St. Pius V, Pope
Obligatory Memorial
Born at Bosco, near Alessandria in Italy, in 1504, Antonio Ghislieri received the habit of the Friars Preachers as a young man, taking the name Michael in 1520. After being ordained priest in 1528 and obtaining the title of lector, he taught sacred theology and was several times prior of a convent, distinguished by integrity of life and austerity.
Appointed commissary general of the Roman Inquisition in 1551, he was soon named Bishop of Nepi and Sutri by Paul IV in 1556, then cardinal in 1557. Finally, in 1560, Pius IV entrusted to him the Diocese of Mondovì in Piedmont.
Raised to the supreme pastoral office as pope, taking the name Pius, on Jan. 7, 1566, with the support of St. Charles Borromeo, he devoted himself entirely to the salvation of souls and the reform of the Church. He vigorously defended the Catholic faith against innovators and worked to spread it, while putting into practice the decrees of the Council of Trent.
He gradually and thoroughly reformed the Roman Curia; published the Roman Catechism in 1566; provided for the solid formation of the clergy, especially by introducing into seminaries the Summa Theologiae of St. Thomas Aquinas; and, extending a title then used more narrowly, declared Thomas the fifth Doctor of the Latin Church under the name “Angelic Doctor” in 1567.
He effectively promoted the unity and renewal of the liturgy and established it firmly through the publication of the Roman Breviary in 1568 and the Roman Missal in 1570. He also highlighted the unity of dogmatic tradition between the Eastern and Latin Churches by honoring the four great doctors of each with the same liturgical titles.
He resisted with all his strength and resources those who opposed the faith. Especially memorable is the naval expedition he prepared against the Turkish fleet. Moved by the victory won by the Christian princes at Lepanto on Oct. 7, 1571, which he attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mother of God of the Rosary, he instituted her feast in 1572.
He died most devoutly in Rome on May 1, 1572, and was beatified by Clement X on May 1, 1672. Finally, he was enrolled in the canon of saints by Clement XI on May 22, 1712. His body is honorably venerated in Rome, in the Basilica of St. Mary Major.
Proprium Officiorum Ordinis Praedicatorum ad Normam Decretorum Sacrosancti Oecumenici Concilii Vaticani II Instauratum Vincentii Couesnongle iussu editum, Editio typica, Sanctae Sabinae, Romae 1982.
