One who thirsted eagerly for God was Charles de Foucald whose prodigal and shocking way of life provoked so much gossip in Paris that he was the butt of violent feelings and jokes among French soldiers.

Born September 15, 1858, of fabulous wealth, at one point of his shady life he stated: "I was so completely selfish, so completely vain, so completely irreligious, and utterly given over to wickedness, that I was only one step away from insanity."

God seemed to him to be infinitely remote–if He existed at all! He used to enter St. Augustine Church in Paris, repeating over and over "My God, if You exist, let me come to know You." One day, as a priest elevated the Consecrated Host, he was overheard to say: "My God, You are real!"

"In a single instant," he said, "my heart was touched and I believed." The Eucharist, until his death, dominated his whole life. To stir others to seek and find God dwelling in the tabernacle that they too may be touched to the quick, share in his discovery, and come home to the Creator, "that Power which erring men call change," he composed this prayer: Oh Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament in our churches,You give us solace and refuge; You give us faith, hope, love and hospitality. You build for us an inner retreat, an ardent repose. Help us to seek You and find You in the tabernacle.

Hidden Treasure, The Riches of the Eucharist
Louis Kaczmarek