Yesterday was the feast day of St. John Vianney and I will like to share with you two stories about this great saint that I read from National Catholic Register article titled 10 Important things to be Happy about Today by Simcha Fisher:
I am quoting from the article.
1. Today is the feast day of John Vianney, the Curé of Ars.
He tended not to notice how ratty his clothes were getting, because he was so busy taking care of his flock, hearing confessions for eleven hours a day, spending his free time with orphans and at adoration. He often had supernatural knowledge of the private state of people’s souls. But my favorite story is when some disgruntled parishioners circulated a petition to the bishop to have him removed as pastor for being ” incompetent, lazy, ineffective, [and] driving people away.”
So . . . he signed the petition. Womp womp. St. John Vianney, pray for priests!
2. More awesomeness: He has a message of hope for people who’ve endured the suicide of a loved one.
A woman told St. John Vianney that she was devastated because her husband had committed suicide. She wanted to approach the great priest but his line often lasted for hours and she could not reach him. She was ready to give up and in a moment of mystical insight that only a great saint can receive, John Vianney exclaimed through the crowd, “He is saved!” The woman was incredulous so the saint repeated, stressing each word, “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.”
Read more:
St. John Vianney pray for us!!!
Intrepid Muses 