St. John Mary Vianney (2026)

By Fr. Conor Donnelly

(Proofread)

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

My Lord and my God, I firmly believe that you are here. That you see me. That you hear me. I adore you with profound reverence. I ask your pardon for my sins. And grace to make this time of prayer fruitful. My immaculate Mother. St. Joseph, my father and lord. My guardian angel, intercede for me.

St. John Mary Vianney was born near Lyon in 1786. He overcame many difficulties prior to receiving ordination and was later entrusted with the parish in the village of Ars, where he spent the next 42 years.

He excelled in active concern for souls and in the spirit of prayer and penance. Above all, he was exemplary in his tireless dedication to souls through the sacrament of confession.

He died in 1859 and was canonized and declared the patron saint of clergy in 1929 by Pope Pius XI.

When he was about to be sent to the small parish of Ars, a tiny place of 230 inhabitants, the vicar general of the diocese told him, “There is not much love for God in that parish. You will have to try to introduce it.” That’s precisely what he did.

He set aflame those farming people and countless other souls besides, with the love for the Lord that he bore in his heart.

He was not very learned, or healthy, or wealthy. But his personal holiness, his union with God worked the required miracle.

A few years later, great crowds from all the regions of France came to Ars. At times they had to wait for days to see the parish priest and to go to confession.

In the Holy Thursday letter to priests of John Paul II in 1986, he said the great attraction was not curiosity to witness the miracles he made every attempt to hide, but the expectation of finding a saintly priest, surprising in his penance, so familiar with God in prayer, outstanding for his peace and humility in the midst of popular acclaim, and above all so intuitive in corresponding to the interior dispositions of souls and freeing them from their burdens, especially in the confessional.

The Lord chose as a model of pastors him who alone could only have been able to appear poor, weak, and defenseless. Worthy of scorn in the eyes of men. God rewarded him, said John Paul, with his greatest gifts as a guide and doctor of souls.

On a certain occasion, Pope John Paul I says, people asked a lawyer from Lyon returning from Ars, what he had seen there. He said, “I saw God in a man.”

The day we ask the Lord that we might be able to say the same of each priest on account of his holiness, his union with God and his concern for souls.

In the sacrament of holy orders, the priest, according to St. Paul, is constituted a minister of God and dispenser of his treasures.

These treasures include the divine word for preaching, the body and blood of Christ that he dispenses at Mass and in Holy Communion, and the grace of God in the administration of the other sacraments.

The decree on the priesthood of the Second Vatican Council, Presbyterorum Ordinis, says the priest is entrusted with a divine task par excellence, the most divine of divine works. In the words of an early Father of the Church, no less than the salvation of souls.

He’s an ambassador, a mediator between God who is in heaven and man who is still on his way on earth. With one hand he accepts the treasures of divine mercy, and with the other distributes them with liberality.

By the exercise of his mission as a mediator, the priest participates in the authority of Christ, who builds up, sanctifies, and governs his body. He brings about the Eucharist, the holiest action that any man can carry out on earth.

What do people want and expect from the priest? The minister of Christ, the living sign of the presence of the Good Shepherd.

Bishop Álvaro del Portillo answers, they need, desire, and hope, perhaps without consciously reasoning out such a need or hope, for a priest who is a priest 100%. A man who shows an ardent concern for them by opening up new horizons for their souls, who exercises his ministry without ceasing, and who has a big heart capable of understanding and loving everyone.

Though at times his concern may not be reciprocated, may he be a man who gives what he alone can give with simplicity and joy, in season and out of season.

God wants to disseminate to men through him the wealth of his grace and of his divine intimacy.

Today is an appropriate occasion to pray for the holiness of priests. Especially those who in some way are placed by God to help us on our way towards him.

The Curé of Ars used to say, “What a great thing it is to be a priest. If I were to understand this fully, I think I would die.”

In his apostolic exhortation Christifideles Laici, John Paul II says, God calls some men to this great dignity in order for them to serve their brothers. Nevertheless, the salvific mission of the Church in the world is realized not only by ministers in virtue of the sacrament of orders, but also by all the lay faithful.

Each one in his own profession and place in the world shines as a light in the world. By virtue of their baptism and specific vocation, said John Paul II, in the measure proper to each person, the lay faithful participate in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly functions of Christ.

Their participation is in no way limited to helping clerics, although sometimes they may do this. The real place of the laity is not the sacristy but the family, business, fashion, sport, fields of endeavor in which, in their own right, they must try to bring to God.

The mission of the laity, said John Paul, must lead them to imbue family, work, and the social order with the Christian principles that raise these areas of human living to the supernatural order and thus make them more human.

The laity’s business is the dignity and primacy of the human person, social solidarity, the sanctity of marriage, responsible freedom, love for the truth, respect for justice at all levels, the spirit of service, and the practice of mutual understanding and of charity.

Precisely in order to exercise fully this prophetic, priestly, and royal function of Christ, the baptized need the help of the ministerial priesthood that confers the gift of divine life received from Christ, head of the body, in a privileged and tangible way.

