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Title: |
Divini Redemptoris
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Descr.: |
On Atheistic Communism
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Pope: |
Pope Pius XI
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Date: |
March 19, 1937
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To
the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, Bishops, and Other
Ordinaries in Peace and Communion with the Apostolic See.
Venerable
Brethren, Health and Apostolic Benediction.
1.
The promise of a Redeemer brightens the first page of the history
of mankind, and the confident hope aroused by this promise
softened the keen regret for a paradise which had been lost. It
was this hope that accompanied the human race on its weary
journey, until in the fullness of time the expected Savior came to
begin a new universal civilization, the Christian civilization,
far superior even to that which up to this time had been
laboriously achieved by certain more privileged nations.
2.
Nevertheless, the struggle between good and evil remained in the
world as a sad legacy of the original fall. Nor has the ancient
tempter ever ceased to deceive mankind with false promises. It is
on this account that one convulsion following upon another has
marked the passage of the centuries, down to the revolution of our
own days. This modern revolution, it may be said, has actually
broken out or threatens everywhere, and it exceeds in amplitude
and violence anything yet experienced in the preceding
persecutions launched against the Church. Entire peoples find
themselves in danger of falling back into a barbarism worse than
that which oppressed the greater part of the world at the coming
of the Redeemer.
3.
This all too imminent danger, Venerable Brethren, as you have
already surmised, is bolshevistic and atheistic Communism, which
aims at upsetting the social order and at undermining the very
foundations of Christian civilization.
4.
In the face of such a threat, the Catholic Church could not and
does not remain silent. This Apostolic See, above all, has not
refrained from raising its voice, for it knows that its proper and
social mission is to defend truth, justice and all those eternal
values which Communism ignores or attacks. Ever since the days
when groups of "intellectuals" were formed in an
arrogant attempt to free civilization from the bonds of morality
and religion, Our Predecessors overtly and explicitly drew the
attention of the world to the consequences of the
dechristianization of human society. With reference to Communism,
Our Venerable Predecessor, Pius IX, of holy memory, as early as
1846 pronounced a solemn condemnation, which he confirmed in the
words of the Syllabus directed against "that infamous
doctrine of so-called Communism which is absolutely contrary to
the natural law itself, and if once adopted would utterly destroy
the rights, property and possessions of all men, and even society
itself."(1) Later on, another of Our predecessors, the
immortal Leo XIII, in his Encyclical Quod Apostolici Muneris,
defined Communism as "the fatal plague which insinuates
itself into the very marrow of human society only to bring about
its ruin."(2) With clear intuition he pointed out that the
atheistic movements existing among the masses of the Machine Age
had their origin in that school of philosophy which for centuries
had sought to divorce science from the life of the Faith and of
the Church.
5.
During Our Pontificate We too have frequently and with urgent
insistence denounced the current trend to atheism which is
alarmingly on the increase. In 1924 when Our relief-mission
returned from the Soviet Union We condemned Communism in a special
Allocution(3) which We addressed to the whole world. In our
Encyclicals Miserentissimus Redemptor,(4) Quadragesimo Anno,(5)
Caritate Christi,(6) Acerba Animi,(7) Dilectissima Nobis,(8) We
raised a solemn protest against the persecutions unleashed in
Russia, in Mexico and now in Spain. Our two Allocutions of last
year, the first on the occasion of the opening of the
International Catholic Press Exposition, and the second during Our
audience to the Spanish refugees, along with Our message of last
Christmas, have evoked a world-wide echo which is not yet spent.
In fact, the most persistent enemies of the Church, who from
Moscow are directing the struggle against Christian civilization,
themselves bear witness, by their unceasing attacks in word and
act, that even to this hour the Papacy has continued faithfully to
protect the sanctuary of the Christian religion, and that it has
called public attention to the perils of Communism more frequently
and more effectively than any other public authority on earth.
6.
To Our great satisfaction, Venerable Brethren, you have, by means
of individual and even joint pastoral Letters, accurately
transmitted and explained to the Faithful these admonitions. Yet
despite Our frequent and paternal warning the peril only grows
greater from day to day because of the pressure exerted by clever
agitators. Therefore We believe it to be Our duty to raise Our
voice once more, in a still more solemn missive, in accord with
the tradition of this Apostolic See, the Teacher of Truth, and in
accord with the desire of the whole Catholic world, which makes
the appearance of such a document but natural. We trust that the
echo of Our voice will reach every mind free from prejudice and
every heart sincerely desirous of the good of mankind. We wish
this the more because Our words are now receiving sorry
confirmation from the spectacle of the bitter fruits of subversive
ideas, which We foresaw and foretold, and which are in fact
multiplying fearfully in the countries already stricken, or
threatening every other country of the world.
7.
Hence We wish to expose once more in a brief synthesis the
principles of atheistic Communism as they are manifested chiefly
in bolshevism. We wish also to indicate its method of action and
to contrast with its false principles the clear doctrine of the
Church, in order to inculcate anew and with greater insistence the
means by which the Christian civilization, the true civitas humana,
can be saved from the satanic scourge, and not merely saved, but
better developed for the well-being of human society.
8.
The Communism of today, more emphatically than similar movements
in the past, conceals in itself a false messianic idea. A
pseudo-ideal of justice, of equality and fraternity in labor
impregnates all its doctrine and activity with a deceptive
mysticism, which communicates a zealous and contagious enthusiasm
to the multitudes entrapped by delusive promises. This is
especially true in an age like ours, when unusual misery has
resulted from the unequal distribution of the goods of this world.
This pseudo-ideal is even boastfully advanced as if it were
responsible for a certain economic progress. As a matter of fact,
when such progress is at all real, its true causes are quite
different, as for instance the intensification of industrialism in
countries which were formerly almost without it, the exploitation
of immense natural resources, and the use of the most brutal
methods to insure the achievement of gigantic projects with a
minimum of expense.
9.
The doctrine of modern Communism, which is often concealed under
the most seductive trappings, is in substance based on the
principles of dialectical and historical materialism previously
advocated by Marx, of which the theoricians of bolshevism claim to
possess the only genuine interpretation. According to this
doctrine there is in the world only one reality, matter, the blind
forces of which evolve into plant, animal and man. Even human
society is nothing but a phenomenon and form of matter, evolving
in the same way. By a law of inexorable necessity and through a
perpetual conflict of forces, matter moves towards the final
synthesis of a classless society. In such a doctrine, as is
evident, there is no room for the idea of God; there is no
difference between matter and spirit, between soul and body; there
is neither survival of the soul after death nor any hope in a
future life. Insisting on the dialectical aspect of their
materialism, the Communists claim that the conflict which carries
the world towards its final synthesis can be accelerated by man.
Hence they endeavor to sharpen the antagonisms which arise between
the various classes of society. Thus the class struggle with its
consequent violent hate and destruction takes on the aspects of a
crusade for the progress of humanity. On the other hand, all other
forces whatever, as long as they resist such systematic violence,
must be annihilated as hostile to the human race.
10.
Communism, moreover, strips man of his liberty, robs human
personality of all its dignity, and removes all the moral
restraints that check the eruptions of blind impulse. There is no
recognition of any right of the individual in his relations to the
collectivity; no natural right is accorded to human personality,
which is a mere cog-wheel in the Communist system. In man's
relations with other individuals, besides, Communists hold the
principle of absolute equality, rejecting all hierarchy and
divinely-constituted authority, including the authority of
parents. What men call authority and subordination is derived from
the community as its first and only font. Nor is the individual
granted any property rights over material goods or the means of
production, for inasmuch as these are the source of further
wealth, their possession would give one man power over another.
Precisely on this score, all forms of private property must be
eradicated, for they are at the origin of all economic enslavement.
