June 21, 1963 marks the day that the papacy of Pope Paul VI began. Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, one of fourteen children, was born in Sotto il Monte, Italy, into a family of sharecroppers. Previously, Popes were known to be from aristocratic families. Nevertheless, Pope Paul’s papacy has been successful and productive, being selected a cardinal in 1958 and beginning his papacy in 1963. He has established an international synod of bishops, and the bishops are instructed to set up councils of priests. Along with this, the Pope has enlarged the College of Cardinals, even placing cardinals in third world countries. While the traditions of papacy, changing what is generally accepted from a Pope; he was the first pope in 150 years to leave Italy, which he has done multiple times during his papacy. Pope Paul VI traveled to the Holy Land in 1964; the same year, the Pope made multiple trips to India, and, a year later, Pope Paul traveled to the United States to address the United Nations. He is undoubtedly looking to travel to other various places in the future, and in the process he will be gaining further support and uniting Roman Catholics across the world.
Source:"Pope Paul VI." Catholic Forum. 2009. 1 June 2009
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