St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696 to 1787)
Quotes On The Importance Of Eucharistic Adoration
A very prolific writer about the Catholic Faith, he found his vocation during one of his many hours adoring our Lord and was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871. Here are some of his quotes about the importance of Eucharistic Adoration in our lives:
- "Mary leads her servants to the Blessed Sacrament."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Glories of Mary, Part II, Discourse VI, 1750.)
- "She teaches them to love Jesus hidden in the Sacrament."
(Liguori, The Glories of Mary, Part II, Discourse VI.)
- "Mary herself loved to remain before her Eucharistic Son."
(Liguori, The Glories of Mary, Part II, Discourse VI.)
- "Those devoted to Mary will find themselves drawn to the tabernacle."
(Liguori, The Glories of Mary, Part II, Discourse VI.)
- "Mary obtains for her servants a tender love for Jesus in the Eucharist."
(Liguori, The Glories of Mary, Part II, Discourse VI.)
- "Jesus Christ is present in the tabernacle to hear the prayers of those who visit Him."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Way of Salvation and Perfection, Meditation on the Blessed Sacrament, 1753.)
- "He remains hidden under the sacramental veils to receive our love."
(Liguori, The Way of Salvation and Perfection, Meditation on the Blessed Sacrament.)
- "Happy the soul that often approaches this divine Sacrament."
(Liguori, The Way of Salvation and Perfection, Meditation on the Blessed Sacrament.)
- "Before the tabernacle the soul finds light, strength, and peace."
(Liguori, The Way of Salvation and Perfection, Meditation on the Blessed Sacrament.)
- "Let us go to Jesus in the Sacrament; He will teach us what we must do."
(Liguori, The Way of Salvation and Perfection, Meditation on the Blessed Sacrament.)
- "In the Blessed Sacrament we possess the same Jesus who was born in Bethlehem."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, Preparation for Death, Consideration XVIII, 1758.)
- "He remains with us in the Sacrament to be our food and our companion."
(Liguori, Preparation for Death, Consideration XVIII.)
- "What greater treasure can a soul have on earth than Jesus in the Eucharist?"
(Liguori, Preparation for Death, Consideration XVIII.)
- "Let us often visit Jesus in the Sacrament, for there we shall find life."
(Liguori, Preparation for Death, Consideration XVIII.)
- "The Eucharist is the comfort of the dying and the strength of the living."
(Liguori, Preparation for Death, Consideration XVIII.)
- "There is no devotion more profitable for the soul than to visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Great Means of Salvation and Perfection, Part II, Ch. 1, 1759.)
- "The time you spend before the Blessed Sacrament will be the most fruitful of your life."
(Liguori, The Great Means of Salvation and Perfection, Part II, Ch. 1.)
- "Our Lord is there waiting to console those who come to Him."
(Liguori, The Great Means of Salvation and Perfection, Part II, Ch. 1.)
- "The saints found in this devotion the strength to persevere."
(Liguori, The Great Means of Salvation and Perfection, Part II, Ch. 1.)
- "Happy the soul that frequently visits Jesus in the Sacrament."
(Liguori, The Great Means of Salvation and Perfection, Part II, Ch. 1.)
- "The Spouse of Jesus should often visit her loving Lord in the Sacrament."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, Part II, Ch. 12, 1760.)
- "In the Eucharist Jesus waits to enrich His spouses with graces."
(Liguori, The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, Part II, Ch. 12.)
- "Let the Spouse of Christ delight to remain before the tabernacle."
(Liguori, The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, Part II, Ch. 12.)
- "There the soul learns to love Jesus with a pure and faithful love."
(Liguori, The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, Part II, Ch. 12.)
- "The more often she visits Him, the more she will grow in His love."
(Liguori, The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, Part II, Ch. 12.)
- "The Eucharist is the invention of love."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, Ch. II, 1768.)
- "Jesus has left Himself in the Sacrament to be found by all."
(Liguori, The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, Ch. II.)
- "In the Blessed Sacrament He remains with us to be our comfort."
(Liguori, The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, Ch. II.)
- "He could do nothing more to show His love than give us Himself in this Sacrament."
(Liguori, The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, Ch. II.)
- "Let us often visit Jesus in the Sacrament; there we shall find light and love."
(Liguori, The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, Ch. II.)
- "Oh, how sweet a joy it is to remain with faith and tender devotion before
the Eucharist, and converse familiarly with Jesus Christ, who is
there for the express purpose of listening to and graciously hearing
those who pray to him."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), Benziger Brothers, 1934, p. 3.)
