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{{Short description|Head of the Catholic Church in 1978}}
[[Image:JPI_special_pic..jpg|framed|Pope John Paul I on the papal throne. The surprise of his election is captured in the image. His hair is clumsily brushed back, because unlike [[Papabile]] cardinals who expect their election, he had not had his hair cut for the conclave. He also had not yet got a gold pectoral cross worn by popes, and used his silver one for the portrait.]]
{{Redirect-distinguish|John Paul I|John Paul (disambiguation){{!}}John Paul}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2014}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
| type = Pope
| honorific-prefix = [[List of popes|Pope]] [[Beatification|Blessed]]
| name = John Paul I
| title = [[Bishop of Rome]]
| image = Ioannes Paulus I, by Fotografia Felici, 1978 (cropped).jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Official portrait, 1978
| birth_name = Albino Luciani
| church = [[Catholic Church]]
| term_start = 26 August 1978
| term_end = 28 September 1978
| predecessor = [[Paul VI]]
| successor = [[John Paul II]]
| ordination = 7 July 1935
| ordained_by = [[Giosuè Cattarossi]]
| consecration = 27 December 1958
| consecrated_by = [[Pope John XXIII|John XXIII]]
| cardinal = 5 March 1973
| created_cardinal_by = [[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]]
| rank =
| coat_of_arms = C o a John Paul I.svg
| motto = {{lang|la|Humilitas}} (Humility)
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1912|10|17}}
| birth_place = [[Canale d'Agordo]], [[Belluno]], [[Veneto]], [[Kingdom of Italy]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1978|9|28|1912|10|17}}
| death_place = [[Apostolic Palace]], [[Vatican City]]
| other = John Paul
| previous_post = {{Indented plainlist|
* Pro [[Vicar General]] of Belluno (1948–1954)
* Vicar General of [[Belluno]] (1954–1958)
* [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Vittorio Veneto|Bishop of Vittorio Veneto]] (1958–1969)
* [[Patriarch of Venice]] (1969–1978)
* Vice-President of the [[Italian Episcopal Conference]] (1972–1976)
* Cardinal-Priest of [[San Marco Evangelista al Campidoglio, Rome|San Marco]] (1973–1978)
}}
| feast_day = [[26 August]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/europa/papst-franziskus-spricht-johannes-paul-selig-101.html | title=33-Tage-Papst Johannes Paul I. Seliggesprochen }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252206/pope-francis-beatifies-john-paul-i-pope-for-33-days | title=Pope Francis beatifies John Paul I, pope for 33 days }}</ref>
| venerated = [[Roman Catholic Church]]
| saint_title =
| beatified_date = 4 September 2022
| beatified_place = [[Saint Peter's Square]], [[Vatican City]]
| beatified_by = [[Pope Francis]]
| canonized_date =
| canonized_place =
| canonized_by =
| attributes = {{unbulleted list|[[Papal vestments]]|[[Pallium]]}}
| patronage = Catechists<ref>{{cite web|url=https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=it&u=http://corrierealpi.gelocal.it/belluno/cronaca/2015/09/29/news/la-preghiera-per-papa-luciani-1.12180706&prev=search|title=The prayer for Pope Luciani|website=Corriere delle Alpi|date=29 September 2015|access-date=30 September 2015}}</ref>
| shrine =
| suppressed_date =
| signature = Jonh Paul I signature.svg
| education = [[Pontifical Gregorian University]] ([[Doctor of Sacred Theology|PhD]])
}}
{{Ordination
| ordained deacon by =
| date of diaconal ordination = 2 February 1935
| place of diaconal ordination =
| ordained priest by = [[Giosuè Cattarossi]]
| date of priestly ordination = 7 July 1935
| place of priestly ordination = Church of San Pietro, [[Belluno]], [[Kingdom of Italy]]
| consecrated by = [[Pope John XXIII]]
| co-consecrators = [[Girolamo Bortignon]] ([[Roman Catholic Diocese of Padua|Padua]])<br />[[Gioacchino Muccin]] ([[Roman Catholic Diocese of Belluno-Feltre|Bell. & Felt.]])
| date of consecration = 27 December 1958
| place of consecration = [[Saint Peter's Basilica]]
| elevated by = [[Pope Paul VI]]
| date of elevation = 5 March 1973
| sources =
| bishop 1 =
| consecration date 1 =
}}


'''Pope John Paul I''' ({{lang-la|Ioannes Paulus I|}}; {{lang-it|Giovanni Paolo I}}; born '''Albino Luciani''' {{IPA|it|alˈbiːno luˈtʃaːni|}}; 17 October 1912 – 28 September 1978) was head of the [[Catholic Church]] and sovereign of the [[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]] and the first to occur since 1605. John Paul I remains the most recent Italian-born [[pope]], the last in a succession of such popes that started with [[Clement VII]] in 1523.
'''John Paul I''' ([[October 17]], [[1912]] &ndash; [[September 28]], [[1978]]), born '''Albino Luciani''', was elected [[pope]] on [[August 26]], [[1978]], and died 33 days later on [[September 28]], [[1978]], after one of the [[List of 10 shortest-reigning Popes|shortest reigns]] in papal history. Having died before he could make a legacy as a pope, he is best remembered for his friendliness and humility, drawing comparisons with ''Good Pope John'', the universally popular [[Pope John XXIII]] in whose honour Luciani took the name ''John''.


Before the [[August 1978 papal conclave]] that elected him, he expressed his desire not to be elected, telling those close to him that he would decline the papacy if elected; upon the cardinals' electing him, he felt an obligation to say yes.<ref name=ncr2012>{{cite news |last=Allen |first=John |title=Debunking four myths about John Paul I, the 'Smiling Pope' |url=http://ncronline.org/blogs/all-things-catholic/debunking-four-myths-about-john-paul-i-smiling-pope |work=National Catholic Reporter |access-date= 28 December 2013 |date=2 November 2012}}</ref> He was the first pontiff to have a double name, choosing "John Paul" in honour of his two immediate predecessors, [[John XXIII]] and [[Paul VI]]. He explained that he was indebted to John XXIII and to Paul VI for naming him a [[bishop]] and a [[Cardinal (Catholic Church)|cardinal]], respectively. Furthermore, he was the first pope to add the [[regnal number]] "I", designating himself "the First".
==Biography==
===Personal background and papal election===


His two immediate successors, [[John Paul II]] and [[Benedict XVI]], later recalled the warm qualities of the late pontiff in several addresses. In Italy, he is remembered with the appellatives of {{lang|it|Il Papa del Sorriso}} ({{trans|'''The Smiling Pope'''}})<ref name="autogenerated2004">{{cite book|last1=Seabeck |first1=Raymond |last2=Seabeck | first2=Lauretta |title=The Smiling Pope, The Life & Teaching of John Paul I|publisher=Our Sunday Visitor Press|date= 2004}}</ref> and {{lang|it|Il Sorriso di Dio}} ({{trans|The Smile of God}}).<ref>{{cite book|url=https://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0891862/combined|title=Papa Luciani: Il sorriso di Dio'' (''Pope Luciani: The Smile of God'')''|publisher=Radiotelevisione Italia|date=2006|access-date=21 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024121521/http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0891862/combined|archive-date=24 October 2012|url-status=dead}} documentary.</ref> ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine and other publications referred to him as "'''The September Pope'''".<ref>{{cite magazine | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,919865,00.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081123011038/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,919865,00.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=23 November 2008 | title=The September Pope | magazine=Time | date=9 October 1978 | access-date=3 April 2010 }}</ref> He is also known in Italy as "Papa Luciani". In his hometown of [[Canale d'Agordo]] a museum built and named in his honour is dedicated to his life and brief papacy.
Luciani was born in the [[Forno de Canale]] (now called Canale d'Agordo) in the [[Belluno]] region of northern [[Italy]].


He was declared a [[servant of God]] by his successor, John Paul II, on 23 November 2003, the first step on the road to sainthood. [[Pope Francis]] confirmed his [[heroic virtue]] on 8 November 2017 and named him as [[Venerable]]. Pope Francis presided over the [[beatification]] on 4&nbsp;September 2022.<ref>{{cite news |title=33-day 'Smiling Pope' John Paul I beatified at the Vatican |work=BBC News |date=4 September 2022 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62785349 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Pope beatifies John Paul I: May he obtain for us the 'smile of the soul' |url=https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2022-09/pope-beatifies-john-paul-i-smile-of-the-soul.html |website=Vatican News|date=4 September 2022 }}</ref>
He was educated in the minor and major [[seminaries]] of the diocese of Belluno and ordained a [[priest]] of the [[Roman Catholic Church]] on [[July 7]], [[1935]]. Luciani later received a [[doctorate]] in sacred [[theology]] from the [[Pontifical Gregorian University]] in [[Rome]]. He served as his diocese's seminary [[vice rector]] from [[1937]] to [[1947]], also teaching students in the areas of dogmatic and moral theology, [[canon law]] and sacred art.


==Early life and education==
In [[1948]], he was named [[pro-vicar-general]], and in [[1958]], [[vicar-general]] of that diocese, before being made [[bishop]] of [[Vittorio Veneto]] in [[1958]] by [[Pope John XXIII]]. As a bishop, he participated in all the sessions of the [[Vatican II|Second Vatican Council]] ([[1962]]&ndash;[[1965]]). On [[December 15]], [[1969]], he was appointed [[patriarch]] of [[Venice]] by [[Pope Paul VI]]. Pope Paul raised him to the [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|cardinalate]] on [[March 5]], [[1973]].
[[File:Young Albino Luciani – unframed.jpg|thumb|150px|Albino Luciani approximately at the age of 10, {{circa|1922–23}}]]
Albino Luciani was born on 17 October 1912 in Forno di Canale (now [[Canale d'Agordo]]) in [[Province of Belluno|Belluno]], a province of the [[Veneto]] region in [[Northern Italy]]. He was the son of Giovanni Luciani (c. 1872–1952), a [[bricklayer]], and Bortola Tancon (c. 1879–1947). Albino was followed by two brothers, Federico (1915–1916) and Edoardo (1917–2008), and a sister, Antonia (1920–2010). He was [[baptism|baptised]] on the day he was born by the [[midwife]] because he was considered to be in danger of death. The solemn rites of baptism were formalised in the [[parish church]] two days later.<ref name=vaticanbio>{{Citation|title =Highlights of the Life of His Holiness John Paul I | publisher =The Holy See | url =https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_i/biography/documents/hf_jp-i_bio_01021997_biography_en.html | access-date = 29 December 2013 }}</ref>


Luciani was a restless child. In 1922, aged 10, he was awestruck when a [[Order of Friars Minor Capuchin|Capuchin]] friar came to his village to preach the [[Lent]]en sermons. From that moment, he decided that he wanted to become a priest and went to his father to ask for his permission. His father agreed and said to him: "I hope that when you become a priest you will be on the side of the workers, for Christ Himself would have been on their side".<ref name="The Life of Albino Luciani">{{cite web|url=http://jpicentenary.org/?page_id=65|title=The Life of Albino Luciani|website=jpicentenary.org|publisher=The Pope John Paul I Association|access-date=17 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311002457/http://jpicentenary.org/?page_id=65|archive-date=11 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>
John Paul described himself as quiet, unassuming, and modest, with a warm sense of humor. In his notable [http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/jp1angad.htm Angelus of August 27], delivered on the first day of his papacy, he impressed the world with his natural friendliness.


Luciani entered the [[minor seminary]] of [[Feltre]] in 1923, where his teachers found him "too lively", and later went on to the major [[seminary]] of Belluno. During his stay at Belluno, he attempted to join the [[Jesuits]]. However, he was denied by the seminary's [[Rector (ecclesiastical)|rector]], Bishop [[Giosuè Cattarossi]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Yallop, David |date=1985|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xQYuAAAAYAAJ |title=In God's name: an investigation into the murder of Pope John Paul I|page=16|publisher=Corgi |isbn=9780552126403}}{{blockquote|So strongly did the writings of Couwase [Jean Pierre de Caussade] influence him that Luciani began to think very seriously of becoming a Jesuit. He watched as the first one, then a second, of his close friends went to the rector, Bishop Giouse Cattarossi, and asked for permission to join the Jesuit order. In both instances, permission was granted to them. Luciani would soon decide, so he went and asked for permission. The bishop considered the request, then responded, "No, three is one too many. You had better stay here.}}</ref>
===The smiling pope===


==Ordination and teaching career==
[[Image:Jp1-foto035.jpg|framed|Pope John Paul I's inauguration in September 1978.]]
[[Holy Orders|Ordained]] a [[Priesthood (Catholic Church)|priest]] on 7 July 1935, Luciani then served as a [[curate]] in his native Forno de Canale before becoming a professor and the vice-rector of the Belluno seminary in 1937.<ref name=vaticanbio /> Among the different subjects, he taught [[Dogmatic theology|dogmatic]] and [[Ethics in religion|moral theology]], [[Canon law (Catholic Church)|canon law]] and [[sacred art]].<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Paul-I.|title=Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "John Paul I". ''Encyclopedia Britannica''}}</ref>


In 1941, Luciani started to work on a [[Doctorate of Sacred Theology]] from the [[Pontifical Gregorian University]].<ref name=vaticanbio /> This required at least one year's attendance in Rome. However, the Belluno seminary's superiors wanted him to continue teaching during his doctoral studies. The situation was resolved by a special [[Dispensation (Catholic Church)|dispensation]] by [[Pope Pius XII]] on 27 March 1941. His [[thesis]] (''The origin of the human soul according to [[Antonio Rosmini-Serbati|Antonio Rosmini]]'') largely attacked Rosmini's theology and earned him his doctorate ''[[Latin honors|magna cum laude]]'' in 1947.<ref name=vaticanbio />
After his election, John Paul quickly made several decisions that would "''humanise''" the office of pope, admitting publicly he had turned scarlet when Paul VI had named him the patriarch of Venice. He was the first modern pope to speak in the singular form, using "''I''" instead of "''[[royal we|we]]''", though the official records of his speeches were often rewritten in more formal style by traditionalist aides, who reinstated the royal "''we''" in press releases and in ''[[L'Osservatore Romano]].'' He was the first to refuse the ''[[sedia gestatoria]]'' until Vatican pressure convinced him of its need, in order to allow the faithful to see him. Vatican officials tactfully did not mention to him that they were also embarrassed by his awkward flat-footed walk, which they felt "''unregal''" and ungainly.


In 1947, he was named [[Chancellor (ecclesiastical)|chancellor]] to Bishop [[Girolamo Bortignon]] of Belluno,<ref name=vaticanbio /> and was appointed a [[Chaplain of His Holiness|Supernumerary Privy Chamberlain]] of His Holiness, the most junior class of papal prelate, on 15 December.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.vatican.va/archive/aas/documents/AAS-40-1948-ocr.pdf |title=SEGRETARIA DI STATO |trans-title=SECRETARIAT OF STATE |journal=Acta Apostolicae Sedis - Commentarium Officiale |department=Diarium Romanae Curiae |date=23 March 1948|volume=XL |issue=3 |page=135 |language=it |access-date=9 July 2022}}</ref> In 1954, he was named the [[vicar general]] for the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Belluno-Feltre|Belluno diocese]].<ref name=vaticanbio /> Luciani was nominated for the position of bishop several times, but he was passed over each time due to his poor health, stature, and resigned appearance. In 1949, he published a book titled ''Catechesis in crumbs''. This book, his first, was about teaching the truths of the faith in a simple way, directly and comprehensible to all people.<ref name="auto"/>
John Paul was the first pope to admit that the prospect of the papacy had daunted him to the point that other cardinals had to encourage him to accept it. In fact, he was reported to have told them in the [[Conclave]], "''May God forgive you for what you have done on my behalf,''" with the smile that became his trademark; he also strongly suggested to his aides and staff that he believed he was unfit to be pope. He was also the first to refuse the pomp and ceremony of the millennium-old traditional crowning ceremony and the [[Papal Tiara]]. John Paul I gave the Church a precedent sign and command of humility, which was also in his [[motto]] (''Humilitas''). Through his actions, John Paul emphasized the servant role of the pope that is expressed in the Latin phrase ''[[Servus Servorum Dei]]'' (The Servant of the Servants of God).


