M. Vianney, the cure of Ars, was a French country priest, whose
holiness was exemplary. We read in his life the following
account of his inner need of sacrifice:--
"'On this path,' M. Vianney said, "it is only the first step
that costs. There is in mortification a balm and a savor without
which one cannot live when once one has made their acquaintance.
There is but one way in which to give one's self to God-- that
is, to give one's self entirely, and to keep nothing for one's
self. The little that one keeps is only good to trouble one and
make one suffer.' Accordingly he imposed it on himself that he
should never smell a flower, never drink when parched with
thirst, never drive away a fly, never show disgust before a
repugnant object, never complain of anything that had to do with
his personal comfort, never sit down, never lean upon his elbows
when he was kneeling. The Cure of Ars was very sensitive to
cold, but he would never take means to protect himself against
it. During a very severe winter, one of his missionaries
contrived a false floor to his confessional and placed a metal
case of hot water beneath.
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