- Matthew 6:12 -
Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
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He drew a circle to shut me out,
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout;
But love and I had the wit to win,
We drew a circle take him in.
- Edwin Markham
Forgiveness is a healing experience, not just because it frees the
offender,
but because it can free you from anger and hurt.
What Must I Do To Be Saved?
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November 4th - Saint Charles Borromeo, 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.
Sources: The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Principal Saints, by Rev.
Alban
Butler (Metropolitan Press: Baltimore, 1845), Vol. IV, October-December;
Little
Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on Butler's Lives of
the
Saints and other sources by John Gilmary Shea (Benziger Brothers: New
York,
1894).
Saint Quote:
If we wish to make any progress in the service of God we must begin every
day of
our life with new eagerness. We must keep ourselves in the presence of God
as
much as possible and have no other view or end in all our actions but the
divine
honor.
--Saint Charles Borromeo
Bible Quote:
Give thanks to the Father, who has made us worthy to share the lot of the
Saints
in the light. Col. 1:12
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O most holy Heart of Jesus, fountain of every blessing,
I adore Thee, I love Thee and with a lively sorrow for my
sins, I offer Thee this poor heart of mine. Make me humble,
patient, pure and wholly obedient to Thy will. Grant, good
Jesus, that I may live in Thee and for Thee. Protect me in the
midst of danger; comfort me in my afflictions; give me health
of body, assistance in my temporal needs, Thy blessing on all
that I do, and the grace of a holy death. Within Thy Heart I
place my every care. In every need let me come to Thee with
humble trust saying, Heart of Jesus help me.
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