==Episcopate==
===The August 1978 Conclave===
On 15 December 1958, Luciani was appointed [[Bishop of Vittorio Veneto]] by [[Pope John XXIII]]. He received his [[Bishop (Catholic Church)|episcopal consecration]] later that month from Pope John XXIII himself, with Bishops Bortignon and [[Gioacchino Muccin]] serving as the co-[[consecrator]]s. Luciani took possession of the diocese on 11 January 1959, with ''Humilitas'' (''Humility'') as his episcopal motto.<ref name=vaticanbio /> In his first address to his new diocese, he told the people that he sought to be "a bishop who is a teacher and a servant".<ref name="The Life of Albino Luciani"/>


As a bishop, he participated in all the sessions of the [[Second Vatican Council]] (1962–1965). On 18 April 1962, Luciani issued a pastoral letter, entitled "Notes on the Council", to alert the faithful to the structure of the proceedings and the overall purpose of the Council, chiefly, the doctrinal and practical issues.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fondazionevaticanagpi.va/en/albino-luciani-en/new-biographical-profile.html|title=Biographical Profile|website=www.fondazionevaticanagpi.va}}</ref>
He was elected at the third ballot of the [[papal election|Papal Conclave]], and this quick choice has been seen as a likely sign of rapidly-achieved unanimous [[consensus]].


Between 1965 and 1969, he faced the [[schism of Montaner]]: almost all the residents of Montaner, a [[frazione]] of [[Sarmede]], decided to renounce [[Catholic Church|Catholicism]] and embrace the [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]] religion, because they had a great disagreement with their bishop, Luciani. The people disagreed with Luciani's decision to appoint John Gava as a new priest in 1966 since the people wanted their own choice, rather than the one Luciani had settled on. The people then wanted a compromise: make their choice the parish's vice-rector if not parish priest. However, Monsignor Luciani said the small village needed only one priest, and he was the sole authority on priestly selection. Continually, he recommended new priests, but each was denied by the people. Finally, he was escorted by the police and took the Eucharist from the Montaner church, leaving the church unblessed and waiting for their next move.<ref name=ncr2012/>
The reason for the selection was generally believed to be linked to the severe divisions between rival camps within the [[College of Cardinals]]: between [[conservatives]] and [[Curia]]lists supporting [[Giuseppe Cardinal Siri]], who was fiercely opposed by liberals and supporters of [[Vatican II]]; between some Vatican II supporters and some [[Italy|Italian]] cardinals supporting [[Giovanni Cardinal Benelli]], who was opposed because of his "''[[autocracy|autocratic]]''" tendencies; and between the dwindling band of supporters of [[Sergio Cardinal Pignedoli]], who was so confident that he was [[papabile]] that he went on a [[crash diet]] to fit the right size of white [[cassock]] when elected.


In 1966, Luciani visited [[Burundi]] in East Africa.<ref name="Google Books">Knowles, Leo. "Modern Heroes of the Church", {{isbn|9781931709460}}</ref>
Outside the Italians, now themselves a lessening influence within the increasingly internationalist College of Cardinals, were figures like [[Pope John Paul II|Karol Cardinal Wojty&#322;a]], "''the foreigner''" whom John Paul I predicted would succeed him. (Luciani did not actually call Wojty&#322;a "''the foreigner''", but repeated that he had sat facing him in the Conclave. The seating plans in the [[Sistine Chapel]] for the August [[1978]] conclave showed that the man opposite Luciani was indeed Wojty&#322;a.)


[[File:Albino Luciani, 1969 (3).jpg|thumb|150px|Albino Luciani in 1969]]
Many, including the cardinals, expected a long conclave, deadlocked between the camps. Luciani was an easy compromise; a pastor more in the spirit of Vatican II than an austere intellectual, a man with little autocratic pretensions and so less unwelcome to some than [[Benelli]] (who in a double blow was on the brink of being made [[Secretary of State]] only to lose the appointment with John Paul I's death, and who came within a handful of votes of being elected pope in the October conclave, only to be overtaken by Wojty&#322;a). And for Italian cardinals, determined not to "''lose''" the papacy to a non-Italian for the first time in centuries and faced with other controversial Italian candidates, Luciani was an Italian with no baggage: no enemies created through a high profile career in the Curia, no controversial or radical statements or sermons, just a smiling gentle man, a pastor.
On 15 December 1969, Luciani was appointed the new [[patriarch of Venice]] by [[Pope Paul VI]], taking possession of his new archdiocese the following February. That same month he received honorary citizenship of the town of [[Vittorio Veneto]], where he had previously served as bishop.<ref name=vaticanbio/>


===1971 Synod of Bishops===
[[image:Image_38_Pope_JP1_on_balcony_jpeg.jpg|framed|'''Pope John Paul I on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica'''. John Paul's warmth and smile earned comparisons with his hero Pope John XXIII.]]
At the [[Second Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops|Synod of Bishops]] held in Rome in 1971, to which he was personally invited by [[Pope Paul VI]], Luciani suggested to the bishops assembled that dioceses in countries that were heavily industrialised should relinquish around 1% of all their income to Third World nations to be given "not as alms, but something that is owed. Owed to compensate for the injustices that our consumer-oriented world is committing towards the 'world on the way to development' and to in some way make reparation for social sin, of which we must become aware".<ref name="The Life of Albino Luciani"/>


==Cardinalate==
Who Albino Luciani wasn't was said to have been as important as who he was. Even before the conclave began, journalists covering the conclave for [[Vatican Radio]] noted increasing mention of his name, often from cardinals who barely knew him but wanted to find out more, not least "''What is the state of the man's health?''" Had they known just how precarious his health was (his feet were so swollen he could not wear the shoes bought for him for the conclave) they might have looked elsewhere for Paul VI's successor. But they didn't. Hence, to his own horror and disbelief, he was elected to the papacy.
Pope Paul VI created Luciani the [[Cardinal-Priest]] of [[San Marco (Rome)|San Marco]] in the [[Papal consistory|consistory]] on 5 March 1973.<ref name="vaticanbio" />


During his time as Patriarch of Venice, Luciani clashed with priests who supported the liberalisation of divorce in Italy, eventually suspending some of them.<ref name="ncr2012" /> At the same time, he was opposed to the [[1974 Italian divorce referendum|1974 referendum restricting divorce]] after it had been liberalised, feeling that such a move would fail and simply point out a divided Church with declining influence.<ref name="ncr2012" />
The following days, cardinals effectively (despite the prohibition of telling others about the Conclave) declared that with general great joy they had elected "''[[God]]'s candidate''". Cardinal Pironio declared: "''We were witnesses of a moral miracle.''" And later, [[Mother Teresa]] commented: "''He has been the greatest gift of God. A sunray of God's love shining in the darkness of the world.''"


[[File:Albino Luciani, 1973 (2).jpg|thumb|Pope Paul VI makes Luciani a cardinal in 1973.]]
As he himself declared, still in the famous Angelus, he had chosen this double name of "''John Paul''" (the first in the history of [[Papacy]]) as a thankful honour to both [[Pope John XXIII|John XXIII]], who had named him a bishop (and to whom he succeeded in Venice), and [[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]], who named him Patriarch and a Cardinal, and whom he succeeded as pope.
In 1975, Luciani travelled to [[Germany]] in May. Later that year (6–21 November), he visited [[Brazil]], where he met with members of the clergy, including [[Aloísio Lorscheider]]. Upon returning to Italy, he suffered an [[embolus]] in his right eye. Luciani also visited [[Fátima, Portugal|Fatima]] a few months later. While there, he met with Sister [[Lucia dos Santos]], the surviving visionary of three children who in 1917 claimed to see apparitions of the [[Blessed Virgin Mary]] (revered in this form under the title [[Our Lady of Fatima]]). When Luciani met Sister Lucia, she referred to him as "Holy Father". This greeting shocked the humble cardinal.<ref name="uscatholic.org">{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnMmovQrgbQ |url-status=dead |work=[[Claretians#Publications|U.S. Catholic]] |publisher=[[Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary]] |via=YouTube |title=The first years of Albino Luciani: 4° part (the conclave) |access-date=1 February 2014 |archive-date=28 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728081952/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnMmovQrgbQ }}</ref> In January 1976, he published ''[[Illustrissimi]]'' ("To the Illustrious Ones"), a collection of letters penned by him in previous years, whimsically addressed to historical and literary figures such as [[Charles Dickens|Dickens]], [[G. K. Chesterton]], [[Maria Theresa of Austria]], [[Teresa of Avila]], [[Goethe]], Figaro, [[Pinocchio]], the [[Pickwick Club]], [[King David]], and Jesus.


In 1975, he suggested disciplinary punishment for priests who spoke out in favour of the Communist Party or other leftist groups.<ref name="The New Pope: John Paul I">{{cite news |url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6JFNAAAAIBAJ&pg=4319%2C8006207 |title=The New Pope: John Paul I |work=Lakeland Ledger |date=27 August 1978 |access-date=28 February 2015}}</ref>
===New Pope, new rules===


In 1976, Luciani sold a gold cross and pectoral gold chain that Pope John XXIII had given to him (which once belonged to [[Pope Pius XII]] before him) to raise money for disabled children.<ref name="Herald">Arocho Esteves, Junno. "Pope Francis officially declares John Paul I 'venerable'", ''Catholic Herald'', 9 November 2017</ref> He also urged fellow priests in Venice to sell their valuables to contribute to this cause and as a way for them to live simply and humbly.<ref name="Google Books" /> As Patriarch of Venice, Luciani established family counselling clinics to assist the poor in coping with marital, financial and sexual problems.
[[Image:jp1.jpg|framed|left|'''Pope John Paul I being carried on the Sedia Gestatoria'''<br>Initially he declined to use it. The Vatican convinced him that without it the crowds could not see him.]]


In 1978 he forbade the [[Tridentine Mass]] in the Archdiocese of Venice.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www-radiospada-org.translate.goog/2019/08/albino-luciani-persecutore-della-messa-tradizionale/?_x_tr_sl=it&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=it&_x_tr_pto=wapp|title=Albino Luciani and the Traditional Mass|date=August 29, 2019|publisher=[[Radio Spada]]|language=it}}</ref>
As a [[theology|theologist]], he was commonly regarded as being on the conservative side. He was a public defender of Pope Paul VI's 1968 ''[[Humanae Vitae|Humanæ Vitæ]]'' [http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_25071968_humanae-vitae_en.html], an encyclical on sexual mores which restated the Catholic Church's opposition to artificial birth control in the age of the [[contraceptive pill]], [http://www.nd.edu/~afreddos/courses/264/popepaul.htm] [http://www.catholic.net/RCC/Periodicals/Homiletic/11-96/1/1.html], although in private, he apparently expressed reservations to Paul VI. He raised considerable worry within the Vatican when he met with representatives of the [[United Nations]] to discuss the issue of [[overpopulation]] in the [[Third World]], an issue which was particularly controversial because of the Catholic Church's stance on birth control. Some critics of Pope Paul's ''Humanæ Vitæ'' expressed the hope that the new pontiff would issue an amended edition.


==Papacy==
In any event, John Paul's death ensured that his intentions would remain unknown. [[Pope John Paul II]] supported ''Humanæ Vitæ'', [http://www.rosary-center.org/ll47n1.htm] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/3180174.stm] a turn of events which led to conspiracy theories that John Paul I was murdered. [http://www.rotten.com/library/bio/religion/popes/john_paul_i/]
===Election===
{{Main|August 1978 papal conclave}}
[[File:Juan Pablo I.jpg|thumb|First appearance of Pope John Paul I following his election on 26 August 1978]]
Pope Paul VI died on 6 August 1978, ending a reign of fifteen years. Luciani was summoned to Rome for the conclave to elect the new pope. ''Time'' reported that the Dean of the College, [[Carlo Confalonieri]], who was excluded from participating because of age, had been the first to suggest Luciani.<ref>"A Swift, Stunning Choice", ''Time'', 4 September 1978</ref>


Luciani was elected on the fourth ballot of the [[Papal conclave, August 1978|August 1978]] [[papal conclave]]. Luciani had previously said to his secretary, Father [[Diego Lorenzi]] and Father [[Prospero Grech]] (later a cardinal himself), that he would decline the papacy if elected, and that he intended to vote for [[Aloísio Lorscheider]], whom he met in [[Brazil]].<ref name=ncr2012/> [[Jaime Sin]] of the Philippines told him: "You will be the new pope."<ref name="Google Books"/>
John Paul I intended to prepare an encyclical in order to to confirm the lines of [[Second Vatican Council]] ("''an extraordinary long-range historical event and of growth for the Church''", he said) and to enforce the Church's discipline in the life of priests and faithful. In discipline, he was a reformist, instead, and was the author of initiatives such as the [[devolution]] of 1 percent of each church's entries in favor of the poor churches in the Third World.


However, when he was asked by [[Jean-Marie Villot]] if he accepted his election, Luciani replied, "May God forgive you for what you have done", but accepted the election. After his election, when Sin paid him homage, the new pope said: "You were a prophet, but my reign will be a short one".<ref name="Google Books"/> On the balcony of St Peter's Basilica, [[Pericle Felici]] announced that the cardinals had elected Albino Luciani, Patriarch of Venice, who had chosen the name Pope John Paul I.<ref name="papaluciani.com">{{cite web|first=Gloria C. |last=Molinari|title=The Conclave August 25th–26th, 1978 |url=http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1978/The-Election-of-Pope-John-Paul-II/12309251197005-5/|website=John Paul I The Smiling Pope|access-date= 20 May 2015}}</ref> It was the first time that a pope chose a double name. He later explained that the double name was taken to gratefully honour his two immediate predecessors: [[Pope John XXIII|John XXIII]], who had named him a bishop, and [[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]], who had named him [[Patriarch of Venice]] and [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]].<ref name="papaluciani.com"/> He was also the first pope to designate himself "the First" with the name.<ref>Yallop, p. 75.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://johnpauli.wordpress.com/2014/08/26/habemus-papam-day-1/|title=Habemus Papam! — Day 1|date=26 August 1978|website=Blogging the John Paul I Papacy|first=Fr. Victor|last= Feltes}}</ref> ([[Pope Francis]], elected in 2013, also took a previously unused papal name but chose not to be called "the First".)
The tension behind the scenes that existed among those in the Vatican aware of his original document to Pope Paul on contraception exploded when the pope expressed a certain consideration for [[contraception]] after his meeting with the United Nations delegation, resulting in some [[censorship]] of his speeches on the pages of ''[[L'Osservatore Romano]]'', the official Vatican newspaper.


In the aftermath of the election, the pope confided to his brother Edoardo that his first thought was to call himself "Pius XIII" in honour of [[Pope Pius XI]], but he gave up on the idea, worried that the traditionalist members of the Church might exploit this choice of regnal name.<ref>{{Citation|title =La speranza è aspettare qualcosa di bello dal Signore (di Stefania Falasca) | publisher =30 Giorni| url =http://www.30giorni.it/articoli_id_72_l1.htm|access-date = 9 February 2014 }}</ref>
John Paul may have impressed people by his personal warmth, but within the Vatican he was seen as an intellectual lightweight not up to the responsibilities of the papacy. In the words of [[John Cornwell]], "''they treated him with condescension''". (One senior cleric compared Luciani to the actor [[Peter Sellers]].)<sup>[[#Footnote|1]]</sup> Critics contrasted his sermons mentioning ''[[Pinocchio]]'' to the learned intellectual discourses of [[Pope Pius XII|Pius XII]] or [[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]]. Visitors spoke of his isolation and loneliness, and the fact that he was the first pope in decades not to have had either a diplomatic ([[Pope Pius XI|Pius XI]] and John XXIII) or [[Roman Curia|Curial]] career (Pius XII and Paul VI).


Observers have suggested that his selection was a compromise to satisfy rumoured divisions among seemingly rival camps within the [[College of Cardinals]]:<ref name="papaluciani.com"/>
Pope John Paul was accused of being unable to handle the endless supply of documentation that was sent to him by [[Jean Cardinal Villot]], the secretary of State. The pope at one stage panicked and became distraught when he let a loose-leaf top-secret document sent by Villot blow from his hands and down over the side of the roof garden onto Vatican rooftops, to the horror of onlookers. (The Vatican's fire service was called to retrieve the hundreds of pages.)


