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 St. Pope Pius V: 5th Centenary of Birth Detail From Alterpieces by Grazio Cossoli Scott 1258-1259 (2004) The Feast of Pope Saint Pius V is celebrated on April 30, one day before the anniversary of his death on May 1, 1572. Born in Bosco in 1504, Michael Ghislieri became a Dominican at age 14. He studied at Bologna, and held positions in the Order as a lecturer in theology and philosophy, novice master, and prior. A reformer, he was chosen as Commissary General of the Inquisition. When Cardinal Caraffa became Pope Paul IV (1555-1559), he appointed Ghlislieri a cardinal (1557) and inquisitor general (1558). He was a reformer during the Reformation era and known for his personal holiness. He was elected Pope in 1566 and took the name Pius V. Historian J. N. D. Kelly writes that Pius V: "made it his avowed objective to put into effect, in every sphere, the decrees of the Council of Trent (the concluding session of which ended in 1563) and was a man who always thought and acted from a spiritual viewpoint, (and) made no change in his mortified style of life, continuing to war a monk’s rough undergarments beneath his papal robes.”Pius V issued a series of decrees on blasphemy and public immorality in Rome, as well as against profanation of holy days. He enforced rules on clerical residency and alienation of papal lands by noble families, and began a systematic review of religious orders, abolishing some which did not perform up to the mark. He reviewed episcopal appointments and selected cardinals with care. He published a catechism in 1567, a revised breviary in 1568, a Roman missal in 1570, and set up a commission to revise the Vulgate Bible. He visited Roman basilicas to ensure Trent’s reforms were being carried out and arranged for parish visitations. He relied upon the Inquisition to combat heresy and establish the Congregation of the Index in 1571 regarding prohibited books. Many of these reforms were the product of the Council of Trent. His foreign policies attempted to reduce state influence/control of churches, leading to opposition from various Catholic monarchs such as in France and Spain. In 1570 he excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I of England, the last such excommunication of a reigning monarch, an act which made life difficult for Catholic adherents in England. He supported efforts in France against the Huguenots, but was disillusioned when toleration was granted in the 1570s. He clashed with the Holy Roman Emperor who wanted a measure of toleration for German Protestants. His successful foreign policy came off the western coast of Greece at Lepanto (7 October 1571) with the defeat of a Muslim navy. He established the Feast of Our Lady of Victory (later Our Lady of the Rosary) to be held on 7 October thereafter. Historian Kelly concludes Pius V was: "single-minded, devout to the point of intolerance, relentless in his persecution of heresy...(and left) a distinctive Tridentine impress on the Church."Pius V was canonized in 1712 by Pope Clement XI. Reference: |
