Priest Saints: St. John Mary Vianney, the Holy Curé of ArsA story to celebrate the Curé of ArsIn Dardilly, not far from Lyon (France), a land of deep Christian tradition, on May 8, 1786, the following was born Juan Mariathe saintly priest of Ars. He was the fourth of six brothers from a peasant family. Very soon after, the French Revolution broke out and the faithful had to gather in secret for Mass celebrated by one of those heroic priests, faithful to the Pope, who were so furiously persecuted by the revolutionaries. He had to make his first communion in another town, in a room with the windows carefully closed, so that nothing would show outside.
Vocation to the priesthood
At seventeen, John Mary decided to become a priest and began his studies, leaving the work in the fields to which he had been dedicated until then. Father Balley lends himself to help him, but Latin becomes very difficult for this young peasant. At one point he began to feel discouraged and decided to make a pilgrimage on foot to the tomb of St. Francis de Regis to ask for his intercession.
Due to a mistake, he was called up in 1809, which was exempted for seminarians. He fell ill and, without paying attention to his weakness, he was sent to fight in Spain. He was unable to follow his companions and, discouraged, he was forced to desert and had to remain hidden for three years in the mountains of Noës. An amnesty allowed him to return to his village shortly before his mother's death and to resume his priestly studies. His superiors recognized his conduct, but his performance was very poor and he was dismissed from the seminary. He tried to join the Brothers of the Christian Schools, but was unsuccessful. Father Balley lent himself to continue preparing him and finally, on August 13, 1815, the Bishop of Grenoble ordained him a priest at the age of 29.
Destination, Ars
The archbishopric of Lyon entrusted him with a very small village north of the capital called Ars. The territory was not even considered a parish. He arrived on February 9, 1818 and practically never left again. Twice he would be appointed to another parish, and twice he himself would try to leave, but Divine Providence always intervened so that St. John Mary would come to shine, as patron of all the priests of the world, precisely in a parish of a tiny village.
The first years were spent entirely devoted to his parishioners: he visited them house by house; he cared for the children and the sick; he was in charge of the enlargement and improvement of the church..... He was deeply involved in the moralization of the people: war against taverns, fight against Sunday work, efforts to banish religious ignorance and, above all, his dramatic opposition to dancing, which would cause him trouble and displeasure, including accusations before his superiors. However, years later it could be said that "Ars is no longer Ars". The devil, who did not look favorably on his actions, attacked the saint with violence. The struggle against him sometimes had a dramatic character. The anecdotes are copious and, on some occasions, overwhelming.
First pilgrimages to Ars
John Mary used to help his fellow priests in the neighboring villages and those peasants would then turn to him when difficulties arose, or simply to go to confession and receive good advice. This was the beginning of the famous pilgrimage to Ars.
It began as a local phenomenon in the dioceses of Lyon and Belley, but then it spread so widely that it became famous throughout France and even in the whole of Europe. Pilgrims began to flock from everywhere, and books were published to serve as guides. A special ticket office was even established at the Lyon station to dispatch tickets to Ars.
Instrument of God's graces
That poor priest, who had laboriously completed his studies, and who had been relegated to one of the worst villages in the diocese, was to become a sought-after advisor for thousands of souls. And among them would be people from all walks of life, from distinguished prelates and famous intellectuals, to the most humble sick and poor troubled people. He must have spent the day in the confessional, preaching or attending to the poor. It is surprising that he could survive with that kind of life. As if that were not enough, his penances were extraordinary.
God blessed his activity abundantly. He, who had hardly done his studies, performed marvelously in the pulpit, without any time to prepare himself. He solved very delicate problems of conscience. After his death there will be testimonies, abundant to the point of unbelievable, of his gift of discernment of consciences: to one he reminded him of a forgotten sin, to another he clearly manifested his vocation, to another he opened his eyes to the dangers in which he found himself, to others he discovered his way of helping in the Church... With simplicity, almost as if it were a matter of hunches or occurrences, the saint showed himself to be in intimate contact with God and to be illuminated by Him. And all with great cordiality. We have the testimony of people belonging to the highest echelons of French society who left Ars in admiration of his courtesy and gentleness. His extreme humanity also led him to the foundation of "La Providencia": a house that, exclusively for charity, she founded to take in the poor orphans of the surrounding area.
A saint passes away
On Friday, July 29, 1859, he felt indisposed. He went down, as usual, early in the morning to church, but he could not resist in the confessional and had to go outside to get some fresh air. Before the eleven o'clock catechism he asked for some wine, sipped a few drops and went up to the pulpit. He could not be understood, but his tear-filled eyes, turning towards the tabernacle, said it all. He continued confessing, but by evening it was clear that he was mortally wounded. He rested badly and asked for help: "The doctor can do nothing. Call the priest of Jassans.
He let himself be cared for like a child. He didn't grumble when they put a mattress on his hard bed and obeyed the doctor. And a touching event took place. The heat was unbearable and the neighbors of Ars, not knowing what to do to relieve him, went up to the roof and spread sheets that they kept damp all day long. The whole town saw, bathed in tears, that their priest was leaving them. The bishop himself came to share their grief. After a moving farewell to his father and pastor, the holy priest thought only of dying and, with a heavenly peace, on Thursday, August 4, 1859, he gave his soul to God "as a worker who has finished his day well".
Pope Pius XI canonized him on May 31, 1925. Three years later, in 1928, the Pope named the Curé of Ars Patron of parish priests and pastors of souls.