* [[Conservatism|Conservatives]] and [[Roman Curia|Curialists]] supporting [[Giuseppe Siri]], who favoured a more conservative interpretation or even reversal of controversial ideas being promoted as "in the spirit of [[Vatican II]]" but which had never been discussed at the recent pastoral council.
Luciani himself had severe doubts as to his suitability for the papacy, predicting that his reign would be short and he would be succeeded by "''the foreigner''". He repeatedly asked people, concerning his election by the College of Cardinals, "''Why did they pick ''me''?''"
* Those who favoured a more liberal interpretation of Vatican II's reforms along with some Italian cardinals who supported [[Giovanni Benelli]], who had created some opposition due to alleged "[[autocracy|autocratic]]" tendencies.
* The cardinals within the increasingly international [[College of Cardinals]], beyond the Italians who were experiencing diminished influence, such as [[Pope John Paul II|Karol Wojtyła]].<ref name="papaluciani.com" />


During the days following the conclave, the cardinals were generally elated at the reaction to Pope John Paul I, some of them happily saying that they had elected "God's candidate".<ref name="papaluciani.com" /> [[Argentina|Argentine]] [[Eduardo Francisco Pironio]] stated, "We were witnesses of a moral miracle."<ref name="papaluciani.com" /> [[Mother Teresa]], commenting about the new pope, "He has been the greatest gift of God, a sun beam of God's love shining in the darkness of the world."<ref name="papaluciani.com" /> British primate Cardinal [[Basil Hume]] declared: "Once it had happened, it seemed totally and entirely right ... We felt as if our hands were being guided as we wrote his name on the paper".<ref name="Google Books"/>
===Death===


A dramatic event, soon after the election, occurred when the leader of the delegation from the [[Russian Orthodox Church]], [[Nikodim (Rotov)|Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) of Leningrad]], collapsed and died after a ceremony on 5 September 1978. The new pope immediately came over and prayed for him.<ref>{{cite news| title = Russian Archbishop Dies During Papal Audience| url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=19780906&id=N0wNAAAAIBAJ&pg=7076,622971| agency = [[Associated Press]]| newspaper= [[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]| date = 6 September 1978| page = 6| access-date = 30 August 2013}}</ref>
[[image:Jp1arms.jpg|framed|Pope John Paul I's papal coat of arms]]


===Church policies===
His quick death, only 33 days after his election, caused worldwide shock. The official cause of death specified by the Vatican was a [[myocardial infarction]], or a common heart attack. However, this is uncertain to some extent because no autopsy was performed. The Vatican's reporting of the events surrounding his death raised major issues when it was found to contain several falsehoods concerning the identity of the person who found the body, the time of death, the book he had been reading and the alleged disappearance of personal property. Conflicting stories were told as to his health. It was hinted that his ill health was due to heavy [[Tobacco smoking|smoking]]; in fact he never smoked. The impact of this misinformation was shown in a headline of the ''[[Irish Independent]]'' newspaper, 'THIRTY-THREE BRAVE DAYS' conveying the image of a weak and ill man physically unable to withstand the pressures of the papacy, and who was in effect killed by it.


====Six-point plan====
The pope's body was [[Embalming|embalmed]] within one day of his death. Wild rumours spread. One rumour claimed that a visiting prelate had recently died from drinking '[[poison]]ed coffee' prepared for the pope. A visiting prelate actually had died some days earlier, but there was no evidence of poison. Another unsubstantiated rumour described the pope's plans to dismiss senior Vatican officials over allegations of corruption. The sudden embalming raised suspicions that it had been done to prevent a [[post-mortem]]. However the Vatican insisted that a papal post-mortem was prohibited under Vatican law. This too was later revealed to be incorrect: in [[1830]] a post-mortem was carried out on the remains of [[Pope Pius VIII]], yielding evidence that suggested Pius VIII had been poisoned.
After he became pope, he had set six plans down which would dictate his pontificate:


* To renew the church through the policies implemented by Vatican II.
John Paul's death is featured in the movie ''[[The Godfather, Part III]]'' which insinuates that he was murdered after discovering discrepancies in Church funds. The movie inaccurately depicts the year of his death as [[1979]] instead of [[1978]].
* To revise [[canon law]].
* To remind the church of its duty to preach the Gospel.
* To promote church unity without watering down doctrine.
* To promote dialogue.
* To encourage world peace and social justice.<ref name="Google Books"/>


====Humanising the papacy====
==Legacy of John Paul I==
[[File:Ioannes Paulus I, at the window, 1978 (retouched) (cropped).jpg|thumb|170px|John Paul I photographed from his [[Papal apartments|study]] window in 1978]]
After his election, John Paul I quickly made several decisions that would "humanise" the office of the pope. He was the first modern pope to speak in the singular form, using 'I' instead of the [[Pluralis majestatis|royal ''we'']]. However, the official records of his speeches were often rewritten in a more formal style by aides, who reinstated the royal ''we'' in press releases and ''[[L'Osservatore Romano]]''. He initially refused to use the ''[[sedia gestatoria]]'' until others convinced him of its need to allow himself to be seen by crowds. He was the last pope to use it. He was the first pope to refuse to be [[Papal coronation|crowned]].<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Paul-I| title = The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "John Paul I". ''Encyclopedia Britannica''| date = 13 October 2023}}</ref> Instead of a coronation, he inaugurated his papacy with a "[[papal inauguration]]" where he received the papal [[pallium]] as the symbol of his position as Bishop of Rome.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Briggs| first1=Kenneth A.|title=In the Vatican, a Pope Who Underscores the Shift to Style of Humility|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/11/14/archives/in-the-vatican-a-pope-who-underscores-the-shift-to-style-of.html |access-date=5 September 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=14 November 1978}}</ref>


===Moral theology===
[[Image:Pope_JPIs_Tomb_and_Fr_Johan._jpeg.-1.jpg|framed|Pope John Paul I's tomb under St. Peter's Basilica]]
{{Main|Moral theology of John Paul I}}
British researcher Paul Spackman described Luciani as a man of "doctrinal rigour leavened by pastoral and social open-mindedness," who left behind a "legacy of gentle and compassionate bridge-building."<ref name=ncr2012/>


====Contraception====
Pope John Paul I was not in office long enough to make any major practical changes within the Vatican or the Roman Catholic Church (except for his abandonment of the [[Papal Coronation]]). However, his image as a warm, gentle, kind man captivated the world.
Luciani had mixed feelings regarding the traditional stance on contraception. In 1968, as Bishop of Vittorio Veneto, he submitted a report to his predecessor as the Patriarch of Venice, [[Giovanni Urbani]], that argued that the contraceptive pill should be permitted. It was agreed on by fellow Veneto bishops and was later submitted to Pope Paul VI.<ref name="John Julius Norwich 2011, p. 445">John Julius Norwich, ''The Popes'', London, 2011, p. 445.</ref> When ''[[Humanae vitae]]'' was released, re-affirming the teaching of the Church against artificial contraception, Luciani defended that document. Nevertheless, he seemed to contradict that defence in a letter he wrote to his diocese four days after the encyclical's release.<ref>Albino Luciani/Giovanni Paolo I, ''Opera Omnia'' (Padua: Edizioni Messagero, 1989), vol. 3, pp. 300–301.</ref> In May 1978, Luciani was invited to speak at a Milanese conference to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the encyclical. He refused to speak at the event or even attend it.<ref name="John Julius Norwich 2011, p. 445"/>


Raymond and Lauretta take a different view, saying that while serving as Patriarch of Venice, "Luciani was intransigent with his upholding of the teaching of the Church and severe with those, who through intellectual pride and disobedience paid no attention to the Church's prohibition of contraception, though while not condoning the sin, he was patient with those who sincerely tried and failed to live up to the Church's teaching."<ref name="autogenerated2004" />
He was regarded as a skilled communicator and writer, and has left behind some writings. His book ''[[Illustrissimi]],'' written while he was a Cardinal, is a series of letters to a wide collection of historical and fictional persons. Among those still available are his letters to [http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious/gesu2.htm Jesus Christ], the Biblical [http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious/david2.htm King David], [http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious/figaro2.htm Figaro the Barber], [http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious/mariateresa2.htm Marie Theresa of Austria] and [http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious/pinocchio2.htm Pinocchio]. Others 'written to' included [[Mark Twain]], [[Charles Dickens]] and [[Christopher Marlowe]].


====Abortion====
A number of campaigns have been started to [[canonization|canonize]] Pope John Paul I. [[Miracle]]s have been attributed to him. However, the Vatican has not formally begun the process of canonization.
In his letter to Carlo Goldoni from the book ''[[Illustrissimi]]'', Luciani took a critical perspective of abortion and argued that it violated God's law and that it went against the deepest aspirations of women, profoundly disturbing them.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yex2o7Ta48UC|title=Illustrissimi: The Letters of Pope John Paul I|translator-first=Isabel |translator-last=Quigly |publisher=Gracewing Publishing|year=2001|page=269|isbn=9780852445495}}</ref>


====Artificial insemination====
==John Paul II on his predecessor==
In an interview before the death of Pope Paul VI in 1978, when asked for his reaction to the birth of the first test-tube baby [[Louise Brown]], Luciani expressed concerns about the possibility that [[artificial insemination]] could lead to women being used as "baby factories", but he refused to condemn the parents,<ref>''Prospettive nel Mondo'', 1 August 1978; Albino Luciani, ''Opera Omnia'', vol. 8, pp. 571-72</ref> noting that they simply wanted to have a baby.<ref>Adam Eley, [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-33599353 "How has IVF developed since the first 'test-tube baby'?"], [[BBC News]], 23 July 2015, accessed 24 March 2023</ref>


His view was that "from every side the press is sending its congratulations to the English couple and best wishes to their baby girl. In imitation of God, who desires and loves human life, I too offer my best wishes to the baby girl. As for her parents, I do not have any right to condemn them; subjectively, if they have acted with the right intention and in good faith, they may even obtain great merit before God for what they have decided on and asked the doctors to carry out." Luciani added, "Getting down, however, to the act in itself, and good faith aside, the moral problem which is posed is: is extrauterine fertilization in vitro or in a test tube, licit?... I do not find any valid reasons to deviate from this norm, by declaring licit the separation of the transmission of life from the marriage act."<ref>''Prospettive nel Mondo'', 1 August 1978; Luciani, ''Opera Omnia'', vol. 8, pp. 571–72.</ref>
[[Pope John Paul II|Karol Józef Wojty&#322;a]] was [[Papal election|elected]] to succeed John Paul I as [[Roman Pontiff|Supreme Pontiff]] on Monday, [[16 October]] [[1978]]. The next day he celebrated [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] together with the [[College of Cardinals]] in the [[Sistine Chapel]]. After the mass, he delivered his first ''[[Urbi et Orbi]]'' (a traditional blessing) message, broadcast worldwide via radio. In it he pledged fidelity to the [[Second Vatican Council]] and paid tribute to his predecessor:


====Divorce====
In 1969, Luciani was cautious of de facto relationships as a lesser evil to divorce. He said that unions like those should not be the same as marriage. However, he added that "there are, in undeniably pathological family situations, painful cases. To remedy that, some propose a divorce, which, conversely, would aggravate this. But some remedy outside of divorce, you can't really find? Once the legitimate family is protected and made a place of honour, you will not be able to recognise with all appropriate precautions some civil effect to de facto unions."<ref name="Vatican Insider">{{cite web|url=http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.aspx?ref=SERP&br=ro&mkt=en-AU&dl=en&lp=IT_EN&a=http%3a%2f%2fvaticaninsider.lastampa.it%2fhomepage%2fvaticano%2fdettaglio-articolo%2farticolo%2fluciani-papa-14496%2f|title=Luciani, the meek Pope (in Italian)|publisher=Vatican Insider|date=20 April 2012|access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref>


====Homosexuality====
"''What can we say of John Paul I? It seems to us that only yesterday he emerged from this assembly of ours to put on the papal robes&mdash;not a light weight. But what warmth of charity, nay, what 'an abundant outpouring of love'&mdash;which came forth from in the few days of his ministry and which in his last Sunday address before the [[Angelus]] he desired should come upon the world. This is also confirmed by his wise instructions to the faithful who were present at his public audiences on faith, hope and love.''" (source: [[L'Osservatore Romano]], Weekly Edition in English, [[26 October]] 1978, p.3)
In a 1974 interview, while he was the Patriarch of Venice, Luciani upheld the traditional line: "A sexuality that is worthy of man must be a part of love for a person of a different sex with the added commitments of fidelity and indissolubility."<ref>Interview with ''Il Gazzettino'', 12 February 1974, p. 7</ref>


====Ordination of women====
In a 1975 talk Luciani gave to a group of sisters, he expressed his views on the ordination of women into the priesthood:

{{blockquote|You will ask: what about ... the priesthood itself? I can say to you: Christ bestowed the pastoral ministry on men alone, on his apostles. Did he mean this to be valid only for a short time, almost as though he made allowances for the prejudice about the inferiority of women prevalent in his time? Or did he intend it to be valid always? Let it be very clear: Christ never accepted the prejudice about the inferiority of women: they are always admirable figures in the Gospels, more so than the apostles themselves. The priesthood, however, is a service given by means of spiritual powers and not a form of superiority. Through the will of Christ, women — in my judgement — carry out a different, complementary, and precious service in the church, but they are not "possible priests" ... That does not do wrong to women.<ref name=ncr2012/>}}

===Communism===
John Paul I reiterated the official views of the church regarding [[Marxism]] and Catholicism being incompatible and believed it to be a "weapon to disobey" the Christian faith. As Patriarch of Venice, he struggled at times with Marxist students who were demanding changes in Venetian policies. He also forbade those factions that were Marxist from threatening the faith.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.zenit.org%2Fit%2Farticles%2Falbino-luciani-inedito-seconda-parte&edit-text=&act=url|title=Albino Luciani unpublished Part II (in Italian)|date=21 August 2012|publisher=Zenit|access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref>

===Interfaith dialogue===

====Islam====
John Paul I was a friend to the Muslim people and, as [[Patriarch of Venice]], said to Catholics that faithful Muslims had the "right to build a [[mosque]]" to practise their faith in the archdiocese. In November 1964, he explained the declaration of [[Dignitatis humanae]]: "There are 4,000 Muslims in Rome: they have the right to build a mosque. There is nothing to say: you have to let them do it".<ref name="Vatican Insider"/>

===Universal call to holiness===
Luciani stressed the need throughout his time as Bishop of Vittorio Veneto to answer the [[universal call to holiness]] as was an invitation in the Second Vatican Council. He believed that sainthood was something that all Catholics could achieve if they led a life of service to God. Luciani said there were no barriers to sainthood and discussed this theme of the council in a homily on 6 January 1962: "We are called by God to be true saints". Luciani stressed the importance of this and said God invites Catholics and obligates them to sainthood. He also said that by professing love for God, Catholics say: "my God I want to be holy, I will strive to be holy".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.aspx?ref=SERP&br=ro&mkt=en-AU&dl=en&lp=IT_EN&a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.papaluciani.it%2fHumilitas%2f09%2fhumilitas_gennaio09.html|title=The Lord invites and obligates us to holiness (in Italian)|publisher=Humilitas|access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref>

===Mercy===
During his brief pontificate, John Paul I spoke three times on the concept of God's mercy. In his General Audience address on 13 September 1978, the pope said that the entire point of mercy is "to surrender to God" through faith in him, which goes about "transforming one's life" in the fight against sin, and the pursuit of holiness. The pope continued that "God has so much tenderness for us" in which "He begs me to repent" from sin to return to God's embrace. The pope concluded that "the Church too must be good; good to everyone" in its outreach to the faithful.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Holy See|author=Pope John Paul I|date=13 September 1978|access-date=17 November 2017|title=General Audience|url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-i/en/audiences/documents/hf_jp-i_aud_13091978.html}}</ref>

John Paul I, in his Angelus address on 24 September 1978, spoke about the importance of doing good deeds through charitable and merciful acts in society, to make the world more just, and to improve the overall conditions of society. The pope elaborated that it was important to "try to be good and to infect others with a goodness imbued with the meekness and love taught by Christ" while seeking to give one's all in service to others. The pope further pointed out Christ's example on the Cross, in which he forgave and excused those who persecuted, referring to it as a sentiment which "would help society so much" if put into constant practice.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Holy See|date=24 September 1978|author=Pope John Paul I|title=Angelus, 24 September 1978|access-date=17 November 2017|url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-i/en/angelus/documents/hf_jp-i_ang_24091978.html}}</ref>

The pope also spoke about mercy in his address at the General Audience on 27 September 1978. He referred to God as "infinite good" capable of providing for mankind's "eternal happiness" in his love for humanity. He continued that it may be "difficult to love others; we do not find them likeable, they have offended us and hurt us", though said that forgiveness between brothers and sisters was very important for unity and peace among people. Additionally, the pope referred to the seven corporal and spiritual acts of mercy, which he said acted as a guide for Christians, though highlighting the fact that "the list is not complete and it would be necessary to update it" as times change since global situations change. The pope concluded that justice adds to charity, which is linked to the theme of mercy.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Holy See|author=Pope John Paul I|date=27 September 1978|access-date=17 November 2017|title=General Audience|url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-i/en/audiences/documents/hf_jp-i_aud_27091978.html}}</ref>

===Interpretation of Vatican II===

Luciani had attended all sessions of the [[Second Vatican Council]] (1962–65) while he was the Bishop of Vittorio Veneto. He had hoped that the council would highlight "Christian optimism" in terms of Christ's teachings against the culture of relativism. He denounced a fundamental ignorance of the "basic elements of the faith" — it was this point that he wished to focus on as opposed to secularism throughout the world.