The more Christian and conscious people are of their dignity and of their vital role in the Church, the more urgently they feel the need for priests who are truly priests.

Today in our prayer, we can ask Our Lord for holy, lovable, and learned priests who treat souls like precious jewels of Jesus Christ and know how to give up their own personal plans for the love of others.

Pope John Paul says, may they have a profound love for the Mass, the principal end of their ordination and the center of their day. May they orient their best pastoral efforts, like the Curé of Ars, towards the explicit proclamation of the faith, towards the forgiveness of sins, and the Eucharist.

We can have a lot of appreciation for those who have given so much. We can have a great confidence in the prayer of priests.

God has placed the priest close to the lives of men to be a dispenser of divine mercy. Hardly is a man born when the priest regenerates him in baptism, confers a more noble, precious, and supernatural life on him, and makes him a son of God and of the Church of Jesus Christ.

A priest strengthens and prepares souls to undergo spiritual combat by means of confirmation. When a child is just able to discern and appreciate the bread of angels, a gift from heaven, the priest feeds and fortifies him with this living and life-giving food.

If a person has suffered the misfortune of falling from grace, the priest raises and reconciles him in the name of God through the sacrament of penance. God may call him to found a family, to collaborate in the transmission of human life, and thereby increase the number of faithful on earth and ultimately the ranks of the elect in heaven.

The priest is present to bless his noble love and marriage. When the Christian is finally at the portals of eternity, he feels the need of fortitude and divine aid before appearing before the divine judge.

The priest anoints the failing members of the sick or dying Christian with the holy oils and thus comforts him.

Pius XII has said, the priest therefore accompanies the Christian throughout the pilgrimage of this life to the gates of heaven. He accompanies the body to its resting place in the grave with rites and prayers of immortal hope. Even beyond the threshold of eternity, he aids the soul with Christian suffrages if need there be of a further purification and alleviation.

From the cradle to the grave, a priest is always a guide, a solace, a minister of salvation, and a dispenser of grace and blessing at the side of the Christian.

It’s a matter of justice for the faithful to pray each day for priests. Especially for those who have the charge of providing for our own spiritual needs, particularly today when we celebrate the feast of the holy Curé of Ars.

From priests we receive the bread of angels and pardon for our sins. St. Josemaría says they teach us how to have recourse to Christ, to meet him in the loving tribunal of penance and in the unbloody renewal of the sacrifice of Calvary, the Mass.

Let us unite ourselves to their prayers and intentions, which habitually encompass the most pressing needs of the Church and souls. St. Ambrose says we also venerate them with affection since no one is as truly our neighbor as the person who has healed our wounds.

May we love the priests, seeing Our Lord in each one of them. Let us love the priest as we love our neighbor. We ask this grace of reverence through the intercession of St. John Mary Vianney.

In the book of Kings, we read that Elias the prophet, fleeing from Jezebel, went to Horeb, the holy mountain. During the long and difficult journey, he felt so tired that he wished to die.

“Enough, Yahweh,” he said. “Take up my soul, for I am no better than my fathers” (1 Kings 19:4). Lying down there, he fell asleep.

But an angel of the Lord woke him and offered him bread, saying, “Rise up and eat, for you still have a long journey ahead” (1 Kings 19:7). Elias arose, ate and drank, and strengthened by the meal, walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God.

What he could not do of his own strength, he could do with the meal that the Lord gave him when he was most distraught.

The holy mountain, which was the prophet’s destination, is an image of heaven. The forty days of travel represent our journey through life, during which we too encounter temptations, difficulties, and fatigue. At times we too may find ourselves distraught and without hope.

As the angel does, so does the Church invite us to nourish ourselves with the bread, in all ways unique, that is Christ himself present in the Holy Eucharist. In him we’ll find the strength to reach heaven in spite of our weakness.

One writer says Holy Communion was called the viaticum during the early years of Christianity, drawing an analogy between this sacrament and the viaticum or provisions of food and money that Romans took with them on long journeys.

Later this term was reserved for the spiritual assistance, in particular the Holy Eucharist, that the Church gives to her children during the final and definitive stage of their journey to eternal life.

St. Cyprian says the first Christians had the custom of taking communion to those in prison, especially when their martyrdom drew near.

St. Thomas teaches that this sacrament is called the viaticum because it prefigures the joy of possessing God in our true homeland and because it makes it possible for us to reach that goal.

It is our great help during our life, and especially at the end of the road when the attacks of the enemy may be all the more intense. This is the reason why the Church has always recommended that no Christian should die without it.

From the very beginning, the need and the obligation to receive this sacrament was evident, even though one might already have received communion on that day.

We may also recall today the obligation at times grave that we have to do everything possible so that no relative, friend, or colleague of ours dies without the spiritual assistance that our mother the Church provides for the final moments of our journey.