- "In a quarter of an hour's prayer, spent in the presence of the Blessed
Sacrament, you will perhaps gain more than in all the other
spiritual exercises of the day."
(Liguori, Visits, Intro., p. 4.)
- "Certainly amongst all devotions, after that of receiving the sacraments, that of
adoring Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament holds the first place, is the
most pleasing to God, and the most useful to ourselves."
(Liguori, Visits, Intro., p. 4.)
- "Our holy faith teaches us, and we are bound to
believe, that in the consecrated Host, Jesus Christ is really present
under the species of bread. But we must also understand that He is
thus present on our altars as on a throne of love and mercy, to dispense
graces and there to show us the love which He bears us, by being pleased
to dwell night and day hidden in the midst of us."
(Liguori, Visits, Intro., p. 5.)
- "There it was (in Echaristic Adoration) that St.
Francis Xavier found refreshment in the midst of his many labors in
India; for he employed his days in toiling for souls, and his nights in
the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. St. John Francis Regis did
the same thing; and sometimes finding the church closed, he endeavored
to satisfy his longings by remaining on his knees, outside the door
exposed to the rain and cold so that at least at a distance he might
attend upon his Comforter concealed under the sacramental species.
St. Francis of Assisi used to go to communicate all his labors and
undertakings to Jesus in the most Holy Sacrament."
(Liguori, Visits, Intro., pp. 6-7.)
- "Be also assured that Jesus Christ finds means to console a soul which remains with a
recollected spirit before the Most Blessed Sacrament, far beyond what the
world can do with all its feasts and pastimes."
(Liguori, Visits, Intro., p. 7.)
- "What shall we do, you sometimes ask, in the presence of Jesus in
the Blessed Sacrament? Love him, praise him, thank him and ask him for
things. What does a thirsty person do when he sees a pure clean
fountain?"
(Liguori, Visits, Intro., p. 8.)
- "Make me hunger to be continually in thy presence in the Blessed
Sacrament, to receive thee into myself, and to keep thee company."
(Liguori, Visits, Prayer, p. 10.)
- "All the Saints were enamoured of this most sweet devotion; since, indeed, it is impossible to find on earth a more precious gem, or a treasure more worthy of all our love, than Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament."
(St. Alphonsus Liguori, Visits to the Most Holy Sacrament and the Blessed Virgin Mary, Introduction.)
- "Be assured that the time you will thus spend with devotion before this Most Divine Sacrament will be the most profitable to you in life, and the source of your greatest consolation in death and in eternity."
(Liguori, Visits, Introduction.)
- "It is true, that in every place God graciously hears the petitions of those who pray to Him, having promised to do so... yet Jesus dispenses His graces in greater abundance to those who visit Him in the Most Holy Sacrament."
(Liguori, Visits, Introduction.)
- "Jesus Christ finds means to console a soul which remains with a recollected spirit before the Most Blessed Sacrament, far beyond what the world can do with all its feasts and pastimes."
(Liguori, Visits, Introduction.)
- "Oh, what torrents of grace have the Saints drawn from the fountain of the Most Blessed Sacrament! for there Jesus dispenses all the merits of His Passion."
(Liguori, Visits, First Visit.)
- "My Lord Jesus Christ, who for the love which Thou bearest to men, remainest night and day in this Sacrament full of compassion and of love, awaiting, calling, and welcoming all who come to visit Thee."
(Liguori, Visits, Acts to be Made Before Each Visit.)
- "Friends on earth find such pleasure in being together, that they lose entire days in each other's company: with Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament, those who love Him not get weary."
(Liguori, Visits, Fourth Visit.)
- "Loving souls can find no greater delight than to be in the company of those whom they love. If we, then, love Jesus Christ much, behold we are now in His presence."
(Liguori, Visits, Seventeenth Visit.)
- "O most compassionate Saviour, be pleased to make me faithful to Thee; and grant that I may also, by my example, excite others to keep Thee company in the Most Blessed Sacrament."
(Liguori, Visits, Seventeenth Visit.)
- "Ah, my Jesus! what loving invention was this of the Most Blessed Sacrament, to hide Thyself under the appearance of bread, in order to make Thyself loved."
(Liguori, Visits, Meditations for the Octave of Corpus Christi.)
- "They feel great tenderness and devotion who go to Jerusalem and visit the cave where the Incarnate Word was born... but how much greater ought not our tenderness to be when we visit an altar on which Jesus remains in the Most Holy Sacrament."
(Liguori, Visits, Meditations for the Octave of Corpus Christi.)
- "Days and nights in His presence would appear also to us as moments."
(Liguori, Visits, Meditations for the Octave of Corpus Christi.)
