Walking with the Saints Podcast | Feast of St. John Mary Vianney, Patron Saint of all Parish Priests | August 4
In our study of world history, we heard about the French Revolution. Our saint for today was born three years before the outbreak of the French Revolution. So his life was very much affected by this event. St. John Vianney or Jean-Baptiste-Marie-Vianney was born from a pious farm family in Dardilly, France on May 8, 1786. When he was a kid, the family would travel to distant farms where the priests, who were hiding, celebrated Mass. Many priests and nuns were killed and the young boy admired them for their courage and heroism, and dreamed to become a priest himself. At eight, he was given the charge to lead their family cows and sheep into the fields. While the animals were grazing, he
would take time to pray, sometimes aloud, many times in silence. He was very devoted to the Blessed Virgin and to St. Philomena. At age 13, he was able to make his First Communion, from two nuns who were hiding in the kitchen of a farm house. The Revolution ended in 1799 and in 1802, the Catholic Church was re-established by Napoleon Bonaparte. John was 16 years old and he was thinking of his priestly vocation. He went to the nearby village to study, but his studies was interrupted when he was drafted into Napoleon’s army to fight against Spain. However,
two days before the army left, he got sick and was hospitalized and was left behind by his unit. After being released from the hospital, he was sent to another unit to join the battle. But, miraculously, a young man came to him and led him to a mountain where many soldiers who deserted the army were hiding. He lived in that place for 14 months and had much time to pray and make penances. In 1812, an amnesty was granted to the deserters and he was able to go back to where he was studying. In 1813, he went to the major seminary. John Vianney was
a slow learner and was sent for tutoring to Abbe’ Balley, who convinced the seminary Rector that his piety is more than enough to compensate for his poor intelligence. He was ordained priest on August 12, 1815 and became assistant to Abbe’ Balley in Ecully. He was afterwards assigned as parish priest of an obscure village called Ars, and it was here where he exercised his priesthood in converting people and bringing them closer to God. He encouraged people to confess and he spent 11-16 hours in the confessional. Due to his piety, penances and zeal in saving souls, the devil was said to have attacked him by burning his bed, throwing raw potatoes at him, and often disturbing his sleep. He intensified his prayers and mortifications and the Lord protected
him. In 1827 he was already known as a holy priest so, people from all over Europe began to travel to Ars to confess to him. In a period of 30 years, it was recorded that 20,000 pilgrims came to Ars every year. He wanted very much a solitary life, so he run away from Ars to become a monk, but he was persuaded to return. In 1859, he died at the age of 73. The Bishop presided over his funeral, 300 priests came, and 6,000 people were in attendance. He was beatified in 1905, was canonized on May 31, 1925, and became popularly known as the CURE’ OF ARS. In 1929, he was proclaimed Patron of Parish Priests and of all Priests.
Virtue: piety, courage, humility, sweetness, generousity
Prayer: Let us try to be good, avoid displeasing God, and often pray with St. John Vianney: “I love You, my God, and my only desire is to love you until the last breath of life. Amen.”
Reflection: Do I give the due respect to priests, pray for them and follow their guidance?
