Praise be God the Most Holy Trinity and Let honor be given
to the Blessed Mother and all the Saints and Holy Men and Women who have gone
before us marked with the sign of faith.
Today, we are privilege to honor the memorial of St. John
Vianney. Thanks to Leonardo Defilippis and his presentation on the life of St. John Vianney awhile back. The presentation has given us all a better visualization of this great saint who has become the Patron Saint of Parish Priests, and an
inspiration for all people.
John Marie Vianney witnessed the aftermath of the
French Revolution, and saw what could be described as the persecution of the
Church. His home became a place of refuge
for Priests. It was in his house that he receive his First Holy Communion from a priest.
After his seminary training, if it were not for another Priest who vouched for him, John Vianney would not have made into the Priesthood because of his struggles in the study of Latin. But this inspiring priest went on to become an inspiration for many parish priests and lay.
One of the things that inspired me was at the very beginning of his Priesthood. John Vianney was sent to Ars, a small town in France. He had difficulty finding the Church. Along the way, he asked a shepherd boy the directions. John Vianney phrased it in this manner which marks the motto he will embrace as a Doctor of souls. He told the young boy: "Show me the way to Ars, and I will show you the way to
heaven.”
John Vianney certainly showed the people of Ars the way to heaven
through his powerful preaching, through the reverent celebration of the Mass,
and spending countless of hours in the Confessional. It’s believed that he would spend 12 hours
each day in the Confessional. As a
result, people traveled from all over to go to confession to this wonderful
Saint.
Interestingly, in both readings, we have two holy prophets that
are also striving to show people the way to heaven. One is Jeremiah, the weeping prophet. The other is John the Baptizer, the fiery
preacher. Their message of repentance was
difficult for people to swallow. But it
was necessary to welcome God’s salvation through the Beloved Son, Jesus.
Repentance from the Greek Metanoia (change of mind) means to change, and become obedient to God’s
commandments and will. It was necessary because the chosen people have entered into a covenant with Yahweh, and they are called to keep their end of the binding contract.
The message of metanoia (change of mind) can be difficult especially when our will is in conflict with God's will. That is why the Lord taught us to align our will to God's will. "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
What does it mean when we say: “Thy will be done on earth as
it is heaven.” First, we can compare to
a sick person who goes to see a physician, and readily abides to the Physicians’
counsel. The great divine physician gives us the
medicine to restore humanity to its original dignity. We are sinners because of the constant battle between our
spirit and our flesh. But we were
originally created with a spirit that is fully subjected to God’s will, and
likewise, the flesh subjected to the spirit without corruption.
Secondly, in order to embrace God’s will, we must realize that
God’s will is good, pleasing and perfect.
Through the Paschal Mystery, Jesus paid the price, and restores our
original dignity. Jesus also open the
gates of paradise so that we may look forward with hope to eternal life. That’s God’s will! It is good, pleasing and perfect.
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