Biography of the great saint of Milan and of the ecclesial reform

1. SAINT CHARLES BORROMEO

2. He was born on October 2, 1538, in the Rocca de Arona.
He was baptized shortly after in the parish church of Arona.

3. Son of Giberto II
Borromeo, Count
of Arona and
Margherita Medici
de Marignano
(1510-1547), sister
of Pope Pius IV,
Charles was of the
noble and powerful
Borromeo family of
Lombardy.

4. As a young man he played the lute and the cello,
he loved, hunting and chess, ceremony and parties

5. In Milan he
received the
clerical habit
(although he
had not yet been
ordained a priest)
and the tonsure
at the hands of
the Bishop of
Lodi, Giovanni
Simonetta,
on October 13
from 1547.

6. At the age of about twelve, due to the resignation of his uncle
Giulio Cesare Borromeo, he obtained custody of the abbey
of San Leonardo di Siponto in the province of Manfredonia,
with the office and dignity of chief abbot, whose income was
donated entirely for charity towards the poor.

7. At the same time he also became commander of
the abbeys of Santi Felino and Graziano in Arona
(November 20, 1547), of San Silano di Romagnano
(May 10, 1558) and prior commander of Santa
Maria di Calvenzano (December 8 from 1558)

8. He studied humanities in
Milan under the guidance
of Fra Giacomo Merula.

9. and then canon and civil law at the University of Pavia under
the direction of the future Cardinal Francesco Alciato;
there he graduated in jurisprudence on December 6, 1559

10. In 1558 his father died. Despite having an
older brother, Count Federico Borromeo,
his relatives asked Carlo to take control
of the demanding family business

11. but the sudden death of his older
brother led him to change his life
and become a priest,

12. In 1562 Federico
died suddenly and
therefore Charles was
advised to leave the
ecclesiastical office,
marry and have
children, so as not
to extinguish the
family dynasty,
but he preferred
to continue his own
ecclesiastical vocation
and on September 4,
1563 he was ordained
a priest by Cardinal
Federico Cesi in the
Roman basilica of
Santa Maria Maggiore.
However, he inherited
the title of prince of
Orta, which belonged
to his family.

13. Nephew of the
Pope (his mother
Margherita de' Medici
di Marignano was a
sister of the Pope Pius
IV, born Gian
Angelo de' Medici),
Borromeo was made
a cardinal by him and
a private secretary
when he was barely
twenty years old

14. On December 25, 1559, his maternal uncle, Giovan Angelo Medici di
Marignano, was elected Pope with the name of Pius IV and called his
nephews Federico and Carlo Borromeo to Rome to convert them intohis
closest collaborators in the administration of ecclesiastical affairs.

15. On January 13,
1560, Charles
was named proto-
notary apostolic
participant and in
a referendum of
the papal court.
The following
January 22, he
was admitted as
a member of the
council for the
administration of
the Papal State,
thus entering into
the full and
"secular" state
management of
the pope's
possessions.

16. Palazzo Borromeo a Roma

17. From January 27,
1560 he also became
commendatory abbot of
Nonantola, San Gallo di
Moggio, Follina, Santo
Stefano del Corno, an
abbey in Portugal and
another in Flanders.

18. In the consistory
of January 31, 1560,
he was created
Cardinal Deacon
immediately by his
uncle and received
the biretta and the
title of Saints Vitus
and Modestus on
the following
February 14.

19. Venne nominate
amministratore
dell'arcidiocesi di
Milano from 7
February 1560 e
quindi pontifical
legato a Bologna
e in Romagna per
due anni dal 26
aprile 1560.
-Il September 4,
1560 he opted for
the cardinal title
of San Martino
ai Monti

20. receiving the subdiaconate and
the diaconate on December 21,
1560 directly from the pontiff
and soon after was appointed
Secretary of State. As of June 1,
1561, he was appointed
governor of Civita Castellana and
Ancona, as well as proclaimed
an honorary citizen of Rome.

21. In 1562 he
founded the
Vatican Academy,
and from
December 1 he
became governor
of Spoleto and
member of the
Holy Office.

22. On December 7, 1563, he was consecrated bishop in the Sistine Chapel
by Cardinal Giovanni Antonio Serbelloni, assisted by Tolomeo Gallio,
Archbishop of Manfredonia, and by Felice Tiranni.

