Saint Who?
Saints Who Promoted Eucharistic Devotion
Saint Charles de Foucauld
Priest and martyr († 1916) Feast: December 1
By the time Charles de Foucauld was eighteen, he had fully rejected his family’s Catholic faith. For some time he lived for frivolous pleasure, but while serving in the French army he became intrigued by North Africa, which he explored, disguised as the servant of a rabbi. His experiences kindled a new desire. His prayer became: “My God, if you exist, let me come to know you.”
Then his cousin, a young mother whose holiness he had always admired, arranged a meeting between Charles and her spiritual director. To his own surprise, Charles found himself going to confession, followed immediately by Holy Communion. At that moment, Charles received a vocation to serve God alone.
After many a twist and turn, now-Father Foucauld settled among the Tuareg people of the Sahara. He loved to spend time before the Eucharist. In his spiritual journal, he wrote, “My God, here I am at your feet in my cell. It is night, everything is quiet, everything is sleeping. At this moment I am perhaps the only one in this town at your feet. What have I done to deserve such graces? Now I thank you, and how happy I am!” Foucauld was killed by bandits in 1916, and was canonized in 2022.
Bread of Life, bless those who adore you in lonely places. May all peoples be united in love for you.
