Feast of St John Vianney, Patron Saint of Parish Priests.

"At that time Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” (Matthew 15: 21 - 28).

Wednesday 4th August 2021, is the feast day of the patron saint of parish priests, the Curé of Ars, St John Vianney (1786 - 1859). French. What do you want from your parish priest?
#1 Celebrate Mass with reverence and devotion.
#2 Always be available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation and be the face of the loving mercy of Jesus Christ.
#3 Assist the poor as best as they can.

St John of Vianney set an excellent example as a parish priest. The Church noticed and made him the Patron Saint of Parish Priests.
St John Vianney said à propos the role of the priests in the mystery of salvation:
"Without the priest, the passion and death of our Lord would be of no avail.... What use would be a house filled with gold, were there no one to open its door?” John opened the door to the merciful love of Jesus to sinners through the Sacrament of Reconciliation where he spent hours upon hours every day.

Our Gospel of today is a master piece in teaching us the necessity of perseverance for our prayers to be answered. One of the authorities on this is St Claude de la Colombière, SJ. He teaches that one of the reasons we receive no response to our prayers is because we do not persevere. Notice the scene between the Canaanite woman and Jesus.

"But he [Jesus] did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” He said in reply, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

The woman heard this discouraging words from the Prophet but was not discouraged. She came and knelt before Jesus and said:
“Lord, help me.”
Jesus replied: “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour."

St Claude de la Colombière said that God likes a haggler like Abraham. God admires a tough person who knows what she wants and is prepared to fight for it. The Canaanite woman teaches us a lesson on effective prayer. God promises to answer everyone who asks. He is not a man to lie. I do not know a single spiritual writer on Prayer in the Catholic tradition who teaches anything different.

"I ask them for a prayer that is sincere and persevering, for a prayer that will become in their hearts a ceaseless murmur rising to the Father as a spiritual offering." (IN SINU JESU page 240).

St John of Vianney is a trustworthy servant. Let us pray constantly to the Lord to send numerous Priests like St. John Vianney to the harvest.

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