"After the writings of the Curé d'Ars" "Jean-Marie Baptiste Vianney was born on May 8, 1786 in Dardilly." "Ordained on August 13, 1815, he was named Curé of Ars on February 9, 1818." "He led the parish for 41 years." "He died in Ars on August 4, 1859 at the age of 73." "Exhumed on June 17, 1904, his body was found intact." "Only his face, though recognizable, has since been covered with a wax replica." "God has chosen me to bring his grace to sinners, for I am the most ignorant and lowly of priests," "If there were a priest more ignorant and lowly than I," "God would have chosen him instead," "Day after day," "Vianney walks through the village with his humility, his joy, and that grace, the gift God bestowed upon him." "Day after day, he murmurs the only word that doesn't sting or provoke tears of blood but guides his innermost thoughts and the immaterial actions of what he calls his "wretched life"." "The word "love"." "Love is better than fear," "There are those who love God, but in fear," "They make their lives miserable," "That is not the way to love Him," "God is good," "He knows our suffering," "We must love Him," "We go through this life as in a fog, but faith and the wind scatter this fog and let the Sun shine upon our souls," "The presbytery." "Jean-Marie Vianney lives in poverty." "He gives everything away." "Through force of will and sacrifice, he eliminates the need for material possessions." "His kitchen." "He eats nothing, or very little." "He only eats what he needs to stay alive." "Sometimes he feels faint." "Only then does he realize he hasn't eaten in three days." "But he knows that fasting, like prayer, bring him peace." "His bedroom." "On the wall, his favorite engravings." "Relics to keep him company when he can't sleep." "Books providing subject matter for his sermons." "Saint John the Evangelist, Saint Joseph," "Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Louis King of France." "This is the iron chain he used to scourge himself during the early years of his ministry." "But his most frightening instrument of penitence will be the confessional." "For thirty years, he will spend twelve hours a day inside it, carrying out his pious mission to save souls." "Here, between these boards, the future Saint will discover mankind's misery." "This place will provide a setting for the elusive miracle whose mystical beauty frightens us." "The miracle the Saint would replicate throughout his life." "To the weak he will give strength, to the downtrodden he will give joy, to the discouraged he will give hope." "But he will pay a high price." "The parish of Ars is no better or worse than another." "But the priest demands more from his parishioners, who are too preoccupied with themselves and tend to forget God." "He wants to share with them this immense, incomparable love that consumes him." "He is thirty years old and naive." "His inexperience makes him awkward." "So he gives himself to God and decides to suffer for the souls of Ars." "God answers his calling." "And so this shy man, deeply good, immeasurably kind and filled with love, struggles with his own nature and musters the strength to become ruthless, almost tyrannical." "He says:" "If a pastor does not wish to risk damnation, he must, when faced with controversy in his parish, banish the fear of being scorned or hated by his parishioners," "Even if death awaits him when he descends the pulpit, he must not waver," "He takes up the struggle." "Of cabarets, he says:" "You will no longer enter them, You will enter my church," "Cabarets are the devil's boutique, where souls are bought and sold," "Households are ruined, health is undermined, fights break out and murders are committed," "One by one, the cabarets close." "Of village dances, he says:" "You will not attend dances," "You will attend my church," "How can you be so bedazzled as to believe dancing is harmless?" "It is the Devil's rope by which he drags souls into Hell," "He who attends a dance leaves his guardian angel at the door and a demon takes its place," "Soon the dancehall is teeming with as many demons as dancers," "So the dancing ceases." "Men work on Sunday." "He says:" "You will no longer work on Sunday," "You will come to my church," "For of all the sins, this is the one most likely to bring upon us frost, hail, floods, cholera and all other epidemics," "His attitude may seem unpleasant, but Vianney forces no one." "People listen to him." "And for months, those who frequent the church are subjected to reproach, criticism and condemnation." "My Brethren, some of you would not walk 100 steps to attend Mass," "Others do attend, all the while wishing to leave again," "Bad Christians arrive late, linger near the door and do not pray," "They chat and laugh, like at the market," "I pity them," "If they happen upon a friend along the way, they invite him home for a drink, leaving Mass for another day," "When the priest takes the altar you're still at your mirrors, contemplating your reflections," "Bad Christians always find the service too long," "Men think of their business," "Women, their households," "Young men, their pleasure," "Young women, their vanity," "The priest still at his altar, they rush the doors, anxious to leave," "Poor souls," "How miserable you are," "Go on, return to your daily lives," "Hell awaits you," "The faithful no longer appreciate this type of sermon." "They're tired of his severity." "After Mass, they plot and conspire." "The stern penitent annoys, upsets, infuriates." "No matter." "He says:" "There is a saintly wrath, born of a desire to apply God's teaching," "He acts out of duty, not by nature." "He knows that he must." "Retaliation will be violent." "Families turn against him." "People conspire." "Plot a revolt." "Threaten him." "Sully his door with refuse." "Deface the presbytery with vile words." "Anonymous letters urge him to leave town." "Rumors fly." "Gossip and slander are reiterated daily." "His sallow complexion is attributed not to his incessant mortifications, but to a secret life of debauchery." "Near the presbytery, a pregnant girl claims the priest is the father of her child and harangues him nightly at his window." "No mental suffering is spared." "He is riddled with anxiety." "Despair gets the better of him." "He decides to flee the parish and join a monastery." "In the dead of night, he leaves the presbytery." "He starts for Villefranche, but doesn't get far." "He feels each step is leading him to Hell." "His cowardice fills him with shame, more than their hurtful lies." "He stops at the Croix des Combes and considers his error." "No, it is not God's will for me to flee," "Saving one soul is worth more than a lifetime of solitary prayer," "Moments later he is back at the presbytery." "God, how inept I am," "Another man would surely do better," "I desire at present only silence, solitude, and oblivion," "God is at his side." "And anew, this pious man, this master of sacrifice, intensifies his penitence." "He grabs his iron chain and scourges himself to the extreme limit." "With one last, painful effort, he rises." "His bloody back stains the wall." "Later, he will write:" "If only I could sleep for an hour," "My suffering is so great I cannot rest even five minutes," "God," "I must thus come to You with empty hands," "All I can do is throw myself at Your feet, like a dog at his master's," "Unable to sleep, he rises, leaves the presbytery and goes to the church, his refuge." "He kneels down and begins to pray." "Slowly, humbly, he walks the difficult path leading to God." "He is no longer among us." "He has joined He to whom he offers his joy and pain." "The cool dawn breeze carries him gently back to his parish, which he will once again lead, awakening it from its long, deep slumber." "He is seized by a powerful force, shaking him from within." "The parishioners begin to feel guilty." "They lower their eyes." "They feel shame in the presence of the man they insulted." "He now knows nothing and no one in this world can hurt him." "He has won his first battle." "His work can begin." "The first penitents start coming." "He begins the confessions that will elevate him and absolve earthly sins." "A painful endeavor lasting from dawn till sunset, for soon he has so many followers the church is unable to contain them." "Ars becomes a sanctuary of penitence." "Each day, two hundred people besiege the confessional." "Jean-Marie Vianney will spend the rest of his life in it." "At the Procès de I'Ordinaire, a witness says of him:" "I never knew him to rest, not even for one day," "He carried out his priestly duties with admirable sensitivity and scruples," "He persevered to his death, accomplishing his rigorous tasks with utter devotion to his fellow man," "The perfection he preached to others was the guiding light for his own behavior," "I've never seen such energy, such strength of will," "He was a quiet force, an invincible force," "like the force emanating from God."