By T.K. Wilson
In 1853, in a small Italian village, a baby boy was born to an unassuming and quiet family. That boy, Joseph Sarto, would one day rise to the office of Pope, an office that he, to his dying day, felt unworthy of.
Though he was a poor boy from a large family (second of ten children!), he proved to be a great scholar, who his family could see was destined for greatness. His mother, a seamstress, and his father, a cobbler and part time postman, scraped every spare penny to send Joseph to the finest schools and for extra tutoring with their parish priest. This gave Joseph a great love for the Bible and discipleship for all, even the poorest. He became a priest and served in towns very much like the one he grew up in, where he encouraged families to teach their children the catechism and to come to church often.
From there, he rose to bishop, where he worked even harder for the poor, then to Cardinal. And even then, he wished only to go back and be a simple parish priest again! Upon the passing of Pope Leo XIII, and despite the interference of the Archdukes of Austria, Joseph was elevated to the Papacy under the name of Pope Pius X.
As Pope, Pius sought reforms in the church that were needed badly. He ended political interference in the papacy, even meeting with Tsar Nicholas II to seek greater freedoms for Catholics in Russia. He also reformed canon law, removed heretical Modernists (people who believed that the Gospels weren’t true history and that Jesus wasn’t God), set the stage for the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council, and made it possible for children seven and older to receive communion. He also loved children, carrying candy in his pockets for the children of Rome.
The Pope’s last challenge was the First World War. Pius lamented this horrible conflict, and was felled by a heart attack at the age of 79. The holy man’s remains are considered incorrupt and are displayed for veneration in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, where he is remembered for his courageous deeds and stance against heresy.
Like Pope Pius X, let us seek to bless the Lord in humility.
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