11.
Refusing to human life any sacred or spiritual character, such a
doctrine logically makes of marriage and the family a purely
artificial and civil institution, the outcome of a specific
economic system. There exists no matrimonial bond of a juridico-moral
nature that is not subject to the whim of the individual or of the
collectivity. Naturally, therefore, the notion of an indissoluble
marriage-tie is scouted. Communism is particularly characterized
by the rejection of any link that binds woman to the family and
the home, and her emancipation is proclaimed as a basic principle.
She is withdrawn from the family and the care of her children, to
be thrust instead into public life and collective production under
the same conditions as man. The care of home and children then
devolves upon the collectivity. Finally, the right of education is
denied to parents, for it is conceived as the exclusive
prerogative of the community, in whose name and by whose mandate
alone parents may exercise this right.
12.
What would be the condition of a human society based on such
materialistic tenets? It would be a collectivity with no other
hierarchy than that of the economic system. It would have only one
mission: the production of material things by means of collective
labor, so that the goods of this world might be enjoyed in a
paradise where each would "give according to his powers"
and would "receive according to his needs." Communism
recognizes in the collectivity the right, or rather, unlimited
discretion, to draft individuals for the labor of the collectivity
with no regard for their personal welfare; so that even violence
could be legitimately exercised to dragoon the recalcitrant
against their wills. In the Communistic commonwealth morality and
law would be nothing but a derivation of the existing economic
order, purely earthly in origin and unstable in character. In a
word, the Communists claim to inaugurate a new era and a new
civilization which is the result of blind evolutionary forces
culminating in a humanity without God.
13.
When all men have finally acquired the collectivist mentality in
this Utopia of a really classless society, the political State,
which is now conceived by Communists merely as the instrument by
which the proletariat is oppressed by the capitalists, will have
lost all reason for its existence and will "wither
away." However, until that happy consummation is realized,
the State and the powers of the State furnish Communism with the
most efficacious and most extensive means for the achievement of
its goal.
14.
Such, Venerable Brethren, is the new gospel which bolshevistic and
atheistic Communism offers the world as the glad tidings of
deliverance and salvation! It is a system full of errors and
sophisms. It is in opposition both to reason and to Divine
Revelation. It subverts the social order, because it means the
destruction of its foundations; because it ignores the true origin
and purpose of the State; because it denies the rights, dignity
and liberty of human personality.
15.
How is it possible that such a system, long since rejected
scientifically and now proved erroneous by experience, how is it,
We ask, that such a system could spread so rapidly in all parts of
the world? The explanation lies in the fact that too few have been
able to grasp the nature of Communism. The majority instead
succumb to its deception, skillfully concealed by the most
extravagant promises. By pretending to desire only the betterment
of the condition of the working classes, by urging the removal of
the very real abuses chargeable to the liberalistic economic
order, and by demanding a more equitable distribution of this
world's goods (objectives entirely and undoubtedly legitimate),
the Communist takes advantage of the present world-wide economic
crisis to draw into the sphere of his influence even those
sections of the populace which on principle reject all forms of
materialism and terrorism. And as every error contains its element
of truth, the partial truths to which We have referred are
astutely presented according to the needs of time and place, to
conceal, when convenient, the repulsive crudity and inhumanity of
Communistic principles and tactics. Thus the Communist ideal wins
over many of the better minded members of the community. These in
turn become the apostles of the movement among the younger
intelligentsia who are still too immature to recognize the
intrinsic errors of the system. The preachers of Communism are
also proficient in exploiting racial antagonisms and political
divisions and oppositions. They take advantage of the lack of
orientation characteristic of modern agnostic science in order to
burrow into the universities, where they bolster up the principles
of their doctrine with pseudo-scientific arguments.
16.
If we would explain the blind acceptance of Communism by so many
thousands of workmen, we must remember that the way had been
already prepared for it by the religious and moral destitution in
which wage-earners had been left by liberal economics. Even on
Sundays and holy days, labor-shifts were given no time to attend
to their essential religious duties. No one thought of building
churches within convenient distance of factories, nor of
facilitating the work of the priest. On the contrary, laicism was
actively and persistently promoted, with the result that we are
now reaping the fruits of the errors so often denounced by Our
Predecessors and by Ourselves. It can surprise no one that the
Communistic fallacy should be spreading in a world already to a
large extent de-Christianized.
17.
There is another explanation for the rapid diffusion of the
Communistic ideas now seeping into every nation, great and small,
advanced and backward, so that no corner of the earth is free from
them. This explanation is to be found in a propaganda so truly
diabolical that the world has perhaps never witnessed its like
before. It is directed from one common center. It is shrewdly
adapted to the varying conditions of diverse peoples. It has at
its disposal great financial resources, gigantic organizations,
international congresses, and countless trained workers. It makes
use of pamphlets and reviews, of cinema, theater and radio, of
schools and even universities. Little by little it penetrates into
all classes of the people and even reaches the better-minded
groups of the community, with the result that few are aware of the
poison which increasingly pervades their minds and hearts.
18.
A third powerful factor in the diffusion of Communism is the
conspiracy of silence on the part of a large section of the
non-Catholic press of the world. We say conspiracy, because it is
impossible otherwise to explain how a press usually so eager to
exploit even the little daily incidents of life has been able to
remain silent for so long about the horrors perpetrated in Russia,
in Mexico and even in a great part of Spain; and that it should
have relatively so little to say concerning a world organization
as vast as Russian Communism. This silence is due in part to
shortsighted political policy, and is favored by various occult
forces which for a long time have been working for the overthrow
of the Christian Social Order.
19.
Meanwhile the sorry effects of this propaganda are before our
eyes. Where Communism has been able to assert its power - and here
We are thinking with special affection of the people of Russia and
Mexico - it has striven by every possible means, as its champions
openly boast, to destroy Christian civilization and the Christian
religion by banishing every remembrance of them from the hearts of
men, especially of the young. Bishops and priests were exiled,
condemned to forced labor, shot and done to death in inhuman
fashion; laymen suspected of defending their religion were vexed,
persecuted, dragged off to trial and thrown into prison.
20.
Even where the scourge of Communism has not yet had time enough to
exercise to the full its logical effects, as witness Our beloved
Spain, it has, alas, found compensation in the fiercer violence of
its attack. Not only this or that church or isolated monastery was
sacked, but as far as possible every church and every monastery
was destroyed. Every vestige of the Christian religion was
eradicated, even though intimately linked with the rarest
monuments of art and science. The fury of Communism has not
confined itself to the indiscriminate slaughter of Bishops, of
thousands of priests and religious of both sexes; it searches out
above all those who have been devoting their lives to the welfare
of the working classes and the poor. But the majority of its
victims have been laymen of all conditions and classes. Even up to
the present moment, masses of them are slain almost daily for no
other offense than the fact that they are good Christians or at
least opposed to atheistic Communism. And this fearful destruction
has been carried out with a hatred and a savage barbarity one
would not have believed possible in our age. No man of good sense,
nor any statesman conscious of his responsibility can fail to
shudder at the thought that what is happening today in Spain may
perhaps be repeated tomorrow in other civilized countries.
21.
Nor can it be said that these atrocities are a transitory
phenomenon, the usual accompaniment of all great revolutions, the
isolated excesses common to every war. No, they are the natural
fruit of a system which lacks all inner restraint. Some restraint
is necessary for man considered either as an individual or in
society. Even the barbaric peoples had this inner check in the
natural law written by God in the heart of every man. And where
this natural law was held in higher esteem, ancient nations rose
to a grandeur that still fascinates - more than it should -
certain superficial students of human history. But tear the very
idea of God from the hearts of men, and they are necessarily urged
by their passions to the most atrocious barbarity.
