Letter XII. To St. Charles Borromeo, Milan

Ht disabuses him of a false impression.

Most illustrious and most reverend Lord, — Our Lord the Pope sent me yesterday a postscript written by your illustrious lordship, from which it is evident that you are anything but satisfied with our Congregation, in consequence of a supposition on your part that two of our priests had first expressed an intention, and then revoked it, of going into the service of the Duke of Bavaria, and that this change of theirs was an act of disobedience to his Holiness. I have thought it well, with that Christian liberty with which you are accustomed to proceed in your affairs, to give you an account of this matter, for no other purpose but that you may have a clear statement of the truth. You must know, therefore, that these two priests, of whom the report is that they intended to enter the aforesaid service, are not men belonging to our Congregation, but are chaplains of the Company of San Girolamo della Caritd, with which we have no sort of connection ; and that the two priests are such Monsignor Speciano can inform you. Moreover, your illustrious and most reverend lordship may rest assured that in this particular the obedience due to our Lord the Pope has never been encroached upon; and this I assert positively because I myself in person have treated of the matter with his Holiness, whom I am forced to quote to you as a witness. I therefore pray your most illustrious and most reverend lordship to deign not to believe us capable of so much contumacy as there would have been in acting contrary to the obedience of our Lord the Pope ; indeed, if such a thing were ever to happen we should consider we had fallen into a grievous sin and error, from which we hope and pray that our Lord God will deliver us by His holy grace ; and we also beg that you will deign moreover to favour us with your prayers; and further, that whenever an evil report reaches you, either of myself or any of us, that may deserve correction, you yourself will do us this charitable act, and we shall receive it as a most special favour. And I, together with the rest of us, humbly kiss your hands. — Your most illustrious and most reverend lordship's most devoted servant,

Philip Neri.

Rome, June 15, 1581.¹

Footnotes

1. Cesare Speciano, a native of Milao on whom St. Charles bestowed a Canonrj, and whom he employed as his agent in Rome on all matters of importance. His prudence and ability attracted the notice of Gregory XIII., who made him Bishop of Novara. Sixtus V. sent him as his legate to Spain. Gregory XIV. translated him to the bishopric of Cremona, and Clement VIII. sent him as Nuncio to Germany. In this last legation he remained six years, and laboured much and with success to reclaim the heretics of Bohemia. On his return to Cremona he devoted himself with great zeal to the care of his diocese, and died in the year 1607. Se€ Card. Capscelatbo, op. cit., i. 483 (Bog. tr.). ↩