April 30: Saint Pius V
The Pope, Reformation and the Rosary
Elected in 1566, Pope Pius V, a Dominican friar and a great ascetic, is noted for leading the counter-reformation, establishing the Catechism and promulgating the Breviary and the Roman Missal which carry his name.
Born into a modest family on January 17, 1504 in Bosco Marengo in Piedmont, Italy, Antonio Ghislieri at the age of 14 entered the Order of Preachers in the city of Voghera, where his fervor and faith were immediately noticed. He took the religious name of Brother Michael. In 1528, he was ordained into the holy priesthood and entrusted for 16 years with teaching philosophy and theology, holding various positions in the Dominican Order, one of which was Master of novices.
On 11 October 1542 he was appointed Commissioner and Inquisitorial Vicar for the diocese of Pavia and in 1550 he was appointed Inquisitor in Como; Pope Julius III entrusted him with the same task for Bergamo, where he conducted an investigation into the diocesan bishop.
His activity in Como and Bergamo attracted the attention of Cardinal Gian Pietro Carafa, the future Pope Paul IV thanks to whom, on 3 June 1551, he was appointed General Commissioner of the Roman Inquisition. In May 1555, Cardinal Carafa was elected Pope, adopting the name of Paul IV, who, on 4 September 1556, appointed Ghislieri as Bishop of Sutri and Nepi and General Inquisitor in Milan and Lombardy, at the time under the dominion of Spain. On 14 September he received his Episcopal Ordination.
In 1557, Paul IV elevated him as Cardinal with the titular church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva and the following year appointed him Grand Inquisitor of the Holy Roman and Universal Inquisition.
Disagreements with Pius IV, who succeeded Paul IV, led to his appointment as Bishop of Mondovì on March 17, 1560, with his subsequent transferral to that diocese.
Upon the death of Pius IV, during the Conclave, [Saint] Cardinal Charles Borromeo proposed the candidacy of Cardinal Ghislieri as Supreme Pontiff. Although he initially preferred to avoid this responsibility, Ghislieri eventually accepted, convinced that it was God's will, adopting the name of Pope Pius V.
His pontificate is marked by the defense of the rights of the Church in the face of encroaching secular power, committing himself to reducing luxury and reforming the papal court. He published the decrees of the Council of Trent, working tirelessly for their implementation. His life was marked by simplicity, prayer and selfless service, impressing his contemporaries. He called for the universal recitation of the Rosary to obtain the victory of the united Catholic fleet against the Turks in the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571, which indeed happened. Tradition has it that while the battle was being fought the Pope had a vision of Victory and had all the bells of Rome toll in gratitude to the Virgin Mary. In everlasting remembrance of the event, he introduced the liturgical feast of Our Lady of Victory on October 7, later dedicated by his successor Gregory XIII to Our Lady of the Rosary. In 1572 he established the number and theme of the Mysteries, recommending to all the habitual recitation of the Rosary. He died on May 1, 1572. In 1588 his tomb was transferred to the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome.