Pope John Paul I the sale of gold in churches to provide money to help handicapped children. He was also against worker priests—those who went to work in the factories and fields to labor with the laity—and he also criticised unions over strikes and workers' demonstrations. Pope Paul VI died on 6 August 1978, ending a reign of fifteen years. Luciani had gone to the late pope's funeral and mingled with the crowds who wanted to view the body of the late pope. In a certain moment, he thought he would not reach the body. But finally he was recognised once he had arrived
Pope John Paul II's relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church Pope John Paul II's relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church Pope John Paul II's relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church were marked by a significant improvement in relations between Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. In May 1999, Pope John Paul II visited Romania on the invitation from Patriarch Teoctist of the Romanian Orthodox Church. This was the first time a Pope had visited a predominantly Eastern Orthodox country since the East-West Schism in 1054, the event that separated Eastern Orthodoxy and Western Catholicism. On his arrival, the Patriarch and the President of Romania, Emil Constantinescu, greeted the Pope. The Patriarch