Pope John Paul I
Overview
John Paul I born Albino Luciani, (17 October 1912 – 28 September 1978), reigned as Pope
of the Catholic Church and as Sovereign
of Vatican City
from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes
. John Paul I was the first Pope to be born in the 20th century, and was also the last Pope to die in it.
In Italy
he is remembered with the appellatives of "Il Papa del Sorriso" (The Smiling Pope) and "Il Sorriso di Dio" (The smile of God).
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
of the Catholic Church and as Sovereign
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
of Vatican City
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes
Year of Three Popes
The Year of Three Popes is a common reference to 1978, when the College of Cardinals of the Catholic Church was required to elect two new popes within the same calendar year...
. John Paul I was the first Pope to be born in the 20th century, and was also the last Pope to die in it.
In Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
he is remembered with the appellatives of "Il Papa del Sorriso" (The Smiling Pope) and "Il Sorriso di Dio" (The smile of God).
Quotations
I come without five lire. I want to leave without five lire.
David Yallop|David Yallop, "In God's Name" (Corgi, 1987), p. 44.
In 1815, the official French newspaper Le Moniteur, showed its readers how to follow Napoleon's progress: 'The brigand flees from the island of Elba'; 'The usurper arrives at Grenoble'; ' Napoleon enters Lyons'; 'The Emperor reaches Paris this evening'.
"Letter to St Bernard" in "Illustrissimi|Illustrissimi" (1976).
Yesterday, a funny thing happened to me on my way to the Conclave.
David Yallop|David Yallop, "In God's Name" (Corgi, 1987), p. 132.