Saint Pius V, Pope, Religious
Optional Memorial
April 30th

from a traditional Prayer card

History:
Born at Bosco, near Alexandria, Lombardy, Jan. 17, 1504; elected Jan. 7, 1566; died May 1, 1572. Being of a poor though noble family his lot would have been to follow a trade, but he was taken in by the Dominicans of Voghera, where he received a good education and was trained in the way of solid and austere piety. He entered the order, was ordained in 1528, and taught theology and philosophy for sixteen years. In the meantime he was master of novices and was on several occasions elected prior of different houses of his order in which he strove to develop the practice of the monastic virtues and spread the spirit of the holy founder. He himself was an example to all. He fasted, did penance, passed long hours of the night in meditation and prayer, traveled on foot without a cloak in deep silence, or only speaking to his companions of the things of God. In 1556 he was made Bishop of Sutri by Paul IV. His zeal against heresy caused him to be selected as inquisitor of the faith in Milan and Lombardy, and in 1557 Paul II made him a cardinal and named him inquisitor general for all Christendom. In 1559 he was transferred to Mondovi, where he restored the purity of faith and discipline, gravely impaired by the wars of Piedmont. Frequently called to Rome, he displayed his unflinching zeal in all the affairs on which he was consulted. Thus he offered an insurmountable opposition to Pius IV when the latter wished to admit Ferdinand de' Medici, then only thirteen years old, into the Sacred College. Again it was he who defeated the project of Maximilian II, Emperor of Germany, to abolish ecclesiastical celibacy. On the death of Pius IV, he was, despite his tears and entreaties, elected pope, to the great joy of the whole Church.

He began his pontificate by giving large alms to the poor, instead of distributing his bounty at haphazard like his predecessors. As pontiff he practiced the virtues he had displayed as a monk and a bishop. His piety was not diminished, and, in spite of the heavy labors and anxieties of his office, he made at least two meditations a day on bended knees in presence of the Blessed Sacrament. In his charity he visited the hospitals, and sat by the bedside of the sick, consoling them and preparing them to die. He washed the feet of the poor, and embraced the lepers. It is related that an English nobleman was converted on seeing him kiss the feet of a beggar covered with ulcers. He was very austere and banished luxury from his court, raised the standard of morality, labored with his intimate friend, St. Charles Borromeo, to reform the clergy, obliged his bishops to reside in their dioceses, and the cardinals to lead lives of simplicity and piety. He enforced the observance of the discipline of the Council of Trent, reformed the Cistercians, and supported the missions of the New World.

He worked incessantly to unite the Christian princes against the hereditary enemy, the Turks. In the first year of his pontificate he had ordered a solemn jubilee, exhorting the faithful to penance and almsgiving to obtain the victory from God. He supported the Knights of Malta, sent money for the fortification of the free towns of Italy, furnished monthly contributions to the Christians of Hungary, and endeavored especially to bring Maximilian, Philip II, and Charles I together for the defense of Christendom. In 1567 for the same purpose he collected from all convents one-tenth of their revenues. In 1570 when Solyman II attacked Cyprus, threatening all Christianity in the West, he never rested till he united the forces of Venice, Spain, and the Holy See. He sent his blessing to Don John of Austria, the commander-in-chief of the expedition, recommending him to leave behind all soldiers of evil life, and promising him the victory if he did so. He ordered public prayers, and increased his own supplications to heaven. On the day of the Battle of Lepanto, Oct. 7, 1571, he was working with the cardinals, when, suddenly, interrupting his work opening the window and looking at the sky, he cried out, "A truce to business; our great task at present is to thank God for the victory which He has just given the Christian army". He burst into tears when he heard of the victory, which dealt the Turkish power a blow from which it never recovered. In memory of this triumph he instituted for the first Sunday of October the feast of the Rosary, and added to the Litany of Loreto the supplication "Help of Christians". He was hoping to put an end to the power of Islam by forming a general alliance of the Italian cities Poland, France, and all Christian Europe, and had begun negotiations for this purpose when he died of gravel, repeating "O Lord, increase my sufferings and my patience!" He left the memory of a rare virtue and an unfailing and inflexible integrity. He was beatified by Clement X in 1672, and canonized by Clement XI in 1712.

(Principal source - Catholic Encyclopedia - 1913 edition)

Collect:
O God, who in your providence
raised up Pope Saint Pius the Fifth in your Church
that they faith might be safeguarded
and more fitting worship be offered to you,
grant, through his intercession,
that we may participate in your mysteries
with lively faith and fruitful charity.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. +Amen.

