In the letter to the Romans, St Paul talks about the different gifts we bring to the Church. Some are teachers or administrators, others perform works of charity, while others are called to be prophets. God gives us different gifts to live out our vocation, to our Church community, and to the world. All those different gifts are important and serve different roles.
St Charles Borromeo might not be very well known to us, but he is also an important missionary and prophet in our Church, following in the footsteps of St Paul. Borromeo lived in the 16th century, the era of the Protestant Reformation, a time when our Church was under great scrutiny and great attack. He was born into nobility in Milan Italy, being related to the powerful Medici family. When his uncle was elected as Pope Pius IV, Borromeo became the cardinal and administrator of the important Italian Archdiocese of Milan. He was named Bishop of Milan at a very young age. He was very influential in the Council of Trent, and is well-known for promoting the system of seminaries that we have today to educate our priests. Charles Borromeo could have lived a life of great luxury and privilege, but he gave much of his wealth to charity, led a very simple life, and took out debts in order to feed the victims of the plague in his city.
Like Charles Borromeo and St Paul, we are all called to lives of holiness in our own way. May all of us be able to discern the ways to which God is calling us to live out our lives of faith and to contribute to the Church.
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