Posted on 07/09/2016 12:30:59 AM PDT by OrthodoxIndianCatholic
Introduction :
Saint Peter Julian Eymard was born in the Diocese of Grenoble, France on February 4, 1811 in the town of La Mure.
An Extraordinary Passion for the Blessed Sacrament took root in his heart from a young age.
After a number of years in the Marian Sanctuary of Our Lady of Laus, Peter Julian met Father Touche, an Oblate of Mary Immaculate who seeing the beauty of the young man's soul advised him to direct his life towards the Priesthood by studying Latin and receiving Holy Communion more often.
Peter Julian Eymard was ordained a Priest at the age of 23 on July 20, 1834. He was entrusted with the ministry of Vicar and then of Parish Priest in the Diocese but secretly Peter Julian wanted to be a Religious.
Father Eymard always encouraged the souls under his care to practice "Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament". The results were remarkable for children and youth as well as for Families.
Priceless Value :
God inspired Peter Julian with the idea of founding a Congregation of Men and Women Religious devoted to Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and the propagation of this devotion among the laity.
It was at the feet of Our Lady of La Salette that he conceived the plan for this foundation.
This would be the great preoccupation of his life.
The Important Sacrifice :
In 1864, setbacks and trials further united Father Eymard to the redeeming Cross, the sole means of salvation of souls. In union with Christ's Sacrifice, Father Eymard accepted his election for life as Superior General of the Fathers of the Blessed Sacrament, even though he was hoping to become a simple religious again.
On the night of July 21, 1868 Father Eymard exhausted, very thin, incapable of taking in any food at all arrived at La Mure to rest on his Doctor's Orders.
He celebrated the last Mass of his life in Grenoble in the Chapel devoted to "Perpetual Adoration".
On Saturday August 1, he received Extreme Unction at 1.00 in the morning. At daybreak, a Father from his Congregation celebrated Mass in his room and gave him Holy Communion.
He was presented with the Image of Our Lady of La Salette, which he pressed to his heart.
At the beginning of the afternoon, his last breath could hardly be heard. His soul had entered Heaven into the infinite Goodness of God forever.
He died at age 57 in the house in which he had been born.
Conclusion :
Peter Julian Eymard's canonization benefited from a solemnity unusual in the History of the Catholic Church.
The day after the closing of the first session of the Second Vatican Council, December 9, 1962 Pope John the 23rd in the presence of 1,500 Council Fathers entered him into the catalogue of Saints.
Credits and References :
Saint Peter Julian Eymard By Monks of the Abbey of Saint Joseph of Clairval, France Pages 12-14 Don Bosco's Madonna, Mumbai August 2011, Vol- 13, N0-4
I attended Eymard Prep Seminary in Hyde Park NY, in 1973, run by the Fathers and Brothers of The Blessed Sacrament. It was located on the grounds of the Rogers Mansion, between the Roosevelt (FDR) Presidential Library, and the Vanderbilt Mansion. It was closed, some years later, quite a place for a High School Freshman to spend a year !
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