First Reading: 1 Corinthians 4:1-5
This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. I do not even judge myself. I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then every man will receive his commendation from God.

Gospel Reading: John 21:15-17
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Feed my lambs." A second time He said to him, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, "Do you love Me?" And he said to Him, "Lord, You know everything; You know that I love You." Jesus said to him, "Feed My sheep.

Holy Spirit Interactive Kids: A Saint a Day

St. Pius V

Feast Day: April 30
Born: 1504 :: Died: 1572

This holy pope was born at Bosco in Italy to noble Italian parents. He was baptized Anthony Ghislieri. Because his family lost their wealth and became poor, his parents had no money to send him to school.

It seemed as though Anthony's dream to become a priest, would never come true. Then one day, two Dominican priests visited their home and met Anthony. They liked him so much that they offered to educate him.

Anthony received an excellent education. He also became very pious and holy. So at the age of fourteen, Anthony joined the Dominican order. That is when he took the name "Michael." He finally became a priest, and was appointed a teacher of philosophy and divinity (religion) in Genoa.

He traveled for sixteen years to the many Dominican houses teaching them how to live for God. Then he was made bishop and later a cardinal. He continued teaching his people how to live a holy life by his words and example.

He bravely defended the teachings of the Church against those who fought against them. He lived a life of penance and sacrifice. When he was sixty-one, he was chosen pope and took the name Pope Pius V.

He had once been a poor shepherd boy. Now he was the head of the whole Catholic Church. Yet he remained as humble as ever and still wore his white Dominican habit, the same old one he had always worn. No one could make him change it.

As pope, Pius V had many challenges to face, he drew strength from the crucifix. He reflected every day on the sufferings and death of Jesus. At this time, the Turks were trying to conquer and take over the whole Christian world. They had a great navy on the Mediterranean Sea.

Christian soldiers went to battle against them at a place called Lepanto, near Greece. From the moment the army set out, the pope prayed the Rosary and asked the people to do the same. Thanks to the help of the Blessed Mother, the Christians won a great victory. In gratitude and thanksgiving to Mary, St. Pius V established the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary which we celebrate each year on October 7.

As pope, he started many new seminaries (colleges for priests) and wrote many church documents to guide the people. He spent much time looking after the poor with money from the church wealth and building hospitals for the sick. Pope Pius V died in Rome on May 1, 1572.

John
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	John 15
18.	If the world hate you, know ye, that it hath hated me before you.	Si mundus vos odit, scitote quia me priorem vobis odio habuit.	ει ο κοσμος υμας μισει γινωσκετε οτι εμε πρωτον υμων μεμισηκεν
19.	If you had been of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.	Si de mundo fuissetis, mundus quod suum erat diligeret : quia vero de mundo non estis, sed ego elegi vos de mundo, propterea odit vos mundus.	ει εκ του κοσμου ητε ο κοσμος αν το ιδιον εφιλει οτι δε εκ του κοσμου ουκ εστε αλλ εγω εξελεξαμην υμας εκ του κοσμου δια τουτο μισει υμας ο κοσμος
20.	Remember my word that I said to you: The servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you: if they have kept my word, they will keep yours also.	Mementote sermonis mei, quem ego dixi vobis : non est servus major domino suo. Si me persecuti sunt, et vos persequentur ; si sermonem meum servaverunt, et vestrum servabunt.	μνημονευετε του λογου ου εγω ειπον υμιν ουκ εστιν δουλος μειζων του κυριου αυτου ει εμε εδιωξαν και υμας διωξουσιν ει τον λογον μου ετηρησαν και τον υμετερον τηρησουσιν
21.	But all these things they will do to you for my name's sake: because they know not him who sent me.	Sed hæc omnia facient vobis propter nomen meum : quia nesciunt eum qui misit me.	αλλα ταυτα παντα ποιησουσιν υμιν δια το ονομα μου οτι ουκ οιδασιν τον πεμψαντα με

18. If the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you.
19. If you were of the world, the world would love his own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
20. Remember the word that I said to you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If' they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
21. But all these things will they do to you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me.

CHRYS. Or thus: I have said that I lay down My life for you, and that I first chose you. I have said this not by way of reproach, but to induce you to love one another.

Then as they were about to suffer persecution and reproach, He bids them not to grieve, but rejoice on that account: If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you: as if to say, I know it is a hard trial, but you will endure it for My sake.

AUG. For why should the members exalt themselves above the head? You refuse to be in the body, if you are not willing, with the head, to endure the hatred of the world. For love's sake let us be patient; the world must hate us, whom it sees hate whatever it loves;

If you were of the world, the world would love his own.