23. Shortly after, he assumed
the presidency of the
commission of theologians
appointed by the Pope
at the end of the year
to write the Roman
Catechism together with
great figures of the
Counter Reformation such
as Saint Peter Canisius,
San Turibio da Mogrovejo
and San Roberto
Bellarmino

24. in 1564 he created a residential structure for university
students from poor economic conditions

25. Borromeo was over
six feet tall with
a stocky build.
Charles observed the
recommendation of
Ambrose and Augustine
to fast and allocate the
money saved to those in need.
In the last years of his life,
he ate only one meal a
day, after Vespers

26. Charles Borromeo used his influence as Secretary of State to reopen the Council
of Trent in which he participated directly in the sessions of 1562-1563. The final
decrees were confirmed by the pontiff in the consistory of January 26, 1564.

27. Borromeo intervened directly advocating for the Christian cause, in the vision of the Mass
as a real sacrifice of Christ, repeated in each celebration, contrasting with the Protestant
vision according to which the Eucharist would be only a memorial of the Last Supper.

28. at the same time he worked on the revision of the missal and the
breviary as well as the music to be used during the mass, supporting
in this last perspective the career of the Milanese, Orfeo Vecchi

29. Along with Saint
Ignatius of Loyola and
Saint Philip Neri, he
was the soul and guide
of the Catholic
Counter-Reformation.
Among the main
reforms he proposed
and was accepted by
the Council of Trent,
was the institution of
seminaries for the
formation of priests.

30. He dedicated his pastoral action to the care of souls and the moralization of
customs, promoting in addition to "interior" worship, also "external" worship
- liturgical rites, collective prayers, processions - thus reviving faith, identity
and social cohesion especially of the more popular classes.

31. He reformed the diocese, in which ecclesiastical discipline
was lacking, because for almost a century the titular
archbishops, had lived elsewhere, just off the rents.

32. Borromeo was appointed governor of Terracina (June 3) and archpriest
of the Roman basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore (October 1564).
Therefore, he opted for the presbyteral title of Santa Prassede (November
17, 1564) and the pontiff granted him the title of Count Palatine.

33. He
partici-
pated
in the
conclave
of 1565-
1566
that
elected
Pius V

34. After the death of his uncle the Pope, in 1566, he left the
papal court and took possession of the archdiocese of Milan,
which hadn’t had a resident archbishop for eighty years.

35. Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Council of Trent,
he held the position from 1564 to September 1565 when he was
appointed legate in Bologna and spiritual vicar general for all of
Italy (August 17, 1565). Major penitentiary from November 7,
1565, he remained in this position until December 12, 1572

36. He helped
the poor
people
of Milan
during the
terrible
famine
of 1569

37. For his reforming work he also made use of the religious orders (Jesuits, Theatines,
Barnabites), and even founding the congregation of the Oblates of Sant'Ambrogio (1578)

38. In a short time, he reestablished discipline in the clergy, in the male and
female religious orders, dedicating himself to strengthening the morale
of the priests and their religious preparation, founding, according to the
guidelines of the Council of Trent, the first seminaries: the major seminary
of Milan, the Swiss seminary and other minor seminaries

39. In the years of his episcopate, from 1566 to 1584, he
dedicated himself to the diocese of Milan building,
renovating and promoting churches (among the most
important the sanctuaries dell'Addolorata in Rho, - de la
Beata Vergine dei Miracoli di Corbetta, - del Sacred Mont of
Varese, - as well as San Fedele in Milan and - the Church of
the Purification of the Virgin Mary in Traffiume);

40. He was a tireless visitor, his pastoral action
was meticulous and even traveled to the
most remote towns of his archdiocese.

43. he oversaw
the drafting of
important norms
for the renewal
of ecclesiastical
customs, publishing
the Instructiones
fabricae et
supellectilis
ecclesiasticae.

45. He obliged the parish priests of the Milanese parishes to keep up-to-
date and accurate records on the baptisms, marriages and deaths of
the faithful, one of the first steps in the world in the attempt to
establish the direct ancestors of modern registry offices .

46. Pope Gregory
XIII granted him
the necessary
permissions to
establish the
congregation of
the Oblates of
ant'Ambrogio on
April 26, 1578

47. He also started the education of the
laity with the foundation of schools
and colleges (Brera, entrusted to the
Jesuits, or the Borromeo of Pavia).

