It was on this date, 51 years ago the soul of a good man
passed from this earth to the heavens.
Angelo Roncalli, most recently canonized and now better known as Saint
John XXIII, left this earth at 7:49 p.m during that cold war era. Death came at the Vatican which is surrounded by the Eternal
City. He was born at 10:15 am in Sotto
il Monte, a small village about ten miles from Bergamo, Italy. He would be the first born son, and fourth
child born to his parents. He grew up in
poverty to parents who were sharecroppers.
The illness that would claim him, had already claimed two of his
sisters, proving that family history is important in at least some forms of
disease. His was stomach cancer. Having
recently concluded reading a biography of a man recognized and respected
world-wide, one comes to realize that few have practiced the Beatitudes to the
degree he encapsulated them in his life.
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| Pope John XXIII |
It is well known to Roman Catholics the work he introduced
as part of the Second Vatican Council, to open the windows and let in the fresh
air. A phrase often attributed to him,
but likely not said by him. It makes for good copy and a great sound bite.
But, he was more than that. The October prior to his death, he would help
solve the one crisis which would keep many in North America, if not much of the
world, on the edge of their seats. This is the 1960’s when atomic weapons are
prevalent, their power known, but yet détente was a far off reality. It was his approach to Soviet Leader
Khrushchev which would lead Khrushchev to withdraw the missiles from Cuba. His activity is little recognized in
American literature, and White House documents, probably due to the
anti-Catholic feeling that would arise if the only Catholic president was seen
asking the Pope for help. Khrushchev
would tell Norman Cousins, editor of the Saturday
Review, that “What the Pope has done for world peace will go down in
history.” Yet, this aspect remains
little known. Some believe that it was
Cuban Missile Crisis which propelled John to write Pacem in Terris, his last
encyclical issued on Holy Thursday in the year of his death.
What drew Pope John to dialogue with the atheistic
communists from Russia? Early in his
career, he was as an apostolic visitor to Bulgaria. He would later serve in Turkey as well. Both postings thought to be at the outer
reaches of the Vatican diplomatic corps, and dead ends. Yet, it is was in these locations, having to
work closely with the patriarchs of the Greek and Russian Orthodox churches and
learning about the Slavs and their heritage that he developed an appreciation
for the east and its traditions. What he
found was that dialogue was better than scolding, engagement more satisfactory
than detachment. His policy of engagement of the Soviet Union was implemented
against the advice of the Curia. The
problems with the Curia that Pope Francis was selected to fix, are not new, and
when commentators talk about the Curial mentality being in the Renaissance,
they may be too kind.
John was often thought, by those who believed themselves
more experienced, more learned, and better trained, to be naïve, and well, a
dupe, or big oaf. While he would joke
about his size, his ability to deal with people was gentle and with
subtlety. He took to heart the saying of
St. Bernard of Clarivaux, as noted by biographer Peter Hebbletwaite, “omni videre, multa dissimulare et pauca
corrigere” meaning “To notice everything, turn a blind eye to much and to
correct a few things” (p. 347). He would
know what was going on behind his back, and while he tolerated it, he was not
necessarily happy, but would also forgive.
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| Pope John XXIII |
One story is illustrative of this. The Secretary of State in the Vatican is
rather powerful, and has a tendency to put their own spin on events. They opposed John meeting with Khrushchev’s
daughter and her husband in the early spring of 1963, and he would find a way
around their opposition to meet with them after a general audience. His interpreter was directed to make an account
of the meeting and have it published in the Vatican newspaper, but that was not
done. He would make a comment on this
display of disobedience in a letter of March 20, 1963. As a member of the diplomatic corps he was
always the company man, doing what he was directed to do, even though he had
disagreement with the policy. For a good
company man to become the leader and see his efforts second guessed, and not
put into action must have been painful. But, John understood something the
learned members of the first section of the Secretariat of State did not: “What is important is to co-operate with God
for the salvation of souls and the whole world.
This is our true mission, which reaches its highest expression in the
pope (p. 392). As he once said to a
fellow clergyman: “You know it’s not
true to say that the Spirit assists the Pope….The Holy Spirit doesn’t help the
Pope, I’m simply his helper. He did
everything, the council is his idea.”
What a fresh idea, although after the first half the priest thought he
was about to hear heresy.
Anyway, during the meeting with Khrushchev’s daughter and
son-in-law, John would dismiss his Jesuit interpreter to speak alone in French
with the two. John would present Rada, Khrushchev’s
daughter, with a rosary, knowing she would not use it, but because he would
tell her, it reminded him of peace in his home, and that his mother would say
it by the fireside and while preparing supper.
It was during this private conversation that he asks Rada: “I know that you have three children, and I
know their names, but I would like you to tell me their names, because when a
mother speaks the names of her children, something very special happens” (P. 483). Yes, the bond between mother and child
is very special. However, did he mean
this apply to when a mother speaks to the child using the formal first and
middle name? In my experience the last thing a young boy wanted to hear was his mother call him by his formal first and last name. This was often followed by “wait until your father gets home.” Something
special may have happened, but it was not in the child’s mind.
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| Proud of his humble beginnings and his poverty |
John's death would occur in just over two months from his
meeting with the visitors from the Soviet Union. On May 31, 1963, John received the Viaticum,
for the journey to his next life. Next,
the papal sacristan, Bishop Peter Canisus Van Lierde, was about to anoint the
five senses when John would interrupt and make a short speech, which
Hebblethwaite reports, caused Bishop Van Lierde to be so overcome by emotion,
that he forgets the right order. John,
would help him out (p. 502). Little
known is that the Hovel family would have a connection to this moving, once in
a lifetime event. For the papal
sacristan, who anointed Good Pope John, would know the one surviving
uncle of the clan. It was through this
connection that one of my siblings would watch the ceremony from Bishop Van
Lierde’s apartment window when Karol Wojtyla was elevated to pontiff. Of course, Wojtyla is now known as St John Paul II. So not only does the Hovel family have a
connection to Al Capone via Joseph Sweeney, it also has a connection to the man
who brought us Vatican II. Peter Canisus Van Lierde would serve over
forty years in service to Pontiff’s from Pius XII to John Paul II.
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| Peter Canisus Van Lierde |
John’s term as pope would be the second shortest since the
advent of the twentieth century, with its shortness surpassed only by another
former Patriarch of Venice, Albino Luciani, Pope John Paul I, who died within a
month of his selection. John would use
the experience he gained as secretary to a Bishop, in the Vatican diplomatic
corps, and as Patriarch of Venice to set the Church and the world on a new
course. Peter Steinfels reports that
Pacem in Terris is the first encyclical issued not only to bishops, clergy and
the faithful, but to “all men of good will.”
John’s meekness, however, would turn out to be his strength. His poverty, his riches. His mercy his
goodness. As Hebblethwaite would write
about John: “In the modern world the
remedies for error were mercy, charity, and the witness of the Christian life" (414). As stated in the beatitudes: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall
be called the children of God.” This was
his calling, this is the gift he gave the world, and this was his true triumph. A good soul who embodied the Beatitudes.
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