PAPAL TEACHINGS

THE CHURCH
Selected and Arranged

by

THE BENEDICTINE MONKS OF SOLESMES
Translated by
Mother E. O’Gorman, R.S.C.J.
Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart

ST. PAUL EDITIONS

NIHIL OBSTAT:

Rt. Rev. Matthew P. Stapleton
Diocesan Censor

IMPRIMATUR:

ψ His Eminence, Richard Cardinal Cushing

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 62-12454

Copyright © 1980, 1962, by the Daughters of St. Paul

Printed in the U.S.A, by the Daughters of St. Paul
50 St. Paul's Ave., Boston, Ma. 02130
The Daughters of St Paul are an international congregation of religious
women serving the Church with the communications media.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Daughters of St. Paul gratefully acknowledge
the kind permission granted by the National Catholic
Welfare Conference News Service, Washington, D. C.,
Benziger Brothers, New York, Bruce Publishing Com­
pany, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the Devin-Adair
Company, New York, to use their translations of the
documents indicated in the Index on p. 916.

To Our dear son, Dom Jean Prou,
Abbot of St. Pierre de Solesmes:
Many precious memories of the time when We represented the
Holy See in France attach Us to the Abbey of Saint-Pierre de Solesmes
and make it a pleasure for Us to grant your filial petition and give
you a proof of Our paternal interest.
Indeed it is a ureal pleasure for Us to tell you of Our satisfaction
at seeing the work undertaken by the Abbey of Saint-Pierre de
Solesmes under your direction, continued by the publication of an­
other precious volume in the series, which is already both long and
rich, of Papal Teachings.

We ardently desire that this collection, worthy of those which
preceded it, will make the Church of Jesus Christ better loved by her
sons and better known by other men: one, holy, catholic, and apos­
tolic she is, and such she will appear to men in the more profound
understanding of the constant teaching of the Sovereign Pontiffs,
who, following in the footsteps of Peter and with his authority, repeat
to the world the words of the Gospel of Jesus Christ which are Truth
and Life.
With this wish, most dear Son, and in a heartfelt manner, We
beg for you and for all the monks under your direction, an abundance
of heavenly blessings, in pledge of which We grant you a special
Apostolic Benediction.
From the Vatican, January 12. 1960.

PREFACE
“God works only one work in time. His Church, All things
converge on her. It is the creatures honor to work for the Church
with Him and as He does, to consecrate his effort and his life
to the task for which the Son of God gave His blood” (a).
These lines from The Life of Dom Guéranger are a fitting
summary of the papal teaching contained in the present volume.
The whole of God’s work for men is accomplished in the Church
and by the Church: the new Eve, taken from the side of the new
Adam, she is the Spouse in whose person is enacted the union
of Christ with redeemed humanity, the nuptials of the Lamb.
Further, as the new Eve she is the Mother of all the living, made
fruitful by the Sanctifying Spirit on the day of Pentecost when
she received the charge of restoring in the divine family the
unity of mankind which was destroyed by the sin of our first
parents.
The bond between the Church and Christ is even closer: the
Church is the Body of Christ, His mystical body, to use the ex­
pression consecrated by Pius XII as the most divine of the
Church’s names. The Church is the Body of Christ: He has
redeemed it, and founded it; He continues to support and direct
it, invisibly from Heaven; visibly in the person of His Vicar. It
lives with His life; it is animated by His Spirit; it bears Christ’s
name; it is His extension and pleroma, forming with Him one
single mystical person, the "whole Christ”.
The prolongation of Christ in her life, the Church is also His
prolongation in her work. It is she who continues here below the
mission confided by the Father to Christ, the mission of en­
lightening, sanctifying, and governing the entire human race,
and so to lead men to salvation and eternal happiness. Received
from the Father, transmitted by the Son, this mission is accom­
plished in the Holy Spirit who descended on Pentecost to confirm
the members of the hierarchy established by Christ.
For in the Church, which is a divine work, all is order and
symmetry. It was not to the community of the faithful that Christ
a Dom Paul Delatte. Dom Cuéranger, Pion, 1909, II, 453.
- 11 -

PREFACE

12

confided His power; it was to a college of Apostles, chosen by
Him and, under a single Head, forming the single governing
body of the Church.
Destined to bring salvation to all men, the Church must
also have the power to be recognized by all. If the Church, at
once human and divine, is, and remains, a mystery, she none­
theless bears the marks which distinguish her from every other
society and attest her divine origin: Unam, sanctum, catholicam
et apostolicam Ecclesiam.
The Church is not one church among many; she is the
Church, the one body under one Master, Christ, represented here
below by His Vicar, who forms but one head with Him.
Ordained for the sanctification and salvation of men,
depositor}' of the means to this end, the Church is holy, the
teacher of the way to holiness and the mother of saints.
Charged with the salvation of all men, bound by neither
time nor place, the Church is catholic; supranational by her very
essence, she alone is capable of reestablishing in herself the unity
of the human race which cannot be realized without her or in
opposition to her.
Finally, she is apostolic: her mission and her power are
nothing else but the prolongation of the mission and the power
of Christ, confided by Him to the Apostles and to the Chief of
the Apostles, Peter, always living in the person of his successor,
the Bishop of Rome. Founded on this Rock and confident of
heavenly help, the Church cannot grow old. She confronts the
centuries forever clothed in immortal youth, true to herself at the
same time that she adapts herself to the character and the needs
of the society which it is her mission to save. In every place and
in every age there is truth in the words which Leo XIII left as the
testament of his glorious pontificate: “This is the order of God
that salvation is to be sought only in the Church, that the instru­
ment of salvation which alone is effective and forever useful
can be found only in the Roman pontificate” (a).
•

op

Such is, in broad outlines, the doctrine constantly renewed
by the Popes, which our Analytical Index will present in a
systematic schema. For the pontifical texts by themselves, with
the exception of the two great encyclicals Satis cognitum and
a Below No. 653.

PREFACE

B

Mystici Corporis (both the results of theses prepared for the
Vatican Council), scarcely resemble methodical treatises. Written
or spoken on widely differing occasions with a view to recalling
or making more precise a doctrine which has been misunder­
stood, of overcoming prejudice or condemning error, these docu­
ments generally bear in their written form as also in their content,
the marks of their historic setting. To understand them fully, they
have to be replaced in this context.
In the documents which precede the definition of papal
infallibility, from the bull Auctorem Fidei through the condemna­
tion of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy down to the last
vestiges of the struggle against Gallicanism, the focus of most of
the texts is the doctrine of the Primacy. More than once the form
of the document reflects the climate of conflict which character­
ized the period. Once this truth had been placed beyond the
reach of controversy by the proclamation of the dogma, there
follows a period of tranquil possession of the truth and succeed­
ing pontificates were able to clarify the implications and demon­
strate the consequences in a more serene atmosphere.
To reestablish unity with Rome as its center was the great
preoccupation of Leo XIII. To draw the separated brethren to
the Apostolic See he labored to show the principles and the
necessity of this first note of the Church, fie insisted not only on
the visible bond of the hierarchy united to the Holy See, but also
on the invisible bond created by the Holy Spirit, on which sub­
ject he pronounced, for the first time, the phrase “soul of the
Church.”
St. Pius X had as his task to warn against the dangers
threatening within, at the same time that he tried to realize and
to teach the principles of a holy reform. Benedict XV and Pius XI,
on the other hand, directed their efforts to problems besetting
the Church from outside: peace among nations, the conditions
and dangers of ecumenism, the extension and propagation of the
faith by mission work, and the fostering of native priests and
bishops. In this way they pioneered in actions whose wisdom
would be demonstrated bv the future.
In continuing this course of action, but with an increased
precision from a juridical point of view, Pius XII. in his encyclical
of June 29, 1943, stood revealed as the great Doctor of the
Mystical Body. In the years of his pontificate, so rich in teaching
of all kinds, he emphasized the role proper to the magisterium—

■4/^

PREFACE

14

the ordinary magisterium above all—and the necessary submission
to divine authority, at the same time that he fixed the exact
place of the laity and its function in the apostolate of the Church.
These judicial pronouncements of Pius XII were to be the
best preparation for the work which will be forever associated
with the name of His Holiness John XXIII, that of the Ecumenical
Council (a).
o

o

o

o

o

What is the authority of these documents? Doubtless the
400 texts published here are not all of the same importance.
Dogmatic constitutions, .the bearers of definitions or solemn
pronouncements, encyclical letters addressed to bishops, radio­
messages to the world or to important congresses, letters to
churches, allocutions to various audiences,—these constitute a
graded series capable in themselves of furnishing some indications
of the Sovereign Pontiff’s intention to use his teaching power in
one or another affirmation. For it is more important to consider
the intention of the Pope, the object of his intervention, and the
nature of the act, than to consider simply the form of the docu­
ment, often in itself the issue of a simple occasion or the result
of some question from a chancer}'.
If Peter’s successor sometimes acts as a judge and employs
his supreme authority to state as a court of final appeal that a
certain truth is part of revelation, more normally he speaks as a
doctor or master invested with the duty of teaching, that is to say,
with the end of exposing or making known a doctrine, of putting
it in a clearer light, and of defending it against attackers. If the
object of his authority is first of all the depositum of revelation
and of the faith, the Lord has made him the supreme guardian
of morality and the natural law at the same time that He has
made him responsible to lead all men to their final end.
It is these considerations which will determine the proper
attitude of the faithful before a pontifical text: in the presence of
a doctrine which has been defined by a solemn pronouncement
no other attitude is possible except total and unreserved faith:
fide divina et catholica credenda.
But if it is true that the privilege of infallibility is reserved
to the formula of a solemn pronouncement, and if the ordinary
a The documents relative to the Ecumenical Council will be pub­
lished in a separate volume.

PREFACE

15

teaching authority, in each of its expressions taken separately, is
not endowed with the same privilege, it remains nonetheless the
authentic channel of Christ’s teaching, and, as such, it is assured
of His protection. But this protection is given to it according to
the mode proper to the teaching, that is to say, as the guarantee,
not of the precise terms of the individual formula, but to the
aggregate intended to transmit a doctrine without deforming it.
It is for this reason that the Vatican Council, treating of the
proximate cause of faith, puts this common and universal teaching
on the same plane with the solemn pronouncement itself: Sive
solemn: judicio, sive ordinario et universali magisterio. In the face
of this teaching the attitude of the faithful will be precisely that
which befits the disciple, him who receives teaching, docility, or
better, “teachability: docihilitas".
Docility will persuade him to renew his adhesion to the
faith, to the truth already acquired, but on occasion recalled by
the teaching authority; to make this faith explicit with regard
to certain points of dogma of which perhaps, until the interven­
tion of the teaching authority, he has not clearly seized the
implication latent in one or other article of the Credo.
Even when the question does not concern a revealed truth
but has as its object some truth of the natural order, this docility
will make him prefer, out of deference, the teaching of the master
who speaks in the name of God, to opinions which are purely
human.
Finally, this docility will subject him to the guidance of the
Church for the work of clarification, which is the ordinary line
of progress in doctrinal development.
For the magisterium of the Church is not simply like
Scripture and Tradition, a locus theologicus: “theological source."
where is to be found the deposit of revealed truth; it is a living
Teacher charged with safeguarding this deposit, with revealing
it and interpreting it as the needs and the crises of each epoch
demand.
In the same way, to recall the beautiful thought of
Bossuet (a), by reiving on the very declaration of the Holy See
to understand her teaching and her prerogatives, the teaching of
the Pope and the bishops—whether transmitted by intermediaries
or not—remains the immediate and proximate rule for all who
wish to adhere to God’s word and conform their thoughts to His.

16

PREFACE

The reader who approaches the 400 texts of this volume in
this docile and filial spirit will soon recognize in it the authentic
portrait of the Church. For she is a mother ever anxious to be in
touch with the age in order to respond to her children’s needs;
she is also the spouse inviolably faithful to the mind and heart of
her divine Bridegroom.
Each pontificate reflects the character of its epoch, the
personality of the reigning Pope; each one also brings some new
testimony to that continuity often emphasized by the Sovereign
Pontiffs, which, once again, His Holiness John XXIII has recalled
to the faithful in inviting them to ponder again the writings of
his predecessor. Today, as in the days of the Council of Chalce­
don, it is still Peter who speaks by the mouth of Leo, of Pius, or
of John; it is still the Lord Jesus who is speaking by the mouth
of Peter.
Solesmes, June 29, 1959
Ψ fr. Germain Cozien
Abbot of Saint-Pierre de Solesmes
a Audio quid dicant: Romanis pontificibus, sedis sure dignitatem
commendantibus, in propria videlicet causa non esse credendum.
Sed absit; pari enim jure dixerint ne episcopis quidem, aut pres­
byteris esse abhibendam fidem, cum sacerdotii sui honorem prxdicant; quod contra est. Nam quibus Deus singularem honoris
dignitatisque prxrogativam contulit, iisdem inspirati verum de
sua potestate sensum; ut ea in Domino, cum res poposcerit, libere
et confidenter utantur, fiatque illud quot ait Paulus: Accepimus
Spiritum qui ex Deo est, ut sciamus quæ a Deo donata sunt
nobis. Quod quidem hic semel dicere placuit, ut temerariam ac
pessimam responsionem confutarem; profiteorque me de Sedis
apostolicx majestate, Romanorum pontificum doctrinx et tradi­
tioni crediturum. I hear what is being said: “the Roman pontiffs
are not to be believed when they speak of the dignity- of their
See, since they are pleading their own cause." But God forbid:
this would be equivalent to saying that neither bishops nor
priests should be credited when they preach the dignity of the
priesthood But the contrary is the truth. For those on whom God
confers this singular prerogative of honor and dignity He also
inspires with a true understanding of the power, so that they
can use it, in the Lord, when the occasion requires it, and then
is made manifest what Paul declared: “We have received the
Spirit which is of Cod, that we may know those things which
have been given to us from God.” And it is fitting that we should
say the same thing here to refute his wicked and presumptuous
opinion; I glory in the majesty of the Apostolic See to believe
the doctrine and teaching of the Roman pontiffs. (Defensio
Declarationis, Book X, chap. 6.)

I

INTRODUCTION
HOW THE DOCUMENTS ARE PRESENTED

At the head of each document is found
a title, to facilitate understanding,
the type of document,
the “incipit” if the text is taken from a written document
the address jv and the date of origin;
in the body of the text:
subtitles for the longer citations.
in italics in parentheses, a brief summary of those
portions of the original document not cited in the
text, because not referring directly to the subject
being treated.
HOW TO USE THIS VOLUME

To find the texts relating to a given question:
look first in the alphabetical index or else directly in
the analytical index, where the numbers in heavy-print
refer the reader to the papal texts.
To clarify a text by placing it in its context in the develop­
ment of the thought of the Popes, or by comparing it
to parallel texts: the numbers in italics, given in paren­
theses in the margin of the text, refer to the analytical
index, which in turn summarizes briefly the lines of
papal thought and indicates the relative texts.
THE NUMBERING OF THE TEXT

The numbers in heavy print, refer to the paragraphs of the
papal pronouncements, given in chronological order
in the text.
The numbers in italics, given in parentheses, refer to the
divisions of the analytical index.
1

CONTENTS
II

Hw"Î5ÏÏÏ^Û Are Presented; How Ίο Use
This Volume; The Numbering of the 1 ext ..........................

17

PAPAL DOCUMENTS
BENEDICT XIV ...... .....................................................................
The Guardian of Unity .............................................................
The Successor of Peter .............................................................
Pontifical Solicitude .................................................................
The Treasure of the Church ......................................................
The Encyclicals ..........................................................................
CLEiMENT XIII ............................................................................
The Confession of Peter .............................................................
The Protection of Faith .............................................................
CLEMENT XIV ..........................................................................
Unique Edifice ............................................................................
Servants of the Church ...............................................................
PIUS VI ........................................................................................
Apostolic Charity ........................................................................
Peter, the Support of the Episcopate .........................................
Episcopal Powers ........................................................................
What is the Pope ........................................................................
Immediate Jurisdiction .............................................................
The Power of the Bishops ..........................................................
Rupture of Unity .......................................................................
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy .........................................
Independence of the Church ......................................................
Episcopal Elections .....................................................................
Schismatic Clergy .......................................................................
The Discipline of the Church ....................................................
PIUS VII.................................................................
The Pontifical Office
The Unity of the Church ..........................................................
The Temporal Power .................................................................
Interference of the Civil Power ...........
Adaptation of Discipline
One Single Language ...
LEO XII .................
The Strength of the Church ............................ .
T he Treasure of the Indulgences .........
The “Petite Eglise”
PIUS VIII .........
.....................................................................
Pastor of Pastors ......................................'..................................
The Defense of the Church
GREGORY XVI ...........................................................................

18

29
31
31
32
33
33
35
37
38
41
43
44
45
47
47
48
48
61
65
66
67
86
86
87
88
97
99
103
104
105
106
107
109
111
112
112
115
117
117
121

One Single Head .................................
The Condition of Salvation .................
To Keep the Deposit ..........................
Pretended Reformers ..........................
The Center of Unity ..........................
True and False Reform .....................
Higher Education .................................
Hierarchical Order ..............................
A Human Church .................................
Independence of Bishops .....................
Permissible Divergencies ......................
The Principle of Salvation .................
The Rights of the Laity ......................
The Proper Spirit ..................................
The External Forum ............................
Special Instructions .............................. .
PIUS IX ......................................................
Living Authority ....................................
Unity of the Church .............................
The Catholic Communion ....................
General Discipline ..................................
Pontifical Policy ....................................
Maintenance of Union .........................
Temporal Power ....................................
Obedience to the Holy See ..................
Liberty of Conscience ...........................
The Exterior Forum .............................
Defenders of the Holy See ..................
One Single Flock ..................................
The Roman Tradition ...........................
Confirm Thy Brethren ........................
The Church is Unique ..........................
Political Liberty .....................................
Triumphs of the Church .....................
The Perfect Society ..............................
The Only True Religion .......................
The Doctrinal Controversies .................
The Unique Citadel ..............................
Tire Immaculate Church .......................
The Strength of Martyrs .......................
Obedience to the Teaching Power ..........
Social Influence .....................................
The Search for Unity ............................
Principal Errors Concerning the Church
The Interpreters of Rome .......................
Universal Bishop ..................................
Fruits of the Holy Spirit .......................
The Solidity of the Rock .......................
The Authority of the Patriarchs ..........

121
123
124
127
128
129
132
132
136
136
137
138
138
139
139
140
141
143
144
146
149
150
150
152
153
153
154
155
157
158
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
167
168
171
174
175
178
181
182
189
189
190
19

192
Necessity of Councils .......................
193
Appeal to the Dissidents ...................
196
"The Case Has Been Stated ..........
198
The Pontifical Election .....................
199
Opening of the Council ...................
200
Liturgy and Discipline ....................
201
The Pontifical iMonarchy ................
203
The Church, the Guardian of Faith ..
208
Dogmatic Progress ...........................
209
Rites and Discipline ........................
210
The Roman Primacy .........................
218
The Pope, Defender of the Bishops ..
218
The “Old Catholics” .......................
220
The Law of Guarantees ....................
221
Infallibility or Authority ..................
222
The Nomination of Bishops ...........
223
Persecuted, but Victorious .............
225
One of the Church’s Supports .........
226
Consequences of the Primacy .........
236
The Truly Wise ...............................
238
The Faith of Peter ..........................
239
Interpretation of the Laws .............
239
The Roman Communion ..................
240
The Kingdom of Christ ..................
241
Liberty of Bishops ............................
241
Episcopal Authority ..........................
243
Tne Sure Guide ...............................
244
Rights of Patriarchs ........................
244
Auxiliaries of the Clergy ..................
245
Inconsistency .....................................
246
The Wheat and the Cockle .............
247
Insufficient Motives for Adhesion ...
248
Balance Sheet of a Pontificate .......
LEO XIII ...........................................251
The Church’s Civilizing Mission ...
253
Celestial Beacon ..............................
255
The Mission of Christ ......................
256
The Union of Christ and the Church
257
Nuncios and Legates .....................
258
Obedience to Bishops ......................
259
The Holy City ................................
259
The Immaculate Spouse .................
260
Dignity of the Episcopate .................
260
Obey the Bishops ............................
261
The Teaching Ministry ...................
262
Shepherds and Flocks ...............
262
The Nature of the Church
265
Supernatural Society .....................
268
Temporal Power ........................
269
20

I

Ihe Liberty of the Church
Ihe Apostolate .....
Variety in Unity ...
Subject Only to God
1 ruth and Liberty
Episcopal Authority
Ί he Independence of the Church
The Holy Family ..........
The Works of Mercy ......
The Mission of the Church
The Action of the Church
The Life of the Church
Now and Forever ....
The Note of Sanctity
The Moral Law ........
Sheep with a Shepherd
The Teaching of Scripture
A People United to their Shepherd
Conditions of Unity ........
Better than Liberty ..........
The Heart of the Church
A Mother for the Church
Unity of the Church ......
The Holy Spirit, The Soul of the Church
Provincial Councils .....................................
The Interpretation of Scripture ........
Ihe Integrity of the Deposit ............
The Church, Human and Divine ........
Mother of the Nations .....................
The Teaching Authority of the Bishops
The Divine Pilot ............
The Mission of the Church
The Sacrament of Unity
Fidelity of the Church
The Last Words ...
ST. PIUS X .............
The Way to Christ
The Pontifical Office
The Mother of the Mystical Body
Universal Bishop ............
The Firmness of the Rock
To Teach All Nations ......
Canonical Institution ........
The First Duty of the Shepherd
The Double Mission of the Church ..
The Church Rests Upon the Bishops
The First Duty of Bishops ...............
Persecution Is An Evil ........................

273
276
276
277
277
279
282
283
283
284
289
290
290
291
291
291
294
294
295
296
298
299
299
336
338
338
341
346
347
347
349
349
350
352
353
355
357
357
359
360
361
363
364
365
365
368
369
370

The Fruit of Persecution ...................
Errors on the Nature of the Church ...
Modernist Conception of the Church
Sign of Unity ...... ..............................
Spouse of Jesus Christ ........................
The Strength of the Church .............
Heed the Church ..............................
Ad Limina Visits ..............................
True and False Reform ......................
1 Believe in the Holy Catholic Church
Toward Unity ...................................
The Model of Unity ........................
Adaptations ......................................
All the Acts of the Christian .............
Love for the Pope ..............................
The Titles of the Church ....................
BENEDICT XV ...................................
Union of Minds ................................
The Note of Unity ...........................
The Queen of the Apostles ............ .
Canon Law ......................................
Preaching ...........................................
Spiritual Paternity ............................
The Laws of the Church ...................
Liturgical Law ..................................
Catholicity ........................................
Enforcement of Discipline ..............
Fidelity to the Church .....................
The Faith of Peter ...........................
Usurpation of Power .........................
The Heads of the Churches ..............
Dante and the Church ...................
Authority of Bishops .........
PIUS XI ................................................
The Instrument of the Ministry ......
Primacy of Charity ...........................
4 he Mission of the Church
Witness of the Saints .....................
One and Universal ..............
The Language of the Church
The Function of Intercession
One Faith .............................
The Pope and the Council ..
The Notes of the Church ....
The Kingdom of Christ .....
The Communion of Saints
The Heritage of Faith .........
Sovereignty of the Church
Missionary Expansion .....
22

370
371
373
377
378
379
380
383
383
390
392
394
394
395
395
396
399
401
407
407
408
409
411
411
412
414
415
415
417
421
421
421
423
427
429
429
430
432
433
435
435
437
437
438
439
440
440
441
442

St. Aloysius Gonzaga
Without Distinction of Race
In the Midst of Tempests
True Unity ................
Christ and the Church
Nature of the Liturgy .
Vatican City ................
Juridical Condition of the Holy See
The Mission of Peter ......................
The Church as Educator .................
The Ark of Salvation ......................
The Union of Christ and the Church
Competence of the Church
The Moral‘ "Law .................
The Church and Science ...,
The Rights of the Church
The Faith of Ephesus ........
The Prayer of the Mystical Body
The First Magistracy of the World
The Sacerdotal Function
The Only Christianity ....
A Subordinate Apostolate
The Church, Object of Faith
One Single Body
The Whole Man
PIUS XII ...............
In the Service of the Truth
The Roman Curia .............
The Church and the World
The Juridical Church and the Church of Charity
The Sacraments of Christ and the Church
Program of a Pontificate
The Chair of Peter ..
The Vicar of Christ
Mary and Peter .....
The Three Churches
Maternity of the Church
The Living Stones of the Church
The Paternity of the Pope
Birth of the Church ......
The Sacrament of Unity
Works of Mercy ..............
Ecclesiastical Law ............
The Vicar of the Prince of Peace
The Ministry of the Word .....
The Holy Spirit and the Church
Youthfulness of the Church .
Double Mission of the Church
The Mystical Body ..............

445
445
448
449
460
462
462
463
464
465
468
473
475
476
477
478
480
482
483
484
486
487
487
492
493
495
497
497
498
500
501
502
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
512
513
514
516

519
525
527

23

Guardian of Holy Scripture
The Mystery of the Church
The Strength of the Church
Bonds of Unity ............... .
The Mandate Confided to 1 eter
Catholicity ............................ ··
The Proper End of the Church
Christ the Life of the Church ..
The Pope Supports the Bishops
A Beacon to the Nations .........
Origin of Ecclesiastical Power ..
The Council of Trent ..............
Supra-Nationality of the Church ........
The Church is the Support of Social Life
The Care of Souls .................
The Object of Judiciary Power
The Edifice of the Church
Recognition by the Church
The Ravages of Time ......
Spouse of Blood ....................................
The Ultra-Terrestrial End of the Church
The Worship of the Mystical Body .......
Hie Church’s Power Over the Sacraments
A Standard unto the Nations
Gmfirm Thy Brethren ,
Rome the Eternal .......
Can the Pope be Silent?
Always Up to Date ......
The Salvation of Non-Catholics
Paternity, the Foundation of Authority
Juridical Society ...........................
The Secret of the Church’s Power
Ecumenism .................
Vatican City .................
Opinion in the Church
Positive Law ...............
The Aim of the Missions
I he Living Teaching Authority
The Sacerdotal Office ..........
How a Definition is Prepared
The Sources of the Dogma ..
Visible Catholicity ..............
The Chair of Peter ..........
Minor of the Sanctity of the Church
The ~
Religious State .....................
The Permanent and the Accidental
The Missionary Church ..........
The Testimony of a Council
The Food of the Mystical Body

580
581
582
583
586
589
591
592
594
597
597
602
604
608
616
618
622
623
624
624
625
629
638
639
639
640
643
644
645
648
649
650
651
653
654
654
655
655
661
662
663
665
666
666
667
670
671
672
674

The Purpose o£ an Encyclical .....................................................
Collaborators of the Church .......... ................ ..............................
The Church is Above Party ..........................................................
Disinterestedness of the Church ................................................
The Church and Morality ...........................................................
The Center of Faith ................................... ...............................
The Church of Charity ................................................................
Rome and Jerusalem .....................................................................
Diplomatic Treaties .......................................................................
The Fold of Christ .......................................................................
The Church Does Not Grow Old ................................................
Religious Society ............................................................................
The Testimony of St. Bernard ............................................ ........
The Example of the Apostles .....................................................
The Society of the Elect ..............................................................
The Entrance to the Gate of Salvation .......................................
Defenders of the Church ..............................................................
The Mission of the Church .........................................................
Spouse and Virgin ............................. .........................................
Preaching, the Act of the Church ................................................
Restore All Things in Christ .......................................................
The Responsibility of the Magisterium .......................................
The Needs of tne Church .......................................................
The Pastor ....................................................................................
The Three “Autonomies” ...........................................................
The Method of Theology
Priesthood and Government
Christ the Support of the Church ............................................
Work of Rapprochement ..............................................................
From the Days of the Apostles ..................................................
The Church A Historic Fact .......................................................
One Single Praise ...............................
An End Which is Strictly Religious .
The Strength of the Church ..............
The Unity of the Human Family .....
The Suffering Members of the Mystical
Ecclesiastical Law ..................................
Phe Standard Unfurled Above the Nations ..............................
Fidelity and Adaptation ................................................................
The Liturgy and the Church .......................................................
Boldness of the Church ..............................................................
Catholicity ......................................................................................
The Church Suffering ................................................................
Solicitude of All the Churches .....................................................
The Prayers of Her Children .....................................................
The Teaching Office ..................................................................
The Meaning of Universality .....................................................
The Basic Cell .............................................................................
The Sacerdotal Function ..............................................................

674
675
676
679
681
683
685
685
686
686
687
688
690
692
692
695
696
696
699
700
701
703
707
708
709
712
714
723
723
724
725
731
732
733
733
734
734
736
738
747
750
751
752
753
755
756
757
757
758
25

Thinking with the Church .....
Figure of the Church Militant
A Superior Solidarity ......
Membership in the Church
The Apostolic Mission ....
To Be a Christian ..........
The Immediate Role of Truth
The Quest for Sanctity
The Supreme Reality ....
The Light of Christ .....
The Domain of Nature
Mary Watches Over the Church
The Paternity of the Pope
The Life of Souls ....
Persecution in China
The Two Romes .....
True and False Pastors
The Apostolate of the Church
JOHN XXIII ............
The Good Shepherd
Persecution ............
One Fold ..............
The Letter and the Spirit
The Program of a Pontificate
The Benefits of Unity ...
The Roman Synod ..........
Magesterium and Prophecy
One Single Church ..........
The Church is Living ......
The Church Does Not Identify Herself
With Any One Culture
True Peace .......................
The Essence of Institutions
The Support of the Church
Schema of a Dogmatic Constitution on the Church
Prepared for the Examination of the Fathers of the
Vatican Council I .
Canons of the Church

759
760
761
761
763
767
768
769
769
770
772
772
774
774
775
781
781
785
789
791
793
795
796
797
799
800
801
802
803

804
805
805
807
809
821

INDEXES
Abbreviations .....
Alphabetical Index
Analytical Index
Plan of the Analytical Index
Analytical Index ...............
Index of Quotations .................
Index of Documents and Sources
Alphabetical Index of Written Documents
Chronological Index of Written and Oral Documents
26

827
831

844
846
894

911
916

PAPAL DOCUMENTS

BENEDICT XIV
1740 - 1758

THE GUARDIAN OF UNITY

Apost. Const. Pastoralis Romani Pontificis, March 30, 1741.
The vigilance and the pastoral solicitude of the Roman
1
Pontiff, at the same time that they strive with assiduity to procure (161,
peace and tranquillity for the whole of Christendom, according 162,
to the duties of his office, are principally and above all manifested 165,
in maintaining and conserving the unity and integrity of the 176)
Catholic faith, without which it is impossible to please God. They
strive also to the end that the faithful of Christ, not being like
irresolute children, or carried about by ever}' wind of doctrine
by the wickedness of men (a), may all come to the unity of faith
and to the knowledge of the Son of God to form the perfect man,
that they may not harm one another or offend against one another
in the community and the society of this present life, but that
rather, united in the bond of charity like members of a single body
having Christ for head, and under the authority of his Vicar on
earth, the Roman Pontiff, successor of the Blessed Peter, from
whom is derived the unity of the entire Church, they may in­
crease in number for the edification of the body, and with the
assistance of divine grace, they may so enjoy tranquillity in this
life as to enjoy future beatitude.
( Excommunication of various heretics. )
We likewise excommunicate and anathematize each and even*
2
one, of whatever state, grade, or condition he may be, We place (102,
under interdict the universities, colleges, and chapters, by what- 153,
ever name they are constituted, who appeal from Our ordinances 172)
or instructions, or those of the Roman Pontiffs then existing, to a
future Universal Council, as well as those who would assist,
counsel, or favor this appeal.
(Other categories of offenders incurring excommunication.—
How absolution is to be obtained.—Promulgation.)

THE SUCCESSOR OF PETER

Apost. Const. Etsi pastoralis, May 26, 1742.
(Certain divergences in effect in Italy induce the Pope to
recall some points of faith and to unify discipline.)
la Of. Ephes. 4:14.

- 31 -

32

3
(140-

757
763,
/66,
775)

PONTIFICAL SOLICITUDE

Art. 6. The Holy Apostolic See and the Roman Pontiff have
primacy in the entire world. The Roman Pontiff is the Successor
of Blessed Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, true Vicar of Christ,
Head of the whole Church, Father and Teacher of all Christians.
And to him, in the person of Blessed Peter, plenary power to
teach, rule, and govern the Universal Church was given by Our
Lord Jesus Christ, as is laid down in the Acts of the Ecumenical
Councils and the Sacred Canons (a).
(Rules fur the administration of the Sacraments.)
PONTIFICAL SOLICITUDE
Letter Gravissimum Supremi, September 8, 1745, to the
Bishops of the Kingdom of Naples.

4

The very heavy charge of the supreme apostolate which has
(156, been confided to Us without any merit on Our part imposes two
760) duties above all: the first is to bring to the acceptance of holy
religion the peoples who have never received it, or who, after
receiving it, have abandoned it as the result of some unhappy
and perilous fate; the second is diligently to keep religion safe
and sound in those areas where, by an effect of divine grace, it
has remained intact. Now, under the name of religion We under­
stand not only what is absolutely necessary to believe in order
to be saved, but also the works we must accomplish to give proof
of a life and conduct conformable to Christian principles, and
after this life, to acquire the happiness of the blessed in heaven.
The Pope's collaborators

In order to fulfill these duties the Roman Pontiffs Our
(160) Predecessors have in every period chosen men eminent for piety
and learning, in order to spread the Catholic faith in every part
of the world; after their example, in the measure of Our feeble
strength and the difficulties of the times, We have also maintained
this institution. Moreover, in dioceses where the zeal and labor of
5

3a Item Sanctam Apostolicam Sedem, et Romanum Pontificem in
uniucftum Orbem tenere primatum, et ipsum Pontificem Roma­
num Successorem esse Beati Petri Principis Apostolorum, et verum
Christi Vicarium, totiusque Ecclesiae Caput, et omnium Christia­
norum, Patrem, et Doctorem existere, et ipsi in Beato Petro pas­
cendi, regendi, et gubernandi universalem Ecclesiam a Domino

THE TREASURE OF THE CHURCH

33

the Bishop were patently insufficient, the Sovereign Pontiffs
have always made it their care to restore the discipline of
morality and damaged or enfeebled sanctity.
(Usefulness of parish mission.—Instruction of the faithful.)

THE TREASURE OF THE CHURCH
Apost. Const. Pia Mater, April 5, 1747.
(Solicitude of the Church for the dying.)
6
There is in the Church an immense and inestimable
spiritual treasure made up of the infinite satisfactions of the (45.
Passion and death of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the merits and 118)
satisfactions of the glorious Virgin Mary, Mother of God. and of
all the saints and elect. Our Savior has entrusted the distribution
of this treasure to Blessed Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, and
to his successors, to the end of time.
(Plenary indulgence in articulo mortis.—Its doctrinal justi­
fication.—Induits granted to Bishops.—Notices given to the
faithful. )

THE ENCYCLICALS

Letter Jam Fere Sextus annus, 1756 (a), to the University of
Bologna.
(Success of the first Boman Bullaria.—Benedict Xl\ is edit­
ing his own Bullarium.)
We cannot fail to add that it has been the constant custom
of the Roman Pontiffs in their Encyclical letters to exhort the (156,
Bishops of the Universal Church, or those of some particular 1~3)
province, to maintain the Catholic faith, to keep intact or to
restore discipline in morals. To do so, they have, in recent times,
acted through the intermediary of the Congregations of the
Roman Inquisition, or of Propaganda, and more frequently
Nostro Jesu Christo plenam potestatem traditam esse, quemad­
modum etiam in actis Oecumenicorum Conciliorum, et in Sacris
Canonibus continetur.
7a This letter is inserted into the Bullarium of Pope Benedict XIV
in the form of a preface, but is not dated.
p The Church

u

34

THE ENCYCLICALS

through the Congregations whose office it is to examine the
affairs of Bishops and regulars, or to explain or interpret the
decrees of the Council of Trent. Ordinarily the Popes have these
letters written by the Prelates acting as Secretaries to those
congregations. After being signed by the Cardinal Prefect, they
were sent to the Bishops. But care has always been taken that
these Letters were written under the authority of the Sovereign
Pontiff.
(Return to the ancient customs.—The present collection is
dedicated to the University of Bologna.)

CLEMENT XIII
1758 - 1769

THE CONFESSION OF PETER

Encycl. A quo die Nobis, September 13, 1758.
(The election of Clement XIII—Exhortation to concord in
the unity of faith and charity.)
When the Lord asked what was the current opinion about
8
the Son of Man, and what the disciples believed about Him, and (56)
the latter were mentioning different opinions, Blessed Peter, ex­
pressing the thoughts of all, enlightened by the Father and not by
human wisdom, confessed that He was the Son of the Living
God (a). From this it is easy to see that there already existed a
distinction between the children of light and the children of this
world, since the latter were at variance with one another by
reason of their different opinions, while the former, initiated into
the mystery of unity' by the Universal Head, made profession of
a single faith by the lips of one of them.

Therefore, turn all your endeavors, Venerable Brothers, to
9
cementing peace among the faithful. Let all disputes, discussions, (48)
rivalries, hatreds, dissensions cease, so that all those who bear the
name of Catholic may have in fact one mind, one thought; let
them be unanimous in their profession of faith and live in com­
plete harmony. Let them understand well and be penetrated with
this thought: those who wish to be members of Christ cannot be
at peace with the Head if they refuse to be at peace with the
members, and the Father of all will not number among his sons
the brothers who do not practice fraternal charity.
(Faults which the Bishop should avoid—The virtues he
should practice.—Preaching.—The choice of sacred ministers.—
Residence. )
Since at the last judgment We must give an account of all
and before all who bear the name of Christian, We urgently beg
you, Venerable Brothers, in the case of discussion arising and
scandals occurring which you arc powerless to put a stop to, to
have recourse to this See of the Blessed Prince of the Apostles,
as to the head and summit of the episcopate, whence the
episcopate itself draw's its source and the principle of its authority.
From it, as from the first source, leap the waters which flow’—
8a Cf. Matt. 16:13-20.

- 37 -

10
(152.
154,
157,
189)

38

THE PROTECTION OF FAITH

pure with the purity of their spring—through the different regions
of the entire world. It is here that all the churches learn what
they must prescribe, and to distinguish those whom they must
absolve, as well as those others, stained with an ineffaceable
guilt, from which turns aside the water which is only for pure
bodies.
( Exhortation to prayer.—Blessing. )
THE PROTECTION OF FAITH

Encycl. In Dominico-Agro, June 14, 1761.
11
In the field of the Lord, which, by the disposition of Divine
(9, Providence We have been appointed to till, nothing requires
165, such vigilant care and such persevering industry as the protection
167) of the good seed sown there, that is to say, the Catholic teaching
of Christ Jesus, received by the Apostles and committed to Our
care; lest this seed be so negligently protected, that while the
laborers sleep in slothful ease the enemy of the human race sow
cockle with it, and in time of harvest, instead of being gathered
into barns some shall be found who must be burned with fire.
And for the protection of this faith formerly entrusted to the
saints, the Blessed Paul exhorts Us warmly, writing as he docs
to Timothy to keep the good thing entrusted to him (a) for the
times are evil (b), and there are within the Church wicked men,
seducers, through whose works the wicked tempter is endeavor­
ing to corrupt the imprudent by spreading errors contrary to the
truth of the Gospel.

12
But if. as often happens, there have spread through the
(111.Church of God certain depraved ideas, which, while opposing
167) contrary doctrines, conspire with them nonetheless at the same
time to impair the purity of the Catholic faith, then it is very
difficult for Us to measure Our words in dealing with two
adverse opinions with such prudence that We appear not to have
yielded to either of them, but to have avoided and condemned
equally both parties inimical to Christ. And sometimes the matter
is such that diabolical error decks itself with ease in lying colors
lia Cf. I Tim. 6:20 ; and 2 Tim. 1:14.
11b Cf. 2 Tim. 3:1.

THE PROTECTION OF FAITH

39

with some appearance of truth, so that the force of the pro­
nouncement is corrupted by a very brief addition or change, and
the confession of faith which should have resulted in salvation,
by a subtle transition leads to death.

The faithful must he teamed
The faithful, therefore, must be warned away from these 13
narrow and precipitous paths on which it is scarcely possible (4.
to take a step or to advance without falling; this is especially true
of those who are less instructed and more naive: the sheep should m,
not be led to pasture over impracticable routes, nor should 167)
extraordinary opinions, even of Catholic Doctors, be proposed
to them; instead they should hear those opinions which have the
most certain criteria of Catholic truth: universality, antiquity,
and unanimity. Moreover, since the common people cannot
ascend the mountain on which the glory of the Lord rests, and
he who goes beyond the limits to see it perishes, barriers should
be set up about the people by their teachers so that instruction
will not go beyond what is necessary for salvation or eminently
useful for it, and the faithful may obey that precept of the
Apostle: not to be wiser than it behooveth to be wise, but to be
wise with moderation (a).
Our predecessors, the Roman Pontiffs, with a perfect under­
standing of this necessity, have bent all their efforts not only to
exterminating with the sword of anathema the poisonous seeds
of nascent errors, but also to check certain rash positions which,
by their spread among Christian people, would inhibit the rich
harvest of faith or by their proximity to error might harm the
souls of the faithful.
{Recourse must be had to the Roman Catechism.—Care to be
taken in selecting men for the teaching office.—Prayer for peace
and union among Christians.)
13a Cf. Rom. 12:3.

Μ

CLEMENT XIV
1769 -1774

UNIQUE EDIFICE

Encycl. Cum summi apostolatus, December 12, 1768.
(Pray for the Pope and for the Church during the Jubilee.)

It is above all by this union of mind which binds you to Us 14
that you will demonstrate unity. Unique in fact is the edifice of (32,
the universal Church, whose foundation was established in this 40,
See by the blessed Peter. Many stones were united in its 139,
construction, but all rest upon and are based on a single founda- ^4,
tion-stone. Unique is the Body of the Church of which Christ
is the Head, and all together we make up this body. We who
exercise his authority as his delegated Vicar, We are, by his will,
placed over all the rest, while you who are bound to Us as to the
visible Head of the Church, you constitute the principal parts of
this same Body. Consequently, what can happen to one which
does not touch all the others, or fails to reach each one? That is
why, just as nothing can lay special claim to your vigilance with­
out at the same time concerning Us, or having, of necessity, to be
reported to Us, so you should have the greatest interest in what
concerns Us and solicits Our attention. That is why, united in a
common accord of desires, animated by one and the same Spirit,
which, taking its source in the mystical Head, spreads through
all the members and gives life to them all. we must make every
endeavor and put all our zeal into preserving the Body of the
Church whole and entire, so that, preserved from every' spot and
wrinkle, she may rejoice in all the vigor and splendor of Christian
virtue.
(The people must be put on their guard against harmful
novelties. )

He has founded and guaranteed this Citadel, that is to say. 15
his Church, by his laws ami institutions. To her he has entrusted (19,
the deposit of faith, to be kept with a virginal respect. He has 99)
willed her to be an unshakable rampart for his doctrine and his
truth, against which the powers of hell will never be able to pre­
vail.
(The Church and the State.—Dignity of the apostolic office.
—The bishop must set an example.—Blessing.)
- 43 -

SERVANTS OF THE CHURCH

Apost. Const. Dominus ac Redemptor, July 21, 1773.
(Necessity of peace in the Church.)

16
It is indubitable that among those elements which work most
(209) effectively for the good and the well-being of Christian society,
the first place must be given to the religious Orders from which
the Universal Church of Christ has received in every age assist­
ance, help, and adornment. That is why this Apostolic See, not
content with approving and encouraging them, has showered
benefits upon them—exemptions, privileges, and powers—in order
to incite them by these means to constant progress in piety and
holiness, in the moral instruction of the faithful by word and ex­
ample, in maintaining and strengthening the unity of the faith
among believers.
(Vicissitudes of religious Orders.—The glorious history of
the Society of Jcsus.-Persecution it has suffered. Its suppression
for the sake of peace. )

PIUS VI

1775-1799

APOSTOLIC CHARITY

Apost. Const. Caritas ilia, June 16. 1777.
Christ our Lord has urgently recommended us to keep for 17
one another the charity which He Himself has imparted to us, (67,
and the Apostle of the nations assures us that it is the bond of 160,
perfection. Now this charity imposes upon Us, in virtue of the 163)
apostolic charge which We exercise, the duty of having for all
Our children in Christ such love that if one of them should stray
from the fold of his Mother the Church, Our spouse, We must
employ all Our endeavor to have him return to her with joy, like
the lost sheep which the heavenly Shepherd, when He had found
it, brought back on his shoulders.
(Erection of a Uniate diocese in Croatia.)

PETER, THE SUPPORT OF THE EPISCOPATE

Apost. Let. Divina Christi Domini, September 20, 1799.
( Errors contained in the German work of Jean Laurent
Isenbiehl, on the prophecy of Emmanuel.—Warnings given by the
German Bishops.)
In their prudence they have not lost sight of the rule constantly and everywhere preserved by the old discipline, in virtue
of which consultations always flow out from the Apostolic See to
every country to those who ask for them—and it is especially each
time that a question of faith is mooted that all Our brothers, the
Bishops, must have recourse to Peter, that is to say, to the author
of their own title and of their dignity, since he can come to the
assistance of all the churches in general throughout the entire
world. The Bishops of Germany, following the example of the
orthodox Fathers, have lost no time in placing this entire matter
before Us, and have endeavored, moreover, by urgent petitions
to obtain Our decree against this dangerous book, so that, thanks
to the Apostolic authority, a rash freedom of thought on this sub­
ject may be more surely and effectively suppressed and the dan­
gers which threaten the Catholic Church may be averted.
(Condemnation of the book.—Warning and exhortation.)

- 47 -

18
(152,
154,
157,

^W)

■

EPISCOPAL POWERS

Letter Post factum tibi, February 2. 1782. to the Archbishop
of Trier.
(The Church has the power to establish marriage impedi­
ments and to dispense from them.)
19
Even in the case where the episcopal authority would come
(188, directly from God, as certain doctors claim, nevertheless it must
1.90) be held for certain and firmly maintained that this authority does
not extend, of its own right, to the faculty of dispensing from the
general laws of the Church, without the express—or at least tacitpermission of the superior power which has established these
laws. It is, in fact, a dogma of faith that the authority of the Bish­
ops. even admitting that it stems directly from Christ, remains
dependent on the authority of the Roman Pontiff. Whence it
follows that the Bishops must ever remain subject to the decrees
of the Apostolic See and to the venerable prescriptions of the can­
ons, under penalty, if it should happen that one of them infringed
these prescriptions and canons, of being refused the concession
in the future.
For the same reason, it is not less certain that the authority
of the Bishops can itself be restricted and reduced within certain
limits, as to its exercise and its use, by the superior hierarchical
authority (a).
WHAT IS THE POPE

Decree Super soliditate, November 28, 1786.
20
That the Church was established by Jesus Christ on the solid
(161) foundation of the rock (a); that Peter, above all the others, was
chosen by the singular favor of Jesus Christ, so that, having the
power of his Vicar on earth, he became the Prince of the Apos­
tolic College and received, in consequence, for himself and for
his successors to the end of time, the charge and the supreme au­
thority to feed the flock (b), to confirm his brethren (c), to bind
19a For the parts of this letter here omitted, see MARRIAGE, Nos.
31 ff.
20b CI. John 21:17.
20a Cf. Matt. 16:18.
20c Cf. Luke 22:32.
— 48 —

WHAT IS THE POPE

49

and to loose throughout the entire world (d): these are dogmas
of faith received from the lips of Jesus Christ Himself, handed
down and defended by the constant teaching of the Fathers,
which the universal Church has kept in even' age with religious
care, and which she has ven often confirmed by the decrees of
the Sovereign Pontiffs and the Councils against the errors of in­
novators.

In fact, Jesus Christ willed, in the Primacy of the Apostolic 21
See, to fortify and knit closer the bond of that unity by means of (161)
which the Church, destined as she was to spread through the
whole world, was to form but one body out of so many scattered
members under a single Head. Thus the virtue of that power was
to contribute not only to the grandeur of the First See, but even
more particularly to the integrity and conservation of the entire
body.
Therefore, it is hardly surprising that in past ages those 22
whom the old enemy of the human race has filled with his own (91)
hatred of the Church, have been in the habit of attacking in the
first place this See which maintains unity’ in all its vigor: so that
by destroying, if it were possible to do so, the foundation, and
severing the bond between churches and the Head, the bond
which is the principal source of their support, their strength, and
their beauty, after having by this means reduced the Church to
desolation and ruin by crushing her strength, they might in the
end strip her of that liberty which Jesus Christ gave to her, and
reduce her to a state of unworthy servitude.

(Among these enemies: Eybel, author of the libel "What is
the Pope?" published on the occasion of the journey of Pius VI
to Vienna.)
The errors of Eybel
While St. Augustine tells us that “it is in the chair of unitv 23
that God has placed the doctrine of truth" (a), there is nothing, (161,
on the contrary, that the unfortunate writer does not use to attack -190)
and outrage in every possible way this See of Peter where the
Fathers have unanimously recognized and venerated that Chair
“in which alone unity' was to be conserved by all Christians, and
from which flow out to all the churches the rights of communion
20d Cf. Matt

16:19.

23a Epistle 105.

50

WHAT IS THE POPE

which we must venerate” (b); “with which it is necessary for
every church to be in agreement, that is to say, the faithful from
whatever area they come (c).
24
(141142.
154.
189)

25
(140,
144149,
175,
181)

Eybel has not feared to stigmatize as fanatic those whom he
has heard cry out at the sight of the Pope: “This is he who has
received from God the keys of the kingdom of heaven with
power to bind and loose! this is he to whom no other bishop can
be compared! this is he from whom the bishops themselves
receive their authority as he has received from God the supreme
authority! This is the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the visible Head of
the Church, the Supreme Judge of the Faithful! Is it therefore
fanatic—We say this only with horror—is that word therefore
fanatic of Jesus Christ, which promises to Peter, with the power
of binding and loosing, the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, those
keys which St. Optatus of Mila did not hesitate—following Tertullian—to say had been put into the hands of St. Peter alone
to be handed on to others? (a)
Must we call fanatic so many solemn decrees, so often ronewed, of Popes and Councils, where are to be found the
condemnation of those who deny that in blessed Peter, the Prince
of the Apostles, the Roman Pontiff, his successor, has been
appointed by God, the visible Head of the Church and the Vicar
of Jesus Christ; that plenary power has been given to him to
govern the Church; that all those who bear the name of Christian
owe him a sincere obedience; and that such is the virtue of that
primacy which he possesses by divine right that he is above all
other bishops, not only by reason of the honor of his rank, but
also by reason of the extent of his supreme power?

26
Such language only makes all the more deplorable both the
(737-blind temerity of a writer who has been assiduous in reviving in
138, his tract the errors condemned by so many decrees; of a man
145, who does not fear to say, or to insinuate in many places and by a
148, thousand indirections: ‘That even' bishop is called by God as
152, much as the Pope is, to the government of the Church, and that
157, he has received no less power; that Jesus Christ gave the same
188, power to all the Apostles; that what some men believe can be
23b Optatus of Mila, Bk. II, contr. Farm.; St. Ambrose, Epistle
XI. 1·
23c St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hxr., Ill, 3.
24a Tertullian, Scorp., XI; Optatus of Mila, ibid.

WHAT IS THE POPE

51

obtained only from the Sovereign Pontiff, and granted only by 195)
him, in .so far as it depends upon consecration and ecclesiastical
jurisdiction, can be obtained equally from every bishop; that
Jesus Christ willed his Church to be administered after the
fashion of a Republic; that it is true the government of the Church
needs a president for the sake of unity, but that this president
must not be permitted to meddle in the affairs of others who
govern as he does; that his whole privilege consists in the right
which he has to exhort the negligent to fulfill their duties; that
thus, in virtue of his primacy he has no other prerogative than to
make up for the negligence of others, and to provide, by his
exhortations and his example, for the conservation of unity; that
the Popes have no power in another diocese, except in extraordi­
nary cases; that the Sovereign Pontiff is a Head who has his power
and stability from the Church; that the Sovereign Pontiffs have
allowed themselves to violate the rights of bishops by reserving
to themselves absolutions, dispensations, decisions, appeals, the
conferring of benefices.” In a word, the author of this tract here
enumerates in great detail all the functions which he puts in the
category of reserved cases usurped by the Pontiff to the prejudice
of the rights and dignity of the bishops.
The teaching of the Fathers of the Church
This author, less to conciliate than in some way to take by 27
surprise the confidence which he wishes to win for his case, (177)
rattles off in a long series the names of the holiest of the Fathers,
and, with superb effrontery, misconstrues their pronouncements
lifted haphazardly from their works and lumped together, citing
passages which stress the episcopal dignity, and maintaining
silence on those in which they have exalted the singular pre­
eminence of the Pontifical power. If these Fathers were still
living, they would refute the impudent calumny of this writer
in the same terms in which they have not only celebrated the
primacy of the Apostolic See and their devotedness to this Chair,
but have left to all future ages the testimony of this loyalty in
their immortal writings.
St. Cyprian expresses himself in the following tenus: “There 28
is only one God, only one Christ, only one Church, and only one (177)
Chair founded on Peter by the word of Jesus Christ”, and he
declares openly "that the Chair of Peter is this principal Church

52

WHAT IS THE POPE

from which springs the sacerdotal unity to which error has no
access” (a).

29
It is St. John Chrysostom who declares without ambiguity
(/47) that ‘ Peter could, in virtue of his power, choose a successor to
replace the traitor Judas” (a). And Peter himself in later times
and his first successors, used this right stemming from the
primacy either to found Churches throughout the West, giving
them bishops and assigning to them the portion of the flock they
were to care for, and this before the holding of any Council, or
in designating regions whose limits they had determined as a
single See, whose Bishop, in virtue of the apostolic authority,
was to have preeminence over his colleagues in the episcopate.
30
On this institution of churches we have very clear testimony
(145, in the writings of Innocent I (a). He speaks of it as a well known
147) matter, something anyone can understand, that the authority of
the Sovereign Pontiffs has not come from a discipline antecedent­
ly established by the Councils, since it was a common practice
before anv of the disciplinary matters later regulated by Conciliar
decrees. It is not less evident that the Sovereign Pontiff himself
determined by his decrees that the Church of Antioch would be
the head of the dioceses of the Orient (b).
31
It is St. Epiphanius who bears witness that Ursace and
(147) Valens, moved to repentance, presented to Pope Julius the writs
containing the retractions of their errors, and asked to be
admitted to communion and penance (a).

32
It is St. Jerome who declares profane the man who is not in
(J47)communion with the Chair of Peter, knowing full well that it is
on this rock that the Church has been built. So he addresses
himself only to Pope Damasus in the gravest controversies: for
it is from him alone that he wishes to learn both the language
which is to be adopted in the Church and the persons with whom
he can communicate (a).
33
It is St. Augustine who testifies, after having learned it in
(147) the Scriptures, “that the primacy of the Apostles is preeminent
in Peter in virtue of a more excellent grace; that this primacy of

'

28a Epistles XL, LV.
30a Epist. ad Decent. Eugub.
31a H.rres. LXVIII.

29a Hom. Ill, in Act. Apost.
30b Epist. ad Alexand. Antioch.
32a Epist. XV.

T

WHAT IS ΤΙ IE POPE

53

the apostolatc is to be preferred to all episcopal dignity; that the
Roman Church, the See of Peter, is that rock which the proud
gates of hell cannot vanquish" (a). This is the language which
refutes another of the writer’s calumnies: that which pretends
that in designating the rock on which he built his Church Jesus
Christ wished men to understand, not the person, but rather the
faith and the confession, of Peter: as if the Fathers who, because
of the marvelous fecundity of the Scriptures, have also given
this latter sense to the word of Peter, have by that fact abandoned
the literal sense which bears directly on St. Peter, and did not,
very openly, retain this literal sense. It is thus that St. Ambrose,
St. Augustine’s master, says, “It is to Peter himself that it was
said Thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church.’
Therefore, where Peter is, there is the Church" (b).

Such is the unanimous language of the Fathers. Such is the 34
perpetual tradition of the Doctors: a tradition which St. Bernard, (145,
who had gathered it from the ancients, condensed in these few 147)
words addressed to Pope Eugene (a): “It is in your hands that
the keys of heaven have been placed; to them that the sheep
have been entrusted ... Other shepherds have each their own
flocks assigned to them; but to you all the flocks are entrusted,
as a single flock to a single Pastor. You alone are the only Pastor,
not only of all the sheep, but of all the shepherds.” Tt is on the
milk of this doctrine that have been nourished all those who have
grown to manhood in the Church of Christ; it is this milk, if they
will remember, that was given from their earliest years to those—
whoever they arc—who are allowing themselves to be driven
about by every wind of doctrine. In every age it has been
preached as the teaching of the Gospel that the sheep were
entrusted to Peter, by Christ for him to provide for their food,
not Peter who was entrusted to the sheep to receive his spiritual
nourishment from them.

The testimony of the Councils
Moreover, on this point the Ecumenical Councils have never 35
strayed from the teaching of the Fathers. The Fathers assembled (147)
at Chalcedon (a) proclaimed that they heard the very words
of Peter in the mouth of Leo. They have recognized also that it
33a De baptism., II, 1; Cont. Petii, II, 51; Psalm, cont. Don.
33b In psalm., XL. 30.
34a De Consiti. II. 8.
35a 451.

«I

54

WHAT IS THE POPE

was not from any other bishop, but from Leo as from their
Head, that they were to draw the strength and the stability of
what had been done in this Council: and it was for this reason
that they begged him to confirm it.
36
The eighth General Council, in its first session ( a ) approved
(7 /7) the tenor of a formula read before the holy assembly in which,
after many great eulogies on the authoriy of the Roman Pontiff,
it was prescribed that “in the celebration of the sacred mysteries
there should not be recited the names of those who had been
separated from the communion of the Catholic Church, that is to
say, those who were not in accord with the Apostolic See.” Even
more, since it remained to pass on certain dispensations which
the good of the Church seemed urgently to demand, the Fathers
(of the Council) did not dare take it upon themselves to grant
them; they believed that they should be petitioned from the Holy
See by the Patriarch Ignatius; thus recognizing that the Patriarchs
themselves did not have the power to dispense from the Canons.
37
The great Council of the Lateran, which was the fourth of
(147)that name (a), declares (b) that the Lord has ordained that the
Roman Church enjoys the primacy of ordinary power over all the
other churches, since she is the Mother and Mistress of all the
faithful of Jesus Christ.
38
In the second Council of Lyons (a) the profession of the
(1/7) Greeks was published, bearing witness to the fact that they
recognized that the Roman Church has a primacy over the entire
Catholic Church, and a principality which is both sovereign and
plenary, a prerogative which she has received, with fullness of
power, from the Lord Himself in the person of Blessed Peter,
the Prince, or the Chief of the Apostles, whose successor is the
Roman Pontiff. Following the line of these last Councils, the
Council of Florence (b) by a famous decree sanctioned the
Catholic dogma of this primacy.

39
Inspired by the same divine Spirit the Fathers of the Council
(145, of Trent declared “that the Sovereign Pontiffs, in virtue of the
147, Supreme power over the whole Church which has been given to
151, them, have the right to reserve to their special judgment certain
36a Constantinople, 869.
37b Can. V.
38a 1274.

37a 1215.
38b 1439.

WHA7 IS 'I HE POPE

55

graver cases of a criminal nature” (a). It follows from the 164.
language of the Fathers of the Council of Trent that the power 193
of the Sovereign Pontiffs extends to the whole Church; that it
embraces equally in its authority all the spiritual functions which
the author of this tract endeavors, against all reason, to strip from
it; that this power does not come to the Pontiffs from an external
source; that it is not conferred upon them by subordinates, but
that it is inherent in the primacy by ordinary right, jure ordinario.
This must be recognized by anyone who has the intimate
conviction that the heavenly wisdom of the Councils is of more
worth than all the vain disputes of human ignorance.

Eybel appeals to the Council of Constance. But he should 40
have reminded himself that there the Counciliar Fathers con- (147,
demned the errors of Wycliffe, who advanced the position that “it 189'
is not necessary to salvation to believe that the Roman Church
occupies the first rank among the other churches, nor that the
Pope is the proximate and immediate Vicar of Christ.” Likewise,
the errors of John Huss who held that Peter is not. and he never
was, the Head of the holy Catholic Church. Martin V, offering
the language of sound doctrine to these errors, laid down that
those suspected of holding them should be interrogated, and that
they were to be asked “if they believed Blessed Peter was the
Vicar of Jesus Christ, having the power on earth to bind and
loose?” Further, “Whether a Pope canonically elected was the
successor of St. Peter, having supreme authority in the Church
of God?” And, “Whether they believed that the Pope had the
power to grant indulgences to all Christians; and whether each
bishop could grant indulgences to those under his jurisdiction,
according to the limits prescribed by the sacred Canons?” This
is a clear refutation of Eybel’s error, who, speaking of indulgen­
ces, dared to write that “every bishop can grant indulgences in
the same way as the Pope.”

Any man who will meditate attentively and fairly on these 41
documents drawn from the Fathers and the Councils without 147allowing himself to be blinded by his prejudices, will have no 148)
difficulty in convincing himself that they give evidence, as far
as the Sovereign Pontiff is concerned, of an authority far
superior to one which would be limited, as has been claimed, to
39a Session XIV. cap \ 11

WHAT IS THE POPE

56

a simple direction with respect to the bishops, or that the Pope’s
authority is confined to exhorting them, warning them, and sup­
plying for their deficiencies.
42
Let us go even farther. The Fathers of the Council of Basel
(147) themselves declare (a), openly and profess that they believe in
the response which they addressed to the Bishop of Taranto, “that
the Roman Pontiff is the head and the Primate of the Church, the
Vicar of Jesus Christ; raised to this dignity not by men or by
Councils, but by Jesus Christ; that he is the Pastor of the faithful;
that to him the Lord has given the keys; that to him alone it was
said Thou art Peter’; that he alone has been called to the pleni­
tude of power, while the other bishops have received only a share
in solicitude (for the flock).” Eybel should blush at the impudent
audacity with which he attempts to weaken the plenitude of
powers which the assembly at Basel places among the capital
points of our doctrine, as so well known, so widely held that it
is superfluous to recall them.
43
Moreover, the way in which St. Augustine expresses him(142, self, as We have just cited it, witnesses to the fact that “the
145. principality of the apostolic Chair has always been in vigor in
147, the Roman See” (a), that this principality of the apostolate
151, has always been preeminent over any episcopal dignity; this
J 89, language, We say, can be verified, among other things, by this
195) remarkable observation: that the successor of Peter, by the very
fact that he occupies the place of Peter, has, by divine right,
under his authority the entire flock of Jesus Christ; so that he
receives, with his function of Pontiff, the power to govern the
entire Church. While it is necessary, on the other hand, that a
special part of the flock be assigned to each of the other bishops,
not by divine right, but by ecclesiastical law, not by the lips of
Jesus Christ Himself, but by the hierarchical order, so that over
this restricted part of the flock he can employ the ordinary power
with which he has been invested to govern it.
44
He who would wish to take from the Roman Pontiff the sov(147,ereign authority which he has to make these assignments would
154- find himself under the necessity of impugning the legitimacy of
155, succession of the multitude of bishops who, all over the world.
184) govern individual churches, and for the government of which
42a Session V.

43a Epistle XLI1I, 3.

WHAT IS THE POPE

57

these prelates have received their mission from the Sovereign
Pontiff. Therefore, it is impossible, without causing very great
disturbance in the Church, and without exposing episcopal au­
thority itself to imminent danger, it is impossible to attack this
great and marvelous assemblage of power which God has
deigned to grant to the Chair of Peter; power in virtue of which,
as St. Leo the Great says, “Peter personally governs all those
whom Jesus Christ governs principally: in such wise that if
Jesus Christ has willed that there should be something in common
between Peter and the other Princes of the Church, it is only
through (and by) Peter that He has given what He has not re­
fused to the others” (a).

The witness of the Churches of France
Eybel is loud in his praises of the bishops and doctors of the 45
Church of France. But this is all in vain: for who among them(I47)
are the ones he is trying to represent as sharing his opinions? .Are
they the most ancient, or those who, in the Middle Ages, or in
more recent times, have made that Church illustrious by their
learning and holiness? We will cite, from among the most ancient,
only a few among many.
Let him not despise the testimony of St. Caesarius of Arles 46
and St. Avitus of Vienne. The first, in a petition addressed to (147)
Pope Symmachus, says: “As the source of the episcopate comes
from blessed Peter, so it is necessary for Your Holiness to show
clearly to each one of the Churches what must be observed, lay­
ing down for them suitable rules of discipline." St. Avitus, ad­
dressing Pope Hormisdas, writes, “I beg you to let me know how
1 should answer your sons who are my brothers in Gaul, if they
should consult me: for their devotion for the Apostolic See is such
that I can in all security speak not only for those of Vienne, but I
can also promise you that every one of them in France will wel­
come with the same eagerness whatever you shall decide in mat­
ters of faith." The Fathers of the Council of Orleans (a) recall
the form to be observed in the election of metropolitans as laid
down in the decrees of the Apostolic See.
In the Middle Ages, let Eybel listen to Hincmar of Rheims 47
who, protesting that he has always shown himself faithful and (147)
44a Senn. IV, in unniv. suæ assumpt.

46a 538. Canon 111

58

WHAT IS THE POPE

obedient in all things to the Apostolic Chair, the mother and mis­
tress of all the Churches, and to the Pontiffs who occupy it, de­
clares openly what is due to the Holy See, what he is persuaded
the faithful owe it, by the very fact that he wishes to insist he has
never failed in this duty (a). Let him listen to Yves of Chartres,
reprimanding with the strongest expressions the boldness of those
who raise proud heads against the Apostolic See, saying “that
when one opposes it with one’s own judgments and constitu­
tions, one incurs the charge of heretical perversity; that it belongs
absolutely and without exception to this See to confirm or in­
validate the consecration both of metropolitans and of other
bishops, to reexamine their constitutions and their judgments;
while this See must maintain without variation what it has pro­
nounced and not tolerate any inferior assuming the right to judge
it or correct it” (b). He further supports this by the authority of
Pope Gelasius.

48
If, from those ancient times, we come down to a more recent
(/47)period, Eybel ought not to have been in ignorance about the very
grave censures leveled against the notorious apostate De
Dominis, Archbishop of Spalato, by the distinguished Faculty
of Theology of Paris. He would there have seen the Condemna­
tion to be anticipated for his own tract. In fact, these are the
errors which this Faculty did not hesitate to stigmatize as hereti­
cal and schismatic in the writings of this unworthy prelate: “To
say that the Apostles were not equal in power is to advance a
proposition which is only a human invention, and which has no
foundation in the Holy Gospels, or in the inspired writings of the
New Testament.” (The Faculty declares this proposition heretical
and schismatic, understood with reference to the ordinary
apostolic jurisdiction which existed only in St. Peter. )
49
“It cannot be said that there is only one supreme head in the
(147)Church, or only one ruler, unless one understands by this
Jesus Christ.” "All the bishops together and in one body govern
the same Church, each one with full power.” “The Roman
Church has, it is true, the first rank among the other churches,
because of its nobility, its reputation, its name, and the authority
of its dignity: but not because of its primacy of government and
of jurisdiction.” (The Faculty declares this proposition heretical
47a Council of Douay, 871.

47b Epist. VIII ad Rich. Senon.

Wf IAT IS THE POPE

59

and schismatic because it openly alleges that the Roman Church
has not, by reason of divine right, the authority over the other
churches.) “Each bishop is universal, by divine right.” “The
monarchical form of government in the Church was not immedi­
ately instituted by Christ.” “It is false to hold that the union of
the Catholic Church consists in the unity of a visible head.” De
Dominis having added that “the teaching of the doctors o' Paris,
understood as it should be, differed in nothing from his own,” the
latter immediately refuted this calumny with which the innovator
attempted to blacken them, and declared that “this was a pure
libel against the Faculty of Paris” (a).
In the Assembly of 1681, the Bishops of France published, 5θ
on this subject of the primacy of the Roman Pontiff, a striking (147)
testimony fully in accord with that rendered by the Theological
Faculty of Paris, and with the constant tradition of their prede­
cessors. “The Pope is above all the Bishops, he is the Head of the
Church, the center of unity, and he possesses the primacy of au­
thority and jurisdiction over us given him by Christ Jesus in the
person of St. Peter. If one fails to admit these truths, he is a schis­
matic, yes, and a heretic” (a).