48. He founded the Academy
of the Vatican Nights,
whose members were both
ecclesiastical authorities
and laity, who met
to discuss the reform
of morals from a
Christian perspective.
The reforms he promoted in
the archdiocese of Milan
were collected in the so-
called Acta Ecclesiae
Mediolanensis

49. He devoted himself to works of welfare during a very severe famine in 1569-
70, and especially in the period of the terrible plague of 1576-1577.

50. visiting the sick during the plague

51. procession organized by the saint to ask for intercession so
that the disease subsides, done barefoot, holding the relic
of the holy nail inserted in a specially built wooden cross

53. He
celebrated
the first
communion
of Luigi
Gonzaga, a
future Jesuit
saint, on
July 22,
1580

54. on this occasion he received in Milan in
1580 the Jesuits Edmund Campion and
Ralph Sherwin, to whom he granted
audience, before his departure to England
with the intention of evangelizing again

55. He promoted devotion
to Saint John Fisher,
who, with Saint Thomas
More, had served
the Catholic faith
under Henry VIII.

56. He was resisted by the Spanish governors and the Milanese Senate, he was threatened with
sticks by the observant Friars Minor, and attacked with swords by the canons of Santa Maria
della Scala, he was threatened by the nuns of Sant'Agostino, he was vilified by the people of
Lecco and shot with an arquebus in the back by a hitman from the order of the “humiliated”

57. By order of Pius V, he proceeded to reform the powerful religious order of
the “Humiliated” whose ideas had distanced themselves from the Catholic
Church and were approaching Protestant and Calvinist positions. Four
members of this order attempted against his life. One of them, Deacon
Gerolamo Donati, known as Farina, was born in Astano, Switzerland.

58. Charles did not want his attackers to be prosecuted, but the civil authorities and
an inquisitor sent to Milan by Pope Pius V proceeded in accordance with civil and
ecclesiastical law. Four responsible for the attempt on his life were arrested and
executed in the Piazza dei Mercanti on August 2, 1570 according to the laws in
force and Donati was buried in San Giovanni Decollato alle Case Rotte.

59. The order of the Humiliated was suppressed and the goods returned
to other orders; in particular, the possessions of Brera were assigned
to the Jesuits and religious works such as the construction of the
Helvetico college and the church of San Fedele were financed

60. He fought
Protestantism
in the Swiss
valleys, rigidly
enforcing the
dictates of the
Council of Trent

61. the fever,
extinguished him
forever, at only 46
years old, on the
afternoon of
November 3, 1584
in Milan.
He was with his
collaborator,
the Welsh bishop
Owen Lewis

62. His body was placed in the crypt of Milan Cathedral

63. his heart was
symbolically
preserved in the
basilica of Saints
Ambrose and
Carlo al Corso in
Rome, behind the
main altar

64. His ring and staff

65. Shield of the
Borromeo family
Shield of cardinal
Charles Borromeo

66. he was
canonized on
November 1
of 1610 by
Paul V
(Camillo
Borghese)

67. He is patron saint of
seminarians, spiritual
directors and spiritual
leaders, collectors of apple
trees; he is invoked against
ulcers, intestinal disorders,
and stomach diseases.

68. Among the most famous churches dedicated
to San Carlo Borromeo we mention the Roman
San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, executed
on a design by Francesco Borromini,
-the church of San Carlo al Lazzaretto
in Milan designed by Pellegrino Tibaldi,
-and the Karlskirche in Vienna, designed
by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach

69. a gigantic statue located in Arona,
on Lake Maggiore and popularly
called the Sancarlone

