The fourth in the series of our 12 Eucharistic Saints, Patrons and Patronesses of our Eucharistic Revival

The Eucharistic Testimony of St. Juliana of Liège

St. Juliana of Liège, also known as St. Juliana of Cornillon, was a woman of strength and inner conviction. She is little known but the Church is deeply indebted to her, not only because of the holiness of her life but also because, with her great fervour, she contributed to the institution of one of the most important solemn Liturgies of the year: Corpus Christi. She is St Juliana de Cornillon, also known as St Juliana of Liège. We know several facts about her life, mainly from a Biography that was probably written by a contemporary cleric; it is a collection of various testimonies of people who were directly acquainted with the Saint.

Juliana was born in 1191 in the village of Retinnes in the principality of Liège, which is now Belgium. It is important to emphasize this place because at that time the Diocese of Liège was, so to speak, a true “Eucharistic Upper Room” (cenacle!). Before Juliana, eminent theologians had illustrated the supreme value of the Sacrament of the Eucharist and, again in Liège, there were groups of women generously dedicated to Eucharistic worship and to fervent communion. Guided by exemplary priests, they lived together, devoting themselves to prayer and to charitable works.

The culture in the Church at the time was ripe for a renewal of Eucharistic theology and practice. In the 13th century, Eucharistic reception among the faithful had plummeted, owing to emphasis of personal unworthiness over the need for sacramental grace. The practices built upon this approach are what forced Church leaders at the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) to require Catholics to receive Holy Communion at least once a year at Eastertide — one of the Church’s precepts even today.

She and her twin sister Agnes were orphaned at the age of five and raised under the care of the Augustinian nuns at the convent and leprosarium of Mont Cornillon. After many years of studying under Sister Sapienza [wisdom], who oversaw her spiritual development, Juliana became an Augustinian nun.

Sister Juliana was very intelligent. She memorized the writings of the Church fathers, St. Augustine and especially St. Bernard, in Latin. In addition to a keen intelligence, Juliana showed a special propensity for contemplation and like many in her region and generation, she had a strong devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, to the Blessed Virgin and to the Sacred Passion.  She loved Christ and had a deep sense of His presence, often contemplating the words of Jesus, “And lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age” (Mt 28:20). Her experience of the Eucharist and of the Real Presence was extended into the rest of the day by recalling those words of Jesus.

When she was sixteen, she had her first vision, which recurred several times during eucharistic adoration. As she was a quiet and humble person, Sister Juliana kept these visions to herself. She would see the moon in its full brilliance with a dark stripe diametrically across it. During the vision, the Lord made it known to her that the moon was a symbol of the life of the Church here on earth, and the dark line was the absence of a liturgical feast.

The Lord further revealed that she should plead for this special feast so that the Eucharist can be adored, increasing the faith among all people, expanding the practice of the virtues, and making reparation for offenses to the Most Holy Sacrament.

Not wanting to call attention to herself, she would keep these visions to herself for 20 years. Sister Juliana was prioress of the convent when she finally confided in two friends who shared the same devotion to the eucharistic Lord. One of them was Eva, who lived as a hermit, and the other was Isabella, who was also at the monastery at Mont-Cornillon. They were united in their love and devotion to the most holy Sacrament.  They established a sort of “spiritual alliance” for the purpose of glorifying it. They also engaged a priest, Father John Lausanne, who was Juliana’s confessor, and asked him to consult with theologians about the establishment of this feast in honour of the Blessed Sacrament and they were greatly encouraged by the positive responses they got.

To have confirmation that an inspiration comes from God it is always necessary to be immersed in prayer to wait patiently, to seek friendship and exchanges with other good souls and to submit all things to the judgement of the Pastors of the Church.

It was in fact Bishop Robert Torote of Liège who, after initial hesitation, accepted the proposal of Juliana and her companions and first introduced the Solemnity of Corpus Christi in his diocese in 1246. Later other Bishops following his example instituted this Feast in the territories entrusted to their pastoral care.

However, to increase their faith the Lord often asks Saints to sustain trials. This also happened to Juliana who had to bear the harsh opposition of certain members of the clergy and even of the superior on whom her monastery depended. So, she left the convent of her own free will and, with several of her companions, stayed as guests in various Cistercian monasteries for ten years, from 1248 until her death in 1258.

Everywhere she stayed, all were amazed and affected by her humility. She never spoke ill or offered criticism of those who stood against her.  Instead, she continued to be obedient and stalwart in her endeavour to spread eucharistic worship.

