The pope who saved Napoleon
A dark horse pick for Top 10 best popes in history
1823 A.D.
Today in Papal History marks the date that Servant of God Pope Pius VII, the 250th successor of St. Peter, died at the age of 81.
His papacy was one of the longest in history and contained many illustrious accomplishments – vocally opposing the slave trade, restoring the Jesuit Order to good standing, and once reportedly even levitating during Mass in 1811 – but he is easily known for his battle of wits with Napoleon Bonaparte before, during, and after the diminutive emperor’s overthrow and exile, as well as the great lengths he went to care spiritually for Napoleon in his final days.
Born to a middle class Italian family, Pius VII was a Benedictine monk before rising through the ranks of the Catholic Church. His advancement would come largely as a result of a close relationship to the man who preceded him in Peter’s Chair – the future Pope Pius VI – although it was almost certainly not his first choice.
Pius VII possessed a temperate demeanor and an iron will, which served him well when he himself was elected pope in the year 1800. He originally had a decent rapport with Napoleon, but nine years into his papacy – following a formal excommunication of the emperor – the pope was captured and imprisoned until the emperor’s defeat in 1814.
What happened next, though, defines the man that Pius VII was.
Instead of abandoning Napoleon after his exile to Saint Helena, the pope made sure that his family was cared for and protected, and that the tiny tyrant was spiritually looked after.
Having been reconciled to the Catholic Church before his death, in his final days Napoleon reportedly said, “it would rest my soul to hear Mass,” so Pius VII personally petitioned Britain to send a priest to his former enemy’s side.
Of Pius VII, Napoleon himself is recorded to have said near the end of his life:
[Pope Pius VII is] an old man full of tolerance and light. Fatal circumstances embroiled our cabinets. I regret it exceedingly.
Pius VII’s cause for canonization was opened … wait for it … by Pope Benedict XVI in 2007, granting him the title of “Servant of God”.
2018 A.D.
Three years ago, at the height of the sexual abuse crisis’ resurgence in America and elsewhere, Pope Francis released a letter “to the People of God” addressing the scourge.
In the letter he wrote:
With shame and repentance, we acknowledge as an ecclesial community that we were not where we should have been, that we did not act in a timely manner, realizing the magnitude and the gravity of the damage done to so many lives. We showed no care for the little ones; we abandoned them.
I make my own the words of the then-Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) when, during the Way of the Cross composed for Good Friday 2005, he identified with the cry of pain of so many victims and exclaimed:
‘How much filth there is in the Church, and even among those who, in the priesthood, ought to belong entirely to [Christ]! How much pride, how much self-complacency! Christ’s betrayal by his disciples, their unworthy reception of his body and blood, is certainly the greatest suffering endured by the Redeemer; it pierces his heart. We can only call to him from the depths of our hearts: Kyrie eleison – Lord, save us! (cf. Mt 8:25)’
The letter itself is short and still packs a decent punch. You can read it in full here.
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And above all let us continue to pray for healing in the Catholic Church and every denomination, praying through the intercession of Servant of God Pope Pius VII.