Luciani told his niece that his diocese actually contained people "of three councils":
*Those stuck at Vatican I, if not actually at the Council of Trent.
*Those "who gladly accept the aggiornamento of Vatican II, seeing it as a grace to improve the relationship between the church and the world."
*"A little group who make the council say things that in reality it does not say, planning a radical rush toward another council that still does not exist, a Vatican III."<ref>[https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/all-things-catholic/debunking-four-myths-about-john-paul-i-smiling-pope Allen Jr,. John R., "Debunking four myths about John Paul I, the 'Smiling Pope'", ''National Catholic Reporter'', November 2, 2012]</ref>

Shortly after becoming Pope, he laid out the priorities for his papacy. First and foremost would be the continued implementation of Vatican II.<ref>[https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2022/09/02/explainer-pope-john-paul-luciani-243680 Keane, James T., "Pope John Paul I will be beatified on Sunday. Who was he?", ''America'', September 02, 2022]</ref>

In regard to religious freedom, Luciani wrote about the council's declaration, {{lang|la|[[Dignitatis humanae]]}}. In his writings, he said that there is only one true religion that must be followed and no other, affirming that Jesus Christ is the truth, and that the truth will set one truly free. However, he stated that those that who would not accept the one true Catholic faith, for whatever reason, were indeed free to profess their own religion for various reasons. He continued to state that religious freedom must be freely exercised by the individual: "The choice of religious belief must be free. The freer and more earnest the choice, the more those that embrace the Faith will feel honoured. These are rights, natural rights. Rights always come hand in hand with duties. The non Catholics have the right to profess their religion and I have the duty to respect their right as a private citizen, as a priest, as a bishop and as a State".<ref>{{cite web|url= http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/the-vatican/detail/articolo/concilio-council-papa-pope-el-papa-luciani-17330/|title= The Second Vatican Council according to Albino Luciani|publisher= Vatican Insider|date= 8 June 2012|accessdate= 19 April 2014}}</ref>

===International travels===
On 12 September 1978, [[Mario Casariego y Acevedo]] of [[Guatemala]] invited the pope to visit Guatemala in 1979. The pope was said to have thanked him for the invitation but did not provide a response. The week before this, the pope said he was unable to accept an invitation to the [[Latin American Episcopal Conference]] in [[Puebla]], [[Mexico]] for October due to his schedule.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/50123213/|title=Pope Invited to the New World, but Staying Put for Now|publisher=The Ottawa Journal|date=12 September 1978|access-date=28 February 2015}}</ref>

===Sainthood causes===
No saints were [[Canonization|canonised]] nor people [[Beatification|beatified]] in his brief term on the papal throne, but José Gras y Granollers, [[John Vincent (Carmelite)|Juan Vicente Zengotita-Bengoa Lasuen]] and [[Giuseppe Beschin]] were made [[Servant of God|Servants of God]] during his pontificate on 22 September 1978.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsaints.faithweb.com/year/1943.htm|title=JUAN VICENTE ZENGOTITABENGOA LAUSEN (JUAN VICENTE OF JESUS AND MARY)|publisher=Hagiography Circle|access-date=2 July 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsaints.faithweb.com/year/1918.htm#Granollers|title=JOSÉ GRAS GRANOLLERS|date=2015|access-date=25 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsaints.faithweb.com/year/1952.htm|title=GIUSEPPE BESCHIN (IGNAZIO)|publisher=Hagiography Circle|access-date=29 August 2015}}</ref>

===Personality===

John Paul I was regarded as a skilled communicator and writer. His book ''[[Illustrissimi]]'', written while he was a cardinal, is a series of letters to a wide collection of historical and fictional persons. Among those still available are his letters to Jesus, King [[David]], Figaro the Barber, Empress [[Maria Theresa]] and [[Pinocchio]]. Others "written to" included [[Mark Twain]], [[Charles Dickens]] and [[Christopher Marlowe]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Gloria C. |last=Molinari |url=http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious.htm |title=Letters |website=Papaluciani.com |date=10 September 1999 |access-date=20 May 2015 |archive-date=23 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023050347/http://www.papaluciani.com/eng/teachings/letters/illustrious.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> He was also well-read, and was known for reading several newspapers each morning, including one from the Veneto region, before beginning his day.<ref name=FD/>

John Paul I impressed people with his personal warmth. He was seen by some as an intellectual lightweight not up to the responsibilities of the papacy, although [[David Yallop]] (''[[In God's Name]]'') says that this is the result of a [[whispering campaign]] by people in the Vatican who were opposed to Luciani's policies. In the words of [[John Cornwell (writer)|John Cornwell]], "they treated him with condescension"; one senior cleric discussing Luciani said "they have elected [[Peter Sellers]]."<ref>[[Joseph McCabe|McCabe, Joseph]], [http://www.stanleyhero.com/history/History-of-the-Popes/History-of-the-Popes_9.php ''A History of the Popes'' excerpts from: A History of the Popes] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090601121637/http://www.stanleyhero.com/history/History-of-the-Popes/History-of-the-Popes_9.php |date=1 June 2009 }}</ref> Critics contrasted his sermons mentioning [[Pinocchio]] to the learned intellectual discourses of [[Pope Pius XII|Pius XII]] or [[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]]. Visitors spoke of his isolation and loneliness and the fact that he was the first pope in decades not to have previously held either a diplomatic role (like [[Pope Pius XI|Pius XI]] and John XXIII) or [[Roman Curia|Curial]] role (like Pius XII and Paul VI) in the Church.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

His personal impact, however, was twofold: his image as a warm, gentle and kind man captivated the whole world. This image was immediately formed when he was presented to the crowd in [[St. Peter's Square]] following his election. The warmth of his presence made him a much-loved figure before he even spoke a word. The media in particular fell under his spell. He was a very skilled [[orator]].{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

According to his aides, he was not the naive idealist his critics made him out to be. [[Giuseppe Caprio]], the substitute Papal Secretary of State, said that John Paul I quickly accepted his new role and performed it with confidence.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Seabeck |first1=Raymond |last2=Seabeck | first2=Lauretta |title=The Smiling Pope, The Life & Teaching of John Paul I|publisher=Our Sunday Visitor Press|date= 2004 |quote=We must not be deceived by his smile. He listened, he asked for information, he studied. But once he made a decision, he did not go back on it, unless new facts came to light.... With absolute respect to persons, the Pope had no intentions of deviating from what had been the rule of his life and the direction of his pastoral action: fatherly, yes, but absolutely firm in the guidance of the souls entrusted by God to his care.}}</ref>

John Paul I had admitted that the prospect of the papacy had daunted him to the point that other cardinals had to encourage him to accept it. He refused to have the millennium-old traditional [[papal coronation]] or wear the [[papal tiara]].<ref>''Romano Pontifici Eligendo'' (1975) [https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/it/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_p-vi_apc_19751001_romano-pontifici-eligendo.html Pope Paul VI's Apostolic Constitution on the election on the pontiff, Section 92.]</ref> He instead chose to have a simplified [[Papal inauguration|inauguration mass]]. John Paul I adopted as his [[motto]] the Latin word {{lang|la|Humilitas}} ('Humility'). In his notable [[Angelus]] of 27 August 1978 (delivered on the first full day of his papacy), he impressed the world with his natural friendliness.<ref>{{cite web|title=First Angelus Address, Pope John Paul I|publisher=[[Libreria Editrice Vaticana]]|url=https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_i/angelus/documents/hf_jp-i_ang_27081978_en.html|access-date=28 November 2008}}</ref>

Sister Margherita Marin, who worked in the Vatican during Luciani's papacy, said in comments made in late 2017 that the pope had admitted the sisters into his apartment chapel for morning Mass, unlike his predecessor Paul VI who had only admitted his secretaries.<ref name=FD>{{cite web|url=http://nuovavenezia.gelocal.it/venezia/cronaca/2017/12/11/news/suor-margherita-papa-luciani-era-sereno-quando-mori-1.16225896|publisher=La Nuova Venezia|date=11 December 2017|author=Francesco Dal Mas|access-date=12 December 2017|title=Suor Margherita: "Papa Luciani era sereno quando morì"}}</ref> Marin also said that Luciani would speak the [[Venetian dialect]] with those Venetian sisters to make them more comfortable, and to better interact with them. The religious also noted that the pope's humour was evident to all those who spoke with him, and he would often joke with the sisters when seeing his picture in the papers: "But you see how they got me", in reference to the quality of his picture.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

==Death==
[[File:TombaBeatoGiovanniPaoloI2022.jpg|thumb|235px|Tomb of John Paul I in the Vatican Grottoes following his 2022 beatification]]
Around 10 p.m. on the night of his death, the pope learned that several young [[neo-Fascists]] had fired upon a group of young people reading ''[[L'Unità]]'', the Communist newspaper, outside one of the party's offices in Rome. One boy was killed while another was seriously wounded. The pope lamented to [[John Magee (bishop)|Bishop John Magee]], "Even the young are killing each other." He later retired to his room to read [[Thomas à Kempis]]' ''[[The Imitation of Christ]]'' in bed.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2013/sep/30/pope-john-paul-1-death-vatican|title=From the archive, 30 September 1978: Pope John Paul I dies of heart attack|journal=The Guardian|date=30 September 2013|access-date=28 February 2015|last1=Armstrong|first1=George}}</ref>

On 29 September 1978, on what would have been the 35th day of his pontificate, John Paul I was found dead in his bed with reading material and a bedside lamp still lit. He had probably suffered a [[heart attack]] the night before.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.crisismagazine.com/2009/a-quiet-death-in-rome-was-pope-john-paul-i-murdered|title=A Quiet Death in Rome: Was Pope John Paul I Murdered?|date=1 April 2009|website=Crisis Magazine|language=en-US|access-date=15 September 2019}}</ref> Upon the global announcement of the news, [[Spain]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-A-1978-24813 | title=BOE.es - BOE-A-1978-24813 Real Decreto 2329/1978, de 29 de septiembre, por el que se declara luto nacional por el fallecimiento de Su Santidad el Papa Juan Pablo I }}</ref> [[Zaire]]<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dd_bpKbE7XUC&q=pope+john+paul+I+died+declares+three+days+mourning&pg=PA120 | title=The Dialectics of Oppression in Zaire | isbn=0253317037 | last1=Schatzberg | first1=Michael G. | year=1988 | publisher=Indiana University Press }}</ref> and [[Lebanon]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Homan |first1=Richard L. |title=World Reacts With Disbelief And Concern |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1978/09/30/world-reacts-with-disbelief-and-concern/b028ccdb-8f52-4bde-9e63-31f56aebc665/ |newspaper=Washington Post |access-date=10 June 2022 |date=30 September 1978}}</ref> all declared three days of mourning.

John Paul I's funeral was held in [[Saint Peter's Square]] on 4 October 1978, celebrated by [[Carlo Confalonieri]]. In his [[eulogy]] of the late pope, he described him as a flashing comet who briefly lit up the church. He then was laid to rest in the [[Vatican Grottoes]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Tomb of John Paul I |url=http://stpetersbasilica.info/Grottoes/JPI/Tomb%20of%20John%20Paul%20I.htm |website=St Peter’s Basilica Info |access-date=15 April 2023}}</ref>

[[File:1000 lire John Paul I - 1978.png|thumb|right|250px|1000 [[Vatican lira|lire]] silver coin with a portrait of John Paul I on the front (1978)]]
There are several [[Pope John Paul I conspiracy theories|conspiracy speculations related to his death]].

===2018 revelations===
The journalist and vice-postulator for John Paul I's cause of canonization, Stefania Falasca, published a new book in 2017 titled ''Pope Luciani, Chronicle of a Death'', in which she revealed that John Paul I had complained of chest pains hours before his death, and the evening before, but paid no attention to it and ordered that his doctor not be called.<ref name=BDC>{{cite web|url=https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/11/06/sainthood-bid-heats-book-debunks-conspiracies-john-paul/|title=As sainthood bid heats up, book debunks conspiracies on John Paul I|date=6 November 2017|access-date=6 November 2017|author=Inés San Martín|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171106084147/https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/11/06/sainthood-bid-heats-book-debunks-conspiracies-john-paul/|archive-date=6 November 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> Falasca confirmed, after interviewing the sisters who found him and documents from the [[Vatican Apostolic Archive]], that John Paul I died of a heart attack in the late evening hours of 28&nbsp;September 1978.<ref name=JPIDC>Brockhaus, Hannah. "New book reveals details of John Paul I's death", Catholic News Agency, 6 November 2017</ref>

The [[Cardinal Secretary of State]] [[Pietro Parolin]], in his preface for the book, describes the various conspiracies regarding John Paul I's death as little more than "noir reconstructions". Parolin further says that the sudden death of the pope inspired "myriad theories, suspicions, [and] suppositions" based on opinion rather than fact.<ref name=BDC/>

Falasca noted the 2009 testimony of Sister Margherita Marin, one of the two [[Nun#Distinction between a nun and a religious sister|sister]]s who found the pope dead in his bedroom on the morning of 29 September 1978. John Paul I had made it a practice to have a morning coffee in the [[sacristy]] and then go into the chapel to pray before tending to the day's matters.<ref name=MJPI/> Sister [[Vincenza Taffarel]] had noted the pope had not touched the coffee she had left for him in the sacristy at 5:15 am (after about ten minutes) and went looking for him but found him dead, and hastily summoned Marin, who also went into the room.<ref>{{Cite web|date=7 November 2017|title=Nun relives the moment she found Pope John Paul I dead|url=https://catholicherald.co.uk/nun-relives-moment-she-found-pope-john-paul-i-dead/|access-date=13 October 2021|website=Catholic Herald|language=en-GB}}</ref>

Sister Vincenza said: "He hasn't come out yet? Why not?" and knocked a few more times but heard silence, then opened the door and walked in. Marin remained in the hallway but heard the elder sister say: "Your Holiness, you shouldn't pull these jokes on me" because Sister Vincenza also had heart problems.<ref name=BDC/><ref name=MJPI/><ref name=JPIDC/> Marin testified that John Paul I's hands were cold and she was struck by the darkness of his nails.<ref name=BDC/> Marin further testified that original information provided by the Vatican regarding who discovered the pope was wrong, since it had originally been claimed the discovery was by the pope's secretaries Lorenzi and Magee.<ref name=JPIDC/> Marin testified that "he was in bed with a slight smile" on his face. The reading light over the headboard was still on, with his two pillows under his back propping him up, with his legs outstretched and his arms on top of the bedsheets. John Paul I was still in his [[pajamas]] with a few typewritten sheets in his hands. His head was slightly turned to the right and his eyes were partially closed; his glasses rested on his nose.<ref name=MJPI/>

John Paul I had suffered a severe pain in his chest for about five minutes around 7:30 pm while reciting the vespers in the chapel with Magee before dinner, but insisted against calling for Doctor Renato Buzzonetti. The latter, the book claimed, was informed of that episode after the pope's death.<ref name=JPIDC/> The book also revealed that, before the [[October 1978 papal conclave|conclave that elected John Paul II]], the cardinals had sent a series of written questions to the doctors who had embalmed John Paul I either on 10 or 11 October to check if there had been any signs of traumatic injuries, so as to ascertain if he died naturally rather than suspiciously.<ref name=MJPI>{{cite web|url=https://aleteia.org/2017/11/06/john-paul-is-mysterious-death-now-less-a-mystery/|title=Is the mystery over the death of John Paul I finally solved?|date=6 November 2017|access-date=7 November 2017|author=Ary Waldir Ramos Diaz|publisher=Aleteia}}</ref><ref>O'Connell, Gerard. "Pope John Paul I, "the smiling pope", is on the path to sainthood", ''America'' Magazine, 4 November 2017</ref> Doctor Buzzonetti sent a detailed report to the Cardinal Secretary of State [[Agostino Casaroli]] on 9 October 1979 detailing that the episode of pain John Paul I suffered was in the upper part of the sternal region.<ref name=MJPI/>