Tendentious interpretation

The author of this tract could not have been entirely ignor- 51
ant of the documents which can be culled from all past ages on (108.
the subject of Roman primacy. His bad faith is made all the more 184)
remarkable because of his stubborn opposition to the Holy See,
since unable to blot out or destroy these brilliant testimonies of
the Fathers, he does not blush—and here his insolence is exces­
sive—to present them as allegories which have been badly inter­
preted; whence it happens in great measure—according to him—
that for many centuries the Pope has been believed to be what in
fact he is not: as if these Fathers eminent in sanctity, whom Cod
has given to his Church as Pastors and teachers, could, on a matter
of the greatest importance and which touches on the very con­
stitution of the Church, have unanimously fallen into error, or
become the cause of deceiving the faithful! As if Eybel did not,
rather, stand convicted of a criminal error, since he is determined
49a C. D’Argentre, Coll. Judic., II, p. 105, ff.
50a Coll. P.V., Vol. V, p. 355.

60

WHAT IS THE POPE

to embrace, in the matter of the Sovereign Pontificate, a differ­
ent belief from the one which has been handed down by all the
centuries past!

52
This is what We have thought it Our duty to expose at some
(265) length, following in this the example given to Us by Our pred­
ecessors in similar circumstances, and as We are required to
do by the nature of Our office. Here it is not Our own advantage
that We have before Our eyes, but the good of souls. Our desire
is to maintain unity in the bond of peace; and We have no other
motive, in exposing the deceits of those who abuse the names of
the Fathers to give false meaning to their words. Let all under­
stand that there is no teaching which the Fathers have more at
heart than that all should be kept in unity, attached to this Chair
which alone Christ has made mother and mistress of all the
others.
The voice of Jesus Christ
53
The Church is certainly the one flock of Jesus Christ, who
(26. is reigning in heaven, its one Supreme Pastor. He has left it a
40, visible Pastor here on earth, a man who alone is his supreme
70, Vicar, so that in hearing him, the sheep hear in his voice the voice
142- of Jesus Christ Himself, lest seduced by the voice of strangers
147, they be led astray into noxious and deadly pastures.
161,
So that the faithful confided to Our solicitude may avoid
166, with greater care profane and useless discourse which leads to
173) impiety; so that they may remain constantly attached to this
Chair of unity where Peter still lives and presides as in his own
See, whence he communicates the truth of faith to those who
seek it; so that they may not be misled into believing that what
has been established by the order of Christ Himself has been
extorted by ambition, or yielded through ignorance, or granted
as a result of flattery, or sought and obtained by criminal arti­
fice, We have ordained that this work be submitted to the ex­
amination of competent theologians.
(Condemnation of the book—Difficulties foreseen.)

IMMEDIATE JURISDICTION

Letter Notre cher fila, January 20, 1787, to the Archbishop
of Cologne.
(The Archbishop's protest against a papal intervention on
the subject of marriage dispensations, which would have inter­
fered with episcopal jurisdiction.—This protest cannot be admit­
ted.—Recapitulation of principles.)
Marriage dispensations
It is true that when the prince Electors of Germany 54
addressed Pius IV on the subject of certain grievances, among (137.
which were to be counted the dispensations reserved to the Holy 176,
See, this Pontiff answered them in the following terms: “That 188their requests were not just, given the fact that it is indubitably 190)
contrary to all law and reason that Archbishops or Bishops have
the power of dispensation in matters which are established by
the authority of the Holy See, unless this be expressly permitted
to them; otherwise inferiors and subjects could dispense with
the law of their superiors” (a). And in fact, if Bishops were to
have the right to relax the law of impediments to marriage es­
tablished by the authority of the Church and accepted in every
Catholic country, the entire ecclesiastical hierarchy would be
weakened, the Head would find himself under the authority of
the members, and ultimately, it would be the end of the hierarchy
of the Church, which was instituted by God. as was generally
stated by Pope Nicholas I in a letter to the Emperor ^Michael
(b). For it is an article of faith that the authority and jurisdic­
tion of the bishops is subordinate to that of the Sovereign Pontiff,
and that in virtue of the primacy of jurisdiction which Jesus
Christ, by a special favor, granted to St. Peter and to his suc­
cessors, they must obey the regulations of the Apostolic See; this
is a truth which even' Catholic is obliged to recognize, and
which We have carefully demonstrated in Our letter in the form
of a brief, published on the first of December last, condemning
the book of Eybel, Qu'est-ce oue le Pape (c)? We have con­
demned this book as containing propositions which are schismatic,
erroneous, conducive to heresy, anil other propositions con­
demned by the Church.

54a Rainaldi, Continuation des Annales de Baronius, ed. de Lucques, 1756, Vol. XV (1563), No. 44.
54b Epist. LXXXVI, ad Mich. imp.
54c /\bove No. 20 ff.

62

IMMEDIATE JURISDICTION

55
From all of this there results the fact that, first: the power
(2 76) of dispensation in marriage cases was first exercised by the
Apostolic See, and has belonged to it exclusively, as has been
recognized by the common consent and practice of the whole
Church; for there is no evidence that other bishops have ever
arrogated this power to themselves unless they believed them­
selves to be authorized to do so by a privilege either expressed
or presumed from the Holy See.
56
If now, therefore, in your diocese of Cologne, for which up to
(157)the present the Archbishops, your predecessors, have obtained
from the Holy See the power of dispensation in the degrees ex­
pressed in the formula; if, therefore, We say, you were to begin
to dispense on your own authority, what else would you be doing
except depriving the Holy See of a right of which it has always
had the exclusive exercise from the most ancient times, an exer­
cise of which it has kept the constant, uninterrupted possession,
approved by the Church, an exercise which merely from the point
of view of its antiquity and aside from its foundation in the
primacy, would generally be a sufficient title. It would be in vain
for anyone to oppose to this some imperial edict, since there exists
between us a well-known concordat, from which it appears that
We have agreed that the faculty of dispensation from impedi­
ments, which the Holy See formerly granted to bishops under its
jurisdiction, should extend also in the future to the marriages of
the wealthy, in such a way, however, that it would not exceed the
prescribed limits of consanguinity. We see in this very fact the
exclusive and uniquely competent jurisdiction of the Sovereign
Pontiffs, as it is related to the dispensations from impediments to
marriage, since bishops are permitted the use of the same juris­
diction in virtue of a pontifical delegation, and, further, the cus­
tom of dispensing from nearer degrees of kinship is reserved to
the Pope. From all of this it is easy to see that His Imperial Ma­
jesty, in the treaty made with Us, preferred to discontinue the
former edict, by which he had ordered bishops to grant dispensa­
tions on their own authority, than to give occasion to difficulties
of conscience to the people under his rule and even to open the
way to divorce. For in the case of dispute between marital part­
ners, one or another might seize upon the nullity or inefficacy of
the dispensations granted by the bishops as a reason for dissolv-

IMMEDIATE JURISDICTION

6S

ing the marriage. Now, would this not be a great source of trou­
ble and calamity within the Catholic Church and the State?

These things being adequately reviewed, if We return to 57
the declaration now in question, We see that it belonged to Us (157)
alone to prevent this error from spreading among the faithful,
since to Us would be imputed both the error and the disorder
that would result from it, if by Our silence We allowed any doubt
to remain on a matter of such grave importance.
Unable to neglect this very pressing duty, nevertheless, in 58
discharging it We have taken particular care to see that Our man- (157)
ner of acting was beyond reproach; that is why, in the aforesaid
declaration, We wished to say nothing that was not moderate,
simple, and necessary to the matter, avoiding the mention of any
person by name, not posting it anywhere in public places, but
taking the precaution of having it sent from hand to hand, with
no other object than making known the content of Our instruc­
tion. Now, it cannot be denied that there must be some way
available to the Supreme Pastor for instructing and admonishing
his flock, and that this cannot be obstructed without depriving
him of the charge which he has received from Jesus Christ to “feed
his lambs” (a).

However, We see that no reason, no precaution was able to 59
make any impression on you. Immediately you gave strict orders. (156)
by your edict, that all those whom this declaration had reached
should immediately send it back whence it came, thus silencing
the voice and intercepting the order of the shepherd. You have
given signs, moreover, that your venerable brother, the Arch­
bishop of Damietta, by whom the declaration was made, dis­
pleased you in taking the title of Our Nuncio, and Nuncio of the
Holy Apostolic See in the Rhenish Provinces. But why should he
not take this title, since by Our authority We invested him with
this office, and We sent him to carry out its functions in your
diocese, and in all the others, as his predecessors have done? Most
of the bishops and princes, each one for the region of the country
belonging to him, have recognized him in this capacity and re­
ceived him with honor. As for you, vou wished neither to receive
him nor to recognize him, although he declared that he was the
58a John 21:15-17.

64

IMMEDIATE JURISDICTION

bearer of Our pontifical letters of recommendation, and he of­
fered you his services. On the contrary, you treated him as an
alien, as if the affairs of your diocese could in no way concern
him, and as if "We Ourselves were a stranger to the Church and
to your diocese, where, in virtue of the right of primacy estab­
lished by Jesus Christ and transmitted to Us by Peter, We had
appointed him to earn’ out Our business, and so to exercise the
apostolic authority We had conferred upon him.”
Authority of Nuncios

60
It is beyond doubt that Our Predecessors, from the very
(156} earliest times, have always used the power of sending their
envoys, their legates, their nuncios, into the dioceses of other
bishops, a power which they certainly recognized and held to be
consequent upon their right of primacy.
61
Perhaps you will object that the imperial order in the circular
(121, letter of October 12, 1787, constituted an obstacle for you. But
156) first, when complaint was made to the Emperor on the power of
the Holy See to send nuncios, the prince replied that not merely
one nunziature, but even three could be established; and if sub­
sequently, as a result of the pressing representations made to him,
he issued the circular letter which has been mentioned, he moder­
ated its expression in such a way that he did not seem to wish to
make an unjust attack on the authority which the Holy See has ex­
ercised up to the present time through its nuncios. But without
examining whether or not this circular letter has the force of law,
though it would be so much in opposition to Canon Law, accord­
ing to which not only archbishops and bishops, but also all Cath­
olics are obliged to recognize and receive the envoys of the Sover­
eign Pontiff, it is sufficiently clear that the circular letter should
not be recognized as such, but simply as a letter of notification
wrested from the Emperor bv importunity, and that in this he was
not acting as a legislator, but merely as a defender, and to keep
the ancient rights of the archbishops, which, in the complaints
(founded simply on error) were said to have been taken from
them by illegal means and contrary to the laws of the Church:
he declared not that he ordered, but that he exhorted. “At the
same time we invite you.” said he, "to defend, in concert with
your suffragan bishops and the exempted bishops, your metro­
politan rights against all attack." Who can fail tu see in these

THE POWER OF THE BISHOPS

65

words, and in others like them, that the archbishops and bishops
keep complete liberty, given that an exhortation does not deprive
them of it; and that they do not acquire more authority over their
suffragans since they are warned to defend their rights in concert
with them? And how can We imagine that the Emperor wished to
make a law for the whole Empire, against the authority of the
nuncios, when he himself knows full well that in ecclesiastical
matters the Empire governs itself only by the laws of the Church,
and that in other matters laws are established only with the
sanction of the Diet or of the whole German people; and that,
moreover, the Diet itself can take nothing from the supreme
authority of the princes in their principalities, in what does not
contravene the constitution of the German people? These matters,
and others like them, We have developed at greater length in
Our letter to Our Venerable Brother Louis-Joseph, Bishop of
Freising, under date of October 12 (1786), printed at Munich
in Latin and German.
For the rest, Venerable Brother, after having shown you 62
above the manner in which your predecessors, distinguished by (144)
great sanctity and learning, judged it proper to defend and
maintain the rights of their See, We will pursue with you only
Our ordinary line of conduct. Therefore, We conjure you in the
Lord, as much as in Us lies, that in these unhappy times for the
Church it not be given to Us to suffer new assaults, which, com­
ing from you, Venerable Brother, would be all the more painful
to Our heart, as We had less reason to expect them from you. On
the contrary, from you We expect succor for the Church, and sen­
timents proper to strengthen the bonds of the great Catholic unity.
We hope that your generous and loyal soul will not reject these
entreaties and arguments. If you continue to press Us and to
combat Our interests and those of the Holy See, you will, doubt­
less, increase Our sorrow, but, however great this may be, it
will never be able to bring Us to renounce Our right to the
primacy which has been transmitted to Us.
(The witness of St. Nicholas I.—Blessing.)
THE POWER OF THE BISHOPS

Letter Deessetnus Nos, September 16, 1788, to the Bishop
of Motula.
3. The Church

66

RUPTURE OF UNITY

(The sentence given by the Bishop in a matrimonial case is
null and void. )

63
Doubtless We could close Our letter here, since We have
(154, adequately exposed Our reflections, called for, so We believe,
189, by your manner of acting in matrimonial cases.
199,
But we cannot pass over in silence this innovation which
203) you have introduced of omitting the traditional formula which
yôur brother bishops everywhere use: "By the grace of the
Apostolic See.” This formula, already in use even before there
were reserved cases, and religiously preserved for many cen­
turies, has as its raison d’etre the Primacy of the Apostolic See
and the reverence which is due to the successors of blessed
Peter. Now, not content with omitting the usual formula, you
pride yourself on the use of this one instead: “Bishop by the
King’s grace,” thus introducing a new term, absolutely contrary
to custom and in no sense conformable to episcopal dignity. This
dignity, in fact, depends immediately on God as to the power
of orders, and on the Apostolic See as to the power of jurisdic­
tion, to the exclusion of all lay powers, to whom the right of
naming and of establishing bishops does not belong, save by
a privilege conceded by the Holy See (a). However, We do
not wish to insist on the meaning and the character of this
innovation: it is sufficiently clear by itself, it is suspect, and
it certainly merits general reprobation.

RUPTURE OF UNITY
Letter Illa fiducia, July 10, 1790, to the Archbishop of
Bordeaux.
(The time for patience is past; the Pope must condemn the
Civil Constitution of the Clergy.)
t»4
The new decrees emanating from the National Assembly arc
(57, such that they are directly opposed to the unity of the Catholic
191) Church, they sever communion of this Kingdom with the Apos63a Utpote qux (iuoad ordinem immediate est a Deo, et quoad
jurisdictionem ah Apostolica Sede, exclusis laicis potestatibus,
quibus jus ipsum nominandi et praestandi non competit, nisi acce­
dente privilegio S. Sedis.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

67

tolic See; if sanction for them is obtained from the King the
country will lapse into schism. And so he, too, will become
schismatic, he, the most Christian King, eldest Son of the
Church; schismatic, too, will be the bishops elected by the forms
laid down in the decrees, and We will find Ourselves obliged
to declare them interlopers and deprived of all jurisdiction.
(The Pope is writing to the King to prescribe his line of
conduct.)

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY
Letter Quod aliquantum, to Cardinal de la Rochefoucauld
and to the Archbishops and Bishops of France, March 10, 1791.
(The interference of the Constituent Assembly in ecclesi­
astical affairs.—The reunion of the Consistory.)
While We were busy with this matter, a still more distress­ 65
ing matter was brought to Our attention. We learned that about (92,
the middle of July the French National Assembly (that is to 184)
say the majority—it is always in this sense that We use this
expression) had passed a decree, which, under the pretext of
providing merely a civil constitution of the clergy, (so the title
seemed to say) in fact attacked the most sacred dogmas,
tampered with the most solidly established ecclesiastical disci­
pline, abolished the rights of this first See, and of bishops, priests,
religious of both sexes, and of the entire Catholic body, sup­
pressed the sacred rites, appropriated Church revenues and funds,
finally wrought such havoc that it would be impossible to
believe it if it had not been a matter of experience. When these
things were told Us, We were indeed not able to suppress a
shudder at the reading of this decree.
(The letters of Louis XVI asking for the Pope's approbation.
—Before replying, Pius VI will wait until he has received the
advice of the French Bishops.)

The suppression of bishoprics
The King asks Us, among other things, to bring the metro­ 66
politans and the bishops, by Our advice, to consent to the (92.
division, and the suppression of metropolitan and episcopal sees; 203)
he begs Us to agree, at least for the time being, that the canonical
forms hitherto employed by the Church in .the erection of new
I

68

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

bishoprics now be used by the authority of the metropolitans
and the bishops, and that they be allowed to institute them in
favor of those who, according to the new method of elections,
will be presented to them, for the vacancies, provided that in
teaching and morals there is no reason to oppose their election.
From this request of the King it is easy to see that he recognizes
the necessity of consulting the bishops in cases of this nature,
and that consequently it is only just that We decide nothing
without first having heard their opinions. We await, therefore,
a faithful account of your advice, your opinions, your resolutions,
signed by each one of you, or at least by the majority of you.
Our own ideas will then rest upon this foundation as on a most
solid basis; it will be the guide and rule of Our deliberations;
it will assist Us to arrive at a proper decision, equally advan­
tageous to you and to your most Christian Kingdom. While We
await the accomplishment of Our desire, We will find in your
letters the assistance which will help Us in the examination of
all the articles of the national constitution.

The distinction of the two powers
67
If, in the first place, We study the acts of the Council of
(15, Sens assembled in the year 1527 to combat the Lutheran heresy,
85, We find that the principle which forms the basis of this consti91. tution cannot be said to be innocent of all taint of heresy. For
120, the Council expresses itself in the following terms: “After these
123) ignorant men, there rose up Marcilius of Padua, whose perni­
cious book entitled Dcfensorium Pads has lately been published
by the Lutherans to the great danger of the Christian people.
In a hostile manner the author attacks the Church, flatters the
princes in his impiety, strips prelates of all external jurisdiction
except that which the secular arm will grant them. He holds
moreover, that all those in orders, be they simple priests, or
bishops, or archbishops, and even the Pope himself, enjoy, by
virtue of Christ’s institution, an equal authority, but that if one
has more authority than another, this is a result of the free gift
of the prince, and that the latter can revoke it at will. But the
terrible madness of this raving heretic is rebuked by the Sacred
Scriptures, which clearly show that the ecclesiastical power does
not depend on the will of princes, but is of divine right, which
grants to the Church the power to establish laws helpful to the
salvation of the faithful, and to punish with lawful censure the

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

69

rebellious. It can also be clearly demonstrated from the same
Scriptures that the power of the Church is not only far superior
to any secular power whatsoever, but also that it is more worthy
of our respect. Marsilius, on the other hand, and the other here­
tics we have named, hurled themselves with impiety against the
Church, and vied with one another in the attempt to diminish
her authority” (a).
(Condemnation by Benedict XIV of the posthumous work of
Père Laborde of the Oratory because it contains the same error.)

The independence of the Church
In fact, what jurisdiction could seculars lay claim to in 68
Church matters, by what right are ecclesiastics to be held subject (91,
to their decrees? No Catholic, surely, can be ignorant of the fact 207,
that Jesus Christ in instituting his Church, gave to the Apostles 211)
and to their successors a power which is subject to no other pow­
er, and that all the holy Fathers unanimously recognize this with
Osius and St. z\thanasius when they say: “Do not interfere in
ecclesiastical affairs; it is not your place to give us orders in
these matters, but rather to learn these things from us: God has
given you the empire, to us He has entrusted all that has to do
with the Church; and just as he who would seize the power from
you would upset the order established by God, so you should
fear lest in arrogating spiritual matters to yourself you become
guilty of a greater crime” (a). And for the same reason St. John
Chrysostom, wishing to give greater emphasis to this same truth,
cites the example of Oza: “Who, for having laid hands on the
Ark, though he intended to prevent its fall, fell down dead; be­
cause he usurped a role which did not belong to him; but if the
simple violation of the Sabbath, if the mere contact with the Ark
when it was about to fall could so provoke the wrath of God

67a Verum ex sacris Litteris coercitus est dilerantis hujus haeretici
immanis furor, quibus palam ostenditur non ex principium arbi­
trio dependere ecclesiasticam potestatem, sed ex jure divino, quo
Ecclesiae conceditur leges aa salutem condere fidelium, et in
rebelles legitima censura animadvertere; iisdem quoque Litteris
aperte monstratur Ecclesiæ potestatem longe alia quavis laica
potestate, non modo superiorem esse, sed et digniorem. Cæterum
hic Marsilius et cæteri prænominati haeretici adversus Ecclesiam
impie debacchati certatim ejus aliqua ex parte nituntur dimuere auctoritatem.
68a St. Athanasius, In Hist. Arian, ad Monacos.

70

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

and rendered unworthy of pardon those who dared to do such
things, what excuse shall he have, what mercy can he hope for,
who corrupts the adorable and ineffable dogmas of our faith?
This cannot be, it cannot, I say” (b).
09
The decrees of the Sacred Councils are all couched in the
(91) same terms, and all the monarchs of France accepted this doc­
trine up to the time of Louis XV, ancestor of the reigning King,
who, on August 10, 1731, declared that he recognized it “as his
first duty to prevent, on the occasion of conflict, any questioning
of the sacred rights of that power which has received from God
alone the right of determining questions of the teachings of faith,
or moral standards; of making laws or disciplinary regulations
by which are governed the ministers of the Church and the
faithful in religious matters; of instituting her ministers or of dis­
missing them according to the same regulations; and of exacting
obedience by imposing upon the faithful, according to the order of
the canons, not only salutary penances, but also real spiritual
punishment, by means of the judgments or censures which the
first pastors can impose by their own authority.”
70
And yet, in spite of these principles so generally recognized
(92) in the Church, this National Assembly has arrogated to itself

power over the Church when it has passed so many laws which
go counter to dogma and ecclesiastical discipline, and when it
has attempted to force bishops and all ecclesiastics by law to the
execution of these decrees. But this will not appear astonishing
to those who understand that the necessary effect of the consti­
tution decreed by the Assembly is to destroy the Catholic reli­
gion, and with it the obedience due to kings.
(Condemnation of the principle of liberty of conscience,
taken in an absolute sense.)
Roman primacy
71
As We move forward in the examination of the other errors
(191) of the National Assembly, We come immediately to the aboli­
tion of the primacy and jurisdiction of the Pope, since it is de­
creed that: “A new bishop may not have recourse to the Pope
to obtain any confirmation from him, but he will write to him
as to the head of the universal Church in testimony of the unity
68b In Ejrist. ad Calat., 1. 6.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

71

of faith and communion which he must maintain with him.” A
new formula for the oath is prescribed in which the name of the
Roman Pontiff is suppressed. Even more, the bishop-elect is
bound by oath to the national decrees, in which it is forbidden
him to seek confirmation of his election from the Pontiff, and
all power of the Pontiff is by that very fact excluded; thus are
the streams cut off from their source, the branches from the tree,
and the people from their first Pastor.

Peter lives in his successor
We may be permitted here to borrow the terms of St. Greg- 72
ory the Great to express the injury which has been perpetrated (151)
on Our dignity and Our authority, terms in which that Pontiff
complained to the Empress Constantina of the novel pretentions
which the Patriarch John had laid claim to in his pride, calling
himself the universal bishop, and he begged Constantina not to
give her consent to this usurpation: “May Your Reverence not
despise me in this matter, for even if Gregory’s (and now Pius')
sins are so great that he ought to suffer such wrongs, still there
are no sins of Peter the Apostle (to expiate), that under your
government such things should be. And so I beg you again and
again in the name of Almighty God that as your princely ancestors
ever sought favor with the Apostle St. Peter, so you too will seek
it for yourself and will take care to preserve it. The honor you
owe this illustrious Apostle should in no sense be lessened by Our
sins and because We have served him unworthily; may the Apos­
tle be your helper in all your endeavors here below, and hereafter
obtain the remission of all your sins” (a).
Canonical obedience
What St. Gregory petitioned from the authority of the Em­
press for the honor of the papal dignity, We petition in a similar
fashion from you, lest in that vast kingdom the rights and honor
of the primacy be abolished; let the merits of Peter—of whom
We are the heir, though an unworthy one—be considered: he
should be honored in the person of Our lowliness. But if you are
unable to accomplish this because you are prevented by some
outside force, let religion and your own courage supply what is
wanting; reject bravely the oath enjoined upon you: for the title

72a Epist. 21, 1. V.

73
(19.
44.
55,
142,
144,
147,
154,
181-

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

182, usurped by the Patriarch John was less of an attack on Gregory
191) than the national decree is to Our rights. How, in fact, can it be
said that communion with the visible head of the Church is
maintained, when this is limited to announcing the fact of the
election merely, and at the same time an oath is taken which
denies the authority of his primacy? In his capacity as head, do
not all his members owe him the solemn promise of canonical
obedience, which alone can maintain unity in the Church and
avoid schisms in this mystical body founded by Christ our Lord?
(a) And as far as the Church in France is concerned, We find
in Martène, De Antiquis Ecclesiæ Ritibus, the formula of the
oath which was in use there for many centuries: every French
bishop, on the day of his consecration, added to his profession
of faith, a special clause of obedience to the Roman Pontiff (b).
(Refutation of the arguments which defenders of the Con­
stitution draw from the Letter of Hormisdas.)

The discipline of the Church
But, say the apologists of the Assembly’s decrees, the consti(I2I)tution of the clergy concerns only discipline, which has often
changed according to circumstances, and is even now susceptible
of change. But among these decrees there are not a few which
are not merely disciplinary; there are others which attempt to
undermine the purity and immutability of dogma, as We have
already shown. But as to what concerns discipline, is there a sin­
gle Catholic who would affirm that ecclesiastical discipline could
be changed by laymen? Does not even Peter de Marca admit
that with regard to rites, ceremonies, sacraments, the disci­
pline of the clergy, their conditions and their control, are.
F3a Quod si alterne potestatis vi impediti exequi non valebitis, per
religionem et constantiam vestram complere debitis, fortiter vos
ab injuncto jurejurando abstinentes: quippe minus detrahebat
Gregorio usurpata a Joanne denominatio, quam nostro deroget
juri nationale decretum. Quomodo enim retentam, conservatarn(juc dici poterit cum visibili Ecclesiæ capite communionem, ei­
dem tantummodo electionem nunciando, eodemque tempore ipsius
primatus auctoritatem etiam per sacramenti religionem abnuen­
do·* Et tamen debetur ipsi tanquam capiti a suis membris solemnis
canonic.r obedicntiv promissio, ad retinendam, in Ecclesia unita­
tem, atque ad evitanda mystici ejus corporis a Christo Domino
constituti schismata.
73b Tom. Il, 1 I, c. Il, art. 11, ord. 1st.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

73

according to the canons of the councils and the decrees of the
Roman Pontiffs, under their jurisdiction, as the matter which is
most frequently subject to their competence? And that it is
scarcely possible to produce a single enactment of princes in this
area which stems solely from the secular arm. We see that in
this matter civil laws have always followed, not preceded" (a).

In 1560, when the faculty of the University of Paris exam- 75
ined the positions of Franciscus Grimauldet, Advocatus regius, (171)
which had been presented to the Assembly, or the Estates Gen­
eral, at Angers, among many propositions condemned by them is
to be found the following (No. 6): “The second point of re­
ligion is in sacerdotal polity and discipline, which Christian
kings and princes have the power to establish, to control, and to
reform when corrupt” (a). This proposition is false, schismatic,
destructive of ecclesiastical power, and heretical, and the proofs
adduced are inconclusive. Moreover, it is particularly true that
discipline cannot be changed rashly and arbitrarily: since the
two greatest lights of the Catholic Church, St. Augustine (b) and
St. Thomas Aquinas (c) teach positively that points of discipline
cannot be changed without necessity, or except in view of some
great utility, since the changing of a custom, even if it be of
some use, always disturbs by reason of its novelty: and they (i.e.,
these points) should not be changed (adds St. Thomas) “unless
on the one side sufficient recompense be made in terms of the
common good for what is lost on the other side.” Far from being
the case that the Roman Pontiffs have ever corrupted discipline,
they have ever used the authority given them by God to render
it better and more perfect, for the edification of the Church.
On the contrary, We grieve to see that the members of the
National Assembly have acted in quite the opposite sense, as
can easily be seen in comparing each of the articles of the decrees
with ecclesiastical discipline.
But before coming to these articles, We may be permitted to 76
say how closely, usually, discipline clings to dogma, how great (121,
is its influence in conserving the purity of dogma; nor should we 176)
forget how little benefit has been reaped from the variations
74a De Concord. Sacerd. et Irnper., Lib. II, c. VII, 8.
75a C. D’Argentre, Coll, judic., Vol. II, Paris (1728), p. 291.
75b Epist. 54 ad Jan.
75c la-IIae, q. 97, a. 2.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

74

permitted-though but rarely—by the concessions of the Roman
the sacred Councils have often separated from communion in
the Church violators of discipline, by the penalty of anathema (a).
(Decrees of the Councils in this sense: Constantinople,
Trent [Session 13, can. 9; Session 22, can. 7, 9; Sessions 24, can.
4. 9, 11 ].—Proscription of the French missal by Alexander VII.)

77
From the example of anathemas directed against offenders
(121-in so many areas of discipline, it is easy to see that the Church
122) has always held it to be so closely connected with dogma, that
it should never be changed, nor can it ever be changed, except
by the ecclesiastical power alone, to whom it belongs either to
make the judgment that what has been done up to now should
be maintained, or that the necessity exists of procuring a greater
SLIM

(History shows that these innovations have been neither
useful nor lasting.)
The suppression of bishoprics
78
Proceeding now to the examination of the articles of the
(203)decrees of the National Assembly, one of the gravest is to be
found in the suppression of the ancient metropolitan sees, as also
in the elimination of some bishoprics, the division of others, and
the erection of new sees. It is not Our intention here to make
a critical analysis of this question, since there is some historical
doubt about the ancient division in civil law of the Gallic
provinces, so that we can deduce that the metropolitan sees did
not coincide with the provinces, either in temporal or geograph­
ical importance; for the matter which here concerns Us, it is
enough to note that distribution of territory fixed by the civil
authority is in no sense the rule for the extent and limits of
ecclesiastical jurisdiction, as becomes clear from the reasoning
of St. Innocent I: "You asked me whether, according to the
divisions of the provinces established by imperial decree, since
76a Sed priusquam articulos hosce attingamus, praetermittendum
ducimus, quantum sæpe disciplina cohaereat dogmati, et ad efus
puritatis conservationem influat, neenon quam parum utilitatis
attulerint, et quam brevi tempore perdurarint variationes a Ro­
manis Pontificibus ex indulgentia, quamvis raro, permissae. Ac
profecto sacra Concilia pluribus in casibus disciplinae violatores
ab Ecclesiae communione per anathema separarunt.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

75

there are two metropolises, should two metropolitan bishops
be named; now it is not fitting that the Church of God be
changed according to the fluctuations of worldly necessity; these
honors and divisions are independent of those which the Em­
peror, for his own reasons, may see fit to establish. Therefore,
the number of metropolitan bishops remains conformable to the
ancient custom of the provinces" (a).
To this letter Peter de Marca adds great weight by bringing 79
it to bear on the practice of the Gallican Church; it will be (92)
sufficient to quote briefly from his writings: "The Gallican
Church was in agreement with the Council of Chalcedon and
the decree of Innocent, holding that it was not within the power
of rulers to establish new episcopal sees, etc. We must not, by
base flatter}' of princes, depart from the common belief of the
universal Church, as happened to Marc-Antonio de Dominis
who, falsely and against the very canons themselves, attributes
to princes the institution of bishoprics; this position has been
embraced by some modems. The fact is that to the Church alone
belongs the right to regulate this matter, as I have said” (a).

Difficulties opposed to the approbation of the decree
But, they say, what they are asking of you is to approve 80
the division of the dioceses which has been decreed; but must(203)
We not give it mature consideration, if We are to approve of it?
And the vicious principle according to which these new divisions
and suppressions have been made, is it not a grand obstacle to
the consent which we should give it? Moreover, it must be
noted that we are not here dealing with one or two diocesan
changes, but with a far-reaching upheaval in almost all the
dioceses of a vast empire, of moving a great many illustrious
churches from their place, of reducing many of them now rejoic­
ing in the honor of archbishopric, to the rank of bishopric, against
which innovation Innocent III protested with bitterness (a).
( The historical precedents. )
The election of bishops

There follows now this other change, or rather this reversal 81
of disciplinary practice, which would introduce a considerable (189)

78a Epist. 24 ad Alexandrum Antioch.
79a Op. cit., 1. II, c. IX, 4, 7.
80a Lib. II, Epist. 50.

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THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

novelty in the method of electing bishops, where is violated the
solemn convenant, or Concordat, concluded between Leo X and
the King Francis 1, approved by the Fifth General Council of the
Lateran, in which the mutual faith of the parties was pledged
and which has been in effect already for two hundred and fifty
years, and which consequently, was to be regarded as the law
of the land. In this Concordat agreement had been reached be­
tween the signatories on the method of conferring bishoprics,
prelatures, monasteries, and benefices. Now however, it has been
decreed by this Assembly that in the future Bishops will be elect­
ed by the people of the districts or the municipalities. In this the
Assembly certainly seems to have wished to embrace the false
opinions of Luther and Calvin, which have since been adopted
by the apostate of Spalato. For they assert that it is of divine law
that bishops should be elected by the people.

82
It is very easy to understand how erroneous this opinion is if
(138) we recall the method of the ancient elections. For if we begin
with Moses, he established Aaron in the priesthood, and after
him Eleazar, without the suffrage of the counsel of the multi­
tude; and Christ Our Lord chose first the twelve apostles, and
then the seventy-two disciples, without the intervention of the
people; St. Paul the Apostle ordained with his own hands Tim­
othy for the Ephesians, Titus for the island of Crete, Dionysius
the Areopagite for Corinth (a). And St. John gave the bishopric
of Smyrna to Polycarp without any formula of consent from the
people (b), and almost innumerable other envoys were sent to
govern distant peoples, and to the infidels, of Pontus, Galatia,
Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, on the judgment and decision
of the Apostles alone, to act as governors in the Churches founded
by them (the Apostles) (c).
(History shows that the election of bishops is not of divine
right.—The abuses which led to abolishing it.)

The Constitution entrusts
the election of bishops to non-Catholics
83
But if this exclusion of the people was effected at a time
(203)when the electors were all Catholics, what must be said of the
82a Eusebius, Eccl. Hist., 1. Ill, c. IV.
82b St. Jerome, De Viris Ulus., c. 17.
82c Eusebius, ibid.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

77

decree of the National Assembly by the terms of which, after
excluding the clergy, the elections are given to districts of France
in which are to be found Jews, heretics, and heterodox of many
different kinds, who woidd have no small interest in episcopal
elections: then would come to pass that horrible abuse which
St. Gregory the Great protested in writing to the people of Milan:
“We cannot for any reason give Our consent to the election of a
subject chosen, not by Gatholics, but by Lombards ... for a man
elected by them is obviously unworthy to be ordained a successor
of St. Ambrose” (a).

This mode of election would renew abuses, would revive 84
animosity which for a long time has lain dormant; it would even (92,
give to the Church prelates who were fomenters of heresy, teach- 191)
ers who, at least in secret and in the privacy of their own hearts,
would nurse the erroneous opinions of the electors: “The judg­
ments of the people,” says St. Jerome, “are often very false; the
vulgar are mistaken in the choice of their priests; each of them
wants them to conform to his morals; it is not the best shepherd
he seeks, but the shepherd who resembles himself’ (a). What
could be expected of these bishops who have not entered by the
true door; or rather, what evils religion would have not to fear
from these men who, themselves caught in the toils of error,
would be incapable of correcting the people in their fault? (b)
And certainly pastors of this kind, whoever they might be, would
not have the power to bind or to loose since they would be with­
out lawful mission, since they would immediately be solemnly
excommunicated by the Holy See, for such is the penalty it has
always inflicted on interlopers, and it is thus that even in our
own time the Holy See took care to condemn in public proclama­
tion each election of the bishops of Utrecht (c).

The “Appeal by writ of error”
But as We proceed in the examination of this decree, even 85
more harmful provisions are to be found: the bishops elected by (92,
83a L. XI, epist. 4.
84a Lib. I adv. Jovin., n. 34.
84b Quid autem ab hujusmodi episcopis, qui aliunde intrarent,
quam per ostium, esset expectandum, immo quid non timendum
in religionem mali, qui deceptionis laqueo detenti nullo modo a
deceptione poterunt corrigere populum?—S. Damase, Epist. III,
n. 2.
84c Benedict XIV, Bullarium, T. I, Const., 11.

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THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

197, their departments are ordered to demand confirmation from the
200, Metropolitan or from the bishop with the highest seniority; if he
201) refuses, he is obliged to commit in writing the reasons for the
refusal. The ‘bishop elect’ can appeal the decision by writ of
error before the civil magistrates; the latter arc the ones who shall
determine whether or not the exclusion is legitimate; they will
appoint themselves judges of the metropolitans and of the bish­
ops, though to those last belongs the power in the fullest sense
to pass judgment on teaching and morals, and it is they, accord­
ing to St. Jerome, who have been appointed to preserve the faith­
ful from error.

Interference with the free government of the bishops
86
Finally, is it not evident that the object of the Assembly in
(207) these decrees is to overthrow and destroy the episcopate through
hatred of the religion whose ministers are the bishops? More­
over, they have imposed on the bishops a permanent council of
priests with the name of vicars, whose number is fixed at 16 for
cities of ten thousand inhabitants, 12 for less thickly populated
centers. Furthermore, bishops are forced to attach to their
households the pastors of suppressed parishes; they are declared
their vicars without need of sanction, and, by reason of this right,
they are independent of the bishop. Although the bishop is left
the free choice of his vicars, nevertheless he cannot, without their
advice, exercise any act of jurisdiction, except in a provisional
sense; he cannot dismiss one of them except by the plurality of
the votes of his Council. Is this not to intend that each diocese
will be governed by priests, whose authority will nullify the
jurisdiction of the bishop? Is this not in open contradiction with
the teaching laid down in the Acts of the Apostles: “The Holy
Spirit has established the bishops to govern the Church of God
which He has purchased with his own blood”? (a) Finally, is
this not to disturb and absolutely to overthrow the whole order
of the hierarchy? By this method priests become the equals of
bishops, an error which the priest Aërius was the first to teach
and which was afterwards embraced by Wycliffe, by Marsilius of
Padua, by John of Ganduno, and finally by Calvin, as Benedict
XIV observes in his treatise on the Diocesan Synod (b).
86a 20.28.

86b Lib. ΧΙΠ, c. I, n. 2.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

79

Priests are put over bishops
Further, priests are put above bishops since the bishops can­
not dismiss any member of their Council, nor can they decide (203,
anything except by a plurality of the votes of their vicars; how- 207)
ever, the canons who compose the legitimately established chap­
ters, and who form the Council of the churches, when they are
summoned by the bishop, have only a consultative voice in
the deliberations, as Benedict XIV affirms according to the two
provincial councils held at Bordeaux (a).

For what concerns the other vicars without need of sanction, 88
it is very strange and quite unheard of that bishops should be (203,
forced to accept their services at the same time that they may 207)
have very legitimate motives for rejecting them. It is very as­
tonishing above all that these priests, being only subordinates,
and replacing in his functions a man who is not unskillful in their
exercise himself, should not be subject to him in whose name
they act.
Seminaries
But let us proceed. The Assembly has at least left to bishops 89
the power of choosing their vicars from the total number of the (201 )
clergy. But when it is a question of regulating the administration
of seminaries, it has decreed that the bishop cannot choose the
superiors except according to the advice of his vicars, and on the
plurality of their votes, and that he can dismiss them only in the
same way. Is there anyone who does not see to what a point this
carries the defiance of the bishops, who, nonetheless, are rightly
charged with the teaching and the discipline of those who are
to be admitted into the ranks of the clergy and employed in the
ecclesiastical ministry? Is it not incontestable that the bishop is
the head and the first superior of the seminary? Although the
Council of Trent (a) ordains that two canons shall be charged with
the supervision of the education of young clerics, it nevertheless
leaves to the bishops the liberty of choosing these two canons,
and in this to follow the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; the Coun­
cil does not force them to adopt their advice and to assent to
their decisions (b). What confidence could the bishops have in
87a Ibid., c. II, n. 6.
89a Sess. XXIII. De reform., cap. 18.
89b Et tamen nihil certum magis indubitatumque, quam quod
caput et summus administer seminariorum sit episcopus, et quam-

Γ’ΊΓ

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THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF TI IE CLERGY

those who would be chosen by others, and perhaps by men who
would have sworn to maintain the poisoned teaching which these
decrees embody?
The salary appointed to bishops
90
Finally, to put the crowning touch to the contempt and ab(201) jection into which they intend to plunge the bishops, every three
months they are subject to receive, like vile mercenaries, a token
sum for salary, with which they will be unable to alleviate the
distress of the multitudes of poor people who cover the face of
the kingdom, still less maintain the character of the episcopal
dignity. This new institution of a ‘suitable allowance’ for the
bishops, contravenes all the ancient laws which assigned to the
bishops and pastors estates which they should administer and
from which they could reap revenue as owners do. We read in
the Capitularies of Charlemagne (a) and in those of King Lo­
thair (b) that there was a certain amount of land destined for
each church: "We ordain,” says one of these, “according to the
will of the King our Lord and Father, that there shall be given
for revenue to each parish a domain of twelve measures of arable
land". When the portion assigned to bishops was insufficient for
their upkeep, it was increased by adding to it the revenues of
some abbey, as this was often done in France, and as We recall
was done even in Our Pontificate. But now the resources of
bishops will depend on secular receivers and treasurers, who will
be able to refuse them their salary if they oppose the unlawful
decrees of which I have just spoken: beyond that, each bishop,
now reduced to a fixed pension, will no longer be able when
necessity requires it, to provide an assistant and a coadjutor for
himself, since he will be unable to provide for his upkeep in a
suitable manner. And yet it often happens in dioceses that a
bishop, whether because of old age or ill health, needs a coadju­
tor; it is thus that the archbishop of Lyons petitioned and obtained
from the Holy See an assistant, to whom was assigned a pension
levied on the revenue of the archbishopric (c).
quam Tridentina Synodus mandet, ut duo canonici super eccle­
siastica alumnorum disciplina instituantur, eorum tamen electio
relinquitur episcopis prout Spiritus Sanctus suggesserit, neque
inhærere eorum judiciis, neque assentiri consiliis adstrineuntur
90a A.D. 789, cap. XV.
90b Tit. IV, cap. I.
90c Benedict XIV, De Synodo, Book XIII, c. XIV, n. 12.

TUE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

81

The suppression of parishes
We have just seen, with very great astonishment, dearly 91
beloved Sons and Venerable Brothers, these reversals of the (92)
principal points of ecclesiastical discipline, these suppressions,
divisions, erections of episcopal sees, sacrilegious elections of
bishops, and the evils that must result from them. Must we not,
for the same reasons, have the same opinion of the suppression
of parishes? You have already noted this in your exposition, but
I cannot help adding my reflections to yours. The right which
is attributed to the departmental governments to fix, on their
own initiative, the limits of parishes as they shall see fit, is
already very extraordinary; but what has caused me the greatest
astonishment, is the prodigious number of parishes suppressed;
it is the decree which lays down that in cities or towns of six
thousand inhabitants there shall be only one single parish. And
how could one pastor ever suffice for this immense flock of
parishioners?
(The reply of Cardinal Conrad to a pastor of Cologne.)
The goods of the Church

We pass now to infringements of ecclesiastical possessions, 92
that is to say, to the second error of Marsilius of Padua and of (92)
John of Ganduno, condemned by the constitution of John
XXII (a), and long before this by the decree of Pope St. Boni­
face I, which is reported by several writers (b): “No one may
be ignorant of the fact that all that is consecrated to God, men,
cattle, fields, in a word anything that has once been vowed to the
Lord, is of the number of holy things, and belongs to the Church.
Therefore, whoever seizes, lays waste, plunders, and usuqjs the
heritage of the Lord and of the Church, must be regarded as a
sacriligious person, so long as he has not expiated his crime and
made satisfaction to the Church. If he persists in his usurpation,
let him be excommunicated” (c).
(Historical support of the same teaching.)
92a Denz. n. 495.
92b Coustant, Epist. Roni. Pont., p .1050, n. 3.
92c Nulli licet ignorare, quod omne quod Domino consecratur, sive
fuerit homo, sive animal, sive ager, vel quidquid fuerit semel con­
secratum, sanctum sanctorum erit Domino, et ad jus pertinet
sacerdotum. Propter quod inexcusabilis est omnis, qui ea qua’

S2

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

The suppression of Chapters

What seems almost incredible is that at the very moment
(92) when the possessions of the churches and of the Catholic priests
are being seized, respect is had for the possessions which
Protestant ministers, enemies of the Church, stripped from her
in the past, and this in the name of treaties. Doubtless the
National Assembly regards these treaties made with the Protes­
tants as more sacred than the ecclesiastical canons and than the
Concordat concluded between the Head of the Church and
Francis I. And it has pleased the Assembly to do this favor to the
Protestants precisely at the moment when it was despoiling the
Catholic clergy. Who fails to see that the principal object of the
usurpers, in this invasion of ecclesiastical property, is to profane
the temples, to contemn the ministers of the altars, and for the
future to turn the citizenry from the ecclesiastical state? For
scarcely had they laid hands on this spoil than divine worship
was abolished, churches closed, sacred vessels seized, and the
singing of the divine office interrupted. France could glory that
she had seen flower in her land as early as the sixth century
chapters of clerks regular, as We can satisfy ourselves on the
authority of Gregory of Tours, by the monuments which
Dom Mabillon has assembled in the work entitled Vetera analecta,
and the witness of the Third Council of Orleans held in 538. But
today she weeps over the abolition and ruin of these pious
establishments unjustly and unworthily proscribed by the
National Assembly. The principal function of the Canons was
daily to pay a common tribute of praise to God by the singing of
the Psalms. Paul the Deacon, in his Lives of the Bishops of Metz,
gives us the proof of this. We read there that “Bishop Chrodegand
had not only formed his clergy by the study of the law of God,
but that he had taken care to have them leam the Roman chant,
and that he enjoined on them the duty of conformity with the
usage and practice of the Roman Church” (a).
94
The Emperor Charlemagne had addressed to Pope Adrian I
(49, a work on the cult of images, to submit it to his examination; this
Domino, vel Ecclesüe competunt, aufert, vastat, et invadit, vel
diripit, et usque ad emendationem, Ecclesiæque satisfactionem,
ut sacrilegus judicetur, et si emendare noluit, excommunicatur.
93a De ordine episc. Metens.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

83

Pontiff used the occasion to charge the Emperor to lose no time 172)
in establishing the custom of the chant in several Churches of
France, which for a long time had been refusing to follow on
this point the practice of the Roman Church, so that, the Pope
said, these same churches which regard the Holy See as the rule
of their faith, may regard it also as their model in their manner of
honoring God (a).
(The establishment of the Roman chant by Charlemagne.)

The property of regulars

Let us come now to regulars, whose possessions the National 95
Assembly has actually seized, declaring that it is at the disposition(209)
of the nation, an expression which is less odious than that of
property and which, in fact, presents a slightly different sense.
By its decree of February 13, sanctioned six days later by the King,
the Assembly has suppressed all religious orders, and prohibited
the foundation of any new ones in the future. However, experience
has proved how useful they are to the Church; the Council of
Trent has witnessed to this; it has declared: “that it was not
ignorant of how much glory and how many advantages accrued
to the Church of God from monasteries piously founded and
wisely governed” (a).
(The Church and the religious orders.) (b)

Solemn vows
Thus, the National Assembly, eager to favor the false systems 96
of heretics, by abolishing the religious orders, condemns the (129,
public profession of the Counsels of the Gospel; it finds blame- 157,
worthy a way of life always approved in the Church as most in 209)
conformity with the teaching of the Apostles; it insults the holy
founders of orders to whom religion has raised altars, and who
have established these societies only under divine inspiration.
94a ... Ut cui adhaeserant fidci munere, adhærerent quoque psal­
lendi ordine.
95a At vero quantam illa Ecclesix utilitatem afferant, ex ipsa de­
ducit experientia Concilium Tridentinum: '‘Quoniam non ignorat
S. Synodus quantum ex monasteriis pie institutis, et recte admin­
istratis in Ecclesia Dei splendoris atque utilitatis oriatur''. Sess.
25, cap. I.
95b The rest of this passage, herein omitted, may be read in the
volume, THE STATES OF PERFECTION.

84

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

But the National Assembly goes even further. In its decree of
February 13, 1790, it declares that it does not recognize the
solemn vows of religious and that consequently, the orders and
congregations of regulars in which these vows are made are and
will remain suppressed in France, and that in the future no similar
ones can be founded. Is this not an infringement of the authority
of the Sovereign Pontiff who alone has the right to pronounce on
solemn and perpetual vows? “Solemn vows," says St. Thomas
Aquinas, “that is to say vows of continency, etc., are reserved to
the Sovereign Pontiff. These vows are solemn engagements which
we contract with God for our own advantage” (a). It is for this
reason that the prophet says in Psalm 75, v. 12: "Vow your vows
to the Lord your God, and keep yourselves from infidelity.”
Again, it is for this reason that we read in Ecclesiastes: “If thou
hast vowed anything to God, defer not to pay it: for an unfaithful
and foolish promise displeaseth him: but whatsoever thou hast
vowed, pay it” (b).
97
(176)

Therefore, even when the Sovereign Pontiff believes that,
for particular reasons, he should grant a dispensation from solemn
vows, he does not proceed on the decision of his own power,
but by means of a declaration (a). There is no reason to be as­
tonished that Luther taught a man is not held to keep his vows,
since he himself was an apostate, a renegade from his order. The
members of the National Assembly, who pride themselves on
being wise and prudent, are anxious to deflect from themselves
the scandal and reproaches which the sight of so many dispersed
religious would excite against them; they saw fit to strip the
religious of their habits, so that there would remain not a single
trace of the state from which they had been tom, and so as to
efface even the ver}' memor}’ of religious orders. Religious have,
therefore, been done away with, first in order to seize their
property, and secondly, so as to destroy that race of men who
would enlighten the people and oppose moral corruption. This
wicked and blameworthy stratagem is energetically described and
reproved by the Council of Sens: ‘They grant,” says the Council,
"to monks and to all those bound to vows, liberty to follow their
96a Sum. Theol., Ila Ilae, q. LXXXVIII, art. 12.
96b 5:3.
97a ... Non ex potestatis suae arbitrio, sed per modum declarationis
procedit.

THE CIVIL CONSTITUTION OF THE CLERGY

85

passions; they offer them freedom to abandon their habit, to
return to the world; they invite them to apostasy; they teach
them to defy the decrees of the Popes and the canons of the
Councils.”

Nuns
Let us add to what I have just said on the subject of the 98
vows of regulars, the odious decree leveled at consecrated virgins, (209)
which drives them from their convents after the example of
Luther. For this heresiarch, in the words of Pope Adrian VI,
“defiled those vessels consecrated to the Lord, tore from their
monasteries the virgins vowed to God, and returned them to
the secular world, or rather, to Satan whom they had abjured.”
Nonetheless, the nuns, that most distinguished portion of the
flock of the Catholic faithful, have often warded off the greatest
scourges by means of their prayer: “If there had been no con­
secrated virgins in Rome,” says St. Gregory the Great, “not one
of us for many years past would have escaped the swords of
the Lombards” (a). Benedict XIV renders the same tribute to
the religious women of Bologna: “This city, buffeted by so many
calamities for so many years, would not be standing today if
the prayers of the nuns had not appeased the ire of God” (b).
We have been deeply touched by the persecution which the
nuns are undergoing in France. Most of them have written to
Us from the different provinces of the kingdom to tell Us what
sorrow they experience in being impeded in the observance of
their rules and fidelity to their vows. They have protested to
Us that they are determined to suffer everything rather than
fail in their obligations. We must, dearly beloved Sons and
Venerable Brothers, pay tribute to their constancy and their
courage in Our words to you. We beg you to continue to sustain
them by your counsels and your exhortations, and to give them
all the assistance in your power.
(Refutation of the sophisms of Talleyrand.—Comparison of
his conduct with that of St. Thomas of Canterbury.—He is con­
demned by the magnificent declarations of the Autun Chapter.
—The Pope exhorts the Bishops of France to union and courage.—
He proffers his help and solicits their counsel.)

98a Epist. XXVI, 1. 7.

98b Inst. eccl., 29.

I

INDEPENDENCE OF THE CHURCH
Encycl. Caritas quæ, April 13, 1791, to France.
(Perils incurred by the Church in France.)

99
We have most urgently exhorted Our very dear son in
(92) Christ, the most Christian King, by Our letter of July 10, 1790,
not to give his sanction to a Civil Constitution of the Clergy,
which is of such a nature as to lead the nation into error and
bring about a schism in the kingdom. For it is absolutely im­
possible that a purely political Assembly should have the right
to modify the universal discipline of the Church, to destroy the
authority of the Fathers and the decrees of the Councils, to upset
the order of the hierarchy, to regulate arbitrarily the election
of bishops, to suppress episcopal sees, and, having destroyed
the better, to introduce transformations into the Church.
(Offer to negotiate—Loyalty of the bishops.—The new
decrees of the Assembly are unacceptable.—Defection of Talleyrand.-Beginnings of a schismatic clergy.—Condemnation of this
group.—Exhortation to repent and unite with the See of Rome.)
100
Finally, attach yourselves with single-mindedness to the
(44) Holy See, for no one can be in the Church, unless he be
united to Us its Visible Head, and be one with the Chair of
Peter.
EPISCOPAL ELECTIONS

Letter Minime ignoramus, April 16, 1791, to the Catholics
of Strasbourg.
(The dismissal of Cardinal de Rohan.—Illegitimate election
of an intruded bishop.)
101
Today We have written directly to your bishop to approve
(150, and to justify, by Our well-merited praise, the courage, the
154, wisdom, the perseverance he has shown, whether in his pastoral
161, instructions or in the acts of his ministry, recognizing him as
165, your legitimate Pastor, to whom alone you must remain united,
191. the only one whose voice you are permitted to listen to. Any
203) other, whoever he may be, since he owes his title to an illegal
election, to violence, and to fraud, you must reject and resist.
Such is Our judgment, Ours who by the disposition of the divine
will have been placed on the Chair of Peter. We do not doubt

SCHISMATIC CLERGY

I

87

but that in adopting it and carrying it out you will employ all
the eagerness which with the mind of true Catholics made you
have recourse to Us, to learn Our decision, emanating as it does
from the tribunal of him whom Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself
established pastor of the entire flock, master of doctrine, and
center of ecclesiastical unity.
( Blessing. )
SCHISMATIC CLERGY

Instruction Laudabilem majorum, September 26, 1791, to
the French Bishops.
(Responses to the questions submitted to the Pope on the
subject of the schism.)
His Holiness has declared that it is not permitted to re­ 102
ceive the baptism of the intruded clergy except in cases of (56,
extreme necessity and if no one else can be found to give 59)
baptism; the sacrament should be conferred by legitimate clergy
or by others armed with their permission.
For, since the intruded pastor is certainly schismatical, and
his schism is obvious, it follows that the action of a Catholic who
addresses himself to the intruded cleric for the administration
of baptism, is, from every point of view, vicious, evil, and for­
bidden; in effect, this would be to communicate with schismatics
in divine matters and in the very wickedness of the schism, which
is by its very nature an evil, and hence forbidden by the natural
law as well as by the divine. For what is the sin of schism,
committed by the intruded priest, if it is not to usurp by his
own action the pastoral ministry, without any authorization, and
even in contempt of the authority of the bishop whom he rejects?
And what else is the Catholic doing who receives baptism from
the intruded priest, except to commit the crime of schism with
him, since one, in administering baptism, and the other, in re­
ceiving it, consummates a premeditated offense, which neither
one could have committed without the concurrence of the other
So when a Catholic cooperates in the schism by his conduct,
it is impossible for him not to assent by that ven' fact to the
sin of schism, and not to recognize and treat the intruder as
a legitimate priest.
(Marriage cases—Regulation in 6 articles.—Funerals.)

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH
Apost. Const. Auctorem Fidei, August 28, 1794.
(Meditate on the sufferings inflicted on Christ by sinners
so as to remain constant ourselves in the face of attacks on his
Mystical Body.)
103
In these troubled times, in the face of this total upheaval,
(142, it is certainly a hard necessity for men of good will to have to
145, undertake the struggle against the enemies of the Christian
150, name, whoever they may be. How much more pressing this ne160) cessity is for Us, on whom, by reason of the charge and the
government of the entire flock confided to Our pastoral solici­
tude, is incumbent “more than on anyone else, the duty of
defending the Christian religion” (a). Nonetheless, under the
very weight of the charge laid on Our shoulders to carry the
burdens of all those who bow before the storm, the more We
realize Our own infirmity, the firmer is the hope which supports
Us and establishes for Us the character of Our office divinely
instituted in the person of blessed Peter. For, having once re­
ceived from the hand of Christ the helm of the Church, he has
never been abandoned, nor has he himself ceased to carry the
weight of apostolic government in the person of those whom
God gave him as heirs in perpetual succession, with the charge
to protect and guard them.
(The errors of the Bishop of Pistoia.—The schismatical syn­
od.—The pope is obliged to go the length of condemning it.)
We condemn and reprove the following articles:

On the obscuring of truth in the Church
I

104
The proposition which affirms that “in recent centuries
(96, there has been a general obscuring of very important religious
103) truths as well as the bases of faith and the moral doctrine of
Jesus Christ”,
heretical.
103a St. Siricius, ad Himerium Tarrac., epist. I, aptid Const.

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

89

On the power attributed to the ecclesiastical community,
to be communicated by it to pastors
II
I

The proposition which holds that "power has been given 105
by God to the Church to be communicated to the pastors who\138)
are its ministers for the salvation of souls”, understood in the
sense that the power of the ecclesiastical ministry and jurisdic­
tion derives from the community of the faithful to (be com­
municated to) the pastors,
heretical.

On the appellation "Ministerial Head”
attributed to the Roman Pontiff

III
Further, the proposition which holds that "the Roman Pon- 106
tiff is the ministerial head”, explained in such manner that it is (192,
not from Christ, and in the person of Peter, but from the Church, 145,
that the Roman Pontiff receives the power of the ministry which 146)
he enjoys in the universal Church, as successor of Peter, true
Vicar of Christ, and Head of the whole Church, heretical.
On the power of the Church relative to the
establishment of exterior discipline
IV

The proposition affirming that "it would be to abuse the 107
authority of the Church, to carry it beyond the limits of doctrine (121)
and morals, to extend it to external concerns and to exact by
force what belongs to the sphere of free persuasion’ anil also
that it belongs still less to the authority of the Church to exact
obedience to its decrees by force”;
insofar as the vague expression "to extern! it to external con­
cerns”, condemns as an abuse of the authority of the Church,
the use of her power received from Cod, which the Apostles
themselves exercised in establishing and sanctioning exterior
discipline,
heretical.
V
Insofar ;as this
’
proposition implies that the Church has 108
no authority to require submission to her decrees other than by (120)
persuasion,

<·

90

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

insofar as it means that the Church has received from
God only the power of direction by counsel and by reason­
ing, but not the power of imposing laws, of constraining and
punishing delinquents and contumacious persons by exterior
judgment anti penal constraint, results in a system already con­
demned as heretical (a).

Powers attributed to the Bishops
VI
109
The doctrine of the Synod which professes that “the Bishop
(189)has received from Christ all the necessary rights for the good
government of his diocese";
as if for the good government of each diocese there were not
required directives from above concerning either faith and
morals, or general discipline, which come by right from the
Sovereign Pontiffs and the General Councils for the entire
Church,
Schismatical, or at least erroneous.

VII
110
It is the same also when the bishop is urged “to pursue
(189) with zeal the perfecting of ecclesiastical discipline", and that,
“against all customs, exemptions, reserves to the contrary, which
would be in opposition to the good order of the diocese, to the
greater glory of God and to the greater edification of the
faithfur;
because it supposes that the bishop is allowed, by his own au­
thority, to make decisions and issue decrees contrary to the
customs, exemptions, and reserves in force, whether in the uni­
versal Church, or in individual dioceses, without the permission
and the intervention of superior hierarchial authority by which
they have been introduced or approved, or from which they
derive the force of law,
schismatical in tendency,
prejudicial to hierarchical
authority, erroneous.
108a Benedict XIV, Brief Ad assiduas, 1755, to the Polish Bishops
Bull., Vol. IV, p. 225.

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

91

VII
Likewise for the conviction which it expresses in saying. Ill
that “the rights of the bishop, received from Jesus Christ for the (118)
government of the Church, can neither be modified nor in­
fringed; and if it happen that the exercise of these rights be
interrupted for any cause whatsoever, the bishop can and must
always resume his original rights each time that the greater
good of his church requires it”;
inasmuch as it signifies that the exercise of episcopal rights
cannot be prevented or suppressed by any superior authority,
whenever the bishop, on his own authority, shall decide it is
prejudicial to the greater good of his diocese,
schismatical in tendency,
prejudicial to hierarchical
authority, erroneous.

Right, incorrectly attributed to simple priests,
in the decrees on faith and discipline

IX
The doctrine which holds that “the reform of abuses relative 112
to ecclesiastical discipline in diocesan synods, and the mainte-(207)
nance of the reform, depends alike on the bishops and stors:
and that without this liberty of decision, submission would not
be owed to the counsels and orders of bishops",
false, presumptuous, destructive of
episcopal authority, fatal to
hierarchical power, favorable to the
heresy of Aërius, renewed by Calvin.

In the same way the doctrine which holds that pastors, and 113
other priests assembled in synods are considered as judges of (207)
the faith on a par with the bishop, and implying by that that
judgment in matters of faith belongs to them by right, and by
a right received in ordination,
false, temerarious, destructive of
hierarchical order, tendjw to diminish

92

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

the firmness of the definitions or
dogmatic decisions of the Church,
at least erroneous.
XI

114
The formula stating that according to an ancient practice
(200) dating from Apostolic times and preserved in the best centuries
of the Church, it was accepted that “decrees or definitions, or
sentences, even those emanating from major sees, were not ac­
cepted until after recognition and approval by the diocesan

false, temerarious, derogating by
its general terms to the obedience due
to the decisions emanating from
legitimate hierarchical superiors,
tending to schism and to heresy.
Of the composition of the Body of the Church

XV
115
The doctrine proposing that the Church “‘be considered a
(9) single mystical Body, composed of Christ its Head, and the
faithful who are his members in virtue of an ineffable union, by
which we become with him, one single priest, one single victim,
one single perfect adorer of God, in spirit and in truth”;
understood in the sense that only the faithful who are perfect
adorers in spirit and in truth belong to the Church,
heretical.
On indulgences

XLI

116
It is the same for what is added, namely that “the Scholas(118) tics, swollen with subtlety, introduced an ill understood treasure
of the merits of Christ and the Saints, and for the clear notion of
absolution from canonical penalty, have substituted another one,
false and confused, of the application of merits”;
as if the treasures of the Church, from which the Pope draws
to grant indulgences, were not the merits of Christ and of the
saints,

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

93

false, temerarious, injurious to the
merits of Christ and the saints,
recently condemned in article 17
of Luther.
XLII

It is the same for what is added, that “it is still more deplor- 117
able when it is desired to transfer this illusory application to (118)
the deceased";
. .
■
false, temerarious, offensive to pious ears,
injurious with respect to the Roman Pontiffs
as well as to the practice and teaching of the
universal Church, tending to the error cited as
heretical in the works of Peter of Osma, and
again condemned in article 22 of Luther.

Of reserved cases

XLIV
The proposition affirming that “the reservation of cases is 118
today nothing more than an untimely restriction on priests of (157)
the lower rank, and a meaningless word for penitents accustomed
to set no store by this reserve";
false, temerarious, ill sounding,
pernicious, contrary to the Council of
Trent, prejudicial to the authority of
the superior hierarchy.

XLV
It is the same for the hope that is expressed “in the future 119
ritual of penance such reserves will find no place";
(189)
inasmuch as, given the general sense of the terms employed,
it is suggested that by the reform of the ritual of penance,
effected by the bishop or by the council, could be abolished
the cases which the Council of Trent declares can be reserved
to their personal judgment by the Sovereign Pontiffs, in virtue
of the supreme power which has been conferred on them over
the universal Church,
the proposition is false, temerarious,
infringing upon and inflicting harm on
the authority of the Council of Trent
and of the Sovereign Pontiffs.

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

On censures
XLVI
The proposition affirming that “the effect of excommunica­
(55) tion is only exterior, because, of its nature, it only excludes from
the exterior communion of the Church";
as if excommunication were not a spiritual penalty, binding in
heaven, obligator}' on souls,
false, pernicious, condemned in
article 23 of Luther, at the least erroneous.
120

On ecclesiastical conferences
LXXVII

It is the same for what is added (to the charges made against
(223)ecclesiastical studies) that “the change of form of ecclesiastical
government thanks to which the ministers of the Church have
come to forget their rights, which are at the same time their
obligations, has had for a final result the obliteration of the
primitive notions of the ecclesiastical ministry anti of pastoral
solicitude'';
is if by change of government conformable to the discipline
•stablished and approved in the Church, ever could be obliterated
md lost the primitive notion of ecclesiastical ministry and
pastoral solicitude,
proposition false, temerarious, erroneous.
LXXVIII

122
The prescription of the synod, relative to the order of
(88- questions to be treated in the conferences, where, after having
89, affirmed that “we must distinguish in each article what concerns
207) faith and the essence of religion from what is proper to disci­
pline", it adds that “even in the latter (discipline), we must
distinguish what is necessary or useful to keep the faithful in the
spirit from what is useless or too onerous for the liberty of sons
of the New Testament, and still more from what is perilous or
harmful, as conducive to superstition and to nuiterialisin”;
for as much as by reason of the general terms employed, it
includes and subjects to the prescribed examination even the
discipline established and approved by the Church, as if the
Church, which is-ruled by the Spirit of God, could establish a

THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH

95

discipline not merely useless and insupportable for the Christian
spirit, hut even dangerous, harmful, and conducive to super­
stition and to materialism,
false, temerarious, scandalous, pernicious,
offensive to pious ears, injurious to
the Church and to the Spirit of God who
guides her, at the least erroneous.

On the Convocation of the National Council

LXXXV

The proposition stating that it is sufficient to have only a 123
superficial knowledge of ecclesiastical history to be obliged to(193)
admit that the convocation of a National Council is one of the
canonical methods for putting an end to religious controversies
of those nations; understood in the sense that the controversies
concerning faith and morals occurring in whatever Church could
be definitively closed in a National Council by a final judgment,
as if inerrancy in matters of faith and morals belonged to a
National Council,
schismatical, heretical.

PIUS VII
1800-1823

THE PONTIFICAL OFFICE
Encycl. Diu satis, May 15, 1800.

It seems to Us that We have delayed a long time in writing 124
to you. Two months have already passed—not without anxietyfJ45,
and labor—since God has laid on Our weakness the immense 155burden of the government of his Church.
156)
But it is only right to yield at length, less to an oldestablished custom than to the spontaneity of Our affection for
you: a sentiment inspired long ago by the bonds of the hier­
archy but which today We feel immeasurably more and in its
highest degree. Therefore, nothing is more agreeable to Us than
to speak to you, at least by means of this encyclical. And We
have been urgently begged to do so, even obliged to, by that
obligation which is proper to Us and is even the principal of
all Our obligations, enshrined and formulated as it is in the
words “Confirm thy brethren” (a). For at this period of pro­
found misery and violent storms Satan seeks no less than in
former times “to grind us as wheat” (b).
For who could be so blind, or so hostile in Our regard as
not to understand, and in some senses even to perceive with
the eyes of the body, that in these difficult and painful times,
Jesus Christ, according to his promise, has once more prayed
for Peter that his faith fail not? (c)
( The trials and constancy of Pius VI. )

The foundation of the Church
In the face of these facts, it should be recognized that it is
vain to endeavor to destroy “the House of God”, that is, the
Church built upon Peter, “the rock” not alone in name, but in
reality; the Church "against which the gates of hell shall not
prevail" (a), because “it is founded upon a rock". None has ever
been an enemy of the Christian religion without at the same
time waging impious war against the Chair of Peter, because
while this Chair stands the Church will never tremble or fall.
In fact, as St. Irenaeus proclaims, "it is by the institution and
succession of Pontiffs that the truth is handed down from the
124a Luke 22:32.
124b Cf. ibid., 31
125a Cf. Matt. 7:25; 16:18; Luke 6:48.
-99-

124c Cf. ibid., 32.

