Antonio Ghislieri was born in 1504 in Bosco, Italy, entered the Dominican order at fourteen, and was elected pope in 1566, taking the name Pius V. As pope he carried out the reforms of the Council of Trent, publishing the Roman Catechism and revising the Missal and Breviary that shaped Catholic worship for four centuries. He called for the prayer of the Rosary before the Battle of Lepanto in 1571 and, in thanksgiving for the victory, established the feast of Our Lady of Victory, now Our Lady of the Rosary. He died in 1572 and was canonized in 1712.
Pius V lived as a simple Dominican friar even on the papal throne, keeping his white habit, his fasting, and his long hours of prayer amid enormous responsibility. He shows us that real reform begins in one's own heart, and that steady, faithful prayer — especially the Rosary — can carry us through the hardest battles we face.
O God, who raised up Saint Pius V to guard the faith and renew the worship of your Church, grant that through his intercession we may hold fast to you in prayer, and entrust all our struggles to the care of Our Lady of the Rosary. Amen.