Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 until his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for opposing modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, and for promoting liturgical reforms and Thomist scholastic theology. He initiated the preparation of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, the first comprehensive and systemic work of its kind, which was ultimately promulgated by his successor. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church.
Born in the Austrian Empire, Pius X was devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Confidence; while his papal encyclical Ad diem illum took on a sense of renewal that was reflected in the motto of his pontificate. He advanced the Liturgical Movement by formulating the principle of participatio actuosa in his motu proprio, Tra le sollecitudini. He encouraged the frequent reception of Holy Communion, and he lowered the age for First Communion, which would become a lasting innovation of his papacy.
Like his predecessors, Pius X promoted Thomism as the principal philosophical method to be taught in Catholic institutions. He opposed various 19th-century philosophies that he viewed as an intrusion of secular errors incompatible with Catholic dogma, especially modernism, which he critiqued as the synthesis of every heresy.
Pius X was known for his firm demeanour and sense of personal poverty, reflected by his membership of the Third Order of Saint Francis. He regularly gave sermons from the pulpit, a rare practice at the time. After the 1908 Messina earthquake, he filled the Apostolic Palace with refugees, long before the Italian government acted. He rejected any kind of favours for his family, and his close relatives chose to remain in poverty, living near Rome. He also undertook a reform of the Roman Curia with the Apostolic Constitution Sapienti consilio in 1908.
After his death, a strong cult of devotion followed his reputation for piety and holiness. He was beatified in 1951 and canonized in 1954 by Pope Pius XII. A statue bearing his name stands within Saint Peter's Basilica, and his birth town was renamed Riese Pio X after his death.
Early life and ministry
Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto was born in Riese, Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, Austrian Empire, in 1835. He was the second born of ten children of Giovanni Battista Sarto, the village postman, and Margherita Sanson. He was baptised 3 June 1835. Though poor, his parents valued education, and Giuseppe walked to school each day.Giuseppe had three brothers and six sisters: Giuseppe Sarto, Angelo Sarto, Teresa Parolin-Sarto, Rosa Sarto, Antonia Dei Bei-Sarto, Maria Sarto, Lucia Boschin-Sarto, Anna Sarto, Pietro Sarto. As Pope, he rejected any kind of favours for his family: his brother remained a postal clerk, his favourite nephew stayed on as village priest, and his three single sisters lived together in humble circumstances in Rome.
Giuseppe, nicknamed as "Bepi" by his mother, had so much natural exuberance that his teacher often had to cane his backside. Despite this, he was an excellent student who focused on homework before hobbies or recreations. In the evenings after sports or games with friends, he would spend ten minutes in prayer before returning home. He also served as an altar boy. By the age of ten, he had completed the two elementary classes of his village school as well as Latin study with a local priest; henceforth he had to walk four miles to the gymnasium in Castelfranco Veneto for further classes. For the next four years, he would attend Mass before breakfast and his long walk to school. He often carried his shoes to make them last longer. As a poor boy, he was often teased for his meager lunches and shabby clothes but never complained to his teachers.
In 1850, he received the tonsure from his parish priest, who wrote to the Cardinal of Venice to secure Sarto a scholarship to the Seminary of Padua, "where he finished his classical, philosophical, and theological studies with distinction".
On 18 September 1858, Sarto was ordained a priest by Giovanni Antonio Farina, Bishop of Treviso, and became a chaplain at Tombolo. While there, Sarto expanded his knowledge of theology, studying Thomas Aquinas and canon law, while carrying out most of the functions of the sickly parish priest Constantini. Often, Sarto sought to improve his sermons by the advice of Constantini, who referred to one of his earliest as "rubbish". In Tombolo, Sarto's reputation for holiness grew so much that some of the people call him "Don Santo".
In 1867, he was named archpriest of Salzano. He restored the local church and expanded the hospital, the funds coming from his own begging, wealth and labour. He won the people's affection when he worked to assist the sick during the cholera outbreak of the early 1870s. He was appointed a canon of the cathedral and chancellor of the Diocese of Treviso, also acting as spiritual director and rector of the Treviso seminary and examiner of the clergy. As chancellor he made it possible for public school students to receive religious instruction. As a priest and later bishop, he often struggled to bring religious instruction to rural and urban youth who could not attend Catholic schools. At one stage, a large stack of hay caught fire near a cottage, and when Sarto arrived he addressed the frantic people, "Don't be afraid, the fire will be put out and your house will be saved!" At that moment, the flames turned in the other direction, sparing the cottage. Despite his many duties, Sarto often made time for an evening walk with children preparing for their First Communion.
In 1879, Bishop Federico Maria Zinelli died, and Sarto was elected vicar capitular to care for the diocese until the installation of a new bishop in June 1880.