Sister Margherita noted in late 2017 in comments made in Belluno that the pope had made a half-hour phone call on the evening of his death to [[Giovanni Colombo]] and said he wanted the [[Rector Major of the Salesians]] [[Egidio Viganò]] to agree to serve as John Paul I's successor as [[Patriarch of Venice]].<ref name=FD/>

==Canonization process==
{{Infobox saint
|honorific_prefix = [[Beatification|Blessed]]
|name = John Paul I
|birth_name = Albino Luciani
|birth_date = 17 October 1912
|death_date = 28 September 1978 (aged 65)
|feast_day = [[26 August]]
|venerated_in = [[Roman Catholic Church]]
|image = Pope John Paul I portrait.jpg
|caption = John Paul I on 19 September 1978
|birth_place = [[Canale d'Agordo|Forno di Canale]], [[Province of Belluno|Belluno]], [[Kingdom of Italy]]
|death_place = [[Apostolic Palace]], [[Vatican City]]
|titles = [[Pope]]; [[Confessor]]
|attributes = [[Papal vestments|Papal attire]]<br />[[Pallium]]
|patronage = Canale d'Agordo<br />[[Roman Catholic Diocese of Vittorio Veneto|Diocese of Vittorio Veneto]]<br />[[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice|Patriarchate of Venice]]<br />[[Catechists]]
|beatified_date = 4 September 2022
|beatified_place = [[Saint Peter's Square]], Vatican City
|beatified_by = [[Pope Francis]] }}

===Diocesan process===
The process for the canonisation for John Paul I formally began in 1990 with the petition by 226 [[Brazilian people|Brazilian]] bishops, including four cardinals. The petition was addressed directly to Pope John Paul II.<ref>{{cite web |title=Press Conference to present the Beatification of Pope John Paul I, 02.09.2022 |url=https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2022/09/02/220902b.html |website=press.vatican.va |access-date=19 November 2022}}</ref>

On 26 August 2002, Bishop [[Vincenzo Savio]] announced the start of the preliminary phase to collect documents and testimonies necessary to start the process of [[canonisation]]. On 8 June 2003 the [[Congregation for the Causes of Saints]] gave its assent to the work and on 17 June transferred the forum for the beatification process from Rome to Belluno-Feltre while also declaring the late pope as a [[Servant of God]] after declaring "[[nihil obstat]]" (no objections to the cause). On 23 November, on the [[Feast of Christ the King]], the diocesan process formally opened in [[Belluno Cathedral]] with [[José Saraiva Martins]] in charge and presiding over the inauguration.<ref>Congregation for the Causes of Saints, [https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/csaints/documents/rc_con_csaints_doc_20031123_papa-luciani_it.html Solemn Opening of the Cause for Canonization of the Servant of God, Albino Luciani, Pope John Paul I] on 23 November 2003. In Italian. Page found 13 June 2010.</ref><ref>[http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2006/11/12/John-Paul-I-on-sainthood-track/UPI-81341163314624/ John Paul I on Sainthood Track.] United Press International, 12 November 2006. Page found 13 June 2010.</ref> The diocesan inquiry for the cause subsequently concluded on 11 November 2006 in [[Belluno]] with all the evidence collected being sent to the C.C.S. which received their validation on 13 June 2008. On 13 June 2008, the Vatican began the "Roman" phase of the beatification process for John Paul I, in which they would assess the documents and witness testimonies collected during the diocesan inquiry.<ref>{{cite web |title=September 2022 date set for beatification of Pope John Paul I |url=https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2021-12/pope-john-paul-i-beatification-september-2022.html |website=vaticannews.va |date=24 December 2021 |publisher=Dicasterium pro Communicatione |access-date=19 November 2022}}</ref>

===Roman phase===
The documents in regard to the cause were supposed to be delivered to the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, [[Angelo Amato]] on 17 October 2012 (the one-hundredth anniversary of the late pope's birth), in a large [[Positio]] dossier (consisting of a biography and investigation into his virtues) to examine the pros and cons of the cause. This was delayed when the cause's supporters wanted another check over all the documents. In a mass at Belluno on 20 July 2014, [[Tarcisio Bertone]] announced that the cause of beatification was set to advance. The cardinal highlighted that the Positio would be delivered in September 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/30137/john-paul-is-beatification-cause-may-advance-cardinal-says|title=John Paul I's beatification cause may advance, cardinal says|publisher=Catholic News Agency|date=24 July 2014|access-date=24 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.com.au&sl=it&u=http://www.telebelluno.it/wp/13401&usg=ALkJrhhx8jFFm9g0suJgpAv4kg2e5lBSmw|title=Card. Bertone: "Luciani Blessed soon" (in Italian)|publisher=TeleBelluno|date=24 July 2014|access-date=10 February 2015}}</ref> But the dossier was not submitted to the C.C.S. until 17 October 2016; there were five volumes with around 3600 pages in total.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

On 27 August 2015, Bishop Giuseppe Andrich announced that John Paul I would be beatified "soon". In a [[homily]] delivered during Mass in Canale d'Agordo, Luciani's home town, on the 37th anniversary of his election as Pope, Andrich said Church authorities had concluded the investigation into Luciani's heroic virtues. Following the conclusion of the writing of the "Positio" dossier (3652 pages in total), they received several messages affirming personal experience of Luciani's holiness, including a handwritten card from [[Pope Benedict XVI|Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI]]. The testimony of a Pope or former Pope in considering a candidate for sainthood is extremely unusual. Benedict XVI apparently recommended waiving the requirement for miracles in Luciani's case.<ref>[https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ilmessaggero.it%2FPRIMOPIANO%2FVATICANO%2Fpapa_luciani_beato_ratzinger_miracoli%2Fnotizie%2F1535347.shtml&edit-text=&act=url Rome: Pope Luciani soon beatified, also Ratzinger has testified in his favor, but he lacks miracles.] ''Messagiero'', 27 August 2015.</ref><ref>[https://translate.google.com/translate?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.com.au&sl=it&u=http://www.telebelluno.it/wp/13401&sandbox=0&usg=ALkJrhiK6rSgDiq2xImdQ_ikUGAf6klWlg Benedict XVI to witness the beatification of Albino Luciani]. ''Telebelluno'', 27 August 2015.</ref>

To determine whether or not the late pontiff should be declared [[Venerable]], theologians and the members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints must determine if the late pope lived a life of [[heroic virtue]]. This meeting took place on 1 June 2017 in which theologians unanimously approved the fact that the late pope exercised virtues to a heroic degree.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.avvenire.it/opinioni/pagine/lanelito-alla-pace-e-carter-nel-luciani-ancora-segreto|title=L'anelito alla pace in una lattera inedita di Luciani a Carter|date=26 August 2017|publisher=Avvenire|access-date=26 August 2017|author=Stefania Falasca}}</ref> The cardinal and bishop members discussed the cause on 7 November 2017 and issued their unanimous approval.<ref>Tornielli, Andrea. "Luciani, 'sì' unamime alla beatificiazione", ''La Stampa'', 7 November 2017</ref> [[Pope Francis]] named John Paul I as Venerable on 8 November 2017 after confirming his heroic virtue per the [[Cardinal virtues|cardinal]] and [[theological virtues]].<ref name=Herald/>

===Beatification===
{{Wikinews|Pope Francis beatifies short-lived, 'smiling Pope' John Paul I}}
For Luciani to be [[beatification|beatified]], the investigators had to certify at least one [[miracle]] attributed to his intercession. For [[Canonization|canonisation]] there must be a second miracle, though the reigning pope may waive these requirements altogether, as is often done in the case of beatified popes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.catholic-pages.com/saints/explained.asp |title=What is a Saint? |publisher=Catholic-Pages.com |date=29 July 1997 |access-date=28 September 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120919194942/http://www.catholic-pages.com/saints/explained.asp |archive-date=19 September 2012 }}</ref>

It was reported in 2016 that a potential miracle attributed to the late pontiff's intercession happened to a nun in [[Buenos Aires]] in [[Argentina]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://corrierealpi.gelocal.it/belluno/cronaca/2016/07/07/news/papa-luciani-c-e-un-nuovo-miracolo-1.13777967|title=Pope Luciani, there is a new miracle|publisher=Corriere delle Alpi|date=7 July 2016|access-date=7 July 2016}}</ref> The vice-postulator for the cause, Stefania Falasca, reported in a piece for ''[[Avvenire]]'' that medical consultants in Rome deemed the healing of the Argentine nun as a miracle on 31 October 2019 as there was no possible scientific or medical explanation. Theologians likewise provided their approval on 6 May 2021 after determining that the healing came as a direct result of the late pope's intercession. Falasca reported that the cardinal and bishop members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints were scheduled to meet to discuss the cause in October, thereby implying that a 2022 beatification was likely.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2021/08/26/john-paul-i-luciani-beatification-241292|title=John Paul I, who was pope for 33 days, is likely to be beatified in 2022|date=26 August 2021|publisher=America Magazine|author=Gerard O'Connell|accessdate=1 September 2021}}</ref>

Pope Francis authorized a decree that recognized the miracle on 13 October 2021; it enabled for John Paul I to be beatified at Saint Peter's Square on 4 September 2022.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2021-10/pope-john-paul-i-miracle-for-canonization.html|title=Pope John Paul I – a miracle clears him for beatification|publisher=[[Vatican News]]|date=13 October 2021|accessdate=13 October 2021}}</ref>

====Miracle====
Following the announcement that John Paul I would be beatified, details were released that the miracle in question was the recovery of an 11-year-old in Buenos Aires from [[Encephalitis|inflammatory encephalopathy]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/13/world/europe/pope-john-paul-i-beatified-saint.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/13/world/europe/pope-john-paul-i-beatified-saint.html |archive-date=28 December 2021 |url-access=limited |title=John Paul I, Pope for 33 Days in 1978, Will Be Beatified |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=13 October 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

===Failed miracle===
The postulation also drew upon the testimony of Giuseppe Denora di Altamura who claimed to have been cured of cancer by the intercession of the late pontiff. An official investigation into the alleged miracle commenced on 14 May 2007 and concluded on 30 May 2009 with the C.C.S. validating the process on 25 March 2010.<ref>[http://www.ncregister.com/blog/jpi_miracle_goes_to_rome/ John Paul I's Miracle Goes to Rome] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307041603/http://www.ncregister.com/blog/jpi_miracle_goes_to_rome/ |date=7 March 2012 }}. National Catholic Register, 8 June 2009.</ref>

The supposed miracle attributed to his intercession was taken to a medical board in [[Rome]] on 24 April 2015 and the commission came to the conclusion that it was not a miracle that could be attributed to Luciani. This means that another miracle will need to be found before the cause can continue.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://translate.google.com.au/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fmessaggeroveneto.gelocal.it%2Fpordenone%2Fcronaca%2F2015%2F04%2F26%2Fnews%2Fl-intervista-parla-pizziolo-1.11309219&edit-text=&act=url|title="Papa Albino Luciani non sarà beato" (in Italian)|date=26 April 2015|access-date=26 April 2015}}</ref>

===Postulation===
The [[postulator]] for the cause was Bishop [[Enrico dal Covolo]] from 2003 until 2016 when [[Beniamino Stella]] was appointed to that position. Stefania Falasca is the current vice-postulator.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2021/10/13/john-paul-pope-francis-saint-241627|title=Pope Francis clears the way for the beatification of Pope John Paul I|date=13 October 2021|website=America Magazine}}</ref>

== Titles, styles and arms ==

=== Titles and styles ===

* 15 December 1958 – 15 December 1969: ''[[The Most Reverend]]'' Albino Luciani, Bishop of Vittorio Veneto<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-03-11 |title=Jpicentenary.org |url=http://jpicentenary.org/?page_id=65 |access-date=2023-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311002457/http://jpicentenary.org/?page_id=65 |archive-date=11 March 2016 }}</ref>
* 15 December 1969 – 5 March 1973: ''[[His Beatitude]]'' Patriarch Albino<ref>{{Cite web |title=Biography of His Holiness John Paul I {{!}} John Paul I |url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-i/en/biography/documents/hf_jp-i_bio_01021997_biography.html |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=www.vatican.va}}</ref>
* 5 March 1973 – 26 August 1978: ''[[His Beatitude]]''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Audience with Patriarch of Venice Francesco Moraglia {{!}} Murano Glass |url=https://www.muranoglass.com/en/news-en/audience-francesco-moraglia-patriarch-of-venice/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=www.muranoglass.com}}</ref> Patriarch Albino Cardinal Luciani
* 26 August 1978 – 28 September 1978: ''[[Holiness (style)|His Holiness]]'' Pope John Paul I

=== Arms ===
<gallery>
File:C o a John Paul I.svg|Coat of Arms used as a Pope
File:Coat of arms of Albino Luciani.svg|Coat of Arms used as a Cardinal
</gallery>

==Legacy==
Pope John Paul I was the first pope to abandon the [[papal coronation|coronation]], and he was also the first pope to choose a double name (John Paul) for his [[papal name]]. His successor, [[Pope John Paul II|Karol Józef Wojtyła]], chose the same name. He was the first pope to have a [[Papal inauguration]] and the last pope to use the ''[[Sedia Gestatoria]]''.

===Views of successors===
====John Paul II====
[[File:Museo papa Luciani.jpg|thumb|215px|The Pope Luciani museum]]
[[Pope John Paul II|Karol Wojtyła]] was [[Papal conclave, October 1978|elected]] John Paul I's successor as [[Pope]] on Monday, 16 October 1978. The next day he celebrated [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] together with the [[College of Cardinals]] in the [[Sistine Chapel]]. After the Mass, he delivered his first ''[[Urbi et Orbi]]'' (a traditional blessing) message, broadcast worldwide via radio. In it he pledged fidelity to the [[Second Vatican Council]] and paid tribute to his predecessor:<ref>{{cite web|title=First Radiomessage "Urbi et orbi", Pope John Paul II|publisher=[[Libreria Editrice Vaticana]]|url=https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/speeches/1978/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_19781017_primo-radiomessaggio_en.html|access-date=28 November 2008}}</ref>

{{blockquote|What can we say of John Paul I? It seems to us that only yesterday he emerged from this assembly of ours to put on the papal robes — not a light weight. But what warmth of charity, nay, what "an abundant outpouring of love" — which came forth from him in the few days of his ministry and which in his last Sunday address before the [[Angelus]] he desired should come upon the world. This is also confirmed by his wise instructions to the faithful who were present at his public audiences on faith, hope and love.}}

====Benedict XVI====
Benedict XVI spoke of the late pontiff on 28 September 2008 (the 30th anniversary of John Paul I's death) during his weekly Angelus address. Of the late pope, he said:<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/angelus/2008/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20080928.html|title=Angelus, 28 September 2008, Castel Gandolfo|publisher=[[Holy See]]|date=28 September 2008|accessdate=21 February 2022}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Because of this virtue of his, it only took 33 days for Pope Luciani to win people's hearts. In his addresses he always referred to events in practical life, from his family memories and from popular wisdom. His simplicity was a vehicle for a solid, rich teaching which, thanks to the gift of an exceptional memory and a vast knowledge, he embellished with numerous citations from ecclesiastical and secular writers. Thus, he was an incomparable catechist, following in the footsteps of St [[Pope Pius X|Pius X]], who came from the same region and was his predecessor first on the throne of St Mark and then on that of St Peter. 'We must feel small before God,' he said during the same Audience. And he added, 'I am not ashamed to feel like a child before his mother; one believes in one's mother; I believe in the Lord, in what he has revealed to me.' These words reveal the full depth of his faith. As we thank God for having given him to the church and to the world, let us treasure his example, striving to cultivate his same humility which enabled him to talk to everyone, especially the small and the 'distant.' For this, let us invoke Mary Most Holy, the humble handmaid of the Lord.}}

====Francis====
Pope Francis spoke of his predecessor in his 2016 book ''The Name of God Is Mercy'' in which Francis recalls how touched he was by his predecessor's writings. More than any of his predecessors mentioned in his book, Francis refers to Luciani the most. The pope referred to Luciani's remarks at the latter's general audience of 6 September 1978 and mentioned how profound that his words were upon him; of the remarks Luciani made, he said:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.archivioradiovaticana.va/storico/2016/01/11/pope_francis_quotes_john_paul_i/en-1200269|title=Pope Francis quotes John Paul I|publisher=[[Vatican Radio]]|author=|date=11 January 2016|accessdate=21 February 2022}}</ref>

{{blockquote|There is the homily when Albino Luciani said he had been chosen because the Lord preferred that certain things not be engraved in bronze or marble but in the dust, so that if the writing had remained, it would have been clear that the merit was only God's.}}

==Media==
* In 2006, the Italian Public Broadcasting Service, [[RAI]], produced a television miniseries about the life of John Paul I, called ''[[Pope John Paul I: The Smile of God|Papa Luciani: Il sorriso di Dio]]'' (literally, "Pope Luciani: The Smile of God"). It stars Italian comedian [[Neri Marcorè]] in the titular role.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ichtis.info/papiez-luciani-usmiech-boga/3847|title=Papież Luciani, uśmiech Boga|trans-title=Pope Luciani, God's Smile}}</ref>
* A conspiracy theory about the Pope's death is portrayed in the 1990 crime film ''[[The Godfather Part III]]'', where he is killed with poison tea in relation to the Vatican Bank.
* [[Mark E. Smith]] wrote a play, ''[[Hey! Luciani: The Life and Codex of John Paul I]]'', and the song ''[[Hey! Luciani]]'' about the life and death of John Paul I.

