The Priesthood and St. John Marie Vianney

Thoughts of Pope Benedict XVI

On June 19, 2009, which is the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Pope Benedict XVI inaugurated the Year of Priests on the occasion of the 150th Year of the death or dies natalis of St. John Marie Vianney whom the Pope reminds us the patron of the parish priests. On that day, he said, will be a day of prayer for the sanctification of priests. It will be a year of theological, spiritual, and pastoral reflection with regard to the vocation and the wondrous gift of the priesthood. Yet, at the opening and closing messages of the Year of the Priesthood, the Pope reminded us about the images of the priesthood which all priest should not forget since it is, according to him, “meant to deepen the commitment of all priests to interior renewal for the sake of a stronger and more incisive witness to the Gospel in today’s world, will conclude on the same Solemnity in 2010.” Let us revisit some of the Pope’s thoughts about the priesthood that are important to develop more priestly spirituality.

1. Priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus. These words were from St. John Marie Vianney himself. Benedict XVI reminds us of the immensity of the gift that priests represent and the gratitude every priest should give because of gift that is given to the Church and to humanity. The expression of the saint is indeed worth reflecting and the Pope said: “I think of all those priests who quietly present Christ’s words and actions each day to the faithful and to the whole world, striving to be one with the Lord in their thoughts and their will, their sentiments and their style of life.” The lifestyle of St. John Marie Vianney is an invitation to all priests to emulate. Benedict XVI desires that all priests imitate his “new style of life.” St. John XXIII clarified about this new style of life which was revisited by Benedict XVI saying that he “presented his asceticism with special reference to the “three evangelical counsels” which the Pope considered necessary also for diocesan priests: “even though priests are not bound to embrace these evangelical counsels by virtue of the clerical state, these counsels nonetheless offer them, as they do all the faithful, the surest road to the desired goal of Christian perfection”.

 

2. Priesthood is imitating a Good Example. A priest is one who imitates Christ and yet also sets a good example to others. Benedict XVI said that he remembers his first parish priest whom he served as a young priest. He was an inspiration of a great pastoral servant that could not forget. He described him: “he left me an example of unreserved devotion to his pastoral duties, even to meeting his own death in the act of bringing viaticum to a gravely ill person.” If a priest learns to imitate a good example from fellow priests, men generously dedicated to the daily exercise of their priestly ministry,” how much more for imitating Christ who is indeed the source of our priesthood. St. John Marie Vianney was a lover of the poor and he set a good example for every Christian and every priest to be of service to the least brethren in our midst. The Pope further appreciated the saint saying that: “His poverty was not the poverty of a religious or a monk, but that proper to a priest: while managing much money (since well-to-do pilgrims naturally took an interest in his charitable works), he realized that everything had been donated to his church, his poor, his orphans, the girls of his “Providence,” his families of modest means.”

 

3. Priesthood is sharing the Pierced Heart of Christ. The priesthood is sharing in the pains and suffering of Christ. It is not a life of comfort but a life of service which has its own share of pain and sacrifices in Christ. When St. John Marie Vianney said “the priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus” it offers a deep conviction and reflection. Benedict XVI said: “Yet the expression of Saint John Mary also makes us think of Christ’s pierced Heart and the crown of thorns which surrounds it.” He could imagine the many priests all over the world who are struggling and enduring the pains of the ministry because of their hard work, the challenges of the mission, and other challenges of the priesthood. He added: “I also think, therefore, of the countless situations of suffering endured by many priests, either because they themselves share in the manifold human experience of pain or because they encounter misunderstanding from the very persons to whom they minister. How can we not also think of all those priests who are offended in their dignity, obstructed in their mission and persecuted, even at times to offering the supreme testimony of their own blood?”

 

4. Priesthood is a Gift and a Task- The priesthood is God’s gift to his people. It is a task to perform because it is fulfilling and continuing the mission of Christ in the world. Benedict XVI said; “The Curé of Ars was very humble, yet as a priest he was conscious of being an immense gift to his people: “A good shepherd, a pastor after God’s heart, is the greatest treasure which the good Lord can grant to a parish, and one of the most precious gifts of divine mercy”. Yet, as the priesthood is performed and lived by chosen men by virtue of their vocation, the priesthood also suffers problems and setbacks. There are ups and downs, joys and sorrows in the priesthood. The Pope further said: “there are also, sad to say, situations which can never be sufficiently deplored where the Church herself suffers as a consequence of infidelity on the part of some of her ministers. Then it is the world which finds grounds for scandal and rejection. What is most helpful to the Church in such cases is not only a frank and complete acknowledgment of the weaknesses of her ministers, but also a joyful and renewed realization of the greatness of God’s gift, embodied in the splendid example of generous pastors, religious afire with love for God and for souls, and insightful, patient spiritual guides.”

