Head of the Catholic Church from 1958 to 1963
He was elected at 76 as a placeholder, expected to keep the seat warm. Instead he opened the windows — called the Second Vatican Council and dragged the Catholic Church into conversation with the modern world.
Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was born 25 November 1881 to sharecroppers in Lombardy, one of thirteen children. Ordained in 1904, he spent decades in diplomatic posts across Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, and France before Pius XII named him Patriarch of Venice and cardinal in 1953. Elected pope on 28 October 1958, he surprised everyone by convening the Second Vatican Council on 11 October 1962, the first session of a gathering that would redefine the Church's pastoral role and its engagement with other faiths and nations. He expanded the College of Cardinals to 85, appointing the first from Africa, Jap…
Sourced, dated quotes from Pope John XXIII
One of my favorite phrases that brings me great comfort: We are not on earth as museum keepers, but to cultivate a flourishing garden of life and to prepare a glorious future.
From the saints I must take the substance, not the accidents of their virtues. I am not St.
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