==See also==
* [[List of popes]]
* [[List of shortest-reigning popes]]


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
*[http://www.spiritdaily.org/New-world-order/luciani.htm Spirit Daily]

*[http://www.crisismagazine.com/julaug2003/miesel.htm Crisis Magazine]
==Further reading==
*[[L'Osservatore Romano]], Weekly Edition in English, [[26 October]] 1978, p.
* {{Smallcaps|Cornwell}}, John (1989). ''A Thief in the Night: the Death of Pope John Paul I''. London: Viking. {{ISBN|0-670-82387-2}}
* {{Smallcaps|Gurwin}}, Larry (1983). ''The Calvi Affair: Death of a Banker''. London: Pan Books, 1984, cop. 1983. xiii, 251 p. + [8] p. of b&w photos. {{ISBN|0-330-28540-8}}; alternative ISBN on back cover, 0-330-28338-3
* {{Smallcaps|Hebblewaite}}, Peter (1978). ''The Year of Three Popes''. First United States ed. Cleveland, Ohio: W. Collins, 1979, cop. 1978. ix, 220 p. {{ISBN|0-529-05652-6}}
* {{Smallcaps|Manhattan}}, Avro (1985). ''Murder in the Vatican: American, Russian, and Papal Plots''. First ed. Springfield, Mo.: Ozark Books. 274 p. Without ISBN
* [[Pierre Bérubé|{{Smallcaps|Bérubé}}, Pierre]],(Wikipedia en French: [[Pierre Bérubé]]) « Jean-Paul I » « Il y a 30 ans, Jean-Paul 1er… Un passage qu'on ne veut pas oublier! » Le Soleil, (Québec), 2 October 2008, p.&nbsp;27, Opinion (présentation version papier), article complet : [https://www.lesoleil.com/2008/10/02/il-y-a-30-ans-jean-paul-1er-un-passage-quon-ne-veut-pas-oublier-ad7d8c7dfe29e4722b7a92d1f4692b6f Il y a 30 ans, Jean-Paul 1er... Un passage qu'on ne veut pas oublier!]


== External links ==
{{Pope|
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110425000013/http://www.fondazionepapaluciani.com/albino_luciani The website of the Foundation Papa Luciani]
Predecessor=[[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]]|
* [https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-i/en.html Vatican website: John Paul I]
Successor=[[Pope John Paul II|John Paul II]]}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150816034009/http://newsaints.faithweb.com/year/1978.htm#Luciani Hagiography Circle]
* [http://catholicsaints.info/pope-john-paul-i/ Saints SQPN]
* [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bluciani.html Catholic Hierarchy] [[Wikipedia:Verifiability#Reliable sources|{{sup|{{small|[''self-published'']}}}}]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070930024315/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,946069,00.html Religion: How Pope John Paul I Won&nbsp;– TIME Magazine]
* [http://www.ewtn.org/library/PAPALDOC/JP1PROGR.HTM John Paul I on EWTN] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608032610/http://www.ewtn.org/library/PAPALDOC/JP1PROGR.HTM |date=8 June 2011 }} Speech on "Church Discipline, Evangelization, Ecumenism, Peace"
* An interview with [[John Magee (bishop)|Dr John Magee]], former private secretary to John Paul I, on the occasion of John Paul II's funeral is [https://web.archive.org/web/20060526213002/http://dynamic.rte.ie/av/2036899.smil available here]. From [[RTÉ Radio 1]]'s "News at One" on [https://web.archive.org/web/20070522232010/http://www.rte.ie/news/2005/0408/news1pm.html 8 April 2005]. RealPlayer required.


{{s-start}}
[[Category:1912 births|John Paul I]]
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[[Category:1978 deaths|John Paul I]]
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[[Category:Popes|John Paul 1]]
{{s-ttl|title=[[Roman Catholic Diocese of Vittorio Veneto|Bishop of Vittorio-Veneto]]|years=27 December 1958 – 15 December 1969}}
[[Category:Natives of the Veneto|John Paul 1]]
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{{s-ttl|title=[[Patriarch of Venice]]|years=15 December 1969 – 16 August 1978}}
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{{s-ttl|title=[[San Marco, Rome|Cardinal-Priest of San Marco]]|years=5 March 1973 – 26 August 1978}}
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{{S-ttl|title=[[List of Sovereigns of the Vatican City State|Sovereign of the Vatican City State]]|years=26 August&nbsp;– 28 September 1978}}
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[[fr:Jean-Paul Ier]]
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Latest revision as of 02:14, 30 August 2024


John Paul I
Bishop of Rome
Official portrait, 1978
ChurchCatholic Church
Papacy began26 August 1978
Papacy ended28 September 1978
PredecessorPaul VI
SuccessorJohn Paul II
Previous post(s)
Orders
Ordination7 July 1935
by Giosuè Cattarossi
Consecration27 December 1958
by John XXIII
Created cardinal5 March 1973
by Paul VI
Personal details
Born
Albino Luciani

(1912-10-17)17 October 1912
Died28 September 1978(1978-09-28) (aged 65)
Apostolic Palace, Vatican City
EducationPontifical Gregorian University (PhD)
MottoHumilitas (Humility)
SignatureJohn Paul I's signature
Coat of armsJohn Paul I's coat of arms
Sainthood
Feast day26 August[1][2]
Venerated inRoman Catholic Church
Beatified4 September 2022
Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City
by Pope Francis
Attributes
PatronageCatechists[3]
Other popes named John Paul
Ordination history of
Pope John Paul I
History
Diaconal ordination
Date2 February 1935
Priestly ordination
Ordained byGiosuè Cattarossi
Date7 July 1935
PlaceChurch of San Pietro, Belluno, Kingdom of Italy
Episcopal consecration
Principal consecratorPope John XXIII
Co-consecratorsGirolamo Bortignon (Padua)
Gioacchino Muccin (Bell. & Felt.)
Date27 December 1958
PlaceSaint Peter's Basilica
Cardinalate
Elevated byPope Paul VI
Date5 March 1973

Pope John Paul I (Latin: Ioannes Paulus I; Italian: Giovanni Paolo I; born Albino Luciani [alˈbiːno luˈtʃaːni]; 17 October 1912 – 28 September 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the 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 and the first to occur since 1605. John Paul I remains the most recent Italian-born pope, the last in a succession of such popes that started with Clement VII in 1523.

Before the August 1978 papal conclave that elected him, he expressed his desire not to be elected, telling those close to him that he would decline the papacy if elected; upon the cardinals' electing him, he felt an obligation to say yes.[4] He was the first pontiff to have a double name, choosing "John Paul" in honour of his two immediate predecessors, John XXIII and Paul VI. He explained that he was indebted to John XXIII and to Paul VI for naming him a bishop and a cardinal, respectively. Furthermore, he was the first pope to add the regnal number "I", designating himself "the First".

His two immediate successors, John Paul II and Benedict XVI, later recalled the warm qualities of the late pontiff in several addresses. In Italy, he is remembered with the appellatives of Il Papa del Sorriso (transl.The Smiling Pope)[5] and Il Sorriso di Dio (transl. The Smile of God).[6] Time magazine and other publications referred to him as "The September Pope".[7] He is also known in Italy as "Papa Luciani". In his hometown of Canale d'Agordo a museum built and named in his honour is dedicated to his life and brief papacy.

He was declared a servant of God by his successor, John Paul II, on 23 November 2003, the first step on the road to sainthood. Pope Francis confirmed his heroic virtue on 8 November 2017 and named him as Venerable. Pope Francis presided over the beatification on 4 September 2022.[8][9]

Early life and education

[edit]
Albino Luciani approximately at the age of 10, c. 1922–23

Albino Luciani was born on 17 October 1912 in Forno di Canale (now Canale d'Agordo) in Belluno, a province of the Veneto region in Northern Italy. He was the son of Giovanni Luciani (c. 1872–1952), a bricklayer, and Bortola Tancon (c. 1879–1947). Albino was followed by two brothers, Federico (1915–1916) and Edoardo (1917–2008), and a sister, Antonia (1920–2010). He was baptised on the day he was born by the midwife because he was considered to be in danger of death. The solemn rites of baptism were formalised in the parish church two days later.[10]

Luciani was a restless child. In 1922, aged 10, he was awestruck when a Capuchin friar came to his village to preach the Lenten sermons. From that moment, he decided that he wanted to become a priest and went to his father to ask for his permission. His father agreed and said to him: "I hope that when you become a priest you will be on the side of the workers, for Christ Himself would have been on their side".[11]

Luciani entered the minor seminary of Feltre in 1923, where his teachers found him "too lively", and later went on to the major seminary of Belluno. During his stay at Belluno, he attempted to join the Jesuits. However, he was denied by the seminary's rector, Bishop Giosuè Cattarossi.[12]

Ordination and teaching career

[edit]

Ordained a priest on 7 July 1935, Luciani then served as a curate in his native Forno de Canale before becoming a professor and the vice-rector of the Belluno seminary in 1937.[10] Among the different subjects, he taught dogmatic and moral theology, canon law and sacred art.[13]

In 1941, Luciani started to work on a Doctorate of Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University.[10] This required at least one year's attendance in Rome. However, the Belluno seminary's superiors wanted him to continue teaching during his doctoral studies. The situation was resolved by a special dispensation by Pope Pius XII on 27 March 1941. His thesis (The origin of the human soul according to Antonio Rosmini) largely attacked Rosmini's theology and earned him his doctorate magna cum laude in 1947.[10]

In 1947, he was named chancellor to Bishop Girolamo Bortignon of Belluno,[10] and was appointed a Supernumerary Privy Chamberlain of His Holiness, the most junior class of papal prelate, on 15 December.[14] In 1954, he was named the vicar general for the Belluno diocese.[10] Luciani was nominated for the position of bishop several times, but he was passed over each time due to his poor health, stature, and resigned appearance. In 1949, he published a book titled Catechesis in crumbs. This book, his first, was about teaching the truths of the faith in a simple way, directly and comprehensible to all people.[13]

Episcopate

[edit]

On 15 December 1958, Luciani was appointed Bishop of Vittorio Veneto by Pope John XXIII. He received his episcopal consecration later that month from Pope John XXIII himself, with Bishops Bortignon and Gioacchino Muccin serving as the co-consecrators. Luciani took possession of the diocese on 11 January 1959, with Humilitas (Humility) as his episcopal motto.[10] In his first address to his new diocese, he told the people that he sought to be "a bishop who is a teacher and a servant".[11]

As a bishop, he participated in all the sessions of the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965). On 18 April 1962, Luciani issued a pastoral letter, entitled "Notes on the Council", to alert the faithful to the structure of the proceedings and the overall purpose of the Council, chiefly, the doctrinal and practical issues.[15]

Between 1965 and 1969, he faced the schism of Montaner: almost all the residents of Montaner, a frazione of Sarmede, decided to renounce Catholicism and embrace the Orthodox religion, because they had a great disagreement with their bishop, Luciani. The people disagreed with Luciani's decision to appoint John Gava as a new priest in 1966 since the people wanted their own choice, rather than the one Luciani had settled on. The people then wanted a compromise: make their choice the parish's vice-rector if not parish priest. However, Monsignor Luciani said the small village needed only one priest, and he was the sole authority on priestly selection. Continually, he recommended new priests, but each was denied by the people. Finally, he was escorted by the police and took the Eucharist from the Montaner church, leaving the church unblessed and waiting for their next move.[4]

In 1966, Luciani visited Burundi in East Africa.[16]

Albino Luciani in 1969

On 15 December 1969, Luciani was appointed the new patriarch of Venice by Pope Paul VI, taking possession of his new archdiocese the following February. That same month he received honorary citizenship of the town of Vittorio Veneto, where he had previously served as bishop.[10]

1971 Synod of Bishops

[edit]

At the Synod of Bishops held in Rome in 1971, to which he was personally invited by Pope Paul VI, Luciani suggested to the bishops assembled that dioceses in countries that were heavily industrialised should relinquish around 1% of all their income to Third World nations to be given "not as alms, but something that is owed. Owed to compensate for the injustices that our consumer-oriented world is committing towards the 'world on the way to development' and to in some way make reparation for social sin, of which we must become aware".[11]

Cardinalate

[edit]

Pope Paul VI created Luciani the Cardinal-Priest of San Marco in the consistory on 5 March 1973.[10]

During his time as Patriarch of Venice, Luciani clashed with priests who supported the liberalisation of divorce in Italy, eventually suspending some of them.[4] At the same time, he was opposed to the 1974 referendum restricting divorce after it had been liberalised, feeling that such a move would fail and simply point out a divided Church with declining influence.[4]

Pope Paul VI makes Luciani a cardinal in 1973.

In 1975, Luciani travelled to Germany in May. Later that year (6–21 November), he visited Brazil, where he met with members of the clergy, including Aloísio Lorscheider. Upon returning to Italy, he suffered an embolus in his right eye. Luciani also visited Fatima a few months later. While there, he met with Sister Lucia dos Santos, the surviving visionary of three children who in 1917 claimed to see apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary (revered in this form under the title Our Lady of Fatima). When Luciani met Sister Lucia, she referred to him as "Holy Father". This greeting shocked the humble cardinal.[17] In January 1976, he published Illustrissimi ("To the Illustrious Ones"), a collection of letters penned by him in previous years, whimsically addressed to historical and literary figures such as Dickens, G. K. Chesterton, Maria Theresa of Austria, Teresa of Avila, Goethe, Figaro, Pinocchio, the Pickwick Club, King David, and Jesus.

In 1975, he suggested disciplinary punishment for priests who spoke out in favour of the Communist Party or other leftist groups.[18]

In 1976, Luciani sold a gold cross and pectoral gold chain that Pope John XXIII had given to him (which once belonged to Pope Pius XII before him) to raise money for disabled children.[19] He also urged fellow priests in Venice to sell their valuables to contribute to this cause and as a way for them to live simply and humbly.[16] As Patriarch of Venice, Luciani established family counselling clinics to assist the poor in coping with marital, financial and sexual problems.

In 1978 he forbade the Tridentine Mass in the Archdiocese of Venice.[20]

Papacy

[edit]

Election

[edit]
First appearance of Pope John Paul I following his election on 26 August 1978

Pope Paul VI died on 6 August 1978, ending a reign of fifteen years. Luciani was summoned to Rome for the conclave to elect the new pope. Time reported that the Dean of the College, Carlo Confalonieri, who was excluded from participating because of age, had been the first to suggest Luciani.[21]

Luciani was elected on the fourth ballot of the August 1978 papal conclave. Luciani had previously said to his secretary, Father Diego Lorenzi and Father Prospero Grech (later a cardinal himself), that he would decline the papacy if elected, and that he intended to vote for Aloísio Lorscheider, whom he met in Brazil.[4] Jaime Sin of the Philippines told him: "You will be the new pope."[16]

However, when he was asked by Jean-Marie Villot if he accepted his election, Luciani replied, "May God forgive you for what you have done", but accepted the election. After his election, when Sin paid him homage, the new pope said: "You were a prophet, but my reign will be a short one".[16] On the balcony of St Peter's Basilica, Pericle Felici announced that the cardinals had elected Albino Luciani, Patriarch of Venice, who had chosen the name Pope John Paul I.[22] It was the first time that a pope chose a double name. He later explained that the double name was taken to gratefully honour his two immediate predecessors: John XXIII, who had named him a bishop, and Paul VI, who had named him Patriarch of Venice and Cardinal.[22] He was also the first pope to designate himself "the First" with the name.[23][24] (Pope Francis, elected in 2013, also took a previously unused papal name but chose not to be called "the First".)

