October Saint: Pope John XXIII

Pope John XXIII, born Angelo Roncalli, is recognized as an influential figure in the 20th-century Catholic Church. Born in 1881 to a family of tenant farmers in northern Italy, Roncalli was ordained a priest in 1904 after attending a diocesan seminary and serving one year in the military.

Following his ordination, Roncalli studied Canon Law in Rome, worked as a secretary for his bishop, and taught Church history in a seminary. During World War I, he served as a chaplain and stretcher bearer for the Italian army. After his military service ended in 1919, he led the National office of the Society of the Propagation of the Faith.

Roncalli was named an archbishop in 1925 and served as an apostolic visitator to Bulgaria, where he worked with the Eastern Catholic Church. During the Second World War, he helped approximately 24,000 Jews escape Nazi persecution by issuing transit visas through the apostolic delegation, an action that later earned him the title of Righteous Gentile. He was named a cardinal and patriarch of Venice in 1953 before being elected the 261st pope in 1958.