⛪ Saint of the Day : November 04
Archbishop of Milan
(1538-1584)
Saint Charles Borromeo was born in 1538 in the castle of Arona on the borders of Lake Major, fourteen miles from Milan. He was the son of Count Gilbert Borromeo, a descendant of one of the most ancient families of Lombardy, very famous for its great men. The Count was known for his almsgiving and his rigorous fasts; it was his custom never to eat a meal without first giving alms. The Countess, Charles’ mother, was also exceptionally virtuous. Their family was composed of two sons and four daughters, all of whom manifested in their lives the splendor of their Christian heritage. Their maternal uncle, John Angelus of Medici, became Pope Pius IV. Charles was clearly destined for the ecclesiastical vocation; all his preferences in study made it clear.
When he was twelve years old, a paternal uncle willed to him an abbey in commendam; and the child constantly reminded his father that this revenue was the patrimony of the poor. His father wept for joy, seeing his son’s solicitude for the just application of his trust.
Count Gilbert died when Charles was twenty years old, and he was obliged to come home from Pavia where he had been studying law; he returned there, however, to complete his doctorate at the university after settling his affairs. One year later, when his maternal uncle became Pope Pius IV, he created Charles cardinal, and after another year nominated him Archbishop of Milan. The Pontiff detained him in Rome, however, seeing his extensive capacities and adding to these offices other administrative duties which ordinarily require the prudence of mature years. No one was disappointed in his services, despite the fact he was maintaining delicate papal relations with other nations, as protector of Portugal and the Low Countries, and was at the head of the Knights of Malta, the Orders of Carmel and Saint Francis, among other duties.
When the Council of Trent (1545-1563) was nearing its conclusion, Saint Charles, who had participated with authority in many of its twenty-five sessions, desired to leave Rome to attend to his diocese of Milan, a duty which his vicar general had carried out until that time. The urgency of the situation there persuaded the Pope to consent regretfully to his departure. Saint Charles intended to put into execution the reforming decrees of the Council, create seminaries and schools and in general restore discipline in the Church of Milan.
As Archbishop of Milan he enforced the observance of the decrees, and thoroughly restored the discipline of his see. Criticism hounded him there, but left him unmoved; he kept with him in his episcopal household of about one hundred persons, a certain priest who delighted in finding fault with whatever he did; he treated him with great consideration, and in his will left him a pension for life. He was very severe with himself, eating only once a day, and limiting himself often to bread and water. When someone suggested he should have a garden at Milan to get some fresh air, he replied that the Holy Scriptures should be the garden of a bishop.
The sermons of Saint Charles produced great fruits among all ranks of the people. When young he had manifested a speech defect with a tendency to speak too fast, but he overcame these handicaps with many efforts. A man who admired him said that he always forgot the orator himself when he preached, so transported was he by the great truths he heard explained, and the longest sermons of Saint Charles seemed short to him. Everywhere the holy Archbishop established schools of Christian doctrine, numbering in all seven hundred and forty, in which over three thousand catechists were employed, presiding over forty thousand students.
Once Saint Charles heard a cardinal who was a bishop of a small diocese say that his diocese was too small to require his constant residence there, as canon law required; Saint Charles said to him with force that the price of one soul is such as to merit the residence and entire time of the greatest of men. He himself visited the most remote corners of his diocese, traveling in mountainous regions amid the greatest dangers, which he regarded as nothing unusual, and unworthy of mention.
Inflexible in maintaining discipline, to his flock he was a most tender father. He would sit by the roadside to teach a poor man the Pater and Ave. During the great plague which broke out in Milan, which he had foretold as a chastisement for the disorders of the Carnival, he refused to leave, asking those who remonstrated with him if it were not more perfect to remain with one’s flock than to abandon them in need, and adding that a bishop is obliged to choose what is most perfect. He was ever at the side of the sick and dying. He stripped his palace of literally everything to aid those who had lost their support in their fathers and spouses, even giving away his straw mattress. As he lived, so he died, having governed his church for twenty-four years and eight months. To the heroic sanctity of this faithful copy of the Good Shepherd, many miracles came to testify, through his relics and his intercession. In 1610 he was canonized by Pope Paul V.
Prayer to Saint Charles Borromeo:
In the following novena to St. Charles Borromeo, Catholics recall his zeal, the virtues of his life, and his support for Christian education. In the novena, supplicants ask the saint to pray for them, that they may imitate his virtues.
O glorious St. Charles, the father of the clergy, and the perfect model of holy prelates! You are that good pastor, who, like your divine Master, gave up your life for your flock, if not by death, at least by the numerous sacrifices of your painful mission. Your sanctified life on earth was a spur to the most fervent, your exemplary penance was a reproach to the slothful, and your untiring zeal was the support of the Church.
O great Prelate, since the glory of God and the salvation of souls are the only objects of solicitude to the blessed in heaven, vouchsafe to intercede for me now, and to offer up for the intention of this novena, those fervent prayers which were so successful while you were on earth.
[Mention your request]
You are, O great St. Charles, among all the Saints of God, one in whose intercession I should most confide, because you were chosen by God to promote the interests of religion, by promoting the Christian education of youth. You were, like Jesus Christ himself, always accessible to little ones; for whom you broke the bread of the word of God, and procured for them also the blessings of a Christian Education. To you, then, I have recourse with confidence, beseeching you to obtain for me the grace to profit of the advantages I enjoy, and for which I am so considerably indebted to your zeal. Preserve me by your prayers from the dangers of the world; obtain that my heart may be impressed with a lively horror of sin; a deep sense of my duty as a Christian; a sincere contempt for the opinion and false maxims of the world; an ardent love for God, and that holy fear which is the beginning of wisdom.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. Christ have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ hear us. Christ graciously hear us.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
Queen of Apostles, pray for us.
St. Charles, pray for us.
St. Charles, imitator of Christ,
St. Charles, faithful follower of Christ crucified,
St. Charles, replenished with the spirit of the Apostles,
St. Charles, consumed with zeal for the glory of God,
St. Charles, the light and support of the Church,
St. Charles, Father and Guide of the Clergy,
St. Charles, most desirous of the salvation of souls,
St. Charles, a model of humility and penance,
St. Charles, most zealous, for the instruction of youth, pray for us.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us, O Lord.
V. Pray for us, O glorious St. Charles.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray.
Preserve Your Church, O Lord, under the continual protection of Your glorious Confessor and Bishop, St. Charles, that as he was eminent for the discharge of his pastoral duties, so his prayers may make us zealous in the love of Your holy name: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
More Info :
American Catholic π Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church π Catholic Cuisine π Catholic Culture π Catholic Fire π Catholic-Hierarchy.Org π Catholic Ireland π Catholic Information Network π Catholic News Agency π Catholic Online π Cradio π Franciscan Media π Independent Catholic News π Katherine Rabenstein π Lives of the Saints, by John J Crawley π R C Spirituality π Saint Peter’s Basilica Info π Saints Alive, by Father Robert McNamara π Saints for Sinners π Saints Stories for All Ages π uCatholic π Wikipedia