70. LIST OF PRESENTATIONS IN ENGLISH
Revised 1-11-2022
Advent and Christmas – time of hope and peace
All Souls Day
Amoris Laetitia – ch 1 – In the Light of the Word
Amoris Laetitia – ch 2 – The Experiences and Challenges of Families
Amoris Laetitia – ch 3 - Looking to Jesus, the Vocation of the Family
Amoris Laetitia – ch 4 - Love in Marriage
Amoris Laetitia – ch 5 – Love made Fruitfuol
Amoris Laetitia – ch 6 – Some Pastoral Perspectives
Amoris Laetitia – ch 7 – Towards a better education of children
Amoris Laetitia – ch 8 – Accompanying, discerning and integrating
weaknwss
Amoris Laetitia – ch 9 – The Spirituality of Marriage and the Family
Beloved Amazon 1ª – A Social Dream
Beloved Amazon 2 - A Cultural Dream
Beloved Amazon 3 – An Ecological Dream
Beloved Amazon 4 - An Ecclesiastical Dream
Carnival
Conscience
Christ is Alive
Fatima, History of the Apparitiions
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 1 – Church and Family today
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 2 - God’s plan for the family
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 1 – family as a Community
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 2 – serving life and education
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 3 – mission of the family in society
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 4 - Family in the Church
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 4 Pastoral familiar
Football in Spain
Freedom
Grace and Justification
Haurietis aquas – devotion to the Sacred Heart by Pius XII
Holidays and Holy Days
Holy Spirit
Holy Week – drawings for children
Holy Week – glmjpses of the last hours of JC
Human Community
Inauguration of President Donald Trump
Juno explores Jupiter
Kingdom of Christ
Saint Luke, evangelist
Saint Maria Goretti
Saint Mary Magdalen
Saint Mark, evangelist
Saint Martha, Mary and Lazarus
Saint Martin de Porres
Saint Martin of Tours
Sain Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
Saint Maximilian Kolbe
Saint Mother Theresa of Calcutta
Saints Nazario and Celso
Saint John Chrysostom
Saint Jean Baptiste MarieaVianney, Curé of
Ars
Saint John N. Neumann, bishop of
Philadelphia
Saint John of the Cross
Saint Mother Teresa of Calcuta
Saint Patrick and Ireland
Saing Peter Claver
Saint Robert Bellarmine
Saint Therese of Lisieux
Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles
Saints Zachary and Elizabeth, parents of
John Baptis
Signs of hope
Sunday – day of the Lord
Thanksgiving – History and Customs
The Body, the cult – (Eucharist)
The Chursh, Mother and Teacher
Valentine
Vocation to Beatitude
Virgin of Guadalupe – Apparitions
Virgin of the Pillar and Hispaniic feast day
Virgin of Sheshan, China
Vocation – mconnor@legionaries.org
WMoFamilies Rome 2022 – festval of
families
Way of the Cross – drawings for children
For commentaries – email –
mflynn@legionaries.org
Fb – Martin M Flynn
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SANPAOLO SPA
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Laudato si 1 – care for the common home
Laudato si 2 – Gospel of creation
Laudato si 3 – Human roots of the ecological crisis
Laudato si 4 – integral ecology
Laudato si 5 – lines of approach and action
Laudato si 6 – Education y Ecological Spirituality
Life in Christ
Love and Marriage 12,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
Lumen Fidei – ch 1,2,3,4
Mary – Doctrine and dogmas
Mary in the bible
Martyrs of Korea
Martyrs of North America and Canada
Medjugore Santuario Mariano
Merit and Holiness
Misericordiae Vultus in English
Moral Law
Morality of Human Acts
Passions
Pope Franciss in Thailand
Pope Francis in Japan
Pope Francis in Sweden
Pope Francis in Hungary, Slovaquia
Pope Francis in America
Pope Francis in the WYD in Poland 2016
Passions
Querida Amazonia
Resurrection of Jesus Christ –according to the
Gospels
Russian Revolution and Communismo 3 civil war
1918.1921
Russian Revolution and Communism 1
Russian Revolution and Communismo 2
Saint Agatha, virgin and martyr
Saint Albert the Great
Saint Anthony of Padua
Saint Bruno, fuunder of the Carthusians
Saint Charles Borromeo
Saint Faustina Kowalska and thee divine mercy
Saint Francis de Sales
Saint Francis of Assisi
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint James, apostle
Saint John N. Neumann, bishop of Philadelphia
Saint John Paul II, Karol Wojtyla
Saint Joseph