- "Frequent visits to Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Altar are a great
help to the souls that love Him."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "You may be sure that of all the moments of your
life, the time you spend before the divine Sacrament will be that which
will give you more strength during life and more consolation at the hour
of your death and during eternity."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Withdraw yourself from people and spend at least a quarter of an hour, or a
half-hour, in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. Taste and see
how sweet is the Lord, and you will learn from your own experience
how many graces this will bring you."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "True, Our Lord hears our prayers anywhere, for He has made the promise, 'Ask,
and you shall receive', but He has revealed to His servants that
those who visit Him in the Blessed Sacrament will obtain a more
abundant measure of grace."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "The sovereigns of the earth do not always grant audience readily; on the
contrary, the King of Heaven, hidden under the Eucharistic veils, is
ready to receive anyone."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Nothing in the world can set hearts ablaze with love for God like the
Blessed Sacrament. That is why this divine bread has been pictured
as a furnace of love. Saint Catherine of Siena saw far-reaching
flames coming from this furnace of love and spreading throughout the
world."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Good friends find pleasure in one another's company. Let us know pleasure
in the company of our best Friend, a Friend who can do everything
for us, a friend who loves us beyond measure. Here in the Blessed
Sacrament we can talk to him straight from the heart."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "We can open our souls to Him, tell Him what we need, beg him for powerful
graces. We are perfectly free to approach the King of the universe
with full confidence and without fear."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Jesus tells us that where person esteems his treasure to be, there also does he keep his
affections. Therefore the saints, who neither esteem nor love any
other treasure than Jesus Christ, centre their hearts and all their
love in the Most Blessed Sacrament."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- Nowhere have holy souls made more admirable
resolutions than here at the feet of their hidden God. Out of gratitude
to my Jesus, veiled in this great Sacrament, I must declare that it was
through this devotion, visiting Him in the tabernacles, that I withdrew
from the world where, to my misfortune, I had lived until the age of
twenty-six. Happy will you be if you can separate yourself from it
earlier than I did and give yourself wholly to that Lord who has given
Himself wholly to you."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "To souls enamored of God, hours spent before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament
appear moments."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "My Jesus, what a lovable invention this Holy
Sacrament is that You would hide under the appearance of bread to make
Yourself loved and to be available for visits by anyone who desires You."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "My Lord Jesus Christ, who, for the love You bear
to mankind, do remain night and day in this Sacrament, full of pity and
love, awaiting, calling, and receiving all who come to visit You; I
believe that You are present in the Sacrament of the Altar; I adore You
from the depths of my own nothingness; I thank You for the many graces
You have given me, and especially for having given me Yourself in this
Sacrament."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Loving souls can find no greater delight than to
be in the company of those whom they love. If we, then, love Jesus
Christ much, behold we are now in his presence. Jesus in the
Blessed Sacrament sees us and hears us; shall we, then, say nothing to
Him? Let us console ourselves in His company; let us rejoice in
His glory, and in the love which so many enamoured souls bear Him in the
Most Holy Sacrament. Let us desire that all should love Jesus in
the Holy Sacrament, and consecrate their hearts to Him; at least let us
consecrate our affections to Him. He should be all our love and
our whole desire."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "O most compassionate Savior, be pleased to make
me faithful to You and grant that I may also, by my example, excite
others to keep You company in the Most Blessed Sacrament."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "If you desire to find Him immediately, see
(that) He is quite close to you. Tell Him what you desire, for it
is to console you and grant your prayer that He remains in the
Tabernacle."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "You will find that all the Saints were enamoured of this most sweet
devotion; since, indeed, it is impossible to find on earth a more
precious gem, or a treasure more worthy of all our love, than Jesus in
the Most Holy Sacrament."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Oh, what torrents of grace have the Saints drawn from the fountain
of the Most Blessed Sacrament! for there Jesus dispenses all the merits
of His Passion, as it was foretold by the Prophet: 'You shall draw
waters with joy out of the Saviour's fountains' (Is. xii. 3)."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "Those persons are tenderly affected who go to Jerusalem... but how much greater
ought our tenderness be in visiting an altar on which Jesus is present in
the Most Holy Sacrament."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "The Eucharist consoles a soul far beyond what the world can offer."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "The saints experienced in this world such pleasure in remaining in the
presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, that days and nights appeared to
them as moments."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)
- "My Jesus! What a lovable contrivance this holy
Sacrament was -- that You would hide under the appearance of bread to make
Yourself loved and to be available for a visit by anyone who desires You."
(Paraphrase of Liguori, The Holy Eucharist (Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1934.)