John the Good ( la, Ioannes Bonus, it, Giovanni Bono or ''Buono'') was

Archbishop of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan ( it, Arcidiocesi di Milano; la, Archidioecesis Mediolanensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has lon ...

from c. 641 to 669. He is honoured as a Saint in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and his feast day is on January 2.

Life

The reign of John ''the Good'' is remembered for the return of the bishop to the town of Milan after an exile of more than 70 years. Actually in 569, the

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the '' History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...

invaded Northern Italy and conquered its center, Milan, which was recovering from the terrible Gothic War. The bishop of Milan, Honoratus escaped to

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...

and Honoratus' successors remained in Genoa. Genoa was then a suffragan diocese of Milan but still under the control of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. John ''the Good'' was born in the diocese of Genoa in the village of

Recco The RECCO is a rescue technology used by organised rescue teams as an additional tool to more quickly locate people buried by an avalanche or lost in the outdoors. The system is based on a harmonic radar system and composed by a detector and a ...

(also the nearby town of

Camogli Camogli (; lij, label= Genoese, Camoggi ) is a fishing village and tourist resort located on the west side of the peninsula of Portofino, on the Golfo Paradiso in the Riviera di Levante, in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, Liguria, northern Italy ...

claims the birth of John). It is not exactly known when he became bishop of Milan, but it is believed that his election was in consequence of the 641 conquest of Genoa by the Lombard's King

Rothari Rothari (or Rothair) ( 606 – 652), of the house of Arodus, was king of the Lombards from 636 to 652; previously he had been duke of Brescia. He succeeded Arioald, who was an Arian like himself, and was one of the most energetic of Lombard kings ...

. John as bishop returned to reside in Milan. In 649, John was invited to participate to the Lateran Council, but he arrived in Rome when the council had already ended. He however subscribed all the documents issued by the council. Two are the main sources for John's life: the ''Catalogue of the Bishops of Milan'' (dated on about the 10th century) and a poetry in his honor (in it, Carme)

Biblioteca Ambrosiana The Biblioteca Ambrosiana is a historic library in Milan, Italy, also housing the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, the Ambrosian art gallery. Named after Ambrose, the patron saint of Milan, it was founded in 1609 by Cardinal Federico Borromeo, whose agen ...

, codex S 89 sup which can be dated from the 11th to the 13th century. According to this ''carme'', John was distinguished for his generosity and charity, from which he was given the sobriquet ''the Good'' ( la, Bonus). Also according to the ''carme'', he accomplished miracles, he moved some of the relics of Saint Syrus of Genoa to

Desio Desio ( lmo, label= Brianzoeu, Des) is a town and in the Province of Monza and Brianza, Italy. History In 1277 it was the location of the battle between the Visconti and della Torre families for the rule of Milan. On 24 February 1924, Desio rece ...

which he erected as ecclesiastical/administrative territory (Pievan Church) and he died in 669 leaving all his properties, including estates in the area of

, to the Church of Milan. The 669 as date of his death is however not coherent with the ''catalogue'', which suggests a ten years reign, i.e. a death no later than the 659. John died on 2 January according to the ''catalogue'', or on 10 January according to the ''carme''. The latter date became his feast day. Today, his feast is celebrated on 2 January (or 15 January in the

cathedral of Milan Milan Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Milano ; lmo, Domm de Milan ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary ( it, Basilica cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Nascente, links=no), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombar ...

, together with all the saint bishops of Milan on 25 September). The body of John was initially buried in the little church of

Saint Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

''in Domo'' in Milan and the first survey on his relics was made by archbishop

Aribert Aribert ( it, Ariberto) is a Germanic given name, from ''hari'' ("host") and ''beraht'' ("bright"). It may refer to: * Aribert (archbishop of Milan) * Prince Aribert of Anhalt (1866–1933), regent of Anhalt *Aribert Heim (1914–1992), Austrian Sc ...

(1018–1045). On 24 May 1582, shortly before the demolition of the Church of St Michael, cardinal

Carlo Borromeo Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation combat ...

translated the body of John to the south

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

of the

, where it is still venerated. The body of the saint is in height.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:John the Good Of Milan, Archbishop Archbishops of Milan 669 deaths 7th-century Christian saints Italian saints Burials at Milan Cathedral Year of birth unknown