St. John Vianney
Aug 4th, 2008 by Dan
Today is the feast day of St. John Vianney – aka the “Curé of Ars” – the patron saint of parish priests. The basic outline of his life is somewhat well known; as the introduction to his life in the Breviary states:
Saint John was born in Lyons in 1786. After overcoming many difficulties, he was ordained a priest. He was entrusted with a parish in the town of Ars in the diocese of Belley. He cared for this parish in a marvelous way by his preaching, his mortification, prayer and good works. Since he was renowned for great skill in helping penitents, people came to him from many regions and devoutly accepted his counsel. He died in 1859.
Like most of these paragraph-length life summaries, some basic facts are there (and they’re helpful) but there is SO much more. Personally, though, I didn’t know much about St. John Vianney until I went to the town of Ars itself.
I was a junior in college in 2001 when I went on my semester study abroad to Austria with the Franciscan University of Steubenville. During that semester, we had a ten-day break that offered our best opportunity for extended travel. With some of my best friends, we decided to see most of France. Paris, Lourdes, Chartres, Mont Saint-Michel … and the tiny town of Ars were all on the list. I didn’t know a thing about Ars. I had heard very generally about St. John Vianney, but nothing substantive. My roommate’s older brother had visited Ars when he was a student and loved it, and, well, we were basically going on that reputation as far as I knew.
Ars is located near Lyons and is a tiny town—and it remains so today. Nothing stood out upon our arrival. We were staying at a pilgrim’s house behind the shrine. I remember it being wonderfully sparse - truly accommodations for humble pilgrims.
Ars ended up being a true highlight of that trip and my semester abroad as a whole. There was basically nothing in the town of Ars… except for the palpable legacy of a holy saint from over a century prior. We received a tour of his rectory and home, as well as the beautiful church that is the heart of the town. The Masses celebrated there were all in French – both beautiful and unintelligible to me – and it was one of the occasions in which I really, really appreciated and was struck by the universality of the Mass. I always knew what was happening in the liturgy, even if the readings of the day had to be read later. The church also contains the incorrupt body of this holy saint. Incorrupt saints are just awesome, and this mysterious, amazing aspect of Catholicism deepened my appreciation for our heritage.
After this visit, but before I was seriously thinking about entering the seminary myself, I developed a bit of a devotion to St. John Vianney. I was sure to pray for his intercession in any litanies, after rosaries, etc. – praying for the holiness and intentions of all priests (or so I thought). I do believe that these prayers over the years also helped move my heart as I considered my own life’s vocation.
So much more can be said about this amazing saint. Pope John Paul II’s reflection on the life of the saint, offered to all priests on Holy Thursday of 1986, is a great source.
Saint John Vianney, pray for us!
Thank you for the nice message especially on Ars and St. John Mary Vianney, our patron. Special thanks for bringing back the letter of John Paul II on Maundy Thursday 1986. It is indeep a deep meditation on Vianney.
I am struck with a deep sense of conteplation with the life of St. John Vianney. It has been a long time since I have started to think about entering the vocation. And it surprises me to find out that the feastday of the Patron Saint of Parish Priests falls on my birthday. Knowing this has somehow drawn me to carry on my prayers to decern God’s call for me with even greater fervor. I am now asking for St. John Vianney’s intercession for my personal endevour and for all priests.
I am touched by your appreciation of the universality of the holy Mass, be it in French, English or Chinese as in my country. In this year of the priest, I pray to St John Vianney to bless and protect the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI, all priests and religious especially those in the parts of the world where the Catholic Church faces harassment and obstacle in disseminating the word of Jesus. “Sieh sieh (thank you in Chinese) for the inspiration I got from your message.