St. Philip Neri and the Courage of Joy

A reflection on humility, humour, and the wisdom that is lived

If the Venerable Bede taught us how to handle truth with care, and Meister Eckhart taught us how to loosen the grip of ego and performance, then St. Philip Neri completes the arc by reminding us of something essential: Wisdom must be carried with joy or it risks becoming a burden rather than a gift.

Philip Neri lived in 16th-century Rome, at a time when religious life had grown formal, hierarchical, and deeply concerned with appearances. He was a priest of great devotion and spiritual depth, yet he resisted solemnity whenever it threatened to eclipse humanity. His response was not rebellion, but joy. Philip became known for his playful acts of humility. On one occasion, he appeared at an important gathering with half his beard shaved off. At other times, he deliberately behaved in ways that disrupted admiration, choosing embarrassment over pride. These were not stunts. They were spiritual discipline.

Philip understood something many forget: ego thrives on seriousness. By laughing at himself, he loosened its grip. Unlike Bede or Eckhart, Philip Neri did not leave behind a major body of writing. What we know of him comes largely through the lives written by those who knew him including The Life of Saint Philip Neri, Apostle of Rome and Founder of the Congregation of the Oratory. These accounts preserve not arguments or doctrines, but gestures, habits, laughter, and daily choices. Philip’s legacy survives because it was lived in full view of others, and because that life made an impression worth remembering. This, too, is a form of authorship.

St. Philip Neri by Sebastiano Conca (1680–1764. (Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Philip trusted presence more than proclamation. He gathered people through warmth rather than authority, through friendship rather than fear. He listened, laughed, walked alongside others, and made room for affection in spiritual life. His joy was not exclusionary or performative. It was hospitable. The Roman Catholic Church would later name him the patron saint of humour and joy. It is a title that sounds almost whimsical, until one considers how radical it truly is. Joy, for Philip Neri, was not a distraction from holiness. It was protection against arrogance.

Where Bede insisted on truthfulness, and Eckhart insisted on inner freedom, Philip insisted on lightness of being.

He knew that devotion without joy becomes brittle. That sincerity without humour hardens into performance. That authority without humility forgets the human heart. In our own time, seriousness often masquerades as depth. We perform importance. We curate gravity. We forget that wisdom does not need to scowl in order to be taken seriously. Philip Neri offers a gentle corrective. Joy, he reminds us, is not frivolous. It is evidence that ego has loosened its hold. It is a sign that truth is being carried with care. Taken together, these three figures form a quiet lineage:

Bede teaches us to honour truth and name our sources.
Eckhart teaches us to release the self that seeks recognition.
Philip Neri teaches us to laugh — especially at ourselves.

Truth. Freedom. Joy. Perhaps these are not separate virtues, but companions. And perhaps this is the invitation that remains with us now: To write without false authority. To create without performance. To carry wisdom lightly, so others are not crushed beneath it. If our words are truthful, our intentions free, and our spirit joyful, then what we leave behind may not only endure. It may also invite others to live more fully. Not all wisdom arrives as text. Some of it arrives as presence. And sometimes, the truest teaching is the one that makes room for laughter.

Rebecca

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Charles Borromeo

We’re delving into Charles Borromeo because there’s a church named after him in our founder’s hometown. We hope you enjoy this read.

His name in Italian is: Carlo Borromeo. In Latin, his name: Carolus Borromeus. He was an Italian Catholic prelate who served as the Archbishop of Milan from 1564-1584. He became a cardinal in 1560. A prelate is a high-ranking cleric with special jurisdiction or authority, essentially anyone exercising public power or holding a position of prominence above ordinary clergy.

Charles founded the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine together with St. Ignatius of Loyola & St. Philip Neri. In this role, he was responsible for significant reforms in the Catholic Church. Including the founding of seminaries for the education of priests. He was canonized in 1610 & his feast day is November 4.

Charles was a descendant of nobility. The Borromeo family was 1 of the most ancient & wealthiest in Lombardy. The family coat of arms included the Borromean rings, sometimes taken to symbolize the Holy Trinity.

Charles’ dad, Gilbert, was the Count of Arona. His mom, Margaret, was a member of the Milanese branch of the House of Medici. He was the 2nd son in a family of 6 kids. He was born in the castle of Arona on Lake Maggiore 36 miles from Milan on October 2, 1538.

Charles received the tonsure when he was about 12 years old. At this time, his paternal uncle (dad’s brother), Giulio Cesare Borromeo turned over to him the income from the rich Benedictine abbey of Saints Gratinian & Felin, 1 of the ancient requirements of the family.

Charles let his dad know on no uncertain terms that all revenues from the abbey beyond what was required to prepare him for a career in the church belonged to the poor & couldn’t be applied to secular use.

Charles went to the University of Pavia. He applied himself to the study of civil & canon law. Because of a slight speech impediment, he was thought of as slow but his thoroughness & industry meant that he made fast progress.

In 1554, his dad died. Although he had an older brother, Count Federico, he was requested by the family to take the management of their domestic affairs. After a time, he restarted his studies. On December 6, 1559, he earned a doctorate in canon & civil law.

On December 25, 1559, Charles’ uncle, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Medici, was elected as Pope Pius IV. The newly elected Pope requested his nephew to go to Rome. On January 13, 1560, Pope Pius IV appointed him as protonotary apostolic. Protonotary apostolic is the title for a member of the highest non-episcopal college of prelates in Roman Curia, or outside Rome.

