Jean-Baptiste Marie Vianney, The Curé d'Ars, was born on 8th May 1786 in Dardilly near Lyon into a family of farmers and his childhood was deeply influenced by the fervour and love of his parents. Born 3 years before the French Revolution. He grew up in the years of terror that followed and the outlawing of priests who would not take a pledge to the new french order.
With the difficulties of starting his education late in life, military conscription and a trying time with latin, St. John Vianney was 30 years old when he was ordained to the priesthood. After 2 short years in a parish, he was assigned to the little village of Ars, which was like many of the towns and villages at that time more concerned with having fun and making a living and apparently in that order. When the new Curé arrived, he found that the church had been looted and then turned in a free-thinkers meeting hall.
With zeal, daily masses, meeting the people face to face and his sermons and the confessional, he soon had the people of his village turning once again to their religion and the tiny 20 row seats of the church were once again beginning to feel the weight of its parishioners.
In 1824 he founded a home for orphan girls called La Providence and he worked diligently to rebuild his church, adding side altars and especially the altar to St. Philomena, favorite saint and to whom he credited all that he was able to do. As the news spread about the numerous miracles taking place at St. Philomena’s altar and about the remarkable priest who could read souls, People from all around began to converge of this tiny village. Soon churches all around France were building shrines and altars to St. Philomena and the country was being swept with a return to religion.
By 1855 he was hearing 10,000 confessions a year and that would increase to over 70,000 a year. People from every station of life sought him out, to hear his words and repair their souls. He 1856 he was awarded the French Legion of Honor and continued to hear confessions up to 16 hours a day until the day he died on August 4, 1859 (his current feast day).
St John Vianney was Beatified in 1905 and Canonized in 1925.
He is the only parish priest to become a recognized saint
and is the patron saint of priests throughout the world.
For more interesting reading about our parish's remarkable patron saint
click on the underlined notes below.
The St Anthony Messenger March 2003 The Saint Who Read Souls at a Glance
St. John Vianney and his favorite saint, St. Philomena
Biography of St. John Vianney by Susan Otten in the Catholic Encyclopedia.
Pope John XXIII Encyclical on Saint John Vianney
A St. John Vianney novena from EWT News
Visit the shrine at Ars
And for a deeper understanding
This is a link to a review of 3 books with sample pages.
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