125
(56,
139,
223,
229)

100

THE PONTIFICAL OFFICE

Apostles and taught to us within the Church, and it is also this
same succession which plainly demonstrates that the one, single,
life-giving faith is the one which, within the Church, has been
kept from the time of the Apostles till now, and has been faith­
fully transmitted” (b).
The wisdom of the toise
126
This is precisely the line of conduct followed by those men
(56, who have attempted to substitute I know not what monstrous
160, false philosophy for that Philosophy—it is thus that the Fathers,
175) and particularly the Greek Fathers, so justly name Christian
teaching—that Philosophy which the Son of God, Eternal
Wisdom Himself, brought from heaven and communicated to
men. But it is written, and this word of St. Paul exactly described
them: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the prudence
of the prudent I will reject. Where is the wise? Where is the
scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God
made foolish the wisdom of this world?” (a).
It pleases Us to recall these things to you, Venerable Broth­
ers, all the more so because they are of a nature to animate your
souls in a wonderful way, to strengthen and to enflame them.
Then you will spare no trouble, shrink from no combat for the
Church of Christ, which, contrary' to not only Our desires but
even to Our expectations, or rather, in spite of Our terror, God
Himself has charged Us to rule, to guard, to adorn, and to
extend.
(The teaching of Christ is the remedy for present ills.)

Firmness necessary to pastors
It is, therefore, one of the duties of Our office, Venerable
Brothers, to succor both individuals and nations in their distress,
to ward off the evils the very thought of which brings tears to
Our eyes, evils of the present and the future. For it is Jesus
Christ Himself who “gave some apostles, and some prophets,
201) and other some evangelists, and other some pastors and doctors,
for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry,
for the edifying of the body of Christ, until we meet unto the
unity of faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God” (a).

127
(85,
96,
159,
197,

125b St. Irenaeus, Ade. Hxr., Ill, 3, n. 3.
126a 1 Cor. 1:19-20.
127a Ephes. 4:11-13.

TUE PONTIFICAL OFFICE

101

’ If, in such an undertaking, any one of us were to show indif­
ference, weakness, opportunism, what shame for him! what a
sin on his conscience! Therefore you, Venerable Brothers, more
than any others, We beg you, We conjure you, We exhort you,
We admonish you, We command you even, to spare no vigilance,
no readiness, diligence, or fatigue in keeping the deposit of
Christ, a deposit for whose preservation you know what oath
has been sworn, and by whom. Admit none to the clerical state,
do not confide to anyone the dispensing of the mysteries of Cod,
let none preach or hear confessions, do not confer on anyone
either the charge of souls or any other office without a serious
examination and due control, without having taken the time to
assure yourselves if the spirit which is manifested be of God (b).
{Above all, supervise the instruction of the young.)
Eoil Books
But We affirm that this same power should be employed in 128
all its energy to extirpate another evil, the most pernicious of all,(197)
the evil of bad books; it is the very health of the Church, of so­
ciety, of the heads of state, of ever}' man, which requires this,
health (salvation) which ought to be much dearer to us than our
own life.
This grave matter has been treated with all the care it 129
deserved and in its whole extent in the Apostolic Letters which (141,
Our predecessor of happy memor}', Clement XIII, addressed to 181)
the whole episcopate in the form of a brief, November 25, 1766.
The books that We would wish to see tom from the hands of
all, utterly destroyed, and cast into the flames are not only
those which openly attack the teaching of Christ; it is also
necessary, and even more necessary, to remove from the sight
and the minds of all, those whose attack is more hidden because
it proceeds by deceit. To recognize them there is no need, says
St. Cyprian, of long discussion or subtle reasoning. In the interest
of truth Our Lord has made their examination easy by these
words addressed to Peter: ‘‘Feed my lambs” (a). Therefore, the
type of pasture which the sheep of Christ should consider
healthful, which they ought to seek, and with which they should
be nourished, is the one to which they are sent by the voice
and by the authority of Peter.
127b Cf. 1 John 4:1.

129a John 21:17.

102

THE PONTIFICAL OFFICE

False doctrines must be shunned
130
Whatever, therefore, turns them away from, removes them
(52, from him they must of necessity consider noxious and mortally
173, poisonous; they must flee from it with the greatest horror, without
181) ever permitting themselves to be captivated or seduced, even by
the more attractive appearances; without this docility no man
can be counted among the sheep of Christ.
131
On this point We can neither close Our eyes, nor be silent,
(141, nor remain negligent. For if such great freedom of thought, word,
167) writing, and reading is not repressed, We might certainly—
thanks to the efforts and the resources of kings and rulers who
are both powerful and very skillfid—We might momentarily ap­
pear to be relieved of the great disease which has been afflicting
the world for so long; but, unless it is plucked up by the roots
and the very seed destroyed—I tremble to say it, but it has to
be said—this evil would continue to spread, to grow strong, and
finally would cover the face of the earth; then, in order to destroy
it or ward off its evil effects, even legions of soldiers would not
be enough; no sentinels, no police, no city walls, or national bar­
riers would have any effect.
132
Ah, Venerable Brothers, which one of us coidd remain in­
fl 53) different to what God tells us by the mouth of the Prophet
Ezechiel: “Son of man, I have made thee a watchman to the
house of Israel: and thou shalt hear the word out of my mouth,
and shalt tell it them from me. If, when I say to the wicked, Thou
shalt surely die: thou declare it not to him ... the same wicked
man shall die in his iniquity, but I will require his blood at thy
hand” (a). We admit that in Our case this word haunts Us, it
pierces Us with its dart day and night, never will it allow Us to
be remiss or timid in the exercise of Our office; and We promise
you, We pledge to you that you will always have Us not only as
aid and support, but also as leader and guide.

133
(92,
120,
123,

The laws of the Church
Venerable Brothers, there is still another trust confided to
Our safe-keeping, one which requires for its defense much
strength of soul and perseverance. It is the treasure of the holy
laws of the Church, the laws by which she herself—since she
132a Ezech. 3:17-18.

THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH

103

alone has the power—has established her discipline, laws which 175)
without fail have contributed to the flowering of piety and virtue,
and make the Spouse of Jesus Christ "terrible as an army in bat­
tle array” (a). To use the expression of Our predecessor St. Zosimus, most of these laws are, as it were, "the foundation destined
to bear the edifice of faith" (b). And nothing could be of greater
advantage to, or a more glorious achievement of Kings and
Heads of State, as another of Our predecessors, the wise and
courageous St. Felix wrote to the Emperor Zeno, than “to permit
the Catholic Church to live by her own laws, and not suffer
anyone whomsoever to interfere with her liberty. For it is certain
that they act in conformity with their own best interests when,
the interests of God being at stake, they endeavor to submit and
not to prefer the royal will to the priests of Christ, as He Himself
has ordained” (c).
(Ecclesiastical property.—The state of France.)

THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH

Apost. Const. Ecclesia Christi, September 18, 1801.
The Church of Jesus Christ, which appeared to St. John
under the image of the new Jerusalem coming down from Heaven (a) derives its stability and its adornments not only from the
fact that it is holy, Catholic, and apostolic, but also from the fact
that it is one founded on the sure foundation of the corner
stone (b). All the strength and the beauty of this mystical body
results from the firm and constant union of all the members of
the Church in the same faith, in the same sacraments, in the
same bonds of mutual charity, in submission and obedience to
the Head of the Church.

134
(45,
44.
52,
72,
139,
229)

The Redeemer of mankind, after purchasing the Church at
the price of his blood (a), willed this jewel of unity to be for her
a splendid and particular attribute to be kept to the end of time.
And so we see that before returning to heaven He addressed this
memorable prayer to his Father for the unity of the Church:

135
(23,
139,
228)

133a
133c
134a
135a

Cant. 6:3, 9.
133b Epist. IV.
St. Felix III, Epist. IX, ad Zenon. imp.
Cf. Apoe. 21:2.
134b Cf. Ephes. 2:20; I Peter 2:6.
Cf. Acts 20:28.

104

THE TEMPORAL POWER

‘Holy Father, keep them in thy name whom thou hast given me;
that they may be even as we are... that they all may be one as
thou Father in me, and I in thee, that they may be one in us” (b).
Penetrated with these great ideas, as soon as Divine Provi­
dence deigned to call Us, by a singular act of goodness, unworthy
as We are, to the supreme power of the apostolate, Our eyes
turned towards that purchased people solicitous to keep unity
in the bond of peace (c).
(History of the negotiations.—Principal clauses of the Con­
cordat. )
THE TEMPORAL POWER
Apost. Const. Cum memoranda, June 10, 1809.
(The occupation of Rome by Napoleon, February 2, 1809.)

136
With St. Ambrose (a) We recall that the holy Naboth, own(123, er of a vineyard, summoned by a royal demand to hand over his
137, property, in which the King, after rooting out the vine-stock,
178, would order herbs to be planted, replied, “The Lord be merci179) ful to me, and not let me give thee the inheritance of my fa­
thers” (b). We in Our turn have judged that it was even less law­
ful for Us to deliver Our ancient and sacred inheritance—that is to
say, the temporal domain of this Holy See, possessed for so many
centuries by Our predecessors the Roman Pontiffs, unless by an
evident order of Divine Providence—or to give an easy consent
to the seizure of the capital of the Catholic world by no matter
whom, there to disturb and destroy the sacred order left by Jesus
Christ to his Church and regulated by the canons established by
the Spirit of God: to substitute in place of this order a code, not
only contrary to the sacred canons, but even incompatible with
the evangelical precepts, and finally, to introduce, as is ordinarily
the case, another order of things which tends openly to associate
and confuse sects and every kind of superstition with the Catholic
Church.
137
Naboth defended his vineyard even at the price of his life.
(145,So could We, whatever was to be the event, not defend Our
159, rights, and the possessions of the Holy Roman Church, which
178- We have pledged Ourselves, by the bonds of a most solemn oath,
135b Ci. John 17:11, 22.
135c Cf. Ephes. 4:3.
136a De Basil. Tradend., 17; epist. XXI.
136b 3 Kings 21:1-4.

INTERFERENCE OF THE CIVIL POWER

105

to preserve, as far as in Us lies? Could We fail to lay claim to 179)
the liberty of the Apostolic See, so closely united to the liberty
and to the interests of the universal Church? For, even if other
arguments were to fail, the events of the present time show
how suitable and necessary is this temporal power to assure to
the supreme Head of the Church the free and certain exercise
of the power over the world which has been divinely committed
to him.
(Sacrilegious usurpations of the imperial power.—Excom­
munication of the Emperor and his agents.)

INTERFERENCE OF THE CIVIL POWER

Letter Litteræ tuæ, November 5, 1810, to Cardinal Maury.

Five days ago We received your letter by which We learned 138
of your nomination to the Archbishopric of Paris and your in-(189,
stallation in the government of that diocese. This news has pul 191)
the crowning touch to Our afflictions and fills Us with a sorrow
which it is difficult to contain and impossible to express to you.
You were perfectly aware of Our letter to Cardinal Caprara,
then Archbishop of Milan, in which We exposed the powerful
motives which made it a duty for Us, in the present state of
affairs, to refuse canonical institution to bishops named by the
Emperor.
You are not embarrassed to take sides against Us in the
struggle which We are carrying on to defend the dignity of the
Church. Is it thus that you make little of Our authority, and
dare in some sort, by this public act, to pronounce against Us
to whôm you owe obedience and fidelity? But what grieves Us
still more is to see that, after having petitioned the administra­
tion of an archbishopric from a chapter, you have, by your
own authority, and without consulting Us, taken charge of the
government of another church, far from imitating the beautiful
example of Cardinal Fesch, Archbishop of Lyons, who, having
been named before you were to the same see of Paris, wisely
judged he should abstain absolutely from all spiritual adminis­
tration of that church, in spite of the invitation of the chapter.

139
(92,
190,
195)

Where will all this end? They want to introduce into the 140
Church a custom as new as it is dangerous, by means of which (57,

106

ADAPTATION OF DISCIPLINE

191) the civil power will little by little manage to put up for vacant
sees only the subjects who are agreeable to itself: and is there
anyone who does not see clearly that this is not only to harm
the liberty of the Church, but even to open the gates to schism
and to invalid elections?

(Order to resign.—Threat of canonical penalties.')
ADAPTATION OF DISCIPLINE
Letter to the Irish Bishops, February 1, 1816.
(Motives of the agreement reached between the Holy See
and the English government on the subject of episcopal nomina­
tions.)

141
These powerful motives, which We have weighed carefully
(122, and at great length, considering the gravity of the subject, have
189) brought Us, after seeking advice, as is Our wont, from several
of Our Venerable Brothers, the Cardinals of the Holy Roman
Church, and other persons well versed and up to date in British
affairs, to propose the compromise which has been announced,
as a means of reconciling everything. We are well aware that
in so doing We derogate somewhat from ecclesiastical discipline,
which attributes to the Roman Pontiff an entire liberty in the
choice of bishops: but who is there who does not know that
in matters of discipline legitimate Authority can make some
changes by reason of circumstances, interests, and historical
periods? This is a principle and a line of conduct which Our
predecessors themselves have always recognized and observed.

142
On this subject. We have recalled above all the beautiful
(122) thought of St. Leo the Great in his letter to Rusticus, Bishop
of Narbonne: "Just as there are certain things which cannot be
changed lor any reason, so there are others which can be modi­
fied according to the necessities of times and the demands of
interests” (a). We have also before Us the teaching of Our
predecessor Innocent III: "No fault is to be found if concessions
are made to the rulings of men, above all when urgent necessity
or evident usefulness require them.” Now, what reasons could
be more powerful, what circumstances more important than
112.1 Epist. CLXVIl, ad Rusticum, eplsc. Narboncns.

ONE SINGLE LANGUAGE

107

those which obtain here, and which We have not hesitated to
expose to you?

Therefore, since the privilege We have proposed cannot have 143
any evil result, and since it has its foundation in the rules of pru-(J78)
deuce; since, if it were not granted, the Church would be exposed
to great calamities, while from its concession precious advantages
should accrue, namely the emancipation of Catholics and the re­
turn of Liberty for all that concerns religion in Great Britain;
should We still hesitate, and what motive could prevent Us from
showing openly Our readiness to grant this concession, and to
relax in some measure the discipline of the Church? We have
therefore judged with confidence that We should act as We have
done, and We have seen that We were in a situation where We
had reason to make Our own these words of Pope Gelasius, Our
predecessor: "We are forced by the necessity' of the circumstances,
and the wisdom of the Apostolic See imposes upon Us the law of
weighing the canonical decrees, of evaluating the precepts of
Our predecessors so as to take, after serious study, the measures
of adaptation required by the needs of the moment and the in­
terests of the Church” (a).

ONE SINGLE LANGUAGE
Letter Magno ct acerbo, September 3, 1816, to the Arch­
bishop of Mohilev.
(Precautions against bad translations of the Bible.)
The Roman Church accepts, in virtue’of the well known de- 144
cree of the Council of Trent (a), only the so-called Vulgate edi-(162)
tion (of the Bible), and rejects versions in other languages. She
authorizes only those editions which are published with notes
drawn in good earnest from the writings of the Fathers and
Catholic Doctors, lest so great a treasure be exposed to the cor­
ruption of innovators, and so that the Church throughout the
whole world, will have only one mouth, only one language.

(Under what conditions the faithful may be permitted to
read the Bible.—Vigilance of the Bishops.)
143a Epist. ad Episcop. Lucaniae.
144a Session IV, April 8, 1546; Cf. Denz., 783-786.

THE STRENGTH OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Ubi primuni, May 5, 1824.
(The Pope announces his elevation to the pontificate.—Du­
ties of bishops.—Present evils.—Propaganda of bible societies.)
To seek the true source of all the evils which We have just
been deploring, and of many others which, for brevity’s sake, We
have not mentioned, it must be understood that today as at the
Church’s beginning, this source is once more to be found in a
stubborn contempt for the Church’s authority; yes, the authority
of that Church, who, according to St. Leo the Great, because her
charity has been well-ordered (a), accepts Peter in Peter’s See,
and in the person of the Roman Pontiff who is Peter’s successor,
beholds and honors him in whom are to be found the charge of
all the shepherds and the protection of all the sheep entrusted
to them; him whose dignity never fails, even in an unworthy suc­
cessor. In Peter, therefore, as this same Doctor so fittingly
teaches, is to be found the strength of all, and the help of divine
grace is disposed in such sort that the stability granted to Peter
by Christ is conferred by Peter on the Apostles (b). But it is
evident that this contempt for the authority of the Church is
opposed to the commandment of Christ who said to the Apostles,
and, in their persons to the ministers of the Church their succes­
sors: “He that heareth you, heareth me; he that despiseth you,
despiseth me” (c) as it is also opposed to the teaching of the
Apostle Paul: "The Church is the pillar and ground of the
truth" (d). With reference to these words Augustine says: “If
any man be outside the Church he will be excluded from the
number of sons and will not have God for Father since he has
not the Church for Mother” (e).

145

(137,
139,
141,
146.
153,
215)

Therefore, Venerable Brothers, with Augustine, keep before 146
your eyes the words of Christ and of the Apostle Paul and medi­ (137)
tate upon them often so that you will be able to teach the people
entrusted to you what respect they owe to the authority of that
Church, an authority conferred upon her by God Himself.
(The Church and rulers.—Condemnation of false tolerance.)
145a Senn. 11 de nat. ejusdem.
145b Serm. IV, super eodem.
145c Luke 10:16.
145d 1 Tim. 3:15.
145e De Symbol, ad Catech., Book IV, c. 13.

- Ill -

THE TREASURE OF THE INDULGENCES
Encycl. Caritate Christi, December 25, 1825.

(Extension of the Jubilee to the whole Catholic world.-Its
preparation. )
147
This preparation of souls will allow the faithful to obtain
(118)the fniits of the holy Jubilee. But so as to undertake with suitable
piety and confidence the works by which alone good fruits can
be obtained, it is your duty to make sure they understand and
that they have the firm conviction that the inexhaustible treasury
of his merits has been left to the Church by the Mediator be­
tween God and men, Christ Jesus; that to them are added the
merits of the Blessed Virgin his Mother, and of all the saints
who have been raised to that dignity in virtue of the supera­
bounding Redemption of the Lord. Further, that it is in the
power of him whom Christ—henceforth invisible—has set in his
place as visible Head of this same Church to distribute these
riches to men. That, according to his prudent judgment, he can
apply these suffrages now liberally, now with greater strictness,
to the living by the channel of absolution, to the deceased in the
form of suffrages, provided that the former have expiated their
sins by the sacrament of penance and have been absolved from
the penalty of eternal punishment, and that the latter have de­
parted from this life united to God by charity. That the indul­
gence consists in a real application of these merits by which the
temporal punishment due to divine justice is more or less re­
mitted, according to the measure of the application determined
by the Roman Pontiff, the dispenser of this treasure, and of the
preparation which the faithful bring to it.
(Choice of confessors—Nature of the Jubilee indulgence.—
What must be preached to the faithful—Blessing.

THE "PETITE EGLISE”
Exhortation Pastoris aeterni, July 2, 1826, to the Anti-Con­
cordat party of the French nation.
(The "petite Eglise".)

148
Therefore, Dearly Beloved, beware of false leaders; do not
(44, follow their counsels; resist their deadly suggestions. In fact, they

THE "PETITE EGLISE”

IB

are seeking to snatch you from the bosom of the Church, then to
bring about your final perdition, when they strive to separate you
from communion with Us, with the Holy See. They flatter themselves falsely on a pretended communion with the Apostolic
See, while they refuse communion with the Roman Pontiff and
with the bishops in communion with him. Do not let yourselves
be deceived by this illusion. Remember and understand well
“that where Peter is, there is the Church” (a); that “they who
have not in their midst the see of Peter, who rend it by impious
schism, have no part with Peter’s inheritance” (b); that those
who refuse to associate themselves with the communion of the
Chair of Peter belong to the Antichrist, not to Christ (c). And
do not forget either the expression of St. Cyprian: “The Bishop
is in the Church and the Church in the Bishop” (d).

56,
139,
161,
195)

If each of you in the light of faith, meditates within himself
on these truths in tranquillity of mind before his crucifix, it will
be easy for him to see that the outcome of slogans such as you
have heard can be nothing else than, by separating you from the
Roman Pontiff and the Bishops in communion with him, to
separate you from the Catholic Church in its entirety, and con­
sequently you will cease to have her for a Mother. For how
could the Church be your Mother, unless your fathers are the
shepherds of the Church, that is to say, the Bishops? And how
can you boast of the title of Catholic if, separated from the
center of Catholicity, that is to say, from this Apostolic and
Holy See and from the Sovereign Pontiff in whom God has
placed the source of unity, you break with Catholic unity? The
Catholic Church is one, she is neither broken nor divided:
therefore, your “petite eglise” cannot in any sense belong to the
Catholic Church.

149

(What is opposed to reunion.—Reunion remains a possibility.
—Response to the schismatics.—Defense of the acts of Pius VI
and Pius VII.—Exhortation.—Prayer.)

148a
148b
148c
148d

St. Ambrose, In Psalm. 40, No. 30.
Ibid., De Pœniteni., Book I, c. VII.
St. Jerome, Epist. XV ad Damasum.
Epist. LX1X, No. 8.

(41,
54,
56,
161)

PASTOR OF PASTORS
Encycl. Traditi humilitati, May 24, 1829.
(Taking possession of the Supreme Pontificate.—Congratu­
lations to the bishops for the work accomplished in union with
(he Holy See.)

It is very profitable to Christendom to confer with Us on 150
those matters thanks to which We see the daily progress of the (153)
Christian religion grow. This duty is incumbent upon Us by rea­
son of Our own office, which We have received by the divine
institution of the very Founder of the Church in the person of
Peter—not only to lead to pasture, to govern, and to lead the
lambs (that is to say, the Christian people), but also the sheep
(that is to say, the bishops) (a).
(The struggle against the enemies of the Church.—False
philosophy—Denial of the Church’s authority—Indifferent ism in
religion.—Secret societies.—Vigilance on subject of; seminaries,
press, marriage. )
Symbolism of marriage

It is certain that by this matrimonial union of which God 151
is the author, is signified the etemal and supreme union of Christ (65)
the Lord with the Church, and that this very close bond between
husband and wife is the sacrament, that is the sacred sign, of the
immortal love of Christ for his spouse (a).
THE DEFENSE OF THE CHURCH

Letter to the Bishops of Prussia, June 30, 1830.

A most disturbing rumor had already reached Our ears, that 152
the enemies of the Catholic Church in the province of the Rhine- (190,
land were forming a conspiracy against the pure teaching and 197)
the constitution of the Church, and that their skillfully directed
efforts set on foot many innovations and were not without suc­
cess. At first We were not able to credit these uncertain rumors,
above all since We had heard nothing from you, whose duty it
was to inform Us of so grave a matter, as also to guard effectively
150a Cf. John 21:15-17.

151a Cf. Ephes. 5:21-32.

- 117 —

118

THE DEFENSE OF THE CHURCH

the good order of your dioceses, and to keep from them not only
error, but even the danger and suspicion of error. It is with as
much astonishment as sorrow that We have seen Our hopes dis­
appointed in this regard; for what had reached Us privately has
become public knowledge and has been confirmed by irrefutable
witnesses, so much so that We have become convinced that the
novelties introduced in that region simply cannot be tolerated
in the Church, since they are founded on false and erroneous
principles, they are opposed to the laws and the teaching of the
Church, and they tend openly to the loss of souls.
Independence of the Church

153
The holy Spouse of Christ, the spotless lamb, is free by rea(79, son of her divine institution and is subject to no earthly power.
91- But by these profane novelties she is reduced to a wretched and
92, shameful servitude, when the secular power is permitted to con121, firm or reject councils, to divide dioceses, to select candidates for
157) the priesthood and those who are to be promoted to ecclesiastical
functions; when the secular power is granted the right to direct
teaching and religious and moral discipline, when even the
seminaries and all that touches the spiritual government of the
Church is delivered over to the good pleasure of seculars, and
when the faithful art forbidden free access to the Head of the
Church, even though this freedom belongs to the very essence
of the constitution of the Catholic Church, and cannot be inter­
fered with without depriving the faithful of necessary help and
imperiling their eternal salvation.

Duties of bishops
154
It would at least have been a consolation to Us if, in pursu(197)ance of the duties of your charge, you had with all diligence in­
structed the faithful under your care on the manifest errors of
these principles and the pitfalls prepared for them by these ef­
forts. It was your place to do what the Apostle St. Paul incul­
cates in such an impressive fashion on his disciple Timothy, and,
in his person, on all bishops, when he says: "Preach the word:
be instant in season, out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in
all patience and doctrine. For there shall be a time, when they
will not endure sound doctrine: but, according to their own de­
sires thev will heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears:

1 UE DEFENSE OF HIE CHURCH

119

and will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will
be turned unto fables. But be thou vigilant, labor in all things,
do the work of an evangelist, fulfill tny ministry” (a). It was
your place to raise your voice, the voice of the shepherd, so that
the reprimand of those in error would serve at the same time to
warn those who were hesitating, according to the words of the
same Apostle: “Them that sin reprove before all: that the rest may
also have fear" (b). Finally, it was your duty to imitate the ex­
ample of the Apostles, who responded with the liberty of the
Gospel to those who commanded them to be silent: “It is better
to obey God than men" (c).
We must not hide from you, Venerable Brothers, the bitter- 155
ness Our heart was plunged in when it was reported to Us that (91,
there is one among you who, far from defending the Catholic 138)
Church and her teaching by combatting errors and novelties, and
fore-arming the faithful confided to his care by advice and salu­
tary directives, on the contrary has not hesitated to give, by his
assent and his assistance, new authority and new vigor to those
novelties and to these false and erroneous principles. The gravity
of the fault makes Us judge the accusation to be false; it is too
repugnant to Us to have to lodge against you so shocking a
charge, and to believe that one of you could have betrayed the
cause of the Church of Jesus Christ in matters so important as
those which interest her constitution and her essence. For the
very reason and nature of the government of the Church estab­
lished by God show that it can only be in a period of attack and
hostility against her that the powers of this world dominate her,
or pretend to direct her teaching, or oppose communication with
this first of Sees, "with which,” says St. Irenaeus, “by reason of
its eminent primacy, the entire Church must necessarily agree,
that is to say, the faithfid of every area” (a). He who wishes to
introduce a new form of government, says St. Cyprian, is at­
tempting “to make a human church” (b).
(Exhortation to the bishops.)

154a 2 Tim. 4:2-5.
154c Cf. Acts 4:19.
155b Epist. LIE

154b I Tim. 5:20.
155a Adv. Hier. HI, lii, n. 2

GREGORY XVI

1831-1846

ONE SINGLE HEAD
Encycl. Inter gravissimas, February 3, 1832, to the Armenian
Patriarch of Constantinople.
( Exhortation to vigilance against heresies.—Against liturgical
innovations.)

One is the Church of Christ, one the faith of all Catholics,
one the baptism, one Head for all of us, Jesus Christ, who gave
the fullness of power to govern and guide the universal Church
to the Blessed Apostle Peter, to whom, however unworthily, We
have succeeded.
(Vigilance in the administration of the sacraments.)

156

(46,
50,
137,
175)

THE CONDITION OF SALVATION

Encycl. Summo jugiter, May 27, 1832, to the Bishops of
Bavaria.
(Mixed marriages in Bavaria.)
Necessity of faith for salvation

To come now to the present concern, We must first turn Our 157
attention towards that faith without which it is impossible to (61)
please God (a) and which is jeopardized, as We have already
pointed out, by those who wish to extend beyond certain limits
the liberty for mixed marriages. For in fact, you know as well as
We do, Venerable Brothers, with what constancy our Fathers en­
deavored to inculcate this article of faith which these innovators
dare to deny, namely, the necessity of Catholic faith and unity
to obtain salvation.
Catholic unity
This is what was taught by one of the most famous of the 158
disciples of the Apostles, St. Ignatius Martyr, in his Epistle to (61)
the Philadelphians: "Do not deceive yourselves.” he wrote to
them, "he who adheres to the author of a schism will not possess
the kingdom of God” (a). St. Augustine and the other bishops
of Africa, assembled in 412 in the Council of Cirta expressed
themselves in the following terms on this subject: He who is
separated from the body of the Catholic Church, however lauda­
ble his conduct may otherwise seem, will never enjoy eternal life,
157a Heb. 11:6.

158a No. 3.

-123-

TO KEEP THE DEPOSIT

and the anger of God remains on him by reason of the crime of
which he is guilty in living separated from Christ” (b). And
without citing here the witness of almost innumerable other an­
cient Fathers, We will limit Ourselves to quoting Our glorious
predecessor, St. Gregory the Great, who gives explicit testimony
to the fact that such is the teaching of the Catholic Church on
this head. “The holy universal Church,” he says, “teaches that
God cannot be truly adored except within its fold: she affirms
that all those who are separated from her will not be saved” (c).
159
It is also stated in the decree on faith published by another
(40, of Our predecessors, Innocent III, in concert with the fourth
61) Ecumenical Council of the Lateran, “that there is only one
universal Church of the faithful, outside of which no one can be
saved” (a). Finally, the same teaching is expressed in the
professions of faith which have been proposed by the Apostolic
See; in the one which all the Latin Churches use (b); as also in
the two others, one of which is received by the Greeks ( c ), and
the other by all other Eastern Catholics (d).
160
If we have cited these authorities among so many others We
(61) might have added to them, it was not, Venerable Brothers, with
the intention of teaching you an article of faith as if you were
ignorant of it. Far be it from us to entertain so absurd and so
damaging a suspicion in your regard! But the astonishing bold­
ness with which certain innovators have dared to attack one of
our most important and most obvious dogmas has made so pain­
ful an impression upon Us that We could not prevent Ourselves
from speaking at some length on this matter.
(Danger of mixed marriages—Their regular celebration.)
TO KEEP THE DEPOSIT

Encycl. Mirari cos, August 15, 1832.
( Apologies for the delay in this inaugural encyclical.—Present
difficulties.—The Pope begs the bishops to assist him in remedy­
ing the ills of the Church.)
161
You will perform this duty if, as your office demands, you
(161, are vigilant about your teaching and yourselves, having ever be158b
159a
159c
159d

Epist. 141.
158c Moral, in Job, XIV, 5.
Cap. Firmiter; cf. Denz. No. 428. 159b Cf. Denz. No. 994.
Cf. Gregory XIII. Prof. Sanctissimus, Denz., No. 1083.
Benedict XIV, Nuper ad Nos; Denz., No. 1459 ff.

TO KEEP THE DEPOSIT

125

fore your minds that "the whole Church is shaken by any novelty 190,
whatsoever,” and that, according to the opinion of Pope St. Aga- 197)
thon, “nothing which has been defined is to be withdrawn, or
changed, or added to, but it must be kept unadulterated as to
content and expression” (a). This is the way to keep firm and
unshaken the unity which resides in the Chair of Blessed Peter
as in its foundation, so that in the very source whence flow to all
the Churches the advantages of a precious communion, will be
found “for all of them a rampart, a sure refuge, a haven in the
storm, and a treasure-house of innumerable benefits” (b). There­
fore, to suppress the audacity of those who attempt to infringe
the rights of the Holy See or to break the bonds of the Churches
with this See,—the union which alone supports them and gives
them life—inculcate a great zeal, confidence, and sincere venera­
tion for this eminent Chair, crying out with St. Cyprian “that he
deceives himself that he is in the Church, if he abandons the
Chair of Peter on which the Church is founded” (c).
Therefore, you must labor and ceaselessly watch over the 162
deposit of faith in order to keep it untainted in the midst of the (145,
conspiracies of the impious which We see with grief have as their 165,
object to ravish and destroy it. Let all remember that the judg- 175,
inent on the orthodox teaching with which the faithful must be 190,
instructed, and the government and administration of the entire 197,
Church belong to the Boman Pontiff, to whom “the plenitude 200,
of power to feed, direct, and govern the universal Church has 207been given, by Christ the Lord,” as the Fathers of the Council 208)
of Florence have expressly declared (a). It is the duty of each
bishop to attach himself loyally to the Chair of Peter, religiously
to keep the deposit, and to govern the flock which has been
entrusted to him. It is the duty of priests to submit to the bishops,
whom St. Jerome exhorts “to consider as the fathers of their souls”
(b); and they must never forget that the ancient canons forbid
them to do anything in their ministry, and to arrogate to them­
selves the power of teaching and preaching “without the permis­
sion of the bishop, to whose faith the people are confided, and
from whom an account of their souls will be demanded” (c). Let
it be held as certain, therefore, that all those who work against
161a
161b
161c
162b

Epist. ad imperatorem.
St. John Chrysostom, Epist. XI ad Innocent I.
De Unitate Ecclesiœ.
162a Sess. XXV, in definit.
Epist. LII ad Nepotian., I, 24. 162c Ex. Can. Ap. XXXVIII.

126

TO KEEP THE DEPOSIT

this established order are troubling as far as in them lies the
state of the Church,
Holiness of discipline
163
It would beyond any doubt be blameworthy and entirely
(121-contrary to the respect with which the laws of the Church should
122, be received by a senseless aberration to fini! fault with the
125, discipline which she has established, and which includes the
176, administration of holy things, the regulation of morals, and the
230) laws of the Church and her ministers; or to speak of this disci­
pline as opposed to certain principles of the natural law, or tc
present it as defective, imperfect, and subject to civil authority.
Since it is an unchanging truth, to use the words of the
Tridentine Fathers, that the Church “has been taught by Jesus
Christ and his Apostles, and that she is taught by the Holy
Spirit, who ceaselessly communicates all truth to her" (a), it
is quite absurd and sovereignly harmful to her to claim a certain
"restoration and regeneration” as necessary to provide for her
conservation and increase; as if it could be claimed that she is
exposed to failure, to ignorance, or to other misfortunes of this
nature. The aim of innovators in all this is “to lay the foundations
of a new human institution", and to bring it about that the
Church, which is wholly divine, "may become entirely human”—
i thing which St. Cyprian regarded with horror (b). Let those
who are making such plans consider well that it is to the Roman
Pontiff alone, according to the words of St. Leo, that “the appli­
cation of the canons has been entrusted”, and that it belongs
to him alone, and not to a private individual, “to pronounce on
the ancient regulations” (c), and so, as St. Gelasius has written,
"to weigh the decrees of the canons, to measure the precepts
of Our predecessors, so that after serious study, steps may be
taken towards modifications which the needs of the moment
and the interests of the Church require” (d).
(Attacks on ecclesiastical celibacy.—Attacks on the indissolubility of marriage.)
Indifferent ism
164
We come now to another cause, alas! all too fruitful of the
(61, deplorable ills, which today afflict the Church. We mean in163a Scss. XIII, De Eucharistia, in proem.
163b Epist. LU
163c Cf Epist. CIV, nd Marcianum.
163d Epist. IX ad Episcop. Lucanae.

PRETENDED REFORMERS

127

differentism, or that widespread and dangerous opinion sown 189)
by the perfidy of the wicked, according to which it is possible,
by the profession of some sort of faith, to procure the soul’s
salvation, provided that one’s morals conform to the norms of
justice and probity. But in a question which is so clear and so
evident, it will doubtless be easy for you to root out from
among the people confided to your care so pernicious an error.
The Apostle warns us of it: “One God, one faith, one bap­
tism" (a). Therefore, let them tremble who imagine that any
religion will lead them by an easy path to the haven of eternal
happiness; let them reflect seriously on the words of the Savior
Himself: “He who is not with me is against me" (b); that those
who gather not with Him, scatter (c), and that, consequently,
"beyond a doubt, those perish eternally who keep not the
Catholic faith entire and unchanged” (d). Let them listen to
St. Jerome himself, who tells them that at the time when the
Church was divided among three parties he used to repeat
constantly and with unshaken resolution to anyone who was
making an effort to win his support: “He who is united to the
Chair of Peter is with me” (e). It would be vain to have any
illusions on this point, saying that one has likewise been re­
generated in the water of baptism, for St. Augustine would
answer him: “The branch separated from the stock also keeps
its form; but what good is the form, if it does not draw its life
from the root?” (f).
(False liberty.—Civil disobedience.—Liberalism stemming
from Protestantism.—Duties of bishops.—Duties of princes.—
Prayer. )

PRETENDED REFORMERS

Apost. Letter Cum in Ecclesia, September 17, 1833.
(Errors now spreading in Germany.—The Constitution of
the Church.)
On all sides the infallible authority of the Church is attacked; 165
efforts are being made to weaken in every possible way the (96,
divine rights of the Apostolic Chair in which resides the stability 224)
of ecclesiastical unity. There are many among them who, in
the vast regions of Germany, united in a kind of association.
164a Ephes. 4:5.
164b Luke 11:23. 164c Ibid.
164d Athanasian Creed. 164e Epist. XVI. 164f Ps. c. part. Donat.

128

THE CENTER OF UNITY

are holding congresses and deliberations, and they do not scruple
to busy themselves with the “reform” of the Church, to adapt
it, as they say, to the n;eds of the times. They are all the more
dangerous because, under pretext of zeal for religion, protesting
pious intentions, they lead the simple into error by their preten­
sions of "regenerating’’ and “reforming” the Church. The temerity
of these men is so blind that they are not afraid to take up
again, so as to support their perverse opinions, errors previously
condemned by well-known decrees of the Sovereign Pontiffs and
the Councils.

166
It is neither in secrecy or behind closed doors, nor by in(222,sinuations, but in the most open fashion, orally, by writings, and
138, even in the pulpit, that they have again and again stated and
188) put forward the bold pretension that: “All the bishops, inasmuch
as they are the successors of the Apostles, have received from
Christ in equal measure the sovereign power to govern the
Church, and that it does not reside solely in the Roman Pontiff,
but in the entire episcopate. Further, that Christ willed the
Church to be administered after the manner of a republic, so
that all men, not only clerics of lower rank but even the laity,
would enjoy the right of suffrage”. Thus, all power would have
been given immediately to the society of the faithful, to be dele­
gated to the bishops and to the Sovereign Pontiff. Finally, they
hold that “many articles in the present discipline are useless,
dangerous, or harmful, and should be modified in conformity
with the ideas of the times”.
(Errors concerning indulgences, penance, the priesthood,
the Mass, cult of the Blessed Virgin.—The right of censure be­
longs to the Church.—Condemnation of five works.)
THE CENTER OF UNITY

All. to the Consistory, September 30, 1833.
(Protest against the expulsion of the Nuncio to Portugal,
and against acts which violate the rights of the Holy See.)
167
Of all these laws—actions by which, as you understand per(44, fectly well, the most sacred laws of the Church are contemned,
56, her divine power trodden underfoot, in which rights which be154, long to her alone are usurped, in which the order as well as the
161) constitution on which she was founded by God Himself is over­

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

129

thrown,—it is easy to measure the extent of the harm which
results for Catholic interests. However, what pains Us most
and causes Us the greatest anxiety is that these laws and
measures have the very evident intention of destroying every
bond of union with this venerable Chair of Peter in which Christ
Himself established the center of unity for the Catholic Church,
in such wise that once participation in communion is done away
with, the wound of a harmful schism is inflicted upon the
Church. By what means could the unity of a body be main­
tained if members are not united to the head and do not obey
the head? What is the meaning of “union” and “obedience”
where—without speaking of other matters—bishops are rejected,
though they have been legitimately appointed by him on whom,
in virtue of the primacy of his jurisdiction and the plenitude of
his power, devolves the duty of assigning individual pastors to
the churches which stand in need of them?
(Privileges of the Church of Portugal are recalled.—The
duties of the Holy See.)

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM
Encycl. Quo graviora, October 4, 1833, to the Bishops of the
Rhineland.
(Actions of the so-called reformers among the clergy.—Their
meetings.—Their tractate·. “Is the reform of the Catholic Church
necessary?”)
You are aware, Venerable Brothers, on what erroneous 168
principles these men and their accomplices take their stand, what (122,
is the source of this passion which impels them to revolutionize 138,
the Church. But We do not think it without profit to bring some 225)
of them out into the full light of day and to explain them here
in some detail.
For many years there has been growing and spreading in
this country the very false opinion, the result of the impious
and absurd system of indifferentism, which holds that the Chris­
tian religion is capable of continually perfecting itself. And
since the champions of this false opinion hesitate to apply this
pretended perfectibility to the truths of faith, they do so to the
external administration and discipline of the Church. And to
give credit to their error they employ, for the most part not

130

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

without inconsistency and fraud, the authority of Catholic theo­
logians who, on occasion, establish this distinction between
doctrine and discipline: that discipline is subject to change,
doctrine remains always the same and is not subject to any
modification. Once this is laid down, they state without any
hesitation that on many points the discipline, the government,
and the forms of external worship in use in the Church are no
longer suitable to the character of our times, and that what is
harmful to the progress and prosperity of the Catholic religion
must be changed, (which is possible) without the teaching of
faith and morals suffering any harm. Thus, under color of reli­
gious zeal and behind the mask of piety they introduce
innovations, project reforms, devise a “regeneration” of the
Church.
169
That the innovators have in fact made use of these princi­
pe, pies has been sufficiently clear from the publication, particularly
88, in Germany, of many works where these principles have again
211, and again been developed and defended; the fact has now be228) come patent to all by the printing of the tractate of Offenburg
and especially by the documents boldly assembled by F. L.
Mersy, president of the seditious assembly, in the second edi­
tion of the said work. And while to their shame they are incur­
ring their own loss by laying down these principles of their own
accord, they are falling into errors condemned by the Church
in the Constitution Auctorem fidei promulgated by Our prede­
cessor of holy memor)’ Pius VI on August 28, 1794, in Proposition
78 (a). Moreover, without realizing it, or pretending that they
do not realize it, they are in direct contradiction to sound
doctrine which they say they wish to reestablish and protect.
For in fact, when they pretend that all the forms of the Church
without distinction can be changed, are they not subjecting to
this change those points of discipline which have their founda­
tion in the divine law itself, which are joined to doctrines of faith
by so close a bond that the rule of faith determines the rule of
action? Are they not trying, moreover, to make of the Church
something human; are they not openly diminishing her infallible
authority and the divine power which guides her, in holding that
her present discipline is subject to decay, to weakness, and to
other failures of the same nature, and in imagining that it
169a Above No. 122.

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

Bl

contains many elements which are not only useless but even
prejudicial to the well-being of the Catholic religion?
Can private individuals lay claim to a power which is 170
proper to the Roman Pontiffs alone? Even if it were question (122,
of points of discipline which are in vigor in the universal Church 176)
but are susceptible of change because they are of ecclesiastical
institution, it nevertheless belongs to the Roman Pontiff alone,
because Christ has put him at the head of his whole Church,
to weigh the necessity of a change brought about by a new state
of affairs, and thus, as St. Gelasius writes: “To consider the
decrees of the canons, to weigh the precepts of Our predecessors,
so that after serious study milder measures, required by the
needs of the moment and the good of the Church, may be
decided upon” (a).
After this rapid survey of the error of the principles on 171
which the reformers are relying, it is distasteful to Us to retain (139,
you by a long discourse, Venerable Brothers, exposing the im- 176)
pious accusations which they level at the Holy See, adding
impudence to error with the callousness of the habit of insult
which is usual with men of this sort: as if the Holy See were
too much attached to the past, had not really grasped the char­
acter of our own times, were blinded by the light of new areas
of knowledge, were unable to distinguish sufficiently what
touches the substance of religion from what concerns simply its
exterior form, and (as a result) this See were fostering supersti­
tion, favoring abuses, and, finally, acting in such wise as never
to be concerned with what is required by the interests of the
Church in a new age. And why is this?—if not that an aversion
may be conceived for this most Holy See of Peter on which
Christ laid the foundation of his Church, so that its divine
authority may be exposed to the hatred of die nations and the
union of the churches with this authority may be destroyed.
Then, claiming from your power, Venerable Brothers, what 172
they despair of obtaining from this same Apostolic See, they say (57,
that a "national Church ’, as they call it, must be governed by its 137,
own laws, and they go so far as to attribute to the Shepherds of 207)
individual Churches the absolute power of abrogating the laws
of the universal Church if the good of their dioceses require it.
What next? Since they see that they are getting no place with
170a Epist. IX ad Episcop. Lucanite.

132

HIGHER EDUCATION

you either, they attempt to “emancipate” priests from the sub­
mission due to bishops, and they do not scruple to “grant” them
the right to administer the diocese. From this it is obvious that
the ecclesiastical hierarchy established by divine command is
destroyed, contrary to the truths of faith defined by the Council
of Trent, and that all these tenets re-assert the errors refuted in
Propositions 6, 7, 8, 9, condemned by the dogmatic Constitution
Auctorem fidei ( a ).

173
Is it possible that the Church, which is the pillar and ground
(88, of truth and which is continually receiving from the Holy Spirit
123) the teaching of all truth, could this Church ordain, grant,
permit what would turn to the detriment of the soul’s salvation,
to the contempt and harm of a sacrament instituted by Christ?
(Errors concerning the sacrament of penance; Mass stipends;
Masses for the dead.—Liturgy in the vernacular.—The arguments
of the innovators.—Exhortation to the bishops. )

HIGHER EDUCATION

Letter Maiori certo, December 13, 1833, to the Archbishop
of Milan.
(Congratulations on the founding of a University.—Interest
of the Holy See in this work.)
174
In fact, because it is a duty of the supreme head, the Roman
(165,Pontiffs, by reason of the responsibility confided to them in the
167) apostolic office, to protect the Catholic faith and to preserve
entire and intact the deposit of sacred doctrine, it is also incum­
bent upon them to regulate the organization of teaching in the
sacred sciences which is given publicly in universities.
(Usefulness of these studies and of the Universities.)
HIERARCHICAL ORDER

Encycl. Commissum divinitus, May 17, 1835, to the Swiss
clergy.
(The Synod of Baden.—It grants to the secular arm the right
to legislate in matters which belong solely to the ecclesiastical
hierarchy.)
172a Above Nos. 109-112.

HIERARCHICAL ORDER

133

Magisterium and government

Certainly, He who has clone all things with an infinite wisdom 175
and has disposed them in perfect order, has, with all the greater (95,
reason, willed order to reign in his Church; that is to say, that 100some shall be at the head and shall command, that others shall 102,
be in a subordinate position and shall obey. That is why the 120,
Church has, in virtue of this divine institution itself, not only the 121,
power of the magisterium to teach and to define in matters of 125,
faith and morals, and to interpret the Sacred Scriptures without 136)
any danger of erring, but also the power to govern, so as to con­
serve and strengthen in traditional doctrine those whom she has
once welcomed within her fold as sons, and to make laws on all
that touches upon the salvation of souls, the exercise of the sacred
ministry, or the worship of God: and he who opposes these laws
is guilty of grave sin.
(The Synod recognizes the pouter of the secular arm to con­
voke synods, direct seminaries, intervene in the discipline and
administration of the sacraments.—It favors indifferent ism.)
Pontifical monarchy

This power which Christ conferred on his Church to control
religious affairs, to rule Christian societ)' sovereignly and independently of the civil power, He conferred it, according
to the very clear statement of the Apostle in the Epistle to the
Ephesians, for the bond of unity. And what would this unity
be, if one man were not placed at the head of the whole
Church to protect and keep it, and to unite all the members of
that same Church in the profession of a single faith, and to
associate them in the single bond of charity and of communion?
The wisdom of the divine Lawgiver absolutely required a
visible ruler to be put at the head of a visible body, so that in this
way the risk of schism could be avoided. Therefore, although
a common dignit)' belongs to all the bishops whom the Holy
Spirit has established to govern the Church of God, and although
they all have equal power in what concerns orders, there is not,
for all that, a single hierarchical rank among them, nor a
jurisdiction which is identical in its extent. “For even among the
blessed Apostles,”—to quote the words of St. Leo the Great—
"in an equality of honor, there was a certain distinction in power,
and while the choice of all had been identical, to one alone had

176
(15,
44,
91,
137,
144,
161,
174)

B4

HIERARCHICAL ORDER

been given preeminence over the others" (a). For the Lord
willed that the charism of the charge of evangelizing should be
attached to the office of the Apostles at the same time that it was
placed principally in Blessed Peter, the head of all the Apostles.
The Successors of Peter
177
What He granted to Peter alone among all the Apostles when
(56, He promised to him the keys of heaven and entrusted to him the
141- office of feeding lambs and sheep and of confirming his brethren,
L/2, He willed—for the good of the Church which was to endure to
144, the end of time—to continue in the successors of Peter whom He
/ would put at the head of the same Church with the same rights.
1 Such has always been the constant and unanimous belief of all
inj’ Catholics. It is an article of faith that the Roman Pontiff, suecessor of Blessed Peter the Prince of the Apostles, not only has a
“ primacy of honor, but also of authority and jurisdiction over the
universal Church, and that, consequently, the bishops, too, are
under his authority. That is why, as St. Leo goes on to say, it is
necessary for the whole Church throughout the entire world, to
be united to the Holy See of Peter, that is to say, to the Roman
Church, and to have recourse to it as to the center of Catholic
unity and ecclesiastical communion, “so that he who dares to
withdraw from the unity of Peter is excluded from the divine
mysteries” (a). And St. Jerome adds, "He who eats of the lamb
outside the ark of Noe perished in the moment of the Del­
uge” (b). And. like the man who gathers not with Christ, he who
gathers not with his Vicar, “the same scattereth” (c). Now, how
is it possible for a man to gather with the Vicar of Christ, if he
rejects his sacred authority, if he violates the rights in virtue of
which that Vicar holds himself to be, at the head of the Church,
the center of unity, possessed of the primacy of order and
jurisdiction, and the power divinely transmitted to him in all its
fullness to pasture, rule, and govern the universal Church? And
yet, they have had the audacity to do this at the Synod of Baden;
with tears in Our eyes We tell it to you.
176a Epist. XIV. ad Anastasium.
177a Cf. Epist. X. ad episc. Prov. Vienn.
177b Epist XV. ad Damasum.
177c Cf. Luke 11:23.

HIERARCHIC AL ORDER

115

The Pope is the sole judge of universal discipline

The Roman Pontili alone, and no bishop (no matter who he 178
may be), can, by his own and ordinary authority, transfer the (Ί76)
days appointed for the celebration of feasts and the observance
of fasts, or abrogate the precept of hearing Mass; this has been
clearly defined against the Council of Pistoia by Our predecessor
of holy memory Pius VI, in the Constitution Auctorem fidei of
August 28, 1794 (a).
(These principles have been denied by the articles of the
Synod of Baden.)
Exemptions of regulars

Not less special to the Sovereign Pontiffs is the right of 179
exempting religious Communities from the jurisdiction of bishops (157)
and placing them under the immediate direction of the Holy See:
the Popes have exercised this right from the most ancient times
and in the most explicit fashion.
(The Baden articles also attack this right.)
To this must be added the decisions which concern the extent 180
of the rights exercised by the bishops. These, if they are carefully (188)
compared with the principles underlying the articles formulated
in this assembly, seem to signify that the jurisdiction of bishops
cannot, or ought not, even for just causes, be constrained by the
authority of the Roman Pontiff, or, when need arises, be restricted
within certain limits. It would be impossible likewise to remain
silent on the considerations and propositions relative to the
erection of a metropolitan see or to the reunion of certain dioceses
to another church situated outside the Swiss borders.
(Reason for the delay of the condemnation—Condemnation.
-Exhortation to the Bishops.)

The Bishops are the guardians
of the faith and the laws of the Church
It is your duty to close your ranks to prevent others from
laying any other foundation but that which has been laid, and to
defend and preserve in all its integrity the most holy deposit of
the faith. But there is another deposit which you must defend
with the greatest firmness and conserve intact: it is the body of
178a Above Nos. 103 if.

181
(190,
197,
201)

136

INDEPENDENCE OF BISHOPS

the holy laws of the Church, which constitute her discipline and
her rights, as well as those of this Apostolic See, thanks to which
the Spouse of Christ is terrible as an army in battle array.
( Role of the lower clergy.—Respect for just civil laws. )

A HUMAN CHURCH

182
(57,
138,
157)

All. to the Consistory, September 13, 1838.
(Persecution in Prussia; the government forbids all direct
communication between the clergy and the Holy See.)
Here what is most serious is that these measures tend very
openly absolutely to destroy the essence of the divine constitution
of the Church, and to separate these regions from the center of
Catholic unity. For it is only by attacking and disturbing the form
of the Church and the nature of her government that a secular
power can manage to dominate her, or violate her laws, or oppose
freedom of intercourse with the first See, “with which," says
St. Irenaeus, “ by reason of her preeminent dignity, every church—
that is to say, the faithful of the entire world—must necessarily
be in agreement” (a). He who would attempt to introduce anoth­
er form of government, would be striving, as St. Cyprian says so
well, “to make a human Church” (b).
(The Popes protestation.—Appeal to the King’s justice.)

INDEPENDENCE OF BISHOPS
All. Officii memores to the Consistory, July 5, 1839.
(The Prussian Government is persecuting the Church.— The
condemnation of the Archbishop of Cologne.)
183
In fact, it is not a matter merely of the intolerable outrage
(183,perpetrated on the sacred person of a Bishop, hailed into court
189, before civil magistrates; we must above all look at the charge on
203) which he was judged and the sentence imposd upon him: here
there is patent evidence of an even graver infringement of the
divine right of the Church. Let us consider first of all the sen­
tence: we read here that the Archbishop is to suffer not only the
loss of temporalities, but that he is deposed from his two dioceses
and deprived of the rights which he exercises over his suffragan
182a Adv. Hær., Ill, 3, No. 2.

182b Epist. Lil ad Antonianum.

PERMISSIBLE DIVERGENCIES

137

see of Kuhn; as if the sacred power which the bishop receives from
the Holy Spirit through Our ministry could be taken away by
the authority of a secular magistrate.
(The question of mixed marriages.—Protestation of the
Holy Father.)

PERMISSIBLE DIVERGENCIES

Letter Has ad te litteras, May 23, 1840, to the Bishop of
Chelm.
(Schismatic tendencies of the Ruthenian Uniates.)
Here We cannot dissemble what has been reported to Us 184
on the subject of certain members of your clergy. There are some (49,
who, either from ignorance or from carelessness, do not hesitate 59)
to maintain that the points on which the Graeco-Russians or
Ruthenian Schismatics differ from the Catholic Church are onlv
z
of small importance. A report like this has afflicted Us all the
more grievously in that We see these priests—without intending
to, We are convinced—aligning themselves by their imprudent
attitude with non-Catholics to undermine the love of the Catholic
truth in the hearts of the Church’s children. This is why We
implore you, Venerable Brother, to oppose ceaselessly and with
all your strength such a scandal, and to be vigilant above all that
your entire clergy be unanimous with you in teaching that the
difference which distinguishes Ruthenian Catholics from Latins,
consisting solely in points merely disciplinary and liturgical, and
with the permission of the Holy See, in no sense breaks the bonds
which unite the true sheep of Christ to one another. On the other
hand, non-Catholic Ruthenians are at odds, as much with the
Latins as with the Ruthenian Catholics, on matters which stem
from the true faith of Christ, without which “it is impossible to
please God" (a).
They differ also on the subject of submission to the Roman 185
Pontiff, successor of Peter the Prince of the Apostles, to whom, to(144,
use the terms of the Council of Chalcedon, “the protection of the 149,
vineyard was entrusted by the Lord” (a), and to the Church to 181)
which, as Irenaeus says, “by reason of her eminent primacy,
ever}' other Church must be in harmony, that is to say, the faith­
ful of the entire world” (b). Finally, as St. Jerome says, “whoever
184a Cf. Heb. 11:6.
185a In relatione ad Leonem, P.P.
185b Adv. Hær. Book III, ch. Ill, No. 2.

138

lilt RIGHTS OF THE LAITY

gathereth not with Him, scattered) (c), that is to say: he who is
not Christ’s, is Antichrist’s’’ (cl).
(Relations with Schismatics—Vigilance on the subject of
seminaries.)
THE PRINCIPLE OF SALVATION
Letter Perlatum ad Nos, July 17, 1841, to the Archbishop of
Lwow.
(Esteem of the Church for the rite of the Uniate Greek
Church—Greek and Latin Rites are not to be intermingled.—
Difference between the Uniates and the Schismatics.)
18G

(61,
139,
206,
208)

With God’s help, your clergy will never have any more press­
ing anxiety than to preach the true Catholic faith: he who does
not keep it whole and without error, will indubitably be lost. They
will endeavor, therefore, to lavor union with the Catholic Church;
for he who is separated from it will not have life. They will
maintain obedience to this sovereign Chair of Peter, in which
Christ the Lord laid the foundation of this same Church, and
where, consequently, is to be found the entire and perfect
stability of the Christian religion.
(The Ruthcnians and uniti/ of the Church.—Exhortation.)
THE HIGHTS OF THE LAITY

Letter Dudum Nos, August 22, 1841, to the Vicar Apostolic
of Gibraltar.
187
Recently We have been grieved by the news of the moves
(I37,made against the rights of the Church, and which, Venerable
190, Brother, have injured both your person and your dignity. This
211 ) has been all the more painful to Our heart in that We have seen
joining this conspiracy, to the prejudice of sacred interests, some
of the Catholic people who should have, by reason of the duties
confided to them, surpassed others in their obedience. Thus, lay­
men, though they never had any other rights than those which
belong to them as the concession of the Bishop to members of the
vestry-board, have dared to revolt against your authority and to
disregard the decree subsequently published by you, forbidding
185c Cf. Luke 11.23.

185d Epist. XV ad Damasum.

THE EXTERNAL FORUM

139

the collection of stipends for the administration of the sacra­
ments. In this fashion they have made a pretense of usurping the
direction of divine matters contrary to the provisions of Canon
Law, and, above all, against the order established by Christ
Our Lord.
(Abuse of the appeal to the lay power against the Bishop.—
Administration of the sacraments.—The laity and episcopal
power. )
THE PROPER SPIRIT
Apost. Let. Singulari Nos, June 25, 1844.
(Unkept promises of de Lamennais.—The publication Les Pa­
roles d’un Croyant.—Errors to be found therein.)
Moreover, it is most deplorable to see the pitfalls into which 188
the extravagances of the human mind can fall when a man pas­ (99,
sionately seeks novelty, when he attempts, against the advice of 102)
the Apostle (a), to be wiser than it behooveth him, and when,
by an excess of confidence in self, he undertakes to seek the truth
outside the Catholic Church, within which it is to be found
without the smallest admixture of error, that Church which is
called and remains the pillar and ground of truth (b).
(Prayer for the return of de Lamennais.)
THE EXTERNAL FORUM

Letter Graviter sane, September 28, 1844, to the Archbishop
of Milan.
(Reproaches on the subject of the new edition of the Bre­
viary, which contains pictures contrary to faith, and alterations
in the text. )
Moreover, the prayer which is said for the feast of Peter’s 189
Chair and which commemorates the conferring of the power to (140.
bind and loose on the same Blessed Prince of the Apostles by 149.
Christ Our Lord, reads now in the breviary with the addition 175)
of the word animas, which Christ never employed to affirm the
power of Peter. This addition to the collect approved by the
Church can be taken in the sense that it seems to reduce the
fullness of jurisdiction conferred on Peter and on his successors
for all time, in the government and administration of the Uni188a Cf. Roni. 12:3.

1881) 1 Tim. 3:15.

HO

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

versai Church by Our Lord and Savior, and to favor that perni­
cious and perverse system, condemned by the Apostolic See, of
those who pretend that ecclesiastical power looks only to the
internal condition of souls, and seeks to undermine, destroy, and
completely eliminate the divine attribution of all jurisdiction to
the Roman Pontiff and to the Church, to promulgate laws, cor­
rect, and punish by an external judgment and salutary penance
actions which are erroneous and rebellious.
(Necessity of correcting the breviary and safe-guarding the
integrity of doctrine.)
SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

Letter Non sine gravi, May 23, 1846, to the Bishop of Fri­
bourg.
(Sadness caused by the growing practice of mixed marriages.
—Directives on this subject. )
190
(What We have just said) is in conformity with the teach(172-ings and admonitions which you know have already been formu173, lated, Venerable Brother, whether in the Letters or Instructions
J 76, to different Archbishops and Bishops, or in those of Our prede190, cessor Pius VIII, drawn up by his orders or by Ours. It matters
224) little that these instructions have been given only to some Bish­
ops who have consulted the Apostolic See, as if liberty were
granted to others not to follow the decision given. In fact, here
We are not dealing with some new law introduced by Our
predecessor or by Ourselves, since Wc have both rather had
in view, according to the circumstances, to mitigate as far as
this was possible the rigors of discipline, and at the same time to
inculcate what We judged necessary to uproot vicious practices,
to safeguard the deposit of true doctrine, to preserve the sancti­
ty of marriage and the integrity of the Catholic religion; in a
word, to ensure the salvation of the souls. This is why, even if
these letters and instructions, which grant, or tolerate, an innova­
tion in some spot, have reference only to those places for which
they were given, nonetheless their meaning is not restricted by
territorial boundaries, inasmuch as they manifest the unchanging
doctrine of the Church, determine the sense of the Canons, and
proscribe evil customs which have developed in certain areas.
(Exhortation Io firmness.)

LIVING AUTHORITY
Encycl. Qui pluribus, November 9, 1846.
(Inauguration of the Pontificate.—War waged against the
Church— Rationalism.—The rational bases of faith.)

It is possible to see from this how grave is the error of those
who, abusing reason and looking upon the divine revelations as
the work of man, dare to submit them to their own judgment
and temerariously to interpret them. Has not God Himself
established a living authority to teach and to maintain the true
and legitimate meaning of his heavenly revelation, and to close
by an infallible pronouncement all controversies on matters of
faith and morals, so that the faithful will not be buffeted about
by every wind of doctrine, and led into the snares of error by
human perversity?

191
(96,
101103)

Now, this living and infallible authority resides only in
that Church built by Christ Our Lord upon Peter, Head, Prince,
and Pastor of the entire Church whose faith He promised would
never fail; the Church which has always had, since the time
of Peter, legitimate Pontiffs who have succeeded one another
without interruption on his Chair, heirs and defenders of his
doctrine, of his dignity, of his honor, and of his power. And
since where Peter is, there is the Church (a), since Peter speaks
by the mouth of the Roman Pontiff (b), since he is always living
in his successors (c), since he even exercises judgment, and
transmits the verity of faith to those who ask it (d), it is there­
fore necessary to receive these divine oracles integrally in the
same sense in which they have been kept and are still kept by
this Roman Chair of Blessed Peter. Mother and Mistress of all
the Churches (e), she has always kept whole and inviolable,
and taught to the faithful, the faith given by the Lord Jesus
Christ, showing them all the way of salvation and the doctrine
of uncorrupted truth. She is, therefore, that principal Church
from which flows the unity of the priesthood (f), that center
of piety in which rests whole and entire the solidity of the

192
(102,
140,
142,
144145,
161,
170)

192a
192b
192c
192d
192e
192f

Cf. St. Ambrose, in Psalm, XL, 30.
Cf. Cone, of Chalced., art. 2.
Cf. Cone, of Ephes., act. 3.
Cf. St. Peter Chrys. Epist. ad Eutychen.
Cf. Council of Trent, session VIII.
Cf. St. Cyprian. Epist. LV ad Cornel, pont.
-143-

144

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

Christian religion (g). Men have ever seen flourishing in her
the sovereignty of the Apostolic Chair (h), to which every
church, that is to say, all the faithful wherever they are, must
have recourse by reason of its supreme authority (i), where,
if a man gather not, he scatters (j).
( Principal errors of the times.—Appeal to all bishops. )

193
Now, you know well that the first duty of your charge is
(61, to support and defend with all your episcopal strength the
139, Catholic faith, to watch over with the greatest care the flock
142, confided to you so that it may remain firm and unshakably
190, attached to this faith, “which, unless a man keep whole and
197, entire he shall indubitably be lost” (a). Therefore, employ the
201) most eager care of your pastoral solicitude in maintaining and
preserving this faith; cease not to teach it to all, to strengthen
the wavering, to reprimand those who attack it, to fortify the
weak, neither dissembling, nor ever allowing anything that might
seem to taint its purity—whatever it may be—to appear.
( Duty of unmasking the machinations of the impious, and of
preaching the Gospel.—Care to be taken in the formation of
priests.—Exhortation to bishops.)
194
But since nothing could be more pleasing to Us, nothing
(153-sweeter or more desirable, than to shower upon you all, whom
154, We cherish in the bowels of Jesus Christ, the succor of Our af161) fection and Our counsels, and to work with you for the glory of
God, for the defense and propagation of the Catholic faith, and
for the salvation of souls, for which We are ready, if need be, to
sacrifice Our life, We supplicate and conjure you, dear Brothers,
come to Us with an open heart and entire confidence in this
Chair of Blessed Peter.
UNITY OF THE CHURCH
All. Ubi primum to the Consistory, December 17, 1847.
(Affairs in Spain.—Indifferentism.)
195
Now, Venerable Brothers, We wish to share with you the ex1102, treme surprise We experienced in receiving a document com192g Cf. St. John of Constantinople, Lit. synod, ad Hormisd. pont.
192n Cf. St. Augustine, Epist. 162, no. 7.
1921 Cf. St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hier., Ill, 3.
192j Cf. St. Jerome, Epist. XV, ad Dainas. pont.
193a Symbol, Quicumque.

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

145

posed and published by a man invested with an ecclesiastical
dignity. In fact, this man, speaking here of certain doctrines
which he calls the traditions of the Churches of his country, and
which tend to restrict the rights of the Apostolic See, has not
blushed to affirm that these traditions were held in esteem by Us.
Now, God forbid, Venerable Brothers, that We should ever have
the thought, or even the smallest idea of departing in anything
from the teachings of Our Forebears, or of neglecting the con­
servation and defense of the authority of the Holy See in all its in­
tegrity! Yes, without a doubt, We do attach a price to particular
traditions, but only to those which do not depart from the mind
of the Catholic Church. We have a special reverence for and We
defend very strongly those which are in harmony with the tradi­
tion of the other Churches, and above all with this Holy Roman
Church, with which, to use the words of St, Irenaeus, “by reason
of her eminent primacy, every church must necessarily agree,
that is to say, the faithful of the entire world, and in which is
kept, by all the faithful, the tradition which comes from the
Apostles” (a).
Therefore, let those who wish to be saved come to this pillar,
to this foundation of the truth which is the Church; let them
come to the true Church of Christ which, in her Bishops and in
the Roman Pontiff, the supreme head of all, possesses the unin­
terrupted succession of apostolic authority, which has never had
anything more closely at heart than to preach, to preserve, and
to defend with all her strength the doctrine announced by the
Apostles on the order of Jesus Christ; who, since the days of the
Apostles, has grown in the midst of difficulties of every kind,
and who, splendid with the splendor of miracles in the entire
world, made fruitful by the blood of Martyrs, ennobled by the
virtues of Confessors and Virgins, strengthened by the testimony
and the wise writings of the Fathers, has sent down roots and
still flourishes in all the countries of the earth, brilliant in the
perfect unity of her faith, of the sacraments and of her spiritual
sacred government. For Us, who, in spite of Our unworthiness,
sit on this supreme Chair of the Apostle Peter, on which Jesus
Christ Our Lord laid the foundations of his Church. We will
never spare either Our efforts or Our labors, to bring back, by
the grace of the same Jesus Christ, to this unique way of truth
195a Adv. Hxreses, III, 3, 2.

