Today is Nov. 4, memorial of St. Charles Borromeo, bishop.
I have a special fondness for St. Charles. He is the patron saint of my home parish. St. Charles was my life as a kid! It was our church, where my family went to Sunday Mass. My sisters and I attended the parish school. I was a member of the Boy Scout troop sponsored by St. Charles. Many of our sports and other activities met at the parish. I love St. Charles Church, and I’ve come to love our patron, too.
The actual church building of my parish was recently renovated. I think the changes to the sanctuary would make the saint proud. The tabernacle was moved to be front and center behind the main altar. Beautiful paintings of angels now adorn a previously blank cupola. Magnificent marble now adorns a formerly wooden screen behind the altar (the wood removed was used to make crosses that were distributed to parishioners; I have one). And four great brass lamps now hang from the ceiling, where they burn day and night, announcing the presence of the Lord.
But my favorite detail from the renovation is a painting that was added of St. Charles Borromeo himself. In the painting, he wears his red cardinal robes and is kneeling in prayer. He is holding a crucifix, and he faces the tabernacle.
It’s fitting because St. Charles dedicated so much of his life to the improvement of worship. He worked tirelessly to implement the reforms of the Council of Trent, calling clergy and religious to lives of greater holiness. His love for the Mass was well known. In an age when the Church was reeling from the theological and social challenges of the Protestant Reformation, St. Charles was a bastion of orthodoxy. The Church needed his life and witness then. And I’ve always found St. Charles to be a reliable intercessor now.
Today, through the intercession of St. Charles, let’s pray especially for great reverence for the Mass and a deeper love for the Eucharist in our lives:
Preserve in the midst of your people, we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo, that your Church may be constantly renewed and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ, may show his face to the world. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
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