Dear Parishioners:                    

Pope Francis greets people after Mass.

Pope Francis has said: "We can rightly say that the family is 'like one of the family' at Mass because it brings to the Eucharist its own experience of togetherness and opens it to the grace of universal togetherness, of God's love for the world. In participating at Mass, the family is purified from the temptation to turn in on itself, fortified in love and fidelity, and extends the reach of its fraternity according to the heart of Christ."

One thing missing from our parish following the pandemic is many of our parish families participating in weekly Sunday Mass. While the pandemic and its many restrictions have ended and schools, restaurants, sports programs, travel, and shopping have all returned to the pre-pandemic normality, many of our OLM families have chosen not to return to regularly attending Holy Mass on Sundays. 

The self-imposed exile of many families from Holy Mass is truly a sad circumstance here at OLM and in most parishes across the country. The pre-pandemic practice of attending Sunday Mass seems to have disappeared from the calendar of many Catholics. It is important to remember that the Eucharist is the source and summit of our Catholic Faith and, therefore, must be the center of our lives.     

St. John Vianney, Cure d’Ars and Patron Saint of Parish Priests

St. John Vianney, whose feast we celebrate this week on Thursday, August 4, faced a similar situation in the 19th Century. In 1818, he was appointed parish priest of the town of Ars. This assignment opened his eyes to the sordid state of the community of 230 people.

The spirit of the French Revolution had made many people ignorant and indifferent toward their Catholic Faith. They turned to indulging in vice rather than seeking to lead lives of virtue. Drunkenness and debauchery in local taverns rather than attending Mass was the new Sunday routine for many local townspeople. 

During his assignment in Ars, St. John Vianney strived to transform his town spiritually. He preached against sin and vice. He dedicated himself to teaching the children the Catholic Faith. He vehemently preached against blasphemy and paganism, even refusing to give absolution to parishioners who did not change their ways. It took St. John Vianney 10 years to bring spiritual renewal to the Town of Ars.

His prayer, zeal, and perseverance resulted in greater attendance at Sunday Mass and people turning away from their vices. Sunday Mass became the week's highlight in the townspeople's life.

The town of Ars began to draw pilgrims who sought St. John Vianney's spiritual advice. By 1855, about 20,000 people would visit him, seeking his counsel. In the last ten years of his life, he would spend 16 to 18 hours per day in the confessional hearing confessions.

  On August 4, 1859, the saintly parish priest of Ars died at 73. More than 6,000 people and 300 priests attended his Funeral Mass.  St. John Vianney was canonized in 1925 by Pope Pius XI and was made the patron saint of parish priests. 

As a result of the French Revolution, St John Vianney had received little formal education. Early on, he felt called to the priesthood but struggled in school. While in seminary, he needed private tutoring to supplement his lack of formal education. He was an academically poor student yet he would become world-renowned and declared the patron Saint of Parish Priests. His life and priestly ministry teach many lessons about faith and perseverance.

Ignorance and misunderstanding of the Catholic Faith and apathy and indifference toward religion, coupled with a love for material comfort and personal pleasure, seem to be common signs of our times. Such indifference and misunderstanding were also true in the early 19th Century in a small town in France.     So let us turn to Saint John Vianney to inspire and intercede for us. May he lead us to be more zealous in the practice of our Faith and make Sunday Mass the center of life for every parishioner at OLM. Let's put Sunday Mass back on the schedule and make it the highlight of our week.

As St. John Vianney once said: "If we truly understood the Mass, we would die of joy." 

 Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!!!