22.
This, unfortunately, is what we now behold. For the first time in
history we are witnessing a struggle, cold-blooded in purpose and
mapped out to the least detail, between man and "all that is
called God."(9) Communism is by its nature anti-religious. It
considers religion as "the opiate of the people" because
the principles of religion which speak of a life beyond the grave
dissuade the proletariat from the dream of a Soviet paradise which
is of this world.
23.
But the law of nature and its Author cannot be flouted with
impunity. Communism has not been able, and will not be able, to
achieve its objectives even in the merely economic sphere. It is
true that in Russia it has been a contributing factor in rousing
men and materials from the inertia of centuries, and in obtaining
by all manner of means, often without scruple, some measure of
material success. Nevertheless We know from reliable and even very
recent testimony that not even there, in spite of slavery imposed
on millions of men, has Communism reached its promised goal. After
all, even the sphere of economics needs some morality, some moral
sense of responsibility, which can find no place in a system so
thoroughly materialistic as Communism. Terrorism is the only
possible substitute, and it is terrorism that reigns today in
Russia, where former comrades in revolution are exterminating each
other. Terrorism, having failed despite all to stem the tide of
moral corruption, cannot even prevent the dissolution of society
itself.
24.
In making these observations it is no part of Our intention to
condemn en masse the peoples of the Soviet Union. For them We
cherish the warmest paternal affection. We are well aware that not
a few of them groan beneath the yoke imposed on them by men who in
very large part are strangers to the real interests of the
country. We recognize that many others were deceived by fallacious
hopes. We blame only the system, with its authors and abettors who
considered Russia the best-prepared field for experimenting with a
plan elaborated decades ago, and who from there continue to spread
it from one end of the world to the other.
25.
We have exposed the errors and the violent, deceptive tactics of
bolshevistic and atheistic Communism. It is now time, Venerable
Brethren, to contrast with it the true notion, already familiar to
you, of the civitas humana or human society, as taught by reason
and Revelation through the mouth of the Church, Magistra Gentium.
26.
Above all other reality there exists one supreme Being: God, the
omnipotent Creator of all things, the all-wise and just Judge of
all men. This supreme reality, God, is the absolute condemnation
of the impudent falsehoods of Communism. In truth, it is not
because men believe in God that He exists; rather because He
exists do all men whose eyes are not deliberately closed to the
truth believe in Him and pray to Him.
27.
In the Encyclical on Christian Education(10) We explained the
fundamental doctrine concerning man as it may be gathered from
reason and Faith. Man has a spiritual and immortal soul. He is a
person, marvelously endowed by his Creator with gifts of body and
mind. He is a true "microcosm," as the ancients said, a
world in miniature, with a value far surpassing that of the vast
inanimate cosmos. God alone is his last end, in this life and the
next. By sanctifying grace he is raised to the dignity of a son of
God, and incorporated into the Kingdom of God in the Mystical Body
of Christ. In consequence he has been endowed by God with many and
varied prerogatives: the right to life, to bodily integrity, to
the necessary means of existence; the right to tend toward his
ultimate goal in the path marked out for him by God; the right of
association and the right to possess and use property.
28.
Just as matrimony and the right to its natural use are of divine
origin, so likewise are the constitution and fundamental
prerogatives of the family fixed and determined by the Creator. In
the Encyclical on Christian Marriage(11) and in Our other
Encyclical on Education, cited above, we have treated these topics
at considerable length.
29.
But God has likewise destined man for civil society according to
the dictates of his very nature. In the plan of the Creator,
society is a natural means which man can and must use to reach his
destined end. Society is for man and not vice versa. This must not
be understood in the sense of liberalistic individualism, which
subordinates society to the selfish use of the individual; but
only in the sense that by means of an organic union with society
and by mutual collaboration the attainment of earthly happiness is
placed within the reach of all. In a further sense, it is society
which affords the opportunities for the development of all the
individual and social gifts bestowed on human nature. These
natural gifts have a value surpassing the immediate interests of
the moment, for in society they reflect the divine perfection,
which would not be true were man to live alone. But on final
analysis, even in this latter function, society is made for man,
that he may recognize this reflection of God's perfection, and
refer it in praise and adoration to the Creator. Only man, the
human person, and not society in any form is endowed with reason
and a morally free will.
30.
Man cannot be exempted from his divinely-imposed obligations
toward civil society, and the representatives of authority have
the right to coerce him when he refuses without reason to do his
duty. Society, on the other hand, cannot defraud man of his
God-granted rights, the most important of which We have indicated
above. Nor can society systematically void these rights by making
their use impossible. It is therefore according to the dictates of
reason that ultimately all material things should be ordained to
man as a person, that through his mediation they may find their
way to the Creator. In this wise we can apply to man, the human
person, the words of the Apostle of the Gentiles, who writes to
the Corinthians on the Christian economy of salvation: "All
things are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is
God's."(12) While Communism impoverishes human personality by
inverting the terms of the relation of man to society, to what
lofty heights is man not elevated by reason and Revelation!
31.
The directive principles concerning the social-economic order have
been expounded in the social Encyclical of Leo XIII on the
question of labor.(13) Our own Encyclical on the Reconstruction of
the Social Order(14) adapted these principles to present needs.
Then, insisting anew on the age-old doctrine of the Church
concerning the individual and social character of private
property, We explained clearly the right and dignity of labor, the
relations of mutual aid and collaboration which should exist
between those who possess capital and those who work, the salary
due in strict justice to the worker for himself and for his
family.
32.
In this same Encyclical of Ours We have shown that the means of
saving the world of today from the lamentable ruin into which a
moral liberalism has plunged us, are neither the class-struggle
nor terror, nor yet the autocratic abuse of State power, but
rather the infusion of social justice and the sentiment of
Christian love into the social-economic order. We have indicated
how a sound prosperity is to be restored according to the true
principles of a sane corporative system which respects the proper
hierarchic structure of society; and how all the occupational
groups should be fused into a harmonious unity inspired by the
principle of the common good. And the genuine and chief function
of public and civil authority consists precisely in the
efficacious furthering of this harmony and coordination of all
social forces.
33.
In view of this organized common effort towards peaceful living,
Catholic doctrine vindicates to the State the dignity and
authority of a vigilant and provident defender of those divine and
human rights on which the Sacred Scriptures and the Fathers of the
Church insist so often. It is not true that all have equal rights
in civil society. It is not true that there exists no lawful
social hierarchy. Let it suffice to refer to the Encyclicals of
Leo XIII already cited, especially to that on State powers,(15)
and to the other on the Christian Constitution of States.(16) In
these documents the Catholic will find the principles of reason
and the Faith clearly explained, and these principles will enable
him to defend himself against the errors and perils of a
Communistic conception of the State. The enslavement of man
despoiled of his rights, the denial of the transcendental origin
of the State and its authority, the horrible abuse of public power
in the service of a collectivistic terrorism, are the very
contrary of all that corresponds with natural ethics and the will
of the Creator. Both man and civil society derive their origin
from the Creator, Who has mutually ordained them one to the other.
Hence neither can be exempted from their correlative obligations,
nor deny or diminish each other's rights. The Creator Himself has
regulated this mutual relationship in its fundamental lines, and
it is by an unjust usurpation that Communism arrogates to itself
the right to enforce, in place of the divine law based on the
immutable principles of truth and charity, a partisan political
program which derives from the arbitrary human will and is replete
with hate.
34.
