Priest of the millennium. John Maria Vianey.

You are a priest forever › Heb 5, 6. The writer Antonio Sicari writes in the book Portraits of Saints, that the life of the holy parish priest is full of innocence and wonders, until one is tempted to tell it like a fairy tale. And the tale would read like this: „ Once upon a time, a Christian-based village boy named John lived in France, who loved solitude and God from his earliest childhood. And since the lords in Paris caused a revolution and prevented people from praying, the child and his parents went to mass in the corner of a granary. Priests hid in those days, and when they were caught, their heads were shaved. That is why John dreamed of becoming a priest. Although he could pray, he lacked education. He guarded sheep and worked in the fields.

The entered the seminar very late and failed all exams. But professions were very rare at the time, so they finally let him graduate. He was appointed parish priest in Arsa and remained there until his death. He was a parish priest in the most remote village in France. However, he was a parish priest through and through and this does not happen often. He was so much so that the most remote village of France could be proud of the most important parish priest of France. All of France went on a journey to see him. He took all who came to him, and if he had not died, he would have converted all of France. He healed souls and bodies. He read in his hearts like from a book. The devil tempted him, but even so he could not prevent himself from becoming a holy man. He became a canon, then a knight of the Road Legion, then a saint. But as long as he lived, he never understood why. And that was the most beautiful proof that he really deserved fame. In paradise, where the true value of the people will be revealed, the events of the 19th century are called the century of the parish priest of Ars, but France has no idea.

In this narrative we feel the hand of the artist, who, in a few short strokes, managed to draw almost the entire profile of the saint, the patron saint of priests. But suddenly the author stops and realizes that in reality behind this innocence lies a deep authentic drama of a person who faithfully served God and his neighbors. His perfect devotion to vocation is an encouragement and an invitation to us, because the Church is not made up of people who are better than others, but of people who want to become better than they are.