CHRYS. As if Christ's suffering were not consolation enough, He consoles them still further by telling them, the hatred of the world would be an evidence of their goodness; so that they ought rather to grieve if they were loved by the world, as that would be evidence of their wickedness.

AUG. He said this to the whole Church which is often called the world; as God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself (2 Cor 5:19). The whole world then is the Church, and the whole world hates the Church. The world hates the world, the world in enmity, the world reconciled, the defiled world, the changed world. Here it may be asked, If the wicked can be said to persecute the wicked; e. g., if impious kings, and judges, who persecute the righteous, punish murderers and adulterers also, how are we to understand our Lord's words, If you were of the world, the world would love his own? In this way; The world is in them who punish these offenses, and the world is In them who love them. The world then hates its own so far as it punishes the wicked, loves its own so far as it favors them. Again, if it be asked how the world loves itself, when it hates the means of its redemption, the answer is, that it loves itself with a false, not a true love, loves what hurts it; hates nature, loves vice. Wherefore we are forbidden to love what it loves in itself; commanded to love what it hates in itself. The vice in it we are forbidden, the nature in it we are commanded, to love. And to separate us from this lost world, we are chosen out of it, not by merit of our own, for we had no merits to begin with, not by nature which was radically corrupt, but by grace: But because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

GREG. For the dispraise of the perverse, is our praise. There is nothing wrong in not pleasing those who do not please God. For no one can by one and the same act please God, and the enemies of God. He proves himself no friend to God, who pleases His enemy; and he whose soul is in subjection to the Truth, will have to contend with the enemies of that Truth.

AUG. Our Lord, in exhorting His servants to bear patiently the hatred of their world, proposes to them an example than which there can be no better and higher one, viz. Himself: Remember the word that I said to you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My saying, they will keep yours also.

GLOSS. They observed it in order to calumniate it, as we read in the Psalms, The ungodly sees the righteousness .

THEOPHYL. Or thus: If, He says, they have persecuted your Lord, much more will they persecute you; if they had persecuted Him, but kept His commandments they would keep yours also.

CHRYS. As if He said, you must not be disturbed at having to share My sufferings; for you are not better than I.

AUG. The servant is not greater than his lord. Here the servant is the one who has the purified fear, which abides for ever.

CHRYS. Then follows another consolation, viz. that the Father is despised and injured with them: But all these things will they do unto you for My name's sake, because they know not Him that sent Me.

AUG. All these things, viz. what He had mentioned, that the world would hate them, persecute them, despise their word. For My Name's sake, i.e., in you they will hate Me, in you persecute Me, your word they will not keep, because it is mine. They who do these things for His name's sake are as miserable, as they who suffer them are blessed: except when they do them to the wicked as well; for then both they who do, and they who suffer, are miserable. But how do they do all these things for His name's sake, when they do nothing for Christ's name's sake, i.e., for justice sake? We shall do away with this difficulty, if we take the words as applying to the righteous; as if it were, All these things will you suffer from them, for My name's sake. If for My name's sake mean this, i.e., My name which they hate in you, justice which they hate in you; of the good, when they persecute the wicked, it may be said in the same way, that they do so both for righteousness' sake, which they love, which love is their motive in persecuting, and for unrighteousness' sake, the unrighteousness of the wicked, which they hate. Because they know not Him that sent Me, i.e. know not according to that knowledge of which it is said, To know you is perfect righteousness (Wisdom 15:3).

Catena Aurea John 15

Catholic Culture

Easter: April 30th

Optional Memorial of St. Pius V, pope; Optional Memorial Blessed Marie de l'Incarnacion, religious (Can)

MASS READINGS

April 30, 2016 (Readings on USCCB website)

COLLECT PRAYER

O God, who in your providence raised up Pope Saint Pius the Fifth in your Church that the faith might be safeguarded and more fitting worship be offered to you, grant, through his intercession, that we may participate in your mysteries with lively faith and fruitful charity. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

show

Recipes (3)

show

Activities (1)

St. Walburga

show

Prayers (2)

show

Library (5)

Old Calendar: St. Catherine of Siena, Virgin

St. Pius V, who was born in 1504, joined the Dominicans at the age of fourteen; he was sixty-two when he was elected Pope. His reign, though short, was one of the most fruitful of the sixteenth century. To Protestantism, which had proclaimed the Reformation, St. Pius replied by applying the decrees of the Council of Trent for the reform of the Church. He played a great part in the return of the clergy to ecclesiastical discipline. Against Islam, which threatened the West, he succeeded in forming a coalition of Christian forces: and by public prayers, organized everywhere at his request, he was instrumental in obtaining the decisive victory of Lepanto in 1571. He died the following year on May 1. We also owe to St. Pius the reformation of the liturgical books of the Roman rite.

