Aug. 4th St. John Vianney

 Today is the memorial of St. John Marie Vianney, the patron of parish priests.

After attending seminary, but with great difficulty with studies, especially Latin, he found himself before a seminary review board. The Vicar General, Father Courbon, asked these questions about John Vianney: Is he pious? Has a devotion to Our Lady? Does he know how to say the rosary? The answer to all questions was, “yes”, and so, he said, “I will summon him for ordination and the grace of God will do the rest.” Three years after ordination, he was transferred to Ars.

When he was near Ars, he happened to come across a young boy. He told the boy, “You show me the way to Ars, I will show you the way to heaven.”

When he arrived, he discovered a run down church and rectory. The people were ignorant of their faith and the town had become noted for its revelry, drinking and dancing. Few people were interested in coming to His Masses. He began to visit every home in his parish to find out where the people were in their faith.

When he would offer Mass, he would open the doors of the church, so that people passing by would hear what he had to say. He warned them over and over that if they continued the way they were going, they would end up in hell. But he also explained to them the great love of God and His infinite mercy in confession.

Eventually, the people tried to get rid of him, and signed a petition, asking the bishop to transfer him. St. John Vianney in his humble way asked to sign in it too.

Ironically, after many years, the people and grown to love and cherish their parish priest. But, he believed God wanted him to be in a monastery, doing penance for his sins. So, he left the little town of Ars, only for the people of the town to find him and bring him back.

He gave Catechism classes to children, and opened an orphanage. He did severe penances, fasted everyday. He lived a very poor life, often eating only potatoes, but encouraged wealthy parishioners to purchase expensive vestments, statues, and a tabernacle, and spent lots of money remodeling the church with magnificent altars of the saints. He believed Our Lord deserved the best.

God gave him the ability to read the hearts, which caused him to spend 13 to 17 hours in the confessional. People from all over Europe traveled to Ars so that he would hear their confessions. Because of the many conversions, the devil reeked havoc on him, often times, making loud noises, and physically attacked him. One time the devil even set his bed on fire.

St. John Marie had a tremendous love and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and had apparitions of Our Lady. He also had a deep devotion to the Blessed Eucharist, and spent hours praying before Our Lord in the tabernacle. At the end of every homily, he would point to the tabernacle and say, “There is Jesus, who loves you so much!”

He died in 1859, was canonized in 1925, and in 1929 declared patron of parish priests. 42 years after the death of St. John Marie Vianney, his body was exhumed, and found incorrupt, with his heart perfectly preserved. The following words of St. John Vianney seem prophetic. “The priesthood is the love of the Heart of Jesus. When you see the priest, think of Our Lord Jesus Christ.”