In teaching this enlightening doctrine the Church has no other
intention than to realize the glad tidings sung by the Angels
above the cave of Bethlehem at the Redeemer's birth: "Glory
to God ... and ... peace to men ...,"(17) true peace and true
happiness, even here below as far as is possible, in preparation
for the happiness of heaven - but to men of good will. This
doctrine is equally removed from all extremes of error and all
exaggerations of parties or systems which stem from error. It
maintains a constant equilibrium of truth and justice, which it
vindicates in theory and applies and promotes in practice,
bringing into harmony the rights and duties of all parties. Thus
authority is reconciled with liberty, the dignity of the
individual with that of the State, the human personality of the
subject with the divine delegation of the superior; and in this
way a balance is struck between the due dependence and
well-ordered love of a man for himself, his family and country,
and his love of other families and other peoples, founded on the
love of God, the Father of all, their first principle and last
end. The Church does not separate a proper regard for temporal
welfare from solicitude for the eternal. If she subordinates the
former to the latter according to the words of her divine Founder,
"Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His justice, and all
these things shall be added unto you,"(18) she is
nevertheless so far from being unconcerned with human affairs, so
far from hindering civil progress and material advancement, that
she actually fosters and promotes them in the most sensible and
efficacious manner. Thus even in the sphere of social-economics,
although the Church has never proposed a definite technical
system, since this is not her field, she has nevertheless clearly
outlined the guiding principles which, while susceptible of varied
concrete applications according to the diversified conditions of
times and places and peoples, indicate the safe way of securing
the happy progress of society.
35.
The wisdom and supreme utility of this doctrine are admitted by
all who really understand it. With good reason outstanding
statesmen have asserted that, after a study of various social
systems, they have found nothing sounder than the principles
expounded in the Encyclicals Rerum Novarum and Quadragesimo Anno.
In non-Catholic, even in non-Christian countries, men recognize
the great value to society of the social doctrine of the Church.
Thus, scarcely a month ago, an eminent political figure of the Far
East, a non-Christian, did not hesitate to affirm publicly that
the Church, with her doctrine of peace and Christian brotherhood,
is rendering a signal contribution to the difficult task of
establishing and maintaining peace among the nations. Finally, We
know from reliable information that flows into this Center of
Christendom from all parts of the world, that the Communists
themselves, where they are not utterly depraved, recognize the
superiority of the social doctrine of the Church, when once
explained to them, over the doctrines of their leaders and their
teachers. Only those blinded by passion and hatred close their
eyes to the light of truth and obstinately struggle against it.
36.
But the enemies of the Church, though forced to acknowledge the
wisdom of her doctrine, accuse her of having failed to act in
conformity with her principles, and from this conclude to the
necessity of seeking other solutions. The utter falseness and
injustice of this accusation is shown by the whole history of
Christianity. To refer only to a single typical trait, it was
Christianity that first affirmed the real and universal
brotherhood of all men of whatever race and condition. This
doctrine she proclaimed by a method, and with an amplitude and
conviction, unknown to preceding centuries; and with it she
potently contributed to the abolition of slavery. Not bloody
revolution, but the inner force of her teaching made the proud
Roman matron see in her slave a sister in Christ. It is
Christianity that adores the Son of God, made Man for love of man,
and become not only the "Son of a Carpenter" but Himself
a "Carpenter."(19) It was Christianity that raised
manual labor to its true dignity, whereas it had hitherto been so
despised that even the moderate Cicero did not hesitate to sum up
the general opinion of his time in words of which any modern
sociologist would be ashamed: "All artisans are engaged in
sordid trades, for there can be nothing ennobling about a
workshop."(20)
37.
Faithful to these principles, the Church has given new life to
human society. Under her influence arose prodigious charitable
organizations, great guilds of artisans and workingmen of every
type. These guilds, ridiculed as "medieval" by the
liberalism of the last century, are today claiming the admiration
of our contemporaries in many countries who are endeavoring to
revive them in some modern form. And when other systems hindered
her work and raised obstacles to the salutary influence of the
Church, she was never done warning them of their error. We need
but recall with what constant firmness and energy Our Predecessor,
Leo XIII, vindicated for the workingman the right to organize,
which the dominant liberalism of the more powerful States
relentlessly denied him. Even today the authority of this Church
doctrine is greater than it seems; for the influence of ideas in
the realm of facts, though invisible and not easily measured, is
surely of predominant importance.
38.
It may be said in all truth that the Church, like Christ, goes
through the centuries doing good to all. There would be today
neither Socialism nor Communism if the rulers of the nations had
not scorned the teachings and maternal warnings of the Church. On
the bases of liberalism and laicism they wished to build other
social edifices which, powerful and imposing as they seemed at
first, all too soon revealed the weakness of their foundations,
and today are crumbling one after another before our eyes, as
everything must crumble that is not grounded on the one corner
stone which is Christ Jesus.
39.
This, Venerable Brethren, is the doctrine of the Church, which
alone in the social as in all other fields can offer real light
and assure salvation in the face of Communistic ideology. But this
doctrine must be consistently reduced to practice in every-day
life, according to the admonition of St. James the Apostle:
"Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your
own selves."(21) The most urgent need of the present day is
therefore the energetic and timely application of remedies which
will effectively ward off the catastrophe that daily grows more
threatening. We cherish the firm hope that the fanaticism with
which the sons of darkness work day and night at their
materialistic and atheistic propaganda will at least serve the
holy purpose of stimulating the sons of light to a like and even
greater zeal for the honor of the Divine Majesty.
40.
What then must be done, what remedies must be employed to defend
Christ and Christian civilization from this pernicious enemy? As a
father in the midst of his family, We should like to speak quite
intimately of those duties which the great struggle of our day
imposes on all the children of the Church; and We would address
Our paternal admonition even to those sons who have strayed far
from her.
41.
As in all the stormy periods of the history of the Church, the
fundamental remedy today lies in a sincere renewal of private and
public life according to the principles of the Gospel by all those
who belong to the Fold of Christ, that they may be in truth the
salt of the earth to preserve human society from total corruption.
42.
With heart deeply grateful to the Father of Light, from Whom
descends "every best gift and every perfect gift,"(22)
We see on all sides consoling signs of this spiritual renewal. We
see it not only in so many singularly chosen souls who in these
last years have been elevated to the sublime heights of sanctity,
and in so many others who with generous hearts are making their
way towards the same luminous goal, but also in the new flowering
of a deep and practical piety in all classes of society even the
most cultured, as We pointed out in Our recent Motu Proprio In
multis solaciis of October 28 last, on the occasion of the
reorganization of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.(23)
43.
Nevertheless We cannot deny that there is still much to be done in
the way of spiritual renovation. Even in Catholic countries there
are still too many who are Catholics hardly more than in name.
There are too many who fulfill more or less faithfully the more
essential obligations of the religion they boast of professing,
but have no desire of knowing it better, of deepening their inward
conviction, and still less of bringing into conformity with the
external gloss the inner splendor of a right and unsullied
conscience, that recognizes and performs all its duties under the
eye of God. We know how much Our Divine Savior detested this empty
pharisaic show, He Who wished that all should adore the Father
"in spirit and in truth."(24) The Catholic who does not
live really and sincerely according to the Faith he professes will
not long be master of himself in these days when the winds of
strife and persecution blow so fiercely, but will be swept away
defenseless in this new deluge which threatens the world. And
thus, while he is preparing his own ruin, he is exposing to
ridicule the very name of Christian.
44.
