Pope

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The main article regarding the papacy is found here.

The Papacy

The Pope of Rome is the Roman Catholic bishop and patriarch of Rome, Ruler of the Papal States, and leader of the worldwide Catholic Church. The claim is disputed by the Orthodox, but Catholics aver that the Pope of Rome is also the true leader of all Christians who hold to the catholic faith, as promulgated in the Creeds, and regardless of their actual denomination. The Pope's temporal authority extends over a large area of central Italy -- a territory usually known as the Papal States but officially known as the Patrimony of St Peter.

Roles of the pope

The Pope of Rome has three ecclesiastical functions, each of which is officially exercised within one of three offices. First and formost, he is the Bishop of Rome, meaning that he holds a diocese like any other diocesan bishop within the Catholic Church. Second, he is Patriarch of the West, which means that he is the leader or chief bishop of all Christians who are aligned with the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church and is the equal of the other patriarchs of Catholicism and Orthodoxy. Lastly, he is also the Supreme and Ecumenical Pontiff, meaning that he is the successor of Peter and leader of all Christians. The term "Pope" (Latin papa: 'father') is used by several Christian churches to denote their highest leaders, notably the Alexandrian Orthodox Church. This title as used in Western Europe refers to the leader of the Catholic Church. In his capacity of Supreme Pontiff, he is also the recognized leader of the other Catholic rites: the Cambrian, the Byzantine, and several Eastern rites (Antiochene, Melkite, Chaldean, etc). There are also several schismatic groups that have become separate from the main body of the Church but who continue to recognise the Popes of Rome as spiritual heads, notably the Vissian congregation of the Azores.

Recent Popes of Rome

Pontificate	Common Name	Regnal Name	Personal Name	Notes
1914 to 1922	Pope Benedict XV	Papa Benedictus Quintus Decimus, Episcopus Romanus	Giacomo della Chiesa	(1854-1922)
1922 to 1939	Pope Pius XI	Papa Pius Undecimus, Episcopus Romanus	Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti	(1857-1939)
1939 to 1958	Pope Pius XIJ	Papa Pius Dodecimus, Episcopus Romanus	Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli	(1876-1958)
1958 to 1989	Pope Gregory XVIJ	Papa Gregorius Septus Decimus, Episcopus Romanus		(1907-1989)
1989 to present	Pope John XXIIJ	Papa Iohannes Vicesimus Tertius, Episcopus Romanus	Tomás Azcárraga	(1920- )