Shortly after, on January 31, 1560, the Pope made him a cardinal. This made Charles a cardinal-nephew. He was entrusted with both the public & the privy seal of the ecclesiastical state. A cardinal-nephew was a high-ranking Cardinal in the Catholic Church. Usually the pope’s actual nephew or another close relative(s), who served as the pontiff’s chief assistant & confidant. He was also brought into the government of Papal States & appointed a supervisor of the Franciscans, Carmelites, & Knights of Malta.

During his 4 years in Rome, Charles lived in austerity, required the Roman Curia to wear black (The Roman Curia is the administrative arm of the Holy See.), & established an academy of learned persons, the Academy of the Vatican Knights.

Charles organized the 3rd, & last, session of the Council of Trent, in 1562-63. He had a large hand in making the Tridentine Catechism (Catechismus Romanus). In 1561, Charles founded & endowed a college at Pavia. Today the college is known as Almo Collegio Borromeo. Charles dedicated the college to Justina of Padua.

On November 19, 1562, Charles’ older brother, Federico, suddenly died. His family urged Charles to seek permission to return to the laity (laicization), to marry & have kids so that the family name wouldn’t become extinct. But he decided not to leave the ecclesiastic state.

His brother’s death, along with his contacts (with the Jesuits, the Theatines, & the example of bishops such as Bartholomew of Braga) were causes of the conversion Charles towards a more strict & operative Christian life. His aim became to put into practice the dignity & duties of the bishop as drafted by the Council of Trent.

After the death of his uncle, Pope Pius IV (1566), Charles sent a galley (a type of ship) to get Cardinal Ugo Boncompagni, the Nuncio of Spain. The nuncio (or apostolic nuncio) is the Pope’s personal ambassador (like an embassy’s ambassador) to a country & plays a key role in appointing bishops.

But the Cardinal didn’t arrive in time to be considered at the conclave. Charles reached an agreement with Alessandro Farnese, who held a significant number of conclave votes, to support Antonio Ghislieri (who was rumored to have the support of King Philip II of Spain). Ghislieri was elected Pope & took the name: Pius V.

He devoted himself to the reformation of his diocese which had deteriorated in practice owing to the 80-year absence of previous archbishops. Milan was the largest archdiocese in Italy at the time, with more than 3,000 clergy & 800,000 people. Both its clergy & laity had drifted from church teaching. The selling of indulgences & ecclesiastical positions was prevalent.

Charles believed that abuses in the church arose from ignorant clergy. His emphasis on Catholic learning greatly increased the preparation of men for the priesthood & benefited their congregations.

He founded the fraternity of Oblates of St. Ambrose (a society of secular men who didn’t take orders), but devoted themselves to the church & followed a discipline of monastic prayers & study. The new archbishop’s efforts for catechesis & the instruction of youth included the initiation of the 1st Sunday School classes & the work of the Confraternity for Christian Doctrine.

Charles’ diocesan reforms faced opposition from several religious orders. Particularly that of the Humiliati (Brothers of Humility), a penitential order which owned some 90 monasteries. Some members of that society formed a conspiracy against his life.

A shot was fired at him with an arquebus in the archepiscopal chapel. His survival was considered miraculous.

Even though the Diet of Ilanz of 1524 & 1526 had proclaimed freedom of worship in the 3 Leagues, Charles repressed Protestantism in the Swiss valleys. During his pastoral visit to the region, 150 people were arrested for practicing witchcraft. 11 women & the provost were condemned by the civil authorities to be burned alive.

Reacting to the pressure of the Protestant Reformation, Charles encouraged Ludwig Pfyffer in his development of the “Golden League” but didn’t live to see its formation in 1586.

Based in Lucerne, the organization (also called the Borromean League) linked activities of several Swiss Catholic cantons of Switzerland. This became the center of Catholic Counter-Reformation efforts & caused the break-up of Appenzell canton along religious lines.

Following his departure from this mortal coil, devotion to Charles grew quickly & continued to grow. The Milanese memorializes his anniversary as though he were already a saint. Supporters in a number of cities collected documentation to support his canonization.

In 1602, Pope Clement VIII beatified Charles. 2 years later, his “case” was sent to the Congregation of Rites. On November 1, 1610, Pope Paul V canonized Charles. 3 years later, the church added his feast day to the General Roman Calendar for celebration on November 4.

Along with Guarinus of Palestrina & Anselm of Lucca, he’s 1 of only 2-3 cardinal-nephews to have been canonized. Charles Borromeo is the patron saint of bishops; catechists; seminarians; against ulcers; apple orchards; bishops; catechumens; colic; intestinal disorders; Lombardy, Italy; Monterey, California; cardinals; seminarians; spiritual directors; spiritual leaders; starch makers; stomach diseases; & Sao Carlos (Brazil).

Charles’ emblem is the Latin word humilitas (humility), which is a portion of the Borromeo shield. He’s usually represented in art in his robes, barefoot, carrying the cross as archbishop, a rope around his neck and 1 hand raised in blessing. Thus recalling his work during the plague.

A large number of churches dedicated to St. Charles Borromeo exist in: Austria; Sheffield, England; Scotland; Belgium; Italy; Serbia; Poland; Switzerland; Vienna; Ireland; England; Indiana; Louisiana; Canada, California; Florida; Illinois; New York; Texas; Missouri; Minnesota; North Dakota; Ohio; Maryland; Massachusetts; Nebraska; New Jersey; North Carolina; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; Virginia; Washington; Oklahoma; New Hampshire; Argentina; Brazil; Peru; Uruguay; Venezuela; & Chile.

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