Fr. Pietrzyk delivered the following feast day homily at the Dominican House of Studies in 2007.

On this day, exactly 435 years ago, lay on his death bed a shepherd. Born of a noble family reduced to poverty as a result of war, Antony Ghislieri spent much of his childhood tending sheep and feeding lambs. This life as a literal shepherd eventually gave way to the life of a metaphorical shepherd. His life tending Christ's flock began at the age of 16, when he was clothed in the Dominican habit, taking the religious name Michael. As a Dominican priest he served his order as a teacher of philosophy and theology. From there, the Church asked him to seek after the lost sheep as a grand inquisitor, eventually becoming the chief inquisitor in Rome. Finally, of course, as vicar of The Good Shepherd, he tended the universal flock as Pius V.

Pope Pius's appointed time to watch over Christ's flock were not easy years. The Church was rife with corruption and laxity. Christianity was splitting and fracturing as a result of the errors of Luther. And just over the horizon the armies of the Turks stood ready to invade Europe and eradicate Christianity. Yet all the while this simple shepherd remained steadfast in his task. Whence did he find the strength to meet these challenges? St. Pius himself tells us. "From the Dominican Order, we ourselves, although unworthy, have drawn all our strength as from a fountain."

If there is anything one learns reading the life of St. Pius it is his devotion to his Order. Even as Pope, he would make his yearly retreat at Santa Sabina, taking the opportunity again to live and pray with his friars. It was often quipped of the holy Pope, in seeking to reform the moral life in his city, that he wanted nothing less than to turn all of Rome into a Dominican convent.

But what particularly of his Dominican life prepared him and strengthened him for his pastoral duties? There are many that could be mentioned. The Dominican liturgy, for example. All of the unbiased liturgical historians agree that the Dominican Rite was by far the most beautiful of the medieval liturgical rites. And there was the rosary, that most Dominican devotion which expressed the Order's great love for the Blessed Virgin and her special concern for the Order.

While these were of course, quite important, I want to mention briefly another. Something that is not just an activity of the Order, but a habit as well. At this time as we students prepare to take our final exams, we are reminded especially of the place of study in our life. The centrality of study to the work of the order was as true for friar Michael as it is for us today. Yet, the Dominican approach to study - to learning - does not see it simply as an end in itself. St. Catherine of Siena criticizes those who ‘read scripture but taste only its letter in their chasing after a multiplicity of books, never tasting its marrow'.1 And although there is a purpose to study, that end is not me. No less an authority than Aquinas reminds us that learning poses a danger, the danger that we trust in ourselves more than God.2

The friars always saw the pursuit of truth as the complement to the pursuit of love. We study for the sake of others. We gain knowledge so that we may bring God's people more deeply into the great mystery of his love. Or, as Bl. Humbert of Romans stated it: ‘Study is not the end of the Order, but it is an utmost necessity to that end, which is preaching and laboring for the salvation of souls. ..."3

Done properly, this approach to study helps to establish a habit of mind attentive to the needs of others. In his latest book on Dominican spirituality, Fr. Paul Murray references a letter from the French philosopher Simone Weil to a Dominican friend of hers. In that letter she noted that the effort that the friars made regarding concentration on their studies - their ‘energy of attention' - should help afterwards in devoting their attention to their neighbors, especially those in need.4 In other words, the efforts expended and difficulties endured for the sake of others ought to bear fruit in a life more attentive to the needs of others.

One example from the life of St. Pius shows this disposition in action. As an Inquisitor, Fr. Ghislieri was unwavering in his commitment to the truths of the faith. But just as unwavering was his kindness to those accused. He was even known to make frequent visits, with great kindness counseling those condemned to abjure their heresy. On one of these many visits, he encountered a Franciscan Friar who had fallen under the sway of the Lutheran doctrines. The young religious had repented once before, but soon fell back to apostasy. Nevertheless, the gentle Dominican sought to free him from the bonds of heresy. But the Franciscan refused to admit his errors, even though he risked death from the state. But Fr. Ghislieri's Dominican training taught him that his task was not merely to prove the man's error, but to save his soul. And so the great Inquisitor began to pray for him, increasing his own fasts, doubling his prayers, saying Masses for him, and visiting him daily. Eventually he did repent, and the future Pope won him a pardon from Pope Julius III. But Pius's concern for him did not end there. This young Franciscan was too ashamed to return to his Franciscan brothers. So, the saintly Dominican clothed him in the white tunic of the Dominican order. This friar, Sixtus of Siena, went on to become one of the greatest Biblical scholars of his age, and even dedicated his great work, Biblioteca Sancta, to St. Pius.

In this way we take to heart the exchange that our Lord had with St. Peter in the Gospel reading. Tending the flock of Christ is more than knowing who the Lord is. Peter's triple denial of Jesus was not out of ignorance. And so his triple affirmation here is not simply about knowledge. To give one's life in service for these lambs of God is first and always and act of love. Moreover, as John says in his epistle, "If anyone says, ‘I love God,' but hates his brother, he is a liar"5. If our study of sacred truth is to be successful it must at the same time form in us a habitus of love for God and for our brothers. This is the lesson that Pius's Dominican formation taught him.

So, it is no surprise that, on this day as he lay dying, this great Pope made one last request. He asked to be helped in removing his papal robes and ecclesiastical finery. Then he put on again his simple white tunic, scapular, and capuce. He lay back down in his bed, folded his hands on his chest, and waited. On the next day, May 1st, he died. This humble shepherd met Christ The Good Shepherd in the way he best came to know and to love him: as a simple Dominican friar.

St. Antony of the desert, pray for us.

St. Michael the Archangel, pray for us.

Pope St. Pius V, pray for us.

1 The Dialogue, 85, p. 157 (Nofke Transl. 1980).
2 ST IIa IIae, q. 82, a.3, ad 3.
3 Humbert of Romans, Expositio Super Constitutiones, XII
4 Paul Murray, The New Wine of Dominican Spirituality, p. 121.

5 1 Jn 4:20.