St. John Mary Vianney is better known as the Curé of Ars. He was born at Dardilly, near Lyon, on May 8, 1786. Because the years of his growing up coincided with those of the French Revolution and its aftermath, he only had a few months of formal schooling. When he was eighteen years of age, despite the disturbed times, he began private studies for the priesthood, but such studies were difficult for one without a proper educational foundation. In 1809, he was called to military service, but due to illness he was unable to join his unit before it departed, and later when it was time to join a subsequent unit, he missed it because he visited a church on the way. While trying to catch up with this second unit, he found another young man in a similar situation and went along with him; but the young man, rather than looking for the unit, sought asylum in a small village, and there they remained until an amnesty was granted in March 1810. John then attended the minor seminary; in 1813 he went to Lyon for theology, but he had to leave the following year (1814) because of his inability to cope with the Latin language. After being tutored privately, he was finally ordained on August 12, 1815. In 1818, he was assigned to Ars, a small parish of 230 individuals, all of whom had become slovenly in the practice of their religion. He cleaned and restored the church, visited the families in the parish, and began catechism classes. Within eight years, what had been a dying parish was now vibrant with life. Fr. Vianney was known for his ability to read hearts and, thus, he became a renowned confessor, with penitents coming to him from all parts of France. He spent an average of twelve to thirteen hours a day in the confessional! He died at Ars on August 4, 1859; he had been there forty-one years. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1925, and in 1929 the same pope made him patron of parish priests.
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