Juliana died in 1258 at Fosses-La-Ville, Belgium.  In her room where she lay, the Blessed Sacrament was exposed, and according to oral tradition relayed to her biographer, Juliana died with the last gasp of love, contemplating, honouring and adoring the Lord in the Eucharist. She was canonized by Pope Pius IX in 1869 and is patroness of devotion to the Blessed Sacrament.

The Archdeacon in Liège, Jacques Pantaleon of Troyes was convinced of Juliana’s cause to institute the Feast of Corpus Christi.  He would later become Pope Urban IV and instituted the Solemnity of Corpus Christi on the Thursday after the Most Holy Trinity as a feast of percept for the universal Church in 1264.  The Pope even referred discreetly to Juliana’s mystical experiences and confirmed their authenticity. He wrote:

“Although the Eucharist is celebrated solemnly every day, we deem it fitting that at least once a year it be celebrated with greater honour and a solemn commemoration.  Indeed, we grasp the other things we commemorate with our spirit and our mind, but this does not mean that we obtain their real presence. On the contrary, in this sacramental commemoration of Christ, even though in a different form, Jesus Christ is present with us in his own substance.  While he was about to ascend into Heaven he said, ‘And lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age’ (Matthew 28:20).”

The Pope made a point of setting an example by celebrating the solemnity of Corpus Christi in Orvieto, the town where he was then residing. Indeed, he ordered that the famous Corporal with the traces of the Eucharistic miracle which had occurred in Bolsena the previous year, 1263 , be kept in Orvieto Cathedral — where it still is today.

Although Juliana herself and Canon John of Lausanne are believed to have written the initial version of the divine office for the feast, Urban IV asked one of the greatest theologians of history, St Thomas Aquinas — who at that time was accompanying the Pope and was in Orvieto — to compose the texts of the Liturgical Office for this great feast. They are masterpieces, still in use in the Church today, in which theology and poetry are fused. These texts pluck at the heartstrings in an expression of praise and gratitude to the Most Holy Sacrament, while the mind, penetrating the mystery with wonder, recognizes in the Eucharist the Living and Real Presence of Jesus, of his Sacrifice of love that reconciles us with the Father, and gives us salvation.

Although after the death of Urban IV the celebration of the Feast of Corpus Christi was limited to certain regions of France, Germany, Hungary and Northern Italy, it was another Pontiff, John XXII, who in 1317 reestablished it for the universal Church. Since then the Feast experienced a wonderful development and is still deeply appreciated by the Christian people.

Pope Benedict XVI affirmed with joy that today there is a “Eucharistic springtime” in the Church: How many people pause in silence before the Tabernacle to engage in a loving conversation with Jesus! It is comforting to know that many groups of young people have rediscovered the beauty of praying in adoration before the Most Blessed Sacrament.

“I am thinking, for example,” said Pope Benedict, “of our Eucharistic adoration in Hyde Park, London. I pray that this Eucharistic “springtime” may spread increasingly in every parish and in particular in Belgium, St Juliana’s homeland.”

Saint John Paul II said in his Encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia: “In many places, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is also an important daily practice and becomes an inexhaustible source of holiness. The devout participation of the faithful in the Eucharistic procession on the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ is a grace from the Lord which yearly brings joy to those who take part in it. Other positive signs of Eucharistic faith and love might also be mentioned” (n. 10).

In remembering St Juliana of Cornillon let us also renew our faith in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. As we are taught by the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist in a unique and incomparable way. He is present in a true, real and substantial way, with his Body and his Blood, with his Soul and his Divinity. In the Eucharist, therefore, there is present in a sacramental way, that is, under the Eucharistic Species of bread and wine, Christ whole and entire, God and Man” (n. 282).

Fidelity to the encounter with the Christ in the Eucharist in Holy Mass on Sunday is essential for the journey of faith, but let us also seek to pay frequent visits to the Lord present in the Tabernacle! In gazing in adoration at the consecrated Host, we discover the gift of God’s love, we discover Jesus’ Passion and Cross and likewise his Resurrection. It is precisely through our gazing in adoration that the Lord draws us towards him into his mystery in order to transform us as he transforms the bread and the wine.

The Saints never failed to find strength, consolation and joy in the Eucharistic encounter. Let us repeat before the Lord present in the Most Blessed Sacrament the words of the Eucharistic hymn “Adoro te devote”: [Devoutly I adore Thee]: Make me believe ever more in you, “Draw me deeply into faith, / Into Your hope, into Your love”.

Sources:

https://diocesecc.org/news/a-woman-of-strength-st-juliana-of-liege

https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/st-juliana-of-cornillon-6285

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliana_of_Liège

https://www.simplycatholic.com/st-juliana-of-liege/