This is the best and most effective, and perhaps the last possible manifestation of charity and affection towards those persons here on earth. Our Lord rewards us with a deep joy when we fulfill this most agreeable, though at times difficult, duty.

Throughout our life, deeds should express our gratitude to Our Lord for many things. But especially for having given us Holy Communion. Our gratitude will be shown in preparing to receive him better each day and to receiving him fully aware that he gives us more than he gave Elias, all the strength we need to travel resolutely down the road of sanctity.

In the Gospel of St. John, Jesus says, “I am the bread of life. If anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever, and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (John 6:48, 51).

Today, Our Lord forcefully reminds us, on this feast of St. John Mary Vianney, that we need to receive him in Holy Communion in order to participate in the divine life, to overcome temptations, to foster and nourish the life of grace born in us through baptism.

Whoever receives communion in the state of grace participates in the fruits of the holy Mass and obtains benefits that are proper and specific to the reception of the sacrament. He receives Christ himself, the source of all grace, really and spiritually.

The Holy Eucharist is the greatest sacrament, the center and summit of all the rest. The true presence of Christ in this sacrament gives us an infinite supernatural effectiveness.

There is no greater joy in this life than to receive Our Lord. When we wish to give ourselves to others, we often give them something that belongs to us, or something we know, to symbolize a deeper attitude of affection, of love.

But we always encounter some limitation to our self-giving. In Holy Communion, divine power surpasses all human limitations. Under the Eucharistic species, Christ gives himself to us completely.

Love achieves her ideal in this sacrament: complete identification with the person loved and longed for. When two pieces of wax are put into the fire, they melt and become as a single thing. Something similar occurs when we participate in the body of Christ and in his precious blood.

Truly there is no greater joy or greater good than to receive Christ himself in Holy Communion with dignity. The soul cannot but be grateful when, fighting off all routine, we frequently seek the Master in Holy Communion.

The banquet is prepared, and many are invited, we’re told, although few attend. How can we excuse ourselves? Love destroys all excuses.

St. Alphonsus Liguori says, the desire to receive this sacrament can be renewed often during the day by means of the spiritual communions that consist in an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and in a loving conversation as if we had already received him.

We will receive many graces and be given help to work better and serve others. It will be easier for us to place the Mass at the center of our day.

The visit to the Blessed Sacrament is also a very beneficial practice. A manifestation of our gratitude, a sign of love and adoration that we owe Our Lord, said St. Paul VI.

There’s no better place than before the tabernacle for those intimate personal conversations that are required for a permanent union with Christ. Pius XII says that is the most appropriate place for our dialogue with Our Lord, as is clear from the lives of the saints.

An unforgiving impulse to continuous prayer during work, in the street, everywhere. Sacramentally present, the Lord sees us and hears us with greater intimacy. His heart still beats out of love for us and is the source of all life and holiness.

He invites us daily to return the visit that he made to us coming sacramentally into our soul. He tells us, “You too, come away to a desert place, to rest a while” (Mark 6:31). Near him we will find peace if we have lost it. Strength to finish well the work at hand, and joy in the service of others.

St. Alphonsus says, what shall we do you ask in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament? Love him, adore him, thank him, ask him. What does a poor man do in the presence of a rich man? A sick man in the presence of a doctor? Or one who is thirsty at the sight of a crystal clear fountain?

Jesus has what we lack and need. He’s our strength along the road of life.

At the Last Supper, Our Lord said “That you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). He wanted to engrave these words on the memory of the disciples and on ours, and in order to do so he washed their feet.

“By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we also ought to lay down our life for our brethren” (1 John 3:16). How will we do that? Well, there are many ways of putting Our Lord’s new commandment into practice. Forgiving, excusing, understanding, taking a sincere interest in other people, performing little acts of service in daily life, in the family, at work, at leisure.

All these are opportunities of bringing Our Lord’s commandment to life, making it a part of our life.

At the Last Supper, Jesus also prayed to the Father for the unity of those who would be called by him down through the centuries, “That they may all be one, even as you Father are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:21).

We can ask St. John Mary Vianney to help us today to be instruments of unity among our brethren, within the Church and within society.

We cannot be unmindful of the great things the Lord has done with us by bringing us into his Church. St. Josemaría says, if we want to retain it, we must share it. Giving his life to others. Or as Cardinal Newman says, our religion is not merely a matter of private devotion, it is a social matter. That religion is the life of the whole person, and it ought to encompass all human endeavors and natural, human, and supernatural elegance, the difficulties and errors of ordinary life.

We’re told in St. John, “The Master is here and he calls you” (John 11:28). We are told this every day. May we not ignore the invitation, may we go with joy and be well prepared to meet him. We have everything to gain from the encounter.

Our Lady, the mother of priests, will help us each day of our life to fulfill this great goal.

I thank you my God for the good resolutions, affections, and inspirations that you have communicated to me during this meditation. I ask your help to put them into practice. My immaculate Mother. St. Joseph, my father and lord. My guardian angel, intercede for me.

EW