196
(44,
46,
52.
61,
128,
131,
139,
223224)

146

THE CATHOLIC COMMUNION
THE CATHOLIC COMMUNION

and salvation, those in ignorance and error. Let all those who
oppose Us remember that heaven and earth will pass away, but
that not one of Christ’s words can pass away, that nothing can
be changed in the doctrine which the Catholic Church has re­
ceived from Jesus Christ to preserve, to defend, and to preach.
(Civil war in Switzerland.—Exhortation.)
THE CATHOLIC COMMUNION

Letter In suprema Petri, January 6, 1848, to the Eastern
Churches.
(Praise for the Churches of the East.—The Popes' solicitude
for them.—Their liturgy must be preserved.)
197
(3738,
44t
52(
57j

Hear Our word, all you who, in the countries of the East or
on their borders glory in the name of Christian and who, nonetheless, are not in communion with the Holy Roman Church.
And you especially who are charged with the sacred functions or
invested with the highest ecclesiastical dignities and have authority over the people: Recall the ancient condition of your
churches, when they were united with one another and with the
other churches of the Catholic world by the bond of unity. Then
examine what has been the use of the divisions which followed,
the result of which has been to destroy this unity, whether doc­
trinal, or of ecclesiastical government, not only with the Churches
of the West but even among your own Churches. Remember
that profession of faith in which you confess with us: to believe
in the Church, one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic, and then see
if it be possible to find this unity of the holy, Catholic, and Apos­
tolic Church in the midst of division such as your churches pre­
sent, when you refuse to recognize it in the communion of the
Roman Church, under whose authority so large a number of
churches in all parts of the world are united, and have always
been united. And to understand the character of this unity which
should distinguish the Catholic Church, recall this prayer report­
ed by St. John, in which Christ, the only-begotten Son of God,
prays to his Father for his disciples: “Holy Father, keep them in
thy name whom thou hast given me, that they all may be one as
we are” (a); and He adds immediately: “Not for them only do
I pray, but for those who through their word will believe in me.
197a John 17:11.

147

that they all may be one as thou, Father, in me and I in thee, that
they also may be one in us, that the world may believe that thou
hast sent me. The glory which thou hast given to me, I have
given to them, that they may be one as we are: I in them and
thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one, that the world
may know that thou hast sent me and that thou hast loved them
as thou hast loved me” (b).

The foundation of unity
Now, the same Author of men’s salvation, Christ Our Lord,
laid the foundation of his one Church, against which the gates
of hell shall not prevail, in the Prince of the Apostles, Peter, to
whom “He gave the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven” (a); for
whom He prayed “that his faith fail not” (b), commanding him
further “to confirm his brethren” in the same faith; to him He
confided the office of “feeding the lambs and the sheep" (c),
that is, the whole Church which is composed of the true lambs
and sheep of Christ. And these prerogatives belong likewise to
the Roman bishops, Peter’s successors; since, after the death of
Peter, the Church could not be deprived of the foundation on
which Christ erected it, since she was to last until the end of
time. Therefore, St. Irenaeus, disciple of Polyearp, who had him­
self received the teaching of St. John, Irenaeus, afterwards Bishop
of Lyons, whom the Eastern Christians as well as the Western
count among the principal luminaries of Christian antiquity, de­
siring to refute the heretics of his day by stating the doctrine
handed down by the Apostles, believed it useless to detail the
succession in all the churches of apostolic origin; it seemed suf­
ficient to him to allege against the innovators the teaching of the
Roman Church, because, he said, “with it, by reason of its emi­
nent domain, ever}' church of necessity must agree, that is, the
faithful in every part of the world”; and in her, “according to uni­
versal belief, has always been kept the tradition which comes
from the Apostles” (d).

198
(40,
77,
137142,
151
169
171
227
228

The witness of history
We know that you all hold to the preservation of the doctrine 199
kept by your ancestors. Therefore, follow, too, those bishops of (153)
antiquity and those first Christians of the East; innumerable
197b Ibid., 17:20-23.
198c John 21:15-17.

198a Matt. 16:18-19. 198b Luke 22:32.
198d Ado. Hær., Ill, iii, 2.

148

THE CATHOLIC COMMUNION

monuments attest to the fact that, together with the Christians of
the West, they respected the authority of the Roman Pontiffs.
Among the most remarkable documents which the East of anti­
quity has left on this subject ( beyond the testimony of Irenaeus
which We have just cited), We love to recall what happened in
the fourth century in the case of Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria,
distinguished for his sanctity no less than for his teaching and his
pastoral zeal. Unjustly condemned by the Bishops of the East,
particularly at the Council of Tyre, and driven from his Church,
he came to Rome where there were at the same time other Bish­
ops from the East, like Athanasius unjustly deprived of their
sees. "The Bishop of Rome, Our predecessor Julius I, having ex­
amined the case of each one of them and finding them all loyal to
the teaching of the Council of Nicaea, received them into com­
munion with him. And because, by reason of the dignity of his
see, he was charged with the care of all, he restored his church
to each of these bishops. He also wrote to the Eastern Bishops to
reprimand them because they had not judged according to jus­
tice in the cause of these bishops, and because they had disturbed
the peace of the churches" (a). At the beginning of the fifth cen­
tury John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople, no less illustri­
ous than Athanasius, having been condemned most unjustly at
Chalcedon at the Council of the Oak, in his turn had recourse by
letters and envoys to Our Apostolic See, and was declared inno­
cent by Our predecessor St. Innocent I (b).
The Council of Chalcedon held in 451 is another and very
(117, famous instance of the veneration of your ancestors for the au153) thority of the Roman Pontiffs. The 600 bishops who were assem­
bled there, almost all from the East (with very rare exceptions),
after having heard in the second session the reading of a letter
from the Roman Pontiff St. Leo the Great, cried out as with one
voice, “Peter has spoken by the mouth of Leo.” And the assem­
bly presided over by Pontifical Legates having disbanded, the
Fathers of the Council, in the relation of the Acta which they
sent to St. Leo, affirmed that he himself, in the person of the
Legates, had commanded the assembled bishops, as the head
commands the members (a).

‘200

199a Sozomenius, Hist. Eccl, III, 8.
199b Cf. Letters of St. Innocent I to St. John Chnjsostom.
2 a Labbe. «1. Venice. IV. 1235 and 1755.

GENERAL DISCIPLINE

149

And it is not only the acts of the Council of Chalcedon but 201
also the acts of all the other Eastern Councils that We could(253)
bring to bear in great number: they all prove that the Roman
Pontiffs have ever had the first place in the councils, especially
in the Ecumenical Councils, and that their authority has been
invoked both before the holding of the Council and after its dis­
solution. For the rest, outside the Acts of the Councils, we have
a great number of passages from the writings of the Fathers
and the oldest writers of the East giving evidence that the
supreme authority of the Roman Pontiffs was always in vigor
in the whole of the East in the time of your forebears.
(Promise to keep their legitimate rites and all their priests.
—Hopes for the reestablishment of unity.)
GENERAL DISCIPLINE

Letter Non mediocri, March 18, 1848, to the Nuncio in Paris.
(Noble attitude of the clergy during the “February Days"
in Paris, 1848.—Certain questions concerning the liberty of the
Church which are reserved for the Holy See are not to be treated
in the newspapers.)

The Sovereign Pontiffs, to whom was divinely committed 202
the care and solicitude of all the Churches, have never failed (92)
to show themselves, according to the needs of the hour, the
constant supporters of the liberty of the Church in France, and
to struggle against the efforts of those who were threatening to
destroy it. It is thus that Our predecessor of happy memory,
Pius VII, as soon as the organic articles had been promidgated,
bravely condemned them, with apostolic courage and liberty, in
all that they contained contrary to the teaching and laws of the
Church: it is thus that the same Pontiff and Our other predeces­
sors employed all their zeal and all their strength to assure liberty
for the Church and the spiritual good, of France.
For the rest, the canonical discipline which is today in vigor 203
in the churches of France, as well as the organization of ecclesi- (152,
astical affairs in that country, cannot be changed by any person 176)
whomsoever, but only by the Sovereign Pontiff. For he alone
has a universal authority over all the episcopal and metropolitan
churches of the French nation. To none other is it permitted

150

PONTIFICAL POLICY

to establish statutes touching on the general discipline of the
Church, or to derogate from what has been confirmed by this
Apostolic See.
(The budget for worship.—Recommendation of prudence.)

PONTIFICAL POLICY
All. to the Consistory, April 29, 1848.
(The Pope is not responsible for revolutionary movements.—
His concessions had been solicited by European governments.)
204
As far as We are concerned, We declare once more that all
(160, Our thought, all Our care, all the solicitude of the Roman
179) Pontiff has no other object than to procure each day the increase
of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, which is the Church, and in no
sense to extend the frontiers of the temporal realm which
Divine Providence has willed to give to the Holy See to protect
its dignity and the free exercise of the supreme apostolate.
They, therefore, are in great error who, wishing to draw Us
into armed conflict, hope to seduce Us by the bait of a larger
temporal domain. Nothing would more appeal to Our father’s
heart than to be able, by Our labors, to contribute to extinguish­
ing the fires of discord, to reconcile the hearts of combatants, and
to reestablish peace among them.
(Protest against impious and defamatory pamphlets.)

MAINTENANCE OF UNION

Encycl. Noscitis et Nobiscum, December 8. 1849, to the
Italian Episcopate.
(Dangers of socialism and communism—The faithful must
be forearmed against them by religious instruction and use of
the sacraments.—Confirmation.)
205
(24,
4648,
51 ·
116)

It brings the faithful to the frequent and devout reception of
the most Blessed Eucharist, the spiritual nourishment of their
souls, the antidote which delivers us from our daily faults and
preserves us from mortal sin. the symbol of that one Bodv of
which Christ is the Head, and to which He willed us to be
united as members by that most strong bond of faith, hope.

MAINTENANCE OF UNION

151

and charity, so that wc would all have the same language, and
there would be no division among us (a).
(Usefulness of missions.—Combat against had books.)

Interpretation of the Scripture

In your wisdom you will readily understand, Venerable 206
Brothers, with what vigilance and what solicitude you must (2 02J
bring Christians to fly with horror from those poisonous books;
to remember that for the books which are called Divine
Scriptures, no man, relying simply on his own wisdom, can
arrogate to himself the right, nor have the presumption to
interpret them otherwise than they have been interpreted and
they are interpreted by our Holy Mother the Church; to her
alone Our Lord Jesus Christ has entrusted the deposit of faith,
the decision on the true meaning and interpretation of these
divine books.
(Good books must be promoted.)
The Prince of the Apostles
All those who cooperate with you in the defense of the faith 207
will have particularly in view to inculcate, to strengthen, to (139,
engrave deep in the minds of the faithful, piety, veneration, and 142respect for the supreme See of Peter, sentiments which distin- 146,
guish you in an eminent way, Venerable Brothers. Let the 149,
faithful remember that here lives and resides, in the person of 163,
his successors, Peter the Prince of the Apostles (a), whose 165,
dignity is not eclipsed even in an unworthy heir (b). Let them 169)
remember that Jesus Christ Our Lord has placed in this Chair
of Peter the unshakable foundation of his Church (c), that to
Peter were given the keys of the kingdom of heaven (d), that
He prayed to obtain for Peter the faith that would never fail,
commanding him to confirm his brethren in that faith (e). Thus,
the successor of Peter, the Roman Pontiff, possesses supreme
authority over the whole world; he is the true Vicar of Christ,
the Head of the entire Church, the Father and Doctor of all
Christians (f).
205a
207a
ad
207c
207f

Council of Trent, sess. XIII, Deer, de Euchar. Sacramento, 11.
Council of Ephesus, act. Ill; St. Peter Chrysologous, Ep.
Eutychen.
207b St Leo, Sermo in anniv. Assumpt. sti;e.
Matt. 16:18.
207d Ibid., 19.
207e Luke 27:32.
Council of Florence, in Def. seu. Decret. Unionis.

152

TEMPORAL POWER

The safeguard of truth
208
The maintenance of this common union of peoples in
(170- obedience to the Roman Pontiff is the shortest and most direct
172, means of keeping them in the profession of Catholic truth. In
181) fact, it is impossible to rebel against the Catholic faith without
at the same time rejecting the authority of the Roman Church, in
which resides the irreformable authority of the faith founded
by our Divine Redeemer, and in which, consequently, the
tradition which stems from the Apostles has ever been kept.
That is why modem Protestants, like the heretics of antiquity,
so divided on other matters, have always united to attack the
authority of the Apostolic See, which they have never been
able, by artifice or maneuver, to bring to tolerate even a single
one of their errors. So today’s enemies of God and of human
society stop at nothing to snatch the peoples of Italy from
obedience to Us and to the Holy See, persuaded, doubtless,
that it will then be possible for them to sully Italy with the
impiety of their teaching and to spread there the moral contagion
of their new systems.
(Authority and liberty.—Formation of priests, of religious,
of the young.—Warnings given to heads of States.—Invitation to
prayer. )
TEMPORAL POWER
All. to the Consistory, May 20, 1850.
(The Pope, on his return from exile, thanks those who have
assisted him. )
209
Everyone must admire the sovereign Providence of God
(179)which disposes all things and directs them to their ends with
strength and sweetness. Is it not Providence which, in this very
troubled and hostile epoch, has made of the Princes separated
from the Roman Church the stay and support of the civil power
of that Church? a power which the Roman Pontiff, in virtue of a
special disposition of the same Divine Providence, has enjoyed
in all its fullness for long centuries; and that, so that he could
exercise over the entire world his sovereign apostolic authority in
the government of the universal Church confided to him by God
with that total liberty so necessary for the exercise of the
Sovereign Pontificate, and for the salvation of the entire flock
of the Lord.
(Duty to defend the Church, under attack from all quarters. )

OBEDIENCE TO THE HOLY SEE

Letter Redditae sunt, January 6, 1851, to the Archbishop of
Palmira.
(Submission of the Archbishop of Goa.)
In fact, Venerable Brother, you are not ignorant of the truth 210
that nothing should be nearer to a Catholic Bishop, nothing is (145,
more obligatory for him, than heartfelt respect for the supreme 149,
power of this Chair of St. Peter, whence flows sacerdotal unity, 151,
the ordination of bishops, and the government of the Church; 153than to defend with all his strength the rights of this See and to 154,
honor them, splendid as they are with an authority, not human, 190)
but divine; than to attach himself firmly to the Sovereign Pontiff,
to recognize him, faithfully to render to him all respect and
obedience, this Pontiff, placed in this See, who has received from
Our Lord Himself in the person of the Blessed Prince of the
Apostles, all power to feed the sheep and the lambs, to confirm
his brethren, to rule and govern the whole Church throughout the
world.
Revive and defend unity

You well know with what care and zeal a Catholic bishop 211
must apply himself to the task of reviving, maintaining, and (145,
defending with all his strength the unity of the Catholic Church, 153,
which cannot subsist without the respect and obedience due to 155,
the Holy See and to the Sovereign Pontiff, in whom, everyone 175
knows, this unity principally resides, so that, although there are 190
in the people of God both many priests and many pastors, none­
theless, it is properly Peter who governs all of them, over whom
Christ reigns in the highest place. You are not ignorant how
unworthy, perverse, and wretched it is to turn the faithful from
Catholic unity, above all to deflect ecclesiastics, and how severely
they should be reproved and condemned who do not fear—no mat­
ter what the method—to oppose this unity and to dissuade others
from it by their words and examples.
( Exhortation. )
LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE
Apost. Let. Multiplices inter, June 10, 1851.
(The Pope's duty to proscribe dangerous books.—The work
of Francis de Paul G. Vigil: Defense of the authority of the

I

154

THE EXTERIOR FORUM

government and of the bishops against the pretensions of the
Roman Court.—This book reiterates the errors condemned at
Pistoia. )
212
In fact the author, even though he is a Catholic, and even
(2, (so it has been said) engaged in the sacred ministry, desirous of
40, abandoning himself with impunity and security to indifferentism
61, and rationalism (with which errors he shows that he is tainted),
107) denies the Church the power of defining as a dogma that the
religion of the Catholic Church is the only true religion, and
teaches that each one is free to embrace and profess whatever
religion reason tells him is the true one.
{His errors against celibacy; against ecclesiastical im­
munity.)
213
He attributes to the secular government the right to depose
(92, from the pastoral ministry the bishops established by the Holy
193) Spirit for the government of the Church. He attempts to persuade
those in authority in the State to disobey the Roman Pontiff in
the matter of the institution of bishops and bishoprics.
(Errors· on the relation between Church and State.) (a)
Finally, added to a great number of other errors, he pushes
temerity and impiety to the length of pretending that the Roman
Pontiffs and Ecumenical Councils have overstepped the limits
of their power, that they have usurped the powers of Princes and
even that they have erred in defining matters of faith and morals.
{Condemnation of this work.)

THE EXTERIOR FORUM
Apost. Let. Ad Apostolicx Sedis, August 22, 1851.
{The Pope’s duty to condemn error.—The errors of J. P.
Nuytz in his Institutions of Ecclesiastical Law: repetition of errors
"already condemned by the Roman Pontiffs."
214
Books published by him state openly and formally: “that
(57, the Church has not the power to employ force, or any temporal
92, power, either direct or indirect; that the schism which divided
120, the Church into East and West was caused by the excesses of the
138, power of the Roman Pontiffs; that beyond the power inherent in
213a Cf CHURCH AND STATE

DEFENDERS OF THE HOLY SEE

155

the episcopacy there is another, temporal, power, (originating)
by virtue of the State’s express or tacit concession, and hence
revokable at the good pleasure of the State; that the State, even
when governed by an infidel, enjoys an indirect and negative
power over things sacred; that if the Church wrongs the State,
the State can delend its own interests by means of this indirect
and negative power over things sacred; that not only the law
known as exequatur enters into its competence, but also the ap­
peal from an abuse; that in the conflicts between two powers
the State is the more powerful; that there is no reason why, as a
result of a decree of a General Council, or at the will of the peo­
ple, the Sovereign Pontificate should not be taken from the
Bishop and the See of Borne (and given) to another bishop and
another see; that a definition stemming from a National Council
is not subject to ratification, and that civil administration can put
the definition into effect; that the doctrine of those who com­
pare the Boman Pontiff to a monarch whose power extends to
the universal Church is a doctrine born in the Middle Ages
whose effects are still with us; that the compatibility of the tem­
poral and the spiritual power is a controverted question among
the sons of the Christian and Catholic Church."
(Errors concerning marriage.—Condemnation of the book.)

143,
177178,
193)

DEFENDERS OF THE HOLY SEE
Encycl. Inter multiplices, March 21, 1853, to the Archbishops
and Bishops of France.
(Congratulations to the Bishops on the progress of religion
in France, a subject of consolation for the Holy Father.)
This consolation is increased in a special way by the very 215
respectful letters which you write Us, and in which We see ever (152,
more plainly with what filial piety, with what love, with what 161,
ardor you glory in your devotion to Us and to this Chair of Peter, 184)
"the center of Catholic truth and unity, the head, Mother, and
Mistress of all the churches” (a), to which “all obedience and
honor are due” (b), with which, “by reason of her eminent
primacy every church must of necessity agree, that is to say,
the faithful of every region” (c).
215a St. Augustine, Epist. 43; epist. 105.
215b Council of
Ephesus, Actio IV.
215c St. Irenaeus, Adv. hier. Hi. iii, 2.

156

DEFENDERS OF THE HOLY SEE

(Provincial Councils—Return to the Roman Liturgy.—Dis­
sensions among bishops.—The Pope invites them to have recourse
to the Holy See to ensure their agreement.)
Catholic writers should be supported
216
Watch also—We urgently beg this of you—and foster with
(198, all your kindness and all your predilection those men who,
222) animated with a Catholic mentality and versed in learning and
science, consecrate their labors to writing and publishing books
and newspapers to the end that Catholic teaching may be propa­
gated and defended; that the venerable rights of the Holy See
and its teachings may not be eviscerated; that the darkness of
error may be dispelled and minds flooded with the gentle light
of truth. Your charity and your episcopal solicitude must there­
fore excite the zeal of Catholic writers animated with the correct
outlook so that they will continue to defend the cause of the
Catholic truth with attentive care and skill. And if in their writ­
ings there should be any deficiency, you must [ int it out to
them with prudence and in a fatherly way.

Union with the Holy See

217
For the rest, you are surely not ignorant that the most bitter
(139, enemies of the Catholic religion have ever—though in vain—
161, directed their most violent attacks against this Chair of the
181, Blessed Apostle Peter, knowing well that religion itself will never
190) fail, never falter, so long as this Chair founded on Peter remains
standing; against it the gates of hell will never triumph, in it is
whole and entire “the solidity of the Christian religion” (a).
That is why, Beloved Sons and Venerable Brothers, We beg you
with all Our strength, conformably with the greatness of your
faith in the Church and the ardor of your piety for this Chair
of Peter, never cease with one mind and one heart to apply all
your care, all your vigilance, all your labor to this point before all
else: that the faithful of France, avoiding the errors and pitfalls
set for them by perfidious men, will make it their glory to adhere
firmly and constantly to this Apostolic See by increasing love and
filial devotion, and to obey it, as they should, with the greatest
respect. Therefore, in all the ardor of your episcopal vigilance,
neglect nothing, either in word or deed, that will redouble and
217a John of Constant., ad Hormisdas Pont.

ONE SINGLE FLOCK

157

multiply the love and veneration of the faithful for this Holy See,
so that they will receive, and carry out with the most perfect
obedience, all that the Holy See teaches, establishes, and decrees.
( The Pope deplores the diffusion of the work, On the Present
Situation of the Gallican Church, with respect to Customary
Law.—Appeal for union.—Blessing.)

ONE SINGLE FLOCK

Encycl. Neminem vestrum, February 2, 1854, to the Ar­
menian Catholics.
(Discord in the Armenian Church—Measures taken to stop
it.—Seminary at Constantinople—Exhortation to peace and
concord. )

We beg you urgently to be each day more ardent in your 218
love for religion, to employ your zeal for the maintenance of ( 141 peace, and not only never to undertake anything against the 142,
Church or against your pastors—as those are accustomed to do 175,
who have severed themselves from Catholic unity—but still more 178,
to lend the support of your counsel and your efforts so that 181,
the Catholic Church will grow and prosper among you, and 195,
all will be animated by those sentiments of respect, devotion, 203,
and docility, which they ought to have, whether towards the 214,
authority of Peter and his successors the Boman Pontiffs, divinely 217,
charged by Christ Our Lord to feed—that is to say, to rule and 231)
govern—the Church in its entirety, or to the sacred and ven­
erable authority which bishops have over their own flocks,
realizing that neither of them can in any way be made depen­
dent upon or subject to any civil power whatsoever.
(The problem of the return of the dissidents.)
May it please God that your entire nation, yielding to the 219
impulse of heavenly grace and adjuring its errors, may return, (40,
in a spirit of union and docility, to the one fold of Christ, 161,
outside of which is surely to be found anyone not united to 181,
this Holy See of Peter. It is from this See that flow all the 184)
rights of that venerable communion (a), to it that are due all
obedience and all honor (b), to it, by reason of its eminent dig219a St. Ambrose, Epist. XII ad Damas., Nos. 2, I.
2I9b Council of Ephesus, Actio IV.

158

CONFIRM THY BRETHREN

nity that the whole Church must be attached, that is to say, all
the faithful of the whole world ( c ).
(Charity to the Schismatics.—Differences in the rites are not
to be overlooked.— Wishes for peace.)

THE ROMAN TRADITION
Apost. Const. Ineffabilis, December 8, 1854.
(The Blessed Virgin, free from original sin.—This has always
been recognized by the Church.)
220
But although all these things, everywhere known and prac(161, ticed by the faithful, give evidence of the zeal which the Roman
165- Church, Mother and Mistress of all the churches, has proved
166) with regard to the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin, nonethe­
less is it only right and fitting to recall in detail the most striking
actions of that Church. For such are the eminent dignity and
authority which belong to her that she is the center of Catholic
unity, that unity in which alone is inviolably guaranteed the
deposit of religion, from which all the other churches must receive
the tradition of the faith (a).
(The acts of the Roman Church in favor of the doctrine of
the Immaculate Conception—Opportune character of the defini­
tion.—The definition.)

CONFIRM THY BRETHREN
All. Singulari quadam to the Consistory, December 9, 1854.

221
(142,
155,
160,
180)

It is with a very special consolation that We rejoice in the
Lord seeing you today, Venerable Brothers, gathered here in such
great numbers about Us. you whom We can in all truth call Our
joy and Our crown. You are in fact a part of those who share
Our labors and Our cares to feed that universal flock which the
Lord has entrusted to Our weakness, to guard and defend the
rights of the Catholic Church, to rally to her side new disciples
who will serve and adore the God of justice and of truth with a
sincere faith. This word of Christ Our Lord to the Prince of the
Apostles: Tu aliquando conversus confirma fratres tuos, “Thou,
219c St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hær., C. Ill, iii, 3.
220a Cf. St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hær., Ill, iii.

THE CHURCH IS UNIQUE

159

being once converted, confirm thy brethren,” (a), seems, there­
fore, in the present circumstance, to invite Us—We have, by
divine grace, in spite of Our own unworthiness, been put in his
place—to speak to you, Venerable Brothers, not to recall to you
your duties, or to ask you to employ more zeal in that office where
We see that you are already on fire to extend God’s glory, but
rather so that strengthened by the very voice of Blessed Peter
who lives and will always live in his successors, you may find
here as it were a new force to work for the salvation of your
flock, and to support the interests of the Church with courage
and firmness in the face of all the difficulties of the present hour.
(The evil issue of rationalism.)
THE CHURCH IS UNIQUE

Letter Singulari quidem, March 17, 1856, to the Austrian
Episcopate.
(The Convention between the Pope and the EmperorCombat indifferentism. )
The true Church is one, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, and 222
Roman; unique: the Chair founded on Peter by the Lord’s words (5,
(a); outside her fold is to be found neither the true faith nor 40,
eternal salvation, for it is impossible to have God for Father if 53,
one has not the Church for Mother, and it is in vain that one 56,
flatters oneself on belonging to the Church, if one is separated 61,
from the Chair of Peter on which the Church is founded. There 139)
could be no greater crime, no more detestable injury than op­
position to Christ, than the rending of the Church purchased and
engendered in his divine Blood, (b) than the furious attacks of
pernicious discord against the peaceful and single-minded people
of God, to the detriment of evangelical charity.
(Combat rationalism.)
The Church declares openly that all man’s hope, all his 223
salvation, is in Christian faith, in that faith which teaches the (61,
truth, dissipates by its divine light the darkness of human 71,
ignorance, works through charity; that it is at the same time in 102,
the Catholic Church, who, because she keeps the true worship, is 121)
221a Luke 22:32.
222a Cf. Matt. 16:18.
222b Cf. Acts 20:28.

160

POLITICAL LIBERTY

the inviolable sanctuary of faith itself and the temple of God, out­
side of which, except with the excuse of invincible ignorance,
there is no hope of life or of salvation.

Progress in the Church
224
Nevertheless, we must not conclude from this that in the
(226)Church of Christ religion makes no progress: it certainly does,
and very considerable progress: but this has to be progress in,
not changes in, faith. Let knowledge, science, wisdom of all men
and of each man grow—as they must—and increase like the whole
Church in extent and strength in the course of centuries and
ages. Let man see more clearly what before he believed in a
confused manner. Let posterity congratulate itself on under­
standing what antiquity venerated by faith alone. Let men polish
the precious stones of divine teaching, adapt them with fidelity,
set them with prudence, so that they will shine with grace and
beauty: for all this, nothing must be changed in dogma, in mean­
ing, or in thought, so that in expressing ourselves in a new manner,
we shall not advance new matter.
(Exhortation to the bishops—Formation of the clergy.)
POLITICAL LIBERTY

Apost. Let. Cum Catholica Ecclesia, March 26, 1860.
225
The Catholic Church which was founded and instituted by
(12- Our Lord Jesus Christ to procure the eternal salvation of men,
13, has, by reason of this divine institution, the form of a perfect
77, society. Therefore, she must possess liberty such that she cannot
97, be subject to any civil power in the execution of her sacred
178- ministry. To act with freedom, as it is just she should, she has
179) always needed the assistance which was suitable to the conditions
and the necessities of the age. It is, therefore, by a particular
decree of Divine Providence that, at the fall of the Roman Empire
and its partition into separate kingdoms, the Roman Pontiff,
whom Christ made the head and center of his entire Church,
acquired civil power. Certainly, it was by a most wise design
of Cod Himself that in the midst of so great a multitude and
variety of temporal princes, the Sovereign Pontiff enjoyed
political liberty, which is so necessary for him to exercise his
spiritual power, his authority, and his jurisdiction over the whole

TRIUMPHS OF THE CHURCH

161

world. This served admirably to remove from the Catholic world
any pretext for thinking that the action of civil powers or private
interests would ever influence the decisions of this See, with which
because of its eminent dignity every church must necessarily be
in agreement” (a).
Now, it is easy to understand how this primacy of the Church, 226
though temporal in nature, nevertheless has a spiritual character (176in virtue of its sacred end and by reason of the close bond uniting 179)
it to the most important interests of Christendom. This does not
prevent it, moreover, from taking every means conducive even
to the temporal felicity of peoples; the history of the pontifical
government through so many centuries is a striking witness
to this.
( Adversaries of the temporal power of the Holy See.—The
Congress of Paris, 1856.—Machinations of the Piedmontese
government against the Holy See.—Excommunication of the
principals. )

TRIUMPHS OF THE CHURCH
All. to the Consistory, July 13, 1860.

(Sad state of religion in Italy.—Exhortation to prayer and
to courage.)
Heaven and earth will indeed pass away, but the words and 227
the promises of the Savior will never pass away (a). As you well(228)
know, the most prosperous empires, kingdoms, nations, cities,
and provinces can see ruin, be destroyed and annihilated, while
the Church founded by Christ Our Lord, constantly supported
and increased by his all-powerful strength, cannot possibly be
overturned or destroyed. Far from being vanquished or diminished
by persecution, she is, on the contrary, increased in size and
embellished with new and more magnificent triumphs.
"In fact, it is proper to the Church to emerge victorious when
she is wounded, to be more manifest when she is attacked, to
conquer when she is abandoned” (b).
(The Pope thanks clergy and people for their devotion
Io him.)

225a St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hier. Ill, iii, 2.
227a Cf. Matt. 24:35.
227b St. Hilary, de Trinitate, VII, 4.

THE PERFECT SOCIETY
All. Multis gravibusque to the Consistory, December 17, 1860.
(Errors on the rights of the Church.—Violation of the Con­
cordat with the Grand Duchy of Baden.)

228
(13,
77,
91,
131132)

We understand that these infringements stem from the false
doctrine of the Protestants, which holds that the Church exists
within the State as a sort of assembly which enjoys no other
rights than those which are granted to her by the temporal power.
Is there anyone who does not understand that such propositions
are far from the truth? In fact, the Church, inasmuch as she is
a true and perfect society, was made so by her Divine Founder;
she is not circumscribed by the limits of any earthly territory, she
is not subject to any secular government, and she must freely
exercise her power and her rights for the salvation of men in
every quarter of the globe. It is impossible to understand in any
other sense these solemn words of Our Lord Jesus Christ to his
Apostles: "All power has been given to me in heaven and upon
earth; going, therefore, teach all nations ... teaching them to
observe whatsoever I have commanded you" (a). Supported by
these words, the Apostles, the heralds of the Gospel, set out joy­
ously to the accomplishment of their heavenly commission,
despite the will of kings and princes, dreading neither threats
nor torture.
(Contempt of the government of the Grand Duchy for the
claims of the Holy See.)

The indivisibility of the Church
(The tract published in Paris, proposing the establishment
in France of a Church separated from Rome.)
229
What else is this, except to rend and to destroy the unity of
(57, the Catholic Church, that necessary unity which Jesus Christ
161) had before his eyes when, addressing his Father, He said: “Not
for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their
word will believe in me, that they all may be one, as thou, Father,
in me, and I in thee” (a). Moreover, the reason, the strength of
this unity absolutely require that, just as the members are united
to the head, so all the faithful of the whole world must be united
to and supported by the Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ on
228a Matt. 28:18-20.

229a John 17:20-21.

THE ONLY TRUE RELIGION

163

earth. Therefore, St. Jerome, Doctor of the Church, wrote to Our
predecessor Damasus of holy memory: “I am united to and in
communion with Your Beatitude, with the Chair of Peter, be­
cause I know that the Church is built upon this rock, and that he
who eats of the Lamb outside this holy dwelling is repro­
bate” (b). What injury the author of this tract does to the illus­
trious French nation when he thinks that this portion of the
Christian people, so solicitous to conserve Catholic unity, can be
enticed into schism!
(Revolutionary movements in Europe.—Martyrs in the Far
East and in Syria.—Appeal for prayer.)
THE ONLY TRUE RELIGION
All. lamdudum cernimus to the Consistory, March 18, 1861.

(Struggle between the partisans of modem civilization and
the defenders of the rights of the Church.)

The former demand that the Roman Pontiff be reconciled 230
with and come to terms with Progress and Liberalism—these are (5,
their expressions—in one word, with modern civilization. The 167)
latter maintain, and with reason, that the immutable and un­
shakable principles of eternal justice be kept without alteration;
they insist that We keep intact the salutary force of our divine
religion which alone can extend the kingdom of Cod and bring
remedies to the ills which afflict humanity, which is the one true
norm by which the children of men can, in this mortal life,
acquire all virtue and make their way to the harbor of a blessed
eternity. But the proponents of modern civilization do not under­
stand this opposition, although they claim to be true anil sincere
friends of religion. We would wish to believe them, if the sad
events happening every day in the sight of everyone did not
prove to Us the contrary.
In fact there is only one true and holy religion, founded and
instituted by Christ Our Lord. Mother and Nurse of the virtues,
Destroyer of vice. Liberator of souls, Guide to true happiness,
she is called Catholic, Apostolic and Roman.
(The misdeeds of modern civilization.—The Pope cannot
align himself with them.)
229b Enist. XV ad Damasum.

DOCTRINAL CONTROVERSIES

Letter Ad plurimas, December 19, 1861, to the Bishops of
Belgium.
( Controversy raging over the philosophical theories of the
University of Louvain—Peaceful intervention of the Bishops.)
231
But in the midst of the very great satisfaction which the
(1 /1}happy end of this controversy has been to Us, it is not without
profound sorrow that We have been informed that steps are being
taken to revive it, whether by articles inserted in public journals
or by recently published writings, and that to this end, decisions
emanating from Our Congregations and approved by Us have
been invoked, though these do not exist in any sense. This has
happened because some have pretended to attribute to a certain
document an importance which it absolutely cannot claim, since
its context and its terms obviously exclude any idea of a ‘decision
of a Congregation’, and they do not furnish any indication of an
intervention of Our pontifical authority, which, in fact, did not
intervene.
232
Therefore, having in mind the immense and innumerable
(111, benefits which clearly result from mutual agreement of minds,
173) agreement without which neither religion nor science can ever
have happy results, We ardently desire, dear Sons and Venerable
Brothers, to see cease and disappear all occasions which, in any
manner whatsoever, can either trouble or diminish union, no
matter how slightly. And so, without delivering anything like a
decision on the merits of the teaching which has given rise to the
present controversy, whose definitive examination and judgment
belong to the Holy See exclusively, We will and ordain that the
proponents and the opponents of these doctrines refrain, until the
time when the Holy See judges it proper to issue a definitive
judgment, either from teaching, or disseminating writings of any
nature whatever—either printed or otherwise published and dis­
tributed—with or without the name of the author, and from pro­
posing or defending either by act or by counsel any one of these
philosophical or theological doctrines as the unique, the true,
and the only admissible teaching, and as proper to the Catholic
University. Moreover, We ordain that, under any pretext what­
soever, they abstain from raising, where this matter is concerned,
any new discussions ver)' contrary to Christian charity' and the
salvation of souls.
(Measures to he taken by the Bishops.)

THE UNIQUE CITADEL

Encycl. Amantissimus, April 8, 1862, to the Bishops of the
Eastern Churches.

The most loving Savior of the human race, Christ Our Lord, 233
the only-hegotten Son of God, willing, as you well know, (19,
Venerable Brothers, to redeem all men from the slavery of the 23,
devil and the yoke of sin, to call them from darkness into his 32,
admirable light and procure their salvation, destroyed the decree ■to,
of our damnation by nailing it to the Cross; then He instituted 43,
and established the Catholic Church, purchased at the price of 46,
his Blood, as the one dtoelling-place of the living God (a), the 48one kingdom of heaven (b), the one city set on a hill (c), the 50,
one fold (d), the one body animated and vivified by the one 70Spirit, maintained in peace and unity by singleness of faith, hope, 73,
and charity, by the bonds of the sacraments, of worship, and of 131,
doctrine (e). He endowed this Church with governors chosen 137)
and named by Him. Thus constituted and formed to his image,
He determined that it should last as long as the world should
endure, and it would embrace all the peoples and nations
of the earth, so that men of every land could receive his divine
religion and grace to be the source for them, if they are faithful,
of eternal salvation and glory.

Peter
So as to maintain forever in his Church that unity of faith 234
and doctrine, He chose one man out of all others, Peter, (139,
whom He named Prince of the Apostles, his own Vicar on 149,
earth, the Head and impregnable foundation of his Church. He 161)
gave him, together with primacy of honor, fullness of authority,
of power, and of jurisdiction, with sovereign freedom to feed
his lambs and sheep, to confirm his Brethren, to guide and
govern the whole Church.
Peter’s successors
And because Christ willed his Church to remain one and 235
holy to the end of time, because He commanded her to keep (J42,
the unity of faith, of teaching, and of government, this fullness 227)
of dignity, of power, and of jurisdiction, this integrity of faith
233a 1 Tim. 3:15.
233c Ibid 5:14.

233b Matt. 13:24 et passim.
233d John 10:16.
233e Ephes. 4:4 ff.

166

THE UNIQUE CITADEL

and stability given to Peter, He conferred likewise on Peter's
successors, the Roman Pontiffs, seated on the very Chair of
Peter at Rome: in the person of the Blessed Prince of the Apostles
Christ Our Lord, by his divine authority, confided to them the
supreme duty of safeguarding the entire flock and governing
with sovereign authority the whole Church.
The constant tradition
236
And you are very well aware, Venerable Brothers, of how
(56, this dogma of our divine religion has always been preached,
58, defended, affirmed, singleheartedly and unanimously, by the
137, Fathers and the Councils of every age. Thus, they have never
142, ceased to teach that “there is one God, one Christ, one Church,
144, and one Chair, founded on Peter by the Lord's words (a), upon
152, which, as upon an immovable rock, the entire edifice of the
161, Christian people was divinely established (b). And in fact this
174) Chair of Peter has always been recognized and proclaimed
unique, the first by reason of the gifts received (c), preeminent
in splendor over the whole earth (d), source and mother of
the one Priesthood (e), with respect to all other churches not
only the head, but the mother and mistress (f), center of
religion, source of perfect integrity and stability for Christen­
dom (g); in this Chair the primacy of the /Xpostolic See con­
tinues to live (h), it rests upon this rock which the proud forces
of hell cannot overturn (i); for it the Apostles have poured out
their whole doctrine with the shedding of their blood (j); from
it flows to all men the right to divine union (k); to it is due all
honor and all obedience (1); he who leaves this See cannot
hope to remain within the Church (m); he who eats of the lamb
outside it has no part with God (n).
236a St. Cyprian, Epist, XL.
236b St. Cyril of Alexandria, in Joann., Bk. II.
236c St. Optatus of Mila, contra Parmen., IL
236d Council
of Nicæa, II. act 2.
236e St. Cyprian, Epist. L and LV.
236F Pelagius II, Epist. I ad Episcop. Oriental.; Council of Trent,
sess. VII de Baptismo, can. 3.
236g John of Constantinople, let. synod, ad Hormisd.; Sozoinenius,
Historia, Book III, 8. 236h St. Augustine, Epist. XLIII.
236i St. Augustine, in Psalm, contra part. Donat.
236j Tertullian, de praescriptione, XXXVI.
236k St. Ambrose, Epist. XI ad imperatores.
2361 Council of Ephesus, act. IV.
2.36m st. Cyprian De
Unitate Ecclesiæ.
236n St. Jerome, Epist. LI ad Damàsum

HIE IMMACULATE CHURCH

167

Let us cite further: Peter, always living and residing in 237
his own See, dispenses the truth of faith to those who seek it (a);(144,
Peter, always living in our own time in the person of his sue- 165,
cessors, gives judgment (b), it is he who spoke through Leo (c). 181)
The Roman Pontiff, who has the highest dignity in the world,
is the successor of Blessed Peter, the Prince of the Apostles; he
is the true Vicar of Christ, the Head of the entire Church, the
Father and Doctor of all Christians" (d). It would be possible
to multiply indefinitely citations from the best witnesses, all of
whom declare openly and clearly the nature of the attachment,
the veneration, the submission and obedience which must be
accorded to the Apostolic See and to the Roman Pontiff by
those who wish to belong to the one, true, holy Church of
Christ, to obtain eternal salvation.
(The Papacy is the center of unity—Solicitude of the Pope
for the Churches of the East.—Admonition to bishops and reli­
gious.—Approaching ceremonies of canonization—Exhortation.)
THE IMMACULATE CHURCH

Homily Exsultat cor, June 8, 1862.
(Canonization of the 26 Martyrs of Japan.—Of Blessed
Michael de Sanctis.)

God, as He is ever almighty and admirable, in manifesting 238
within the one Catholic Church the eminent sanctity of his (128,
servants of every age, of both sexes, and of ever}' rank and 229)
condition, and confirming this sanctity with wonderful miracles,
never ceases, by this splendid proof, to give evidence of the fact
that this Catholic Church, divinely founded and established by
Him for the salvation of all men, enriched with every heavenly
treasure, is the only true Church; that she is the pillar and
ground of truth; that she has neither spot nor wrinkle, but that
holy and without sin, she is the one with whom He has
promised to remain all days even to the end of time.
(The example of the Saints.—Their protection—Prayer.)
237a
237b
237c
237d

St. Peter Chrysologus, Epist. ad Eutychen.
Council of Ephesus, act. ΙΠ.
Council of Chalcedon, act. II.
Council of Florence, in Decreto union. Grœcorutn.

THE RIGHTS OF THE CHURCH

All. Maxima quidem to the Consistory, June 9, 1862.
(Attacks on the Church.)

239
No one of you is ignorant of the fact, Venerable Brothers,
(12, that men are completely destroying the necessary cohesion which,
14, by God’s will, unites the natural and the supernatural order, and
36. that at the same time they are changing, upsetting, and abol81, ishing the proper, true, and legitimate character of Divine
91- Revelation, and the authority, constitution, and power of the
92, Church. And the temerity of their thinking goes so far that
103, they do not fear boldly to deny all truth, all law, all power, and
106, every right of divine origin. They are not ashamed to assert
145, that the science of philosophy and moral, as well as civil law,
]7.9) are not, and need not be anchored in Revelation and in the
authority of the Church; that the Church is not a true and
perfect society, entirely free; that she cannot claim permanent
and proper rights conferred upon her by her Divine Founder;
that it belongs to the civil power to define the rights of the
Church and the limits within which she can exercise them.
Hence, they conclude, but wrongly, that the civil power can
interfere in matters which pertain to religion, morals, and spirit­
ual government, and even prevent prelates and faithful from
free access to the Roman Pontiff, who has been divinely estab­
lished the Supreme Pastor of the whole Church. They do this
in order to dissolve that necessary and very close union which,
by the divine institution of Our Lord Himself, must exist among
the members of the Mystical Body of Christ, and with its
venerable head. Neither do they fear to proclaim, dishonestly
and falsely, and before the multitudes, that the ministers of the
Church and the Roman Pontiff must be stripped of all rights in
and power over temporal affairs.
(Condemnation of the above-mentioned errors as contrary
“not only to faith and Catholic doctrine" but “to natural lato and
justice and to right reason”)

THE STRENGTH OF MARTYRS

Letter Quanto conficiamur maerore, August 10. 1863, to the
’talian Episcopate.
(Persecution and moral corruption in Italy.)

THE STRENGTH OF MARTYRS

169

Although the Heavenly Father allows his holy Church 240
militant, in the course of this miserable mortal pilgrimage, to (128,
be tormented by diverse calamities and afflictions, nevertheless, 182,
as she was founded by Our Lord Jesus Christ on a most solid 228)
and immovable rock, not only can she never be shaken or
destroyed by any force, by any violence, but even, “far from
diminishing, she increases by the very fact of persecution, and
the vineyard of the Lord yields an ever more abundant harvest,
as the seeds which fall one by one are reborn, multiplied” (a).
Very dear Sons and Venerable Brothers, this is what We see
happening in these deplorable times, by the special blessing of
the Lord. For, although the Immaculate Spouse of Christ endures
great affliction at the hands of the impious, she is, nevertheless,
triumphing over her enemies. Yes, she is herself triumphing over
her enemies, and she shines forth in an admirable manner by
reason of the incomparable faith, respect, and obedience you
show, you and Our other Venerable brothers, the Bishops of the
whole Catholic world, towards Our Person, and the Chair of
Peter, as also by your remarkable constancy in defending Catholic
unity. The Church is triumphing by the very great number of
good works, religious and charitable, which, with God’s help,
are everywhere and daily being multiplied through the Catholic
world; by the most holy light of faith which shines over such
wide areas, by the love and zeal of Catholics for the Church
herself, for Us, and for the Holy See, and, finally, by the signal
and immortal glory of martyrdom.
In fact, you know that, especially in Tonkin and in Cochin- 241
China, bishops, priests, and laymen, and even frail women,(128)
youths and girls, imitating the example of the martyrs of
antiquity, are facing the most atrocious tortures with invincible
spirit and heroic virtue, happy to be able to give their lives for
Christ. All these things, surely, must be for Us as for you a great
consolation in the midst of the grave afflictions which beset Us.
(Recall the preceding condemnations of those who violate
the rights of the Church.)

The Church, the sole means of salvation
And here, beloved Sons and Venerable Brothers, We must 242
once more recall and condemn the very grave error into which, (61
240a St. Leo, Sermon LXXXII, in Natal. Apost.

170

THE STRENGTH OF MARTYRS

62) unfortunately, some Catholics have fallen, who embrace the
belief that persons living in error and outside the true faith and
Catholic unity can reach eternal life. This is absolutely contrary
to Catholic teaching. We know and you know that those who
are invincibly ignorant of our most holy religion, and who, care­
fully observing the natural law and its precepts placed by God
in the hearts of all men, and, disposed to obey God, lead an honest
and upright life, can, with the help of divine light and grace,
merit eternal life; for God, who has perfect knowledge, examines
and judges the minds, the souls, the thoughts and deeds of all
men, and does not permit, in his sovereign goodness and mercy,
any man not culpable of willful sin to be punished with eternal
torment. But this Catholic dogma is equally well known: that
none can be saved outside the Catholic Church, and that those
who knowingly rebel against the teaching and authority of the
Church cannot obtain eternal salvation, nor can those who will­
fully separate themselves from union with the Church and with
the Roman Pontiff, the successor of Peter, to whom the Savior
has entrusted the safe-keeping of his vineyard.
243
The words of Jesus Christ are in fact extremely clear: “If
(61) he will not hear the Church, let him be to thee as a heathen and
a publican” (a). “He that heareth you heareth me, and he that
despiseth you despiseth me, and he that despiseth me, despiseth
him that sent me” (b). “He that believeth not will be condemned”
(c). “He that believeth not is already judged” (d). “He that is
not with me is against me, and he that gathereth not with me,
scattereth” (e). So the Apostle Paul says that men are subverted
and condemned by their own judgment (f), and the Prince of the
Apostles calls “lying teachers them who shall bring in sects of
perdition, and deny the Lord who bought them: bringing upon
themselves swift destruction” (g).
Charity to all
244
God forbid, nonetheless, that the sons of the Catholic Church
(59) should ever be at enmity with those who are not united to Us
by the same bonds of faith and charity. On the contrary, let
them strive to assist and help them with all the solicitude of
Christian charity if they are poor, or sick, or afflicted in any
243a Matt. 18:17.
243d John 3:18.
243g 2 Peter 2:1.

243b Luke 10:16.
243e Luke 11:23.

243c Mark 16:16.
243f Cf. Tit. 3:11.

OBEDIENCE TO THE TEACHING POWER

171

way; let them be ingenious before all else in drawing them out
of their darkness and the wretched errors in which they are
plunged, and bring them back to their most loving Mother the
Church, who never ceases to stretch out to them with affection
her maternal hands, so that, rooted and founded in faith, hope,
and charity, and "fruitful in every good work" (a), they may
merit eternal life.
( Pernicious eagerness for the goods of this world.— The lack
of discipline and the heterodoxy of certain priests—Appeal for the
vigilance of bishops.—Praise for those who have remained
faithful. )
OBEDIENCE TO THE TEACHING POWER

Letter Tuas libenter, December 21, 1863, to the Archbishop
of Munich.
(The theological and philosophical Congress at Munich.—
Laudable intentions of its organizers.)

It was impossible for Us not to be extremely surprised to
see that the convocation of the aforesaid Congress was issued and
published in the name of certain private individuals, such that
nothing appeared which came from the impulsion, the authority,
and the mission of the ecclesiastical power, to which alone it
belongs by a proper and natural right to supervise and direct
teaching, particularly in matters which relate to theological
questions. Certainly, as you know, this is a state of affairs entirely
new and contrary to the custom of the Church. This is why,
Venerable Brother, We wished to communicate Our thoughts to
you, so that you and your Venerable Brothers, the Bishops of
Germany, will be in a position to judge accurately whether the
end proposed by the Congress is of a nature to be useful to the
Church. At the same time, We were certain, Venerable Brother,
that in your pastoral solicitude, you would employ all the wisdom
and efforts of your zeal to prevent, during this Congress, any
harm resulting either to the integrity of the faith and Catholic
teaching, or to the entire obedience which Catholics of every
rank and condition owe to the authority of the Church and to
the teaching mission which she has received.
For the rest, We cannot hide from you that We have been
made rather anxious: for We feared that the example of this
244a Coloss. 1:10.

245
(97,
197,
214215)

246
(98)

173

OBEDIENCE TO THE TEACHING POWER

OBEDIENCE TO THE TEACHING POWER

Congress, assembled independently of the ecclesiastical authority,
might little by little do damage to the right of spiritual govern­
ment and legitimate teaching which, in virtue of the divine
institution, belongs properly to the Roman Pontiff and to the
bishops who are in union and agreement with the Successor of
St. Peter; and that, as a consequence of this harm done to the
government of the Church, the principle of unity and obedience
in matters of faith might eventually be weakened in many souls.
We feared also lest, in the same Congress, opinions and systems
might be aired and supported which, by reason above all of the
publicity given to them, would imperil the purity of doctrine
and the duty of obedience.
(Recent errors of German writers on the subject of revealed
faith. )
Science and the teaching authority

principles made sacred by the unanimous agreement of all the
Catholic Schools, but has moreover often given the highest praise
to their theological learning anti has strongly recommended it
as offering the best means of defending the faith and of supplying
the most effective arms against her enemies.
(Usefulness of the Congress.—Science and revelation, reason
and faith. )
The extent of obedience
We address to the members of this Congress well-merited
praise, because, rejecting, as We expected they would, this false
distinction between the philosopher and the philosophy of which
We have spoken in earlier letters, they have recognized and
accepted that all Catholics are obliged in conscience in their
writings to obey the dogmatic decrees of the Catholic Church,
which is infallible. In giving them the praise which is their due
for confessing a truth which flows necessarily from the obligation
of the Catholic faith, We love to think that they have not
intended to restrict this obligation of obedience, which is strictly
binding on Catholic professors and writers, solely to the points
defined by the infallible judgment of the Church as dogmas
of faith which all men must believe. And We are persuaded that
they have not intended to declare that this perfect adhesion to
revealed truths, which they have recognized to be absolutely
necessary to the true progress of science and the refutation of
error, could be theirs if faith and obedience were only accorded
to dogmas expressly defined by the Church. Even when it is
only a question of the submission owed to divine faith, this can­
not be limited merely to points defined by the express decrees
of the Ecumenical Councils, or of the Roman Pontiffs and of this
Apostolic See; this submission must also be extended to all that
has been handed down as divinely revealed by the ordinary
teaching authority of the entire Church spread over the whole
world, and which, for this reason, Catholic theologians, with a
universal and constant consent, regard as being of the faith. But,
since it is a question of the submission obliging in conscience all
those Catholics who are engaged in the study of the speculative
sciences so as to procure for the Church new advantages by their
writings, the members of the Congress must recognize that it is
not sufficient for Catholic savants to accept and respect the
dogmas of the Church which We have been speaking about: they
must, besides, submit themselves, whether to doctrinal decisions

172

247
We knew also, Venerable Brother, that among the Catholics
(99, devoted to the study of the higher sciences, there are some who,
102, counting too much on the powers of the human mind, have not
106) allowed themselves to be checked by the fear of lapsing into error,
and who, desirous of a deceptive and hardly sincere liberty for
science, have been drawn beyond the limits which cannot be
exceeded without renouncing the obedience due to the divine
authority which the Church has received to teach and preserve
intact the entire deposit of revealed truth. Whence it happens
that these Catholics, dupes of unfortunate illusions, are often to
be found in agreement with those who rant against the decrees
of this Apostolic See and of Our Congregations, saying that these
decrees are an obstacle to the free progress of science, and they
are thus exposed to the rupture of those sacred bonds of obedience
which, in the order of the Divine Will, ought to attach them to
this same Apostolic See, instituted by God Himself as the
interpreter and defender of truth.

248
We are not ignorant either that in Germany false prejudices
(102) have prevailed against the ancient school and against the teaching
of the great Doctors whom the universal Church reveres for
their admirable wisdom and the sanctity of their lives. This false
estimate which has been made impugns the very authority of the
Church itself, since it is the Church who, for so many centuries
on end, not only has permitted theological science to be cultivated
according to the method of these Doctors and according to the

249
(96,
108110,
173)

174

SOCIAL INFLUENCE

stemming from pontifical congregations, or to points of doctrine
which, with common and constant consent, are held in the Church
as truths and as theological conclusions so certain that opposing
opinions, though they may not be dubbed heretical, nonetheless,
merit some other form of theological censure.
(Hope that the members of the Congress will admit all
these points.—Their protestations of fidelity to the Holy See.)

250
Since these are the sentiments with which they recognize
(165, Our supreme authority and the power of the Apostolic See, since
167) at the same time, they understand the gravity of the office which
Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself has imposed upon Us to govern
and direct the entire Church, to lead his flock into pastures of
healthful doctrine and to watch incessantly that holy faith and
his teaching receive not the slightest alteration, We cartnot doubt
but that in devoting themselves to the study and teaching of the
higher sciences and the defense of sound doctrine, they will
recognize also their duty to follow most religiously the rules
constantly observed in the Church, and to obey all the decrees
handed down in doctrinal matters by Our supreme pontifical
authority.
(Final directives—Exhortation.)
SOCIAL INFLUENCE

Letter Quum non sine, July 14, 1864, to the Archbishop of
Fribourg (Bresgau.)
(His resistance to the neto school system.—The deChristiani­
zation of institutions.)
251
And because the Church was established by her Divine
(12, Founder as the pillar and ground of truth to teach divine faith
83, to all men and to keep in all its integrity the deposit entrusted
93, to her, to direct society and the actions of men, to stabilize
96, them in upright conduct and honesty of life according to the
99- rule of revealed truth, falsifiers and propagators of evil doctrines
use all their endeavor to strip ecclesiastical authority of its
119, Lpower with respect to human society. That is why they neglect
123) nothing which will confine this authority to progressively narrower
limits_or remove it entirely from social institutions:
____ _____
institutions; it is
the same for the salutary action which the Church, in virtue
of her divine institution, has always exercised and must always

THE SEARCH FOR UNITY

175

exercise on these institutions; they seek by every means in their
power to subjugate these human institutions themselves to the
absolute power of civil and political authorities, according to
the good pleasure of those who shape the changing opinions of
the day.
(Secularization of teaching.—The Church and the educa­
tion of the masses.—Blessing.)
THE SEARCH FOR UNITY

Letter from the Holy Office, September 16, 1864, to the
English Episcopate.
(Foundation at London of a society '‘for the promotion of
the unity of Christendom.”)
In effect, formed and directed by Protestants, the society 252
draws its inspiration from the expressly formulated idea that (37)
the three Christian communions, Roman Catholic, Greek Schis­
matic, and Anglican, although separated and divided among
themselves, have equal rights to the use of the name Catholic.
The Society is, therefore, open to anyone, no matter where he
is, be he Catholic, Greek Schismatic, or Anglican, on this con­
dition only, that no one is permitted to raise a question on the
diverse points of doctrine which separate them, and that each
one shall be free to conform with complete tranquillity to the
precepts of his own religious confession. The Society prescribes
for all of its members the prayers to be recited, and for priests
the sacrifices to be celebrated, for its intention: namely, that
the three Christian communions in question which together
form, as it is supposed, the Catholic Church, may in the end
be united to form a single body.
(The Holy Office forbids membership in the Society to the
faithful. )
False conception of unity

This novelty is all the more dangerous in that it is pre- 253
sen ted under the appearances of piety and eager solicitude for (37)
the unity of Christian society. The foundation on which it is
built is such that it destroys at one stroke the divine constitution
of the Church.

It can be summed up in this proposition, that the true
Church of Jesus Christ is made up of one part Roman Church,

176

THE SEARCH FOR UNITY

established and propagated throughout the world, and one part
the schism of Photius, and the Anglican heresy, both of which
have, with the Church of Rome, one same Lord, one same
faith, one same baptism (a). To bring about the disappearance
of the dissensions which rend these three Christian communions
to the great scandal of all men and to the great harm of truth
and charity, the Society orders prayers and sacrifices to obtain
from God the grace of unity.

254
Surely, Catholics desire nothing so much as the disappear*
(59- ance from among Christians of all schisms and dissensions, and
61) that all should be eager to keep unity of the spirit in the bond
of peace (a). That is why the Catholic Church prays and invites
the faithful to pray to Almighty God that all those who have
left the holy Roman Church may be converted to the true faith,
may abjure their errors, and return in grace to her fold, outside
of which there is no salvation. Moreover, she prays and orders
prayers that all men may come, with the help of God’s
grace, to the knowledge of the truth. But that Christians and
ecclesiastics should pray for Christian unity under the direction
of heretics, and, what is worse, according to an intention which
is radically impregnated and vitiated by heresy, this it is abso­
lutely impossible to tolerate.
Notes of the true Church
255
The true Church of Jesus Christ is established by divine
(5, authority and is to be recognized by the four marks which we
12, profess in the Creed; and each of these marks is so bound up
40- with the others that they cannot be separated; hence it follows
41, that the Church which is said to be and is truly catholic, must
46, shine at the same time by reason of the prerogatives of unity,
48, of holiness, and of apostolic succession. The Catholic Church is
52, therefore one, with the visible and perfect unity which is world161) wide and of all nations, one with that unity whose principle, the
indefectible source and origin, is the supreme authority and
preeminent primacy of Blessed Peter, the Prince of the Apos­
tles, and of his successors in the See of Rome. And there is no
other Catholic Church than this one which, built on Peter alone,
rises a compact body, united by bonds of faith and charity. This
is what St. Cyprian professed in all sincerity when he ad253a Cf. Ephes. 4:5.

254a Ibid., 4:3.

THE SEARCH FOR UNITY

177

dressed himself in these terms to Pope Cornelius: ut Te collegæ
nostri et communionem tuam, idest catholicæ Ecclesiæ unitatem
pariter et caritatem probarent firmiter ac tenerent (a).

Pope Hormisdas insisted that the same thing should be 256
affirmed by the bishops abjuring the schism of Acacius in a (56)
formula approved by the whole of Christian antiquity, where
it is said that “they are separated from the communion of the
Church who are not in agreement with the Apostolic See” (a).
And far from it being the case that communions separated from
the See of Rome have the right to call themselves and to be
regarded as catholic, it is rather by this separation and this want
of agreement that one can recognize which are the societies,
which are the Christians who do not keep the true faith, nor
the true teaching of Christ, as St. Irenaeus demonstrated in
luminous fashion already in the second century of the Church (b).
Let Christians be on guard, therefore, and with the greatest
care avoid entering those societies which they cannot join
without detriment to their faith. Let them hear St. Augustine
teaching us that there can be neither truth, nor piety where
Christian unity and the charity of the Holy Ghost are lacking.
Indifferentism
Another reason for the faithful to remain outside of the
London Society is to be found in the fact that its members
favor indifferentism and are a cause of scandal.
This Society, or at least its founders and directors, profess
that Photianism and Anglicanism are two forms of the true
Christian religion in which it is possible to please God. as in
the Catholic Church; that, if these · differing Christian com­
munions are a prey to dissensions, it is without loss to the faith,
for the faith remains one and the same for all communions.
This is the scourge of religious indifferentism pure and simple;
in our times above all it is on the increase, with great damage
to souls. Therefore, there is no need to demonstrate that Catho­
lics affiliating themselves with this Society become an occasion
of spiritual ruin for Catholics and non-Catholics alike, above
all if one considers that the vain hope of seeing these three
255a Epist. 45.
256a Libellus professionis fidei, Αρη) 2, 517; Denz. No 172.
256b Cf. Adv. Hær., Ill, 3.

257
(37,
61,
161)

178

PRINCIPAL ERRORS CONCERNING THE CHURCH

communions—which will remain themselves and persistent in
their viewpoints—unite, will come to this, that this Society will
deflect conversions to the faith and endeavor to prevent them
by the papers it will publish (a).
(Catholics must be turned away from this Society.)

PRINCIPAL ERRORS CONCERNING THE CHURCH
Syllabus, December S, 1864.
The Church and Science
258
XI. The Church not only ought never to pass judgment
(106) on philosophy, but ought to tolerate the errors of philosophy,
leaving it to correct itself.
259
XII. The decrees of the Apostolic See and of the Roman
(106) Congregations impede the true progress of science. (Above,
No. 247. )
Indifferentism
260
XV. Every man is free to embrace and profess that religion
(61) which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true.
(Above, No. 213.)
261
XVI. Man may, in the observance of any religion what(61) ever, find the way of eternal salvation, and arrive at eternal
salvation. (Above, Nos. 193. 196, 222.)
262
XVII. Good hope at least is to be entertained of the eternal
(61) salvation of all those who are not at all in the true Church of
Christ. (Above, Nos. 242, 243.)
263
XV1I1. Protestantism is nothing more than another form
(57) of the same true Christian religion, in which form it is given to
please God equally as in the Catholic Church. (Above, No. 208.)

The authority of the Church
264
XIX. The Church is not a true and perfect society, en(12- tirely free, nor is she endowed with proper and perpetual rights
13, of her own. conferred upon her by her Divine Founder; but it
257a A decision of the Holy Office (July 4, 1919) affirmed the
need in the present time lor this instruction, and republished it.
adding a letter from Cardinal Patrizi. (Cf. L.N.R., 1919
pp. 518-522.)

I

PRINCIPAL ERRORS CONCERNING THE CHURCH

t

179

appertains to the civil power to define what are the rights of
the Church, and the limits within which she may exercise those
rights. (Above, Nos. 228, 239.)

9192)

XX. The ecclesiastical power ought not to exercise its
authority without the permission and assent of the civil govern­
ment.
XXI. The Church has not the power of defining dogmati­
cally that the religion of the Catholic Church is the only true
religion. (Above, No. 213.)

265
(91)

266
(2,
40)
XXII. The obligation by which Catholic teachers and 267
authors are strictly bound is confined to those things only which (110)
are proposed to universal belief as dogmas of faith by the in­
fallible judgment of the Church. (Above, No. 249.)
XXIII. Roman pontiffs and ecumenical councils have wan- 268
dered outside the limits of their powers, have usurped the rights (171,
of princes, and have even erred in defining matters of faith 193)
and morals. (Above, No. 213.)

XXIV. The Church has not the power of using force, nor 269
has she any temporal power, direct or indirect. (Above, No. 214.) (208)
XXVI. The Church has no innate and legitimate right of 270
acquiring and possessing property.
(208)
XXVII. The sacred ministers of the Church and the Roman 271
pontiff are to be absolutely excluded from every’ charge and(208)
dominion over temporal affairs. (Above, No. 239.)
XXVIII. It is not lawful for bishops to publish even Apos- 272
tolic Letters without the permission of Government.
(203)
XXIX. Favors granted by the Roman pontiff ought to be 273
considered null, unless they have been sought for through the(178)
civil government.
XXX. The immunity of the Church and of ecclesiastical 274
persons derived its origin from civil law.
(91)
XXXIII. It does not appertain exclusively to the power of 275
ecclesiastical jurisdiction by right, proper and innate, to direct (105)
the teaching of theological questions. ( Above, No. 246. )

XXXIV. The teaching of those who compare the Sovereign 276
Pontiff to a prince, free and acting in the universal Church, is (147)
a doctrine which prevailed in the Middle Ages. (Above, No. 214.)

V

.1

180

PRINCIPAL ERRORS CONCERNING THE CHURCH

277
XXXV. There is nothing to prevent the decree of a gene(143)ra\ council, or the act of all peoples, from transferring the
supreme pontificate from the bishop and city of Rome to another
bishop and another city. (Above, No. 214.)
278
XXXVI. The definition of a national council does not admit
(193)of any subsequent discussion, and the civil authority can assume
this principle as the basis of its acts. (Above, No. 214.)
279
XXXVII. National churches, withdrawn from the authority
(152) of the Roman pontiff and altogether separated, can be estab­
lished. (Above, Nos. 228, 229, 230.)
280
XXXVIII. The Roman Pontiffs have, by their too arbitrar)'
(57) conduct, contributed to the division of the Church into Eastern
and Western. (Above, No. 214.)
Church and State
281
XLI. The civil government, even when in the hands of an
(92, infidel sovereign, has a right to an indirect negative power over
177, religious affairs. It therefore possesses not only the right called
178) that of exsequatur, but also that of appeal, called appellationis
ab abusu. (Above, No. 214.)
XLIV. The civil authority may interfere in matters relating
282
(92) to religion, morality and spiritual government: hence, it can
pass judgment on the instructions issued for the guidance of
consciences, conformably with their mission, by the pastors of
the Church. Further, it has the right to make enactments re­
garding the administration of the divine sacraments, and the
dispositions necessary for receiving them. (Above, No. 239.)
283
XLIX. The civil power may prevent the prelates of the
(92) Church and the faithful from communicating freely and mu­
tually with the Roman Pontiff. (Above, No. 239.)
284
L. Lay authority possesses of itself the right of presenting
(92) bishops, and may require of them to undertake the administra­
tion of the diocese before they receive canonical institution, and
the Apostolic Letters from the Holy Sec.
285
LI. And, further, the lay government has the right of de(92) posing bishops from their pastoral functions, and is not bound
to obey the Roman Pontiff in those things which relate to the
institution of bishoprics and the appointment of bishops. ( Above
No. 213.)

TUE INTERPRETERS OF ROME

181

LV. The Church must be separated from the State, and the 286
State from the Church (a).
(94)
Competence in science and moral

LVII. The science of philosophical things and morals and 28'
also civil laws may and ought to keep aloof from divine and ec- (106
clesiastical authority. (Above, No. 239.)

Powers of the Pope

LXXV. The children of the Christian and Catholic Church 28f
are divided amongst themselves about the compatibility of the (179,
temporal with the spiritual power. (Above, No. 214.)
LXXVI. The abolition of the temporal power of which the 289
Apostolic See is possessed would contribute in the greatest degree (179)
to the liberty and prosperity of the Church.

LXXX. The Roman Pontiff can, and ought to, reconcile him- 290
self, and come to terms with progress, liberalism and modern (167)
civilization. (Above, No. 230.)

THE INTERPRETERS OF ROME
Letter I ta venerabilis, February 4, 1865, to Bishop Dupanloup of Orleans.
(Congratulations on his defense of the rights of the Holy
See.)
And so We were delighted, though not, certainly, surprised, 291
both with the diligence which you give evidence of in reaching (197,
all of the pastors of your diocese with copies of your letter, and
with the little work itself which you have offered to Us in horn
age. In it, after praising the courageous protest of your brothers
you declare that you unite yourself to them with your whol<
heart. Now, as We read this publication with eagerness, We hav<
been happy to see that you not only itemize and justly condemi
the calumnies and error of the journals which have in such an un­
worthy fashion distorted the meaning of Our teachings, but, stil
more, that you have risen with great strength against the outra­
geous prohibition in virtue of which, while inept and hostile
286a For other propositions concerning the relations of the Church
and State, cf. CHURCH AND STATE.

