Prayer of Saint John Vianney

I love you, O my God.My only desire is to love you, until the last breath of my life. I love you O infinitely lovable God, and I prefer to die loving you, rather than to live for an instant without you. I love you, O my God, and I desire only to go to Heaven, to have the happiness of loving you perfectly. I love you, O my God, and my only fear is to go to hell, because one will never have the sweet solace of loving you there. O my God, if my tongue cannot say at all times that I love you, at least I want my heart to repeat it to you as many times as I breathe. Ah! Do me the grace: to suffer while loving you, To love you while suffering, And that when I die I not only will love you, but experience it in my heart. I beg you that: the closer I come to my final end, You will increase and perfect my love for you.

Prayer to Saint John Vianny

Dear Saint John Vianney,
your childhood dream was to be a Priest,
to win souls for God.
You endured years of toil and humiliation
to attain the Priesthood.
You became a priest truly after God's own heart,
outstanding in humulity and poverty;
prayer and mortification.
Totally devoted to the service of God's people.
The Church has exalted you as model
and patron saint of all Parish priests,
trusting that your example and prayers
will help them to live up
to the high dignity of their vocation
to be faithful servants of God's people,
to be perfect imitators of Christ the Saviour
Who came not to be served but to serve,
to give His Life in ransom for many.

Pray that God may give to His Church today
many more priests after His own Heart.
Pray for all the priests under your patronage,
that they may be worthy representatives
of Christ the Good Shepherd.
May they wholeheartedly devote themselves
to prayer and penance;
be examples of humility and poverty;
shining modelss of holiness;
tireless and powerful preachers of the Word of God;
zealous dispensers of God's Grace in the Sacraments.
May their loving devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist
and to Mary His Mother
be the Twin Fountains of fruitfulness for their ministry.

Amen.