Viva el Papa! 

A Papal Voyage:

A Spiritual Journey with Some of the Greatest Popes Who Served God and the Church from 1800-2012

Pope Pius VII (1800-1823)

With the emergence of technology and advancements in science in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, as well as the idea that philosophy should be based solely on reason (Kant’s famous words “Have courage to use your own reason” spread as the motto for the enlightenment), with politics and religion being separated and secluded from one another, our world underwent some, to put it plainly, very rough times. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Deistic views became popular, separation of the Church and state was present throughout Europe, and false notions of Christianity permeated the world. God, to many philosophers, was just an abstract “thing.” Voltaire mocked Christianity, the Freemason movement arose as a result of this fashion, the French Revolution (the climax of the Enlightenment) came about, heresies spun their way into the web of confusion and false notions being strung together in the Enlightenment, the Bible was seen as “just a book” and not the Word of God, and the reality of sin was majorly overlooked. Pride pervaded the world. Yet, the Catholic Church remained united and the Catholic Faith was never abandoned as a whole. The Church recognized that, as Alan Shreck writes in his book The Compact History of the Catholic Church, “Only God’s grace and the light of Christian faith can enable our reason to see truth clearly and to function in full accord with God’s plan.”

So what was God’s plan? God’s plan, it would seem, was to have the Catholic Church focus on its "spiritual identity and mission.” (Shreck, 106) While there were political upheavals and negative uprising of all sorts, there was also an “upsurge in religious life,” as Shreck puts it. How did this happen? A major part of it was the fact that authority of the Pope was once again restored.

The world, especially from the 18th century up until now, has been blessed with a plethora of remarkable and outstanding men who served our Church as Pope, the Servant of Servants, the Vicar of Christ. All of these men are inspirational and incredible witnesses to the faith, although each had a unique way of living his life in papal office for God and the Church.

One remarkable pope was Pius VII. It was he who took a “heroic stand against Napoleon” even when Napoleon imprisoned the pope because the pope “refused to compromise the rights of the Catholic Church.” This, according to Shreck, “won the admiration of people everywhere.” It was very much because of him that when in times of trouble, people began to turn more and more to the pope for guidance and strength.

Pope Pius IX can be attributed to many spiritual developments within the Church. Although he appeared to some Catholics as a liberal pope because he was “favorable to forces advocating political freedom,” he realized that political liberalism was a dangerous thing for the Church and society and fought against it. Under him, the Papal States were seized, which seemed like a tragedy, but in fact this is what brought the spiritual awakening of the Church. While some may say the pope’s next move was a bit extreme, it was merely taken on the side of precaution. With the rise in intellectual liberalism and a new approach to Catholic theology, the pope was concerned that false ideas were seeping through to the Church in matters of politics, economics, and other ideas, and so he wrote the Syllabus of Errors to reject anything he felt was against Church teaching. This was his way of reminding Catholics to turn to the Church and not the modern world and public opinion for the truth. (Shreck, 108) He wanted to make clear certain ideas that were being disputed in the Faith. This is where he made the most impact. 

Pope Pius IX (1814-1878)

As Shreck writes, the pope “formally defined as a doctrine of faith in 1854 that Mary...was conceived without original sin, the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception.” Where many others may have been skeptical to believe the apparition of Our Lady at Fatima, Pope Pius IX firmly believed it and defined his doctrine from it. Furthermore, in the First Vatican Council which took place in 1869 in Rome, the council, under Pope Pius IX, passed two constitutions that brought about important clarity: first, with regards to the matter of faith and reason, the “ultimate authority” was God’s revelation in Scripture and Tradition, and in the council the pope declared nature and reason as being subordinate to faith and grace; secondly, the council declared the infallibility of the pope speaking in ex cathedra, or in the Chair of Peter.

As seen, this pope alone brought about many spiritual advancements within the Church. He deepened or renewed the spiritual lives of many Catholics. Perhaps the most incredible influence of this pope was his encouragement in frequently receiving Holy Communion and in a deeper devotion to Our Lady and the Sacred Heart of Jesus. (Shreck, 110) Furthermore, he stressed religion of the heart and the mind together. This man, who was early on considered to be a liberal pope, helped people, as Shreck writes, “rediscover the sacramental nature of Catholic life and the reality of the supernatural.”

Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903)

Pope Leo XIII was another prominent pope. He wanted to restore leadership of the papacy on a deeper level. He wanted to make known to the world the influence of the Catholic Church. He was a diplomat who sought conciliation with modern society. His first step: he made John Henry Newman a cardinal. His next step was to strive for friendship with democracy. Next, in order for people to have the ability to pursue historical studies, the pope “opened the Vatican archives to researchers.” He defended justice and better working conditions and wrote the great social encyclical, Rerum Novarum. He revived devotion and deep prayer to the Holy Spirit. He made St. Thomas Aquinas’ theology and philosophy standard for Catholic teaching. He declared complete inerrancy of Scripture and succeeded in reconciling the Church with the modern world. He depended on God’s guidance and received strength to be bold in greatly influencing the Catholic Church.

Pope Pius X (1903-1914)

St. Pius X. Like popes before him, he wished to “strengthen Catholic worship and to protect the Church from modern errors.” (Shreck, 117) With him, CCD for the education of youth was called for, the age of receiving Communion was changed to seven (which is considered the age of reason), weekly Mass and Communion were strongly encouraged, he encouraged devotion to St. Joseph, and music in the liturgy underwent positive development. He also reformed other areas of the Catholic Church for which the Church has remained very thankful to this day. 
 

This pope compiled Church Law into one single Code of Canon Law. He started the well-known Catholic lay movement, Catholic Action, and he revived the Catholic Church in France. Although he may have reacted overly so with regards to Modernist movement in condemning it entirely and enforcing secret police to ensure no Modernists would influence Catholic teaching in schools, his motivation and prayer was to have nothing interfere with the very foundations of Catholicism.

Pope Benedict XV
(1914-1922)

Pope Benedict XV. God certainly had a special plan for this pope. In  his time, World War I broke out and his focus was to maintain peace and deal with reconciling the world with conflicts which were on the rise. He condemned abuses on either side, "personally authorized alms for the relief of war victims," and went above and beyond what any world agency did to "break down the barriers of hatred." (Shreck, 120) 

In the year 1917, another event occurred which was unlike any other and which gave the world much to think about and consider. Our Lady appeared to three young children in Fatima, Portugal, and spoke words about the end of WWI, offering the sign of the sun  literally dancing in the sky to  convince people of their faith,  predicting when the end of the war would happen, and also warned the world that "unless special prayer and Eucharist adoration were offered, "'Russia will spread her errors through the world,  promoting wars and the persecution of the Church."' It seemed unlikely this  would occur because Russia then was weak and had next to no power. But guess what happened? Well, Mary was  right. Communism broke out and persecution made its way back into the lives of so many people. 

Mary did not leave the world without hope, however. She asked that in  order for the world to strive for  repentance a daily  rosary be prayed, meditation on God's Word be carried out, and asked that families and nations be consecrated to her Immaculate Heart. Pope Benedict XV took heed of her words. The pope consecrated Russia to her Immaculate Heart during his  papacy. Now although Communism was controlling everything (government,  production, etc.), Mary's message was not forgotten. She asked that prayer rather than physical fighting be done, and it  would be through this that the defeat of communism would come.

Pope Pius XI (1922-1939)

Pope Pius XI.   Now this man lived through some really rough times. He faced Communism, Nazism, Fascism, and with all of that, repression. In order to support the Church in Italy, he surrendered the Papal States to the Fascist leader Mussolini, which actually had the positive impact on the Church with the termination of the pope's authority being dependent on the possession of "an   earthly   kingdom." (Shreck, 122) The  pope furthermore wished to secure the rights of the Catholics in Germany under Hitler's leadership, and in the end, condemned all Fascism and Nazism. 

During this time the pope also had to deal with the Catholic Church in Mexico being oppressed. In the film "For Greater Glory," we see the depiction of the terrible and tragic events which took place in Mexico. Although fighting happened every day, we see the witness of prayer, trust in God and Our Lady, the power of soldiers for Christ fighting together once again, and we see so many who lost their lives in order to stand up for their rights and freedom given to them by God. This is truly beautiful, but could you imagine, though, the weight on the shoulders of the Pope during this time, the pope who prayed so hard for the reign and peace of Christ in society? 

Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925  in order to remind the world that the universe was still being upheld out of love for all by Christ, the King,  Creator, and Ruler of the world. This pope also "provided leadership for the Catholic missionary activity and social teaching" which placed emphasis on Jesus' values of peace and unity in the gospels, and this was seen in the encouragement and expansion of Catholic Action in society. (Shreck, 123)

Pope Pius XII (1939-1958)

Pope Pius XII.  The pope of peace and the Pope of Mary. Holy and diplomatic. The Church needed this pope during the difficult times of war under Hitler and the Nazi regime. He provided relief and even refuge for Jews and Christians who were persecuted by Hitler. He is credited, Shreck writes, for having saved "some four hundred thousand Jews from certain death."  