182

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

writers are given full liberty to be heard, it has been thought
fitting to deprive of the right to publish and explain Our letter
those who alone are its legitimate interpreters and to whom,
alone, it was addressed.
(The Holy Father thanks the Bishop and expresses the hope
that he will publish the exact meaning of the Roman teaching all
the more accurately and zealously [studiosius atque accuratius]
as he has inveighed more strenuously against its calumnious inter­
pretations. )
UNIVERSAL BISHOP

Letter Ex Epistola, October 26, 1865, to Archbishop Darboy (a).
(The Holy Fathers kindness, manifested by his letter of
November 24, 1864; he did not wish to allude to the letter [Sep­
tember 1] of the Archbishop of Paris.)
The errors professed by the Archbishop
292
Coming from you, a letter like this was for Us no small sub(151- ject of surprise and sorrow, for, contrary to all Our expectations,
152) We understood as We read it that you had opinions quite at vari­
ance to the divine Primacy of the Roman Pontiff over the univer­
sal Church. In fact, you do not hesitate to advance the opinion
that the power of the Roman Pontiff over episcopal dioceses is
neither ordinary nor immediate. You think that the Pontiff of
Rome cannot interpose his authority in a diocese other than his
own, save only in the case where the diocese is so manifestly
in disorder and distress that the intervention of the Sovereign
Pontiff becomes the sole remedy to provide for the salvation of
souls and to compensate for the negligence of pastors. You
think that the divine right in virtue of which the bishop is the
sole judge in his diocese is completely misunderstood as soon
as—outside the aforementioned case of evident necessity—the
Sovereign Pontiff concerns himself with the affairs of the dio­
cese, and you hold that a diocese canonically erected, with an
292a When in 1878 the Acta Sanctæ Sedis published this letter
because of its historical importance, the Acta painted out at
the time how, as much by his “simple and entire adhesion” to
the definition of infallibility as by his glorious death, Archbishop
Darboy disavowed in practice and made reparation for the
errors alluded to in this letter of Pius IX.

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

183

established hierarchy, returns to the status of a mission country,
if the Roman Pontiff, except in the above case, exercises his
power over it. Moreover, and chiefly in a discourse pronounced
by you before the French Senate, you have stigmatized as
abuses, appeals to the Apostolic See, and you attack the right
of each of the faithful to appeal to the Sovereign Pontiff, saying
that this right impedes and makes almost impossible the ad­
ministration of a diocese.
(Inadmissible procedures to substantiate these pretended
theories. )
The Organic Articles
In the same discourse you did not scruple to put forward 293
measures quite contrary to the supreme authority of the Roman (178)
Pontiff and this Apostolic See, namely, retaining Apostolic Let­
ters, submitting them to the good pleasure and decision of the
civil authority, and appealing to the secular arm. In this dis­
course, which was subsequently printed and published, treating
at the same time of the Organic Articles, you have been of the
opinion that they should be granted a certain authority and
respect, because they correspond to a condition and to a grave
and preexisting necessity of society', although you are not ig­
norant of the fact that the Apostolic See has never ceased to
protest against these Articles, published by the secular power,
and contrary to the teaching, the rights, and the liberty of the
Church.

No, Venerable Brother. We could never have imagined you 294
entertaining such ideas if. by your previously mentioned letter(178)
of the month of September and by the discourse We have cited.
We had not had proof of it, to Our very great sorrow. It is im­
possible for Us not to be prey to the most acute anguish and
affliction, as We see you (contrary to what We had believed
and thought) giving support by your manner of thinking and
acting, to the false and erroneous doctrines of Febronius, which
the Holy See has reproved, condemned—as you very well know—
and which Catholic writers in very learned works have refuted
and brought to nought. You yourself. Venerable Brother, can
easily understand the astonishment which overwhelms Us when
We think within Ourselves that you are advancing propositions
opposed to Catholic doctrine, which, by that very fact, as Bishop
of the Catholic Church, you should hold in the utmost horror.

184

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

The ordinary potcer of the Pope over all the Churches

295
In stating that the power of the Roman Pontiff over each
(151. diocese is not ordinary but extraordinary, you are enunciating, in
153) fact, a proposition absolutely contrary to the definition of the
Fourth Council of the Lateran in which are to be found these
extremely clear and decisive words: “The Roman Church, by the
disposition of the Lord, possesses over all other Churches, the
primacy of ordinary potc-er, as Mother and Mistress of all the
faithful of Christ” (a), that is to say, of all those who belong to
Christ’s flock. These very grave words of the Council ought to be
very well known and present to you. Venerable Brother. On the
other hand, you cannot be ignorant of the fact that this same
proposition which you are formulating, is entirely contrary to the
most constant usage, and to the doctrine received and transmitted
by the whole Catholic Church and by all her Bishops with the
utmost respect. According to this doctrine, the Church, whether
in the present or in the past, has always held and taught,
teaches and holds that these divine words "Feed my lambs, feed
my sheep” were said by Christ our Lord to the blessed Prince of
the Apostles, so that, in virtue of these same words, all the faith­
ful in general and each one of them in particular must remain
immediately subject to Peter and to his successors, as to the
Supreme and ordinary Heads of the whole Church and its Uni­
versal Bishops, as to Our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the Roman
Pontiff is the true Vicar on earth, the Head of the entire Church,
Father and Doctor of all Christians (b).
The immediate jurisdiction of the Holy See

296
We are not a little astonished also to see ( perhaps you have
(195)not adverted to it) that, in conformity with the opinions of Feb295a “Romana Ecclesia, disponente Domino, super omnes alias
Ordinariae Potestatis obtinet Principatum utpote Mater Univer­
sorum Christi fidelium, et Magistra.” Cone. Later. IV, c. 5;
Denz. 436.
295b Ecclesia . docet ac tenet Divina illa verba “pasce agnos
meos, pasce oves meas" Beatissimo Apostolorum Principi ita a
Christo Domino dicta fuisse, ut eorumdem verborum vi, omnes
et singuli fideles Petro, ejusque successoribus velut supremis
et ordinariis totius Ecclesiis, omniumque Sacrarum Antistitibus
immediate subjecti esse debeant, sicuti ipsi Christo Domino, cujus
Romanus Pontifex verus est his in terris Vicarius, ac totius Eccle­
siae Caput, omniumque Christianorum Pater et Doctor.

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

185

ronius and following the teaching We have already mentioned,
you have held that the dioceses have been transformed into mis­
sion countries and the bishops into Vicars Apostolic. And yet no
one is ignorant how Catholics would respond, and rightly, that
such an assertion is as false as any assertion in the civil order
which would refuse to judges and other magistrates the title of
ordinary magistrates from the fact that the King or the Emperor
has jurisdiction, whether direct, or immediate and ordinary, over
each one of his subjects. In fact, the Angelic Doctor employs this
very exact comparison when he says, “The Pope has the plenitude
of pontifical power as the King does in his kingdom; but the bish­
ops are called to share a part of his solicitude, as judges set over
each city” (a).
The right to appeal to the Pope
Nor can we help but be astonished, Venerable Brother, at 297
your complaint relative to petitions and appeals addressed to the(157)
Roman Pontiff and which he receives. And yet, inasmuch as you
are a Catholic Bishop, you must know' perfectly well that the
right of appeal to the Apostolic See, as Our predecessor of im­
mortal memory', Benedict XIV, said, “is so necessarily bound up
with the Primacy of jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiff over the
universal Church, that no one can question it unless he wish
obstinately to deny this Primacy” (a). This right is so well known
to all the faithful that St. Celasius, again, one of Our predecessors,
was able to write: “The whole Church throughout the world
knows that the Chair of Blessed Peter has the divine right to loose
what has been bound by any bishop whomsoever, since it belongs
to this See to pass judgment on the whole Church, and no one is
permitted to pass judgment on its sentence: it is to this See that
the Canons indicate that appeals be made from all parts of the
world, and no one has the right to appeal from this See itself” (b).
Therefore, you surprise Us very much when you state that 298
the custom of this Apostolic See in receiving the briefs of those(I54,
who appeal to it from the judgment of bishops makes impossible 180)
for you the administration of your diocese. Such an impossibility
has never been experienced, whether in the present or in the past,
by any of the Bishops of the Catholic Church. If this impossibility
296a Sum. Theol., suppl. q. 26, a. 3.
297a De Synodo dioc., Book IV, c. 5.
297b Epist. 7 ad Epis., Dardan.

186

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

which you refer to could ever have existed, it is the Roman Pon­
tiff who ought to have known it, that Pontiff who, weighed down
in every sense by the very grave care of all the churches, is held
to receiving the petitions of all the dioceses, to examining them
with care, and to rendering judgment on them. It would never
have been an individual Bishop, obliged to answer merely for the
affairs of his own diocese, always a small portion of the universal
Church.
The strength of the episcopate
299
Similar complaints from you against the right of appeal to
(152, the Roman Pontiff and against the ordinary and direct jurisdiction
155) of this same Pontiff over all dioceses, excite Our astonishment all
the more in that every bishop animated by religious spirit derives
from this right and this jurisdiction, as you could experience for
yourself, Venerable Brother, a very great alleviation in his cares,
as well as consolation and strength before God and the Church,
and in the face of the very enemies of the Church. Before God:
for in thus disengaging himself in part from the account to be
rendered of his administration, invested with the light of the Ap­
ostolic See, he is better directed from one day to the next for the
prosperous administration of his diocese; before the Church: for
he sees her thus flourishing and growing stronger in a cohesive­
ness, a firmness, and a unity ever increasing in her government;
before the enemies of this same Church: for in this way the bish­
op grows stronger and more constant in his resistance to them.
It is, in fact, demonstrated and proven to all that a bishop is not
only weakened, but that he becomes an object of contempt for his
enemies in the measure in which he less firmly adheres to this mo­
tionless Rock on which Christ our Lord built his Church, and
against which He has promised that the gates of hell will never
prevail (a).
300
As for your declaration that you intend to resist, to agitate
(155)among the other French Bishops, to appeal to the public, you
no doubt see that by these plainly seditious measures, already
proposed by Febronius against the Apostolic See, you gravely

299a Omnibus enim probatum exploratumque est Episcoporum,
non solum debilem, verum etiam adversariorum ludibrium tunc
majorem in modum fieri, cum ipse minus adhæret immobili illi
Petra- super quam Christus Dominus suam ædificaoit Ecclesiam
et adversus quam inferi portæ nunquam prævalituras esse
promisit.

ι·:μ

■

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

187

offend against the Divine Author of the Church’s constitution,
and you do the greatest injury to your colleagues and to the Catholic people of France!

The Pope’s warnings to the Bishops

Coming now to the question of the regular clergy, We wish 301
you to know first, that the Regulars have themselves brought(I55)
nothing to Our notice; We were informed by other means of the
visit you paid them. On this head, We gave you an affectionate
warning in Our above-mentioned letter of the 26th of April, and
this warning which you are pleased to call a sentence passed
without having heard the case, this, you say, is contrary to the
legal presumption which you hold always exists in favor of the
superior, when there is question of a dispute between superior
and inferior, as is the case between yourself and the Regulars.
We can scarcely believe you could have said such a thing, 302
Venerable Brother, given that the book of the Decretals of Our fl 55,
predecessors is very familiar to you. Thus, you must know that in 190)
every age the Roman Pontiffs, when they have learned that a
bishop has done something which seems to be irregular, have
been in the habit of writing to him in perfect liberty to express to
him their own grief. How many Canons there are which begin
with these words: “It has been brought to Our attention...,
The complaint has been addressed to Us .... At the audience ...,
At Our audience .... There has reached Our ears ..., etc., etc.”
And never have bishops considered these Letters from the
Roman Pontiffs as so many sentences handed down without hav­
ing heard the case, never have they grown indignant over them.
On the contrary, they have received them in the sense in which
they were written, that is, as invitations to justify one or an­
other measure, or to recognize their error and to repair it. Any
other manner of acting would render too difficult for the Vicar
of Christ on earth the government of the whole Church, and
woidd not be sufficiently conformable to episcopal meekness.
The exemption of religious
It is a cause of affliction to Us, Venerable Brother, to see the 303
various equivocations into which you have fallen in the matter(157,
of the regular clergy: first, We would wish to have you consider 189)
seriously with yourself that here it is a question of the episcopal
visit made to the religious of the Society of Jesus, or to the Capu-

188

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

chins, who, living for many years in Paris under a number of
your Archiépiscopal predecessors, have enjoyed the peaceful
possession of their exemption; and that, consequently, the Holy
See also was in the full exercise of its particular and exclusive
jurisdiction over these same Regulars. Therefore, the point at
issue is the spoliation perpetrated by an effective act against a
possession enjoyed by the Apostolic See and the Regulars. Such
is the true state of the question: from it, it will be easy for you
to conclude that the Holy See will still be within its rights even
if it were pleased to convert into a legal decision and into a
sentence the words with which We judged it fitting to admon­
ish you. For, Venerable Brother, even if you were fully in the
right, you are certainly not ignorant of the fact that according to
the norms of both laws (civil and ecclesiastical) no man can be
deprived of his possessions by force. That is why, before strip­
ping the Regulars and the Holy See of their own possessions and
their rights, it was your place, whether from the point of view
of decorum or of justice, to inform this See and to await its
response.
(The arguments of the Bishop against the exemption of the
Regulars are without foundation—[a]. The Pope reproaches him
further with having given solemn absolution to one of the high
dignitaries of the Free Masons [b].)

The exsequatur of the civil power
304
Now We cannot pass over in silence that it has reached Our
(178, ears that in your diocese there is an opinion current—as false as
214) it is pernicious—that the acts of the I loly See do not engender
any obligation if they have not received a mandate for their exe­
cution given at the discretion of the civil power. Certainly there
is no one who does not see how erroneous this doctrine is, how
injurious to the authority of the Church and of this Apostolic
See. and how opposed to the spiritual welfare of the faithful. For
the supreme authority of the Church and of this same See can
never in any way be subject to the ordinances and to the good
pleasure of the civil power in anything which regards in any
way whatsoever ecclesiastical affairs and the spiritual direction
of souls; and all who glory in the name of Catholic are bound
303a This part of the letter can be read in the volume STATES
OF PERFECTION.
303h This part of the letter can be read in the volume on sects.

THE SOLIDITY OF THE ROCK

189

absolutely to obey this same Church in a religious manner, as
also this Apostolic See, and to show to both the respect and de­
votion which are their due.
(True interpretation of the historical facts alleged by Arch­
bishop Darboy.—The Pope's affection for him.—Hope for his
amendment. )
FRUITS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

All. to the Consistory, June 26, 1867.
(The canonization of several Beati.)
We desire nothing more, nothing can be so agreeable to Us 305
as to find Ourselves in your midst to reap the fruit of your union (32,
with Us, above all in the celebration of the solemnities whose 41)
external splendor proclaims the unity of the Catholic Church,
the unchangeable foundation of that unity, the admirable zeal
which the Church employs to preserve it, and finally, its glory.
These ceremonies display this marvelous unity whence flow as
from a source the graces and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, pour­
ing out in the Mystical Body of Christ, calling into being in each
of the members so many examples of faith and charity that they
compel the admiration of the whole human race.
(The crisis of the age.—Bishops must courageously defend
the Church.—The duty of instructing the faithful.—Exhortation
to prayer.)
THE SOLIDITY OF THE ROCK
All. to the bishops present in Rome, June 30, 1867.
(The Pope’s joy at the testimony to concord and obedience
given by the Bishops presence.)
In fact, why have you responded with such eagerness to Our
desire? Why, without weighing the obstacles, have you come to
Us from all parts of the globe? Because the solidity of the rock
on which the Church is built is known to you; you have experi­
enced her life-giving power, you cannot ignore the striking testi­
mony to this solidity and this power which comes from the canonization of Christian heroes. Therefore, you have come from all
parts to the celebration of this double feast, not only to add
splendor to these sacred solemnities, but, representatives of the
whole family of the faithful, you have come to bear witness by
your presence no less than by a conscious profession of faith to
the fact that todav we have the same faith they had eighteen

306

(48,
126,

223224)

190

THE AUTHORITY OF THE PATRIARCHS

centuries ago, that it is still full of strength and life, that the
same bond of charity still unites us all, that the same power still
emanates from this Chair of truth.
(Announcement of the approaching Ecumenical Council.)
THE AUTHORITY OF THE PATRIARCHS

Letter Reversurus, July 12, 1867, to the Armenian Patriarch
of Constantinople.
307
On the point of returning from this world to his Father, the
(137, Only-begotten Son of God established the divine constitution of
140- his Church in such wise that there was, as Our predecessor
141, blessed Leo I teaches, among all the holy Apostles, with equality
153, of honor, certain differences of power: the same election for all,
161, but to Blessed Peter alone was given primacy over the others.
188) To him alone was given the supreme power of feeding, not mere­
ly the lambs, but also the sheep, that is to say, to rule and govern
the universal Church so that in Christ’s flock there was to be
none who would not acknowledge Peter as Shepherd. “From this
institution,” says the same Leo, "there resulted also the distinc­
tions among the bishops, and, by a very prudent disposition, it
was laid down that all could not claim for themselves every
power, but that in each province there would be one who
would have the primacy among his brothers; finally, that those
located in capitals would have a more extensive responsibility,
and that by them the administration of the universal Church
would be centralized in the See of Peter only and nothing would
ever be separated from its Head” (a). It is evident that in these
words is to be found a clear indication of the institution of
metropolitans and patriarchs.
308
It follows from this that in ancient times the patriarchal
(155, dignih' was established only in the more important cities
167, whose church had been founded by St. Peter. A further result
170, was that as soon as they were elected the patriarchs had nothing
175, so much at heart as to obtain letters of confirmation from this
188) See of St. Peter, knowing that, by the Lord’s decree, the dignity
of all priests is confirmed by this See and that from it emanates
the patriarchal authority itself. It follows also that the more
important and the more thomy questions concerning faith or
307a Epist. ad Anastas. Thess.

THE AUTHORITY OF THE PATRIARCHS

191

discipline are submitted to this See which, by its own authority,
condemns all heresies, even before the definitions of General
Councils, and which, with great foresight, ensures by its laws,
when need arises, the discipline of the universal Church. That
this institution has always been religiously guarded by the
Church is clearly proved by the acts of the Councils, the teach­
ings of the holy Fathers, and the historical documents of the
universal Church. So true is this that no one, before the Eastern
Schism, would have presumed to cast doubt on the supreme
authority of the Roman Pontiffs.
The Primacy

On the other hand, although this schism separated from 309
the center of unity almost all the Eastern Churches, it did not, (140,
for all that, obscure in the Church, this Catholic truth, or at 147least, it could not entirely eradicate it from the soul of the 149)
faithful of the East. In fact, not only innumerable multitudes,
called from the darkness of idolatry or of heresy to the knowl­
edge of the truth, have come from all sides to this Roman
Church because of her preeminent authority, and others con­
tinue to come every day, but the Eastern Churches themselves,
each time they have reformed themselves under the impulse of
divine grace, have solemnly recognized not only a primacy of
honor but also of jurisdiction conferred by Our Lord Jesus Christ
on St. Peter and on his successors in the Roman See. This pri­
macy, constantly recognized and honored by the most ancient
Councils and by the universal Church, was solemnly affirmed in
a dogmatic decree of the Ecumenical Council of Florence which
united all the Greek and Latin bishops (a). So true is this that it
is inexcusable to wish to deny so evident a truth.
Would to God that the Eastern Bishops had ever kept this 310
dogma of the Catholic faith! Then their churches would not have (58,
fallen into that unfortunate situation in which they have found 124,
themselves since the inauguration and formalization of the schism. 190For above and beyond the very sail calamities which resulted 191,
from their separation from the Apostolic See, they have witnessed 203)
the disappearance within their ranks of the force of the sacred
canons, the benefit of ecclesiastical discipline, the order and dig­
nity of the sacred hierarchy. And by an inscrutable judgment of
309a Cf. Denz. no. 69-1.

192

NECESSITY OF COUNCILS

God it has happened that the bishops of those churches who have
contemned the authority divinely instituted by the Supreme Pas­
tor, have fallen under the dominion of seculars and even of in­
fidels, so that it was impossible to safeguard either the ordinary
and immediate jurisdiction of the bishops in their dioceses, or
the canonical authority of the patriarchs over their suffragans.
And while the latter exercised over their clergy a domination con­
trary to the recommendations of the Apostle and the canonical
regulations, the clergy themselves, and the people, in their turn
violating canon law and giving an example which it is impossi­
ble to deplore sufficiently, stripped the bishops of their dignit)'
or obliged them to renounce it.
(Regulation of diverse questions concerning the patri­
archate. )
NECESSITY OF COUNCILS

Apost. Let. Ætemi Patris, June 29, 1868, convoking the epis­
copate to the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican.
(The mysteries of the Incarnation and the Redemption.)

311
Before returning in triumph to heaven to his Father’s right
(77, hand, Christ sent his Apostles into the whole world to preach to
86, every creature, and He gave them the power to rule the Church
139- purchased with his blood and established by Himself, the Church
142, which is “the pillar and ground of truth” (a), and rich with heav145, enly treasures shows to all men the sure road to salvation and the
149) light of true doctrine, “sailing like a ship on the high seas of this
world, preserving those who come to her safe and sound, while
the world without perishes” (b). And so that the government of
this same Church may act always with order and rectitude, so
that the whole Christian people may persevere in unity of faith,
of doctrine, of charity, and of one communion, He promised that
He Himself would be with her forever to the end of time, and
He chose among the Apostles Peter alone, constituting him the
Prince over them all, the Head, the foundation and center of the
Church, so that in this elevation of rank and honor, and by the
fullness of his authority, power, and sovereign jurisdiction, he
would be able to feed the sheep and the lambs, to confirm his
brethren, to govern the whole Church, to be the "guardian of
the gates of heaven and the arbiter of what should be bound and
311a 1 Tim. 3:15.

311b St. Maxime, serm. 89.

APPEAL TO THE DISSIDENTS

193

loosed, whose decree woidd remain in all its force, even in heav­
en” (c). And because the unity and integrity of the Church and
her government instituted by Christ Himself were to remain sta­
ble forever, the same supreme power of Peter over the whole
Church, his jurisdiction, his primacy, would endure and remain
in vigor absolutely and in all their plenitude in the person of the
Roman Pontiffs his successors, placed after him in this Roman
See which is his Chair.
(The Popes’ fidelity in accomplishing their mission.)
When they have judged it timely and above all during the 312
most troubled eras when our holy religion and civil society are (153,
prey to disaster, these same Pontiffs have not neglected to con­ 192voke General Councils in order to act with and unite their 193)
strength to the strength of the bishops of the whole Catholic
world, "whom the Holy Spirit has established to rule the Church
of God” (a), to provide, in their foresight and their wisdom, for
taking the most efficacious means to procure in the first place
the definition of the dogmas of the faith, the destruction of
widespread errors, the defense, illumination, and development
of Catholic doctrine, the maintenance and reestablishment of
ecclesiastical discipline, and moral reform among peoples over­
taken by corruption.
(In the present calamities, the Pope decides to convoke the
Council. )
APPEAL TO THE DISSIDENTS

Letter Jam vos omnes, September 13, 1868, to Protestants and
other non-Catholics.
(The Pope announces to them his intention to convoke a
Council, which will have as its end: )
on the one hand to dissipate the darkness of so much perni­ 313
cious error which grows greater from day to day and is unleashed(’193/)
to the detriment of souls; on the other, to establish each day
more firmly and to increase among the Christian people confided
to Our vigilance the kingdom of the true faith, of justice, and the
true peace of God.
(Hope in the success of the Council.—In convoking the dissi­
dents to it, the Pope asks them to examine whether or not they
are walking in the way of salvation.)
311c St. Leo, serni. 3.

312a Acts 20:28.

194

APPEAL TO THE DISSIDENTS

The Church founded by Christ for the salvation of all men
314
No one can deny or cast doubt on the fact that Jesus Christ
(5- Himself, in order to apply to all generations the fruits of his re6, demptive work, has here on earth built on Peter his one Church77, that is, the one, holy, Catholic, apostolic Church—and that He
99, has conferred on her all necessary power to keep in its integrity
102, and its purity the deposit of faith, so as to transmit this same
116, faith to all men, to every race, and to every nation, so that all
139, men would become by baptism members of his Mystical Body,
224) and that in them the new life of grace would ever be kept and
made more perfect, since without it no one can ever merit or ob­
tain eternal life; finally, so that this same Church, which consti­
tutes his Mystical Body, would remain stable and unchanged in
her own nature to the end of time, so that she would ever prosper
and be able to furnish all her children the means to work out
their salvation.
Dissident religious societies do not constitute
the true Church
315
Now, anyone who wishes to examine with care and to medi(37, tate on the condition of the different religious societies divided
57, among themselves and separated from the Catholic Church, who,
58, since the time of Our Lord Jesus Christ and his Apostles has al96, ways exercised by her legitimate pastors and still exercises today
223) the divine power which was given to her by the same Lord, will
easily be convinced that no one of these societies nor all of them
together in any way constitute or are that one Catholic Church
which Our Lord founded and established and which He willed to
create. Nor is it possible, either, to say that these societies are
either a member or a part of this same Church, since they are
visibly separated from Catholic unity. Since in fact these sects
are lacking that living authority established by God especially to
teach men the truths of faith and the norms of morality, to guide
and direct them in all that concerns their eternal salvation, it
follows that there is a continual variation in their teaching. This
is also why mobility and instability are never at an end in these
same societies (a).
315a .. . neque aliquam peculiarem, neque omnes simul conjunc­
tas ex eisdem societatibus ullo modo constituere, et esse illam
unam et catholicam Ecclesiam, quam Christus Dominus tedificavit. constituit, et esse voluit, neque membrum aut partem ejusdem

APPEAL TO THE DISSIDENTS

195

Therefore, everyone will understand, everyone will see
clearly and without hesitation, that this is in complete opposition
to the Church instituted by Our Lord, since in this Church the
truth must always remain stable and inaccessible to every change
so as to keep absolutely intact the deposit confided to her and
for whose safeguard the presence and assistance of the Holy Spir­
it have been promised to her forever (a). Nor is there anyone
ignorant of the fact that dissension in doctrine and opinion has
given rise to social cleavages, which in their turn have spawned
numberless sects and communions which are constantly spreading
to the great detriment of Christian and civil society.
Whoever in fact recognizes that religion is the foundation
of human society cannot fail to see the influence of or to admit
the force of this division of principles, this opposition, and this
rivalry of religious societies upon civil society, or with what violence this denial of the authority established by God to govern
the beliefs of the human mind and to direct the actions of men—
in their private as well as in their social life—has raised up, prop­
agated, and kept alive these deplorable changes, these disturb­
ances which todiiy trouble and crush almost every nation.
Exhortation to return to the Church
Let all those therefore, who do not possess the unity and the
truth of the Catholic Church (a) seize upon this occasion of the
Council, where the Catholic Church to which their ancestors be­
longed is going to give again a striking proof of her unity and her
invincible life-force, to strive, conformably with the needs of their
hearts, to disengage themselves from a state where they cannot
Ecclesix ullo modo dici posse, quandoquidem sunt a catholica
unitate visibiliter divisae.
Cum enim ejusmodi societatis careant viva illa, et a Deo
constituta auctoritate, qux homines res fidei, morumque disci­
plinam praesertim docet, eosque dirigit, ac moderatur in iis
omnibus, quæ ad æternam salutem pertinent, tum societates
ipsx in suis doctrinis continenter variarunt, et hxc mobilitas ac
instabilitas apud easdem societates nunquam cessat.
316a Quisque vel facile intelligit, et clare aperteque noscit, id vel
maxime adversari Ecclesix a Christo Domino institutx, in qua
veritas semper stabilis, nullique unquam immutationi obnoxia
persistere debet, veluti depositum cidem Ecclesix traditum inte­
gerrime custodiendum, pro cujus custodia Spiritus Sancti prtesenlia. auxiliumque ipsi Ecclesix fuit perpetuo promissum.
318a St. Augustine, Epist. LXI, al. CCXXII.

316
(58,
89,
224)

317
(80,
96,
231)

318

(57,
62,
UK
115)

196

"THE CASE HAS BEEN STATED"

be assured of their own salvation. And let them not cease to
offer the most fervent prayers to the God of mercies so that He
will break down the wall of division, dissipate the clouds of error,
and bring them back to Holy Mother Church, in the bosom of
which their fathers found the saving food of life, in which alone
is kept and transmitted in its entirety the doctrine of Jesus Christ,
and where alone are dispensed the mysteries of heavenly grace.
319
For Us, to whom the same Christ has confided the charge
(59, of the supreme apostolic Ministry, and who must, consequently,
133, carry out with the greatest zeal all the duties of the good shep159) herd, and love with a paternal love and embrace in Our charity
all men over the whole earth, We address this letter to all Chris­
tians separated from Us, and We exhort them again and conjure
them to return in haste to the one fold of Christ.
(The Pope's ardent prayer for this return.)
320
On this so ardently desired return to the truth and to com(133) munion with the Catholic Church depends not only the salvation
of individuals, but also of the whole of Christian society; the en­
tire world can enjoy no true peace unless it become one flock
under a single shepherd.

“THE CASE HAS BEEN STATED”

Letter Per ephemerides, September 4, 1869, to the Archbish­
op of Westminster.
(Request of Dr. Cumming, inquiring if the dissidents may
present their arguments at the Council. )
321
If in truth the petitioner is not in ignorance about the faith
(96, of Catholics regarding the teaching authority confided by Our
101) Divine Savior to his Church, and in consequence her infallibility
in matters of faith and morals, he must certainly recognize that
the Church herself cannot permit the reopening of a discussion
of the errors which she has already examined with care, judged,
and condemned.
322
Nor can Our letters persuade him in any other sense. In
(5, fact, when We said: “No one can deny or cast doubt on the fact
77, that Jesus Christ Himself, in order to apply to all generations the
99, fruits of his redemptive work, has here on earth built on Peter
102. his one Church—that is, the one, holy, Catholic, apostolic Church
139, —and that He has conferred on.her all necessary power to keep

“THE CASE HAS BEEN STATED''

197

in its integrity and its purity the deposit of faith, so as to trans- 144)
mit this same faith to all men, to every race, and to every na­
tion" (a), We affirmed by that very fact that a supremacy not
merely of honor but of jurisdiction had been instituted for Peter
which would be beyond the fortunes of all discussion, and that
it was conferred on his successors by the Founder of the Church.
Now it is precisely on this essential point that there is a di- 323
vergence of opinion between Catholics and dissidents of every (58)
sort, and it is from this disagreement that flow as from their
source all the errors of non-Catholics. “Since in fact these sects are
lacking that living authority established by God especially to
teach men the truths of faith and the norms of morality, to guide
and direct them in all that concerns their eternal salvation, it fol­
lows that there is a continual variation in their teaching. This is
also why mobility and instability are never at end in these same
societies” (a).

Whether he considers the conviction professed by the Church 324
concerning the infallibility of her own judgment in matters of (57,
faith and morals; whether he considers what We have written 192)
concerning the incontestable primacy and authority of Peter, the
person who has addressed himself to you will understand imme­
diately that there can be no question in the approaching Council
of being concerned with any one of the errors already condemned,
nor can We invite non-Catholics to come to discuss. “May they
only on the occasion of this Council, where the Catholic Church
to which their ancestors belonged is going to give again a strik­
ing proof of her unity and her invincible life-force, strive, con­
formably with the needs of their hearts, to disengage themselves
from a state where they cannot be assured of their own salva­
tion” (a). If they are themselves, under the impulse of divine
grace, conscious of their personal danger, if they seek God with
their whole heart, they will easily reject their unfavorable preju­
dices, and, at the same time renouncing any desire for discus­
sion, they will return to the Father from whom they have,
unhappily, so long been separated (b).
( Blessing. )
322a Above No. 314. 323a Above No 31.5. 324a Above No. 318.
324b In a letter of the 30th of October (1869) the Holy Father
proposed to the dissidents that they should expose their difficul­
ties to a commission of theologians meeting outside the Council.

THE PONTIFICAL ELECTION

Apost. Const. Cum Romanis, December 4, 1869.

325
Since the fullness of power to feed, to rule, and to govern the
(144) whole Church has been given by Our Lord Jesus Christ to the
Roman Pontiffs in the person of Blessed Peter, the Prince of the
Apostles, the peace and unity of this Church would be immediate­
ly and gravely compromised if, in the case of the vacancy of the
Apostolic See, the election of the Sovereign Pontiff should take
place in conditions which would render it doubtful and uncertain.
( The Pope considers it to be one of the duties of his office to
take the measures required to ward off this danger. )
326
That is why, touched by the example of Julius II, Our pred(180) ecessor of happy memory, who, as history tells us, (a) being
stricken with a mortal illness during the Fifth General Council of
the Lateran, assembled the Cardinals before him, and, pre­
occupied about the legitimate election of his successor, decided
in their presence that this election ought to be made not by the
aforesaid Council but solely by their College, which in fact took
place after the death of Julius II; touched also by the examples
of Our predecessors Paul III and Pius IV of happy memory, the
first of whom by his Apostolic Letters of the third day befbre the
Kalends of December 1544, the second by similar letters of the
tenth day before the Kalends of October 1561, foreseeing that
their death might occur during the sessions of the Council of
Trent, decreed that in such a case the election of the new Pontiff
was to be carried out by the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
exclusively, without any participation of the aforementioned
Council, after having conferred at length with some of Our Ven­
erable Brothers the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, and
after having examined the matter with care, with full knowledge,
by Our own movement, and in virtue of the plenitude of Our
Apostolic power:
We decree and We ordain that, if it please God to put an
end to our mortal pilgrimage during the process of the Council
of the Vatican, in whatever state and at whatever stage of the
labors of this Council, the election of the Sovereign Pontiff shall
be carried out only by the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
and not by the Council itself, and that every person, no matter
326a O Raynaldus, Annales ecclesiastici, ad annum 1513, η. 7.

OPENING OF THE COUNCIL

199

by what authority he be deputed, even if he be named by the
authority of the Council, shall be absolutely excluded from all
participation in the election, with the exception of the Cardinals
already mentioned.
( To assure the liberty of the election, the Pope decides that
if it should take place, the Council will ipso facto be suspended. )
OPENING OF THE COUNCIL

All. to the Fathers of the Vatican Council, December 8, 1869.
(The Holy Fathers joy; his gratitude to God.)
And you, Venerable Brothers, you have gathered together 327
in the name of Christ to render testimony with Us to the word (192,
of God, to teach with Us, to all men, in truth, the Testimony J 95,
of Jesus Christ and the ways of God, and to judge with Us, 228)
under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the opposition of a
pretended science.
(Gravity of the ills of Christendom—Necessity for an extraor­
dinary remedy. )
We who must by Our charge of Vicar of the Eternal
Shepherd on earth, be fired with an even greater zeal for the
house of God, We resolved to take the path and the means
which would appear to Us to be the most suitable and the
most timely to repair the damage done to the Church. Then,
often meditating on the words of Isaias: "Take a resolution,
convoke a council" (a), and considering that this means had
been effectively employed by Our predecessors in periods of the
gravest nature, after much prayer, after having conferred on the
matter with Our Venerable brothers the Cardinals of the Holy
Boman Church, after having likewise requested the advice of
many bishops. We have judged it fitting to assemble you about
this Chair of Peter, Venerable Brothers, you who are the salt
of the earth, the guardians and the pastors of the Master’s flock,
and so it is that today, by the effect of the divine mercy which
has removed all the obstacles to so great an enterprise, We
celebrate, after the ancient and solemn manner, the opening of
the Holy Council.
(The Pope evokes the whole of Christendom.)
328a Isaias 16:3.

328

(139,
190,
193)

THE PONTIFICAL MONARCHY

200

201

LITURGY AND DISCIPLINE

329
But it is principally you that We embrace in thought,
(190) Venerable Brothers, you whose solicitude, zeal, and union seem
to Us of such great worth for the accomplishment of the glory
of God. We know the zealous care you bring to the carrying
out of your ministry, and above all the admirable and close
union of mind of all of you with Us and with this Apostolic See,
a union constantly more precious in Our painful trials, but today
more precious to Us than all the rest, and more useful to the
Church. And We rejoice greatly in the Lord to see you animated
by these dispositions which make Us hope with certainty for the
most fruitful and most desirable results from your union in
Council. Just as there has never, perhaps, been more diabolical
and more open hostility for the Kingdom of God, so there has
never been a time when the union of the priests of the Lord with
the Supreme Pastor of his flock, union which makes the admirable
strength of the Church, was more necessary. And this union, by
the particular favor of Divine Providence, and by the effect of
your admirable virtue, is so deeply established, that it is, and it
will become more and more, We hope, a spectacle for the world,
for angels, and for men.

LITURGY AND DISCIPLINE
Apost. Let. Non sine gravissimo, February 24, 1870, to the
Apostolic Delegate at Constantinople.
(The controversies and the disputes of the Armenian
Church.)
330
To carry out your mission with exactitude, Venerable
(149, Brother, you will have to recall and to inculcate in the faithful
152, committed to your care this truth which is part of the Catholic
176, faith; namely, that the Roman Pontiff, in the person of Blessed
183) Peter, has received from Our I^ord Jesus Christ the full power
and authority to feed, to guide, and to govern the universal
Church, that the free and entire exercise of this power can
recognize no limitation or restriction in point of territories or of
nationalities; and that all those who glory in the title of Catholic
must not only be united to him in matters of faith and dogmatic
truth, but also be submissive to him in matters of liturgy and
discipline.
331
On this subject, do not fail to teach the Armenians and all
(49, Eastern Catholics the difference which exists between discipline

and rite, for confusion on these two points troubles the minds of 176)
the faithful and constantly gives rise to unjustified complaints.
Above all, all those who have the intention of impeding or
diminishing in the Eastern Churches the salutary action and the
authority of this Apostolic See, draw profit from this confusion
to excite hatred against this See. Certainly We have declared,
following in this Our predecessors, that the Eastern rites must
be maintained insofar as they are not in opposition with Catholic
faith and unity or ecclesiastical propriety. But this does not
prevent, above all in the matter of the government of the Church,
the firm maintenance of canonical discipline and its re-establish­
ment wherever it has been altered or destroyed. On this point
We will never deviate, for it is an absolute requirement of Our
apostolic ministry.
(Preceding measures are recalled.—Duties of bishops, of
monks, of the faithful.—Confidence in Our Lady and in the Saints
of Armenia. )
THE PONTIFICAL MONARCHY
Letter Dolendum profecto, March 12, 1870, to Dom
Gueranger, Abbot of Solesmes.
It is certainly a regrettable thing, Dearly beloved Son, that it 332
is possible to meet even among Catholics men who, while they (110,
glory' in the name, show themselves thoroughly imbued with 216)
corrupt principles and adhere to them with such stubbornness
that they are no longer able to submit their minds with docility
to the judgment of the Holy See when that judgment is opposed
to them, even when common opinion and the recommendation
of the episcopate have corroborated it. They go even further, and
making progress and the happiness of society depend on these
principles, they strive to bring the Church round to their way of
thinking. Considering that they alone are wise, they do not blush
to give the name of "Ultramontane Party” to the entire Catholic
family which thinks otherwise.
This folly is carried to the excess of their undertaking to re- 333
make the divine constitution of the Church and to adapt it to the (138)
forms of civil governments, in order the more easily to debase
the authority of the Supreme Head which Christ set over it and
whose divine prerogatives they dread. They are to be found put­
ting forward with audacity, as indubitable or at least completely
free, certain pernicious doctrines which have been many times

202

THE PONTIFICAL MONARCHY

reproved; re-evaluating, in the terms of the ancient defenders of
these same doctrines, historical evasion, mutilated passages,
calumnies launched against the Roman Pontiff, and sophisms of
every kind. With impudence they put these matters once more
on the tapis without taking any notice of the arguments by which
they have been refuted a hundred times.
The assistance of the Holy Spirit at the Council
334
Their intention is to disturb minds and to excite their
(88, partisans and ignorant men against the opinion which is commonly
111, professed. Beyond the harm they do in thus sowing unrest among
193) the faithful and handing over to the discussion of the man in the
street the most grave questions, they oblige Us to deplore in their
conduct an unreason which is only equalled by their audacity. If
they believed firmly with other Catholics that the Ecumenical
Council is governed by the Holy Spirit, that it is solely by the
impulse of this Divine Spirit that the Council defines and proposes
what must be believed, it would never have occurred to them
that matters which have not been revealed or which could be
harmful to the Church could be defined in its sessions and
imposed upon their faith; and they would never have imagined
that human maneuvers could arrest the power of the Holy Spirit
and impede the definition of revealed truths or truths helpful to
the Church (a).
335
They would never have persuaded themselves that it is
( 110, forbidden to propose to the Fathers of the Council in a suitable
138) manner, and with the view to demonstrating the truth with greater
clarity by means of discussion, the difficulties which they might
have to oppose to one or another definition. If they had been led
solely by this motive, they would have abstained from all those
machinations with whose help it is customary to win votes in
popular assemblies, and they would have awaited, in peace and
respect, the effect which light from on high must produce.
(Congratulations on his book: The Pontifical Monarchy.)
334a Nam si firmiter cum exteris catholicis tenerent. œcumcnicum

synodum a Spiritu Sancto regi, soloque ejus afflatu definire ac
proponere aux credenda sunt, nunquam in animum inducerent,
vel ea definiri nosse, uti de fide, qux revelata revera non sunt,
aut obsint Ecclesiæ, vel humanas artes impedimento esse posse
Spiritus Sancti virtuti, quominus, ea. qux revelata sint et Ecclesiæ
utilia definiantur.

Màa.?.£

THE CHURCH, THE GUARDIAN OF FAITH

Apost. Const. Dei Filius, April 24, 1870.
Preamble: fruits of the Councils
The Son of God and Redeemer of the human race, Our Lord 336
Jesus Christ, on the point of returning to his heavenly Father, (88.
promised to be with his Church militant on earth until the end of 192tiriie. Therefore, at no time has He ever ceased to be at the side 193)
of his beloved spouse, to assist her in her teaching, to bless her
works, and to give her succor in times of danger. Now, this
salutary Providence, which has constantly shown itself by other
innumerable benefits, is principally manifested by the abundant
fruits which the Christian universe has derived from the Ecumen­
ical Councils and particularly, though it was held at a very bad
time, from the Council of Trent. Thanks to it, in fact, the most
holy dogmas of religion were defined with greater clarity and
explained at greater length, errors were arrested and condemned,
ecclesiastical discipline was reestablished and made firm again,
the clergy stimulated to the love of learning and of piety, colleges
established to prepare young men for the priesthood, and the
moral life of the Christian people restored by more diligent
teaching of the faithful and more frequent use of the sacraments.
Moreover, from this Council there came a closer union of the
members with the visible Head and an increase in vigor in the
Mystical Body of Christ; finally, there sprang up a constant zeal,
even to the shedding of blood, to spread the Kingdom of Christ
throughout the whole world.
At the same time, while We recall in the joy of Our sold
these signal benefits and many others which Providence deigned
to grant to the Church especially through the last Council, We
cannot disguise Our great sorrow at the sight of the very grave
evils which have come largely from the fact that many have
contemned the authority of this holy synod and have neglected
its wise decrees.
( Development of rationalism, the offshoot of Protestantism. )

Failures among Catholics
This impiety has had a destructive effect everywhere; several 337
among the sons of the Catholic Church have in their turn leftfl 11)
the road of true piety and in their souls the Catholic sense has
been diluted by an insensible lessening of the truth. In fact,

204

338
(7778,
96)

THE CHURCH, THE GUARDIAN OF FAITH

seduced by the variety and the novelty of these doctrines, and
wrongly confounding nature and grace, human science and divine
faith, they find themselves giving to dogmas a sense which is
different from that which their holy Mother the Church holds
and teaches, and thus they imperil the integrity and the purity
of their faith.
The teaching mission entrusted to the Church
Before such a spectacle how could it be that the Church
would not be profoundly disturbed? For, as God wills the salvation
of all men and that all may come to the knowledge of the truth;
as Jesus Christ came to save what was lost and to gather into one
the scattered children of God; so the Church, established by God
as the Mother and Mistress of the nations, knows what she owes
to all men, and she is ever attentive, ever disposed to raise up the
fallen, to support the weak, to embrace those who are returning
to her fold, to strengthen the good and urge them to perfection.
And so she can never cease to attest and to preach the divine
truth which heals all; for she is ever mindful of what has been
said to her: “My spirit is within thee, and my words which I
have put on thy lips will never depart” (a).

339
Therefore, following in the footsteps of Our predecessors, and
(96, in pursuit of the duty of Our apostolic office, We have never
99- ceased to teach and to defend the Catholic truth and to reprove
dangerous doctrines. But at present, in the midst of the bishops of
102, the whole world, in session and judging with Us, assembled in
153, the Holy Spirit by Our authority in this holy Ecumenical Synod,
192- and relying on the word of God both written and transmitted by
193) tradition, such as We have received it, religiously preserved and
faithfully explained by the Catholic Church, We have resolved,
from the height of this Chair of Peter, to profess and to declare
before all men the salutary teaching of Jesus Christ, by proscrib­
ing and condemning contrary errors, in the name of the authority
which has been given Us by God.
(Chapter 1: God the Creator.)
Chapter 11: Revelation
(Necessity and fact of Revelation.—Its sources: Scripture and
Tradition.—Decree of the Council of Trent concerning the canon
and the inteqjretation of Holy Writ.)
338a Isaias 59:21.

THE CHURCH, THE GUARDIAN OF FAITH

205

Renewing the same decree, We declare that its spirit is such 340
that in matters of faith and morals, having regard to the building(I02,
up of Christian teaching, that must be held to be the true meaning 111)
ot Sacred Scripture which our Holy Mother the Church has held
and still holds, (because) it belongs to her to judge of the true
meaning and the interpretation of Holy Writ; in such wise that
no one is permitted to interpret Sacred Scripture contrary to this
meaning, or even contrary to the unanimous opinion of the
Fathers.
Chapter III; Faith
(The duty of believing.—Rational bases of faith.—Faith is
a gift of God; its exercise is a salutary work. )
We must believe with divine and Catholic faith all that is 341
contained in the word of God written or transmitted by tradition,(109)
and which the Church, either in solemn judgment, or by her
ordinary and universal teaching authority, proposed to be believed
as a revealed truth (a).
(Necessity of faith for justification and salvation.)
So that we could fulfill the duty of embracing the true faith
and persevering in it with constancy, God, through his only-begot­
ten Son, instituted the Church and provided it with the visible
marks of that institution, so that she would be recognizable by all
men as the guardian and the mistress of revelation. For to the
Catholic Church alone belong all these marks, so numerous and
so admirable, established by God to make evident the credibility
of the Christian faith. Moreover, in her own right, that is to say
by reason of her admirable growth, her eminent sanctity, and her
inexhaustible fruitfulness in every kind of good work, by her
Catholic unity and her invincible stability, the Church is a great
and perpetual argument for credibility, an unshakable testimony
to her divine mission.

342
(419,
96,
102)

Whence it comes that, like a standard raised in the midst of 343
the nations (a), she invites to her side all those who do not yet (1,
believe, and she assures her children that the faith they profess
rests upon a most sure foundation.
341a Porro fide divina et catholica ea omnia credenda sunt, quiv
in verbo Dei scripto vel tradito, continentur, et ab Ecclesia sive
solcmni judicio sive ordinario et universali magisterio tamquam
divinitus revelata credenda proponuntur. Denz., 1792.
343a Isaias 11:12.

206

THE CHURCH, THE GUARDIAN OF FAITH

(The help of grace to believe.—Christians can have no
legitimate motive for questioning their faith.)

Chapter IV: Faith and Reason

(Two orders of truth.—Prudent investigation of the mysteries
of faith—Necessary harmony of faith and reason, since God can­
not contradict Himself.)
344
The false appearance of contradiction comes principally from
(98) the fact either that the dogmas of faith have not been understood
and explained according to the mind of the Church, or that
philosophical opinions have been taken as oracles of reason. We
therefore define that every proposition contrary to the truth of
enlightened faith is absolutely false (a).
345
In fact, the Church who has received with the apostolic
(97, mission to teach, the command to preserve the deposit of faith,
99, has also received from God the right and the duty to proscribe
106, false learning so that none will be deceived “by philosophy and
109, vain science”, (a). Therefore, there is for every one of the Christian
110) faithful, not only the prohibition to defend, as the legitimate
conclusions of science, opinions which they know to be contrary to
the teaching of faith, above all when they have been reproved by
the Church, but also the absolute obligation to consider them as
errors which are clothed in the deceitful appearance of truth.
The Church and science
34fi
And not only can faith and reason never be at odds, but they
(106)lend one another mutual support, right reason demonstrating the
foundations of faith and in its light studying the science of divine
things; faith on its side delivering reason, guaranteeing it against
error, and enriching it with new knowledge. Far from the Church
being opposed to the cultivation of the human arts and sciences,
she favors them and assists them in a thousand ways. She is not
unaware of them, nor does she despise the advantages which re­
sult from them for the lives of men. Even more, she recognizes
that just as the arts and sciences have their origin in God, when
they are pursued as they should be with the help of grace they
also lead to God. Nor does she forbid the sciences, each in its
proper sphere, to use their own principles and methods. But
while she recognizes this just liberty, she watches with care lest
344a V Council of the Lateran, ss. 8.

345a Coloss. 2:8.

THE CHURCH, THE GUARDIAN OF FAITH

207

opposing divine teaching they admit errors into their teaching, or,
lest, overstepping their respective limits, they trespass upon and
disturb what is of the domain of faith (a).
The Church is the guardian and interpreter of the deposit
For the doctrine of the faith which God has revealed has not 347
been presented to men as a philosophical system to be perfected, (99·
but it has been entrusted as a divine deposit to the Spouse of 102,
Christ, so that she might keep it faithfully and explain it infallibly. Ill)
Therefore, in the sacred dogmas the meaning which the Church
has once declared must always be kept, and it is never permissible,
under the pretext or under color of a deeper understanding, to
depart from it.
Therefore, let understanding, science, and wisdom grow and
vigorously increase in every man and in all men, in individuals
as well as in the whole Church, from age to age, but only in its
own kind, that is, in the same dogma, the same meaning, the same
thought (a).
(Canons on God the Creator.—On Revelation.—On faith.)

Canons on faith and reason
2. If anyone say that the human sciences must be treated 348
with such liberty that their assertions, although contrary to re-(106)
vealed doctrine, must be admitted as true and cannot be pro­
scribed by the Church, let him be anathema.

3. If anyone say that with the progress of science, it could 349
happen that we must give to the dogmas proposed by the Churchfl 11)
a different meaning from what the Church has understood and
does understand, let him be anathema.
All men are invited to fight against error
Therefore, fulfilling the duty of Our supreme Pastoral of- 350
fice, in the bowels of Jesus Christ We supplicate all the faithful (219)
of Christ, and those who govern above all, or who have a teaching
charge, We ordain by the authority of Our God and Savior that
346a Sed justam hanc libertatem agnoscens, id sedulo cavet, ne
divinae doctrine repugnando errores in se suscipiant, aut fines
proprios transgressae, ea, quae sunt fidei, occupent et peturoent
347a Sed in suo dumtaxat genere, in eodem scilicet dogmate,
eodem sensu, eademque sententia. (St. Vincent of Lerins, Comm.,
N. 28.

208

DOGMATIC PROGRESS

they shall einploy all their zeal and all their solicitude to ward off
and to bring about the disappearance of these errors from Holy
Church, and to spread abroad the light of the purest faith.
351
But since it is not sufficient to avoid the perversity of error
(173)if we do not at the same time avoid with care the errors which
more or less approach it, We recall to all men the duty which is
incumbent upon them to observe at the same time the Constitu­
tions and decrees by which the Holy See has proscribed and
condemned perverse opinions of this nature, which are not here
enumerated in detail.

DOGMATIC PROGRESS

All. to the Religious Art Exposition, Rome, May 16, 1870.
(Gratitude to the organizers of the Exposition.)
352
This splendid Exposition shows that religion is in no sense
(101. the enemy of progress and of culture in the area of science and
106, the arts, and that it is not itself either stationary or frozen in
224) inertia. If there is an immobility which in fact she cannot re­
nounce, it is the immobility of the principles and the doctrines
which are divinely revealed. These can never change, for Christ
is the same yesterday and today: Jesus Christus heri et hodie,
“Jesus Christ, yesterday and today” (a): they are such as they
have always been; they will always be what they are today. For
the rest, the present Exposition is enough to demonstrate with
abundant evidence how religion and the Catholic Church favor
progress, industrial, artistic, or scientific.
(Projects realized in the Papal States.)
353
But for religious truths, there is progress only in their de(102,vclopment, their penetration, their practice: in themselves they
165, remain essentially immutable. Therefore, We do not Ourselves
224. wish to make new dogmatic definitions, as some people suppose.
226) All the truths divinely revealed have always been believed; they
have always been a part of the deposit confided to the Church.
But some of them must from time to time, according to circum­
stances and necessity, be placed in a stronger light and more
firmly established. This is the sense in which the Church draws
from her treasure new things: Profert de thesauro suo nova et
vetera, “Who bringeth forth out of his treasure new things and
352u Heb. 13:8:

BITES AND DISCIPLINE

209

old" (a); the old, vetera, always continuing to teach the doc­
trines which are now beyond all controversy; the new, nova, by
new declarations giving a firm and incontestable basis to those
doctrines which, although they have always been professed by
her. have nonetheless been the object of recent attacks (b).
(Congratulations to the laureati.—Blessing.)

BITES AND DISCIPLINE

Letter Quo impensiore, May 20, 1870, to the Armenian
Catholics.
(The Armenian schism—Violation of censures.—False alle­
gations of loyalty.)
Men who rise up with such audacity against Our authority,
who persist in their offense with such stubbornness, do they
deserve Our credit for their words when they say that their
thoughts on the Primacy of this Holy See are those which are
proper to Catholics, and that they remain united to Us in the
limits of obedience? You know the answer. Therefore, if you
fear to leave this Catholic unity outside of which there is no
salvation, if you desire to provide for the real interests of your
nation, beware of the artifices and the subtleties of these men.

354
(61,
156.
184)

Take care above all that they do not parade before you
that confusion of rites and discipline which these men strive
skillfully to present to the minds of the ignorant in order to
excite them against this Holy See, charging that it tends to
substitute the Latin rite for the ancient Eastern rites of the
Church, so as little by little to abolish the latter. For if the
Roman Pontiffs have always labored to bring about a corre­
spondence, at least on the principal points, between uniformity
of discipline and the unity of the Church, they have also held
that all those rites should be preserved which deviate neither
from accuracy in matters of faith, nor from what is fitting. Now

355
(49,
147.
175176.
184)

353a Matt. 13:52.
353b Ecco il sense onde la Chiesa trac e mette fuori dal suo tesoro cià che è nuovo: Profert de thesauro suo nova et vetera;
cià che è antico, vetera, continuando seinpre ad insegnare le dottrine già pienamenle fuori d'ogni contestazione; cià che è nuovo,
nova, ponendo del tutto in sodo con novelle dichiarazioni quelle
dot trine che sebhene da lei sempre professate, sono pero andate
soggelte a recenti assalti.

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THE ROMAN PRIMACY

the defection which We have just had to deplore certainly does
not concern rites, but discipline; and if the Vicar of Jesus Christ
cannot regulate discipline everywhere, it would be in vain that
the government of the entire Church had been confided to him;
this is what gives to this defection the character of a deviation
in the rectitude of faith which all Catholics must have in what
concerns the Primacy of the Sovereign Pontiff.
(Hope for the submission of the Armenians in the near
future. )
THE ROMAN PRIMACY

Apost. Const. Pastor Ætemus, July 18, 1870.

Opportuneness of the definition
356
The Eternal Pastor and Bishop of our souls, in order to
(46, continue for all time the life-giving work of his Redemption,
48, determined to build up the Holy Church, wherein, as in the
71, house of the living God, all who believe might be united in the
75, bond of one faith and one charity. Wherefore, before He en86, tered into his glory, He prayed unto the Father, not for the
139- Apostles only, but for those also who through their preaching
140, should come to believe in Him, that all might be one, even as
155. He the Son and the Father are one (a). As then He sent the
161) Apostles whom He had chosen to Himself from the world, as
He Himself had been sent by the Father (b); so He willed
that there should ever be pastors and teachers in his Church to
the end of the world. And in order that the episcopate also
might be one and undivided, and that by means of a closely
united priesthood the multitude of the faithful might be kept
secure in the oneness of faith and communion, He set Blessed
Peter over the rest of the Apostles, and fixed in him the abiding
principle of this twofold unity and its visible foundation, in the
strength of which the everlasting temple should arise, and the
Church in the firmness of that faith should lift her majestic
front to heaven (c). And seeing that the gates of hell with
daily increase of hatred are gathering their strength on every
side to destroy the foundation laid by God’s own hand, and so,
if that might be, to overthrow the Church: We, therefore, for
the preservation, safe-keeping, and increase of the Catholic
356a John 17:20 ff.
356b Ibid. 20:21.
356c Cf. St. Leo, Sermon IV dr Natali ipsius, c. 2.

THE ROMAN PRIMACY

21]

flock, with the approval of the Sacred Council, do judge it to be
necessary to propose to the belief and acceptance of all the
faithful, in accordance with the ancient and constant faith of
the universal Church, the doctrine touching the institution, per­
petuity and nature of the sacred Apostolic Primacy, in which is
found the strength and solidity of the entire Church; and at the
same time to proscribe and condemn the contrary errors so
hurtful to the flock of Christ.

Chapter I: Institution of the Primacy
in the Person of Blessed Peter

I

We therefore teach and declare that, according to the testi- 357
mony of the Gospel, the primacy of jurisdiction over the universal (140Church of God was immediately and directly promised and given 141.
to Blessed Peter the Apostle by Christ the Lord. For it was to 145,
Simon alone, to whom He had already said: “Thou shalt be called 153)
Cephas” (a), that the Lord, after the confession made by him
saying, ‘‘Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God,” addressed
these solemn words, "Blessed art thou, Simon, Bar-Jona. because
flesh and blood have not revealed it to thee, but my Father, who
is in heaven. And I say to thee that thou art Peter, and upon this
rock I will build my Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail
against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of
heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be
bound also in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth,
it shall be loosed also in heaven” (b). And it was upon Simon
alone that Jesus, after his resurrection, bestowed the jurisdiction
of Chief Pastor and Ruler over all his fold in the words, "Feed
My lambs, feed My sheep" (c). At open variance with this clear
doctrine of Holy Scripture, as it has ever been understood by the
Catholic Church, are the perverse opinions of those who, while
they distort the form of government established by Christ the
Lord in his Church, deny that Peter in his simple person prefer­
ably to all the other Apostles, whether taken separately or togeth­
er, was endowed by Christ with a true and proper primacy of
jurisdiction; or of those who assert that the same primacy was not
bestowed immediately and directly upon Blessed Peter himself,
but upon the Church, and through the Church on Peter, as her
minister.
357a John 1:42.

357b Matt. 16:16.

357c John 21:15, 17.

■i

212

THE ROMAN PRIMACY

358 Can. If anyone, therefore, shall say that Blessed Peter the Apostle
(140- was not appointed the Prince ol the Apostles and the visible head
141, of the whole Church Militant, or that the same Peter directly and
148- immediately received from our Lord Jesus Christ a primacy of
149) honor only, and not of true and proper jurisdiction, let him be
anathema.
Chapter II: Perpetuity of the Primacy
of Peter in the Roman Pontiffs
359
(26,
139,
142,
227)

That which the Prince of Shepherds and great shepherd of
the sheep, Jesus Christ our Lord, established in the person of the
Blessed Apostle Peter to secure the perpetual welfare and lasting
good of the Church, must, by the same institution, necessarily
remain unceasingly in the Church, which, being founded upon
the Rock, will stand firm to the end of the world.

For none can doubt, and it is known to all ages, that the holy
and Blessed Peter, the Prince and chief of the Apostles, the pillar
139, of the faith and foundation of the Catholic Church, received the
142, keys of the kingdom from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior and
144, Redeemer of mankind, and lives, presides and judges to this day,
184, always in his successors the Bishops of the Holy See of Rome,
190) which was founded by him and consecrated by his blood (a).
Whence, whosoever succeeds to Peter in this See does by the
institution of Christ Himself obtain the Primacy of Peter over the
whole Church. “This disposition made by Incarnate Truth (dis­
positio veritatis) therefore remains, and Blessed Peter, abiding
in the rock's strength which he received (in accepta fortitudine
petrae perseverans), has not abandoned the direction of the
Church” (b). Wherefore it has at all times been necessary that
every particular Church—that is to say, the faithful throughout
the world—should come to the Church of Rome on account of
the greater princedom which it has received; that all being
associated in the unity of that See whence the rights of venerable
communion spread to all, might grow together as members of one
head in the compact unity of the body (c).

360

361 Can. If, then, anyone shall say that it is not by the institution of
U45)Christ the Lord, or by divine right, that Blessed Peter has a
360a Council of Ephesus, Acts III.
360b
ίι St. Leo the Great. Ser. Ill, chap. 3.
360c St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hær., bk. Ill, cap. 3.

TUE ROMAN PRIMACY

213

perpetual line of successors in the primacy over the universal
Church; or that the Roman Pontiff is not the successor of Blessed
Peter in this primacy, let him be anathema.

Chapter III; Meaning and Nature of the Roman Primacy
Wherefore, resting on plain testimonies of the Sacred 362
Writings, and adhering to the plain and express decrees both of (142,
Our predecessors the Roman pontiffs, and of the general councils, 144,
We renew the definition of the Ecumenical Council of Florence, 147,
by which all the faithful of Christ must believe that the Holy 151Apostolic See and the Roman Pontiff possesses the primacy over 152,
the whole world; and that the Roman Pontiff is the successor of 163,
Peter, Prince of the Apostles, and is true Vicar of Christ, and Head 166.
of the whole Church, and Father and teacher of all Christians; 175)
and that full power was given to him in Blessed Peter, by Jesus
Christ our Lord, to rule, feed and govern the universal Church:
as is also contained in the Acts of the ecumenical councils and in
the sacred canons (a).
Universal Bishop
Hence We teach and declare that by the appointment of our 363
Lord the Roman Church possesses a sovereignty of ordinary power (41,
over all other Churches, and that this power of jurisdiction of the 45Roman Pontiff which is truly episcopal, is immediate; to which 46,
all of whatsoever rite and dignit}·, both pastors and faithful, both 151,
individually and collectively, are bound, by their duty of hierarch- 165,
ical subordination and true obedience, to submit, not only in mat- 175,
ters which belong to faith and morals, but also in those that ap- 183,
pertain to the discipline and government of the Church through· 190)
out the world; so that the Church of Christ may be one flock under
one supreme pastor, through the preservation of unity, both of
communion and of profession of the same faith, with the Roman
Pontiff. This is the teaching of Catholic truth from which no one
can deviate without loss of faith and of salvation.
The support of the episcopate
But so far is this power of the supreme pontiff from being any 364
prejudice to that ordinary and immediate power of episcopal (154jurisdiction, by which bishops, who have been set by the Holy 155,
Ghost to succeed and hold the place of the Apostles (a) feed 186,
362a Denz. N. 694.

364a Acts 20:28.

214

THE ROMAN PRIMACY

195, and govern each his own flock, as true pastors, that this same
203) power is really asserted, strengthened and protected by the
supreme and universal pastor; in accordance with the words of
St. Gregory the Great, “My honor is the honor of the whole
Church. My honor is the firm strength of my brethren. Then am I
truly honored, when the honor due to each and all is not
withheld” (b).
Freedom of communication
365
Further, from this supreme power possessed by the Roman
(157, Pontiff of governing the universal Church, it follows that, in the
178) exercise of this office, he has the right of free communication with
the pastors of the whole Church, and with their flocks, that they
may be taught and ruled by him in the way of salvation. Where­
fore We condemn and reprobate the opinions of those who hold
that the communication between the supreme Head and the
pastors and their flocks can lawfully be impeded; or who make
this communication subject to the will of the secular power, so
as to maintain that whatever is done by the Apostolic See, or by
its authority, for the government of the Church, cannot have
force or value unless it be confirmed by the assent of the secular
power.
Supreme judge
366
And since, by the divine right of Apostolic primacy, the
(153, Roman Pontiff is placed over the universal Church, We further
175) teach and declare that he is the supreme judge of the faithful (a),
and that in all cases the decision of which belongs to the Church
recourse may be had to his tribunal (b), but that none may re­
open the judgment of the Apostolic See, than whose authority’
there is no greater, nor can any lawfully review its judgment (c).
Wherefore they err from the right path of truth who assert that
it is lawful to appeal from the judgments of the Roman Pontiffs
to an ecumenical council, as to an authority higher than that of
the Roman Pontiff.
367 Can. If then any shall say that the Roman Pontiff has the office
(145- merely of inspection or direction, and not full and supreme power
364b Epi.st. ad Eulog. Alexander., lib. VIII, c. 30.
366a Brief of Pius VI, Super .soliditate, November 28, 1786, above,
No. 20.
366b Acts of
Fourteenth General Council,
(Second of Lyons, A.D. 1274).
366c Letter VIH of Pope Nicholas 1. to the Emperor Michael.

HIE BOMAN PRIMACY

215

of jurisdiction over the universal Church, not only in things which 153,
belong to faith and morals, but also in those things which relate 161.
to the discipline and government of the Church spread throughout 176)
the world; or assert that he possesses merely the principal part,
and not all the fullness of this supreme power; or that this power
which he enjoys is not ordinary and immediate, both over each and
all the Churches and over each and all the pastors of the faithful,
let him be anathema.

Chapter IV: The Infallible Teaching Authority
of the Sovereign Pontiff
Moreover, that the supreme power of teaching (magisterii) 368
is also included in the Apostolic primacy, which the Roman (165,
Pontiff, as the successor of Peter, Prince of the Apostles, possesses 167)
over the whole Church, this Holy See has always held, the perpet­
ual practice of the Church confirms, and ecumenical councils
also have declared, especially those in which the East with the
West met in the union of faith and charity. For the Fathers of
the Fourth Council of Constantinople, following in the footsteps
of their predecessors, gave forth this solemn profession: The first
condition of salvation is to keep the rule of the true faith. And
because the sentence of our Lord Jesus Christ cannot be passed
by, Who said, “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build
my Church” (a), these things which have been said are proved
by events, because in the Apostolic See the Catholic religion has
always been kept undefiled, and her well-known doctrine has
been kept holy. Desiring, therefore, not to be in die least degree
separated from the faith and doctrine of this See, we hope that
we may deserve to be in the one communion, which the Apos­
tolic See preaches, in which is the entire and true solidity of the
Christian religion (b).
And with the approval of the Second Council of Lyons, the
Greeks professed that: “The Holy Roman Church enjoys supreme
and full primacy and princedom over the whole Catholic Church,
which it truly and humbly acknowledges that it has received with
the plenitude of power from our Lord Himself in the person of
Blessed Peter, Prince and Head of the Apostles, whose successor
368a Matt. 16:18.
368b Formula of St. Honnisdas, subscribed by the Fathers of the
Eighth General Council (Fourth of Constantinople) A.D. 869Denz., N. 171.