The Church in Canada celebrates the feast of Blessed Marie of the Incarnation. Commanded by a vision to become a missionary in Canada, in 1639 Marie Guyart de Incarnation arrived in what would become Quebec City. By 1642, Marie had built a convent, establishing the first Ursuline school in New France. Her talents as a business administrator enabled the convent to survive against enormous financial odds. Marie learned Algonkin and Iroquois, and wrote dictionaries for both languages. Her 1654 Relation ranks her among the greatest mystics of the Catholic Church. Regularly consulted on political and economic matters.

According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Catherine of Siena. Her feast in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite is celebrated on April 29. St. Pius V's feast in the extraordinary form is celebrated on May 5.

St. Pius V
In December of 1565, Pope Pius IV died. His one monumental achievement was the resumption and successful conclusion of the Council of Trent. The man chosen to succeed Pius IV and upon whose shoulders rested the responsibility for carrying out the decrees of the council was Michael Ghislieri, a Dominican friar. It was the late pontiff's nephew St. Charles Borromeo who had been the driving force in the election of the new pope, for he recognized that a remarkable leader would be needed if the decrees of the council were to bear fruit.

Michael Ghislieri was a poor shepherd boy who entered the Dominicans at the age of fourteen, became a lecturer in philosophy and theology at Pavia, and very early became involved in the reform movement in the Church. His reforming labors brought him to the attention of other members of the reform movement, and he was given important positions in Como, Bergamo, and Rome. In 1556, he was consecrated bishop of Sutri and Nepi, and then to the diocese of Mondevi, lately ravaged by war. In a very short time, the diocese was flourishing and prosperous. His views on reform were often asked by the Holy Father, and he was noted for his boldness in expressing his views.

His holiness and austerity of life were notable, and he succeeded in bringing simplicity even into the papal household. He refused to wear the flowing garments of previous popes and insisted upon wearing his white Dominican habit even as head of the Church. To this day, the pope wears white, a custom begun by this Dominican pontiff.

The announced intention of St. Pius V was the carrying out of the decrees of the Council of Trent. He insisted that bishops reside in their diocese under pain of losing their revenues; he made a systematic reform of religious orders, established seminaries, held diocesan synods, and reformed the Breviary and Missal. He brought unity into divine worship, published catechisms, ordered a revision of the Latin Vulgate and revitalized the study of theology and canon law. During his pontificate, the Turks were definitively defeated at the battle of Lepanto, due, it was said, to the prayers of the pope.

Pius V died in 1572, at the age of sixty-eight, deeply grieved by the troubles besieging the whole Church. He was canonized by Pope Clement XI in 1712.

Things to Do:

Read about the Council of Trent. Read the decrees issued by the Council or read the Canons on Justification with a summary of their teachings.

Marie de l'Incarnacion
Her name was originally Marie Guyard. She was married in her youth and bore a son; when her son was 12 years old, her husband died and she decided to enter the Ursuline order. At her entreaty, the authorities gave her and another nun permission to go to New France to work among the Native Americans. In 1639 she arrived in Quebec, where she was soon head of an Ursuline convent. She administered her house with great success and worked among the Native Americans with notable results. Her letters are valuable sources of French Canadian history. She wrote devotional works and catechisms, not only in French but in Native American languages. She died of hepatitis in Quebec, Canada. — See A. Repplier, Mère Marie of the Ursulines (1931).

Things to Do:

Learn about the history of New France and of the native Americans.
Assist the Indian missions by your prayers and donations.

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Acts 16:1-10

Saint Pius V, Pope (Optional Memorial)

Paul had him circumcised. (Acts 16:3)

In today’s first reading, we find Paul making a curious decision. Even though he argued passionately in his letters that Gentile Christians did not need to be circumcised, he decided to have Timothy circumcised. Luke tells us that Paul wanted his young companion to have the best chance to be heard and respected by the people he was trying to reach.

Because Timothy was the son of a Greek father and a Jewish mother, his identity was likely to raise questions. Was he a Gentile or a Jew? This may not seem important to us, but if Timothy wanted to reach the Jews, it was worth every sacrifice to open the door to evangelize. This decision was an effort to be, as Paul says, “all things to all” (1 Corinthians 9:22).