During his papacy, he held the belief that one of the greatest (if not the greatest) modern threat to the people of God and humanity as a whole was communism. (Shreck, 124) He fought intensely against communism, excommunicating any Catholic who belonged to this party. Pius decided to take consecration to Our Lady a step further and consecrated the entire world to her Immaculate Heart, understanding that Our Holy Mother was Mother of the world, protector of her children. He defined formally and declared the infallibility of the doctrine of Our  Lady's Assumption, not death, into heaven. 

He opened further the way to the study of the bible and theology, and inspired Catholic thought on the Church being more than just an institution; it is the mystical Body of Christ. In his  encyclical Mediator Dei, he "paved the way," writes Shreck, "for the blossoming of new forms of Catholic theology, beginning with the Second Vatican Council," preparing the Church, which was growing in missionary work and other ways, for deep renewal. 

Pope John XXIII (1958-1963)

Pope John XXIII. He wanted to guide the world so in need of help. He, according to Alan Shreck, "changed the entire image of the Catholic Church in the eyes of the world" which saw the Church as being prideful and not ready to recognize any weaknesses. Because of his warm nature, spontaneous personality, and love of life, people grew to love him. He was not simple, though. He understood history and had been a diplomat, but he focused more on relying on God than on anything else. He wanted peace in the world and unity among all Christians and because of his hard work, faith in Christ, deep prayer, and witness to all as a defender of his faith, he was beatified in 2000 by Pope Bl. John Paul II. 

Pope Bl. John Paul II. 

Pope John Paul II (1978-2005)

John Paul the Great. This remarkable and beloved pope wanted the world to reject fear and "open wide the doors to Christ." He called for a renewed effort to evangelize the whole world. He was considered a missionary pope, proclaiming the gospel and strengthening the Church. He gave a message of hope to all. He awakened the world to the teaching of the theology of the body. He fought for the sanctity of human life, gave the world a clearer view on the dignity and vocation of women in the Church. What I consider to be his most remarkable actions during his pontificate were his bringing the world to the Divine Mercy and Our Lady (with his deep devotion to Our Lady of Fatima) as well as the Eucharist.Where would we be without this great pope whose life's philosophy was living for Jesus through Our Lady as seen in his personal motto "totus tuus"- "totally yours."

 Shreck states it perfectly: "Pope John Paul II confronted confusion with truth, disunity with charity and fear with faith and hope. He called the Church to holiness through prayer." This is the mission, too, of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, who is seeking to restore unity, teach and defend the truth in love and patience, and is encouraging all to live the gospel boldly out of love for Christ. It is evident that Pope Benedict is going to face many challenges, but he tells us that we can "look to the future with hope," which was his message in his homily at Yankee Stadium in 2008.

In 2012, the Year of Faith, let us look to  these inspirational men who died to self and lived for Christ,  these men who  served the Church with all their strength, who dealt with weakness in the Church and who carried crosses unimaginable to many yet loved God and the Church with such a intense love, deep faith and prayer, and profound hope. St. Louis de Monfort wrote that "A Friend of the Cross is a glorious trophy gained by the crucified Christ on Calvary, in union with his holy Mother...his life embraces the cross, and death to the world, the flesh, and sin, so as to live here below a life hidden with Christ in God. In short, a perfect Friend of the Cross is a true Christ-bearer, or rather another Christ, so that he can truly say, "I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me." This a perfect description of the popes mentioned above who followed God's plan and became remarkable apostles and missionaries for the Church, trusting in God's grace and divine love to guide them and the world to peace and unity with Him in heaven for eternity.

I will leave you with the inspiring words of Pope Benedict XVI which he spoke on June 13, 2012, to a General Audience: “As our union with the Lord grows and our prayer likewise becomes more intense, like St. Paul, we too will turn our focus on what is important as well as to recognize that it is not by our own power that the Kingdom of God comes about, but rather by the grace of God who works miracles through us in spite of our weakness.” The Church had its "ups and downs," the world even lost its sense of sin, but God is always there working through us like he did the popes. Let us, like them, have deep trust in and love for God and Our Lady, and be true apostles always ready to defend our Church and "open wide the doors to Christ."

Pope Benedict XVI (2005-present) and
 Pope John Paul II (1978-2005)

Works Cited

Shreck, Alan. The Compact History of the Catholic Church, Ohio: Servant Books, an imprint of St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2009. Print.