216

THE ROMAN PRIMACY

the Roman Pontiff is; and as the Apostolic See is bound before all
others to defend the truth of faith, so also, if any questions remust ‘
by its iudg·
'anse
............
ment (c).
Finally, the Council of Florence defined that: “The Roman
Pontiff is the true Vicar of Christ, and the head of the whole
Church and the father and teacher of all Christians; and that
to him in Blessed Peter was delivered by our Lord Jesus Christ
the full power of feeding, ruling and governing the whole
Church" (d).
Infallibility in practice

369
(89,
99,
102,
171·
172)

To satisfy this pastoral duty, Our predecessors ever made
unwearied efforts that the salutary doctrine of Christ might be
propagated among all the nations of the earth, and with equal
care watched that it might be preserved genuine and pure where
it had been received. Therefore the bishops of the whole world,
now singly, now assembled in synod, following the long-estab­
lished custom of Churches and the form of the ancient rule, sent
word to this Apostolic See of those dangers especially which
sprang up in matters of faith, that there the losses of faith might
be most effectually repaired where the faith cannot fail (a). And
the Roman Pontiffs, according to the exigencies of times and cir­
cumstances, sometimes assembling ecumenical councils, or asking
for the mind of the Church scattered throughout the world, some­
times by particular synods, sometimes using other helps which
divine Providence supplied, defined as to be held those things
which with the help of God they had recognized as conformable
with the sacred Scriptures and Apostolic traditions. For the Holy
Spirit was not promised to the successors of Peter, that by his
revelation they might make known new doctrine, but that by his
assistance they might inviolably keep and faithfully expound the
revelation or deposit of faith delivered through the Apostles. And
indeed all the venerable Fathers have embraced and the holy
orthodox Doctors have venerated and followed their apostolic
doctrine; knowing most fully that this See of St. Peter remains
ever free from all blemish of error, according to the divine promise
of the Lord Our Savior made to the Prince of his disciples: “I
368c Denz., N. 466.
368d Denz., N. 694.
369a Cf. St. Bernard to Pope Innocent II, Epist. 190.

THE ROMAN PRIMACY

217

have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not; and thou being once
converted, confirm thy brethren" (b).
The raison (Γêtre of infallibility
This gift, then, of truth and never-failing faith was conferred 370
by Heaven upon Peter and his successors in this Chair, that they (J J J,
might perform their high office for the salvation of all; that the J65,
whole flock of Christ, kept away by them from the poisonous 169,
food of error, might be nourished with the pasture of heavenly 171)
doctrine; that, the occasion of schism being removed, the whole
Church might be kept one, and resting in its foundation, might
stand firm against the gates of hell.
But since in this very age, in which the salutary efficacy of
the Apostolic office is most of all required, not a few’ are found
who take away from its authority, We judge it altogether neces­
sary solemnly to assert the prerogative which the Only-begotten
Son of God vouchsafed to join with the supreme pastoral office.
The solemn definition
Therefore, faithfully adhering to the tradition received from 371
the beginning of the Christian faith for the glory of God our (169Savior, the exaltation of the Catholic religion, and the salvation 170)
of Christian people, with the approval of the sacred council, We
teach and define that it is a dogma divinely revealed: that the
Roman Pontiff, when he speaks ex cathedra, that is, w’hen, in dis­
charge of the office of pastor and teacher of all Christians, by
virtue of his supreme ?\postolic authority, he defines a doctrine
regarding faith or morals to be held by the universal Church,
is, by the divine assistance promised -to him in Blessed Peter,
possessed of that infallibility with which the Divine Redeemer
willed that his Church should be endowed in defining doctrine
regarding faith or morals; and that, therefore, such definitions
of the Roman Pontiff are of themselves, and not from the con­
sent of the Church, irreformable (a).

But if anyone—which may God avert!—presume to contra- 372
diet this Our definition, let him be anathema.
(169170)
369b Luke 22:32.
371a Itaque Nos traditioni a fidci christ ianx exordio perceptx
fideliter inhierendo, ad Dei Salvatoris nostri gloriam, religionis
catholicæ exaltationem et Christianorum populorum salutem, sacro
approbant Concilio, docemus cf divinitus revelatum dogma esse

THE POPE, DEFENDER OF THE BISHOPS

All. to the Council of the Vatican, July 18, 1870.
(After the definition of the dogma of the infallibility of the
Pope. )
373
The authority of the Sovereign Pontiff is great, but it does
(155) not destroy, it builds up; it does not suppress, it supports; and
very often it defends the rights of Our brothers, that is to say,
the rights of the Bishops. It some have not voted with Us, let
them understand that they have voted in disturbance, and let
them recall that the Lord is not in disturbance. Let them re­
member, too, that a few years ago they concurred in Our sense
and in the opinion of this vast assembly. What then? Have they
two opinions, two wills on the same point? God forbidl There­
fore, We pray God who alone worketh wonders, to enlighten
their minds and hearts, so that they may return to the bosom of
their Father, that is to say, of the Sovereign Pontiff, the un­
worthy Vicar of Jesus Christ, so that he may embrace them,
and they may labor with Us against the enemies of the Church
of God.
THE “OLD CATHOLICS”

374
(99,
101102)

Letter Inter gravissimas, October 28, 1870, to the Episcopal
Assembly at Fulda.
(The attacks of certain Catholics on the definition of papal
infallibility.)
Like all the fomenters of heresy and schism, they make false
boast of having kept the ancient Catholic faith while they are
overturning the principal foundation of the faith and of Catholic
doctrine. They certainly recognize in Scripture and Tradition
the source of Divine Revelation; but they refuse to listen to the
ever-living magisterium of the Church, although this clearly
springs from Scripture and Tradition, and was instituted by God
definimus·. Romanum Pontificem, cum ex cathedra loquitur, id est
cum omnium Christianorum pastoris et doctoris munere fungens
pro suprema sua Apostolica auctoritate doctrinam de fide vel mori­
bus ah universa Ecclesia tenendam definit, per assistentiam divi­
nam ipsi in beato Petro promissam, ea infallibilitatc pollere, qua
divinus Redemptor Ecclesiam suam in definienda doctrina de
fide vel moribus instructam esse voluit; ideoque ejusmodi Romani
Pontificis definiones ex sese, non autem ex consensu Ecclesix,
irreformabiles esse.

THE “OLD CATHOLICS

219

as the perpetual guardian of the infallible exposition and ex­
planation of the dogmas transmitted by these two sources. Con­
sequently, with their false and limited knowledge, independently
and even in opposition to the authority of this divinely instituted
magisterium, they set themselves up as judges of the dogmas
contained in these sources of Revelation.
For what else are they doing when, apropos of a dogma of 375
faith defined by Us with the approbation of the Holy Council, (98,
they deny that this is a truth revealed by God and exacting the 107,
assent of Catholic faith, quite simply because in their opinion 109,
this dogma is not to be found in Scripture and Tradition? As if 111)
there were not an order of faith, instituted by Our Redeemer in
his Church and always preserved, according to which the very
definition of a dogma must be held to be by itself a sufficient
demonstration, very sure and adapted to all the faithful, that
the doctrine defined is contained in the double deposit of revela­
tion, written and oral. Moreover, this is why such dogmatic
definitions have always been and are necessarily an unchange­
able rule for faith as for Catholic theology, to which belongs the
very noble mission of showing how the doctrine, in the very'
sense of the definition, is contained in the revealed depositum.
The full authority of the Council
It is the destruction of the Church and the Catholic faith
they are seeking, as far as in them lies, when by calumnies and (96.
vain pretexts—you have not failed to point these out to your 193.
faithful in the pastoral letters signed by you and your venerable 228)
brothers, the Bishops of Germany—they dare to state in most
pernicious writings that in the definition and the promulgation
of the decrees of the Council, notably on the dogma of the
infallibility of the Roman Pontiff, there was something lacking
to the full value and the full authority of the Ecumenical
Council. Now, it is impossible to deny the assistance of the Holy
Spirit for the infallibility of the definitions of this sacred Ecu­
menical Council without invoking principles which undermine
all supernatural infallibility and thus assail an essential property
of the Catholic Church. But no one is ignorant of the fact that
the definitions of other Councils have been attacked under
similar pretexts by those whose errors they condemned; as wit­
ness the well-known calumnies spread against other Councils,
and especially the Councils of Florence and of Trent, by the

■k

THE LAW OF GUARANTEES

INFALLIBILITY OF AUTHORITY

schismatics and heretics of the age, to their own loss and the
spiritual ruin of a great number.
( Exhortât ion to vigilance.)

Hock, and the authority which he has received from Our Lord
Jesus Christ Himself, and provide for the greater good of the
Church, for her requirements and her needs.
(Hopes for the restoration of Christendom.)

220

THE LAW OF GUARANTEES

Encycl. Ubi Nos arcano, May 15, 1871.
(Expose of the Late of Guarantees.)

377
(23,
9192,
145,
165166,
175)

And certainly the granting of the guarantees of which We
have spoken, is it not by itself a striking proof that on Us to
whom God has given the power to make laws in the moral and
religious spheres, on Us who have been set up as the interpreter
of the natural and divine law for the whole world, laws have
been imposed, and laws which are concerned with the government of the universal Church, and whose maintenance and
execution have no other foundation than the law prescribed and
laid down by the will of secular powers? And in what concerns
the relationship between the Church and civil society, you know
well, Venerable Brothers, that all the prerogatives and all the
rights of the necessary authority for the government of the
universal Church, We have received them directly from God in
the person of Blessed Peter, and that these same prerogatives
and these rights, as well as the liberty of the Church, are the
fruits and the conquest of the Blood of Jesus Christ, and must
be prized at the infinite price of this Divine Blood.
(The Pope cannot receive his 'rights’ from Princes, who are
the sons, not the masters, of the Church—The injury done to the
Holy See reacts on the whole Catholic world.)

The temporal power
378
Consequently, no one can doubt but that the conservation
(145, of the rights of this Apostolic See are intimately linked to and
149. bound up with the supreme interests and the advantage of the
151, entire Church and the independence of your episcopal ministry.
155,
Having all this present to Our mind and in Our thought,
178) as is Our duty, We felt obliged to confirm anew and to profess
with constancy what with your unanimous consent We have
several times declared, that the civil power of the Holy See was,
by a singular design of Divine Providence, given to the Roman
Pontiff, and that it is necessary, so that this same Roman Pon­
tiff, exempt from all dependence on any prince or civil power,
may exercise, with absolute liberty, on the entire Church, the
supreme power of feeding and governing the whole of the Lord’s

221

INFALLIBILITY OR AUTHORITY
All. to the Academy of Catholic Religion, July 20, 1871.
( Welcome.—Congratulations to the Academy on its zeal in
defending the truth.)

Among the different subjects you will have to treat, there 379
is one in particular which seems to have a major importance: (162,
the refutation of the sophisms which people use to refute the 175)
infallibility of the Pope. Of all these sophisms, the most per­
verse beyond any doubt is the one which pretends to include
in infallibility the right of deposing sovereigns and dispensing
peoples from their obligation of loyalty. No doubt this right has
been exercised sometimes by Popes in very grave circumstances;
but it has nothing to do with the infallibility of the Pope. The
origin of such a right is not infallibility at all, but papal author­
ity. The latter, according to the public law then in force and
reenforced by the agreement of Christian nations who revered
in the Pope the Supreme Judge of Christendom, extended even
to judging, in civil cases, both Princes and States (a).
Conditions today are very different, and only bad faith 380
could confound periods and things so diverse: as if the infallible(169)
judgment relative to a revealed principle had some relationship
with a right which the Popes, to respond to the peoples’ wishes,
were obliged to exercise when the common good demanded. It
is easy to guess why an idea as absurd as this one is being cir­
culated today, an idea that no one was thinking of, the Sovereign
Pontiff least of all. So they are looking for pretexts, even the
most frivolous and erroneous, to turn Princes against the Church.
379a Nè la sua fonte è la Infallibility ma ,w /’autorità pontificia.
L’esercizia poi di questo diritto, in quel secoli di fede, chc rispettavano nel Papa quel che è, vale a dire il Guidice Supremo aella
Crist ianità, e riconoscevano i vantaggi dei suo Trihunale, nclle
grandi contese dei populi e dei Sovrani, liberamenta si estendeva
(aiutato anche, com era dovere, dal Diritto Pubblico, e dal
comune consenso dei populi) ai più gravi interessi degli Stati e
dei loro Reggitori.

222

THE NOMINATION OF BISHOPS

(There is no need to ‘explain the definition, which is suf­
ficiently clear by itself.)
THE NOMINATION OF BISHOPS

All. to the Consistory, October 27, 1871.
(The persecution in Italy.-Bishoprics have been vacant
since 1870 as a result of the ill-will of the Italian State.)
381
It is therefore in the name of Jesus Christ the Son of God
(149. that We assign today their respective bishops to some of the
154, widowed churches of Italy. We reserve to Ourselves the task of
169) assigning others as soon as possible in the near future, with the
confidence that He who has given Us the authority and imposed
on Us the duty will remove, in his infinite mercy, all the diffi­
culties which will be placed in the way of even this part of Our
ministr)'; with the hope, too, that the Lord will bless and will
second Our efforts, whose only object is the salvation of souls.
At the same time We protest before the whole Church that We
entirely reject the so-called ‘Guarantees’, as We have already
clearly stated in our Encyclical of May 15 of this year (1871):
We declare openly that to exercise this grave obligation of Our
ministr)' We are using the power which has been given to Us by
Him who is the Prince of Pastors and the Bishop of our souls,
namely, the power which has been given to Us by Jesus Christ
Our Lord in the person of blessed Peter, from whom derives, as
Our predecessor St. Innocent says, the episcopate itself and all
the authority of this name.
(Attacks set on foot in other countries against the definitions
of the Council: papal primacy and infallibility.)

VVidespread calum n ies
382
In order to rouse secular powers to persecute the Catholic
(169) Church, these sons of perdition do everything in their power to
persuade them, falsely, that the decrees of the Vatican Council
have effected a change in the ancient teaching of the Church
and gravely imperiled governments and civil societies. But,
Venerable Brothers, is it possible to imagine or to conceive
anything more wicked and at the same time more absurd than
calumnies like these?
(Congratulations to the Bishops for their zeal in defending
the Church.—Exhortation to prayer.)

PERSECUTED, BUT VICTORIOUS

All. to Roman pilgrims and pilgrims from abroad, Novem­
ber 27, 1871.
(Consolation given to the Pope by the loyalty of the
Church’s children.)

The life of the Church of Christ, dearly-beloved children, is 383
always the same: storms, a continual passion by reason of perse-(I30,
cution and impious attacks, now from one side, now from an- 227'
other, in some periods more, in others, perhaps, less; but always
under attack, always persecuted. That is the way it is: the
Church of Christ was born and grew up in the midst of perse­
cution; and though she has always been resisted, always attacked,
she has nonetheless spread throughout the whole world, she has
grown, she has remained in existence, she will remain in exist­
ence to the end of time, always struggling, always winning new
victories, forever acquiring new strength by new assaults, and
achieving more numerous and more splendid victories as the
attacks she has to sustain are more multiplied and more fierce.
Jesus founded the Church upon, the cross

It cannot be otherwise, because Jesus Christ established his
Church on a foundation which will never give way. He established
it on this firm Rock which cannot crumble; and since He decreed
that it would be so, He wills and effects that the gates of hell will
never prevail. Nevertheless hell and the world have sworn
together, and they believed it possible to destroy the Church in
her cradle by turning persecution against her divine Founder
Himself. The wickedness of men, excited by devils, raised up on
Golgotha Jesus Christ nailed to the cross: but it was precisely on
that cross that Christ established his Church by completing the
work of the world’s salvation. That was not a defeat: it was the
first victor)·. It was there that the triumph of grace began its work;
and when Christ was still nailed to the cross, a Roman soldier ac
the foot of that 'infamous tree’ recognized and confessed his
divinity. Even the curious mob come to witness the great spectacle
could not gainsay the evidence, and they came down from the
mount of Calvary perçut ientes pectora sua, “striking their breasts,”
and confessing in their turn that the crucified one was tndy the
Son of God!

384

(21,
139
22

224

PERSECUTED, BUT VICTORIOUS

Persecution of the first centuries
385
From that tiint there has been no truce in the contradictions
(128) and struggles of the Church, but each struggle has marked a
triumph. In the iirst three centuries after the Redeemer’s death,
the Church had to face the barbarity of pagan emperors. Bearing
atrocious persecution, harassed in every way by jealous and cruel
despots, she triumphed in the constancy of her confessors and in
the blood of millions of martyrs. For this blood which flowed
everywhere and watered the soil of Rome in particular, far from
weakening the Church, gave her new strength, far from destroying
her disciples, only multiplied them; that is why it was called
semen Christianorum, the seed of Christians! What, in fact, was
the result? The result was that in the end the tyrants disappeared,
the torturers themselves grew weary of putting the innocent to
death, innocents of every age, and all of them invincible; but
the Church, and the Church alone, pursued her triumph and
found peace.
Heresies
386
To the barbarity of the first tyrants succeeded the long and
(99, stubborn struggle against heresy, all the more terrible because the
228) heresies were kept alive by the malice of degenerate Emperors
who thought to impose them on the Church. Here again the
Church triumphed: by her Doctors, real models of learning and
holiness, who, by their indefatigable zeal and their invincible
constancy, spread everywhere the light of sane doctrine and of
true civilization. The arms of heresy grew weak and at last
dropped off, so much so that today heresy has no power, or almost
no power, to harm.
Eternal struggle
387
Today the Church no longer needs to combat heresy or
(99) bloody persecution; it is against intellectual and moral aggression
that she must speak out. Today the attack is not turned against a
single part of the Church, a single article of her faith, one of her
dogmas: it is the universal Church they wage war on today.'It is
against unbelief, atheism, materialism that the Church must strug­
gle. Today (it must be repeated) the Church does not need to
combat heresies which no longer exist or which have no influence;
it is against that indifference, that impiety which attempts to up­
root faith in the Christian heart, which seeks only to sap the
foundations of the Church of Christ; and this beloved Rome,
purpled with the blood of so many martyrs, they want to cast it

ONE OF THE CHURCH'S SUPPORTS

225

once more into the pit of that old corruption, make it return to the
times of Nero, or better, of Julian the Apostate; this beloved Rome,
sacred center of truth, they would like to make it become again
the center of all errors.
Rut they will not succeed: God is fighting for his Church. 388
They will not succeed because the Church of Christ, built upon (88)
a rock, will never be shaken, whatever be the violence of the
storm. She has the guarantees of this in the words of the God who
said: Portae inferi non praevalebunt, “The gates of hell shall not

(The Pope is comforted by the affection of his children; he
invites them to make their union stronger.)
Yes, dear children, be more and more united; and let not the 389
lying whispers of an impossible “conciliation’’ stop you. It is use­ (99,
less to talk of conciliation. The Church can never be reconciled 145)
with error, and the Pope cannot be separated from the Church.

ONE OF THE CHURCH’S SUPPORTS

All. to the religious Superiors, June 24, 1872.

There is no doubt, and I have always been persuaded of it, 390
that the religious Orders are walking in the way of perfection(209)
and are a support to the Church who, circumdata varietate, as she
is, makes it her glory to be assisted by them, by their works, by
their writings, and by their prayers. Religious congregations have
always been necessary to the Church, and that for several reasons.
In the early centuries ( I have in mind the centuries following the
persecution of pagan emperors) the Sovereign Pontiffs were often
chosen from the monasteries: they left the solitude of the cloister
to assume the government of the Church. It is for this reason that
We believed it necessary to let the usurpers know that this sup­
pression of religious Orders was another means of destruction
employed against the Church. Destruction, because it obliges
seminarians to military service; destruction, because it deprives
convents and monasteries of so many young candidates who
should be, as it were, the arms of the Pope; destruction from every
point of view: it was therefore just for me to speak and to unmask
the truth.
388a Matt. 16:18.

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CONSEQUENCES OI

I I IE PRIMACY

391

For the rest, have confidence in God and do not be troubled.
(139, Use every possible means of defense; assert your rights by word
209) and by writing. Speak respectfully, but frankly; tell the truth, say
it openly; no imprudence, but constancy; no rashness, but energy.
Submit your hearts and your desires to the good pleasure of God
for him to direct them in the paths of justice, and may He give
you the grace necessary to defend the rights of the Sovereign
Pontiff and of the Holy See; for without the Pope there is no
Church, and there is no Catholic Society without the Holy See.

CONSEQUENCES OF THE PRIMACY
Encycl. Quartus supra, January 6. 1873, to the Armenians.
(Origins and development of the recent Armenian schism.—
The false declaration of faith of February 6, 1870.)

The Roman Communion
392
In fact, it is as contrary to the divine constitution of the
(44, Church as it is to perpetual and constant tradition for anyone to
56, attempt to prove the catholicity of his faith and truly call himself
161, a Catholic when he fails in obedience to the Apostolic See. For
181, it is necessary for all the other churches, that is, for all the faith184) ful of the entire world, to be in agreement with this See by reason
of its sovereign primacy (a), and he who abandons the Chair of
Peter on which the Church is founded, is falsely persuaded that
he is in the Church (b), since he is already a sinner and a schis­
matic who raises up a chair against the one Chair of Peter (c),
from which flow to all others the sacred rights of communion (d).

Communion with Rome
(Roman communion was recognized by the ancient Churches
of the East as a criterion for belonging to the Church.)
393
All these declarations are so emphatic that we must conclude
(55) from them that a man who has been declared schismatic by the
Roman Pontiff must cease absolutely to claim the name of
Catholic so long as he fails to recognize and does not expressly
revere that Pontiff’s power in its fullness.
392a
392b
392c
392<I

Cf. St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hæres., cap. Ill, 3.
St. Cyprian. Lib. de Unitate.
Optatus of Mila, De Schis. Donat.
St. Ambrose, Ep. XI, ad Imperatores.

CONSEQUENCES OF TUE PRIMAC Y

227

Unjust excommunication
But since the neo-schismatics cannot reap any advantage
Irom it, they have applied themselves to follow in the footsteps of
modern heretics; they have excused themselves by saying that the
sentence of excommunication pronounced against them in Our
name by Our venerable Brother the Archbishop of Tyana,
Apostolic Delegate to Constantinople, was unjust and therefore
null and void. They have even gone so far as to say that they
could not submit to it for fear that the faithful, once deprived
of their ministry, would espouse the cause of the heretics. Here
is surely a new kind of reason, absolutely unheard of, quite un­
known to the Fathers of the Church! In fact, the entire Church
in even' part of the world knows that the See of St. Peter the
Apostle has the power to loose the bonds imposed by the sentence
of any bishop, no matter who he may be, since this See has the
right to judge the affairs of the Church and no one may lawfully
appeal against that judgment (a).
(Here is cited the condemnation by Clement XI of a
proposition affirming' that a sentence of excommunication, un­
justly incurred, may be disregarded, even if it derives from
legitimate authority) (b).

394
(55,
157,
172,
175)

The people are to be instructed, not followed
As for the charity with which priests above all must seek 395
out the faithful, it must spring from a pure heart, from an (109,
upright conscience and a sincere faith, as the Apostle St. Paul 197,
teaches us (a); elsewhere, when he enumerates the qualities 203)
which should distinguish us as ministers of God, he adds: “in
charity unfeigned and in the word of truth” (b). Now, Our Lord
Jesus Christ Himself, Our God “who is charity” (c), has clearly
commanded us to regard as heathen and publicans those who
will not hear the Church (d). For the rest. Our predecessor
St. Gelasius, replying to Euphemius, Bishop of Constantinople,
who had proposed to him similar difficulties, said: “It is the
part of the flock to follow the shepherd when he wishes to take
them back to healthful pastures; it is not the shepherd’s role to
follow the flock when it goes astray” (e). “Finally, we must
394a
394b
395a
395d

St. Gelasius, Ep. 13, ad Episc. Dardania'.
Const. Unigenitus, prop. 91, 92, 93; Denz., 1441-1443.
1 Tim. 1:5.
395b 2 Cor. 6:6-7.
395c 1 John 4:8.
Matt. 18:17.
395e Epist. 1 ad Eupheni.. n. 15.

CONSEQUENCES OF THE PRIMACY

228

instruct the people, not follow them; it is our duty to make
known to them, if they know it not, what is permitted and
what is forbidden, and not to surrender to their desires” (f).

Dogma and discipline
396
But the neo-schismatics say that there is no question of
(56) dogma, but only of discipline, because it is discipline which is
concerned in Our Constitution Reversurus of July 12, 1867 (a),
and consequently the name of Catholic cannot be forbidden
those who refuse to recognize it. But you understand without
difficulty, We are convinced, how useless and vain such a sub­
terfuge is. For the Catholic Church has always considered
schismatic all those who obstinately resist the authority of her
legitimate prelates, and especially her Supreme Pastor, and any
who refuse to execute their orders and even to recognize their
authority. The members of the Armenian faction of Constantino­
ple having followed this line of conduct, no one, under any
pretext, can believe them innocent of the sin of schism, even if
they had not been denounced as schismatic by Apostolic
authority.

397
(74,
121,
185,
203)

In fact, the Church, as the Fathers have taught us, “is the
people united to the priest and the flock adhering to its shepherd; whence it follows that the bishop is in the Church and
that the Church is in the bishop; and if a man be not with his
bishop, he is no longer in the Church’’ (a). Moreover, as Our
predecessor Pius VI pointed out in his Apostolic Letters (b) in
which he condemned the Civil Constitution of the Clergy in
France, discipline is often so closely united to dogma, it has
such an influence on its preservation and on its purity, that the
sacred Councils have not hesitated in many cases to pronounce
anathemas against those guilty of disciplinary violations, and
separated them from communion with the Church.
(The schismatics have accused the Holy See of overstepping
its powers in regulating the discipline of the Eastern Churches.)

398
Now, such teaching is not only heretical after the defini(176) tions and declarations of the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican
395f St.
396a Cf.
397a St.
397b Cf

Celestine, ad Episc. Apul. et Caleb., No. 3.
Above, No. 307.
Cyprian, Ep. 69, ad Flor. Pupianum, No. 8.
Above, Nos. 65 ff.

CONSEQUENCES OF THE PRIMACY

229

on the nature and the reasons for the primacy of the Sovereign
Pontiff, but it has always been considered to be such and has
been abhorred by the Catholic Church. It is for this reason that
the bishops of the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon, openly
confessing in their acts the supreme authority of the Apostolic
See, humbly requested Our predecessor St. Leo to deign to
confirm and sanction their decrees, even those treating of dis­
cipline.
The universal power of the Pope
the bishops’ support
And in truth “the successor of Peter, by the very fact that 399
he holds the place of Peter, has, by right divine, the whole flock (141,
of Christ confided to his care, so that he receives, at the same 145,
time with the episcopacy, the power of universal government, 754while to the other bishops it is necessary to assign a special part 155,
of the flock, so that they may exercise over that portion the 794ordinary power of government; and they do so, not by divine 795)
right, but by ecclesiastical right, not by virtue of an order from
Jesus Christ, but by a disposition of the hierarchy. If the supreme
power of St. Peter and his successors to assign in this manner
the various parts of the flock were to be disputed, the very
foundations of the churches (above all, of the principal ones)
as well as their prerogatives would be shaken”; “for if Christ
willed that the other princes of the Church were to have some­
thing in common with St. Peter, it is only through the intermedi­
ary of Peter that He has given them what He did not refuse to
them” (a).
In fact, "it was St. Peter who made illustrious the See of 400
Alexandria by sending to it the Evangelist, his disciple; he it is (747,
who founded the See of Antioch and occupied it for seven years, 795)
though he was later obliged to leave it” (a). As to the decrees
enacted in the Council of Chalcedon relative to the See of
Constantinople, Anatolius himself, bishop of that city (b), and
the Emperor Marcian (c) publicly recognized that they had an
absolute need of being approved of and confirmed by the
Apostolic See.
399a St. Leo, Semi. 3 in ann. assumpt. suie; cited by Pius VI,
Super soliditate; cf. Above, No. 20, ff.
400a St. Gregory the Great, Ep. 7 ad Eulog. episc. Alexandrine.
400b Anatolius, ad S. Leon., Ep. 132, no. 4.
400c Ep. 100, ad S. Leon.

230

CONSEQUENCES OF TUE PRIMACY

401
And so the neo-schismatics pride themselves in vain on being
(54, Catholic; they will never be able to persuade themselves of it
147) unless they succeed in discrediting the constant and perpetual
tradition of the Church, confirmed in the most striking manner
by the testimony of the Fathers. And if the subtleties and ruses
of the heretics were not sufficiently well-known and established
beyond a doubt, it would be impossible to understand how the
Ottoman government could consider as Catholics those men whom
they know to be banished from the Catholic Church by a judg­
ment emanating from Our authority. And if it be desired that
the Catholic religion be able to maintain itself in full security
and in entire liberty in the Ottoman Empire—as is guaranteed by
the decrees of His Imperial Majesty—there must be admitted all
that belongs to this same religion, the primacy of jurisdiction of
the Roman Pontiff just as it is, and the right to determine who are
and who are not Catholics, according to his judgment, in his role
of Head and Universal and Supreme Pastor of that religion, for
this is a right universally accorded to every purely human and
private society.
(The schismatics throw the responsibility of the schism on
the Pope.—Refutation of this calumny on historical grounds.)

The election of bishops
402
For what concerns the exclusion of laymen from the election
(203)oi bishops, it is necessary', in order not to say anything which is
contrary to the Catholic faith, to distinguish with care the right
to elect bishops from the right to give testimony regarding the
life and conduct of those who are to be elected. To recognize as
belonging to the laity the right to elect bishops would be to renew
the false positions of Luther and Calvin who stated that this
power belonged to the laity by divine right. Now, no one is
ignorant of the fact that the Catholic Church has always reproved
this teaching, and that the people have never had, either by divine
right, or by ecclesiastical right, the power to elect bishops or
other ministers of divine worship.
(History of the concession made to the faithfid to give their
opinion of the person of the proposed bishop.—Suppression of
this custom following upon abuses.)
The strength of the churches
403
It is the canons themselves, in fact, which recognize the full
(137, divine authority of St. Peter over the entire Church, and which

CONSEQUENCES OF TUE PRIMACY

231

state, as was noted in the Council of Ephesus, that St. Peter, now 141,
and forever, governs in his successors (a). Therefore, it was with 147,
justice that Stephen, Bishop of Larissa, could boldly answer those ISOwho imagined that the intervention of the Roman Pontiff dimin­ 152)
ished, up to a certain point, the privileges of the Churches of the
imperial city of Constantinople: “The authority of the Apostolic
See which was given to the Prince of the Apostles by Our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ is superior to all the privileges of the holy
churches, and all the churches of the whole world rest upon this
authority which they recognize” (b).
( Intervention of the Roman Pontiffs in the Eastern Churches.
-Witness of history.)
Therefore, the motives are very grave, and they have been 404
weighed with maturity and for a long time, as God is witness, (1.54.
which compel Us, after an examination of facts both recent and 204)
remote, to come at last to these determinations, and that without
having been urged to this by others, but by our own volition and
with full knowledge of the subject. No one, really, can fail to see
that on the regular election of bishops depends the eternal
happiness of the people; sometimes even their temporal felicity;
and it is for this reason, that with a special view to the circum­
stances of time and place, We have been obliged to see that the
power of instituting bishops be returned in its entirety to the
Apostolic See whence it proceeds.
(Present moderation of the Pope in laying claim to his power.
-He grants the synod the right to present three candidates.)
The free choice of the Holy See
As for Our right to choose a subject not of the number of the 405
three candidates proposed. We believed We should not be silent (138.
on that score, so that in the future the Apostolic See would never 203,
he forced to reassert the exercise of this right. For the rest, even 224)
even if We had not spoken of it, this right and this duty would
have remained in all their integrity to the Chair of St. Peter. In
fact, the rights and privileges granted to this Chair by Christ him­
self can be assailed, but they can never be taken from it, and it
is not in a man’s power to yield up a divine right which he may
sometimes be obliged to exercise by the will of God Himself.
403a Council of Ephesus, act. 3.
403b Stephen of Larissa, In Libel, oblat. Bonif. 11, et Rom. Syn.,
an. 351,

232

CONSEQUENCES OF THE PRIMACY

(The Holy See has never had to exercise this power and
hopes never to have to do so. )

The Holy See and the patriarchs
406
The most ancient documents attest the fact that the election
(188) of tire patriarchs was never held to be valid and ratified without
the consent and the confirmation of the Roman Pontiff, whence
it follows that this confirmation was always requested with sup­
plications, even on the part of the Emperors, by those who had
been elected to the patriarchal see.
(Witness of History.)
407
Doubtless it has happened that the Patriarchs-elect have
(188) exercised their authority before being confirmed by the Sovereign
Pontiff; but this was only the result of the Holy See’s toleration,
motivated, as it was. by the distance of the countries, the perils
of the journey, and the misfortunes with which they were often
threatened by the tyranny of the schismatics of the same rite.
(Happy fruits of Rome’s confirmation.)

408
It is certain that if an attentive examination be made of
(155, matters as they really are, it will be evident that all the prescrip190) tions of Our Constitution tend to the conservation and increase
of the Catholic faith, as well as to the defense of the true liberty
of the Church and the authority of the bishops; an authority
whose rights and privileges the firmness of the Apostolic See
consolidates, strengthens, and supports, which have always been
vigorously defended by the Roman Pontiffs against the heretics
and the ambitious at the urging of bishops of every rank, every
nation, every rite.
The so-called “national rights"
409
As for the “rights" which are called “national", it is not neces(92, sary for Us to say very much to answer this charge. In fact, if it be
109, a question merely of civil rights, We say that they are subject to
131, the power of the ruler who has ever}' right to judge of them and
159) to decide in their regard according as he sees fit for the good of
his subjects. If, on the contrary, by “national rights” arc to be
understood "ecclesiastical rights”, We answer then that no one can
be ignorant of the fact that Catholics have never recognized
nations or peoples to have any right over the Church, her hier­
archy, and her government. And if it is true that peoples and
nations have entered the Church from everv quarter of the globe,
God has nonetheless so firmly joined them in the unitv of his

CONSEQUENCES OF THE PRIMACY

233

name under the guidance of him whom He has placed at the
head of his Church, that there are no longer as the Apostle said,
either Gentiles, or Jews. Barbarians, or Scythians, bond, or free;
there is only Christ who is all in all (a). “It is from him that the
whole body, being compacted and fitly joined together, by what
every joint supplied), according to the operation in the measure
of every part, maketh increase of the body, unto the edifying of
itself in charity” (b). In fact, the Lord not only has not given
to peoples and nations any power over the Church, but He has
enjoined upon then» to believe the Apostles charged with their
instruction (c). Whence comes it that St. Peter himself declared
openly, in the presence of the Apostles and the assembled
Ancients, that God had chosen him that the nations might receive
the teaching of the Gospel from his mouth, and might believe
in it (d).
(Calumnious accusation that the Sultan’s rights have been
violated. )
Render unto Caesar ... and to God
The doctrine of the Catholic Church, received from Christ
Himself and taught by the Apostles, is, therefore, that we must
render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, but also to God
the things that are God’s: that is why Our predecessors have never
failed to inculcate, when there was need, the loyalty' and obedience due to princes. From this we must conclude that the administration of civil affairs belongs to the Emperor, and that
ecclesiastical affairs belong exclusively to priests. Now’, among
ecclesiastical affairs are to be counted everything necessary' for
the establishment and maintenance of what is called the exterior
discipline of the Church; and it would be heretical, as has already
been defined by Our predecessor Pius VI of happy memory, to
maintain that the use of this God-given power is an abuse of the
authority of the Church (a).
(The Holy See’s care to maintain the distinction of the two
powers.—Witness of the Fathers and of the Councils in this same
sense) (b).
409a Coloss. 3:2.
409b Eph. 4:16.
409c Matt. 28:19.
409d Acts 15:7.
410a Apost. Const. Auctorem fidei, prop. 4, Above No. 107.
410b St. Athanasius, Hist. Arianor. ad Monachos, No. 52; St. John
Damascene, Orat. II de Sacris imagin., No. 16; Council of
Chalcedon, act. IV

410
(14,
92,
121,
201,
206)

234

411
(92,
91.
154.
203)

CONSEQUENCES OF TUE PRIMACY

Episcopal elections
What can be said to enter more completely into the order of
ecclesiastical affairs than the election of bishops? We read nowhere in sacred history that these elections were ever subject to
the decisions of princes or people. On the contrary, the Fathers
of the Church, the Ecumenical Councils, the Apostolic Constitu­
tions have ever recognized and defined that they belong to the
ecclesiastical authority. If therefore, when it is a question of in­
stalling an ecclesiastical shepherd, the Apostolic See determines
the norms to be followed in these same elections, how can it be
accused of violating the rights of His imperial Majesty, since the
Holy See is exercising the rights not of another’s authority, but of
its own? Doubtless the authority of the bishop over the people
entrusted to him is great and venerable; but the civil power has
no reason to fear it, for it will always find in the bishop not an
enemy, but a defender of the legitimate rights of the prince.
(Contrary fears of the secular power are groundless.)
Ecclesiast ical pro pert ij

412
We were, moreover, profoundly astonished when We learned
(1.3. that, apropos of the reestablishment and confirmation of the law
201) on the alienation of ecclesiastical property, We were accused not
only of wishing to usurp imperial rights, but even of claiming for
Ourselves the property of the Armenian Churches. Ecclesiastical
property belongs to the churches, and is under their control, ab­
solutely in the same way that civil property belongs to citizens.
This is a principal which reason alone would suggest to any man,
even if it had not been established by the sacred canons.
(History of ecclesiastical discipline in this matter.)

The Pope is not ua Foreign Power”
413
No less calumnious an invention is the one imagined by
(144. certain men of modern times and welcomed eagerly by Eastern
158. dissidents, who have not blushed to represent the Roman Pontiff,
162) as Vicar of Christ, as a foreign power intruding himself in the
domestic government of States and Nations. It is absolutely
necessary to prevent this (they say), so that the rights of the
Imperial government can be maintained in all their integrity,
and so that every door may be closed to the encroachments
which other princes might permit themselves at the sight of
such an example.

CONSEQUENCES OF TUE PRIMACY

235

But it is easy to understand how false these suppositions 414
are, and how contrary to good sense and to the divine organiza-(121,
tion of the Catholic Church. First of all, it is false that the 138,
Roman Pontiffs have ever exceeded the limits of their power or 176,
have ever intruded on the civil government of States, or have 224)
usurped the powers of princes. If people do not fear to launch
such calumnies against the Roman Pontiffs because the latter
make laws concerning the election of bishops and the sacred
ministers of the Church, concerning their cases and concerning
all other matters which concern ecclesiastical discipline (even
what is called exterior discipline), the conclusion must neces­
sarily follow either that people who talk like this have no under­
standing at all of the divine—and therefore, unchanging,—organi­
zation of the Catholic Church, or that they reject it.
Now this organization has always been a stable one and 415
will always be stable; it is impossible that it should be in any (41,
way subject to change, in those countries above all where the 138,
liberty and security necessary to the Catholic Church have been 144,
ensured by the imperial decrees of the reigning Prince. But it 152is a dogma of the Catholic Faith that the Church is one, and 153,
that the Roman Pontiff is its head and at the same time the 163,
father of all Christians. Therefore, no one can say that he is a 224)
"foreigner” either to any Christian, or for any one of the indi­
vidual Churches of Christians, unless at the same time he wish
to maintain that the head can be a stranger to the members,
the father to his children, the master to his disciples, the shep­
herd to his flock.
For the rest, they who do not fear to call the Apostolic See 416
a foreign power” rend the unity of the Church by speaking in (40this manner, or at least they furnish a pretext for rending it. 46.
since by words like these they deny to the successor of St. Peter 56the title and the rights of Universal Pastor. Therefore, they fail 57,
in that loyalty which they owe to the Catholic Church if they 91.
are numbered among her children, or they assail the liberty 1.39.
which is necessary to her if they are not of her fold, for Our 158,
Lord Jesus Christ plainly taught (a) that the sheep must know 184)
and hear the voice of the Shepherd and follow him, while they
flee the voice of the stranger because they know not the voice
of strangers. If. therefore, the Sovereign Pontiff is called a stranger
■116a John 10:4-5.

236

THE TRULY WISE

by any one of the Churches, that Church will be, in consequence,
a stranger to the Apostolic See, that is, to the Catholic Church
which is one, and which alone was founded on Peter by the Lord’s
word. Whoever separates the Church from this foundation no
longer preserves the divine and Catholic Church, but is striving
to make a human church (b). Now a church like that, united
solely by human bonds, bonds that are called national, would
not be united by the bond of priests firmly attached to the Chair
of Peter, would not be made firm by the solidity of that same
Chair, and would not belong to the universal and perfect unity
of the Catholic Church (c).
417
We have believed it Our duty, Venerable Brothers and dear(139, ly beloved Sons, in the present state of affairs to write all this to
141, you, you who have received as your inheritance the same faith
147) as Ourselves in the justice of Our God and Savior Jesus Christ,
so as to make still more firm the sincerity of your minds by
these teachings. You see in fact verified among you what the
holy Apostles long ago foretold, namely, that in the last days
men would rise up producing illusion by their deceits, walking
according to their own desires. Take care, therefore, that you
leave not the Gospel which called you in the grace of Christ for
another one; and this other ‘Gospel’ is the men who harass you
and wish to change the Gospel of Christ. Yes, truly, they wish
to change the Gospel of Christ when they endeavor to remove
the foundation which Christ Himself gave to his Church, and
deny or suppress the universal office of feeding the sheep and
the lambs entrusted to Peter in the Gospel.
(Calumnies spread by the schismatics to give credit to their
statements.—The Pope protests against these calumnies—Paternal
incitation to return.)
THE TRULY WISE
Letter Per tristissima, March 6, 1873, to the St. Ambrose
Circle of Milan.
(Open persecution of the Church.—The compromises and
the tolerance preached by the “liberal Catholics" are to be con­
demned.)
418
These men are more dangerous and more pernicious than
(53, declared enemies, first, because, without drawing attention and
416b St. Cyprian, Epist. 52 ad Antonianum.
416c A quo fundamento qui eam sejungunt, non jam divinam et

THE TRULY WISE

237

perhaps even without being aware of it, they favor the enter­
prises of the enemy; secondly, because, keeping well to this side
of the known limits of condemned opinions, they give a certain
air of irreproachable probity to a teaching which attracts im­
prudent ‘amateurs’ of conciliation and deceives honest men who
would repudiate any manifest error: so they divide hearts, rend
unity, weaken the forces which should band together to oppose
the adversary (a). But you will be able to avoid their snares
with ease if you have before your eyes the divine warning, “by
their fruits you shall know them” (b); if you notice that they
grow indignant at anything which savors of devotedness which
is fully and absolutely at the service of the desires and the coun­
sels of the Holy See; that they speak rarely of this Holy See ex­
cept in terms of “the Roman Curia”; that without discernment
they criticize its acts of ‘imprudence’ or ‘inopportuneness’; that
they dub its most zealous and most obedient sons Ultramontanes
or Jesuits; and that, swollen with pride, they believe themselves
to be wiser than this Chair to which has been promised a special,
permanent, divine assistance.

But you, dearly beloved Sons, remember that in all that con­ 419
cerns the faith, morals, and government of the Church, the words (53,
which Christ said of Himself: “he that gathereth not with me 182)
scattereth” (a), can be applied to the Roman Pontiff who holds
the place of God on earth. Ground your whole wisdom therefore,
in an absolute obedience and a joyous and constant adherence to
this Chair of Peter. Thus, animated by the same spirit of faith,
you will all be perfect in one manner of thinking and judging,
you will strengthen this unity which we must oppose to the enecatholicam servant, sed humanam conantur ecclesiam facere; qux
Utpote humanis tantum nationalitatis uti aiunt vinculis colligata,
neque sacerdotum cathedrx B. Petri firmiter adhxrentium glutino
copularetur, neque in ejusdem solidaretur firmitate, neque esset
juxta connexam et ubique conjunctam Ecclesia’ catholicae
unitatem.
418a Ili vero periculosiores omnino sunt et exitiosiores apertis hosti­
bus, tum qui inobservati, et fortasse etiam necopinantes, illorum
conatibus obsecundant; tum qui intra certos improbatarum
opinionum limites consistentes, speciem quamdam probitatis
inculpabilis doctrinae prieferunt, qua’ imprudentes allidat conci­
liationis amatores, et decipiat honestos, qui apertum adversarentur
errorem: atque ita dissociant animos, unitatem discerpunt, vires­
que conjunctim opponendas adversariis infirmant.
418b Matt. 7:16, 20.
419a Cf. Matt. 12:30.

238

THE FAITH OF PETER

inies of the Church, you will make your charitable works more
agreeable to God and more profitable to your neighbor, and you
will offer real consolation to Our heart so afflicted by the ills
of the Church.
( Blessing. )
THE FAITH OF PETER

All. to an international Catholic deputation, March 7, 1873.
(Remain confident in the midst of the present trials of the
Church.)
420
Such was Peter’s faith; such must be our own. Faith was the
(139, strongest characteristic of the Prince of the Apostles. This it was
144) which made him answer Christ: Tu es Christus Filius Dei υίυί,
"Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God”; this it was which
won for him the title of blessed: Beatus es, Simon Bar-Jona, (juia
caro et sanguis non revelavit tibi: Blessed art thou, because
neither flesh nor blood has put on your lips the confession of my
divinity, but because it is my eternal Father who has revealed it
to you from heaven: quia caro et sanguis non revelavit tibi, sed
Pater meus (pii in coelis est (a). From this comes the order estab­
lishing Peter as the foundation of the Church. It is true that Jesus
Christ is the foundation of the Church, that He is the corner­
stone on which this majestic temple is built; but Jesus Christ
willed to associate with Himself his Vicar; and in the contact
of the two foundation stones Peter the Apostle obtained a share
in the greatness of Christ: Qua? mihi potestate sunt propria, sint
tibi mecum participatione communia, to borrow the very' words
of St. Leo (b).
421
Therefore, it is on this rock that the Church is founded. The
(139, Church rises majestically, and in her majesty she overtops the
144, clouds and reaches heaven where she hears the words which still
149) today repeat: QuodcumqUe solveris super terram erit solutum et
in coelis, et quodcumque ligaveris super terrain erit ligatum et in
coelis, “Whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound
also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall
be loosed also in heaven" (a). These are the words which roused
the fury of hell and which have given rise to the wicked and
ungrateful schemes of the sons of Satan who roam the paths of
420a Matt. 16:16-17.

420b Senn. IV, c. 2.

421a Matt. 16:19.

■I

HIE BOMAN COMMUNION

239

this earth and cannot bear to hear tell of this sovereign power
given by Cod to his Vicar.
(Forms of the present persecution.—Necessary vigilance.)

INTERPRETATION OF THE LAWS
Apost. Const. Romanus Pontifex, August 28, 1873.
The Roman Pontiff, in conformity with the office which Cod 422
has entrusted to him to guide and govern the universal Church (161,
of Christ, must not only zealously watch over the observance of 176)
the laws, but also make known their true and Catholic meaning,
if any doubt arise on this subject, and lest they be the object of
differing interpretations and the unity of ecclesiastical discipline
be destroyed, to the great detriment of the government of the
Church.
(Jurisdiction of Vicars Capitular.—Meaning of the Tridentine
decree concerning them.—The sanction which is provided.)

THE ROMAN COMMUNION
Encycl. Etsi multa, November 21, 1873.
(Present ills afflicting the Church.—Discriminatory laws in
Switzerland and Germany.—The "Old Catholics" of Germany and
their false bishop.)

The very first elements of Catholic doctrine teach that no
one can be considered a legitimate bishop if he is not united by
the communion of faith and charity with the Rock on which the
Church of Christ is built, if he does not adhere to the Supreme
Pastor to whom arc confided all the sheep so that he may feed
them, and if he is not bound to him who has the office of con­
firming his brethren who are in the world. In fact, ’Our Lord
spoke to Peter; he spoke to one alone to establish unity on one
alone” (a); again: “The divine favor granted a great and admirble participation of its power" to Peter, and “if it willed that the
other princes should receive something from it, it never granted
concessions to others except by means of Peter" (b). Whence it
follows that from this Apostolic See where Peter lives and pre423a Si. Pacien, Epist. 3 ad Sympron., No. 11.
4231) St. !.<*<>, Senn. 3 in sua assumpt.

423

(44,
56,
152,
154,
161,
191)

THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST

240

sides and grants to all those who seek it the truth of faith (c),
emanate all the rights of holy communion (d); and this same
See “is certainly to the other churches spread through the world
what the head is to the other members of the body, and who
so separates himself from this See becomes a stranger to the Chris­
tian religion, since he ceases to be part of its structure (e).
(The Pope supports his statements by a text from St. Cy­
prian [f].—He pronounces excommunication against the schis­
matics.—He encourages the faithful bishops by a text from
St. John Chrysostom [g].)
THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST

Encycl. Vix dum a Nobis, March 7, 1874, to the Bishops of
Austria.
(The projected laws submitting the Church to the State.)
424
(73,
96,

113116,
120)

In fact, the Creator and Redeemer of the human race has
certainly founded the Church as his visible Kingdom on earth,
and He has endowed it not only with the supernatural gift of infallible teaching for the propagation of his holy doctrine, a holy
priesthood for the performance of divine worship and for the
sanctification of souls by means of the Holy Sacrifice and the
sacraments; but He has also given it as proper faculties, full
power to make laws, to judge, to exercise a salutary coercive pow­
er in all matters connected with the true end of the Kingdom of
God upon earth.

425
(1314,
9192,
200203,
211)

But since the supernatural power of ecclesiastical govern­
ment, founded on the disposition of Jesus Christ, is entirely dis­
tinct from and independent of the secular power, so the King­
dom of God upon earth is the kingdom of a perfect society which
regulates itself and governs itself according to its own laws and
by its own power and by its own rulers, who are on the watch
to give an account of souls, not to earthly sovereigns, but to the
Prince of Pastors, to Jesus Christ, who has made them pastors and
doctors, and they, in the exercise of their spiritual office, are not
423c
423d
423e
423f
423g

St. Peter Chrys., Ep. ad Eutych.
Cone. Aquil., Inter ep. Amhros., ep. XI, No. 4.
St. Boniface 1, Ep. 14, ed episc. Thess.
Contra Novation., Epist. 52, ad Antonian.
Hom. ante exil.. No. 1, 2.

LIBERTY OF BISHOPS

241

subject to any secular power. In the same way that sacred pastors
have the duty to govern, so also it is the duty of the faithful, as
the Apostle tells them, to obey them and to be submissive to
them; and it is for this reason that the Catholic people have the
sacred right not to be interfered with by the civil power in the
exercise of this sacred and divine duty which obliges them to
observe the teaching, the discipline, and the laws of the Church.
( The Austrian government arrogates to itself rights over the
constitution and the laws of the Church.—The Pope answers it in
the words of St. Ambrose: "The palaces belong to the Emperor,
the churches to the Priest") (a).

LIBERTY OF BISHOPS
Letter Quod numquam, February 5, 1875, to the Bishops of
Prussia.
To discharge the duties of this Apostolic See, We declare
publicly by this letter, to all those concerned in the matter as well
as to the whole Catholic world, that these laws are null and void
because they are entirely opposed to the divine constitution of
the Church. It was not to the powerful ones of this world that
Christ subjected the bishops of his Church in what concerns his
holy service, but to Peter, to whom He confided sheep and
lambs (a). It is for this reason that no earthly power, be it ever
so high, has the right to strip of their episcopal dignity those who
have been made bishops by the Holy Spirit to rule the Church
of God (b).
(Refuse to obey, in spite of persecution.)

426

(92,
153.
203)

EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY
All. to the Consistory, March 15, 1875.
(Persecution of the Church in the field of the education of
youth, and the training of the clergy.—Priests have been encour­
aged to rebel against episcopal authority.—Impediments placed
in the way of the dissemination of Pontifical Acta and of
preaching. )
Certainly threats like these give evidence of the spirit and 427
force behind certain laws which, pretending a sort of respect in (165425a Epist. 20, no. 19.

426a John 21:15-17

•126b Acts 20:28.

242

EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY

166, order to deceive the faithful, seemed to protect Our liberty and
178) Our dignity. They prove all the more how necessary to Us is
that complete and supreme power, independent of the authority
and the good will of any man, which divine Providence conferred
on the Roman Pontiffs so they could exercise with ease and in
complete liberty their spiritual ministry to the whole world.
In the meantime, these conditions threaten to stifle the very
voice of the supreme Master of truth so that it will no longer be
heard abroad, this voice which by divine right is raised for the
common good of society throughout the world, and which can
neither be limited nor hindered without at the same time inter­
fering with all the rights of the faithful. Let those who subject
the Church to so great servitude consider that they are provoking
against themselves the severity of God's judgment, and that they
will, in their turn, have to submit to masters all the harsher, to ty­
rannical conditions all the harder to bear, as the authority of
their Mother the Church, which they rejected when they put
her in chains, was gentle and sweet.
(Writings disseminated throughout Germany with the in­
tention of misinterpreting the Vatican definitions, so as to justify
the interference of the civil power in the election of the Pope,
"which is a wholly ecclesiastical matter. ’)

4*28
The Cod of mercies, who presides over and watches over his
(154-Church, has, in his Providence, enabled the very courageous
155) Bishops of Germany to publish a remarkable declaration which
will remain memorable in the annals of the Church; with great
wisdom they have refuted the erroneous teaching and the soph­
isms broadcast in this affair, and having thus raised a monument
to the truth, they have rejoiced Our heart no less than the whole
Church (a). And at the same time that, before you and before
the whole Catholic world, We pay this splendid tribute to each
and every one of these Bishops, We ratify their luminous declar428a In the letter Mirabilis ilia (March 2, 1875) the Pope had
already, in almost the same terms, congratulated the German
Bishops on their courageous initiative. In a common pastoral
they had branded false an article in which the Indicateur de
l'Etat had stated that the Vatican definitions had changed the
constitution of the Church, substituting pontifical jurisdiction
for the jurisdiction of bishops, the latter have been reduced to
the rank of “simple functionaries" Cf. Irenikon, vol XXIX,
p. 131, if-

HIE SURE GUIDE

243

ations and the protests worthy of their courage, their dignity, and
their religious spirit, at the same time that We confirm them with
the fullness of Our Apostolic authority.
(Nomination of Cardinals.)
THE SURE GUIDE

All. to German pilgrims, May 13, 1875.
(Impotence of the Church’s enemies.—The lesson of the
catacombs.—To accept it, a light is needed [faith], and a sure
guide. )
This guide is to be found in the Church’s pastors, from 429
whom men should receive holy counsel, usefid teaching, which (96,
they should accept with docility and openness of heart. At this 203)
very moment your pastors, yours especially (a), are giving an
example of constancy, of firmness, which has evoked general
admiration.

But. you may say, it could happen that one or another of 430
these guides might not point out the true path. Yes, that could be,(157,
for the Catholic Church is spread over the entire surface of the 225)
globe, and since it occupies an expanse which I can only call
immense, it could happen that someone might forget the truth,
and, having forgotten it, would be unable to teach it to others. In
that case as in every other, you have the Holy See. you have the
Supreme Pastor, who will recall to the truth him who strays and
who will say to those who call themselves ‘Old Catholics”, as also
to ‘deformed’ and ‘halting’ Catholics, to those who wish to subject
the inalienable laws of religion to the exigencies of politics, and to
those who, without being rationalists in the strict sense, nonethe­
less refuse to submit to authority—to all of them he will say, in the
verj’ words of Christ: Qui non colligit mecum dispergit "He that
gathereth not with me, scattered»” (a). He will say to all of them
that he who is not united to the Pope cannot hope to reap: he is
sowing the wind and will never harvest fruit, unless it be the
fruit of iniquity (b).
429a Cf. Above No. 428a.
430a Luke 11:23.
430b Voi diretc perd che puo darsi alcuna volta che aualche guida
non additi la buona via. E ciô pud accadere, perché essendo la
Chiesa cattolica cost sparsa in tutto Corbe occupando uno spazio
direi quasi immenso, pué darsi che vi sia qualcuno che abbia di-

244

RIGHTS OF PATRIARCHS

(The example of the saints.—Invitation to follow the Pope
with lively faith and to remain united to him so as Io form uan
impregnable fortress”. )
RIGHTS OF PATRIARCHS

Letter Responsum ad te, September 15, 1875, to the Chaldean
Patriarch.
(Invitation to obey the Holy See.—Errors of the Patriarch.Scandals which result.—Refutation of his arguments.)

431
It is in vain that you say in your letters that you recognize
(157, and venerate the primacy of the Roman Pontiff, if you do not
188) wholeheartedly share in his regard the belief so clearly expressed
and confirmed by the Vatican Council. To hold that the primacy
of jurisdiction is of divine institution and at the same time to
oppose to it the pretended patriarchal ‘rights’, founded on an
ecclesiastical institution, which the Roman Pontiff could not act
contrary' to by reason of the times, places, and circumstances,—
this certainly is not Catholic.
Furthermore, it is certainly unworthy of a bishop to insist
upon rights and privileges which would tend to remove these
same prerogatives from the control and from the full, supreme,
and legitimate authority of St. Peter and his successors.
(Precedents recalled.—Threat of censure.)

AUXILIARIES OF THE CLERGY
Letter Exortæ in ista, April 29, 1876, to the Bishops of Brazil.
(Masonic penetration of Catholic associations.—Tendentious
interpretation of Pontifical condemnations.—Major excommunica­
tion is incurred by all Freemasons. )
menticato la verità, e avendola dimenticata non pud insegnarla
ad altri. In questo caso e sempre avete la Santa Sede, avete il
Pastore supremo, il quale richiamerà l'errante e dira al scdicente
vecchio-cattolico, e al cattolico claudicante, e a quelle chc vuol
sottomettere i diritti inalienabili della religione aile esigenze della
politica mondana, e a quelle chc non essendo pretto razionalista
ricusa cià non ostantc a sottomettersi alPautorità, dirà colle parole
di Cesù Cristo: Qui non collogit mecum, dispergit. Dirà a tutti
che, chi non è unito col Papa, non raccoglie. ma getta il seme al
vento e non otterrà moi frutto, e comparendo il frutto sarà frutto
d'iniquità.

INCONSISTENCY

245

After having treated these matters, We arc likewise con- 432
strained to deplore the culpable abuse of power on the part of (197,
the presidents of these organizations, who, We are told, subject 203,
everything to their whim, attribute to themselves undue power 211
over sacred persons anil objects, or boldly insist on the right to 214,
direct spiritual matters, to such a point as almost to make eccle- 217)
siastics and pastors dependent upon them for the accomplishment
of the duties of their ministry. This is absolutely contrary not only
to ecclesiastical law but also to the very order established by
Christ within his Church. In fact, laymen have not been appointed
directors in ecclesiastical matters by Christ. For their participation
(in them) as well as for their salvation they are subject to their
legitimate pastors. It is their duty—each one according to his
station—to become the assistants of the clergy, but not to interfere
in matters which have been entrusted to the sacred ministr}' by
Christ (a).
(Reform of the statutes of the associations so as to preserve
them from similar infiltrations.)
INCONSISTENCY

Encycl. Çuæ in patriarchatu, September 1, 1876, to the
Clergy and faithful of the Chaldean rite.
(History of the recent Chaldean Schism.—The Constitution
Cum ecclesiastica.—Though professing his submission, the
Patriarch refuses to obey.)

What good is it to proclaim aloud the dogma of the suprem- 433
acy of St. Peter and his successors? What good is it to repeat over (152,
and over declarations of faith in the Catholic Church and of 153,
obedience to the Apostolic See when actions give the lie to these 190)
fine words? Moreover, is not rebellion rendered all the more in­
excusable by the fact that obedience is recognized as a duty?
Again, does not the authority of the Holy See extend, as a sanction,
to the measures which We have been obliged to take, or is it
432a In the Letter Tuæ Litteræ (December 1, 1875) addressed to
the Bishop of Ghent, the Pope had stated: “It is Our hope that
in all things which concern the common good of the Catholic
religion the faithful will be ruled by the counsel and the direction
of their bishops, and that they will never waver in their role of
most faithful interpreters and defenders of the teaching and
salutary prescriptions emanating from this Apostolic See.”

246

THE WHEAT AND THE COCKLE

enough to be in communion of faith with this See without aciding
the submission of obedience,—a thing which cannot be maintained
without damaging the Catholic faith?
(Longanimity of the Holy Father—Contumacy of the
Patriarch. )
434
Consequently, you ought not, you cannot obey him in any(152- thing which he may prescribe which is contrary to Our decrees
153, and to those of this same Apostolic See. Do not allow yourselves
190) to be deceived by lying reports and calumnious statements which
are the spawn of hatred, as if it were a question of rite or of
nationality, as they try to pretend. In fact, Venerable Brothers and
beloved Sons, it is a question of recognizing the power (of this
See), even over your churches, not merely in what pertains to
faith, but also in what concerns discipline. He who would deny
this is a heretic; he who recognizes this and obstinately refuses
to obey is worthy of anathema. Therefore, let those who have
gone astray from the right path under the impression that things
were otherwise, hasten to repent; let all, if they entertain a sincere
charity for their patriarch (as they should), make every effort to
bring him back to the right path, either by petition, or by ex­
hortation, or by prayers to God, each one as the Lord shall
inspire him.
(A delay of forty days is granted to the Patriarch.—Threat
of immediate sentence if he does not submit.—Exhortation.)

THE WHEAT AND THE COCKLE
All. to pilgrims from Savoy, September 15, 1876.
( Necessity of carrying the cross. )

435
(9,
126130,
228)

However, it is always true that the Church is made up of
men, and it is true that often “de humano puloere sordescunt”;
and although one of the Church’s marks is holiness because she
is holy in her Founder, holy in her teaching, holy in the sanctity
of a great many of her members, nonetheless she has also within
her bosom many members who are not holy, who afflict and
persecute and misjudge her. Then God sends his scourges to
bring the wanderers back to the right path. For nineteen centuries
such has always been the order of divine Providence.
(Persecutions of the Church.—Pray Io Our Lady and defend
the Church.—Blessing.)

INSUFFICIENT MOTIVES FOR ADHESION
Letter to a German Bishop, November 6, 1876.
(Congratulations on having given salutary learnings.)

What is more painful to Us is the rumor which has reached 436
Our ears on the subject of some of the German clergy who, after (170,
deferring for a long time to give any sign of their adhesion to 193)
the dogmatic definition of the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican
on the infallible teaching authority of the Roman Pontificate,
have finally made profession of their adhesion, but declare at the
same time either that they have come to this decision because
they have seen that those of the German bishops who defended
the contrary position in the Council accept the definition, or that
they admit the truth of the dogma defined but do not admit its
opportuneness. Now since the definitions of General Councils
are infallible by the fact that they proceed from the inspiration of
the Holy Spirit who assists the Church according to the promise
of Jesus Christ, they cannot fail to teach the truth; but truth de­
rives neither its force nor its character from the assent of men.
More than this, since it proceeds from God, it requires a full and
entire adhesion, and this is not dependent on any condition.
Certainly, up to the present time, no heresy could have been
proscribed in an effective manner if the faithful had been allowed
to wait for the assent of those opposed to the definition and
condemned by it, before submitting on their part to the definition
of truth. This teaching, which holds for the definitions of
Ecumenical Councils and for the definitions of Sovereign Pontiffs,
was clearly formulated by the Vatican Council when it
taught, in terminating the definition, that "the definitions of
the Roman Pontiffs are irreformable in themselves, and not in
virtue of the consent of the Church” (a).
Opportuneness
But it is still more absurd to accept the definition and at the 437
same time to persist in holding that it is inopportune. Certainly(109,
the vicissitudes of our time, the errors—as numerous as all those 111,
of the past put together—and the new errors which hell daily 169,
engenders for the ruin of the Church: freedom stripped from 171.
the Vicar of Jesus Christ, liberty taken from bishops, not only for 178.
436a Session /V. 4 in fine. Cf. above No. 371.

i

248

BALANCE SHEET OF A PONTIFICATE

193) assembly but even for teaching,—these bear witness how timely
is the disposition of Divine Providence which has permitted the
definition of papal infallibility at the moment when, in the midst
of so many difficulties, the rule of faith and conduct seemed on
the point of being deprived of all support.
But putting all this to one side, if the definitions of Ecumen­
ical Councils are infallible by reason of the fact that they flow
from the wisdom and counsel of the Holy Spirit, surely nothing is
more absurd than to hold that the Holy Spirit really teaches the
truth, but that He can at the same time teach it inopportunely.

438
If, therefore, any of these priests are to be found in your
(109)diocese, give them serious warning that they are in no sense al­
lowed to impose these limitations on their adhesion, or to make it
depend conditionally on the action—however praiseworthy it may
be—of one or another of the bishops, rather than on the authority
of the Church, and that it is absolutely necessary for them to
adopt the definition with a full and entire consent of the intelli­
gence and will, if they wish not to deviate from the truth.
( Blessing. )
BALANCE SHEET OF /X PONTIFICATE

Letter Didicimus, non sine dolore, January 21, 1878, to the
President of the Italian Catholic Youth Council.
439
It is not without grief, dearly beloved son, that We have
(177,learned that some of those who until now have been one with
228) you in the obedience with which they have observed the counsels
of the Holy See, have been deceived by the inventions of the
“Conciliators”, and have preferred the opinion of men to Our
judgment, and have gone over to their side. Certainly, if all had
been one with Us, if all thought and spoke in the same way as
this Chair of truth, the Church woidd have suffered much less
harm. But from the very beginnings of the Church, Paul was
constrained to exhort the Corinthians to avoid division among
themselves, to be perfect in the same mind and the same judg­
ment (a), for he had learned of their discord. Divine Providence
permits this so that it may appear all the more clearly that the
Church established by God cannot be destroyed by violence from
439a Cf. 1 Cor. 1:10.

■

• I

-j'.

BALANCE SHEET OF A PONTIFICATE

249

without or by discord from within. And all history has shown very
well that the ills she suffers have no other result than a more
striking manifestation of the truth, a firmer and more effective
faith on the part of those who have held to the truth, a more
docile and more zealous union with this Chair of truth We
congratulate you, therefore, on the fact that although you suffer,
doubtless, at the defection of your brothers, separated from you
by the breath of perfidious teaching, you are not troubled for all
that, and are even being stimulated by their error to receive with
greater willingness and to follow with more zeal not only the
orders, but even all the directives of the Apostolic See; and by
so doing you are certain that you cannot be deceived or betrayed.
(Joy in this fidelity.—Blessing.)

V

(£061-82,81 )
ΙΙΙΧ ΟΉΊ

THE CHURCH’S CIVILIZING MISSION

Encycl. Inscrutabili Dei consilio, April 21, 1878.
(On his elevation to the Pontifical office, the Holy Father
is struck by the sight of the evils which afflict contemporary
society. )
Now We are convinced that the principal source of these 440
evils is the contempt and rejection of the holy and august authority (83,
of the Church, which presides in the name of God over the human 94,
race, and which is the support and maintenance of all legitimate 120,
authority. The foes of public order are perfectly well aware of 137,
the fact. They consequently conclude that nothing could aid more 149,
in overturning the foundations of society than to wage an incessant 165,
war on the Church of God; to render her odious and hateful by 179,
scandalous calumnies, representing her as the enemy of true 231 )
civilization. They labor to weaken her strength and authority by
continual attacks; and to destroy the supreme power of the
Roman Pontiff, who is here below the protector and interpreter
of the eternal and immutable principles of right and justice.
In accordance with this belief We find, unhappily, laws
which are subversive of the divine constitution of the Catholic
Church promulgated in the greater number of states. Such is the
reason for the contempt of the episcopal authority and the dif­
ficulties thrown in the way of the exercise of the ecclesiastical
ministry, the dispersion of the religious orders and the confiscation
and public sale of the property which served to support the
servants ot the Church and feed the poor. From this cause arise
the measures leading to the removal of public institutions devoted
to charity and beneficence from the salutary direction of the
Church, as well as the unbridled freedom of teaching and publish­
ing all that is evil. On the other hand, the right of the Church to
instruct and bring up youth is violated and obstructed in every
possible manner. No other cause than this has led to the usurpa­
tion of the temporal Principality which divine Providence
accorded centuries ago to the Bishop of Rome, so that he might
exercise freely and without hindrance the power conferred on him
by Jesus Christ for the eternal salvation of the people.
(The Pope mentions these evils only to enkindle the zeal of
Bishops.—Civilization lacks foundation unless it is built on truth,
justice, and charity.)