And here We wish, Venerable Brethren, to insist more particularly
on two teachings of Our Lord which have a special bearing on the
present condition of the human race: detachment from earthly goods
and the precept of charity. "Blessed are the poor in
spirit" were the first words that fell from the lips of the
Divine Master in His sermon on the mount.(25) This lesson is more
than ever necessary in these days of materialism athirst for the
goods and pleasures of this earth. All Christians, rich or poor,
must keep their eye fixed on heaven, remembering that "we
have not here a lasting city, but we seek one that is to
come."(26) The rich should not place their happiness in
things of earth nor spend their best efforts in the acquisition of
them. Rather, considering themselves only as stewards of their
earthly goods, let them be mindful of the account they must render
of them to their Lord and Master, and value them as precious means
that God has put into their hands for doing good; let them not
fail, besides, to distribute of their abundance to the poor,
according to the evangelical precept.(27) Otherwise there shall be
verified of them and their riches the harsh condemnation of St.
James the Apostle: "Go to now, ye rich men; weep and howl in
your miseries which shall come upon you. Your riches are
corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten; your gold and silver
is cankered; and the rust of them shall be for a testimony against
you and shall eat your flesh like fire. You have stored up to
yourselves wrath against the last days..."(28)
45.
But the poor too, in their turn, while engaged, according to the
laws of charity and justice, in acquiring the necessities of life
and also in bettering their condition, should always remain
"poor in spirit,"(29) and hold spiritual goods in higher
esteem than earthly property and pleasures. Let them remember that
the world will never be able to rid itself of misery, sorrow and
tribulation, which are the portion even of those who seem most
prosperous. Patience, therefore, is the need of all, that
Christian patience which comforts the heart with the divine
assurance of eternal happiness. "Be patient, therefore,
brethren," we repeat with St. James, "until the coming
of the Lord. Behold the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit
of the earth, patiently bearing until he receive the early and the
later rain. Be you therefore also patient and strengthen your
hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand."(30) Only thus
will be fulfilled the consoling promise of the Lord: "Blessed
are the poor!" These words are no vain consolation, a promise
as empty as those of the Communists. They are the words of life,
pregnant with a sovereign reality. They are fully verified here on
earth, as well as in eternity. Indeed, how many of the poor, in
anticipation of the Kingdom of Heaven already proclaimed their
own: "for yours is the Kingdom of Heaven,"(31) find in
these words a happiness which so many of the wealthy, uneasy with
their riches and ever thirsting for more, look for in vain!
46.
Still more important as a remedy for the evil we are considering,
or certainly more directly calculated to cure it, is the precept
of charity. We have in mind that Christian charity, "patient
and kind,"(32) which avoids all semblance of demeaning
paternalism, and all ostentation; that charity which from the very
beginning of Christianity won to Christ the poorest of the poor,
the slaves. And We are grateful to all those members of charitable
associations, from the conferences of St. Vincent de Paul to the
recent great relief organizations, which are perseveringly
practicing the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. The more the
working men and the poor realize what the spirit of love animated
by the virtue of Christ is doing for them, the more readily will
they abandon the false persuasion that Christianity has lost its
efficacy and that the Church stands on the side of the exploiters
of their labor.
47.
But when on the one hand We see thousands of the needy, victims of
real misery for various reasons beyond their control, and on the
other so many round about them who spend huge sums of money on
useless things and frivolous amusement, We cannot fail to remark
with sorrow not only that justice is poorly observed, but that the
precept of charity also is not sufficiently appreciated, is not a
vital thing in daily life. We desire therefore, Venerable
Brethren, that this divine precept, this precious mark of
identification left by Christ to His true disciples, be ever more
fully explained by pen and word of mouth; this precept which
teaches us to see in those who suffer Christ Himself, and would
have us love our brothers as Our Divine Savior has loved us, that
is, even at the sacrifice of ourselves, and, if need be, of our
very life. Let all then frequently meditate on those words of the
final sentence, so consoling yet so terrifying, which the Supreme
Judge will pronounce on the day of the Last Judgment: "Come,
ye blessed of my Father ... for I was hungry and you gave me to
eat; I was thirsty and you gave me to drink ... Amen, I say to
you, as long as you did it to one of these my least brethren you
did it to me."(33) And the reverse: "Depart from me, you
cursed, into everlasting fire ... for I was hungry and you gave me
not to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me not to drink ... Amen, I
say to you, as long as you did it not to one of these least.
neither did you do it to me."(34)
48.
To be sure of eternal life, therefore, and to be able to help the
poor effectively, it is imperative to return to a more moderate
way of life, to renounce the joys, often sinful, which the world
today holds out in such abundance; to forget self for love of the
neighbor. There is a divine regenerating force in this "new
precept" (as Christ called it) of Christian charity.(35) Its
faithful observance will pour into the heart an inner peace which
the world knows not, and will finally cure the ills which oppress
humanity.
49.
But charity will never be true charity unless it takes justice
into constant account. The Apostle teaches that "he that
loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law" and he gives the
reason: "For, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not
kill, Thou shalt not steal ... and if there be any other
commandment, it is comprised in this word: Thou shalt love thy
neighbor as thyself."(36) According to the Apostle, then, all
the commandments, including those which are of strict justice, as
those which forbid us to kill or to steal, may be reduced to the
single precept of true charity. From this it follows that a
"charity" which deprives the workingman of the salary to
which he has a strict title in justice, is not charity at all, but
only its empty name and hollow semblance. The wage-earner is not
to receive as alms what is his due in justice. And let no one
attempt with trifling charitable donations to exempt himself from
the great duties imposed by justice. Both justice and charity
often dictate obligations touching on the same subject-matter, but
under different aspects; and the very dignity of the workingman
makes him justly and acutely sensitive to the duties of others in
his regard.
50.
Therefore We turn again in a special way to you, Christian
employers and industrialists, whose problem is often so difficult
for the reason that you are saddled with the heavy heritage of an
unjust economic regime whose ruinous influence has been felt
through many generations. We bid you be mindful of your
responsibility. It is unfortunately true that the manner of acting
in certain Catholic circles has done much to shake the faith of
the working-classes in the religion of Jesus Christ. These groups
have refused to understand that Christian charity demands the
recognition of certain rights due to the workingman, which the
Church has explicitly acknowledged. What is to be thought of the
action of those Catholic employers who in one place succeeded in
preventing the reading of Our Encyclical Quadragesimo Anno in
their local churches? Or of those Catholic industrialists who even
to this day have shown themselves hostile to a labor movement that
We Ourselves recommended? Is it not deplorable that the right of
private property defended by the Church should so often have been
used as a weapon to defraud the workingman of his just salary and
his social rights?
51.
In reality, besides commutative justice, there is also social
justice with its own set obligations, from which neither employers
nor workingmen can escape. Now it is of the very essence of social
justice to demand for each individual all that is necessary for
the common good. But just as in the living organism it is
impossible to provide for the good of the whole unless each single
part and each individual member is given what it needs for the
exercise of its proper functions, so it is impossible to care for
the social organism and the good of society as a unit unless each
single part and each individual member - that is to say, each
individual man in the dignity of his human personality - is
supplied with all that is necessary for the exercise of his social
functions. If social justice be satisfied, the result will be an
intense activity in economic life as a whole, pursued in
tranquillity and order. This activity will be proof of the health
of the social body, just as the health of the human body is
recognized in the undisturbed regularity and perfect efficiency of
the whole organism.
52.
But social justice cannot be said to have been satisfied as long
as workingmen are denied a salary that will enable them to secure
proper sustenance for themselves and for their families; as long
as they are denied the opportunity of acquiring a modest fortune
and forestalling the plague of universal pauperism; as long as
they cannot make suitable provision through public or private
insurance for old age, for periods of illness and unemployment. In
a word, to repeat what has been said in Our Encyclical
Quadragesimo Anno: "Then only will the economic and social
order be soundly established and attain its ends, when it offers,
to all and to each, all those goods which the wealth and resources
of nature, technical science and the corporate organization of
social affairs can give. These goods should be sufficient to
supply all necessities and reasonable comforts, and to uplift men
to that higher standard of life which, provided it be used with
prudence, is not only not a hindrance but is of singular help to
virtue."(37)
53.
