"The Best Prayer": Saint John Vianney's Inspiring Love for the Eucharist

Saint John Vianney, also known as the Curé d'Ars, was a remarkable Catholic priest who lived in 19th-century France.

We celebrate his feast day on August 4th.

His unwavering faith, extraordinary piety, and profound love for the Eucharist defined his spiritual journey. Ultimately, it set him up for sainthood!

We now venerate him as the patron saint of priests.

Saint John Vianney celebrated the Holy Mass with such profound reverence that people from all walks of life were moved by his example. He spent hours in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, finding solace and strength in the Real Presence of Christ.

His life is a living testimony of the transformative power of the Eucharist in our lives and the Church. His deep love for Christ inspired countless people to rediscover their own faith and devotion.

Here are seven quotes from Saint John Vianney on the Blessed Sacrament:

“There is nothing so great as the Eucharist. If God had something more precious, He would have given it to us.”

"If we really love the good God, we should make it our joy and happiness to come a few minutes to adore Him, and ask Him for the grace of forgiveness. We should regard those moments as the happiest in our lives."

"Without the Holy Eucharist there would be no happiness in this world; life would be insupportable. When we receive Holy Communion, we receive our joy and our happiness. The good God, wishing to give Himself to us in the Sacrament of His Love, gave us a vast and great desire, which He alone can satisfy. In the presence of this beautiful Sacrament, we are like a person dying of thirst by the side of a river – he would only need to bend his head; like a person still remaining poor, close to a great treasure – he need only stretch out his hand. He who communicates loses himself in God like a drop of water in the ocean. They can no more be separated,"

"Our Lord is hidden there in the Blessed Sacrament, waiting for us to come and visit Him, and make our requests to Him."

"If we could comprehend all the good things contained in Holy Communion, nothing more would be wanting to content the heart of man. The miser would run no more after his treasures, or the ambitious after glory; each would shake off the dust of the earth, leave the world, and fly away towards heaven."

"I throw myself at the foot of the Tabernacle like a dog at the foot of his Master."

"We know that Jesus is there in the tabernacle: let us open our hearts to Him, let us rejoice in His Sacred Presence. That is the best prayer."

St John Vianney’s Prayer to Love God

'I love You, O my God,
and my only desire is to love You
until the last breath of my life.

I love You, O my infinitely lovable God,
and I would rather die loving You,
than live without loving You.

I love You, Lord and the only grace I ask
is to love You eternally...

My God, if my tongue cannot say
in every moment that I love You,
I want my heart to repeat it to You
as often as I draw breath.'

Prayer Source: EWTN