"In instituting the sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus anticipates and makes present the sacrifice of the Cross and the victory of the resurrection. At the same time, he reveals that he himself is the true sacrificial lamb." -Pope Benedict XVI
"This sacrament was appropriately instituted at the supper, when Christ conversed with His disciples for the last time. First of all, because of what is contained in the sacrament: for Christ is Himself contained in the Eucharist sacramentally. Consequently, when Christ was going to leave His disciples in His proper species, He left Himself with [...]
"The inexhaustible richness of this sacrament is expressed in the different names we give it. Each name evokes certain aspects of it. It is called: The Lord's Supper, because of its connection with the supper which the Lord took with his disciples on the eve of his Passion and because it anticipates the wedding feast [...]
"The reality of the sacrament is the unity of the mystical body, without which there can be no salvation; for there is no entering into salvation outside the Church, just as in the time of the deluge there was none outside the Ark, which denotes the Church." -St.Thomas Aquinas
"The reality of the sacrament can be had through the very desire of receiving the sacrament. Before actual reception of this sacrament, a man can obtain salvation through the desire of receiving it, just as he can before Baptism through the desire of Baptism… Spiritual food changes man into itself, according to that saying of [...]
"I wish here to endorse the wishes expressed by the Synod Fathers by encouraging the Christian people to deepen their understanding of the relationship between the eucharistic mystery, the liturgical action, and the new spiritual worship which derives from the Eucharist as the sacrament of charity." -Pope Benedict XVI
"The Apostle says (1 Cor. 10:17): 'For we, being many, are one bread, one body, all that partake of one bread': from which it is clear that the Eucharist is the sacrament of the Church's unity. But a sacrament bears the likeness of the reality whereof it is the sacrament. Therefore the Eucharist is one [...]
"In the sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus shows us in particular the truth about the love which is the very essence of God." -Pope Benedict XVI
The sacrament of charity, the Holy Eucharist is the gift that Jesus Christ makes of himself, thus revealing to us God's infinite love for every man and woman." -Pope Benedict XVI
"Absolutely speaking, the sacrament of the Eucharist is the greatest of all the sacraments… because it contains Christ Himself substantially: whereas the other sacraments contain a certain instrumental power which is a share of Christ's power." -St. Thomas Aquinas