessed Sacrament, oftentimes he was found lost in adoration."

"Let us often visit our Lord in the sacrament of the altar, where he is truly present under the appearances of bread and wine. Let us adore him there with faith, hope, and charity. Let us offer him our prayers, praises, and thanksgivings. Let us unite ourselves to him by spiritual communion, and let us receive him sacramentally when we can. He is the bread of life, the fountain of grace, the medicine of immortality. He is our God, our Lord, our Savior, our Friend, our Spouse, our All. He is the one who loved us and gave himself for us. He is the one who invites us to his banquet, where he feeds us with his own flesh and blood. He is the one who waits for us in his tabernacle, where he dwells as a prisoner of love. He is the one who calls us to his presence, where he bestows on us his blessings and his peace."

(Source: "De Modo Celebrandi" book by Archbishop Peter Thomas, 1360, Chapter 4 (According to Bing AI); quote on night adoration from Carmelite spirituality and the practice of mental prayer blog - http://floscarmelivitisflorigera.blogspot.com/)

Bl. Henry Suso (1295 to 1366)
German Dominican Mystic
"Nowhere does Jesus hear our prayers more readily than in the Blessed Sacrament."

(Source: Anaspaul blog - https://anastpaul.com/)

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Bl. Richard Rolle Of Hampole (1290 to 1349)
Mystic, Hermit, and religious writer
In his writings Bl. Richard Rolle would exhort people to go to Church and adore the Most Blessed Sacrament of the altar: "In the church is most devotion to pray, for there is God upon the altar to hear those that pray to Him and to grant them what they ask and what is best for them."

(Source: Wikisource Catholic Encyclopedia website - Click Here)

St. Juliana Falconieri (1270 to 1341)
Foundress of the Sisters Of The Third Order Of Servites
St. Juliana had a great reverence and devotion to our Lady of Sorrows and to the Blessed Sacrament. Thru her adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, often in ecstasy for days, she saved the Servite Order. On the day of her death and gravely ill, she begged to be allowed once more to see and adore the Blessed Sacrament. It was brought to her cell and reverently laid on a corporal, which was placed over her heart. At this moment she expired, and the Sacred Host disappeared. After her death the form of the Host was found stamped upon her heart, at the exact spot over which the Blessed Sacrament had been placed.

(Source: Summarized and quoted from the Catholic Spiritual Direction website - https://jesus-passion.com/)

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St. Elizabeth of Portugal (1271 to 1336)
Queen of Portugal, Poor Clare Franciscan Tertiary, and Peacemaker
Known as the peacemaker of Europe, Queen Elizabeth had an immense love for the Eucharist, spending her last years dedicated to silent Eucharistic Adoration after joining the Franciscan Third Order. On her deathbed in 1336, she rose from her bed without help and, dressed as a penitent, walked to kneel at the foot of the altar to receive Viaticum, melting into tears of devotion. She did this out of profound humility and respect for the Real Presence, declaring that she would not suffer her Lord to be brought to her sickroom as long as she still had the physical strength to go and seek Him at the foot of the altars.

(Source: Documented in her early hagiographical biographies and her papal canonization acts by Pope Urban VIII in 1625)

Bl. Imelda Lambertini (1322 to 1333)
Patroness of First Communicants and Dominican Convent student
Bl. Imelda had a fantastic devotion to the Eucharist and an overwhelming desire to receive her first communion at an early age. So much so that upon reception of her first communion God took her straight to Heaven.

(Source: Summarized from the Breviarium S.O.P. blog - https://breviariumsop.blogspot.com/)

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Bl. Clare of Rimini (1260 to 1326)
Italian holy woman and Mystic
"O most loving Jesus, how can I ever leave you, when you are always present to me in this most adorable sacrament? How can I ever forsake you, when you are always waiting for me in this most loving tabernacle? How can I ever forget you, when you are always speaking to me in this most sweet mystery?"

(Source: "The Mirror of the Passion of Christ" translated by Sr. Mary Magadeline O.S.C., 1954, ch. 2 p. 15, Newman Press (According to Bing AI) )

St. Elzear Of Sabran (1286 to 1323)
Third Order Franciscan
"Go often to visit our amiable Lord Jesus Christ in the holy sacrament.  Enter in spirit His Sacred Heart.  You know that to be my constant dwelling.  You will always find me there."