254

441
(8084,
94,

106,
134)

ΠΙΕ CHURCH’S CIVILIZING MISSION

The fruits of the Gospel preaching
Now, who will dare deny it is the Church that by her preach­
ing of the Gospel among the nations has carried the light of truth
into the midst of populations once savage and imbued with shainelul superstitions, and it is she that has brought them back to the
knowledge of the divine Maker of all things, and to a respect
lor themselves? Who, indeed, will say it was not the Church that
by suppressing the calamity of slavery recalled man to the pristine
dignity of his noble nature? Did not the Church, by raising the
standard of Redemption in every part of the world, by drawing
to herself and shielding with her protection the arts and sciences,
by organizing those admirable institutions of charity which offer
a solace for every misery, and by establishing her foundations of
beneficence, civilize everywhere the human race in its private
and public sentiments, lift it out of degradation, and with all
care and solicitude, lead it along a way of life conformable to the
dignity and hopes of man? And now, if anyone possessed of com­
mon sense compares the age in which we live—an age so inimical
to religion and to the Church of Jesus Christ—with those happy
times in which the Church was honored as a Mother, he will
be convinced that our present period, overwhelmed with troubles
and ruin, is rushing directly and rapidly to its destruction. He will
further realize that former centuries were the more flourishing
in the excellence of their institutions, the tranquillity of human
life, and the richness and prosperity of their civilization, in
proportion as the people showed themselves more submissive to
the government of the Church and more observant of its laws.
Now, if the numerous benefits We have here recalled, owing
their origin to the ministry of the Church and to her salutary
influence, are really the results which human civilization should
produce and glory in. then it cannot be said that the Church of
Jesus Christ abhors civilization and repulses its advances. It is to
the Church, on the contrary, that the honor is wholly due of being
its nurse, its patroness, and its mother.
(The false civilization opposed to the Church.—Its false
principles: liberty of error and contempt of authority plunge the
nations into every type of misfortune.)

The works of the Roman Pontificate
442
If. on the other hand, we consider the achievements of the
(261-Holy See. what can be more iniquitous than to deny how well and

CELESTIAL BEACON

255

nobly the pontiffs have deserved of all civil society? Desirous 162)
of contributing to the welfare of the people, our predecessors
engaged in struggles of every description, underwent the severest
trials and never hesitated to expose themselves to the most ardu­
ous difficulties. With eyes fixed on heaven, they never bowed their
heads before the threats of the wicked, or debased themselves so
far as to be seduced from their duty by promises or flattery. It
was the Apostolic See which gathered up the remains of ancient
society that had been destroyed, and reunited them. That See was
also the friendly guiding light which illuminated the civilization
of Christian times, the anchor of safety in the midst of the most
terrible tempest that ever tossed about the human race, the holy
bond of concord which united far-distant nations of different
cultures, and, in fact, the common center where men sought ad­
vice and promises of peace no less than the doctrines of faith
and the instruction of religion. Still more, it has been the glory of
the Roman Pontiffs that they have constantly and unceasingly
opposed themselves as a wall and rampart against the relapse of
human society into the degradation of ancient superstition and
barbarism.
(Evils brought on nations by repudiation of the Church.—
The Holy See and Italy.—Appeal to the governments to rally to
the Church where they will find the principle of their strength —
Exhortation of the Bishops to unite the faithful to the Chair of
Peter; to restore marriage and the family.—Hope for the return of
better days. )

CELESTIAL BEACON

Letter Da grave sventura, August 27, 1878, to Cardinal Nina.
(Leo XIII names Cardinal Nina Secretary of State and lays
down his program.—The Encyclical Inscrutabili is recalled [a],
where are to be found exposed the decline in natural and super­
natural truth and the dangers in contemporary society.)
We have also pointed out the principal reason for so much 443
disaster: the practical apostasy of contemporary society and the (83)
attempt to separate from Christ and his Church, where, nonethe­
less, is the one source of strength sufficient to remedy these very
grave ills. In the dazzling light of facts We then showed how the
443a Cf. Above, Nos. 440-142.

256

THE MISSION OF CHRIST

Church, founded by Christ to bring about the renovation of the
world began, at her very first appearance on this earth, to make
the world feel the benefit of her supernatural strength; and how
in the darkest ages and in the most somber periods she was the
one beacon pointing to the sure way, the one certain refuge of
peace and salvation. Hence it was easy to conclude that, if in
the past the Church was able to bring such signal benefits to the
world, she could infallibly do so again today; that the Church,
as every Catholic professes, is always moved by the Spirit of
Christ who has promised her his never-failing assistance; that she
has been appointed the Mistress of truth and the Guardian of an
immaculate and holy law; and that, as such, she still possesses to­
day the necessary strength to oppose the intellectual and moral
corruption which contaminates society and to restore society to
health.
( The Holy Fathers desire to dispel the prejudices against the
Church.—The principles of her government.)

THE MISSION OF CHRIST
Encych Æterni Patris, August 4, 1879.
444
The only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, who came
(96, down to earth to bring to men salvation and the light of divine
99- wisdom, conferred a great and most marvelous blessing upon the
100, world, when, as He was about to ascend once more into heaven,
144, He commanded the Apostles to “go and teach all nations” (a),
155, and left as the common and supreme teacher of all men the
166, Church which He had founded. For men whom the truth had set
192) free were to be preserved by the truth, and the fruit of heavenly
teaching which had been for the human race the fruit of salvation
would not long have remained if Christ our Lord had not
established a perpetual teaching authority to train the minds of
men. Supported by the promises, imitating the charity of her
Divine Founder, the Church has faithfully carried out the man­
date she received, never losing sight of, ever pursuing with all
her energy the one end: to teach religion, to combat error with­
out respite. To this end all the labors and vigilance of the entire
episcopate are directed; to this end the laws and decrees of the
Councils tend; still more is it the object of the daily solicitude of
444a Cf. Matt. 28:19.

THE UNION OE CHRIS ! AND THE CHURCH

257

the Roman Pontiffs, who. as successors to the primacy of Blessed
Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, have the right and the duty
to teach their brethren and conliim them in the faith.
( The teaching of human sciences must be given in conformity
with the good of the faith.—Error, the source of evil.—Philosophy
and theology.—Philosophy and faith.—Scholastic philosophy.—
St. Thomas Aquinas, Prince of Philosophers.—Philosophy parts
company with faith in the ÏGth century—The consequences.—
Necessary return to Thomism.—Exhortation to the Bishops.)
THE UNION OF CHRIST AND THE CHURCH

Encycl. Arcanum divinæ Sapientiae, February 10, 1880.
(The divine plan.—The mission of Christ—Its benefits.)
In order that these unparalleled benefits might last as long 445
as men should be found on earth, He entrusted to his Church (75,
the continuance of his work. Looking to future times, He com- 83)
manded her to set in order whatever might have become deranged
in human society’, and to restore whatever might have fallen into
ruin (a).
(Institution of marriage by God.—Decadence of the institu­
tion among Hebrews and pagans.—Its restoration by Christ.)

Next, the dignity of the sacrament must be considered, for 446
through addition of the sacrament the marriages of Christians (121)
have become far the noblest of all matrimonial unions. But to
decree and ordain concerning the sacrament is, by the will of
Christ Himself, so much a part of the power and duty of the
Church, that it is plainly absurd to maintain that even the very'
smallest fraction of such power has been transferred to the civil
ruler.
(The Church has constantly exercised her legislative and
judicial power over marriage.)
Marriage, moreover, is a sacrament, because it is a holy sign 447
which gives grace, showing forth an image of the mystical (65)
nuptials of Christ with the Church.

445a Quo vero tam singularia beneficia, quamdiu essent homines,
tamdiu in terris permanerent, Ecclesiam constituit vicariam mu­
neris sui, eamque jussit. in futurum prospiciens, si quid esset in
hominum societate perturbatum, ordinare; si quid collapsum,
restituere.

258

NUNCIOS AND LEGATES

(Naturalistic errors on the subject of marriage.—Good fruits
of Christian marriage; eoil results of cioil marriage— Divorce.Assistance given to the State by the Church on the subject of
marriage. )

448
Yet, no one doubts that Jesus Christ, the Founder of the
(14, Church, willed her sacred power to be distinct from the civil
91- power, and each power to be free and unshackled in its own
94) sphere: with this condition, however,—a condition good alike for
both, and of advantage to all men—that union and concord should
be maintained between them; and that in such questions as are,
though in different ways, of common right and authority, the
power to which secular matters have been entrusted should hap­
pily and becomingly depend on the other power which has in its
charge the interests of heaven (a).
In such arrangement and harmony is found not only the best
line of action for each power, but also the most opportune and
efficacious method of helping men in all that pertains to their
life here and to their hope of salvation hereafter.
(Advantages of harmony between the two powers [b].—
Christian teaching on marriage.)
NUNCIOS AND LEGATES
All. to the Consistory, August 20, 1880.
(The school question in Belgium.)

449
The Sovereign Pontiff has the right and the power to send
U56)Nuncios and Legates to distant countries which profess the
Catholic religion and to their rulers: therefore, We protest against
those who are guilty of violating this right; and this with all the
more reason because in the case of the Roman Pontiff this right
has a foundation much more awe-inspiring since it flows from the
very extensive primacy which he enjoys, by God’s will, in the uni448a Nemo autem dubitat, quin Ecclesiae conditor Jesus Christus
potestatem sacram voluerit esse a civili distinctam, et ad suas
utramque res agendas liberam atque expeditam; hoc tamen ad­
juncto, quod utrique expedit, et quod interest omnium hominum,
ut conjunctio inter eas et concordia intercederet, in iisque rebus
quæ sint, diversa licet ratione, communis juris et judicii, altera,
cui sunt humana tradita opportune et congruenter ab altera pen­
deret, cui sunt caelestia concredita.
448b Cf. CHURCH AND STATE.

THE HOLY CHY

259

versai Church. Pope Pius VI of glorious memory has declared this
in the following terms: "The Roman Pontiff has the right to be
represented, above all in distant countries, by men who exercise
his jurisdiction and his authority in virtue of a permanent delega­
tion, and who discharge their functions in his name: and this in
virtue of the very nature and the essential properties of his pri­
macy, by the rights and privileges bound to this primacy, by the
constant practice of the Church through the centuries” (a),
(Praise deserved hy the faithful for their obedience to the
Holy See’s directives.)
OBEDIENCE TO BISHOPS

Letter Obsequentissimae, March 19, 1881, to the Spanish
"Catholic Union”.
(Congratulations on the foundation of this association.)
In fact it is the order established by God in the Church that
the Bishops lay down the rules and lead the way by their teaching
and example, while the faithful make it their duty to follow their
pastors, to receive their directives with docility of heart, and to
support them like zealous sons with liberal and precious assistance.
(Good wishes.—Blessing.)

450
(200,
202,
214,
217)

THE HOLY CITY

Homily to pilgrims assisting at the canonization ceremonies
of several Saints, December 8, 1881.
(Eulogy of the canonized saints.)
But since the dignity and excellence of the sons show the
dignity of the Mother, what incomparable glory is due to the
Spouse of Christ who has borne such children in her womb, who
formed and instructed such disciples with her heavenly teaching!
Their glory is such in fact that it floods the Church with a great
light which shines before the eyes and in the minds of men, even
in spite of themselves. The brilliance of the virtues and the works
which made them famous confirms the truth and the divine origin
of the Church, and at the same time bears witness once again to
the fact that she is that holy city placed on a mountain-top which
cannot be hid, and that within her borders are to be found the
449a Resp. super Nunt. Apost., c. VIII, s 3, No. 24.

451
(72,
77,
128)

260

DIGNITY OF THE EPISCOPATE

true faith, the true forgiveness of sin, the true hope, and the sure
means of salvation. {Their intercession—Imitate them.—Prayer.)
THE IMMACULATE SPOUSE

Decretal Hortus conclusus, December 15, 1881, Canonization
of St. Clare of Montefalcone.
452
"She is a garden enclosed, my sister, my spouse, a garden en(63, closed, a fountain sealed” (a). These words of Holy Scripture are
77, applied, according to the Fathers, to the Catholic Church, the im126) maculate spouse of Christ: they distinguish her from infidel or
heretic sects, so that men will know whom to follow and whom to
avoid in their search for eternal life.
(Virtues of the Saint .—Canonization.)
DIGNITY OF THE EPISCOPATE

I

EncycL Cum multa sint, December 8, 1882, to the Spanish
Episcopate.
(Divisions on the subject of the relationship between religion
and politics. )

453
The foundation of the concord We have spoken of is the
(44) same in the Church as it is in every well-ordered society: it is
obedience to legitimate authority which, by its orders, by its pro­
hibitions, by its direction, procures peace and harmony in a
variety of minds. To this end, We intend to recall some things
which are very well known; We recall them, nonetheless, so that
they will become the object not only of the mind’s reflection, but
of practice and daily usage, and, as it were, the rule of duty.

454
Therefore, just as the Roman Pontiff is the master and head
(186, of the entire Church, so the Bishops are the guides and heads of
190, the Churches which they have received to govern canonically. It
195- is to them that belongs, each one in his own jurisdiction, the right
196, to preside, to ordain, to correct, and, generally, to decide on mat201) ters which seem to bear on the Church. In fact, the Bishops are
participants in the sacred power which Our Lord Jesus Christ
left to his Church after having received it from his Father. That
is why Our predecessor Gregory IX could say, "We do not doubt
that those who are called to a share in Our solicitude hold the
452a Canticle 4:12.

OBEY THE BISHOPS

261

place of God" (a). Moreover, this power of the Bishops has been
given them for the greater good of those over whom they exercise
it. For, by its very nature, it is ordered to the edification of the
Body of Christ, and its effect is to make each Bishop the bond, as
it were, which unites among themselves and with the Sovereign
Pontiff by the communion of faith and charity, the Christians of
whom he is the head, just as head and members of a body are
united.
On this subject, these are the grave words of St. Cyprian: 455
"The people united to the priest and the flock cleaving to the(138,
shepherd, this is the Church" (a), and this other statement, of 203,
even greater import: “You must know that the Bishop is in the 224)
Church and the Church in the Bishop, so that if a man be not
with the Bishop, he is not in the Church" (b). Such is the con­
stitution of the Church; it is immutable and everlasting. And if
it is not guarded with holy zeal, there necessarily follows a pro­
found disturbance of rights and duties because of the separation
of members which were conveniently united in the body of the
Church, “which, compacted and close knit by joints and bands ...
groweth unto the increase of God” (c). Whence it appears that
Bishops should receive the respect commensurate with the ex­
cellence of their office and they must be obeyed absolutely in
matters which fall under their competence.
(Exhortation to obedience.—Catholic associations.—The Press.
—Union with the Holy See.—Prayer.)

OBEY THE BISHOPS
Encycl. Nobilissima Gallorum gens, February 8, 1884, to the
French Bishops.
(Union of France and the Church in the past.—The rise of
laicism.—The Church and schools.—Church and State—Persecu­
tion of religious.—Duties of Bishops.)
Let the authority of the Bishops be sacred to the priests, and 456
let priests understand well that the sacerdotal ministry, if it be (185,
not exercised under the direction of the Bishops, will be neither 208,
holy, nor wholly useful, nor respected. Consequently, the elite 217)
among the laity who love the Church, our common Mother, and
454a Epist. 198, Book XIII.
455b Ibid

455a Epist. 69 ad Pupianum.
455c Col. 2:19.

262

TUE TEACHING MINISTRY

who, by their words and writings, can bring a useful support to
the rights of the Catholic religion, must multiply their labors for
her defense.
(Necessary unity of action.—Duty of Catholic writers.)
457
Let their rule of conduct be to submit themselves with filial
(203) piety to the Bishops whom the Holy Spirit has established to rule
the Church of Cod; let them respect their authority, let them
undertake nothing without their leave, for in combats in defense
of religion, it is the leaders who must be followed.
( Exhortation. )

THE TEACHING MINISTRY

Letter In mezzo, November 4, 1884, to the Nuncio in Paris.
(Divisions among Catholics in France.—Responsibility of
journalists.—Exhortation to union with the Holy See.)
458
On its side the Holy See, faithful to the mission it has
(165, received to teach all men and to preserve the faithful from error,
177, follows with attentive and vigilant eye all that happens within the
197, Catholic fold, and, when it is judged necessary and opportune, it
215) will not fail in the future—any more than it has ever failed in the
past—to give appropriate light and direction by its teaching. It is
to the Holy See first of all—and also, in dependence upon it, to
the other pastors established by the Holy Spirit to rule the Church
of God—that belongs by right the teaching ministry. The part of
the faithful not in orders is here restricted to a single duty: to
accept the teaching given them, to conform their conduct to it,
and to second the intentions of the Church.
(Duties of the press.)

SHEPHERDS AND FLOCKS
Letter Epistola tua, June 17, 1885. to Cardinal Guibert, Arch­
bishop of Paris.
(Necessity of peace among Catholics' and of obedience to
authority.—Trouble caused by tin article divulging a letter of
Cardinal Pitra.)

459
By certain indications it is not difficult to conclude that
>1.36. among Catholics—doubtless as a result of current evils—there are
153) some who. far from satisfied with the condition of ’subject* which
is theirs in the Church, think themselves able to take some part

SHEPHERDS AND FLOCKS

263

in her government, or al least, think they are allowed to examine
and judge after their own fashion the acts of authority. A mis­
placed opinion, certainly. If it were to prevail, it would do very
grave harm to the Church of Cod, in which, by the manifest will
of her Divine Founder, there are to be distinguished in the most
absolute fashion two parties: the teaching and the taught, the
Shepherd and the flock, among whom there is one who is the
head and the Supreme Shepherd of all.
Necessary subordination

To the shepherds alone was given ail power to teach, to 460
judge, to direct; on the faithful was imposed the duty of follow- (85,
ing their teaching, of submitting with docility to their judgment, 181,
and of allowing themselves to be governed, corrected, and guided 190,
by them in the way of salvation. Thus, it is an absolute necessity 203,
for the simple faithful to submit in mind and heart to their own 214pastors, and for the latter to submit with them to the Head and 215)
Supreme Pastor. In this subordination and dependence lie the
order and life of the Church; in it is to be found the indispensable
condition of well-being and good government. On the contrary, if
it should happen that those who have no right to do so should
attribute authority to themselves, if they presume to become
judges and teachers, if inferiors in the government of the universal
Church attempt or try to exert an influence different from that
of the supreme authority’, there follows a reversal of the true
order, many minds are thrown into confusion, and souls leave
the right path.
And to fail in this most holy duty' it is not necessary to per- 461
form an action in open opposition whether to the Bishops or to (203)
the Head of the Church; it is enough for this opposition to be
operating indirectly, all the more dangerous because it is the more
hidden. Thus, a sold fails in this sacred duty when, at the same
time that a jealous zeal for the power and the prerogatives of the
Sovereign Pontiff is displayed, the Bishops united to him are not
given their due respect, or sufficient account is not taken of their
authority, or their actions and intentions are interpreted in a
captious manner, without waiting for the judgment of the
Apostolic See (a).
•161a Qu« in re violatur officium non solum abjiciendo palam apertoque obedient iam episcopis summoque Ecclesia? Principi debi­
tam, sed etiam resistendo per obliquum perque ambages tanto

264

SHEPHERDS AND FLOCKS

462
Similarly, it is to give proof of a submission which is far
(172, from sincere to set up some kind of opposition between one
182) Pontiff and another. Those who, faced with two differing
directives, reject the present one to hold to the past, are not giving
proof of obedience to the authority which has the right and duty
to guide them; and in some ways they resemble those who, on
receiving a condemnation, would wish to appeal to a future
Council, or to a Pope who is better informed (a).

The shepherds, the sole judges of their decisions

463
On this point what must be remembered is that in the govern(154, ment of the Church, except for the essential duties imposed on all
177, Pontiffs bv their apostolic office, each of them can adopt the attitude which he judges best according to times and circumstances.
Of this he alone is the judge (a). It is true that for this he has not
special lights , but still more the knowledge of the needs and
conditions of the whole of Christendom, for which, it is fitting,
his apostolic care must provide. He has the charge of the univer­
sal welfare of the Church, to which is subordinate any particular
need, and all others who are subject to this order must second
the action of the supreme director and serve the end which he
has in view. Since the Church is one and her head is one, so, too,
her government is one, and all must conform to this.
periculosiores, quanto magis simulatione tectas. In eodem genere
paccant, qui potestati juribusque favent Pontificis romani, epis­
copos tamen cum eo conjunctos non verentur, eorumque vel
auctoritatem minoris faciunt, quam par est, vel acta et consilia,
præoccupato Sedis Apostolicx judicio, in deteriorem partem in­
terpretantur.
462a Similiter animi est minus sincere in obsequio permanentis,
alterum pontificem cum altero committere. Ex diversis duabus
agendi rationibus, qui présentent despiciunt ut præteritx assentiantur, ii parum se obnoxios potestati impertiunt, cujus imperio
ipsos regi jus et officium est: iidemque aliquam habent cum iis
similitudinem, qui, sua caussa damnata, ad futurum Concilium
vellent, vel ad Pontificem, cui melius de caussa liqueat, provocare.
463a Quam ad rem hoc fixum persuasumque sit, in Ecclesia: gu­
bernatione, salvis officiis maximis, quibus Pontifices omnes apostolicum munus adstringit, unicuique eorum integrum esse eam
rationem sequi, quæ, spectatis temporalibus ccterisque rerum ad­
junctis optima videatur. Idque ad solius Pontificis judicium
pertinet.

THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH

265

Consequences of insubordination
When these principles are forgotten there is noticed among 464
Catholics a diminuation of respect, of veneration, and of confi-(7#/)
dence in the one given them for guide; then there is a loosening
of that bond of love and submission which ought to bind all the
faithful to their pastors, the faithful and the pastors to the
Supreme Pastor, the bond in which is principally to be found
security and common salvation.
In the same way, by forgetting or neglecting these principles, 465
the door is opened wide to divisions and dissensions among Cath- (52,
olics, to the grave detriment of union which is the distinctive 56)
mark of the faithful of Christ, and which, in every age, but
particularly today by reason of the combined forces of the enemy,
should be of supreme and universal interest, in favor of which
ever}' feeling of personal preference or individual advantage
ought to be laid aside.
(Role and duty of journalists.—Congratulations to Cardinal
Guibert. )

THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH
Encycl. Immortale Dei, November 1, 1885.
(Nature of civil society—Divine origin of political power.—
Duties of rulers and subjects.—Public cult due to God from
society.—Character of true religion.)

The only true religion is the one established by Jesus Christ
Himself, which He committed to his Church to protect and to
propagate.
For the only-begotten Son of Cod established on earth a
society which is called the Church. To it He handed over the
exalted and divine office which He had received from his
Father to be continued through the ages to come. “As the Father
hath sent me, I also send you" (a). “Behold I am with you, all
days, even to the consummation of the world" (b). Consequently,
as Jesus Christ came into the world that men "might have life and
have it more abundantly” (c), so also the Church has for her aim
and end the eternal salvation of souls. Wherefore she is so en466a John 20:21.
466b Matt. 28:20.
466c John 10:10.

466
(16,
75,
77,
131)

266

THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH

(lowed as to open wide her arms to all mankind, unhampered by
any limit of either time or place. "Preach ye the gospel to every'
creature" (d).

Over this mighty multitude God Himself has set rulers with
(137, power to govern; and He has willed that one should be the head
165) of all, the chief and unerring teacher of truth to whom He has
given the keys of the kingdom of heaven. “I will give to thee the
keys of the kingdom of heaven" (a); “Feed my lambs ... feed my
sheep"(b); “1 have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not" (e).
467

The Church is a perfect society
This society is made up of men, just as civil society itself is
468
(3, constituted. And yet it is supernatural and spiritual, on account
of the end for which it was founded, and because of the means
9,
12, by which it aims to attain that end. Hence it is distinguished from
13, civil society and differs from it. And what is of the highest
79) moment, it is a society chartered as of right divine, perfect in its
nature and in its title, possessing in itself and by itself, through
the will and loving kindness of its Founder, all needfid provision
for its maintenance and action. And just as the end at which the
Church aims is by far the noblest of ends, so its authority is the
most exalted of all authority. Nor can it be looked upon as inferior
to the civil power, or in any manner dependent upon it.
In very truth Jesus Christ gave to His Apostles unrestrained
469
(77, authority in things sacred, together with the genuine and most
79, true power of legislation, as also the twofold right of judging and
91, of punishing, which flow from that power. "All power is given
92, to me in heaven and in earth: going therefore teach ye all
120) nations ... teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have
commanded you” (a). And in another place, “If he will not hear
them, tell the Church” (b). And again, “In readiness to revenge
all disobedience" (c). And once more, “That ... I may not deal
more severely according to the power which the Lord hath given
me, unto edification and not unto destruction" (d). Hence the
Church, and not the State, is to be man’s guide to heaven. To the
Church has God assigned the charge of seeing to and legislating
for all that concerns religion; of teaching all nations; of spreading
466d Mark 16:15.
467c Luke 22:32.
469c 2 Cor. 10:6

467a Matt 16:19. 467b John 21:16-17.
469a Matt. 28:18-20.
469b Ibid., 18:17.
469d Ibid., 13:10.

THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH

267

the Christian faith as widely as possible; in short, of administering
freely and without hindrance, in accordance with her own judg­
ment, all matters that fall within her competence.
Now, this authority, perfect in itself, and plainly meant to be 470
unfettered, though long assailed by a philosophy that truckles (13to the State, the Church has never ceased to claim for herself, and 14,
openly to exercise. The Apostles themselves were the first to up- 179)
hold it. Forbidden by the rulers of the synagogue to preach the
Gospel, they courageously answered, “We ought to obey God
rather than men" (a). This same authority the holy Fathers of the
Church were always careful to maintain by convincing argu­
ments, as occasion arose, and the Roman Pontiffs have never
shrunk from defending it with unbending constancy. Nay, more,
princes and all invested with power to rule have approved it, both
in theory and practice. Obviously, in the making of treaties, in the
transaction of business matters, in the sending and receiving of
ambassadors, and in the interchange of other kinds of official
dealings, they have been wont to treat with the Church as with
a supreme and legitimate power. And surely we must all maintain
that by a singular disposition of God’s providence, this power
of the Church was provided with a civil sovereignty as the surest
safeguard of her independence.

The two powers
The Almighty, therefore, has divided the government of the
human race between two powers, the ecclesiastical and the civil,
the one being set over the divine, and the other over human
things. Each in its kind is supreme, each has fixed limits within
which it is contained, limits which are defined by the nature and
special object of the province of each, so that there is, we may
say, an orbit traced out within which the action of each is brought
into play by its own native right.
(Necessary relations between the two societies, in mixed
matters.) (a)
The nature and scope of that connection can be determined
only, as We have laid down, by having regard to the nature of
each power, and by taking into account the relative excellence
and nobility of their purpose. One of the two has for its proximate
and chief object the well-being of this mortal life; the other the
470a Acts 5:29.

471a Of. CHURCH AND STATE.

471
(1415.
79)

472
(14,
79,
94)

268

SUPERNATURAL SOCIETY

everlasting joys of heaven. Whatever, therefore, in things human
is of a sacred character, whatever belongs either of its own
nature or by reason of the end to which it is referred, to the
salvation of souls, or to the worship of God, is subject to the
power and judgment of the Church. Whatever is to be ranged
under the civil and political order is rightly subject to the civil
authority. Jesus Christ has Himself given command that what is
Caesar’s is to be rendered to Caesar, and that what belongs to
God is to be rendered to God ( a ).
There are nevertheless, occasions when another method of
concord is available, for the sake of peace and liberty. We mean
when rulers of States and the Roman Pontiff come to an under­
standing touching some special matter. At such times the
Church gives signal proof of her motherly love by showing the
greatest possible kindliness and indulgence (b).
{The Christian constitution of States.—The "new law”.—The
duties of Catholics.)

SUPERNATURAL SOCIETY
Encycl. Jampridein, January 6, 1S86, to the Prussian Episco­
pate.
(The persecution in Germany.—The Pope’s intervention.)
473
For your part. Venerable Brothers, you are not ignorant of
(2, the true nature of the Church, of the constitution her Divine
13, Founder gave her, what rights flow from it, and that no one
77, can destroy it or even lessen its value. In fact, as We have lately
91- shown in Our encyclical letter Immortale Dei (a), the Church
92, is a supernatural society and perfect in her own order. Since it
95, is her end to guide the faithful to eternal blessedness, she has
140, received from God the means and the resources necessary to put
144, the faithful in possession of eternal goods; she begins here on
188, earth and in the struggles of this life an edifice which will
195, receive its final crown and ultimate splendor only in heaven. But
201) it belongs to the Church alone to regulate what belongs to her
interior life, whose nature has been determined by Our Lord
472a CI. Matt. 22:21.
472b The portions of this encyclical herein omitted may be found
in PEACE WITHIN THE NATION, Nos. 138 ff.
473a Above, Nos. 466, ff.

TEMPORAL POWER

269

Jesus Christ, the architect of our salvation. This free and in­
dependent power Christ has ordained shall belong to Peter alone
and to his successors, and, under the authority and the magis­
terium of Peter, to the bishops of their respective Churches;
within this power of the bishops is comprised naturally and in
the first place the discipline of the clergy, both for what concerns
the sacred ministry and what concerns the conduct of priests:
"for the priests are attached to the bishop as strings to a lyre” (b).
{Who is responsible for the formation of the clergy.—The
role of the seminaries.—The social question.—The colonial ques­
tion. )
We would wish to draw your attention, Venerable Brothers, 474
to the fact that the trials you suffer are not in any sense the (149,
special misfortunes of individual dioceses; they enter rather into 161,
the order of the interests of the universal Church; the concern for 165)
watching over it, as you know, has been entrusted to the
Apostolic See in which resides the supreme power to govern
the Church, her sovereign magisterium, and the center of
Catholic unity.
{Exhortation and blessing.)
TEMPORAL POWER

Letter Quant unque Le siano, June 15, 1887, to Cardinal
Rampolla.
{The present government of the Holy See.—The forms re­
quired today in different countries—In Italy: the question pend­
ing: the spoliation of the Papal States.)
For in the present state of things it is evident that We are 475
more in the power of others—on whose will depends the modifi- (179)
cation, when and how they please, according to the changes in
men and circumstances, of the very conditions of Our existence—
than We are in Our own: Verius in aliena potestate sumus quam
Nostra, as We have repeated more than once. That is why We
have always in the course of Our pontificate, in keeping with
Our duty, laid claim to an effective sovereignty for the Roman
Pontiff, not through ambition, not with a view to earthly glory,
but as a real and effective guarantee of his independence and
liberty.
473b St. Ignatius, Ep. ad Ephes.. IV.

270

TEMPORAL POWER

The aim of temporal power

476
(12,
140,
142145,
149,
178)

In fact, the authority of the Supreme Pontificate, instituted
by Christ and conferred on St. Peter and by him on his legitimate
successors the Roman Pontiffs, is destined to continue in the
world to the end of time the redemptive mission of the Son of
God; it is enriched with the noblest prerogatives, endowed with
the most sublime powers, both proper and juridical, such as are
required for the government of a true and perfect society. This
authority cannot, by its very nature and by the express will of
its Divine Founder, be subject to any earthly power; it must
enjoy the most complete liberty in the exercise of its lofty
functions.
477
And since it is on this supreme power and on its free
(160, exercise that the well-being of the entire Church depends, it
179) is of the highest importance that her independence and her
native liberty be assured, guaranteed, anil defended through
the centuries in the person of him who is invested with it, by the
means which Divine Providence has recognized as fitting and
effective for this purpose.
Its history

478
Therefore, when the Church rose victorious from the long
(179) and fierce persecutions of the early centuries, which were, so
to speak, the manifest seal of her divinity, when what has been
called the era of her childhood had passed and the time came
for her to show herself in the full development of her life, a
special situation, which little by little because of providential
circumstances ended in the establishment of their civil principal­
ity, began for the Pontiffs of Rome. And this situation lasted
under a single form and with diverse extensions, through a series
of almost infinite vicissitudes and the long course of centuries
right down to our own time, rendering to Italy and to the whole
of Europe, even in the civil and political orders, the most signal
benefits: barbarians repulsed and civilized; despotism combatted
and destroyed; letters, arts, and sciences promoted; common
liberties ensured; enterprises against the Moslems—when these
were the most dreaded foes not only of the Christian religion
but of the civilization and peace of Europe—undertaken: these
are the glories of the Popes and of their States.
An institution rising from such legitimate and spontaneous
origins, which has in its favor the peaceful and uncontested

TEMPORAL POWER

271

possession of twelve centuries, which has contributed mightily
to the propagation of the. faith and of civilization, which has
so many titles to the gratitude of the nations, has a greater claim
than any other to be respected and maintained. It is not because
a series of violent and unjust acts has succeeded in suppressing
it that the designs of Providence for this institution can be
regarded as changed.

Even if we consider that the war waged against the temporal 479
power of the Popes was always the work of the enemies of the fl 79)
Church and of religion, and, in this last period, the chief work
of the sects who, in destroying the temporal power, wished to
prepare the way to assail and combat even the spiritual power
of the Pontiffs, this is in itself a clear confirmation of the fact
that even today, in the designs of Providence, the civil sovereignty
of the Popes is ordained as a means towards the regular exercise
of their apostolic power, as being that which effectively safe­
guards the liberty and independence of this apostolic power (a).
The vocation of Rome
What can be said in general with regard to the temporal 480
power of the Popes can be said with all the more reason and in (143a special manner with regard to Home. Its destiny is clearly to 144,
be read in its whole history: namely, in the counsels of Divine 179)
Providence all human events have been ordered to Christ and to
his Church, so that ancient Rome and her empire were established
for Christian Rome, and that it is not without a special dispensa­
tion that the Prince of the Apostles, St. Peter, directed his steps
towards this metropolis of the pagan world to become its Pastor
and to transmit to it in perpetuity the authority of the Supreme
Apostolate. It is in this way that the fate of Rome was linked.
479a “No juridical decision can ever confer true independence with­
out territorial jurisdiction”; Letter Lc insolite, October 8, 1895,
to Cardinal Rampolla, in which Leo XIII returns to the same
considerations, and adds: “If today, in spite of conditions which
are difficult and harsh the Papacy pursues its work surrounded by
the respect of the nations, let no one attribute this to the absence
of human succor, but rather to the very real assistance of heavenly
grace which is never lacking to the Supreme Pontificate. Would
it be possible to say that the marvelous progress witnessed in the
days of the infant Church was the work of imperial persecution?"
See also on this subject the allocutions of March 24. 1884; Janu­
ary 4, 1888; September 25, 1888; June 12. 1893; et al.

272

TEMPORAL POWER

in a sacred and indissoluble manner, to the fate of the Vicar of
Christ; and when, at the dawn of better times, Constantine the
Great resolved to move to the Orient the seat of the Roman
Empire, it can be allowed with some foundation in reality that
the hand of Providence guided him, so that the new destiny of
the Rome of the Popes could be the better realized. It is certain
that after this period, thanks to the circumstances of the times,
spontaneously, without offense to or opposition from anyone,
in the most legitimate fashion, the Pontiffs became the .masters
of the City even in political matters, and, as such, they have kept
it to this day.

481

It is not necessary to recall here the immense benefits and
(179) the glory' which the Pontiffs won for the City of their predilec­
tion, glories and benefits which are written, for that matter, in
ineffaceable characters on the monuments and in the history' of
the ages. It is superfluous also to recall that this Rome bears the
Pontifical character deeply graven in every part and that she
belongs to the Popes by titles so weighty and so numerous that
no prince has ever had the like to any city' whatever in his
kingdom.
482
Nevertheless, it is of the utmost importance to observe that
(161, the reason for pontifical independence and liberty in the exer179) cise of the apostolic ministry derives a greater and a very
special force when Rome is considered, the natural See of the
Sovereign Pontiffs, the center of the life of the Church, the
capital of the Catholic world. Here, the spot of the Pope’s
habitual residence, where he directs, administers, and commands
so that the faithful of the whole world may in all confidence
and security render him the homage, loyalty, and obedience
which in conscience they owe him; here, above all, it is necessary
for him to be placed in such a condition of independence that not
only his liberty will not be interfered with by anyone whomso­
ever, but that it shall be evident to all that it is not interfered with
(a): and this, not because of any passing condition which may
change with the change of passing events, but in a fashion that is
stable and lasting in nature. Here, more than anywhere else, the
unfolding of Catholic life, the solemnity of the liturgy, the public

482a . .. è necessario, che Egli sia posto in talc condizione (Tindipendenza, nella quale non solo non sia menomamente impedita da
chicchessia la sua liberté, ma sia pure évidente a tutti che non lo è.

DIVINE STRENGTH

273

respect for and observance of the laws of the Church, the peaceful
and legal existence of all Catholic institutions should be possible,
and that without fear of any impediments.
(The Sovereign Pontiff cannot yield on the point of guaran­
tees for the free exercise of his mission.—Response to the objec­
tions made to the claims of the Holy See.)
DIVINE STRENGTH
All. to the Primate of Hungary and to Hungarian pilgrims,
November 30, 1887.
(The Pope’s Jubilee.)
In the Roman Pontificate there resides a strength which is 483
divinely rooted, infallibly able by nature to procure salvation, un-(142,
able, as human institutions cannot be, either to perish or to 149,
change. The adversaries of the Church energetically deny this 160)
fact because they wish to turn souls from Catholicism, and in
particular from the Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ, and spread
the fire of that warfare of which We in particular arc the object.
Nevertheless, as is plain to be seen, they are not successful in all
their plans. God helping Us, the love of religion subsists, in fact,
united to a great respect for the Apostolic See; it is alive and even
growing, profoundly anchored in souls, and particularly in the
souls of the people.
(The benefits of a pilgrimage to Rome.)

THE LIBERTY OF THE CHURCH

Letter Officio sanctissimo, December 22, 1887, to the Bishops
of Bavaria.
(The situation of the Church in Bavaria.—The present trials.
—Formation of the clergy.—Its function.)
The teaching authority, a sacerdotal charge
This most important of all duties, namely, the duty of “exhorting in holy doctrine" and of “refuting those who oppose
it” (a), belongs to the order of priests on whom it was legitimate­
ly imposed by Christ Our Lord when, using his divine power. He
sent them to teach all nations: "Go ye into the whole world and
preach the Gospel to every creature” (b), so that the Bishops,
484a Tit. 1:9.

484b Mark 16:16.

484

(44.
85,
9697.
184,

274

THE LIBERTY OF THE CHURCH

186, successors of the Apostles, have the direction of this duty, estab197, lished as they are as masters in the Church of God, and the priests
206) united with them are their collaborators.
(Struggles of the Church in the early centuries—Her struggle
against idealism, materialism, and naturalism in our time is even
more serious—To overcome these evils, priests must arm them­
selves with the doctrine of St. Thomas Aquinas, always faithful to
the truth, and “not less docile to the Roman Pontiff, in whom he
reverences a divine authority, and to whom [he holds] it is ab­
solutely necessary for salvation to remain subject”.) (c)
485
(56,
111,
203,
206)

486
(1416,
21.
24,
62,
79,
91)

Thus it will never come to pass either that they will prefer
or oppose their judgment or decision to the decision and the
judgment of the bishops, but following them and obeying them as
those who hold the place of Christ, they will work with great
happiness in the Lord’s vineyard and will gather an abundance of
the finest fruit. But he who in his manner of thinking and acting
would separate himself from his shepherd and from his Sovereign
Pastor, the Roman Pontiff, has no further bond with Christ: “He
that hearcth you, heareth me, he that despiseth you, despiseth
me” (a). Whoever is estranged from Christ does not reap; he
scatters.
(Church and State.—Youth organizations.—Free-masonry.Defend the Church and her benefits.)

The liberty of the Church comes from Christ
Of all these goods of the Church which we should everywhere and always preserve and defend against every injustice,
the first where she is concerned is certainly the enjoyment of that
complete liberty of action which she needs to work for the salvation of men. For this liberty is divine; its author is the Onlybegotten Son of God in the shedding of whose Blood the Church
was bom; it was He who established her in perpetuity among men
and who willed Himself to be her head; this liberty is so much
of the essence of that perfect and divine work the Church, that
those who take up arms against this liberty', by' that very fact, do
so against God and against duty. For, as We have said elsewhere
more than once, God established his Church to safeguard and im­
part his supreme benefits to souls; these benefits are superior by
484c Opusc. Contra errores græcorum,
485a Luke 10:16.

THE LIBERTY OF THE CHURCH

275

their very nature to everything else; the Church is to bring men
by means of faith and grace a new life in Christ, a life which will
ensure their eternal salvation. But as the character and the rights
of every society arc determined by the raison d’etre and the end
of that society, according to the conditions of its existence and
conformably to its activity, it follows naturally that the Church is
a society as distinct from civil society as its raison d’etre and end
are different; that she is a necessary society, open to the whole
human race since all men are called to the Christian life (for
those who refuse to enter it, or who leave it, are deprived of and
forever separated from heavenly life); that she is a society pre­
eminently independent, and the most important of all societies by
very reason of the immortal and heavenly good towards which
she is whollyJ directed.
The free exercise of her mission

But an essentially free institution requires—and this is plain 487
to everyone—the free use of the means necessary to her function­ (91ing. Now the Church needs, as organic and necessary functions, 94,
the power to transmit Christian teaching, to administer the sacra­ 99ments to men, to exercise divine worship, to regulate and direct 101,
all that pertains to ecclesiastical discipline. With all these func- 114tions and favors God willed to invest and arm his Church, and 115)
with an admirable providence, He also willed her to be the only
one so endowed. To her alone He remitted as a deposit all that
He has revealed to men. He established her as the sole interpreter,
judge, and most wise and infallible teacher of the truth that all
States as well as all individuals must hear and whose precepts
they must obey; it is equally true that He gave a free hand to
the Church to judge and decide what should best suit the attain­
ment of her end.
Therefore, it is wrong for civil power to take umbrage at
and to be offended by the Church’s liberty, since the source of
civil power and of religious power is one and the same, namely
God. That is why there can never be between them either dis­
agreement, or mutual obstruction, or interference, since God can­
not be at variance with Himself and there can never be any
conflict in his works. On the contrary, there exists among them a
harmony of cause and effect. It is apparent also that when the
Catholic Church, obedient to the commands of her Founder,
extends her standards more and more widely among the nations.

276

THE APOSTOLATE

she is not invading the territory of the civil power any more than
she is impeding its action; on the contrary, she is protecting and
guarding the peoples.
(Diplomatic relations between the Church and Bavaria.—
Exhortation and prayer—Blessing.)
THE APOSTOLATE

Apost. Let. Divinuni Domini, January 22, 1888.
488
The Church, that divine work of Our Lord Jesus Christ, is
(19, fashioned and supported by the ineffable virtue of the Holy Spirit.
32) ‘There is indeed diversity of gifts ... diversity of ministry...,
diversity of operations ... ; but the same Spirit, who worketh all
in all” (a). In fact, "God hath set in the Church first apostles,
secondly prophets, thirdly doctors; -after that miracles, then the
graces of healings, helps, governments, kinds of tongues, inter­
pretations of speeches ...” (b).

489
Even though the honor of the Apostolate surpasses (and
(134)rightly so) the other gifts such as ministry and operations, and
therefore it is placed in the first rank, and though it has reference
especially to those who have planted the Church with their blood,
it belongs nonetheless and with justice to those who have
continued the work of the Apostles through the centuries, by the
example of their teaching no less than by the example of a glori­
ous death, whether they have brought the divine light to those
unfortunates sitting in darkness and the shadow of death, or
whether they have courageously defended the rights and the
liberty of the Church against the enemies of the Christian name.
(The canonization of St. Peter Claocr.—His life, virtues,
death, miracles. )

VARIETY IN UNITY
All. In tanta hominum, to the Polish people, April 21, 1888.
( Praise for the union of the Polish people among themselves
and with the Holy See.)
490
Certainly, this is the most beautiful of the Church’s titles to
(46, glory, and the one which is most rigorously proper to her: to
48- embrace all the peoples of the world in a single family, and at
488a 1 Cor. 12:4-7.

488b

Ibid., 28.

SUBJECI ONLY TO GOD

277

the same time to realize, while preserving differences of race and 49.
custom, unity of minds and hearts.
132)
For what concerns diversity of rites in the sacred liturgy, the
Apostolic See has always made its position clear: not only it does
not condemn diversity, but it eagerly and willingly grants to each
nation the right to keep and preserve the legitimate customs and
traditions of its forebears. Such variety in unity makes us think
of a royal garment, splendid in appearance, graceful in form, with
which the Spouse of Christ enhances her beauty.

SUBJECT ONLY TO GOD

All. to the Consistory, June 1, 1888.
(The new penal code of Italy is harmful to the Church’s
interests.—Laws against the clergy. )
If We return to first principles, it will be apparent how
repugnant these laws are to the most holy institutions of the
Church. The Church, in fact, by God’s will, is a perfect society,
which also has its laws, its proper magistrates, regularly distinct
from one another by the degree of power with which they are
invested, and the head of all of them is the Roman Pontiff,
placed by divine right at the head of the entire Church, and
hence subject only to the judgment and authority of God Him-

491

(13,
144145,
177

(Condemnation of the laics against the Church.)

TRUTH AND LIBERTY

I

Encycl. Libertas, June 20, 1888.
(Errors concerning liberty.— Its true nature.— Role of intelli­
gence and will—Role of moral law.—Role of grace,—Liberty in
social and political life.—Errors of liberalism and socialism.—Ealse,
so-called "modern", liberties.)
But with no less religious care must We preserve that great 492
and sacred treasure of the truths which God Himself has taught (13.
Us. By many and convincing arguments, often used by defenders 19,
of Christianity, certain leading truths have been laid down: 24,
namely, that some things have been revealed by God; that the 88)
491a . . . quorum est princeps omnium Pontifex romanus, universæ
Ecclesiæ divino jure praepositus, idemque Dei solius potestati
judicioque subjectus.

278

TRUTH AND LIBERTY

only-begotten Son of God was made flesh, to bear witness to the
truth; that a perfect Society was founded by Him—the Church,
namely, of which He is the Head, and with which He has prom­
ised to abide till the end of the world.
The deposit entrusted to the Church

493
(91,
96,
102,
215)

To this Society He entrusted all the truths which He had
taught, in order that it might keep and guard them and with
lawful authority explain them; and at the same time He commanded all nations to hear the voice of the Church, as if it were
his own, threatening those who would not hear it with everlasting
perdition. Thus it is manifest that man’s best and surest teacher
is God, the source and principle of all truth; and the onlybegotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, the Way, the
Truth, and the Life, the true Light which enlightens every man,
and to whose teaching all must submit: "And they shall all be
taught of God” (a).
In faith and in the teaching of morality, God Himself made
the Church a partaker of his divine authority, and through his
heavenly gift she cannot be deceived. She is therefore the greatest
and most reliable teacher of mankind, and in her dwells an in­
violable right to teach men.
The fruits of the magisterium

494
Sustained by the truth received from her divine Founder,
(84, the Church has ever sought to fulfill holily the mission entrusted
106) to her by God; unconquered by the difficulties surrounding her
on all sides, she has never ceased to assert her liberty of
teaching; and in this way the wretched superstitions of paganism
were dispelled and the wide world was renewed unto Christian
wisdom.
Now, reason itself clearly teaches that the truths of divine
revelation and those of nature cannot really be opposed to one
another, and that whatever is at variance with them must
necessarily be false. Therefore, the divine teaching of the
Church, so far from being an obstacle to the pursuit of learning
and the progress of science, or in any way retarding the advance
of civilization, in reality brings to them the sure guidance of
shining light. And for the same reason it is of no small advantage
49.3a John 6:45. CL Isa. 54:13.

EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY

279

for the perfection of human liberty, since our Savior Jesus Christ
has said that by truth is man made free: "You shall know the
truth, and the truth shall make you free” (a).
(Liberty of conscience.—Tolerance.—The sovereign power of
God. )
EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY

Letter Est sane molestum, December 17, 1888, to the Arch­
bishop of Tours.
It is certainly sad and painful to treat with severity those 495
whom We cherish as children, but to act in this way, whatever it (20.3)
may cost, is sometimes a duty for those who have to labor for the
salvation of others and keep them in the way of holiness. A greater
severity becomes necessary when there is reason to believe that the
evil only increases with the passage of time and is working harm
to souls. These are the motives, Venerable Brother, which have
brought you to use your powers to censure a state which is surely
reprehensible, both because it is harming the sacred authority of
bishops, and because it attacks not merely one, but a great
number of bishops, describing their acts and their government in
acrimonious terms, summoning them, so to say, before a court of
law, as if they had failed in their most important and sacred duty.
No, it cannot be permitted that laymen who profess to be 496
Catholic should go so far as openly to arrogate to themselves in (203)
the columns of a newspaper, the right to denounce, and to find
fault, with the greatest license and according to their own good
pleasure, with every sort of person, not excepting bishops, and
think that with the single exception of matters of faith they are
allowed to entertain any opinion which may please them and
exercise the right to judge everyone after their own fashion.

The successors of the Apostles
In the present case, Venerable Brother, there is nothing
which could cause you to doubt Our assent and Our approbation.
It is Our first duty to take care, uniting Our efforts to yours, that
the divine authority of the bishops remain sacred and inviolable.
It belongs to Us also to command and to effect that everywhere
this authority may remain strong and respected, and that in all
494a John 8:32.

497
(44,
155,
187.
197,
200.

280

EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY

202-things it may receive from Catholics the submission and reverence
203) which are its just due. In fact, the divine edifice which is the
Church is supported, as on a foundation visible to all men, first
by Peter, then by the Apostles and their successors the Bishops.
To hear them or to despise them is to hear or to despise Our Lord
Jesus Christ Himself (a). The Bishops form the most sacred part
of the Church, that which instructs and governs men by divine
right; and so he who resists them and stubbornly refuses to obey
their word places himself outside the Church (b). But obedience
must not limit itself to matters which touch the faith: its sphere
is much more vast: it extends to all matters which the episcopal
power embraces. For the Christian people, the bishops are not
only the teachers of the faith, they are placed at their head to rule
and govern them; they are responsible for the salvation of the
souls whom God has entrusted to them, and of which they will
one day have to render an account. It is for this reason that the
Apostle St. Paul addresses this exhortation to Christians: "Obey
your prelates, and be subject to them. For they watch as having
to render an account of your souls" (c).
Grades in the Church
498
In fact, it is always true and manifest to all that there are in
(100,the Church two grades, very distinct by their nature: the shep119, herds and the flock, that is to say, the rulers and the people. It
136, is the function of the first order to teach, to govern, to guide men
153, through life, to impose rules; the second has the duty to be sub­
157, missive to the first, to obey, to carry out orders, to render honor.
191, And if subordinates usurp the place of superiors, this is, on their
203, part, not only to commit an act of harmful boldness, but even to
211, reverse, as far as in them lies, the order so wisely established by
214) the Providence of the Divine Founder of the Church. If by chance
there should be in the ranks of the episcopate a bishop not suf­
ficiently mindful of his dignity and apparently unfaithful to one
of his sacred obligations, in spite of this he would lose nothing
of his power, and, so long as he remained in communion with the
Roman Pontiff, it would certainly not be permitted to anyone
to relax in any detail the respect and obedience which are due
his authority. On the other hand, to scrutinize the actions of a
bishop, to criticize them, does not belong to individual Catholics,
497a Cf. Luke 10:16.
497e Heb. 13:17.

497b Cf. Matt. 18:17.

EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY

281

but concerns only those who, in the sacred hierarchy, have a
superior power; above all, it concerns the Supreme Pontiff, for it
is to him that Christ confided the care of feeding not only all the
lambs, but even the sheep (a). At the same time, when the faith­
ful have grave cause for complaint, they are allowed to put the
whole matter before the Roman Pontiff, provided always that,
safeguarding prudence and the moderation counseled by concern
for the common good, they do not give vent to outcries and re­
criminations which contribute rather to the rise of divisions and
ill-feeling, or certainly increase them.

Fortner teaching
These fundamental principles, which cannot be gainsaid with- 499
out bringing in their wake confusion and min in the government (203)
of the Church, We have many, many times been careful to recall
and to inculcate. Our letters to Our Nuncio in France (a), which
you have cited in this matter, speak clearly; so do those addressed
to the Archbishop of Paris (b), to the Belgian Bishops, to some
Italian Bishops, and the two encyclicals to the Bishops of
France (c), and of Spain (d).
Once again today We recall these documents; once again
We inculcate this teaching, with the very great hope that Our ad­
monitions and Our authority will calm the present agitation of
minds in your diocese, that all will be strengthened and find rest
in faith, in obedience, in the just and legitimate respect towards
those invested with a sacred power in the Church.

Duties of the laity
Not only must those be held to fail in their duty who openly 500
and brazenly repudiate the authority of their leaders, but those,(216)
too, who give evidence of a hostile and contrary disposition
by their clever tergiversations and their oblique and devious deal­
ings. The true and sincere virtue of obedience is not satisfied with
words; it consists above all in submission of mind and heart.

But since We are here dealing with the lapse of a newspaper, 501
it is absolutely necessary for Us once more to enjoin upon the(lll)
editors of Catholic journals to respect as sacred laws the teaching
498a Cf. John 21:17.
499b Above, No. 459.
499d Above, Nos. 453, ff.

499a Above No. 458.
499c Above, No. 456.

282

THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE CHURCH

and the ordinances mentioned above and never to deviate from
them. Moreover, let them be well persuaded and let this be en­
graved in their minds, that if they dare to violate these prescrip­
tions and abandon themselves to their personal appreciations,
whether in prejudging questions which the Holy See has not yet
pronounced on, or in wounding the authority of the Bishops by
anogating to themselves an authority which can never be theirs,
let them be convinced that it is all in vain for them to pretend
to keep the honor of the name of Catholic and to serve the inter­
ests of the very holy and the very noble cause which they have
undertaken to defend and to render glorious.

THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE CHURCH

Letter Sicut acceptum, April 29, 18S9, to the Archbishop of
Munich.
(The refusal of the Minister of Worship [Bavaria] to allow
the claims of the episcopate. )

502
(91.
97,
172,
193)

More than this, in the ministerial document in question there
occur passages cjuite irreconcilable with Catholic teaching, or
completely out of harmony with the most sacred principles which
have always regulated relationships between the Church and the
civil power. There can be no doubt that the decisions of the Holy
See or those of the General Councils, above all in matters of faith,
are by themselves and by their very nature obligatory on all the
faithful; their value can in no sense be diminished by the fact
that they have not received a royal placet (a). The divine teach­
ing authority, founded by Our Lord in his Church, guarantees to
these decisions in matters of faith and moral, their full effect,
independent of the opinion and prescriptions of the civil power.
Otherwise the dogmas of faith and the principles of moral, which
of themselves are always true and just, would vary according to
the wishes of Sovereigns and the differences of time and place.
(The Concordat is recalled.—Liberty of religious orders—Ex­
hortation Io defend the rights of the Church.)

502a This doctrine has already been stated in almost the same
tenus by Pius IX in his Allocution to the Consistorv. Novem­
ber 3, 1855. Cf A.P , 2, 447.

THE HOLY FAMILY

Encycl. Quamquam pluries, August 15, 1889.
(An era of persecution ami apostasy.—Recourse to Our Lady
during the month of October.—Devotion to the Holy Family.—
The patronage of St. Joseph.)

»

Now the divine home which Joseph governed as with the 503
authority of a father contained the first fruits of the infant Church. (33,
Just as the Most Blessed Virgin is the Mother of Jesus Christ, so 69)
she is the Mother of all Christians whom she brought forth on the
Mount of Calvary in the midst of the supreme sufferings of the
Redeemer. Jesus Christ, too, is, as it were, the first-born among
Christians who, by adoption and redemption, are his brothers.
Such are the reasons why the Blessed Patriarch regards as being
confided to him in a special manner the multitude of Christians
who compose the Church, that is to say, this immense family,
spread throughout the world, over which, since he is the Spouse
of Mary and the Father of Christ, he possesses, as it were, a
paternal authority. It is therefore natural and very proper that
St. Joseph, just as he once provided for the needs of the family at
Nazareth and surrounded it with his holy protection, should now
shelter under his heavenly patronage the Church of Christ and
defend her.
(St. Joseph and the workers.—Prayer to St. Joseph.)
THE WORKS OF MERCY
All. to the Consistory, December 30, 1889.
(The struggles against the Church and her works.—Secular­
ization of good works. )
It is vain to seek charity of this nature outside the Church of 504
God which Christ has left as the sole heir of his wisdom, of his (82,
moral, of his charismata. And in every age she has given the most I-1 )
striking proofs of her constant zeal in following the counsels and
the examples of her Divine Founder. Where, in fact, is the human
ill which the Church has not succored with maternal tenderness,
as also with unequalled prudence and vigilance? Therefore, it is
above all by her care and her authority, or at least with her coun­
sel, her favor, and her protection, that appropriate assistance has

284

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

been given to every sort of calamity throughout the entire world,
but more especially in the regions where the Church was vigorous
and Christian virtues were held in higher honor.
(Attacks against the Holy See.)
THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Sapientiæ Christian#, January 10, 1890.
(Abandonment of God’s law brings grave evils on society.—
Unjustified exactions of the State—Conflicts of conscience for
Catholics.—False solutions. )

505
(7677,
99,
220)

For when the lawlessness of thought to which We have
referred is so extended, so widely diffused, it becomes the duty
of the Church actively to espouse the safeguarding of truth and to
eradicate falsehood from men’s minds—a duty at all times in her
sacred keeping, since to her hands have been entrusted the
honor of God and the saving of men. But when a special need
demands, it becomes the duty not only of those who command
to defend the purity of the faith, but “all are bound to
communicate their faith to others, either to the instruction of other
Christians, or to their strengthening or to repel the audacity of
those outside the fold” (a).
(Culpable inertia—Duty of open profession of faith incum­
bent upon all.)
506
Now the gift of preaching, that is, of teaching is, by divine
(165, law, in the hands of the rulers whom "the Holy Ghost has placed
198, as Bishops to rule the Church of God” (a), and especially of the
211, Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church,
217. endowed with supreme power, the director of morals and actions.
220)
Nevertheless, let none imagine that they who have no essen­
tially authoritative position in the hierarchy are forbidden to
devote themselves to the same object, especially those who have
received from God the power as well as the zeal to work. As
often as there is need, these may very appositely deliver to others
the message they have received, reflecting, like a mirror, the
voice of the teachers, guarding themselves, however, from an
assumption of the duties of authority (b).
505a St. Thomas, 2a, 2aem q. Him a, 2 ad 2.
506a Acts 20:28.
506b Cf. THE LAY APOSTOLATE, Nos. 148 ff.

TUE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

285

(Mandate of the Vatican Council to laymen, with respect to
the struggle against error.) (c)
The unity of the Church
Now, these duties will not be fulfilled, as a whole, and with
advantage, as they should be, if some go out to battle independently of others. Jesus Christ, indeed, foretold that the dislike
and hatred of men which He first endured would likewise
be directed against the work founded by Him, so that this would
hinder many from fulfilling the salvation obtained by His goodness. And for this reason He desired not merely to win followers
to his teaching, but to unite them into a society and to welcome
them into one body, “which is the Church” (a), of which He
should be the head. And so the life of Jesus Christ circulates
through the whole frame, nourishes and upholds the particular
members, holds them in mutual bonds, and directs them to the
same end, though individual acts are separately accomplished.
Thus the Church is a perfect society, far more excellent than any
other society; but this is its duty imposed upon it by its Author
that it should fight for the salvation of the human race “like an
army set in array" (b).

507
(13,
15,
27,
39,
42,
77)

This composition and economy of the Christian household 508
can in no way be changed: nor is any man permitted to rule (121,
himself by his own fancy, or to follow any mode of defense that 214,
pleases him; for he scatters and gathers not, who gathers not 224,
with the Church and Jesus Christ, and he most surely strives 231)
against God who labors not with Him and with the Church.
( Unity of thought, first principle of unity.—Difficulty of this
in temporal societies.)

The rule of faith
Very different it is among Christians; they receive what they
are to believe from the Church, under whose authority and
guidance they know well that they hold the truth. Hence, as the
Church is one, Jesus Christ being one, so the whole doctrine of
all Christians in the world is and ought to be one; “One Lord,

506c Cf. Above, N. 350.
507a Col. 1:24.
507b Cant. 6:9.

509
(38,
46,
109)

286

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

one faith” (a). “Having the same spirit of faith” (b), they are
possessors of the principle of salvation, hence the same will and
the same mode of action are generated spontaneously in all.

510
But, as Paul the Apostle bids us, it is necessary that this
(44, union sh )uld be perfect. Since the Christian faith rests on the
101, authority, not of human, but of divine reason (“we believe the
165) truth not on account of the intrinsic truth of things made clear
by the natural light of reason, but on the authority of God Him­
self revealing, who can neither deceive nor be deceived” (a), it
follows that everything which is understood to be the direct
teaching of God must be received by us with equal assent and
that to refuse belief to one such doctrine is clearly to deny the
whole. For they overturn the very foundations of faith who deny
that God has spoken to man, or who doubt of his infinite truth
and wisdom.
Now, to declare what is the divine teaching is the function
of the teaching Church to whom God has entrusted the guardian­
ship and interpretation of his words. But the highest teacher in
the Church is the Roman Pontiff. Hence, as the union of minds
necessitates a perfect agreement in one faith, so it calls all wills
to be perfectly submissive and obedient to the Church and the
Roman Pontiff, as to God (b).
Submission to the magisterium
511
Now, obedience should be perfect, since it is enforced by
(109. faith itself, and has this point in common with faith that it is
214) indivisible. Indeed if it be not absolute and all embracing, only
the shadow of obedience is left, while its essential nature has
been utterly abolished arid destroyed. And all Christian prece­
dent so far ministers to such perfection, that it is and always
has been held as a peculiar mark by which Catholics may be
distinguished. It is well explained by Thomas Aquinas in these
words :
509a Eph. 4:5.
509b 2 Cor. 4:13.
510a Cone. Vatican, Const. Dei Filius, 3; Denz., 1789.
510b Statuere vero quse sint doctrinre divinitus traditae, Ecclesia:
docentis est. cui custodiam interpretationemque Deus eloquiorum
suorum commisit. Summus autem est magister in Ecclesia Ponti­
fex romanus. Concordia igitur animorum sicut perfectum in una
fide consensum requirit, ita voluntates postulat Ecclesiæ romanoque Pontifici perfecte subjectas atque obtemperantes, ut Deo.

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

287

“The formal object of faith is primary truth as manifested 512
in the Sacred Scriptures, and the teaching of the Church which (109,
proceeds from the primary truth. Hence, he who does not 165)
embrace as he would a divine and infallible law, the teaching
of the Church, which proceeds from the primary truth as mani­
fested in the Sacred Scriptures, has not the habit of faith: but
he holds that which is of the faith ( fidei ) in a manner different
from that which is by faith (per fidem) .... Now it is clear that
he who embraces the teaching of the Church as he would an in­
fallible law, makes assent to all that the Church teaches; but
otherwise if of the Church’s teaching he holds what he pleases,
and refuses what does not please him, he does not embrace the
teaching of the Church as an infallible law, but according to his
own wish” (a). “There should be one faith in the whole Church,
according to the text, ‘I beseech you that ye all speak the same
thing and that there be no schism among you’ (b); which could
not be, unless a mooted matter of faith were decided by him
who governs the whole Church, that his judgment might hence
be firmly held by the whole Church. /Xnd, therefore, to the sole
authority of the Pontiff belongs the publication of any Creed
together with all other matters that concern the whole
Church” (c).
Extent of obedience
In fixing the limits of obedience, let none imagine that the
authority of the bishops, and especially of the Roman Pontiff, is
only to be respected in matters of dogma, the obstinate rejection
of which cannot be distinguished from the crime of heresy. Nor
is it by any means sufficient that a sincere and firm assent be
given to the teachings delivered by the Church, which, though
not defined by solemn Act, are nevertheless, by common and
universal consent, believed as divinely revealed, and which the
Vatican Council decreed as of "Catholic and divine faith." But
it is moreover a chief duty of Christians to permit themselves to
be ruled and guided by the bishops, and particularly by the
Apostolic See. How fitting this doctrine is, is very evident. For
the words of God refer in part to God Himself, and in part to man.
and to that which is necessary for his eternal salvation. Now, in
each division the guidance of both belief and action by divine
512a Sum. Theol., 2a, 2ae, q. v, a. 3.
512c Ibid., 2a, 2ae, q. i. a. 10.

512b 1 Cor. 1:10.

513
(55.
95,
109110,
169)

288

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

right belongs to the Church, as We have said, and in the Church
to the Chief Pontiff. Hence, the Pontiff must have the power
authoritatively to judge of the meaning of Holy Scripture; what
doctrines are in harmony with it and what at variance; and also
to declare what is viituous and what sinful, what is to be done
and what avoided in the work of salvation; for otherwise he could
neither be a sure interpreter of the moral word of God nor a safe
guide to man.
Nature of the Church
514
We must go yet more deeply into the nature of the Church,
(12- as being not a mere chance union of Christians, but as a society
13, divinely constituted and wonderfully organized, having as its
78- direct object to bestow peace and holiness on the soul; and since
79, for this end it alone by divine gift possesses the necessary' means,
124) it has fixed laws, fixed functions, and in the direction of Christian
peoples follows a method most consonant with its nature.

The government of the Church

515
But the course of its government is difficult and seldom runs
(14, smooth. The Church is the mistress of nations scattered over the
124) whole earth, differing in race and customs, whose duty it is,
living each in its own state under its own laws, to submit both to
civil and ecclesiastical power. And these duties are incumbent on
the same persons, and not at odds with each other nor confused,
as We have said, for the former promotes the prosperity of the
State, the latter, the common good of the Church, and both are
for the perfection of man.
Independence of the Church

516
And with this definition of mutual rights and functions, it is
(16, quite clear that rulers of States should be free to guide their af84, fairs, and this not only without the opposition, but with the
93, assistance of the Church; for since she above all things teaches
121, the practice of piety, which Ls justice towards God, in the same
178) way she urges men to act with justice towards their rulers. But
the ecclesiastical power has this far nobler aim—to rule the minds
of men by having regard to "the kingdom of God and his jus­
tice" (a), and is entirely devoted to this object. Moreover, it can­
not without rashness be doubted that the direction of souls has
516a Matt 6:33.

THE ACTION OF THE CHURCH

289

been given to the Church alone, so that in it political power has
no right of interference; for not to Caesar, but to Peter, did Jesus
Christ entrust the keys of the kingdom of heaven.
(Necessary qualities of Catholics’ political activity.—Christian
life.—Christian education and instruction.—Duty of fighting for
Christ. )

THE ACTION OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. lieruin novarurn, May 16, 1891.
(The labor question.—The socialist solution.—The Christian
solution.—Means of realizing it.—The role of the Church.)
However, the Church is not satisfied with pointing out the
way which leads to salvation; she leads men to it and with her
own hand applies the remedy to the ill. She applies herself above
all to instruct and elevate men according to her principles and her
doctrine, the life-giving waters of which she endeavors to spread
as far and wide as possible through the ministry of her bishops
and priests. She also tries to penetrate souls and to bring wills to
allow themselves to be governed and directed by the rule of
divine precepts. This is a capital point, one of the utmost importance, because it sums up, as it were, all the interests at stake, and
here the action of the Church is supreme.
The instruments at her disposal to touch souls with, she has
received for this purpose from Jesus Christ, and they carry with­
in themselves the efficacy of divine strength. They alone can
penetrate to the depths of the human heart; they alone can bring
men to obey the injunctions of duty, to master passion, to love
God and neighbor with a charity which is unique and supreme,
energetically to overcome all the obstacles which impede him in
his progress towards virtue.
(The role of the State.—Action of employers and employees.
-Christian charity.—The patrimony of the Church established by
the alms of the faithful; always used for the benefit of the poor.)

