Fun Facts
When is his feast?
August 21st.
What country was he born in?
Italy, but his parents were Polish immigrants!
True or False. He disliked the pomp and circumstance of papacy?
True.
“I was born poor, I lived poor, I will die poor.” He was embarrassed by some of the pomp of the papal court. “Look how they have dressed me up,” he said in tears to an old friend. To another, “It is a penance to be forced to accept all these practices. They lead me around surrounded by soldiers like Jesus when he was seized in Gethsemani.”
How many kids were in his family?
10 (2nd)
True or False. He was born into a poor family.
True. His father died when he was young and his mother was a poor farmer.
What changes did he make to First Communion?
Moved the age of reason to 7 and called people back to more frequent communion.
True or False. He opened his home to refugees.
True. He sent a relief commission to Messina after an earthquake, and sheltered refugees at his own expense.
True or False. Pius X was the only Pope in the 20th century with many years of pastoral experience at the parish level.
True.
True or False. on his 10th anniversary of his election of Pope, WWI started.
False. On the 11th anniversary of his election as pope, Europe was plunged into World War I. Pius had foreseen it, but it killed him. “This is the last affliction the Lord will visit on me. I would gladly give my life to save my poor children from this ghastly scourge.” He died a few weeks after the war began.
True or False. He carried candy in his pocket to hand out.
True. He’d go out and teach them catechism and made many friends among the poor and homeless in Rome and elsewhere, as he had done this while a bishop and earlier.
True or False. He supported Modernism.
False. He said it was the heresy of all heresies.
True or False. He was interested in politics and his first papal act related to politics.
True. One of his first papal acts was to end the supposed right of governments to interfere by veto in papal elections.
True or False. He supported Modernism.
False. He said it was the heresy of all heresies. St. Pius X even created a spy network to keep an eye on modernists throughout the Church.
What miracles did he perform during his life?
During a papal audience, Pius went to hold a paralyzed boy. While hugging the boy, he suddenly broke free from the hug and began to run around the room in joy that he had been healed. Another time, there was a couple he knew from his time as bishop with a child that had meningitis. They wrote a letter to him asking for his help. He wrote back telling them to hope, fast, and pray. Two days later, the child was cured.
True or False. He started Wednesday Papal Audiences.
False. BUT He did the unthinkable in those days and opened up the San Damaso courtyard in the Vatican for a weekly catechism class, where he made a special reserved space for children. There, he’d regularly talk to the children on subjects the children would ask about. Later, he would issue a Confraternity of Christian Doctrine that was motivated to reclaim children from ignorance of Our Lord.