St. Robert Bellarmine

God always gives the Church what she needs when she needs it. This is certainly the case with St. Robert Bellarmine, the saint whom we celebrate today.

St. Robert Bellermine was born on October 4, 1542, the height of the Protestant Reformation. He was born into an impoverished family in Italy. Robert suffered from a variety of health problems all his life. The Jesuits educated him as a boy.

Eventually, Robert entered the newly formed Jesuits in 1560. After years of study, he went to teach as a professor of theology at the University of Louvain for six years. At the request of the Holy Father, he then went to teach at the Roman College from 1576 to 1587.

It was during this time he wrote his great work, Disputations on the Controversies, which was a three-volume defense of the Catholic faith against the arguments of the Protestant Reformers.

In 1576, Robert was appointed to the chair of the Roman College, becoming rector in 1592. In 1598, Robert was appointed a Cardinal.

Robert lived an austere life in Rome, giving most of his money to the poor. At one point, he used the tapestries in his living quarters to clothe the poor, saying, “the walls won’t catch cold.”

Robert was the spiritual father of St. Aloysius Gonzaga. He helped St. Francis de Sales obtain formal approval for the Visitation Order. He opposed action against Galileo in 1615, and even established a friendly correspondence with him.

Robert died in 1621. Pope Pius XI proclaimed him a doctor of the Church on Sept. 17, 1931.

Robert wrote his own catechism for catechists to use to teach the faith. As one might expect, he is the patron saint of catechists. God blessed the Church with this saintly man, who helped articulate the faith clearly and charitably when it was most needed. We are certainly grateful for his intellect, charity, and self-sacrifice for the Church.

St. Robert Bellarmine, pray for us!