 

5. Priesthood is an Unfathomable Sacrament- The descriptions St. John Marie Vianney had about the priesthood would give us an impression that he himself could not fathom the immensity of the gift and task that God has ever given to a human being. He described the priesthood in this fashion: “O, how great is the priest! … If he realized what he is, he would die… God obeys him: he utters a few words and the Lord descends from heaven at his voice, to be contained within a small host…”. Explaining to his parishioners the importance of the sacraments, he would say: “Without the Sacrament of Holy Orders, we would not have the Lord. Who put him there in that tabernacle? The priest. Who welcomed your soul at the beginning of your life? The priest. Who feeds your soul and gives it strength for its journey? The priest. Who will prepare it to appear before God, bathing it one last time in the blood of Jesus Christ? The priest, always the priest. And if this soul should happen to die [as a result of sin], who will raise it up, who will restore its calm and peace? Again, the priest… After God, the priest is everything! … Only in heaven will he fully realize what he is”. According to Pope Benedict XVI, these words may “sound excessive” but it reveals the “high esteem in which he held the sacrament of the priesthood.” St. John Marie Vianney continued to say: “Were we to fully realize what a priest is on earth, we would die: not of fright, but of love… Without the priest, the passion and death of our Lord would be of no avail. It is the priest who continues the work of redemption on earth… What use would be a house filled with gold, were there no one to open its door? The priest holds the key to the treasures of heaven: it is he who opens the door: he is the steward of the good Lord; the administrator of his goods … Leave a parish for twenty years without a priest, and they will end by worshipping the beasts there … The priest is not a priest for himself, he is a priest for you.”

 

6. Priesthood is Obedience and Devotion- As St. John Marie Vianney was to be assigned in a far distant parish which was described by his bishop as “There is little love of God in that parish; you will be the one to put it there,” he went to serve the parish with joy of the grace of obedience. Benedict XVI said: “As a result, he was deeply aware that he needed to go there to embody Christ’s presence and to bear witness to his saving mercy: “[Lord,] grant me the conversion of my parish; I am willing to suffer whatever you wish, for my entire life!”: with this prayer he entered upon his mission.” The Cure of Ars also served the parish with devotion.” “The Curé devoted himself completely to his parish’s conversion, setting before all else the Christian education of the people in his care…The Curé of Ars immediately set about this patient and humble task of harmonizing his life as a minister with the holiness of the ministry he had received, by deciding to “live”, physically, in his parish church: As his first biographer tells us: “Upon his arrival, he chose the church as his home.

 

7. Priesthood is a Channel of Charity- The priest is always at the service of the Church and of every person. He lives a life of charity and the Cure of Ars considered the parish as his home. We usually say that charity begins at home. And as a priest, we were told that “he entered the church before dawn and did not leave it until after the evening Angelus. There he was to be sought whenever needed.” Benedict XVI recalled that “he regularly visited the sick and families, organized popular missions and patronal feasts, collected and managed funds for charitable and missionary works, embellished and furnished his parish church, cared for the orphans and teachers of the “Providence” (an institute he founded); provided for the education of children; founded confraternities and enlisted lay persons to work at his side.”

 

8. Priesthood is Leadership and Communion- The priesthood and Christian communion are inseparable. The priest should be a symbol of communion in a Christian community through the bond of charity. Benedict XVI said: “Priests and laity together make up the one priestly people and in virtue of their ministry priests live in the midst of the lay faithful, “that they may lead everyone to the unity of charity, ‘loving one another with mutual affection; and outdoing one another in sharing honour’” (Rom 12:10). Communion may begin with the priests learning to listen to lay people as well as they may be competent in many ways for the betterment of the Church. “Here we ought to recall the Second Vatican Council’s hearty encouragement to priests “to be sincere in their appreciation and promotion of the dignity of the laity and of the special role they have to play in the Church’s mission. … They should be willing to listen to lay people, give brotherly consideration to their wishes, and acknowledge their experience and competence in the different fields of human activity. In this way they will be able together with them to discern the signs of the times”.

 

9. Priesthood is a Life of Christian Witness- All Christians have the vocation to be a witness of Christ. Paul VI said: “all Christians are called to this witness, and in this way they can be real evangelizers” (EN 21). How much more for a priest who stands in persona Christi capitis (in the person of Christ the head) should be a witness of the Gospel in the Christian community. On the occasion of the 150th Anniversary of the death of St. John Marie Vianney, the priests are reminded of prayer the best form of witnessing in their chosen vocation. The Pope said: “Saint John Mary Vianney taught his parishioners primarily by the witness of his life. It was from his example that they learned to pray, halting frequently before the tabernacle for a visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. “One need not say much to pray well” – the Curé explained to them – “We know that Jesus is there in the tabernacle: let us open our hearts to him, let us rejoice in his sacred presence.” Aside from the witness of the value of prayer, the Cure of Ars shown the value of penance. He taught his parishioners he sought in every way, by his preaching and his powers of persuasion, to help his parishioners to rediscover the meaning and beauty of the sacrament of Penance, presenting it as an inherent demand of the Eucharistic presence. He thus created a “virtuous” circle. By spending long hours in church before the tabernacle, he inspired the faithful to imitate him by coming to visit Jesus with the knowledge that their parish priest would be there, ready to listen and offer forgiveness.”