This great pope’s name was Joseph Sarto. He was born in 1835, the son of a mailman in Riese, Italy. When Joseph felt that God wanted him to be a priest, he had to make many sacrifices for his education, but he didn’t mind. He even walked miles to school barefoot to save one good pair of shoes. After he was ordained a priest, Father Sarto labored for the people in poor parishes for seventeen years. Everybody loved him. He used to give away everything he had to help them. His sisters had to hide his shirts or he would have had nothing to wear. Even when Father Joseph became a bishop, and a cardinal, he still gave away what he owned to the poor. He kept nothing for himself. When he was elected pope, he took the name of Pius X. He became known as the pope who loved the Holy Eucharist. One of his quotes was, “Holy communion is the shortest and safest way to Heaven.”
During this time, Catholics were accustomed to receiving holy communion only once a year. Very few would receive holy communion on a weekly basis, and typically only priests would receive on a daily basis. It should be remembered that a firmly-rooted mentality of Jansenist origin had dissuaded Christians from frequent Eucharistic practice, almost as though it were the culmination of the journey toward Christian perfection rather than the way in which to attain it, "a prize and not a medicine for human frailty", the Pope wrote. St. Pius X wished to correct this practice of abstaining. With the insight of that great pastor of souls which he was and continued to be during his Pontificate, Pius X cut short the hesitations, fears, and perplexities that were still rather widespread among theologians, promoting and encouraging with his decree Tridentina Synodus of 16 July 1905 the opposite practice instead: frequent, even daily communion.
Five years later, with the decree Quam Singulari, he lowered the age for the First Communion of children from twelve to about seven, that is, to use his own words, "when a child begins to reason". Reinforcing the reality of the children’s innocence and closeness to God, Pius X wrote, “the fact that in ancient times the remaining particles of the Sacred Species were even given to nursing infants seems to indicate that no extraordinary preparation should now be demanded of children who are in the happy state of innocence and purity of soul, and who, amidst so many dangers and seductions of the present time have a special need of this heavenly food.”
Pope Pius X was also known as the pope of religious instruction. He believed in and loved the Catholic faith. He wanted every Catholic to share in the beauty of the truths of the faith. He really cared about every single person and their spiritual needs. He encouraged priests and religion teachers to help everyone learn about their faith. When the terrible World War I broke out, Pope Pius X suffered greatly. He knew so many people would be killed. He had said: “I would gladly give my life to save my poor children from this horrible suffering.” Toward the end of his life, he also said: “I have lived poor, and I wish to die poor.” He did so much to help the poor that people wondered where all the money came from. He never kept anything for himself, right to the end of his life. Pope Pius X died on August 20, 1914.
Wallace, Susan Helen (ed.). Saints for Young Readers. Boston, St. Paul Books and Media, 1995. Kosloski, Philip. “Why St. Pius X is called the ‘Pope of the Eucharist.’” 21 August 2022. https://aleteia.org/2022/08/21/why-st-pius-x-is-called-the-pope-of-the-eucharist/ Romanato, Gianpaolo. “The Eucharistic Revolution of Pope Pius X.” EWTN, Global Catholic Network. 8 September 2010, https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/eucharistic-revolution-of-pope-pius-x-1624
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