We can see a similar kind of strategy in St. Francis Xavier, one of the original Jesuits. When he traveled as a missionary to Japan, he followed the same approach that had won him success in India: he dressed like one of the poor people of their society. He eventually realized, however, that this approach was not very helpful in his new place. So he decided to present himself as an educated and cultured man instead. This, he learned, was the best way for him to be an attractive and effective messenger in that culture.

We may not be reaching out to a different culture the same way that Paul and Timothy and Francis Xavier did, but we can still make ourselves effective witnesses. It might mean adjusting the way we act or dress, in order to fit in with the people we are with. For example, if you are helping out at a local food pantry, you wouldn’t show up in a suit and tie. Or if you are helping lead a parish youth group, you would want to learn something about the music the kids are listening to.

We can make real headway when we use our imagination to find new ways to reach people even as we use our hearts to pray for God’s wisdom. “What would be most helpful in opening a door for sharing my story with this person?” “Are there any obstacles that I can easily remove?” Little steps like these can make all the difference!

“Lord, help me to be an effective witness to the people around me.”

Psalm 100:1-3, 5
John 15:18-21

Regnum Christi

The Master and the Slave

U. S. A. | SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

April 30, 2016 - Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Father Patrick Langan, LC

John 15: 18-21

Jesus said to his disciples: "If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you, ´No slave is greater than his master.´ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. And they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me."

Introductory Prayer: Lord, thank you for granting me the opportunity to be with you. There are things in life, Lord, that attract me, but you attract me more. I hope in you, and I love you. Maybe I don’t really understand what it means to love, and maybe I don’t love the way I should, but I do love you.

Petition: Lord, help me to embrace my cross joyfully.

Bearing the Burden: “The world hated me first.” This is the incredible story of the Gospels. Christ came and the culture was against him. As the story of Christ in the Gospel progresses, the forces of antagonism get worse: The dangers increase with the turning of every page. This was a real burden for Christ, the burden of a parent whose children turn against him. Perhaps I, too, feel that burden. Perhaps I experience that rejection from those who love me or from those who don’t believe.

Loving Acceptance: Christ courageously and lovingly accepted that burden. He did not complain. Perhaps he asked his Father for an easier way. It is the same in our lives. I often face problems, even when I want to do good. There comes a moment in life when I must accept my limitations and the limitations imposed on me by others. This is a memorable moment in life—the moment I accept my cross, like Christ did. That acceptance isn’t easy, but at the same time it fills my heart with a deep peace and sometimes even joy.

Seeking Solutions: After I accept my cross, I experience a new courage, and my imagination fires up. Love always looks for solutions: Christ never stopped searching for ways to get through to the culture. I must do the best I can to evangelize, even though I may encounter opposition. With Christ’s help, no obstacle is too great. He will help me to overcome all the problems I may encounter. The important thing is that I keep focused on the fulfillment of his will out of love. He will take care of the rest.

Conversation with Christ: Lord, you know my burden. You know what makes me lose sleep, what I wake up worrying about. Help me to accept it, as you accepted your cross.

Resolution: I will stop complaining and see what I can do to alleviate the burdens and sufferings of others.

One Bread, One Body

Language: English | Español

All Issues > Volume 32, Issue 3

<< Saturday, April 30, 2016 >>

Pope St. Pius V

Acts 16:1-10
View Readings

Psalm 100:1-3, 5

John 15:18-21
Similar Reflections

DAILY BREAD

"The congregations grew stronger in faith and daily increased in numbers." —Acts 16:5

The early Church grew in numbers daily. "Day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved" (Acts 2:47). The early Church grew daily because:

"They went to the temple area together every day, while in their homes they broke bread" (Acts 2:46).
"Day after day, both in the temple and at home, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news of Jesus the Messiah" (Acts 5:42).
"Each day they studied the Scriptures" (Acts 17:11).
They encouraged "one another daily" (Heb 3:13).
They denied themselves and took up their crosses each day (Lk 9:23).
They faced "death every day" for love of Jesus and in hope of the resurrection (see 1 Cor 15:31).

The Lord promises to give us daily bread (Mt 6:11) if we will live in Him daily (see Jn 15:5). Receive your daily bread. Receive the Lord.

Prayer: Father, may every day of the rest of my life be a sacrifice pleasing to You.

Promise: "The reason it hates you is that you do not belong to the world. But I chose you out of the world." —Jn 15:19

Praise: Pope St. Pius V lived an exemplary, humble life, both as a simple friar and later as a humble pope.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.