Word: pontiff
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That Word Liberty. Each Pope, as he receives the triple tiara at his coronation, is reminded: "Thou art the father of princes and of kings, Pontiff of the whole world." Far more than shrewd, blunt Pius XI, or ascetic, aristocratic Pius XII, Pope John did seem like a universal father, and his teaching voice reached not only 558 million Roman Catholics but all men. Two of his encyclicals may rank as classics, and they caught the imagination of many outside John's church. In Mater et Magistra (1961), he brought up to date the tradition of Catholic social teaching...
...confessor, Monsignor Giuseppe Cavagna. Monsignor Peter van Lierde, Sacristan of the Holy Palaces, performed the rite of extreme unction, anointing John's body with holy oil. Afterward, John called Monsignor Cavagna to his bedside, reported L'Osservatore Romano, and "in a clear, firm voice the august Pontiff confirmed his great love for the church and all souls and again offered his life for the successful conclusion of the Ecumenical Council and for peace among men. Frequently in his speech, the Holy Father repeated in the moved presence of those with him: "Ut unum sint [so that...
...great power and immediate concern. West's tale of the Russian who becomes Pope surmounts two obvious hazards when the papacy is a subject for fiction-that of scandalizing Catholics or boring those outside the Catholic faith. Pope Kiril is no bore and is perhaps the first fictional pontiff to pass the severe test the subject imposes on the fallibility of novelists.*West's novel can be read as exciting fiction by a notable craftsman (The Devil's Advocate) and for the documentary expertise West acquired as Vatican correspondent for the London Daily Mail, not to speak...
Kiril Lakota was a Ukrainian, and at 50 he was the youngest and most obscure of the 85 cardinals who met in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new Pope. His very name had just become known in Rome, having been kept in petto by the dead Pontiff-as are currently the names of three cardinals in the breast of Pope John. Said Kiril to his brother princes: "I have spent the last 17 years in prison. If I have any rights among you. let it be that I speak for the lost ones, for those who walk in darkness...
...Peter's Basilica, accepting his $160,000 Peace Prize (earmarked for charity) from the Swiss-Italian Balzan Foundation, next day turned up in the Quirinal Palace, where Italian President Antonio Segni presented Balzan awards to other cultural leaders. As he rode through Rome in an open car, the Pontiff -looking thinner than usual-was hailed by crowds crying "Viva! Viva...