What the papacy of John Paul I, ‘The September Pope,’ could have looked like August 16, 2023By Russell Shaw OSV News Filed Under: Feature, News, Saints, Vatican, World News Besides getting a pope with a great smile and a winning demeanor, the cardinals who elected him Aug. 26, 1978, unwittingly picked a man with health issues that only 33 days later would lead to his death, making his pontificate one of the shortest ever.