Appreciating the humble greatness of Saint Pope Pius X

Was there a secret to Pope Pius X’s success? Is there a reason that he was able to bring about several important and positive changes in the life of the Church during his relatively brief reign (1903-14) as pope?

The answer can be found in the ordinary—but also extraordinary—details of his life.

Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto (1835-1914) was born in the small town of Riese, Italy. (Note that the name of the town was later changed; it is now called Riese Pio X to honor him.) Since Giuseppe’s father was just a simple postman and had to support ten children, Giuseppe had to walk almost eight miles each day to attend school.

Giuseppe was ordained by a priest who is himself now a canonized saint, Giovanni Antonio Farina. Parishioners at Giuseppe’s priestly assignments nicknamed him Don Santo, a pun demonstrating their high regard for their saintly priest. He was an inspirational homilist who attracted crowds, yet he was also a demanding theology professor to his seminary students. As bishop of Mantua, he transformed an adversarial relationship between atheistic civic leaders and local Catholics into an atmosphere of mutual respect—at least in public. As patriarch of Venice, he rekindled eucharistic devotion by organizing a Eucharistic Congress.

The only person who was surprised when Giuseppe Sarto was named the 257^th pope of the Universal Church was Giuseppe Sarto.

Although he reigned as Pope Pius X for a mere eleven years, even one of his major accomplishments would be sufficient for him to be considered a great pope. When the French government insisted on the separation of Church and State—with the clear aim of punishing the Church—Pius allowed the Church in France to become bankrupt rather than abandon the principles of the faith.

He lowered the age of first reception of the Eucharist to the age of reason, leading to a groundswell of Eucharistic devotion, particularly in families. He recognized that several heresies had become widespread in the Church, so he established rules to punish Catholics who promoted these dangerous views. Pius demonstrated his concern for the priesthood and his brother priests by revising canon law and the Divine Office. He was widely known for his personal friendliness, his love of children, and his attention to those who were suffering. Even before Pius’ sudden death near the outbreak of World War I, there were those who claimed to have received miraculous healings after meeting with him or asking for his prayers.

How could one man have achieved so much? There are at least four reasons that, by God’s grace, Pius X was able to have such a profound effect on the Church and on the world.

First, just like his Master, Pius X was born into poverty. Rather than seeing poverty as an impediment to happiness, he accepted it with trust in God. For example, young Giuseppe never retaliated when other students teased him about his shabby clothes. He didn’t complain when he returned home from his long treks to school and had to work in the fields or care for his younger siblings. When he became a priest, he had almost no money of his own, but he was quick to give what he had to anyone who begged him for help. He seemed delighted when he was sent to the out-of-the-way village of Tombolo for his first priestly assignment. He wanted to live among ordinary, hard-working people because that’s what he was and because that’s what our Lord did.

Second, Don Giuseppe earned the love of his parishioners by serving them as a true shepherd. He did not introduce innovative changes for the sake of shaking things up or proving that he was in charge. Instead, his highest priority was to protect the weakest members of his flock—children—from the dangerous wolves in the culture of his time. His first action in almost every one of his assignments—from parish priest to pope—was to make sure that children were being given a solid religious education. He wanted them to be able to distinguish the true Gospel from cultural counterfeits, and he wanted them to know that salvation comes from Jesus Christ, not modern political philosophies.

It is also commonly pointed out that Pius X initiated a return to Gregorian chant at Mass when he became pope. But he did the same thing when he served as a simple parish priest. Even in little Tombolo, he recognized that many Catholics viewed the music at Sunday Mass as a sort of weekly concert. They expected the music at Mass to focus on the soloists, musical instruments, and operatic melodrama found in their popular entertainment. Don Giuseppe removed all of the above from his parish choir and personally trained them to sing Gregorian chant at Mass. Then, as now, people are picky about their musical preferences, and there was serious pushback. But in the end, he helped his parishioners discover the sort of music that would draw them closer to God, as compared to other types of music, each of which has its own time and place.

Third, Pius X, also like our Lord, addressed the reality of sin. He did not back down in situations where he believed souls were at stake. That is why he responded strongly to Catholic thinkers (particularly two Catholic priests) who denied aspects of Catholic dogma and doctrine, promoted questionable interpretations of Sacred Scripture, or taught that Church teachings were “evolving.” After carefully identifying Modernist heresies, Pius insisted that Catholic pastors, theologians, and other Catholic teachers take an oath in which they professed their faith in God and obedience to the Church, in direct opposition to Modernism.

These steps silenced heterodox voices in the Church, but they also discouraged Catholic scholarship for decades. It must be admitted that an unintended consequence of Pius’ policy was that some creative Catholic thinkers were silenced, including some whose ideas were later embraced by the Church. Nevertheless, Pius proved that there is a way to defeat those who profess to be Catholic but at the same time deny the most fundamental Catholic teachings, although that way requires a voice more like a lion than a lamb.

Fourth and finally, Pius imitated our meek and humble Lord. He particularly demonstrated humility through his complete lack of interest in career advancement. According to a witness, when he learned that he had been nominated to become the bishop of Mantua, he wept like a child. He even wrote a letter to Rome to explain that he did not believe he was worthy of the honor. His letter was ignored. When Pope Leo XIII wanted to make him the Patriarch of Venice, he knew that the humble bishop would try to decline. So the pope instructed the messenger to tell him that it would displease the pope to say no. He obeyed. After Pope Leo’s death, Pius left Venice cheerfully because he was certain that he was not worthy of being elected pope. His friends in Venice mourned because they knew better.

Pope Pius X is now called Saint Pius because, like all the saints, he lived the life of Jesus Christ through his own daily struggles and challenges. He was certainly an exceptional choice for pope in his time. Today we should pray for Church leaders who will be just as exceptional for ours.