It happens all too frequently, however, under the salary system,
that individual employers are helpless to ensure justice unless,
with a view to its practice, they organize institutions the object
of which is to prevent competition incompatible with fair
treatment for the workers. Where this is true, it is the duty of
contractors and employers to support and promote such necessary
organizations as normal instruments enabling them to fulfill their
obligations of justice. But the laborers too must be mindful of
their duty to love and deal fairly with their employers, and
persuade themselves that there is no better means of safeguarding
their own interests.
54.
If, therefore, We consider the whole structure of economic life,
as We have already pointed out in Our Encyclical Quadragesimo Anno,
the reign of mutual collaboration between justice and charity in
social-economic relations can only be achieved by a body of
professional and inter professional organizations, built on
solidly Christian foundations, working together to effect, under
forms adapted to different places and circumstances, what has been
called the Corporation.
55.
To give to this social activity a greater efficacy, it is
necessary to promote a wider study of social problems in the light
of the doctrine of the Church and under the aegis of her
constituted authority. If the manner of acting of some Catholics
in the social-economic field has left much to be desired, this has
often come about because they have not known and pondered
sufficiently the teachings of the Sovereign Pontiffs on these
questions. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to foster in
all classes of society an intensive program of social education
adapted to the varying degrees of intellectual culture. It is
necessary with all care and diligence to procure the widest
possible diffusion of the teachings of the Church, even among the
working-classes. The minds of men must be illuminated with the
sure light of Catholic teaching, and their wills must be drawn to
follow and apply it as the norm of right living in the
conscientious fulfillment of their manifold social duties. Thus
they will oppose that incoherence and discontinuity in Christian
life which We have many times lamented. For there are some who,
while exteriorly faithful to the practice of their religion, yet
in the field of labor and industry, in the professions, trade and
business, permit a deplorable cleavage in their conscience, and
live a life too little in conformity with the clear principles of
justice and Christian charity. Such lives are a scandal to the
weak, and to the malicious a pretext to discredit the Church.
56.
In this renewal the Catholic Press can play a prominent part. Its
foremost duty is to foster in various attractive ways an ever
better understanding of social doctrine. It should, too, supply
accurate and complete information on the activity of the enemy and
the means of resistance which have been found most effective in
various quarters. It should offer useful suggestions and warn
against the insidious deceits with which Communists endeavor, all
too successfully, to attract even men of good faith.
57.
On this point We have already insisted in Our Allocution of May
12th of last year, but We believe it to be a duty of special
urgency, Venerable Brethren, to call your attention to it once
again. In the beginning Communism showed itself for what it was in
all its perversity; but very soon it realized that it was thus
alienating the people. It has therefore changed its tactics, and
strives to entice the multitudes by trickery of various forms,
hiding its real designs behind ideas that in themselves are good
and attractive. Thus, aware of the universal desire for peace, the
leaders of Communism pretend to be the most zealous promoters and
propagandists in the movement for world amity. Yet at the same
time they stir up a class-warfare which causes rivers of blood to
flow, and, realizing that their system offers no internal
guarantee of peace, they have recourse to unlimited armaments.
Under various names which do not suggest Communism, they establish
organizations and periodicals with the sole purpose of carrying
their ideas into quarters otherwise inaccessible. They try
perfidiously to worm their way even into professedly Catholic and
religious organizations. Again, without receding an inch from
their subversive principles, they invite Catholics to collaborate
with them in the realm of so-called humanitarianism and charity;
and at times even make proposals that are in perfect harmony with
the Christian spirit and the doctrine of the Church. Elsewhere
they carry their hypocrisy so far as to encourage the belief that
Communism, in countries where faith and culture are more strongly
entrenched, will assume another and much milder form. It will not
interfere with the practice of religion. It will respect liberty
of conscience. There are some even who refer to certain changes
recently introduced into soviet legislation as a proof that
Communism is about to abandon its program of war against God.
58.
See to it, Venerable Brethren, that the Faithful do not allow
themselves to be deceived! Communism is intrinsically wrong, and
no one who would save Christian civilization may collaborate with
it in any undertaking whatsoever. Those who permit themselves to
be deceived into lending their aid towards the triumph of
Communism in their own country, will be the first to fall victims
of their error. And the greater the antiquity and grandeur of the
Christian civilization in the regions where Communism successfully
penetrates, so much more devastating will be the hatred displayed
by the godless.
59.
But "unless the Lord keep the city, he watcheth in vain that
keepeth it."(38) And so, as a final and most efficacious
remedy, We recommend, Venerable Brethren, that in your dioceses
you use the most practical means to foster and intensify the
spirit of prayer joined with Christian penance. When the Apostles
asked the Savior why they had been unable to drive the evil spirit
from a demoniac, Our Lord answered: "This kind is not cast
out but by prayer and fasting."(39) So, too, the evil which
today torments humanity can be conquered only by a world-wide
crusade of prayer and penance. We ask especially the Contemplative
Orders, men and women, to redouble their prayers and sacrifices to
obtain from heaven efficacious aid for the Church in the present
struggle. Let them implore also the powerful intercession of the
Immaculate Virgin who, having crushed the head of the serpent of
old, remains the sure protectress and invincible "Help of
Christians."
60.
To apply the remedies thus briefly indicated to the task of saving
the world as We have traced it above, Jesus Christ, our Divine
King, has chosen priests as the first-line ministers and
messengers of His gospel. Theirs is the duty, assigned to them by
a special vocation, under the direction of their Bishops and in
filial obedience to the Vicar of Christ on earth, of keeping
alight in the world the torch of Faith, and of filling the hearts
of the Faithful with that supernatural trust which has aided the
Church to fight and win so many other battles in the name of
Christ: "This is the victory which overcometh the world, our
Faith."(40)
61.
To priests in a special way We recommend anew the oft-repeated
counsel of Our Predecessor, Leo XIII, to go to the workingman. We
make this advice Our own, and faithful to the teachings of Jesus
Christ and His Church, We thus complete it: "Go to the
workingman, especially where he is poor; and in general, go to the
poor." The poor are obviously more exposed than others to the
wiles of agitators who, taking advantage of their extreme need,
kindle their hearts to envy of the rich and urge them to seize by
force what fortune seems to have denied them unjustly. If the
priest will not go to the workingman and to the poor, to warn them
or to disabuse them of prejudice and false theory, they will
become an easy prey for the apostles of Communism.
62.
Indisputably much has been done in this direction, especially
after the publication of the Encyclicals Rerum Novarum and
Quadragesimo Anno. We are happy to voice Our paternal approval of
the zealous pastoral activity manifested by so many Bishops and
priests who have with due prudence and caution been planning and
applying new methods of apostolate more adapted to modern needs.
But for the solution of our present problem, all this effort is
still inadequate. When our country is in danger, everything not
strictly necessary, everything not bearing directly on the urgent
matter of unified defense, takes second place. So we must act in
today's crisis. Every other enterprise, however attractive and
helpful, must yield before the vital need of protecting the very
foundation of the Faith and of Christian civilization. Let our
parish priests, therefore, while providing of course for the normal
needs of the Faithful, dedicate the better part of their endeavors
and their zeal to winning back the laboring masses to Christ and
to His Church. Let them work to infuse the Christian spirit into
quarters where it is least at home. The willing response of the
masses, and results far exceeding their expectations, will not
fail to reward them for their strenuous pioneer labor. This has
been and continues to be our experience in Rome and in other
capitals, where zealous parish communities are being formed as new
churches are built in the suburban districts, and real miracles
are being worked in the conversion of people whose hostility to
religion has been due solely to the fact that they did not know
it.