71. LISTA DE PRESENTACIONES EN ESPAÑOL
Revisado 1-11-2022
Abuelos
Adviento y Navidad, tiempo de esperanza
Amor y Matrimonio 1 - 9
Amoris Laetitia – ch 1 – A la luz de la Palabre
Amoris Laetitia – ch 2 – Realidad y Desafíos de las Familias
Amoris Laetitia – ch 3 La mirada puesta en Jesús: Vocación de la
Familia
Amoris Laetitia – ch 4 - El Amor en el Matrimonio
Amoris Laetitia – ch 5 – Amor que se vuelve fecundo
Amoris Laetitia – ch 6 – Algunas Perspectivas Pastorales
Amoris Laetitia – ch 7 – Fortalecer la educacion de los hijos
Amoris Laetitia – ch 8 – Acompañar, discernir e integrar la fragilidad
Amoris Laetitia – ch 9 – Espiritualidad Matrimonial y Familiar
Carnaval
Conciencia
Cristo Vive
Dia de todos los difuntos
Domingo – día del Señor
El camino de la cruz de JC en dibujos para niños
El Cuerpo, el culto – (eucarisía)
Encuentro Mundial de Familias Roma 2022 – festival de las familias
Espíritu Santo
Fatima – Historia de las apariciones
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 1 – iglesia y familia hoy
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 2 - el plan de Dios para la familia
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 1 – familia como comunidad
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 2 – servicio a la vida y educación
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 3 – misión de la familia en la sociedad
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 4 - participación de la familia en la
iglesia
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 4 Pastoral familiar
Fátima – Historia de las Apariciones de la Virgen
Feria de Sevilla
Haurietis aquas – el culto al Sagrado Corazón
Hermandades y cofradías
Hispanidad
La Iglesia, Madre y Maestra
La Comunidad Humana
La Vida en Cristo
San José, obrero, marido, padre
San Juan Ma Vianney, Curé de’Ars
San Juan Crisostom
San Juan de la Cruz
San Juan N. Neumann, obispo de Philadelphia
San Juan Pablo II, Karol Wojtyla
San Lucas, evangelista
San Mateo, Apóstol y Evangelista
San Martin de Porres
San Martin de Tours
San Mateo, Apostol y Evangelista
San Maximiliano Kolbe
Santa Teresa de Calcuta
Santos Marta, Maria, y Lazaro
Santos Simon y Judaa Tadeo, aposttoles
San Nazario e Celso
San Padre Pio de Pietralcina
San Patricio e Irlanda
San Pedro Claver
San Roberto Belarmino
Santiago Apóstol
Santos Zacarias e Isabel, padres de Juan Bautista
Semana santa – Vistas de las últimas horas de JC
Vacaciones Cristianas
Valentín
Vida en Cristo
Virgen de Guadalupe, Mexico
Virgen de Pilar – fiesta de la hispanidad
Virgen de Sheshan, China
Virtud
Vocación a la bienaventuranza
Vocación – www.vocación.org
Vocación a evangelizar
Para comentarios – email –
mflynn@lcegionaries.org
fb – martin m. flynn
Donations to - BANCO - 03069 INTESA SANPAOLO
SPA
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IT61Q0306909606100000139493
Laudato si 1 – cuidado del hogar común
Laudato si 2 – evangelio de creación
Laudato si 3 – La raíz de la crisis ecológica
Laudato si 4 – ecología integral
Laudato si 5 – líneas de acción
Laudato si 6 – Educación y Espiritualidad Ecológica
Ley Moral
Libertad
Lumen Fidei – cap 1,2,3,4
María y la Biblia
Martires de Corea
Martires de Nor America y Canada
Medjugore peregrinación
Misericordiae Vultus en Español
Moralidad de actos humanos
Pasiones
Papa Francisco en Bulgaria
Papa Francisco en Rumania
Papa Francisco en Marruecos
Papa Francisco en México
Papa Francisco – mensaje para la Jornada Mundial
Juventud 2016
Papa Francisco – visita a Chile
Papa Francisco – visita a Perú
Papa Francisco en Colombia 1 + 2
Papa Francisco en Cuba
Papa Francisco en Fátima
Papa Francisco en la JMJ 2016 – Polonia
Papa Francisco en Hugaría e Eslovaquia
Queridas Amazoznia 1,2,3,4
El Reino de Cristo
Resurrección de Jesucristo – según los Evangelios
Revolución Rusa y Comunismo 1, 2, 3
Santa Agata, virgen y martir
San Alberto Magno
San Antonio de Padua
San Bruno, fundador del Cartujo
San Carlos Borromeo
San Francisco de Asis 1,2,3,4
San Francisco de Sales
Santa Faustina Kowalska, y la divina misericordia
Santa Maria Goretti
Santa María Magdalena
Santa Teresa de Lisieux
San Marco, evangelista
San Ignacio de Loyola