SACRAMENT OF GOD'S MERCY

Memorial of St. John Marie Vianney, Priest
Mt 9:35-10:1

He almost did not make it to the priesthood. He was a slow learner or so they say. He had a hard time with Latin. And during his time, a seminarian had to be fluent in Latin to be considered for ordination to the priesthood. Jean Baptiste Marie Vianney became a priest because of mercy.

God’s mercy made John Marie Vianney a priest. He became a priest not because he deserved it. He became a priest because God desired it and gave him such a very precious gift gratuitously. Jean Vianney was a priest; he is a sacrament of God’s mercy. No wonder, he devoted much of his entire priestly life dispensing God’s mercy through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. He spent very long hours in the confessional, reconciling men and women with God, and giving them spiritual advice. He was also renowned for his devotion to the Holy Eucharist. A humble servant of God, He served in parish of Ars for forty-two years until he passed from this life to the next. Pope Piux XI declared John Marie Vianney, who almost did not become a priest, as Patron of the Universal Clergy.

As Patron of the Universal Clergy, John Marie Vianney reminds priests that their priesthood is always an unmerited gift that the Lord entrusted to them. It is out of His mercy and of His mercy alone that they are priests. Because they are priests because of the Lord’s mercy, priests, by their life and ministry, must be reminders of God’s mercy to His People. They are priests; they are sacraments of God’s mercy.

Priests must always be merciful. Otherwise, they have already forgotten what they really are.