63.
But the most efficacious means of apostolate among the poor and
lowly is the priest's example, the practice of all those
sacerdotal virtues which We have described in Our Encyclical Ad
Catholici Sacerdotii.(41) Especially needful, however, for the
present situation is the shining example of a life which is
humble, poor and disinterested, in imitation of a Divine Master
Who could say to the world with divine simplicity: "The foxes
have holes and the birds of the air nests, but the Son of Man hath
not where to lay His head."(42) A priest who is really poor
and disinterested in the Gospel sense may work among his flock
marvels recalling a Saint Vincent de Paul, a Cure of Ars, a
Cottolengo, a Don Bosco and so many others; while an avaricious
and selfish priest, as We have noted in the above mentioned
Encyclical, even though he should not plunge with Judas to the
abyss of treason, will never be more than empty "sounding
brass" and useless "tinkling cymbal."(43) Too
often, indeed, he will be a hindrance rather than an instrument of
grace in the midst of his people. Furthermore, where a secular
priest or religious is obliged by his office to administer
temporal property, let him remember that he is not only to observe
scrupulously all that charity and justice prescribe, but that he
has a special obligation to conduct himself in very truth as a
father of the poor.
64.
After this appeal to the clergy, We extend Our paternal invitation
to Our beloved sons among the laity who are doing battle in the
ranks of Catholic Action. On another occasion(44) We have called
this movement so dear to Our heart "a particularly
providential assistance" in the work of the Church during
these troublous times. Catholic Action is in effect a social
apostolate also, inasmuch as its object is to spread the Kingdom
of Jesus Christ not only among individuals, but also in families
and in society. It must, therefore, make it a chief aim to train
its members with special care and to prepare them to fight the
battles of the Lord. This task of formation, now more urgent and
indispensable than ever, which must always precede direct action
in the field, will assuredly be served by study-circles,
conferences, lecture-courses and the various other activities
undertaken with a view to making known the Christian solution of
the social problem.
65.
The militant leaders of Catholic Action thus properly prepared and
armed, will be the first and immediate apostles of their fellow
workmen. They will be an invaluable aid to the priest in carrying
the torch of truth, and in relieving grave spiritual and material
suffering, in many sectors where inveterate anti-clerical
prejudice or deplorable religious indifference has proved a
constant obstacle to the pastoral activity of God's ministers. In
this way they will collaborate, under the direction of especially
qualified priests, in that work of spiritual aid to the laboring
classes on which We set so much store, because it is the means
best calculated to save these, Our beloved children, from the
snares of Communism.
66.
In addition to this individual apostolate which, however useful
and efficacious, often goes unheralded, Catholic Action must
organize propaganda on a large scale to disseminate knowledge of
the fundamental principles on which, according to the Pontifical
documents, a Christian Social Order must build.
67.
Ranged with Catholic Action are the groups which We have been
happy to call its auxiliary forces. With paternal affection We
exhort these valuable organizations also to dedicate themselves to
the great mission of which We have been treating, a cause which
today transcends all others in vital importance.
68.
We are thinking likewise of those associations of workmen,
farmers, technicians, doctors, employers, students and others of
like character, groups of men and women who live in the same
cultural atmosphere and share the same way of life. Precisely
these groups and organizations are destined to introduce into
society that order which We have envisaged in Our Encyclical
Quadragesimo Anno, and thus to spread in the vast and various
fields of culture and labor the recognition of the Kingdom of
Christ.
69.
Even where the State, because of changed social and economic
conditions, has felt obliged to intervene directly in order to aid
and regulate such organizations by special legislative enactments,
supposing always the necessary respect for liberty and private
initiative, Catholic Action may not urge the circumstance as an
excuse for abandoning the field. Its members should contribute
prudently and intelligently to the study of the problems of the
hour in the light of Catholic doctrine. They should loyally and
generously participate in the formation of the new institutions,
bringing to them the Christian spirit which is the basic principle
of order wherever men work together in fraternal harmony.
70.
Here We should like to address a particularly affectionate word to
Our Catholic workingmen, young and old. They have been given,
perhaps as a reward for their often heroic fidelity in these
trying days, a noble and an arduous mission. Under the guidance of
their Bishops and priests, they are to bring back to the Church
and to God those immense multitudes of their brother-workmen who,
because they were not understood or treated with the respect to
which they were entitled, in bitterness have strayed far from God.
Let Catholic workingmen show these their wandering brethren by
word and example that the Church is a tender Mother to all those
who labor and suffer, and that she has never failed, and never
will fail, in her sacred maternal duty of protecting her children.
If this mission, which must be fulfilled in mines, in factories,
in shops, wherever they may be laboring, should at times require
great sacrifices, Our workmen will remember that the Savior of the
world has given them an example not only of toil but of self
immolation.
71.
To all Our children, finally, of every social rank and every
nation, to every religious and lay organization in the Church, We
make another and more urgent appeal for union. Many times Our
paternal heart has been saddened by the divergencies - often idle
in their causes, always tragic in their consequences - which array
in opposing camps the sons of the same Mother Church. Thus it is
that the radicals, who are not so very numerous, profiting by this
discord are able to make it more acute, and end by pitting
Catholics one against the other. In view of the events of the past
few months, Our warning must seem superfluous. We repeat it
nevertheless once more, for those who have not understood, or
perhaps do not desire to understand. Those who make a practice of
spreading dissension among Catholics assume a terrible
responsibility before God and the Church.
72.
But in this battle joined by the powers of darkness against the
very idea of Divinity, it is Our fond hope that, besides the host
which glories in the name of Christ, all those - and they comprise
the overwhelming majority of mankind, - who still believe in God
and pay Him homage may take a decisive part. We therefore renew
the invitation extended to them five years ago in Our Encyclical
Caritate Christi, invoking their loyal and hearty collaboration
"in order to ward off from mankind the great danger that
threatens all alike." Since, as We then said, "belief in
God is the unshakable foundation of all social order and of all
responsibility on earth, it follows that all those who do not want
anarchy and terrorism ought to take energetic steps to prevent the
enemies of religion from attaining the goal they have so brazenly
proclaimed to the world."(45)
73.
Such is the positive task, embracing at once theory and practice,
which the Church undertakes in virtue of the mission, confided to
her by Christ, of constructing a Christian society, and, in our
own times, of resisting unto victory the attacks of Communism. It
is the duty of the Christian State to concur actively in this
spiritual enterprise of the Church, aiding her with the means at
its command, which although they be external devices, have
nonetheless for their prime object the good of souls.
74.
This means that all diligence should be exercised by States to
prevent within their territories the ravages of an anti-God
campaign which shakes society to its very foundations. For there
can be no authority on earth unless the authority of the Divine
Majesty be recognized; no oath will bind which is not sworn in the
Name of the Living God. We repeat what We have said with frequent
insistence in the past, especially in Our Encyclical Caritate
Christi: "How can any contract be maintained, and what value
can any treaty have, in which every guarantee of conscience is
lacking? And how can there be talk of guarantees of conscience
when all faith in God and all fear of God have vanished? Take away
this basis, and with it all moral law falls, and there is no
remedy left to stop the gradual but inevitable destruction of
peoples, families, the State, civilization itself."(46)
75.
It must likewise be the special care of the State to create those
material conditions of life without which an orderly society
cannot exist. The State must take every measure necessary to
supply employment, particularly for the heads of families and for
the young. To achieve this end demanded by the pressing needs of
the common welfare, the wealthy classes must be induced to assume
those burdens without which human society cannot be saved nor they
themselves remain secure. However, measures taken by the State
with this end in view ought to be of such a nature that they will
really affect those who actually possess more than their share of
capital resources, and who continue to accumulate them to the
grievous detriment of others.
