Pope John Paul I

Who is Pope John Paul I?

Albino Luciani was born in Forno di Canale, now Canale d'Agordo, in the Veneto region of Italy in 1912, the son of a mason and seasonal laborer. Ordained a priest in 1935, he rose to become Bishop of Vittorio Veneto and later Patriarch of Venice, known for a simple, warm pastoral style and a talent for communicating Church teaching in plain, accessible language, including a book of imagined letters to historical and literary figures titled Illustrissimi. Elected pope in August 1978, he chose the name John Paul in honor of his two immediate predecessors, John XXIII and Paul VI, becoming the first pope in history to take a double name. His pontificate lasted only thirty-three days, ending with his sudden death in September 1978, making it one of the shortest in papal history and prompting lasting public fascination. Despite its brevity, his warmth and humility, reflected in his frequent smile, left him remembered affectionately as "the Smiling Pope."

Sources: Pope John Paul I, General Audience, 10 September 1978 · Albino Luciani, Illustrissimi: The Letters of Pope John Paul I (1976) · John Cornwell, A Thief in the Night: The Mysterious Death of Pope John Paul I (1989)