Today we have reached the letter 'R' in our Saintly alphabet. For all of my friends who are gifted with the name Robert, Rob or Bob, tonight's Saint is St. Robert Bellarmine.
Robert was the son of Noble, albeit impoverished parents. He was the third of ten children and was a studious child. He joined the Jesuits in 1560 at the age of 18. After his ordination in 1569, he became famous as both a professor and a preacher. He was the first Jesuit to teach at the University of Leuven in Brabant, where his subject was the Suma Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas. He was appointed to the chair of controversial theology.
Robert was appointed a Cardinal in 1598. As a scholar, he defended the Holy See against anti-clericals in Venice and against the political tenets of James I of England. In the field of Church-state relations, he took a position based on principles now seen as fundamentally democratic - authority rests with God, but is vested in the people, who entrust it to fit rulers.
Robert Bellarmine was the spiritual father of St. Aloysius Gonzaga and helped St. Francis de Sales obtain formal approval for the Visitation Order. He has left us a host of important writings, for which he was named a Doctor of the Church. He died in 1621 at the age of 78. His feast day is September 17.
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