76.
The State itself, mindful of its responsibility before God and
society, should be a model of prudence and sobriety in the
administration of the commonwealth. Today more than ever the acute
world crisis demands that those who dispose of immense funds,
built up on the sweat and toil of millions, keep constantly and
singly in mind the common good. State functionaries and all
employees are obliged in conscience to perform their duties
faithfully and unselfishly, imitating the brilliant example of
distinguished men of the past and of our own day, who with
unremitting labor sacrificed their all for the good of their
country. In international trade-relations let all means be
sedulously employed for the removal of those artificial barriers
to economic life which are the effects of distrust and hatred. All
must remember that the peoples of the earth form but one family in
God.
77.
At the same time the State must allow the Church full liberty to
fulfill her divine and spiritual mission, and this in itself will
be an effectual contribution to the rescue of nations from the
dread torment of the present hour. Everywhere today there is an
anxious appeal to moral and spiritual forces; and rightly so, for
the evil we must combat is at its origin primarily an evil of the
spiritual order. From this polluted source the monstrous
emanations of the communistic system flow with satanic logic. Now,
the Catholic Church is undoubtedly preeminent among the moral and
religious forces of today. Therefore the very good of humanity
demands that her work be allowed to proceed unhindered.
78.
Those who act otherwise, and at the same time fondly pretend to
attain their objective with purely political or economic means,
are in the grip of a dangerous error. When religion is banished
from the school, from education and from public life, when the
representatives of Christianity and its sacred rites are held up
to ridicule, are we not really fostering the materialism which is
the fertile soil of Communism.? Neither force, however well
organized it be, nor earthly ideals however lofty or noble, can
control a movement whose roots lie in the excessive esteem for the
goods of this world.
79.
We trust that those rulers of nations, who are at all aware of the
extreme danger threatening every people today, may be more and
more convinced of their supreme duty not to hinder the Church in
the fulfillment of her mission. This is the more imperative since,
while this mission has in view man's happiness in heaven, it
cannot but promote his true felicity in time.
80.
We cannot conclude this Encyclical Letter without addressing some
words to those of Our children who are more or less tainted with
the Communist plague. We earnestly exhort them to hear the voice
of their loving Father. We pray the Lord to enlighten them that
they may abandon the slippery path which will precipitate one and
all to ruin and catastrophe, and that they recognize that Jesus
Christ, Our Lord, is their only Savior: "For there is no
other name under heaven given to man, whereby we must be
saved."(47)
81.
To hasten the advent of that "peace of Christ in the kingdom
of Christ"(48) so ardently desired by all, We place the vast
campaign of the Church against world Communism under the standard
of St. Joseph, her mighty Protector. He belongs to the
working-class, and he bore the burdens of poverty for himself and
the Holy Family, whose tender and vigilant head he was. To him was
entrusted the Divine Child when Herod loosed his assassins against
Him. In a life of faithful performance of everyday duties, he left
an example for all those who must gain their bread by the toil of
their hands. He won for himself the title of "The Just,"
serving thus as a living model of that Christian justice which
should reign in social life.
82.
With eyes lifted on high, our Faith sees the new heavens and the
new earth described by Our first Predecessor, St. Peter.(49) While
the promises of the false prophets of this earth melt away in
blood and tears, the great apocalyptic prophecy of the Redeemer
shines forth in heavenly splendor: "Behold, I make all things
new."(50) Venerable Brethren, nothing remains but to raise
Our paternal hands to call down upon you, upon your clergy and
people, upon the whole Catholic family, the Apostolic Benediction.
Given
at Rome, at St. Peter's, on the feast of St. Joseph, patron of the
universal Church, on the 19th of March, 1937, the 16th year of our
Pontificate.
Endnotes:
1.
Encycl. Qui Pluribus, Nov. 9, 1864 (Acta Pii IX, Vol I, p. 13).
Cf. Syllabus, IV, (A.A.S., vol. III, p. 170). | 2. Encycl. Quod
Apostolici Muneris, Dec. 28, 1928 (Acta Leonis XII, Vol. 1, p.
46). | 3. Dec. 18, 1924: A.A.S., Vol. XVI (1924), pp. 494-495. |
4. May 8, 1928: A.A.S., Vol. XX (1928), pp. 165-178. | 5. May 15,
1931: A.A.S., Vol. XXIII (1931), pp. 177-228. | 6. May 3, 1932:
A.A.S., Vol. XXIV (1932), pp. 177-194. | 7. Sept. 29, 1932: A.A.S.,
Vol. XXIV (1932), pp. 321-332. | 8. June 3, 1933: A.A.S., Vol. XXV
(1933), pp. 261-274. | 9. Cf. Thessalonians, II, 4. | 10. Encycl.
Divini Illius Magistri, Dec. 31, 1929 (A.A.S., Vol. XXII, 1930, pp.
47-86). | 11. Encycl. Casti Connubii, Dec. 31, 1930 (A.A.S., Vol.
XX- II, 1930, pp. 539-592). | 12. I Corinthians, III, 23. | 13.
Encycl. Rerum Novarum, May 15, 1891 (Acta Leonis XIII Vol. IV, pp.
177-209). | 14. Encycl. Quadragesimo Anno, May 15, 1931 (A.A.S.,
Vol. XXIII, 1931, pp. 177-228). | 15. Encycl. Diuturnum Illud,
June 20, 1881 (Acta Leonis XIII, Vol. I, pp. 210-22). | 16. Encycl.
Immortale Dei, Nov. 1, 1885 (Acta Leonis XIII, Vol. II, pp.
146-168). | 17. St. Luke, 11, 14. | 18. St. Matthew, VI, 33. | 19.
Cf. St. Matthew, XIII, 55: St. Mark, VI, 3. | 20. Cicero, De
Officiis, Bk. I, c. 42. | 21. St. James, I, 22. | 22. St. James,
I, 17. | 23. A.A.S., vol. XXVIII (1936); pp. 421-424. | 24. St.
John, IV, 23. | 25. St. Matthew, V, 3. | 26. Hebrews, XIII, 14. |
27. St. Luke, XI, 41. | 28. St. James, V, 1-3. | 29. St. Matthew,
V, 3. | 30. St. James, V, 7- 8. | 31. St. Luke, VI, 20. | 32. I
Corinthians, XIII, 4. | 33. St. Matthew, XXV, 34-40. | 34. St.
Matthew, XXV, 41-45. | 35. St. John, XIII, 34. | 36. Romans, XIII,
8-9. | 37. Encycl. Quadragesimo Anno, May 15, 1931 (A.A.S., Vol.
XXIII, 1931, p. 202). | 38. Psalms, CXXVI, 1. | 39. St. Matthew,
XVII, 20 | 40. I Epist. St. John, V, 4. | 41. Dec. 20, 1935, A.A.S.,
vol. XXVIII (1936), pp. 5-53. | 42. St. Matthew, VIII, 20. | 43. I
Corinthians, XIII, 1. | 44. May 12, 1936. | 45. Encycl. Caritate
Christi, May 3, 1932 (A.A.S., vol. XXIV, 1932, p. 184). | 46. Encycl.
Caritate Christi, May 3, 1932 (A.A.S., vol. XXIV, 1932, p. 190).
| 47. Acts, IV, 12. | 48. Encycl. Ubi Arcano, Dec. 23, 1922 (A.A.S.,
Vol. XIV, 1922, p. 691). | 49. II Epist. St. Peter, III, 13; cf.
Isaias, LXV, 17 and LXVI, 22; Apoc., XXI, 1. | 50. Apoc. XXI, 5.
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