The universal church celebrates the feast of one of its most cherished saints on the 4th of August, the feast of St. Jean Marie Baptiste Vianney. St. John Vianney, the Patron saint of Parish Priests and confessors was himself the parish priest to a tiny parish in France called Ars. The miraculous spiritual transformation of the community is attributed to the continuous prayer, fasting, mortification and persevering ministry of confession and piety of the saint.
St. John Marie Vianney was born to Matthieu Vianney and his wife Marie (Belize) and was the fourth child among six children. He grew up during the anti-clerical Jacobin phase during the French revolution in which the Church was in hiding. He received his first holy communion in a secret mass, which strengthened his desire to become a priest and that is when he affirmed his decision of becoming a priest. After a few initial hurdles and difficulties in managing his priestly studies, he did go on to become a priest with strong spiritual gifts.
The community of Ars which had turned away from the Church and God saw the piety of the Vicar and embarked a journey of spiritual conversion. St. John Marie Vianney’s popularity spread far and wide and people floated to meet and confess to him. He used to sit for 16-17 hours a day at the confessional which was miraculous and a sign of the divine grace. He led a frugal life and his days revolved around his battles in the confessional, prayer, fasting and mortification. His extraordinary grace in the confessional brought pilgrims from far areas and special rain tickets were issued to accommodate the flood of visitors.
St. John Marie Vianney’s life is an inspiration not to priests in their service but also to the laypeople. His commitment to the conversion of sinners and the confessional is a reminder to us of the importance of the sacrament of confession.
