The Holy Eucharist is like a divine Storehouse filled with every virtue; God has placed it in the world so that everyone one may draw from it.

Who said such a beautiful thing? None other than the “Apostle of the Eucharist”—Saint Peter Julian Eymard.

Peter was born on February 4, 1811, in La Mure, France. He was drawn to the priesthood from a young age, overcoming family opposition to become a priest at the age of 23. His devotion to the Eucharist grew and grew, until it became the center of his spiritual life. 

By 1856, Peter’s vision for a church intensely devoted to the Eucharist led him to establish the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament. This community was devoted entirely to the perpetual adoration of the Eucharist, aimed at fostering a greater recognition of its centrality in Christian life and worship. He tirelessly wrote, preached, and taught about the Eucharist, articulating its foundational role in the spirituality of all Catholics—not just priests, monks, and nuns.

Here are just some of Saint Peter Julian Eymard’s soul-stirring quotes on the Eucharist:

"The Eucharist is the supreme proof of the love of Jesus. After this, there is nothing more but Heaven itself."

"You take communion to become holy, not because you already are."

"Have a great love for Jesus in His divine Sacrament of Love; that is the divine oasis of the desert."

But let’s think back to the quote we started with: Jesus in the Eucharist is the storehouse of virtue.

We tend to become like the five people we spend most time with. Are your five people virtuous people? Maybe the people around you have no interest in virtue. But you can spend time with Jesus in the Eucharist.

Jesus is virtue personified. He is honest, patient, kind, humble, courageous, compassionate, hopeful, wise, generous, gentle, resilient, loving. And whenever we act virtuously, we, in some mysterious and amazing way, usher God’s grace and goodness into the world. Virtue became man so that man could become virtue.

The Eucharist is, “a divine Storehouse filled with every virtue; God has placed it in the world so that everyone may draw from it.” So, draw from it. Spend time with Jesus in the Eucharist and draw from that storehouse abundantly and often.



Feast Day: August 2

Feast Day Shared By: Saint Eusebius and Saint Stephen I

Also Known As: The Apostle of the Eucharist

Symbols: The Eucharist, Monstrance, and Eucharistic Adoration

Canonized: December 9, 1962

Canonized By: Pope John XXIII