Four Popes

[Audio] Four Popes Ashley Serquina, Athena Situ, Danielle Wesley UCOR 2100 - 02: World Religions and Catholics.

[Audio] Topic of each member Danielle: Pope John Paul II Ashley: Pope Benedict XVI Athena: Pope Francis.

[Audio] Pope John Paul II 01 1978-2005. Pope John Paul II 01 1978-2005.

[Audio] Background Before Pope John Paul II Changed his name, his name was Karol Jozef Wojtyla. Born in Wadowice, Poland on May 18th, 1920. After high school, he enrolled into Jagiellonia University of Krakow in 1938, until the Nazi's shut the University down. From 1940-1944 in a quarry and then in a Solvay chemical factory to earn a living and avoid deportation to Germany. Started his priesthood studies in 1942 at clandestine major seminary until his priestly ordination on November 1, 1946. (Pope John Paul II, Google images).

[Audio] Papacy of Pope John Paul II Accepted Papacy in 1978. Visited 129 countries due to his mission to become a universal church leader. Celebrated 147 beautifications, proclaimed 1338 blesseds, and 51 cannionizations for 482 saints. This is more than previous popes in the last 500 years. In 1981, an assassination attempt was made. He forgave his attacker and visited him in Rebibbia Prison in 1983. Died in Vatican City, Rome on April 2, 2005..

[Audio] Facts about Pope John Paul II First Pope to step foot in a Jewish synagogue since Jesus. In addition to his native language, Polish, he was also fluent in 8 different languages to support his mission of universal religion. Italian, Spanish, French, English, Portuguese, German, Latin, Ancient Greek Author of 5 books: 1994: Crossing the Threshold of Hope 1996: Gift and Mystery: On the Fiftieth Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination 2003: Roman Triptych, meditations in poetry 2004: Rise, Let Us Be On Our Way 2005: Memory and Identity.

[Audio] Pope Benedict XVI 02 2005-2013. Pope Benedict XVI 02 2005-2013.

[Audio] Background Birth Name: Joseph Alois Ratzinger Born: April 16, 1927 in Marktl am Inn, Germany Death: December 31, 2022 in Vatican City Early Life: 1943 - drafted into the German Military under Hitler's Regime 1951 - after the war he continued his education in the seminary and was ordained a priest 1953 - Earned his Doctorate in Theology and began teaching 1977 - Appointed Archbishop of Munich and Freising 1981 - Made Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith 2005 - Accepted his Papacy Election.

[Audio] Papacy of Pope Benedict XVI At age 78 Pope Benedict XVI became the oldest newly elected pope since Clement XII (1730-40). The choice of "Benedict XVI" was an ode to Benedict of Nursia, Patron Saint of Europe and founder of Western Monasticism Pope Benedict XVI declared that one of his goals of his papacy is to revitalize the Catholic Church in Europe Benedict maintained his predecessors conservative orthodoxy on matter of sexuality, priestly celibacy, and ecclesiastical organization.

[Audio] Important Events During Papacy: Early in his Papacy visited Turkey to improve relations between Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches Restored traditional papal election processes In 2008, made his first visit as pope to the U.S. and spoke out against clerical sexual abuse and addressed it with the United Nations Addressed the first Catholic-Muslim Forum to promote understanding between religions In 2010 he rebuked the bishops of Ireland for their involvement in sexual and physical abuse in parochial schools.

[Audio] Pope Francis 03 2013-2025. Pope Francis 03 2013-2025.

[Audio] Background on Pope Francis (Stefon, 2025) Birth Name: Jorge Mario Bergoglio Born: December 17, 1936 in Buenos Aires, Argentina Death: April 21, 2025 in Vatican City Key moments 1958 - Entered the Jesuit novitiate 1960 - Studied humanities in Santiago, Chile, earning a philosophy degree 1969 - Ordained as a Catholic priest 1973-1979 - Served as superior of the Jesuit province of Argentina 1998 - Appointed Archbishop of Buenos Aires 2013-2025 - Elected Pope and served until his passing.

[Audio] Papacy of Pope Francis Shaped the Church through his guiding belief" "My people are poor and I am one of them" Strong advocate for the poor and marginalized Mission centered on missionary work, education, social justice and service (Stefon, 2025) Significant achievements Issued the Papal encyclical Laudato si', addressing the global climate crisis Worked to promote unity between Catholics and non-Catholics Offered formal apologies to survivors of clergy sexual abuse, calling for accountability within the Church (Stefon, 2025).

[Audio] (Stefon, 2025) Fun Facts First pope from the Western Hemisphere Member of the Society of Jesuits Known for his humility and simplicity Chose to live in the Vatican guesthouse instead of the Apostolic Palace Often walked or used public transportation instead of a chauffeured limousine Chose the name Francis, in honor of St. Francis of Assisi (1181/82-1226), who was devoted to humble service.

[Audio] Pope Leo XIV 04 2025-Present. Pope Leo XIV 04 2025-Present.

[Audio] Background (Early Life) Born Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago in 1955 Growing up in Chicago he attended both an Catholic Elementary and High School 1973 - enrolled in Villanova University and eventually earning a B.A. in Mathematics 1977 - began his novitiate in Augustinian order and took his solemn vows 4 years later 1982 - he was ordained as a priest. Also, studied at Catholic Theological Union and received a masters in divinity 1984 - Earned a license in canon law 1987 - Doctoral thesis on the role of local prior in Augustinian order (Ostberg, 2026).

[Audio] Early Career in the Catholic Church 1985: Pope Leo XIV started his missionary work in Peru. 1988-1999: Entrusted with the pastoral care of Our Lady Mother of the church and was the administrator of Our Lady of Montserrat. (Chiclayo, Peru) 2014: Appointed as Apostolic Admin of Peruvian Diocese. 2015 - 2023: Appointed bishop of Chiclayo and then created Cardinal by Pope Francis..

[Audio] Papacy of Leo XIV Plans to bring a unifying spirit to church divisions Envisions a church that emphasizes its global diversity and champions the poor Supporter of Francis' programs, including environmental and migrant right issues Brother John Prevost mentioned "he's not happy with what's going with immigration in the United States" (Ostberg, 2026) Plans on appointing women to church leadership roles.

[Audio] Citations Frassetto, M. (2025, December 27). Benedict XVI. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Benedict-XVI Ostberg, R. (2026, January 30). Leo XIV | Pope, background, family, name, nationality, Education, Chicago, & facts | britannica. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Leo-XIV Stefon, M. (2025, December 31). Francis. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Francis-I-pope https://www.vatican.va/content/vatican/en.html : Pope John Paul II https://www.jp2shrine.org/about/jp2-bio/ : Pope John Paul II https://catholicweekly.com.au/the-top-ten-achievements-of-john-p aul-ii/.

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