In the aftermath of the election, the pope confided to his brother Edoardo that his first thought was to call himself "Pius XIII" in honour of Pope Pius XI, but he gave up on the idea, worried that the traditionalist members of the Church might exploit this choice of regnal name.[25]

Observers have suggested that his selection was a compromise to satisfy rumoured divisions among seemingly rival camps within the College of Cardinals:[22]

  • Conservatives and Curialists supporting Giuseppe Siri, who favoured a more conservative interpretation or even reversal of controversial ideas being promoted as "in the spirit of Vatican II" but which had never been discussed at the recent pastoral council.
  • Those who favoured a more liberal interpretation of Vatican II's reforms along with some Italian cardinals who supported Giovanni Benelli, who had created some opposition due to alleged "autocratic" tendencies.
  • The cardinals within the increasingly international College of Cardinals, beyond the Italians who were experiencing diminished influence, such as Karol Wojtyła.[22]

During the days following the conclave, the cardinals were generally elated at the reaction to Pope John Paul I, some of them happily saying that they had elected "God's candidate".[22] Argentine Eduardo Francisco Pironio stated, "We were witnesses of a moral miracle."[22] Mother Teresa, commenting about the new pope, "He has been the greatest gift of God, a sun beam of God's love shining in the darkness of the world."[22] British primate Cardinal Basil Hume declared: "Once it had happened, it seemed totally and entirely right ... We felt as if our hands were being guided as we wrote his name on the paper".[16]

A dramatic event, soon after the election, occurred when the leader of the delegation from the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) of Leningrad, collapsed and died after a ceremony on 5 September 1978. The new pope immediately came over and prayed for him.[26]

Church policies

[edit]

Six-point plan

[edit]

After he became pope, he had set six plans down which would dictate his pontificate:

  • To renew the church through the policies implemented by Vatican II.
  • To revise canon law.
  • To remind the church of its duty to preach the Gospel.
  • To promote church unity without watering down doctrine.
  • To promote dialogue.
  • To encourage world peace and social justice.[16]

Humanising the papacy

[edit]
John Paul I photographed from his study window in 1978

After his election, John Paul I quickly made several decisions that would "humanise" the office of the pope. He was the first modern pope to speak in the singular form, using 'I' instead of the royal we. However, the official records of his speeches were often rewritten in a more formal style by aides, who reinstated the royal we in press releases and L'Osservatore Romano. He initially refused to use the sedia gestatoria until others convinced him of its need to allow himself to be seen by crowds. He was the last pope to use it. He was the first pope to refuse to be crowned.[27] Instead of a coronation, he inaugurated his papacy with a "papal inauguration" where he received the papal pallium as the symbol of his position as Bishop of Rome.[28]

Moral theology

[edit]

British researcher Paul Spackman described Luciani as a man of "doctrinal rigour leavened by pastoral and social open-mindedness," who left behind a "legacy of gentle and compassionate bridge-building."[4]

Contraception

[edit]

Luciani had mixed feelings regarding the traditional stance on contraception. In 1968, as Bishop of Vittorio Veneto, he submitted a report to his predecessor as the Patriarch of Venice, Giovanni Urbani, that argued that the contraceptive pill should be permitted. It was agreed on by fellow Veneto bishops and was later submitted to Pope Paul VI.[29] When Humanae vitae was released, re-affirming the teaching of the Church against artificial contraception, Luciani defended that document. Nevertheless, he seemed to contradict that defence in a letter he wrote to his diocese four days after the encyclical's release.[30] In May 1978, Luciani was invited to speak at a Milanese conference to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the encyclical. He refused to speak at the event or even attend it.[29]

Raymond and Lauretta take a different view, saying that while serving as Patriarch of Venice, "Luciani was intransigent with his upholding of the teaching of the Church and severe with those, who through intellectual pride and disobedience paid no attention to the Church's prohibition of contraception, though while not condoning the sin, he was patient with those who sincerely tried and failed to live up to the Church's teaching."[5]

Abortion

[edit]

In his letter to Carlo Goldoni from the book Illustrissimi, Luciani took a critical perspective of abortion and argued that it violated God's law and that it went against the deepest aspirations of women, profoundly disturbing them.[31]

Artificial insemination

[edit]

In an interview before the death of Pope Paul VI in 1978, when asked for his reaction to the birth of the first test-tube baby Louise Brown, Luciani expressed concerns about the possibility that artificial insemination could lead to women being used as "baby factories", but he refused to condemn the parents,[32] noting that they simply wanted to have a baby.[33]

His view was that "from every side the press is sending its congratulations to the English couple and best wishes to their baby girl. In imitation of God, who desires and loves human life, I too offer my best wishes to the baby girl. As for her parents, I do not have any right to condemn them; subjectively, if they have acted with the right intention and in good faith, they may even obtain great merit before God for what they have decided on and asked the doctors to carry out." Luciani added, "Getting down, however, to the act in itself, and good faith aside, the moral problem which is posed is: is extrauterine fertilization in vitro or in a test tube, licit?... I do not find any valid reasons to deviate from this norm, by declaring licit the separation of the transmission of life from the marriage act."[34]

Divorce

[edit]

In 1969, Luciani was cautious of de facto relationships as a lesser evil to divorce. He said that unions like those should not be the same as marriage. However, he added that "there are, in undeniably pathological family situations, painful cases. To remedy that, some propose a divorce, which, conversely, would aggravate this. But some remedy outside of divorce, you can't really find? Once the legitimate family is protected and made a place of honour, you will not be able to recognise with all appropriate precautions some civil effect to de facto unions."[35]

Homosexuality

[edit]

In a 1974 interview, while he was the Patriarch of Venice, Luciani upheld the traditional line: "A sexuality that is worthy of man must be a part of love for a person of a different sex with the added commitments of fidelity and indissolubility."[36]

Ordination of women

[edit]

In a 1975 talk Luciani gave to a group of sisters, he expressed his views on the ordination of women into the priesthood:

You will ask: what about ... the priesthood itself? I can say to you: Christ bestowed the pastoral ministry on men alone, on his apostles. Did he mean this to be valid only for a short time, almost as though he made allowances for the prejudice about the inferiority of women prevalent in his time? Or did he intend it to be valid always? Let it be very clear: Christ never accepted the prejudice about the inferiority of women: they are always admirable figures in the Gospels, more so than the apostles themselves. The priesthood, however, is a service given by means of spiritual powers and not a form of superiority. Through the will of Christ, women — in my judgement — carry out a different, complementary, and precious service in the church, but they are not "possible priests" ... That does not do wrong to women.[4]

Communism

[edit]

John Paul I reiterated the official views of the church regarding Marxism and Catholicism being incompatible and believed it to be a "weapon to disobey" the Christian faith. As Patriarch of Venice, he struggled at times with Marxist students who were demanding changes in Venetian policies. He also forbade those factions that were Marxist from threatening the faith.[37]

Interfaith dialogue

[edit]

Islam

[edit]

John Paul I was a friend to the Muslim people and, as Patriarch of Venice, said to Catholics that faithful Muslims had the "right to build a mosque" to practise their faith in the archdiocese. In November 1964, he explained the declaration of Dignitatis humanae: "There are 4,000 Muslims in Rome: they have the right to build a mosque. There is nothing to say: you have to let them do it".[35]

Universal call to holiness

[edit]

Luciani stressed the need throughout his time as Bishop of Vittorio Veneto to answer the universal call to holiness as was an invitation in the Second Vatican Council. He believed that sainthood was something that all Catholics could achieve if they led a life of service to God. Luciani said there were no barriers to sainthood and discussed this theme of the council in a homily on 6 January 1962: "We are called by God to be true saints". Luciani stressed the importance of this and said God invites Catholics and obligates them to sainthood. He also said that by professing love for God, Catholics say: "my God I want to be holy, I will strive to be holy".[38]

Mercy

[edit]

During his brief pontificate, John Paul I spoke three times on the concept of God's mercy. In his General Audience address on 13 September 1978, the pope said that the entire point of mercy is "to surrender to God" through faith in him, which goes about "transforming one's life" in the fight against sin, and the pursuit of holiness. The pope continued that "God has so much tenderness for us" in which "He begs me to repent" from sin to return to God's embrace. The pope concluded that "the Church too must be good; good to everyone" in its outreach to the faithful.[39]

John Paul I, in his Angelus address on 24 September 1978, spoke about the importance of doing good deeds through charitable and merciful acts in society, to make the world more just, and to improve the overall conditions of society. The pope elaborated that it was important to "try to be good and to infect others with a goodness imbued with the meekness and love taught by Christ" while seeking to give one's all in service to others. The pope further pointed out Christ's example on the Cross, in which he forgave and excused those who persecuted, referring to it as a sentiment which "would help society so much" if put into constant practice.[40]

The pope also spoke about mercy in his address at the General Audience on 27 September 1978. He referred to God as "infinite good" capable of providing for mankind's "eternal happiness" in his love for humanity. He continued that it may be "difficult to love others; we do not find them likeable, they have offended us and hurt us", though said that forgiveness between brothers and sisters was very important for unity and peace among people. Additionally, the pope referred to the seven corporal and spiritual acts of mercy, which he said acted as a guide for Christians, though highlighting the fact that "the list is not complete and it would be necessary to update it" as times change since global situations change. The pope concluded that justice adds to charity, which is linked to the theme of mercy.[41]

Interpretation of Vatican II

[edit]

Luciani had attended all sessions of the Second Vatican Council (1962–65) while he was the Bishop of Vittorio Veneto. He had hoped that the council would highlight "Christian optimism" in terms of Christ's teachings against the culture of relativism. He denounced a fundamental ignorance of the "basic elements of the faith" — it was this point that he wished to focus on as opposed to secularism throughout the world.

Luciani told his niece that his diocese actually contained people "of three councils":

  • Those stuck at Vatican I, if not actually at the Council of Trent.
  • Those "who gladly accept the aggiornamento of Vatican II, seeing it as a grace to improve the relationship between the church and the world."
  • "A little group who make the council say things that in reality it does not say, planning a radical rush toward another council that still does not exist, a Vatican III."[42]

Shortly after becoming Pope, he laid out the priorities for his papacy. First and foremost would be the continued implementation of Vatican II.[43]

In regard to religious freedom, Luciani wrote about the council's declaration, Dignitatis humanae. In his writings, he said that there is only one true religion that must be followed and no other, affirming that Jesus Christ is the truth, and that the truth will set one truly free. However, he stated that those that who would not accept the one true Catholic faith, for whatever reason, were indeed free to profess their own religion for various reasons. He continued to state that religious freedom must be freely exercised by the individual: "The choice of religious belief must be free. The freer and more earnest the choice, the more those that embrace the Faith will feel honoured. These are rights, natural rights. Rights always come hand in hand with duties. The non Catholics have the right to profess their religion and I have the duty to respect their right as a private citizen, as a priest, as a bishop and as a State".[44]

International travels

[edit]

On 12 September 1978, Mario Casariego y Acevedo of Guatemala invited the pope to visit Guatemala in 1979. The pope was said to have thanked him for the invitation but did not provide a response. The week before this, the pope said he was unable to accept an invitation to the Latin American Episcopal Conference in Puebla, Mexico for October due to his schedule.[45]

Sainthood causes

[edit]

No saints were canonised nor people beatified in his brief term on the papal throne, but José Gras y Granollers, Juan Vicente Zengotita-Bengoa Lasuen and Giuseppe Beschin were made Servants of God during his pontificate on 22 September 1978.[46][47][48]

Personality

[edit]

John Paul I was regarded as a skilled communicator and writer. His book Illustrissimi, written while he was a cardinal, is a series of letters to a wide collection of historical and fictional persons. Among those still available are his letters to Jesus, King David, Figaro the Barber, Empress Maria Theresa and Pinocchio. Others "written to" included Mark Twain, Charles Dickens and Christopher Marlowe.[49] He was also well-read, and was known for reading several newspapers each morning, including one from the Veneto region, before beginning his day.[50]

John Paul I impressed people with his personal warmth. He was seen by some as an intellectual lightweight not up to the responsibilities of the papacy, although David Yallop (In God's Name) says that this is the result of a whispering campaign by people in the Vatican who were opposed to Luciani's policies. In the words of John Cornwell, "they treated him with condescension"; one senior cleric discussing Luciani said "they have elected Peter Sellers."[51] Critics contrasted his sermons mentioning Pinocchio to the learned intellectual discourses of Pius XII or Paul VI. Visitors spoke of his isolation and loneliness and the fact that he was the first pope in decades not to have previously held either a diplomatic role (like Pius XI and John XXIII) or Curial role (like Pius XII and Paul VI) in the Church.[citation needed]

His personal impact, however, was twofold: his image as a warm, gentle and kind man captivated the whole world. This image was immediately formed when he was presented to the crowd in St. Peter's Square following his election. The warmth of his presence made him a much-loved figure before he even spoke a word. The media in particular fell under his spell. He was a very skilled orator.[citation needed]

According to his aides, he was not the naive idealist his critics made him out to be. Giuseppe Caprio, the substitute Papal Secretary of State, said that John Paul I quickly accepted his new role and performed it with confidence.[52]

John Paul I had admitted that the prospect of the papacy had daunted him to the point that other cardinals had to encourage him to accept it. He refused to have the millennium-old traditional papal coronation or wear the papal tiara.[53] He instead chose to have a simplified inauguration mass. John Paul I adopted as his motto the Latin word Humilitas ('Humility'). In his notable Angelus of 27 August 1978 (delivered on the first full day of his papacy), he impressed the world with his natural friendliness.[54]

Sister Margherita Marin, who worked in the Vatican during Luciani's papacy, said in comments made in late 2017 that the pope had admitted the sisters into his apartment chapel for morning Mass, unlike his predecessor Paul VI who had only admitted his secretaries.[50] Marin also said that Luciani would speak the Venetian dialect with those Venetian sisters to make them more comfortable, and to better interact with them. The religious also noted that the pope's humour was evident to all those who spoke with him, and he would often joke with the sisters when seeing his picture in the papers: "But you see how they got me", in reference to the quality of his picture.[citation needed]

Death

[edit]
Tomb of John Paul I in the Vatican Grottoes following his 2022 beatification

Around 10 p.m. on the night of his death, the pope learned that several young neo-Fascists had fired upon a group of young people reading L'Unità, the Communist newspaper, outside one of the party's offices in Rome. One boy was killed while another was seriously wounded. The pope lamented to Bishop John Magee, "Even the young are killing each other." He later retired to his room to read Thomas à Kempis' The Imitation of Christ in bed.[55]

On 29 September 1978, on what would have been the 35th day of his pontificate, John Paul I was found dead in his bed with reading material and a bedside lamp still lit. He had probably suffered a heart attack the night before.[56] Upon the global announcement of the news, Spain,[57] Zaire[58] and Lebanon[59] all declared three days of mourning.

John Paul I's funeral was held in Saint Peter's Square on 4 October 1978, celebrated by Carlo Confalonieri. In his eulogy of the late pope, he described him as a flashing comet who briefly lit up the church. He then was laid to rest in the Vatican Grottoes.[60]

1000 lire silver coin with a portrait of John Paul I on the front (1978)

There are several conspiracy speculations related to his death.

