A doctor for Ars
Among those close to the Curé of Ars, we cannot ignore his doctor, Doctor Jean-Baptiste Saunier. “My corpse does not need many things,” said Mr. Vianney, and yet he will have recourse to a doctor. It was he who had chosen it; around 1835 Mr. Vianney, while visiting patients at the Hôtel-Dieu in Lyon, met the doctor.
Perceiving the need for a doctor near his parish, he said to him: “After that, you will come to me in Ars. The country is decimated by fevers. We need you.” Not without hesitation, the doctor will give in to the wishes of the holy Curé.
From Lyon to Ars
He first lived in Villeneuve, later settling with his wife and two children in Sainte Euphémie (5 km from Ars).
It was especially the “great illness” of the Curé of Ars in 1843 that affected the doctor. Many had lost hope. Dr. Saunier remarked: “Here is the last fight. It is the end ! He only has 30 or 40 minutes to live.”
A few hours later, mass was celebrated for him and it was healing! His doctor will have the audacity to force the Saint Curé to rest and eat properly. Mr. Vianney will obey his doctor’s wishes like a child.
The latter did not hesitate to contact the bishop to strengthen his authority. The Curé of Ars, forced to eat more, sighed:
— I’ve become greedy… I’m not so comfortable when I go to confession!
Very soon he will return to his pace as a confessor of 12 to 16 hours a day!
Man of science
During his visits to the patients of Ars, Dr. Saunier will hear the different stories about Mr. Vianney and the grappling hook that tormented his life.
He probably also learned about it through the testimony of the priest himself.
A man of science, he will give two important scientific declarations at the Beatification Process to show the physical and mental balance of his patient, whom he will have cared for for more than 20 years.
In 1859, weakened and suffering from the summer heat, Mr. Vianney was forced to remain bedridden from the end of July.
We call the doctor:
— It’s useless, said Mr. Vianney, the doctor will do nothing about it… nor this time Saint Philomena…
— I have 36 francs left, give them to Mr. Saunier,… and if he doesn’t come back, I won’t be able to pay him.
But how many times the doctor had refused his fees…
Knight of the Order of Saint Sylvester
He will stay with the dying person until the end. It was with great sadness that he lost his patient saint who had become his friend: “My relationship with the servant of God was one of intimacy; I never saw in him anything other than an accomplished model of all the virtues.”
Later, to reward the tireless dedication of Dr. Saunier towards the Providence of Ars, the orphans and the poor, and his great solicitude towards Mr. Vianney, Pius IX made him knight of the Order of Saint Sylvester, [at that time there were only 27 knights in the world !].
Extract from the Annales d’Ars n° 330[Janvier – février 2011] .
