Which pope began the codification of canon law in 1904?

• A. Pope Pius X
• B. Pope Benedict XV
• C. Pope Leo XIII
• D. Pope Pius XI

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is the start of unifying church law into a single, systematic code. In 1904, Pope Pius X established the Pontifical Commission for the Codification of Canon Law, kicking off the long process of drafting a Code of Canon Law that would bring centuries of scattered norms into one organized statute. This move built on earlier calls for codification by Leo XIII, who had begun laying groundwork for a unified code, but the formal drafting began under Pius X in 1904. The work would later culminate in the Code of Canon Law promulgated in 1917, with key drafting led by canonists such as Cardinal Pietro Gasparri under the direction of the papacy. So, the pope who began the codification in 1904 is Pius X.