2018 revelations

[edit]

The journalist and vice-postulator for John Paul I's cause of canonization, Stefania Falasca, published a new book in 2017 titled Pope Luciani, Chronicle of a Death, in which she revealed that John Paul I had complained of chest pains hours before his death, and the evening before, but paid no attention to it and ordered that his doctor not be called.[61] Falasca confirmed, after interviewing the sisters who found him and documents from the Vatican Apostolic Archive, that John Paul I died of a heart attack in the late evening hours of 28 September 1978.[62]

The Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, in his preface for the book, describes the various conspiracies regarding John Paul I's death as little more than "noir reconstructions". Parolin further says that the sudden death of the pope inspired "myriad theories, suspicions, [and] suppositions" based on opinion rather than fact.[61]

Falasca noted the 2009 testimony of Sister Margherita Marin, one of the two sisters who found the pope dead in his bedroom on the morning of 29 September 1978. John Paul I had made it a practice to have a morning coffee in the sacristy and then go into the chapel to pray before tending to the day's matters.[63] Sister Vincenza Taffarel had noted the pope had not touched the coffee she had left for him in the sacristy at 5:15 am (after about ten minutes) and went looking for him but found him dead, and hastily summoned Marin, who also went into the room.[64]

Sister Vincenza said: "He hasn't come out yet? Why not?" and knocked a few more times but heard silence, then opened the door and walked in. Marin remained in the hallway but heard the elder sister say: "Your Holiness, you shouldn't pull these jokes on me" because Sister Vincenza also had heart problems.[61][63][62] Marin testified that John Paul I's hands were cold and she was struck by the darkness of his nails.[61] Marin further testified that original information provided by the Vatican regarding who discovered the pope was wrong, since it had originally been claimed the discovery was by the pope's secretaries Lorenzi and Magee.[62] Marin testified that "he was in bed with a slight smile" on his face. The reading light over the headboard was still on, with his two pillows under his back propping him up, with his legs outstretched and his arms on top of the bedsheets. John Paul I was still in his pajamas with a few typewritten sheets in his hands. His head was slightly turned to the right and his eyes were partially closed; his glasses rested on his nose.[63]

John Paul I had suffered a severe pain in his chest for about five minutes around 7:30 pm while reciting the vespers in the chapel with Magee before dinner, but insisted against calling for Doctor Renato Buzzonetti. The latter, the book claimed, was informed of that episode after the pope's death.[62] The book also revealed that, before the conclave that elected John Paul II, the cardinals had sent a series of written questions to the doctors who had embalmed John Paul I either on 10 or 11 October to check if there had been any signs of traumatic injuries, so as to ascertain if he died naturally rather than suspiciously.[63][65] Doctor Buzzonetti sent a detailed report to the Cardinal Secretary of State Agostino Casaroli on 9 October 1979 detailing that the episode of pain John Paul I suffered was in the upper part of the sternal region.[63]

Sister Margherita noted in late 2017 in comments made in Belluno that the pope had made a half-hour phone call on the evening of his death to Giovanni Colombo and said he wanted the Rector Major of the Salesians Egidio Viganò to agree to serve as John Paul I's successor as Patriarch of Venice.[50]

Canonization process

[edit]

John Paul I
John Paul I on 19 September 1978
Pope; Confessor
BornAlbino Luciani
17 October 1912
Forno di Canale, Belluno, Kingdom of Italy
Died28 September 1978 (aged 65)
Apostolic Palace, Vatican City
Venerated inRoman Catholic Church
Beatified4 September 2022, Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City by Pope Francis
Feast26 August
AttributesPapal attire
Pallium
PatronageCanale d'Agordo
Diocese of Vittorio Veneto
Patriarchate of Venice
Catechists

Diocesan process

[edit]

The process for the canonisation for John Paul I formally began in 1990 with the petition by 226 Brazilian bishops, including four cardinals. The petition was addressed directly to Pope John Paul II.[66]

On 26 August 2002, Bishop Vincenzo Savio announced the start of the preliminary phase to collect documents and testimonies necessary to start the process of canonisation. On 8 June 2003 the Congregation for the Causes of Saints gave its assent to the work and on 17 June transferred the forum for the beatification process from Rome to Belluno-Feltre while also declaring the late pope as a Servant of God after declaring "nihil obstat" (no objections to the cause). On 23 November, on the Feast of Christ the King, the diocesan process formally opened in Belluno Cathedral with José Saraiva Martins in charge and presiding over the inauguration.[67][68] The diocesan inquiry for the cause subsequently concluded on 11 November 2006 in Belluno with all the evidence collected being sent to the C.C.S. which received their validation on 13 June 2008. On 13 June 2008, the Vatican began the "Roman" phase of the beatification process for John Paul I, in which they would assess the documents and witness testimonies collected during the diocesan inquiry.[69]

Roman phase

[edit]

The documents in regard to the cause were supposed to be delivered to the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Angelo Amato on 17 October 2012 (the one-hundredth anniversary of the late pope's birth), in a large Positio dossier (consisting of a biography and investigation into his virtues) to examine the pros and cons of the cause. This was delayed when the cause's supporters wanted another check over all the documents. In a mass at Belluno on 20 July 2014, Tarcisio Bertone announced that the cause of beatification was set to advance. The cardinal highlighted that the Positio would be delivered in September 2014.[70][71] But the dossier was not submitted to the C.C.S. until 17 October 2016; there were five volumes with around 3600 pages in total.[citation needed]

On 27 August 2015, Bishop Giuseppe Andrich announced that John Paul I would be beatified "soon". In a homily delivered during Mass in Canale d'Agordo, Luciani's home town, on the 37th anniversary of his election as Pope, Andrich said Church authorities had concluded the investigation into Luciani's heroic virtues. Following the conclusion of the writing of the "Positio" dossier (3652 pages in total), they received several messages affirming personal experience of Luciani's holiness, including a handwritten card from Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. The testimony of a Pope or former Pope in considering a candidate for sainthood is extremely unusual. Benedict XVI apparently recommended waiving the requirement for miracles in Luciani's case.[72][73]

To determine whether or not the late pontiff should be declared Venerable, theologians and the members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints must determine if the late pope lived a life of heroic virtue. This meeting took place on 1 June 2017 in which theologians unanimously approved the fact that the late pope exercised virtues to a heroic degree.[74] The cardinal and bishop members discussed the cause on 7 November 2017 and issued their unanimous approval.[75] Pope Francis named John Paul I as Venerable on 8 November 2017 after confirming his heroic virtue per the cardinal and theological virtues.[19]

Beatification

[edit]

For Luciani to be beatified, the investigators had to certify at least one miracle attributed to his intercession. For canonisation there must be a second miracle, though the reigning pope may waive these requirements altogether, as is often done in the case of beatified popes.[76]

It was reported in 2016 that a potential miracle attributed to the late pontiff's intercession happened to a nun in Buenos Aires in Argentina.[77] The vice-postulator for the cause, Stefania Falasca, reported in a piece for Avvenire that medical consultants in Rome deemed the healing of the Argentine nun as a miracle on 31 October 2019 as there was no possible scientific or medical explanation. Theologians likewise provided their approval on 6 May 2021 after determining that the healing came as a direct result of the late pope's intercession. Falasca reported that the cardinal and bishop members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints were scheduled to meet to discuss the cause in October, thereby implying that a 2022 beatification was likely.[78]

Pope Francis authorized a decree that recognized the miracle on 13 October 2021; it enabled for John Paul I to be beatified at Saint Peter's Square on 4 September 2022.[79]

Miracle

[edit]

Following the announcement that John Paul I would be beatified, details were released that the miracle in question was the recovery of an 11-year-old in Buenos Aires from inflammatory encephalopathy.[80]

Failed miracle

[edit]

The postulation also drew upon the testimony of Giuseppe Denora di Altamura who claimed to have been cured of cancer by the intercession of the late pontiff. An official investigation into the alleged miracle commenced on 14 May 2007 and concluded on 30 May 2009 with the C.C.S. validating the process on 25 March 2010.[81]

The supposed miracle attributed to his intercession was taken to a medical board in Rome on 24 April 2015 and the commission came to the conclusion that it was not a miracle that could be attributed to Luciani. This means that another miracle will need to be found before the cause can continue.[82]

Postulation

[edit]

The postulator for the cause was Bishop Enrico dal Covolo from 2003 until 2016 when Beniamino Stella was appointed to that position. Stefania Falasca is the current vice-postulator.[83]

Titles, styles and arms

[edit]

Titles and styles

[edit]

Arms

[edit]

Legacy

[edit]

Pope John Paul I was the first pope to abandon the coronation, and he was also the first pope to choose a double name (John Paul) for his papal name. His successor, Karol Józef Wojtyła, chose the same name. He was the first pope to have a Papal inauguration and the last pope to use the Sedia Gestatoria.

Views of successors

[edit]

John Paul II

[edit]
The Pope Luciani museum

Karol Wojtyła was elected John Paul I's successor as Pope on Monday, 16 October 1978. The next day he celebrated Mass together with the College of Cardinals in the Sistine Chapel. After the Mass, he delivered his first Urbi et Orbi (a traditional blessing) message, broadcast worldwide via radio. In it he pledged fidelity to the Second Vatican Council and paid tribute to his predecessor:[87]

What can we say of John Paul I? It seems to us that only yesterday he emerged from this assembly of ours to put on the papal robes — not a light weight. But what warmth of charity, nay, what "an abundant outpouring of love" — which came forth from him in the few days of his ministry and which in his last Sunday address before the Angelus he desired should come upon the world. This is also confirmed by his wise instructions to the faithful who were present at his public audiences on faith, hope and love.

Benedict XVI

[edit]

Benedict XVI spoke of the late pontiff on 28 September 2008 (the 30th anniversary of John Paul I's death) during his weekly Angelus address. Of the late pope, he said:[88]

Because of this virtue of his, it only took 33 days for Pope Luciani to win people's hearts. In his addresses he always referred to events in practical life, from his family memories and from popular wisdom. His simplicity was a vehicle for a solid, rich teaching which, thanks to the gift of an exceptional memory and a vast knowledge, he embellished with numerous citations from ecclesiastical and secular writers. Thus, he was an incomparable catechist, following in the footsteps of St Pius X, who came from the same region and was his predecessor first on the throne of St Mark and then on that of St Peter. 'We must feel small before God,' he said during the same Audience. And he added, 'I am not ashamed to feel like a child before his mother; one believes in one's mother; I believe in the Lord, in what he has revealed to me.' These words reveal the full depth of his faith. As we thank God for having given him to the church and to the world, let us treasure his example, striving to cultivate his same humility which enabled him to talk to everyone, especially the small and the 'distant.' For this, let us invoke Mary Most Holy, the humble handmaid of the Lord.

Francis

[edit]

Pope Francis spoke of his predecessor in his 2016 book The Name of God Is Mercy in which Francis recalls how touched he was by his predecessor's writings. More than any of his predecessors mentioned in his book, Francis refers to Luciani the most. The pope referred to Luciani's remarks at the latter's general audience of 6 September 1978 and mentioned how profound that his words were upon him; of the remarks Luciani made, he said:[89]

There is the homily when Albino Luciani said he had been chosen because the Lord preferred that certain things not be engraved in bronze or marble but in the dust, so that if the writing had remained, it would have been clear that the merit was only God's.

Media

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "33-Tage-Papst Johannes Paul I. Seliggesprochen".
  2. ^ "Pope Francis beatifies John Paul I, pope for 33 days".
  3. ^ "The prayer for Pope Luciani". Corriere delle Alpi. 29 September 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Allen, John (2 November 2012). "Debunking four myths about John Paul I, the 'Smiling Pope'". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  5. ^ a b Seabeck, Raymond; Seabeck, Lauretta (2004). The Smiling Pope, The Life & Teaching of John Paul I. Our Sunday Visitor Press.
  6. ^ Papa Luciani: Il sorriso di Dio (Pope Luciani: The Smile of God). Radiotelevisione Italia. 2006. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2018. documentary.
  7. ^ "The September Pope". Time. 9 October 1978. Archived from the original on 23 November 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  8. ^ "33-day 'Smiling Pope' John Paul I beatified at the Vatican". BBC News. 4 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Pope beatifies John Paul I: May he obtain for us the 'smile of the soul'". Vatican News. 4 September 2022.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i Highlights of the Life of His Holiness John Paul I, The Holy See, retrieved 29 December 2013
  11. ^ a b c "The Life of Albino Luciani". jpicentenary.org. The Pope John Paul I Association. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  12. ^ Yallop, David (1985). In God's name: an investigation into the murder of Pope John Paul I. Corgi. p. 16. ISBN 9780552126403.

    So strongly did the writings of Couwase [Jean Pierre de Caussade] influence him that Luciani began to think very seriously of becoming a Jesuit. He watched as the first one, then a second, of his close friends went to the rector, Bishop Giouse Cattarossi, and asked for permission to join the Jesuit order. In both instances, permission was granted to them. Luciani would soon decide, so he went and asked for permission. The bishop considered the request, then responded, "No, three is one too many. You had better stay here.

  13. ^ a b "Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "John Paul I". Encyclopedia Britannica".
  14. ^ "SEGRETARIA DI STATO" [SECRETARIAT OF STATE] (PDF). Diarium Romanae Curiae. Acta Apostolicae Sedis - Commentarium Officiale (in Italian). XL (3): 135. 23 March 1948. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  15. ^ "Biographical Profile". www.fondazionevaticanagpi.va.
  16. ^ a b c d e f Knowles, Leo. "Modern Heroes of the Church", ISBN 9781931709460
  17. ^ "The first years of Albino Luciani: 4° part (the conclave)". U.S. Catholic. Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Archived from the original on 28 July 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2014 – via YouTube.
  18. ^ "The New Pope: John Paul I". Lakeland Ledger. 27 August 1978. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  19. ^ a b Arocho Esteves, Junno. "Pope Francis officially declares John Paul I 'venerable'", Catholic Herald, 9 November 2017
  20. ^ "Albino Luciani and the Traditional Mass" (in Italian). Radio Spada. 29 August 2019.
  21. ^ "A Swift, Stunning Choice", Time, 4 September 1978
  22. ^ a b c d e f g Molinari, Gloria C. "The Conclave August 25th–26th, 1978". John Paul I The Smiling Pope. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  23. ^ Yallop, p. 75.
  24. ^ Feltes, Fr. Victor (26 August 1978). "Habemus Papam! — Day 1". Blogging the John Paul I Papacy.
  25. ^ La speranza è aspettare qualcosa di bello dal Signore (di Stefania Falasca), 30 Giorni, retrieved 9 February 2014
  26. ^ "Russian Archbishop Dies During Papal Audience". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. 6 September 1978. p. 6. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  27. ^ "The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "John Paul I". Encyclopedia Britannica". 13 October 2023.
  28. ^ Briggs, Kenneth A. (14 November 1978). "In the Vatican, a Pope Who Underscores the Shift to Style of Humility". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  29. ^ a b John Julius Norwich, The Popes, London, 2011, p. 445.
  30. ^ Albino Luciani/Giovanni Paolo I, Opera Omnia (Padua: Edizioni Messagero, 1989), vol. 3, pp. 300–301.
  31. ^ Illustrissimi: The Letters of Pope John Paul I. Translated by Quigly, Isabel. Gracewing Publishing. 2001. p. 269. ISBN 9780852445495.
  32. ^ Prospettive nel Mondo, 1 August 1978; Albino Luciani, Opera Omnia, vol. 8, pp. 571-72
  33. ^ Adam Eley, "How has IVF developed since the first 'test-tube baby'?", BBC News, 23 July 2015, accessed 24 March 2023
  34. ^ Prospettive nel Mondo, 1 August 1978; Luciani, Opera Omnia, vol. 8, pp. 571–72.
  35. ^ a b "Luciani, the meek Pope (in Italian)". Vatican Insider. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  36. ^ Interview with Il Gazzettino, 12 February 1974, p. 7
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Further reading

[edit]
  • Cornwell, John (1989). A Thief in the Night: the Death of Pope John Paul I. London: Viking. ISBN 0-670-82387-2
  • Gurwin, Larry (1983). The Calvi Affair: Death of a Banker. London: Pan Books, 1984, cop. 1983. xiii, 251 p. + [8] p. of b&w photos. ISBN 0-330-28540-8; alternative ISBN on back cover, 0-330-28338-3
  • Hebblewaite, Peter (1978). The Year of Three Popes. First United States ed. Cleveland, Ohio: W. Collins, 1979, cop. 1978. ix, 220 p. ISBN 0-529-05652-6
  • Manhattan, Avro (1985). Murder in the Vatican: American, Russian, and Papal Plots. First ed. Springfield, Mo.: Ozark Books. 274 p. Without ISBN
  • Bérubé, Pierre,(Wikipedia en French: Pierre Bérubé) «  Jean-Paul I » « Il y a 30 ans, Jean-Paul 1er… Un passage qu'on ne veut pas oublier! » Le Soleil, (Québec), 2 October 2008, p. 27, Opinion (présentation version papier), article complet : Il y a 30 ans, Jean-Paul 1er... Un passage qu'on ne veut pas oublier!
[edit]
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Vittorio-Veneto
27 December 1958 – 15 December 1969
Succeeded by
Preceded by Patriarch of Venice
15 December 1969 – 16 August 1978
Succeeded by
Cardinal-Priest of San Marco
5 March 1973 – 26 August 1978
Preceded by Pope
26 August – 28 September 1978
Succeeded by
Regnal titles
Preceded by Sovereign of the Vatican City State
26 August – 28 September 1978
Succeeded by