4 August 2021
Memorial of Saint John Vianney, Priest
John Vianney was a saint who knew the power of the presence of Jesus. On one occasion, he wrote that we are “more fortunate than the first Christians, who had to go 50 or 60 miles for the happiness of seeing Him,” because “the church of every parish contains Him.” We see today the Canaanite woman who will accept no one else but Jesus to heal her child. She fights to be with Jesus, and to have Jesus heal her child. We have with relative ease what the Caananite woman fought for.
Do we appreciate the words of St. John Vianney, and would we fight to pray before a tabernacle as the Caananite woman fought to have Jesus heed her request? If we do not yet appreciate Vianney’s words, we should ask how we can grow in our love of the gift Jesus has given us in being present in every tabernacle. Yesterday, we took a moment to reflect on the power of God at work in our lives. This week, if you have the opportunity, go before the Eucharist in prayer, and see it as the source of the power you have experienced.