(Source: "In the Presence of Our Lord, The History, Theology, and Psychology of Eucharistic Devotion" by Fr Benedict J Groeschel, CFR and James Monti)

Bl. John of La Verna (1259 to 1322)
Franciscan Friar, Preacher, and Mystic
Also known as John of Fermo, he spent much of his life in penance and contemplation on Mount La Verna. He possessed an extraordinary, melting love for the Blessed Sacrament and frequently fell into deep ecstasies while celebrating Mass. On All Souls’ Day, while elevating the Host, he prayed for the dead and saw an infinite multitude of souls released from Purgatory, rising to Heaven like sparks from a blazing furnace. On another occasion, during the consecration, his heart was so melted by the Real Presence that his body fell backward into a swoon, appearing as if dead for hours.

"While considering the body and blood of Jesus Christ there present, his heart became even as wax which is melted in a great heat..."

(Source: Recounted in Chapters 49, 50, and 53 of the medieval spiritual classic, "The Little Flowers of St. Francis" / "I Fioretti di San Francesco", compiled in the 14th century)

St. Margaret of Castello (1287 to 1320)
Blind Dominican Tertiary, Mystic, and Helper of the Poor
Born blind, dwarfed, and lame to noble parents who were embarrassed by her, Margaret was locked in a small cell attached to their castle chapel for over a decade during her childhood. In this "imprisonment," she was allowed to attend Mass through a window and developed a sublime interior life, spending long hours in silent adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Later in life, after being abandoned by her parents, she became a Dominican Tertiary and went to daily Mass. Despite her physical blindness, she was granted the mystical grace of seeing Christ Incarnate at the altar during the consecration, declaring to her confessor that what she saw was "Infinite Beauty." She was canonized by Pope Francis in 2021.

(Source: Historical hagiographical biographies compiled in "Vita" records of Città di Castello, Dominican monastic archives, and her equipollent canonization acts by Pope Francis in 2021)

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St. Agnes of Montepulciano (1268 to 1317)
Dominican Prioress, Mystic, and Miracle Worker
Saint Agnes reached sublime heights of contemplative prayer centered entirely on the Blessed Sacrament, frequently falling into deep ecstasies. One Sunday, she fell into such an intense ecstasy in the monastery garden that she lost all track of time and missed the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Remorseful and weeping bitterly for missing Holy Communion, an angel suddenly appeared to her carrying a Consecrated Host to communicate her. This miracle of an angel bringing her Holy Communion repeated itself for ten consecutive Sundays so she would never be deprived of her Eucharistic Spouse.

(Source: Documented in her official hagiography "Vita" written by her contemporary spiritual director, Blessed Raymond of Capua, O.P.)

St. Angelo Of Foligno (1249 to 1309)
Widow and 13th Century Mystic
"It is the Sacrament of Love that excites the soul to ardent prayer. It stirs up the virtue of impetration and, as it were, forces God to grant our petition. It deepens the abyss of humility, above all it enkindles the flame of love in the heart; hence the Sacrament is the Gift of gifts, and the Grace of graces..."

"I beg you, my brothers and sisters, to visit the most holy sacrament often, and to adore it with great reverence and devotion. For there you will find the true treasure of your soul, the source of all grace and mercy, the fountain of life and salvation. There you will see the face of God, and hear his voice, and taste his sweetness. There you will be filled with his love and be transformed into his image. There you will receive the pledge of eternal glory, and the foretaste of heavenly joy."

(Source: Vision quote from "Book of Visions and Instructions of St. Angela of Foligno" by Brother Arnold of Foligno, edited and transl. by Paul Lachance, O.F.M, 1993, p. 115, Paulist Press (According to Bing AI); first quote from The Work of God website - https://www.theworkofgod.org/)

St. Nicholas of Tolentino (1245 to 1305)
Augustinian Priest, Mystic, and Patron of Holy Souls
Nicholas was an Augustinian friar who spent long hours in prayer before the tabernacle and was famous for his deep, burning devotion to the Eucharist. His entire life was centered on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which he frequently offered for the souls in Purgatory. When he was questioned by his superior about his rigorous, year-round fasting and self-mortification, Nicholas responded with his celebrated Eucharistic quote:

"How can I be said to fast, while every morning, at the Altar, I receive my God?"

(Source: Augustinian Order historical records, early biographies, and his papal canonization acts by Pope Eugene IV in 1446)

St. Gertrude (1256 to 1302)
Benedictine Nun and 13th Century Mystic
"I understand that, each time we contemplate with desire and devotion the Host in which is hidden Christ's Eucharistic Body, we increase our merits in heaven and secure special joys to be ours later in the beatific vision of God."

(Source: Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament blog - https://eucharisticadoration.blogspot.com/)