After 1880, Sarto taught dogmatic theology and moral theology at the seminary in Treviso. On 10 November 1884, he was appointed bishop of Mantua by Pope Leo XIII. He was consecrated six days later in Rome in the church of Sant'Apollinare alle Terme Neroniane-Alessandrine, Rome, by Cardinal Lucido Parocchi, assisted by Pietro Rota, and by Giovanni Maria Berengo. He was appointed to the honorary position of assistant at the pontifical throne on 19 June 1891. Sarto required papal dispensation from Pope Leo XIII before episcopal consecration as he lacked a doctorate, making him the last pope without a doctorate until Pope Francis.
When Sarto travelled back to his hometown from Rome after his consecration, he immediately went to visit his mother. There, she repeatedly kissed his ring and said to him: "But you would not have this fine ring, son, if I did not have this", showing him her wedding ring.
Cardinalate and patriarchate
made him a cardinal of the order of cardinal priests in a secret consistory on 12 June 1893. In a public consistory on 15 June, the Pope gave him his cardinal's red galero, assigned him the titular church of San Bernardo alle Terme, and appointed him Patriarch of Venice. This caused difficulty, however, as the government of reunified Italy claimed the right to nominate the Patriarch, since the previous sovereign, the Emperor of Austria, had exercised that power. The poor relations between the Roman Curia and the Italian civil government since the annexation of the Papal States in 1870 placed additional strain on the appointment. The number of vacant sees soon grew to 30. Sarto was finally permitted to assume the position of patriarch in 1894. In regard to being named as a cardinal, Sarto told a local newspaper that he felt "anxious, terrified and humiliated".After being named cardinal and before leaving for Venice, he visited his mother. Overwhelmed with emotion, she asked: "My son, give your mother a last blessing", sensing that it would be the last time that they would see each other. Arriving in Venice, he was formally enthroned on 24 November 1894.
As cardinal-patriarch, Sarto avoided politics, allocating his time to social works and strengthening parochial credit unions. However, in his first pastoral letter to the Venetians, Sarto argued that in matters pertaining to the Pope, "There should be no questions, no subtleties, no opposing of personal rights to his rights, but only obedience."
In April 1903, Pope Leo XIII reportedly said to Lorenzo Perosi: "Hold him very dear, Perosi, as in the future he will be able to do much for you. We firmly believe he will be our successor". As a cardinal, he was considered by the time of his papal election as one of the most prominent preachers in the Church despite his lesser fame globally. In his role as a cardinal, Sarto held membership in the congregations for Bishops and Regulars, Rites, and Indulgences and Sacred Relics.
Papal election of 1903
Leo XIII died 20 July 1903, and at the end of that month the conclave convened to elect his successor. Before the conclave, Sarto had reportedly said, "rather dead than pope", when people discussed his chances for election. In one of the meetings held just before the conclave, Cardinal Victor-Lucien-Sulpice Lécot spoke with Sarto in French, however, Sarto replied in Latin, "I'm afraid I do not speak French". Lécot replied, "But if Your Eminence does not speak French you have no chance of being elected because the Pope must speak French", to which Sarto said, "Deo Gratias! I have no desire to be pope".According to historians, the favorite was the late pope's secretary of state, Cardinal Mariano Rampolla. On the first ballot, Rampolla received 24 votes, Gotti had 17 votes, and Sarto 5 votes. On the second ballot, Rampolla had gained five votes, as did Sarto. The next day, it seemed that Rampolla would be elected. However, the Polish Cardinal Jan Puzyna de Kosielsko from Kraków, in the name of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary, proclaimed a veto against Rampolla's election. Many in the conclave protested, and it was even suggested to disregard the veto.
However, the third vote had already begun, resulting in no clear winner but increasing support for Sarto, with 21 votes. The fourth vote showed Rampolla with 30 votes and Sarto with 24. It seemed clear that the cardinals were moving toward Sarto.
The following morning, the fifth vote gave Rampolla 10 votes, Gotti 2, and Sarto 50. Thus, on 4 August 1903, Sarto was elected to the pontificate. This marked the last known exercise of a papal veto by a Catholic monarch.
At first, it is reported, Sarto declined the nomination, feeling unworthy. He had been deeply saddened by the Austro-Hungarian veto and vowed to rescind these powers and excommunicate anyone who communicated such a veto during a conclave. With the cardinals asking him to reconsider, he went into solitude in the Pauline Chapel, and after deep prayer he accepted the position. Cardinal Luigi Macchi announced Sarto's election at around 12:10pm.
Sarto took as his papal name Pius X, out of respect for his recent predecessors of the same name, particularly Pope Pius IX, who had fought against theological liberals and for papal supremacy. He explained: "As I shall suffer, I shall take the name of those Popes who also suffered". Pius X's traditional coronation took place the following Sunday, 9 August 1903. As pope, he became ex officio Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, prefect of the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office, and prefect of the Sacred Consistorial Congregation.