ST JOHN MARIE VIANNEY, THE CURE OF ARS | KAIROS GLOBAL | JUNE 2021

Author: Serena DSouza

John Marie Vianney, also known as the Cure of Ars, is the patron saint of parish priests. John was the fourth of six children to his devout parents Matthieu Vianney and Marie (Belize) in France. The spiritual journey of John was deeply influenced by the faith of his parents and St. Philomena. During the French Revolution in 1790, priests had to surreptitiously carry out the sacraments. John and his family would travel distant miles to partake of sacramental life. John now began to think of priests as heroes. He received his First Holy Communion in a kitchen! During Mass, the drapes of the kitchen were closed to prevent light from the candles from being seen. By 1802, the Catholic Church was restored by Napoleon. 

Having lost out on his education due to the French Revolution, John joined the presbytery school in a nearby village. He found his studies to be quite difficult especially Latin, as it was a new language. His desire to become a priest and the patience of his teacher, Balley, helped him to persevere. John further faced troubles due to Napoleon’s war with Spain in 1809 which required him to be recruited as a soldier. Two days before he was to leave with his draft for Lyons, he fell ill and couldn’t join them. This, however, didn’t prevent John from being recruited in another draft of soldiers for Roanne. Before leaving with his draft, John spent time in prayer which caused him to be delayed! His draft left without him. John now took the help of a lay man to catch up with his draft. The young man instead led John in the direction of the mountains of Le Forez, to a village near Les Noes which happened to be occupied by deserters (people who had abandoned their military duty). John lived there for 14 months and opened a school for the village children. The villagers spent their days in hiding until 1810, when an amnesty was granted to all deserters. John was now free to go to Ecully in pursuit of his studies. In 1812 he joined the minor seminary at Verrières-en-Forez and further joined major seminary at Lyons. He was however found too slow and sent back to Balley. Balley on his part persuaded the Vicar General to reconsider due to Vianney’s piety, to which he then obliged. John was ordained a priest in August 1815. He celebrated his first Mass the next day and was sent as an assistant to Balley in Ecully. 

After Balley’s death, Fr. John was assigned to the village of Ars (with a population of 240) as their parish priest. Fr. John found religious ignorance and non-compliance among the people to keep the Sabbath holy. Instead, the people would either work in the fields or drink or perform pagan dances. Fr. John would continue to pray for his people and preach against blasphemy, encouraging them to confess. Fr. John opened a home for girls called La Providence with the help of Catherine Lassagne and Benedicta Lardet. Fr. John towards the end of his life spent up to 12 hours in winter and 16 hours in summer at the confessional thus bringing back souls to God. Many miracles were witnessed during the lifetime of John Marie Vianney. He was found to have levitated while saying prayers. Two well known miracles include the Miracle of the multiplication of the flour (at La Providence) and the Miracle of Wine. He was also known to have the gift of reading hearts. In one incident, a lady wanted to meet Fr. John since her husband had committed suicide. She however was losing hope of meeting him due to the long queue at the confessional. When she was about to return, Fr. John through a mystical insight said out loud, ‘I tell you he is saved. He is in Purgatory, and you must pray for him. Between the parapet of the bridge and the water, he had time to make an act of contrition.’ The greatest miracle that God performed through Vianney was the miracle of conversion of the people of Ars. St. John Vianney was a very humble person and never took credit for the miracles, always insisting that it was due to the intercession of his beloved saint, St. Philomena. He believed that the cross was to caress not a curse and said that the biggest cross was to have no cross! John Marie Vianney passed away at the age of 73 on August 4, 1859. After his death, 30 documented physical cures were reported which initiated the process of his canonisation. He was declared venerable in 1874 by Pope Pius IX and canonised in 1925. Pope Pius XI declared him a patron of parish priests in 1928. The life of St. John Vianney served as a life-giving glory to God with humility, obedience and an ardent desire to save souls.  

May he continue to inspire us and draw us closer to God. Amen.