517
(77,
9.5.
100,
116,
120,
124125,
198,
206)

Doubtless there are today a number of men, faithful echoes of
a pagan past, who go so far as to make of this marvelous chant}
a weapon with which to attack the Church; and it has been proposed to substitute for Christian charity a philanthropy established
by state law. But no human industry could substitute for that
charity which devotes itself without reserve to the service of
neighbor. The Church alone possesses this virtue, for it can be

518
(48.
61.
82)

290

NOW AND FOREVER

derived from no other source than the Sacred Heart of Jesus; and
he is far from Jesus Christ who is far from his Church (a).
(Social Peace.)
THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Octobri mense, September 22, 1891.
(The ills of the present time.—Necessity of prayer.)
519
This is a fact admirable beyond all hope! The world goes its
(94, own laborious way, proud of its riches, its strength, its arms, its
220) genius; the Church descends through the ages with calm
and measured step, putting her trust in God alone towards whom
she raises her eyes and hands in supplication day and night. Al­
though in fact she does not, in her prudence, neglect the human
help which Providence and the times procure her, it is not in them
that she places her first hope, but in prayer, in supplication, in the
invocation of the name of God. This is how she maintains and
strengthens the principle of her life: her assiduity in prayer has
permitted her happily to remain a stranger to the vicissitudes of
the merely human and has united her continually to the divine
will; it has allowed her to live the very life of Our Lord Jesus
Christ in peace and tranquillity.
(The intercession of Our Lady.—Appeal for the recitation of
the rosary.)
NOW AND FOREVER

Encycl. Au milieu des sollicitudes, February 16, 1892. to the
French Bishops.
(The religious situation in France.—The Church and different
forms of government.—The changing character of the latter.)
The Church of Jesus Christ alone has been able to preserve,
(13- and certainly will preserve until the end of time, her form of
14, government. Founded by Him “who was, who is, and who is to
19. come” (a), she received from Him in the very beginning all that
91. was necessary to continue her divine mission through the ebb and
125, flow of human affairs. And, far from needing to change her es138) sential constitution, she has not even the power-to renounce the
conditions of true liberty and sovereign independence with which
Divine Providence endowed her for the general good of souls.

520

518a For parts here omitted, ci. the volume on The Social Question.
520a Heb. 13:8.

·: ]L

'·(

THE MORAL LAW

291

("Ralliement" to the present French government.—Distinction
between legislation and form of government.)
THE NOTE OF SANCTITY

Apost. Let. Qui Ecclesiæ suæ, December 19, 1892.
God, who has promised that He will never abandon his 521
Church, watches over her in his wisdom so that she will never (126)
want that mark of sanctity whose excellence attests her divine
origin and draws, by its example, the peoples of the earth to run
in the way of virtue.
(Beatification of the Venerable Francis Xavier Marie
Bianchi. )
THE MORAL LAW
Letter ll divisamento, February 8, 1893, to the Bishops of the
Province of Venice.
(The projected law on ‘civil marriage’.—Intrusion in the do­
main of moral reserved to the Church. )
Everyone knows that Our Divine Savior remitted to the 522
Church the judgment and the governance, not only of what con- (103)
cems faith, but also of all that pertains to moral. The Church was
instituted by Christ to be a sure and infallible guide to all men
in the way of eternal salvation, and just as, in order to be saved,
it is not enough to believe but one must act in conformity with
the faith, it is to the Church that judgment belongs, in matters
concerning the moral law and conduct, as well as in matters con­
cerning the deposit of faith.
(Marriage and virginity.—Limits of the State’s power—Judg­
ment on this law.—Duty of resisting.)
SHEEP WITH A SHEPHERD

Letter Exima Nos lætitia, July 19, 1893, to the Bishop of
Poitiers.
(The schism of the “petite Eglise.”)
Its members pretend that their sole preoccupation is to affirm 523
the proper and original right of the Church, that they have nothing(154,
more at heart than to protect her liberty from every hostile action 160,
at the hands of human powers. They find the most absolute 177.
guarantee and the surest defense of this liberty in the bishops 203)
remaining in perpetual stability in the place which they have

292

SHEEP WITH Λ SHEPHERD

occupied in the sacred hierarchy; whence it follows that they may
not be moved from their sees or removed from their rank.
It is certainly true that no man of good sense will ever believe
that some private individuals or some bishops have more at heart
the rights and liberty of the Church than has the Holy See itself,
the Mother and Mistress of all the Churches. Or that in order to
procure this good, the Roman Church needs to be prodded by
those who, in order to be and to be held as good Catholics, owe
the Roman Church submission and obedience before all else. If it
must be recognized and considered as an acquired and sacred
right that no bishop can be removed from his see or his rank by
any merely human power, nonetheless, no difficulty should be
made about admitting that the Apostolic See has this right by
reason of its supreme authority over the lambs and the sheep,
on every occasion when grave matters and the higher good of the
Church require.
(The conduct of Pope Melchiades with regard to the Donalists; the admirable submission of the French Bishops to the orders
of Pius VII: both testify in favor of this right of the Holy See.)
In rendering to religion its ancient splendor, Pius VII
524
(56) strengthened the peace of the Church with such happy effect that

the order of bishops established by his authority was regarded as
worthy of its high office and became the object of the veneration
of all the faithful. And so these prelates were received into the
communion of the Catholic fraternity by the bishops of the entire
world.
Therefore, there can be no legitimate cause for these men,
525
(56) whoever were the first leaders of those concerned today, to be

separated from the most holy communion of the Catholic world.
Let them not rely on the upright quality of their conduct, not
on their fidelity to discipline, not on their zeal in safeguarding
teaching and stability in religion. Does not the Apostle say plainly
that without charity all this profiteth nothing? (a) There is not
a single bishop who considers them to be or who governs them
as his flock. From this the evidence is plain: they may conclude
with certainty that they are fugitives from the flock of Christ.
Let them hear the cry of St. Ignatius, that illustrious martyr of
the Apostolic ages: “I will write to you again if, by God’s favor,
525a Ci. Cor 13:3.

SHEEP WITH A SHEPHERD

293

1 learn that each and every one of you, without a single exception,
is united with one another in the same faith under the one Jesus
Christ, obedient to the bishop and to his priests, in the unity of
one mind breaking the one bread in which is to be found the
well-spring of immortality" (b). And again: "Keep yourselves
from that noxious food which Our Lord Jesus Christ does not
raise; it is no planting of the Father. He who is of God and of JesusChrist is with the bishop, and he who returns under the influence
of penance, to the unity of the Church, is of God and is according
to Jesus Christ. Be not deceived, Brethren, if a man follow the
fomenters of schism, such a one shall not inherit the kingdom of
God” (c).

From this it follows also that they cannot promise them- 526
selves any of the graces and fruits of the perpetual sacrifice and (58)
of the sacraments which, although they are sacrilegiously admin­
istered, are nonetheless valid and serve in some measure that form
and appearance of piety which St. Paul mentions ( a ) and which
St. Augustine speaks of at greater length: “The form of the
branch," says the latter with great precision, "may still be visible,
even apart from the vine, but the invisible life of the root can be
preserved only in union with the stock. That is why the corporal
sacraments, which some keep and use outside the unity of Christ,
can preserve the appearance of piety. But the invisible and
spiritual virtue of true piety cannot abide there any more than
feeling can remain in an amputated member” (b). But since they
no longer have even a single priest who adheres to their tenets,
they cannot even boast of this appearance of piety. They no long­
er have the sacraments, with the exception of baptism, which
they confer, so it is said, without ceremonies on children; a fruit­
ful baptism for the latter, provided that once the age of reason
is reached they do not embrace the schism; but deadly for those
who administer it, for in conferring it they willfully act in
schism (c).
(The Pope invites the schismatics to return to the Church.—
He encourages the Bishops of Lyons and Poitiers.)
525b Ad Ephes., XX.
525c Ad Philad., III.
526a Cf. 1 Cor. 13:3.
526b Senn. LXXI, in Matt., 32.
526c .. . Suscipientibus quidem, modo quum adoleverint schismate
abstineant, profuturum, sed mortiferum dantibus, quippe qui id
agant voluntario schismate impliciti.

527
(2,
4,
102.
137,
147)

THE TEACHING OF SCRIPTURE
Encycl. Providentissiinus Deus, November 18, 1893.
(The place of the Bible in teaching and preaching.-The
Church and the Bible.—The enemies: Protestants, Rationalists,
Liberals.—Defense of the Bible—The Bible and theology.)
To have proved the troth of Catholic doctrine, to have explained and illumined this doctrine by learned and lawful
interpretations of the Bible, this is certainly a great deal; there
remains, however, another point, as important as the work necessary to accomplish it is considerable: establishing as solidly as
possible the complete authority of the Scriptures. This end will
not be reached in a full and entire fashion except through the
proper and ever-living magisterium of the Church who “in her­
self, by reason of her admirable diffusion, her eminent sanctity,
her inexhaustible fecundity in ever)' sort of good, her Catholic
unity, her invincible stability, is a great and perpetual motive of
credibility, and an irrefragable proof of her divine mission” (a).
But since the divine and infallible teaching authority of the
Church rests upon the authority of Sacred Scripture, the claim
for at least a human belief in the latter must first of all be set
forth and supported. In fact, from these books, as the surest
witnesses of antiquity, the divinity and the mission of Jesus
Christ, the institution of the hierarchy of the Church, the primacy
conferred upon Peter and upon his successors, will be confirmed
by evidence and solidly established.
(Exegetical science.—Ancillary sciences—Inspiration and in­
errancy.— Catholic savants.)

A PEOPLE UNITED TO THEIR SHEPHERD
All. to the people of Rome, January 28, 1894.
(Virtues of the clergy of Rome.—Clergy and faithful are
praised for their union toith the Holy See.)
528
Seeing you gathered here together, all of one mind, and
(44. forming a group which represents to such a large extent all the
314) parishes of Rome, Our mind lingers with pleasure over the ideal
of the organic unity of the Church, so well summed up by the
ancients in the well-known formula: "A people united to their
shepherd”; in fact, docility to shepherds of a lower grade is the
527a Counc. Vat., sess. Ill, c. 3 de fide; above, No. 342.

Λ PEOPLE UNITED TO THEIR SHEPHERD

295

first link in the necessary submission to those of a higher grade
and to the Supreme Shepherd.
(Trials of the present time—The Holy Family Association.)
CONDITIONS OF UNITY

Apostolic Epistle, Praeclara gratulationis, June 20, 1894, to
the entire world.
(Fruits of the Jubilee.—Prayer for unity.—The separated
Churches.—Protestants pretend to unity by charity alone.)
But how can perfect charity unite hearts if faith has not 529
brought unity to minds? This is why there have been men among (4,
those We speak of—thoughtful men with hearts avid of the truth—
6,
who have come to seek in the Catholic Church the road which 24,
leads with surety to eternal life. They have understood that they 40could not cleave to Jesus Christ as the Head of the Church if 41.
they did not belong to the Body of Jesus Christ which is the 46,
Church; nor could they hope ever to possess in all its purity the 48,
faith of Jesus Christ if they were to reject its legitimate teaching 142,
authority, entrusted to Peter and to his successors. On the other 172)
hand, they understood that only in the Roman Church is to be
found the ideal realized, the type reproduced, of the true Church,
which is, moreover, visible to all men by reason of the exterior
marks with which God her Founder took care to distinguish her.
And many of these men, gifted with penetrating judgment and
marvelous wisdom in the study of antiquity, have in very re­
markable writings, been able to throw light on the uninterrupted
apostolicity of the Roman Church, the integrity of her teaching,
and the constant uniformity of her discipline.
(Pressing and fatherly appeal to the dissidents.—Duties of the
Roman Catholics.—Errors on the subject of the Church.

The Church, a perfect society
The Church, in the will and in the plan of God her Founder,
is a society perfect in her own right: a society whose mission and
role are to permeate the human race with the evangelical
institutions and precepts, to safeguard the integrity of morals and
the exercise of Christian virtue, and, hence, to lead all men to that
heavenly blessedness which has been set before them. And because she is a perfect society, as We have said, she is endowed
with a principle of life which does not come to her from without,
but one which was placed within her by the same act of will

530
(13,
67,
77.
91.
119)

296

CONDITIONS OF UNITY

which gave her her nature. For this same reason she is invested
with the power to make laws, and, in the exercise of this power,
it is only just that she should be free, as this is just, too, for all
that can touch her authority. But this liberty, nonetheless, is not
of a nature to provoke rivalries and antagonism: for the Church
does not crave power, she obeys no ambition. What she wants,
and the unique aim she pursues, is to safeguard among men the
exercise of virtue, and by this means to ensure their eternal sal­
vation. And so it is of her very nature to employ condescension
and maternal methods.
(Church and Slate.—Masonic sects.—The Church is the source
of truth and of supernatural life.—Christian solution of social and
political questions.—Missionary vocation of Christian Europe —
Address to the rulers of States.)
BETTER THAN LIBERTY
Letter Longinqua Oceani, January 6, 1895, to the Bishops of
the United States.
(The work of Christopher Columbus—Progress of the Church
in the United States.)
531

The main factor, no doubt, in bringing things into this happy
state were the ordinances and decrees of your synods, especially
of those which in more recent times were convened and confirmed
by the authority of the Apostolic See. But, moreover (a fact which
it gives pleasure to acknowledge), thanks are due to the equity
of the laws which obtain in America and to the customs of the
well-ordered Republic. For the Church amongst you, unopposed
by the Constitution and government of your nation, fettered by
no hostile legislation, protected against violence by the common
laws and the impartiality of the tribunals, is free to live and act
without hindrance. Yet, though all this is true, it would be very
erroneous to draw the conclusion that in America is to be sought
the type of the most desirable status of the Church, or that it
would be universally lawful or expedient for State and Church to
be, as in America, dissevered and divorced (a). The fact that
Catholicity with you is in good condition, nay, is even enjoying
531a Sed quamquam hxc vera sunt, tamen error tollendus, ne quis
hinc sequi existimet, petendum ab America exemplum optimi
Ecclesiæ status: aut universe licere vel expedire, rei civilis reique
sacræ distractas esse dissociatasque, more amcricano, rationes.

BETTER TUAN LIBERTY

297

a prosperous growth, is by al) means to be attributed to the
fecundity with which God lias endowed His Church, in virtue
of which unless men or circumstances interfere, she spontaneously
expands and propagates herself; but she would bring forth more
abundant fruits if. in addition to liberty, she enjoyed the favor
of the laws and the patronage of the public authority.
(The Council of Baltimore.—To perpetuate the fruits of the
Council and strengthen the bonds between America and the Holy
See, the Pope has instituted an Apostolic Legation.)

The representatives of the Holy See
The mass of the Catholics understood how salutary Our action 532
was destined to be; they saw, moreover, that it accorded with the ( 151usage and the policy of the Apostolic See. For it has been, from 153,
earliest antiquity, the custom of the Roman Pontiffs in the exercise 156)
of the divinely bestowed gift of the primacy in the administration
of the Church of Christ to send forth legates to Christian nations
and peoples. And they did this, not by an adventitious but an
inherent right. For “the Roman Pontiff, upon whom Christ has
conferred ordinary and immediate jurisdiction, as well over all
and singular churches, as over all and singular pastors and faith­
ful (a), since he cannot personally visit the different regions and
thus exercise the pastoral office over the flock entrusted to him,
finds it necessary, from time to time, in the discharge of the
ministry imposed on him, to despatch legates into different parts
of the world, according as the need arises; who, supplying his
place, may correct errors, make the rough ways plain, and
administer to the people confided to their care increased means
of salvation" (b).
But how unjust and baseless would be the suspicion, should it 533
anywhere exist, that the powers conferred on the legate are an (155obstacle to the authority of the bishops! Sacred to Us (more than 156.
any other) are the rights of those “whom the Holy Ghost has 190)
placed as bishops to rule the Church of God" (a). That these
rights should remain intact in every nation in ever}' part of the
globe, We both desire and ought to desire, the more so since the
dignity of the individual bishop is by nature so interwoven with
the dignity of the Roman Pontiff that any measure which benefits
532a Con. Vat. Sess., iv. c. 3; above, No. 363.
532b Cap. Un. Extrav. Comm. De Consuet., 1:1.
533a Acts 20:28.

298

THE HEART OF THE CHURCH

the one necessarily protects the other. “My honor is the honor of
the Universal Church. My honor is the unimpaired vigor of My
brethren. Then am I truly honored when to each one due honor
is not denied” (b).
534
Therefore, since it is the office and function of an apostolic
(156)legate, with whatsoever powers he may be vested, to execute
the mandates and interpret the will of the Pontiff who sends him,
thus, so far from his being of any detriment to the ordinary power
of the bishops, he will rather bring an accession of stability and
strength. His authority will possess no slight weight for preserving
in the multitude a submissive spirit; in the clergy discipline and
due reverence for the bishops, and in the bishops mutual charity
and an intimate union of souls.
(Fruits hoped for from this legation.—Submission of the faith­
ful to the laws of the Church.—The social question.—The Press.—
N on-Catholics.—The racial question. )

THE HEART OF THE CHURCH
Apost. Let. Provida Mater, May 5, 1895.
(On the occasion of the Feast of Pentecost the Pope invites
the faithful to offer special prayers. )
535
The greatest and the most fruitful blessings can be hoped
(32, for from Him who is the Spirit of Truth, who has revealed to us
88) God’s secrets in Sacred Scripture, and sustains the Church by his
perpetual presence. From this living source of sanctity, souls
regenerated for divine adoption receive in a marvelous manner in­
crease and perfecting for eternity. In fact, from this multiform
grace of the Holy Spirit (a) are continually derived light and
zeal, healing and strength, consolation and rest, the desire to ac­
complish all that is good, and fruitfulness in good works. Finally,
the Spirit acts by his virtue in the Church in such wise that, as
Christ is the Head of the Mystical Body, so it is possible, by an
exact analogy, to call the Spirit the Heart: for "the heart has a
certain hidden influence, and it is for that reason that the Holy
Spirit is compared to the heart, for He gives life to and unites
he Church in an invisible manner” (b).
533b S. Gregorius Epist. ad Eulog. Alex. lib. VIII. ep. 30.
535a Cf. Eph. 3:10; 1 Peter 4:10.
535b Idem denique Spiritus virtute sua in Ecclesia sic agit, ut
mystici hujus corporis quemadmodum caput est Christus, ita ip-

Λ MOTHER FOR THE CHURCH

299

(Fruits to be hoped for: greater union among the faithful,
the reconciliation of the dissidents.—Promulgation of the indul­
gence. )
A MOTHER FOR THE CHURCH
Encycl. Adjutricem populi, October 5, 1895.
(The Rosary.—Prayer for unity and the return of the dissi­
dents.—The mission confided by Christ to Mary on Calvary.)
Mary has assumed arid generously carried out this great 536
function and this laborious mission whose beginnings were con- (33)
secrated in the Cenacle. She admirably sustained the first years
of the Christian people by the sanctity of her example, the author­
ity of her counsels, the gentleness of her encouragement, the
efficacy of her holy prayers. Truly Mother of the Church, Doctor
and Queen of the Apostles, to them she communicates also a por­
tion of the divine words which “she kept in her heart” (a).
It would be impossible to say all that she added in extent and
efficacy to this help when she was raised to the side of her Son,
to that height of heavenly glory which was worthy of her dignity
and the splendor of her merits. For in that place, according to
God’s designs, she began to watch over the Church, to help and
protect us as a Mother does, so that after having been the co­
operator of man’s redemption, she became also, by reason of the
almost limitless power which was granted to her, the dispenser
of the grace which flows from this Redemption to every age.
(The schismatic East, formerly so devout to Mary.—The
Rosary, nourishment of faith.—The Congress of Jerusalem.)
UNITY OF THE CHURCH
Encycl. Salts cognitum, June 29, 1896.

Unity the distinctive mark of the Church
It is sufficiently well known unto you that no small share of
Our thoughts and of Our care is devoted to Our endeavor to
bring back to the fold, placed under the guardianship of Jesus
Christ, the chief Pastor of souls, sheep that have strayed. Bent
upon this, We have thought it most conducive to this salutary
semet cor apta possit similitudine appellari: nam cor habet quam­
dam influentiam occultam; et ideo cordi comparatur Spiritus
Sanctus qui invisibiliter Ecclesiam vivificat et unit. (S. Thomas,
Sum. Theol., Illa, q. 8, a. I, ad 3um).
536a Luke 2:19.

537
(1,
52.
63,
70)

300

UNITY ΟΓ THE CHURCH

encl and purpose to describe the image and, as it were, the
lineaments of the Church. Amongst these the most worthy of Our
chief consideration is Unity. This the Divine Author impressed on
it as a lasting sign of truth and of unconquerable strength (a).
The essential beauty and comeliness of the Church ought greatly
to influence the minds of those who consider it. Nor is it im­
probable that ignorance may be dispelled by the consideration;
that false ideas and prejudices may be dissipated from the minds
chiefly of those who find themselves in error without fault of
theirs; and that even a love for the Church may be stirred up in
the souls of men, like unto that charity wherewith Christ loved
and united Himself to that spouse redeemed by his precious
blood. “Christ loved the Church, and delivered Himself up for
it” (b).
538
If those about to come back to their most loving Mother (not
(231 )yet fully known, or culpably abandoned) should perceive that
their return involves not indeed the shedding of their blood (at
which price nevertheless the Church was bought by Jesus Christ)
but some lesser trouble and labor, let them clearly understand
that this burden has been laid on them not by the will of man but
by the will and command of God. They may thus, by the help
of heavenly grace, realize and feel the truth of the divine saying,
“My yoke is sweet and My burden light" (a). Wherefore, having
put all Our hope in the Father of lights, from whom “cometh
every best gift and every perfect gift” (b)—in Him, namely,
who alone gives the increase" (c), We earnestly pray that He will
graciously grant Us the power of bringing conviction home to
the minds of men.
The divine idea of the Church
539
Although God can do by his own power all that is effected
(75) by created natures, nevertheless in the counsels of his loving
537a In an address to the Consistory of June 22, the Pope had al­
ready indicated the thought which led him to write the encyclical:
"Quoniam christianx doctrinx gravissimum caput et velut fun­
damentum continetur germana Ecclesix cognitione, idcirco in­
duximus animum Ecclesix imaginem atque formam ex constitu­
tione divina expressam, proferre in medium; eo prxeipue spec­
tantes ut insigne admirabile unitatis, inditum ei divinitus, lu­
culentius emergat.
537b Eph. 5:25.
538a Matt. 11:30.
538b James 1:17.
538c 1 Cor. 3:6.

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

301

providence He has preferred to help men by the instrumentality
of men. And, as in the natural order He does not usually give
full perfection except by means of man’s work and actions, so also
He makes use of human aid for that which lies beyond the limits
of nature, that is to say, for the sanctification and salvation of souls.
But it is obvious that nothing can be communicated amongst men
save by means of external things which the senses can perceive.
For this reason the Son of God assumed human nature—“who
being in the form of God ... emptied Himself, taking the form of
a servant, being made in the likeness of a man" (a)—and thus
living on earth He taught his doctrine and gave his laws, con­
versing with men.

And since it was necessary that his divine mission should be
perpetuated to the end of time, He took to Himself disciples,
trained by Himself, and made them partakers of his own
authority. And, when He had invoked upon them from heaven
the Spirit of Truth, He hade them go through the whole world
and faithfully preach to all nations what He had taught and what jq.-,'
He had commanded, so that by the profession of his doctrine, and j
the observance of his laws, the human race might attain to holi- j 37)
ness on earth and never-ending happiness in heaven.

Visible nature of the Church
In this wise, and on this principle, the Church was begotten. 541
If we consider the chief end of this Church and the proximate (3,
efficient causes of salvation, it is undoubtedly spiritual; but in 10,
regard to those who constitute it, and to the things which lead 16,
to these spiritual gifts, it is external and necessarily visible. The 20.
apostles received a mission to teach by visible and audible signs. 79,
and they discharged their mission only by words and acts which 107)
certainly appealed to the senses. So that their voices falling upon
the ears of those who heard them begot faith in souls—“Faith
cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ" (a). And
faith itself—that is, assent given to the first and supreme truth—
though residing essentially in the intellect, must be manifested
by outward profession—“For, with the heart, we believe unto
justice; but with the mouth, confession is made unto salva­
tion" (b). In the same wav, in man. nothing is more internal than
539a Philipp. 2:6-7.
541a Rom. 10:17.

5411) Rom. 10:10.

302

UNITY OF ΠΙΕ CHURCH

heavenly grace which begets sanctity, but the ordinary and chief
means of obtaining grace are external: that is to say, the sacra­
ments which are administered by men specially chosen for that
purpose, by means of certain ordinances. Jesus Christ commanded
his apostles and their successors to the end of time to teach and
rule the nations. He ordered the nations to accept their teaching
and obey their authority. But this correlation of rights and duties
in the Christian commonwealth not only could not have been
made permanent, but could not even have been initiated except
through the senses, which are of all things the messengers and
interpreters.
The Church the body of Christ

542
(6,
9,
16,
2829,
90)

543
(3,
6,
9,
17,
24)

For this reason the Church is so often called in Holy Writ
a body, and even the body of Christ— “Now you are the body of
Christ” (a)—and precisely because it is a body is the Church
visible: and because it is the body of Christ is it living and
energizing, because by the infusion of his power Christ guards
and sustains it, just as the vine gives nourishment and renders
fruitful the branches united to it. And as in living beings the
vital principle is unseen and invisible, and is evidenced and
manifested by the movements and action of the members, so the
principle of supernatural life in the Church is clearly shown in
that which is done by it.
Erroneous conceptions of the Church
From this it follows that those who arbitrarily conjure up and
picture to themselves a hidden and invisible Church are in
grievous and pernicious error, as also are those who regard the
Church as a human institution which claims a certain obedience
in discipline and external duties, but which is without the perenniai communication of the gifts of divine grace, and without all
that which testifies by constant and undoubted signs to the
existence of that life which is drawn from God. It is assuredly as
impossible that the Church of Jesus Christ can be the one or the
other as that man should be a body alone or a soul alone. The
connection and union of both elements is as absolutely necçssary
to the true Church as the intimate union of the soul and body is
to human nature. The Church is not something dead: it is the
body of Christ endowed with supernatural life. As Christ, the
542a 1 Cor. 12:27.

J

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

303

head and exemplar, is not wholly in his visible human nature,
which Photinians and Nestorians assert, nor wholly in the in­
visible divine nature, as the Monophysites hold, but is one, by the
union of both natures, visible and invisible; so the mystical body
of Christ is the true Church only because its visible parts draw
life and power from the supernatural gifts and other invisible ele­
ments, and it is from this union that tho very nature of the visible
parts themselves springs.

Immutability of the Church
But since the Church is such by divine will and constitution, 544
such it must uniformly remain to the end of time. If it did not, (9.
then it would not have been founded as perpetual and the end 229
set before it would have been limited to some certain place and
to some certain period of time; both of which are contrary' to the
truth. The union consequently of visible and invisible elements,
because it harmonizes with the natural order and by God’s will
belongs to the very essence of the Church, must necessarily re­
main so long as the Church itself shall endure.
Wherefore Chrysostom writes: “Secede not from the Church: 545
for nothing is stronger than the Church. Thy hope is the Church; (19,
thy salvation is the Church; thy refuge is the Church. It is higher 227,
than the heavens and wider than the earth. It never grows old, 229)
but is ever full of vigor. Wherefore Holy Writ pointing to its
strength and stability calls it a mountain" (a). Also Augustine
says: “Unbelievers think that the Christian religion will last for
a certain period in the world and will then disappear. But it will
remain as long as the sun—as long as the sun rises and sets; that
is, as long as the ages of time shall roll, the Church of God—
the true body of Christ on earth—will not disappear” (b). And in
another place: "The Church will totter if its foundation shakes;
but how can Christ be moved?.... Christ remaining immovable,
it (the Church) shall never be shaken. Where arc they that say
that the Church has disappeared from the world, when it cannot
even be shaken?” (c)
How to recognize the true nature of this unity
He who seeks the truth must be guided by these fundamental 546
principles. That is to say, that Christ the Lord instituted and (2)

545a Hom. De capto Eutropio, η. 6. 545b /n Psalm. Ixx. n. 8.
545c Enarratio in Psalm, ciii., scrmo ii., n. 5.

304

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

formed the Church: wherefore when we are asked what its nature
is, the main thing is to see what Christ wished, and what in fact
He did. Judged by such a criterion it is the unity of the Church
which must be principally considered; and of this, for the general
good, it has seemed useful to speak in this Encyclical (a).
Nature of unity
547

(2,
12.

548

(41)

549

(21,
4041,
52)

It is so evident from the clear and frequent testimonies of
Holy Writ that the true Church of Jesus Christ is one, that no
Christian can dare to deny it. But in judging and determining the
nature of this unity many have erred in various ways. Not the
foundation of the Church alone, but its whole constitution, be­
longs to the class of things effected by Christ’s free choice. For
this reason the entire case must be judged by what was actually
done. We must consequently investigate not how the Church may
possibly be one, but how He, who founded it, willed that it
should be one.
But when we consider what was actually done we find that
Jesus Christ did not, in point of fact, institute a Church to em­
brace several communities similar in nature, but in themselves
distinct, and lacking those bonds which render the Church unique
and indivisible after that manner in which in the symbol of our
faith we profess: “I believe in one Church.”
“The Church in respect of its unity belongs to the category
of things indivisible by nature, though heretics try to divide it
into many parts.... We say, therefore, that the Catholic Church
is unique in its essence, in its doctrine, in its origin, and in its
excellence.... Furthermore, the eminence of the Church arises
from its unity, as the principle of its constitution—a unity sur­
passing all else, and having nothing like unto it or equal to it (a).
For this reason Christ, speaking of this mystical edifice, mentions
only one Church, which He calls his own—“I will build My
Church"; any other Church except this one, since it has not been
founded by Christ, cannot be the true Church.
546a //is vclut fundamentis utendum veritatem quærenti. Scilicet
Ecclesiam instituit formavitque Christus Dominus propterea na­
tura illius cum auæritur cujusmodi sit, caput est nosse quid
Christus coluerit quidque reapse effecerit. Ad hanc regulam
exigenda maxime Ecclesi.v unitas est, de qua visum est, com­
munis utilitatis causa, nonnihil his litteris attingere.
549a S. Clemens Alexandrinus, Stromatum b. viii., c. 17.

I

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305

/1 single Church and a single mission
This becomes even more evident when the purpose of the 550
divine Founder is considered. For what did Christ the Lord ask? (39,
What did He wish in regard to the Church founded, or about to 44,
be founded? This: to transmit to it the same mission and the same 75,
mandate which He had received from the Father, that they should 77)
be perpetuated. This He clearly resolved to do: this He actually
did. “As the Father hath sent Me, I also send you” (a). “As thou
hast sent Me into the world I also have sent them into the
world” (b). But the mission of Christ is to save “that which had
perished”; that is to say, not some nations or peoples, but the
whole human race, without distinction of time or place. "The Son
of man came that the world might be saved bv Him" (c). “For
there is no other name under heaven given to men whereby we
must be saved” (d).

That the one Church should embrace all men everywhere 551
and at all times was seen and foretold by Isaias, when looking (40,
into the future he saw the appearance of a mountain conspicu­ 72)
ous by its all-surpassing altitude, which set forth the image of
"the house of the Lord’ —that is, of the Church. “And in the last
days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared on
the top of the mountains” (a). But this mountain which towers
over all other mountains is one; and the house of the Lord to
which all nations shall come to seek the rule of living is also one.
And all nations shall flow unto it. And many peoples shall go,
and say: Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
and to the house of the God of Jacob, and He will teach us his
ways, and we will walk in his paths” (b). Explaining this pas­
sage, Optatus of Mila says: “It is written in the prophet Isaias:
From Sion the law shall go forth, and the word of the Lord from
Jerusalem.’ For it is not on Mount Sion that Isaias sees the valley,
but on the holy mountain; that is, the Church, which has raised
itself conspicuously throughout the entire Boman world under
the whole heavens.... The Church is, therefore, the spiritual
Sion in which Christ has been constituted King by God the Fa­
ther, and which exists throughout the entire earth, on which there
is but one Catholic Church." (c) And Augustine says: “What
550a John 20:21.
550b John 17:18.
550d Acts 4:12.
551a Isa. 2:2.
551c De Schism. Donatist. Uh. iii, n. 2.

550c John 3:17.
551b Isa. 2:2-3.

306

552
(6.

24,
34,
38)

553
(6,
42,
54)

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

can be so manifest as a mountain, or so well known? There are,
it is true, mountains which are unknown because they are situ­
ated in some remote part of the earth.... But this mountain is
not unknown; for it has filled the whole face of the world, and
about this it is said that it is prepared on the summit of the
mountains” (d).
One Church because One Head
Furthermore, the Son of God decreed that the Church should
be his mystical body, with which He should be united as the
head, after the manner of the human body which He assumed,
to which the natural head is physiologically united. As He took
to Himself a mortal body which He gave to suffering and death
in order to pay the price of man's redemption, so also He has
one mystical body in which and through which He renders men
partakers of holiness and of eternal salvation. God “hath made
Him (Christ) head over all the Church, which is bis body” (a).
Scattered and separated members cannot possibly cohere
with the head so as to make one body. But St. Paul says: "All
the members of the body, whereas they are many, yet are one
body, so also is Christ” (a). Wherefore this mystical body, he
declares, is “compacted and fitly joined together. The head,
Christ; from whom the whole body, being compacted and fitly
joined together, by what every joint supplieth, according to the
operation in the measure of every part" (b). And so dispersed
members, separated one from the other, cannot be united with
one and the same head. “There is one God, and one Christ; and
his Church is one and the faith is one; and one the people,
joined together in the solid unity of the body in the bond of con­
cord. This unity cannot be broken, nor the one body divided by
the separation of its constituent parts” (c). And to set forth more
clearly the unity of the Church, he makes use of the illustration
of a living body, the members of which cannot possibly live unless
united to the head and drawing from it their vital force. Sepa­
rated from the head they must of necessity die. “The Church,"
he says, “cannot be divided into parts by the separation and cut­
ting asunder of its members. What is cut away from the mother

551d
552a
553a
553c

In Ep. Joan., tract i., n. 13.

Eph. 1:22:23.
1 Cor. 12:12.
553b Eph. 4:15-16.
S. Cyprianus. De Cath. Eccl Unitate, n. 23.

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307

cannot live or breathe apart” (d). What similarity is there between
a dead and a living body? “For no man ever hated his own flesh,
but nourisheth and cherisheth it, as also Christ doth the Church:
because we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his
bones” (e).

Another head like to Christ must be invented—that is, anoth- 554
er Christ—if besides the one Church, which is his body, men (41)
wish to set up another. “See what you must beware of—see what
you must avoid—see what you must dread. It happens that, as in
the human body, some member may be cut off—a hand, a fin­
ger, a foot. Does the soul follow the amputated member? As long
as it was in the body, it lived; separated, it forfeits its life. So a
inan is a Catholic as long as he lives in the body: cut off from
it he becomes a heretic—the life of the spirit follows not the
amputated member” (a).
The Church of Christ, therefore, is one and the same forever; 555
those who leave it depart from the will and command of Christ (58,
the Lord—leaving the path of salvation they enter on that of 61,
perdition. “Whosoever is separated from the Church is united 227)
to an adulteress. He has cut himself off from the promises of the
Church, and he who leaves the Church of Christ cannot arrive
at the rewards of Christ.... He who observes not this unitv
observes not the law of God, holds not the faith of the Father
and the Son, clings not to life and salvation” (a).
The bonds of unity
But He, indeed, who made this one Church, also gave it 556
unity, that is, He made it such that all who are to belong to it (38,
must be united by the closest bonds, so as to form one societ}', 41.
one kingdom, one body, “one body and one spirit, as you are {6)
called in one hope of your calling” (a). Jesus Christ, when his
death was nigh at hand, declared his will in this matter, and
solemnly offered it up, thus addressing his Father: “Not for them
only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall
believe in Me ... that they also may be one in Us ... that they
553d
554a
555a
556a

Ibid.
553e Eph. 5:29-30.
S. Augustinus, Sermo cclxvii., n. 4.
S. Cyprianus, De Cath. Eccl. Unitate, n. 6.
Eph. 4:4.

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UNITY OF THE CHURCH

may be made perfect in one" (b). Yea, He commanded that this
unity should be so closely knit and so perfect amongst his fol­
lowers that it might, in some measure, shadow forth the union
between Himself and his Father: ‘1 pray that they all may be
one, as Thou, Father, in Me, and 1 in Thee” (c).
The unity of faith
Agreement and union of minds is the necessary foundation of
557
(46, this perfect concord amongst men, from which concurrence of
96) wills and similarity of action are the natural results. Wherefore,
in his divine wisdom, He ordained in his Church Unity of
Faith; a virtue which is the first of those bonds which unite man
to Cod, and whence we receive the name of the “faithful—one
Lord, one faith, one baptism" (a). That is, as there is one Lord
and one baptism, so should all Christians, without exception, have
but one faith. And so the Apostle St. Paul not merely begs but
entreats and implores Christians to be all of the same mind, and
to avoid difference of opinions: “I beseech you, brethren, by the
name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing,
and that there be no schisms amongst you, and that you be perfect
in the same mind and in the same judgment” (b). Such passages
certainly need no interpreter; they speak clearly enough for them­
selves.
558
Besides, all who profess Christianity allow that there can
(•/6) be but one faith. It is of the greatest importance, and indeed of
absolute necessity, as to which many are deceived, that the nature
and character of this unity should be recognized. And, as We have
already stated, this is not to be ascertained by conjecture, but
by the certain knowledge of what was done; that is, by seeking
for and ascertaining what kind of unity in faith has been com­
manded by Jesus Christ.
559
The heavenly doctrine of Christ, although for the most part
(53) committed to writing by divine inspiration, could not unite the
minds of men if left to the human intellect alone. It would, for
this very reason, be subject to various and contradictory' interpre­
tations. This is so not only because of the nature of the doctrine
itself and of the mysteries it involves, but also because of the
divergencies of the human mind and of the disturbing clement
556b John 17:20-21. 23.
557a Eph. 4:5.

556c Ibid. 21.
557b I Cor. LIO.

UNI TY OF THE CHURCH

309

of conflicting passions. From a variety of interpretations a variety
of beliefs is necessarily begotten; hence come controversies, dis­
sensions, and wranglings such as have arisen in the past, even in
the first ages of the Church. Irenaeus writes of heretics as follows:
“Admitting the Sacred Scriptures they distort the interpreta­
tions” (a). And Augustine: “Heresies have arisen, and certain
perverse views ensnaring souls and precipitating them into the
abyss only when the Scriptures, good in themselves, are not
properly understood" (b).
The teaching authority
the principle of the unity of faith

Besides Holy Writ it was absolutely necessary, to insure this 560
union of men’s minds—to effect and preserve unity of ideas—that (96
there should be another principle. This the wisdom of God re- 109)
quires: for He could not have willed that the faith should be one
if He did not provide means sufficient for the preservation of this
unity; and this Holy Writ clearly sets forth as We shall presently
point out. Assuredly the infinite power of God is not bound by
anything; all things obey it as so many passive instruments. In
regard to this external principle, therefore, we must inquire
which one of all the means in his power Christ did actually adopt.
For this purpose it is necessary to recall in thought the institution
of Christianity. We are mindful only of what is witnessed to by
Holy Writ and what is otherwise well known. Christ proves his
own divinity and the divine origin of his mission by miracles;
He teaches the multitudes heavenly doctrine by word of mouth;
and He absolutely commands that the assent of faith should be
given to his teaching, promising eternal rewards to those who
believe and eternal punishment to those who do not. “If I do not
the works of My Father, believe Me not (a). If I had not done
among them the works that no other man hath done, they would
not have sin” (b). “But if I do (the works), though you will not
believe Me, believe the works” (c). Whatever He commands, He
commands by the same authority. He requires the assent of the
mind to all truths without exception. It was thus the duty of all
559a
559b
560a
560b

Adv. Hæres., cap. 12, n. 12.
In Evang. Joan., tract, xviii., cap. 5, n. 1.
John 10:37.
John 15:24
560c John 10:38.

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UNITY OF THE CHURCH

who heard Jesus Christ, if they wished for eternal salvation, not
merely to accept his doctrine as a whole, but to assent with their
entire mind to all and every point of it, since it is unlawful to
withhold faith from God even in regard to one single point.
561
(85,
89,
97.
214)

The mission given to the Apostles
When about to ascend into heaven He sends his apostles in
virtue of the same power by which He had been sent from the
Father; and He charges them to spread abroad and propagate
his teaching. “All power is given to Me in heaven and in earth.
Coing therefore teach all nations ... teaching them to observe
all things whatsoever 1 have commanded you’’ (a). So that those
obeying the apostles might be saved, and those disobeying should
perish. "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he
that believeth not shall be condemned” (b). But since it is
obviously most in harmony with God’s providence that no one
should have confided to him a great and important mission unless
he were furnished with the means of properly carrying it out,
for this reason Christ promised that He would send the Spirit
of Truth to his disciples to remain with them forever. “But if
I go I will send Him (the Paraclete) to you.... But when He,
the Spirit of Truth, is come. He will teach you all truth" (c).
"And 1 will ask the Father, and He shall give you another
Paraclete, that He may abide with you forever, the Spirit of
Truth" (d). "He shall give testimony of Me, and you shall give
testimony” (e).

562
Hence He commanded that the teaching of the apostles
(109)should be religiously accepted and piously kept as if it were his
own—“He who hears you hears Me, he who despises you despises
Me” (a). Wherefore the apostles are ambassadors of Christ as
He is the ambassador of the Father. As the Father sent Me so
also 1 send you" (b). Hence as the apostles and disciples were
bound to obey Christ, so also those whom the apostles taught
were, by God’s command, bound to obey them. And, therefore,
it was no more allowable to repudiate one iota of the apostles’
teaching than it was to reject any point of the doctrine of Christ
Himself.
561a Malt. 26.18-20
56Id Ibid. 11:16-17.
562a Luke 10.16

561b Mark 16:16
561c John 16:7-13.
56le Ihid. 15:26-27.
562b John 20:21.

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or mi

church

311

Truly the voice of the apostles, when the Holy Ghost had 563
come down upon them, resounded throughout the world. Wherev- (90)
er they went they proclaimed themselves the ambassadors of
Christ Himself. "By whom (Jesus Christ) we have received grace
and apostleship for obedience to the faith in all nations for his
name” (a). And God makes known their divine mission by
numerous miracles. "But they going forth preached everywhere:
the Lord working withal, and confirming the word with signs that
followed” (b). But what is this word? That which comprehends
all things, that which they had learned from their Master; because
they openly and publicly declare that they cannot help speaking
of what they had seen and heard.

Successors of the Apostles
But, as we have already said, the apostolic mission was not 564
destined to die with the apostles themselves, or to come to an (77,
end in the course of time, since it was intended for the people 86,
at large and instituted for the salvation of the human race. For 89,
Christ commanded his apostles to preach the "Gospel to even 96,
creature, to carry his name to nations and kings, and to be wit- 186)
nesses to Him to the ends of the earth". He further promised to
assist them in the fulfillment of their high mission, and that, not
for a few years or centuries only, but for all time—"even to the
consummation of the world”. Upon which St. Jerome says: “He
who promises to remain with his disciples to the end of the
world declares that they will be forever victorious, and that He
will never depart from those who believe in Him” (a). But how
could all this be realized in the apostles alone, placed as they
were under the universal law of dissolution by death? It was
consequently provided by God that the Magisterium instituted
by Jesus Christ should not end with the life of the apostles, but
that it should be perpetuated. We see it in truth propagated, and.
as it were, delivered from hand to hand.
For the apostles consecrated bishops, and appointed those 565
who were to succeed them immediately "in the ministry of the (186)
word”. Nay more: they likewise required their successors to
choose fitting men, to endow them with like authority, and to
confide to them the office and mission of teaching. "Thou, there-

563a Rom. 1:5.
563b Mark 16:20.
564a In Matt., lib. iv., cap. 28, v. 20.

312

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

fore, my son, be strong in the grace which is in Christ Jesus: and
the things which thou hast heard of me by many witnesses, the
same commend to faithful men, who shall be fit to teach others
also" (a). Wherefore, as Christ was sent by God and the apostles
by Christ, so the bishops and those who succeeded them were
sent by the apostles. "The apostles were appointed by Christ to
preach the Gospel to us. Jesus Christ was sent by God. Christ is
therefore from God, and the apostles from Christ, and both ac­
cording to the will of God.... Preaching therefore the word
through the countries and cities, when they had proved in the
Spirit the first-fruits of their teaching they appointed bishops and
deacons for the faithful.... They appointed them and then
ordained them, so that when they themselves had passed away
other tried men should carry on their ministry" (b).
566
On the one hand, therefore, it is necessary that the mission
(109, of teaching whatever Christ had taught should remain perpetual
277) and immutable, and on the other that the duty of accepting and
professing all their doctrine should likewise be perpetual and
immutable. “Our Lord Jesus Christ, when in his Gospel He
testifies that those who are not with Him are his enemies, does
not designate any special form of heresy, but declares that all
heretics who are not with Him and do not gather with Him,
scatter his flock and are his adversaries: He that is not with Me
is against Me, and he that gathereth not with Me scattereth” (a).

The Church is the guardian of faith:
testimony of history

567
The Church, founded on these principles and mindful of her
(55, office, has done nothing with greater zeal and endeavor than she
99) has displayed in guarding the integrity of the faith. Hence she
regarded as rebels and expelled from the ranks of her children
all who held beliefs on any point of doctrine different from her
own. The Arians, the Montanists, the Novatians, the Quartodecimans, the Eutychians, did not certainly reject all Catholic
doctrine: they abandoned only a certain portion of it. Still who
does not know that they were declared heretics and banished
from the bosom of the Church? In like manner were condemned
565a 2 Tim. 2:1-2.
565b S. Clemens Rom., Epist. 1. ad Corinth, capp. 42, 46.
566a S. Cyprianus, Ep. Ixix. ad Magnum, n. 1.

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313

all authors of heretical tenets who followed them in subsequent
ages. "There can be nothing more dangerous than those heretics
who admit nearly the whole cycle of doctrine, and yet by one
word, as with a drop of poison, infect the real and simple faith
taught by Our Lord and handed down by apostolic tradition” (a).
The practice of the Church has always been the same, as is shown
by the unanimous teaching of the Fathers, who were wont to hold
as outside Catholic communion, and alien to the Church, whoever
would recede in the least degree from any point of doctrine
proposed by her authoritative Magisterium. Epiphanius, Augus­
tine, Theodoret, drew up a long list of the heresies of their times.
St. Augustine notes that other heresies may spring up, to a single
one of which, should any one give his assent, he is by the ven'
fact cut off from Catholic unity. "No one who merely disbelieves
in all (these heresies) can for that reason regard himself as a
Catholic or call himself one. For there may be or may arise some
other heresies, which are not set out in this work of ours, and if
any one holds to one single one of these, he is not a Catholic” (b).
The teaching of St. Paul
The need of this divinely instituted means for the préserva- 568
tion of unity, about which We speak, is urged by St. Paul in his (44,
epistle to the Ephesians. In this he first admonishes them to 46.
preserve with every care concord of minds: "Solicitous to keep 89,
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (a). And as souls J37)
cannot be perfectly united in charity unless minds agree in faith,
he wishes all to hold the same faith: “One Lord, one faith,” and
this so perfectly one as to prevent all danger of error: "That hence­
forth we be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about
with every wind of doctrine by the wickedness of men, by cunning
craftiness, by which they lie in wait to deceive" (b); and this he
teaches is to be observed, not for a time only, but "until we all
meet in the unity of faith... unto the measure of the age of the
fullness of Christ” (c). But. in what has Christ placed the primary
principle, and the means of preserving this unity? In that—“He
gave some apostles ... and other some pastors and doctors, for the
perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the
edifying of the body of Christ” (d).
567a Auctor Tract, de Fide Orthodoxa contra Arianos.
567b S. Augustinus, De Hieresibtis, n. 88.
568a Eph. 4:3 ff.
568b Eph. 4:14.
568c Eph. 4:13.
568d Eph. 4:11-12.

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314

Testimony of the Fathers
569
Wherefore, from the very earliest times the Fathers and
(102) Doctors of the Church have been accustomed to follow and with
one accord to defend this rule. Origen writes: "As often as the
heretics allege the possession of the canonical scriptures, to which
all Christians give unanimous assent, they seem to say: ‘Behold
the word of truth is with usl’ But we should believe them not and
abandon not the primary and ecclesiastical tradition. We should
believe not otherwise than has been handed down by the tradition
of the Church of God” (a). Irenaeus too says: “The doctrine of
the apostles is the true faith ... which is known to us through the
episcopal succession ... which has reached even unto our age
by the very fact that the Scriptures have been zealously guarded
and fully interpreted” (b).
570
And Tertullian: “It is therefore clear that all doctrine which
(61) agrees with that of the apostolic churches—the mothers and
original centers of the faith—must be looked upon as the truth,
holding without hesitation that the Church received it from the
apostles, the apostles from Christ, and Christ from God.... We
are in communion with the apostolic churches, and by the very
fact that they agree amongst themselves we have a testimony of
the truth” (a). And so Hilary: “Christ teaching from the ship
signifies that those who are outside the Church can never grasp
the divine teaching; for the ship typifies the Church where the
word of life is deposited and preached. Those who are outside
are like sterile and worthless sand: they cannot comprehend” (b).
Rufinus praises Gregory of Nazianzen and Basil because “they
studied the text of Holy Scripture alone, and took the interpre­
tation of its meaning not from their own inner consciousness, but
from the writings and on the authority of the ancients, who in
their turn, as it is clear, took their rule for understanding the
meaning from the apostolic succession” ( c ),
Conclusion: character of the teaching authority
571
Wherefore, as appears from what has been said, Christ in(89, stituted in the Church a living, authoritative, and permanent
96, Magisterium, which by his own power He strengthened, by the
569a
569b
570a
570b

Vetus Interpretatio Commentariorum in Matt. n. 46.
Adv. Hxrcs. lib. iv., cap. 33, an. 8.
De Prascript., cap. xxxi.
Comment. in Matt. xiii. n. 1. 570c Hist. Eccl., ii., cap. 9.

UNITY OF TUE CHURCH

315

Spirit of the Truth He taught, and by miracles confirmed. He 109)
willed and ordered, under the gravest penalties, that its teachings
should be received as if they were his own.

Obligation to adhere to it
As often, therefore, as it is declared on the authority of this
teaching that this or that is contained in the deposit of divine
revelation, it must be believed by everyone as true. If it could in
any way be false, an evident contradiction follows; for then God
Himself would be the author of error in man (a). “Lord, if we be
in error, we are being deceived by Thee” (b). In this wise, all
cause for doubting being removed, can it be lawful for anyone
to reject any one of those truths without by the very fact falling
into heresy?—without repudiating in one sweeping act the whole
of Christian teaching?

572
(55,
96,
109)

For such is the nature of faith that nothing can be more ab- 573
surd than to accept some things and reject others. Faith, as the (55,
Church teaches, is “that supernatural virtue by which, through 109)
the help of God and through the assistance of his grace, we be­
lieve what He has revealed to be true, not on account of the in­
trinsic truth perceived by the natural light of reason, but because
of the authority of God Himself, the Revealer, who can neither
deceive nor be deceived” (a). If then it be certain that anything
is revealed by God, and this is not believed, then nothing what­
ever is believed by divine faith: for what the Apostle St. James
judges to be the effect of a moral delinquency, the same is to be
said of an erroneous opinion in the matter of faith: “Whosoever
shall offend in one point, is become guilty of all” (b). Nay, it
applies with greater force to an erroneous opinion. For it can be
said with less truth that every law is violated by one who com­
mits a single sin, since it may be that he only virtually despises
the majesty of God the Legislator. But he who dissents even in
one point from divinely revealed truth absolutely rejects all faith,
since he thereby refuses to honor God as the supreme truth and
572a Quoties igitur hujus verbo magisterii edicitur, tradit.v divini­
tus doctrina.· complexu hoc contineri vel illud, id quisque debet
certo credere verum esse: si falsum esse ullo modo posset, illud
consequatur, quod aperte repugnat, erroris in homine ipsum esse
auctorem Deum.
572b Richard of S. Victore, De Trin., lib. i., cap. 2.
573a Cone. Vat., Sess. iii., cap. 3. 573b James 2:10.

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UNITY OF THE CHURCH

the formal mot ice of faith, “In many things they are with me,
in a few things not with me; but in those few things in which
they are not with me the many things in which they are will not
profit them” (c). And this indeed most deservedly; for they who
take from Christian doctrine what they please lean on their own
judgments, not on faith; and not “bringing into captivity every
understanding unto the obedience of Christ" (d), they more truly
obey themselves than God. “You, who believe what you like of
the gospels and believe not what you like, believe yourselves
rather than the gospel” (e).
574
For this reason the Fathers of the Vatican Council laid down
(102, nothing new, but followed divine revelation and the acknowl109) edged and invariable teaching of the Church as to the very nature
of faith, when they decreed as follows: “All those things are to be
believed by divine and Catholic faith which are contained in the
written or unwritten word of God, and which are proposed by
the Church as divinely revealed, either by a solemn definition or
in the exercise of its ordinary' and universal Magisterium” (a).

Appeal to return to the one true faith
575
Hence, as it is clear that God absolutely willed that there
(46) should be unity in his Church, and as it is evident what kind of
unity He willed, and by means of what principle He ordained
that this unity should be maintained, We may address the fol­
lowing words of St. Augustine to all who have not deliberately
closed their minds to the truth: “When we see that great help of
God, such manifest progress and such abundant fruit, shall we
hesitate to take refuge in the bosom of that Church which, as is
evident to all, possesses the supreme authority of the Apostolic
See through the episcopal succession? In vain do heretics rage
round it; they are condemned partly by the judgment of the peo­
ple themselves, partly by the weight of councils, partly by the
splendid evidence of miracles. To refuse to the Church the pri­
macy is most impious and above measure arrogant. And if all
learning, no matter how easy and common it may be, in order to
be fully understood, requires a teacher and master, what can be
573c
573d
573e
574a

S. Augustinus, in Psal. lie., n. 19.
2 Cor. 10:5.
S. Augustinus, lib. xvii., Contra Faustum Manichæum, cap. 3.
Sess. iii. cap. 3.

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317

greater evidence of pride and rashness than to be unwilling to
learn about the books of the divine mysteries from the proper
interpreter, and to wish to condemn them unknown?” (a).
Unity of government and liturgy

It is, then, undoubtedly the office of the Church to guard 576
Christian doctrine and to propagate it in its integrity and purity. (61But this is not all: the object for which the Church had been insti­ 62,
tuted is not wholly attained by the performance of this duty. For, 77since Jesus Christ delivered Himself up for the salvation of the 78,
human race, and to this end directed all his teaching and com­ 99mands, so He ordered the Church to strive, by the truth of its doc­
trine, to sanctify and to save mankind. But faith alone cannot 115,
compass so great, excellent, and important an end. There must 121,
needs be also the fitting and devout worship of God, which is to 123,
be found chiefly in the divine sacrifice and in the dispensation of 142,
the sacraments, as well as salutary laws and discipline. All these 144)
must be found in the Church, since it continues the mission of the
Savior forever. The Church alone offers to the human race that
religion—that state of absolute perfection—which He wished, as
it were, to be incorporated in it. And it alone supplies those
means of salvation which accord with the ordinary counsels of
Providence.
The institution of the hierarchy
But as this heavenly doctrine was never left to the arbitrary 577
judgment of private individuals, but in the beginning delivered (85,
by Jesus Christ, was afterwards committed by Him exclusively to 113,
the Magisterium already named, so the power of performing and 119,
administering the divine mysteries, together with the authority 214)
of ruling and governing, was not bestowed by God on all Chris­
tians indiscriminately, but on certain chosen persons. For to the
apostles and their legitimate successors alone these words have
reference: “Going into the whole world preach the Gospel.”
“Baptizing them." “Do this in commemoration of Me.” “Whose
sins you shall forgive they are forgiven them” (a). And in like
manner He ordered the apostles only and those who should law­
fully succeed them to feed—that is to govern with authority—all
Christian souls. Whence it also follows that it is necessarily the
575a De Utilitate Credendi, cap. xvii, No. 35.
577a Mark 16:15; Matt. 28:19. 1 Cor. 11:25; John 20:23.

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UNITY OF THE CHURCH

duty of Christians to be subject and to obey. And these duties of
the apostolic office are, in general, all included in the words of
St. Paul: “Let a man so account of us as of the ministers of Christ,
and the dispensers of the mysteries of God" ( b ).
The Church is the universal society of salvation
578
Wherefore Jesus Christ bade all men, present and future,
(8, follow Him as their leader and Savior; and this not merely as
16, individuals, but as forming a society, organized and united in
44- mind. In this way a duly constituted society should exist, formed
46, out of the divided multitude of peoples, one in faith, one in end,
50, one in the participation of the means adapted to the attainment
77- of the end, and one as subject to one and the same authority. To
78, this end He established in the Church all those principles which
81, necessarily tend to make organized human societies, and through
93, which they attain the perfection proper to each. That is, in it
131) (the Church) all who wished to be sons of God by adoption
might attain to the perfection demanded by their high calling,
and might obtain salvation. The Church, therefore, as we have
said, is man’s guide to whatever pertains to heaven. This is the
office appointed unto it by God: that it may watch over and may
order all that concerns religion, and may, without let or hindrance,
exercise, according to its judgment, its charge over Christianity.
Wherefore they who pretend that the Church has any wish to
interfere in civil matters, or to infringe upon the rights of the
State, know it not, or wickedly calumniate it. God indeed even
made the Church a society far more perfect than any other. For
the end for which the Church exists is as much higher than the
end of other societies as divine grace is above nature, as immortal
blessings are above the transitory things on the earth.
Marks of the Church as a society
579
Therefore the Church is a society divine in its orgin, super(3, natural in its end and in the means proximately adapted to the
6, attainment of that end; but it is a human community inasmuch
8, as it is composed of men (a). For this reason we find it called in
10, Holy Writ by names indicating a perfect society. It is spoken of as
577b 1 Cor 4.1.
579a Ergo Ecclesia societas est ortu divina: fine, rebusque proxime
fini proxime admoventibus, supematuralis: quod vero coalescit
hominibus humana communitus est.

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319

the house of God, the city placed upon the mountain to which all 13,
nations must come. But it is also the* fold presided over by one 39,
Shepherd, and into which all Christ’s sheep must betake them- 42,
selves. Yea, it is called the kingdom which God has raised up and 70,
which will stand forever. Finally it is the body of Christ—that is, 73,
of course, His mystical body, but a body living and duly organ- 136,
ized and composed of many members; members indeed which 227)
have not all the same functions; but which, united one to the
other, are kept bound together by the guidance and authority of
the head.
Unique and sovereign power
Indeed no true and perfect human society can be conceived 580
which is not governed by some supreme authority. Christ there- (13,
fore must have given to his Church a supreme authority to which 44,
all Christians must render obedience. For this reason, as the unity 137,
of the faith is of necessity required for the unity of the Church, 149,
inasmuch as it is the body of the faithful, so also for this same 161)
unity, inasmuch as the Church is a divinely constituted society,
unity of government, which effects and involves unity of com­
munion, is necessary jure divino. "The unity of the Church is
manifested in the mutual connection or communication of its
members, and likewise in the relation of all the members of the
Church to one head” (a).

From this it is easy to see that men can fall away from the 581
unity of the Church by schism, as well as by heresy. “We think (55)
that this difference exists between heresy and schism,” writes
St. Jerome: “heresy has no perfect dogmatic teaching, whereas
schism, through some episcopal dissent, also separates from the
Church” (a). In which judgment St. John Chrysostom concurs:
“I say and protest,” he writes, “that it is as wrong to divide the
Church as to fall into heresy” (b). Wherefore as no heresy can
580a Qua de caussa, sicut ad unitatem Ecclesiæ, quatenus est cœtus
fidelium, necessario unitas fidei requiritur, ita ad ipsius unitatem,
quatenus est divinitus constituta societas, requiritur jure divino
unitas regiminis, qu;e unitatem communionis efficit et complec­
titur: “Ecclesiæ autem unitas in duobus attenditur scilicet in
connexione membrorum Ecclesia· ad invicem seu communica­
tione, et iterum in ordine omnium membrorum Ecclesiæ ad unum
caput” (S. Thomas d’Aquin, Sum. Theol. 2-2ae, q. 39, a. I).
581a S. Hieronymus, Comment, in Epist. ad Titum, cap. iii., v.
10, II.
581b Hom. xi., in Epist. ad Ephcs., n. 5.

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UNITY OF ΠΙΕ CHURCH

ever be justifiable, so in like manner there can be no justification
for schism. “There is nothing more grievous than the sacrilege of
schism ... there can be no just necessity for destroying the unity
of the Church” (c).
Peter, the foundation of the Church
582
The nature of this supreme authority, which all Christians
(2, are bound to obey, can be ascertained only by finding out what
9, was the evident and positive will of Christ. Certainly Christ is a
26, King forever; and though invisible, He continues unto the end of
28, time to govern and guard his Church from heaven. But since He
75, willed that his kingdom should be visible He was obliged, when
144) He ascended into heaven, to designate a vicegerent on earth.
“Should any one say that Christ is the one head and the one
shepherd, the one spouse of the one Church, he does not give an
adequate reply. It is clear, indeed, that Christ is the author of
grace in the sacraments of the Church; it is Christ Himself who
baptizes; it is He who forgives sins; it is He who is the true priest
who hath offered Himself upon the altar of the cross, and it is
by his power that his body is daily consecrated upon the altar;
and still, because He was not to be visibly present to all the faith­
ful, He made choice of ministers through whom the aforesaid
sacraments should be dispensed to the faithful as said above” (a).
“For the same reason, therefore, because He was about to with­
draw his visible presence from the Church, it was necessary that
He should appoint someone in his place, to have the charge of
the universal Church. Hence before his ascension He said to
Peter, 'Feed My sheep’ ”(b).
583
Jesus Christ, therefore, appointed Peter to be the head of
(139-the Church, and He also determined that the authority instituted
140, in perpetuity for the salvation of all should be inherited by his
142, successors, in whom the same permanent authority' of Peter him159-self should continue. And so He made that remarkable promise
161) to Peter and to no one else: "Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I
will build My Church” (a). “To Peter the Lord spoke: to one
therefore, that He might establish unity' upon one” (b). “Without
581e S. Augustinus, Contra Epistolam Parmeniani, lib. 2., cap. 2
n. 25.
582a St. Thomas Aq., Contra Gent., 4, 74.
582b St. Thomas Aq., Contra Gentiles 4, 76.
583a Matt. 16:18.
583b S. Pacianus, ad Sempronium, Ep. iii., n. 11.

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321

any prelude He mentions St. Peter’s name anil that of his father
(Blessed art thou Simon, son of John) and He does not wish him
to be called any more Simon; claiming him for Himself according
to his divine authority. He aptly names him Peter, from petra the
rock, since upon him He was about to found his Church" (c).

The powers of Peter
From this text it is clear that by the will and command of 584
Cod the Church rests upon St. Peter, just as a building rests on its (139foundation. Now the proper nature of a foundation is to be a 140,
principle of cohesion for the various parts of the building. It 148must be the necessary bond of stability and strength. Remove it 149,
and the whole building falls. It is consequently the office of 161,
St. Peter to support the Church, and to guard it in all its strength 175)
and indestructible unity. How could he fulfill this office without
the power of commanding, forbidding, and judging, which is
properly called jurisdiction? It is only by this power of jurisdiction
that nations and commonwealths are held together. A primacy of
honor and the shadowy right of giving advice and admonition,
which is called direction, could never secure to any society of men
unity or strength.
The words—«nd the gates of hell shall not prevail against it— 585
proclaim and establish the authority of which We speak. “What (140,
is the it?" writes Origen. “Is it the rock upon which Christ 148,
builds the Church, or the Church? The expression indeed is am­ 150,
biguous, as if the rock and the Church were one and the same. 160,
I indeed think that this is so, and that neither against the rock 229)
upon which Christ builds his Church nor against the Church
shall the gates of hell prevail.” (a) The meaning of this divine
utterance is, that, notwithstanding the wiles and intrigues which
they bring to bear against the Church, it can never be that the
Church committed to the care of Peter shall succumb or in any
wise fail. "For the Church, as the edifice of Christ who has wisely
built ‘his house upon a rock,’ cannot be conquered by the gates
of hell. They may prevail over any man who shall be off the rock
and outside the Church, but they shall be powerless against the
Church" (b).
583c S. Cyrillus Alexandrinus, in Evang. Joan., lib. ii., in cap. iv. 42.
585a Origenes, Comment, in Matt., tom. xii., n. 2.
585b Ibid.

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UNITY OF THE CHURCH

Therefore God confided his Church to Peter so that he might
safely guard it with his unconquerable power. He invested hirn,
therefore, with the needful authority; since the right to rule is
absolutely required by him who has to guard human society real­
ly and effectively.
The keys of the Kingdom
586
This, furthermore, Christ gave: “To thee will I give the keys
(141,of the kingdom of heaven.” And He is clearly still speaking of
150) the Church, which He declared He wished to build on Peter as
on a foundation. The Church is typified not only as an edifice
but as a kingdom, and everyone knows that the keys constitute
the usual sign of governing authority. Wherefore when Christ
promised to give to Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven, He
promised to give him power and authority over the Church. “The
Son committed to Peter the office of spreading the knowledge of
his Father and Himself over the whole world. He who increased
the Church in all the earth, and proclaimed it to be stronger than
the heavens, gave to a mortal man all power in heaven when He
handed him the keys." (a)

To bind and to loose
587
In this same sense He says: “Whatsoever thou shalt bind upfl 41, on earth it shall be bound also in heaven, and whatsoever thou
145, shalt loose on earth it shall be loosed also in heaven." This met149- aphorical expression of binding and loosing indicates the power
151, of making laws, of judging and of punishing; and the power is
175- said to be of such amplitude and force that God will ratify what178) ever is decreed by it. Thus it is supreme and absolutely indepen­
dent, so that, having no other power on earth as its superior, it
embraces the whole Church and all things committed to the
Church.
Feed my Sheep
588
The promise is carried out when Christ the Lord after his
(141-Resurrection, having thrice asked Peter whether he loved Him
151, more than the rest, lays on him the injunction: “Feed My lambs—
200) feed My sheep"(a). That is, He confides to him, without excep­
tion, all those who were to belong to his fold. “The Lord does not
hesitate. He interrogates, not to learn but to teach. When He was
586a S. Johannes Chrysostomus, Hom. lit)., in Matt. v. 2.
588a John 21:16-17.

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about to ascend into heaven He left us, as it were, a vicegerent of
his love... and so because Peter alone of all others professes his
love he is preferred to all—that being the most perfect he should
govern the most perfect’ (b). These, then, are the duties of a
shepherd: to place himself as leader at the head of his flock, to
provide proper food for it, to ward off dangers, to guard against
insidious foes, to defend it against violence: in a word, to rule and
govern it. Since therefore Peter has been placed as shepherd of
the Christian flock he has received the power of governing all
men for whose salvation Jesus Christ shed his blood. “Why has
He shed his blood? To buy the sheep which He handed over to
Peter and his successors” (c).
Infallibility
And since all Christians must be closely united in the com- 589
munion of one immutable faith, Christ the Lord, in virtue of his (139,
prayers, obtained for Peter that in the fulfillment of his office he 155,
should never fall away from the faith. “But I have asked for thee 165,
that thy faith fail not,” (a) and He furthermore commanded him 170to impart light and strength to his brethren as often as the need 171)
should arise: “Confirm thy brethren" (b). He willed then that he
whom He had designated as the foundation of the Church should
be the defense of its faith. "Could not Christ, who confided to
him the kingdom by his own authority, have strengthened the
faith of one whom He designated a rock to show the foundation
of the Church?” (c)
Christ and Peter
For this reason Jesus Christ willed that Peter should partici- 590
pate in certain names, signs of great things which properly belong(139to Himself alone: in order that identity of titles should show iden- 140,
tity of power (a). So He who is Himself “the chief cornerstone 144)
in whom all the building being framed together, groweth up in a
holy temple in the Lord,” (b) placed Peter as it were a stone to
support the Church. "When he heard thou art a rock, he was
588b S. Ambrosius, Exposit. in Evang. secundum Lucam, lib. x.
nn. 175, 176.
588c S. Johannes Chrysostomus, De Sacerdotio, lib ii.
589a Luke 22:32.
589b Ibid.
589c S. Ambrosius, De Fide, lib. iv., n. 56.
590a Cf. St. Leo the Great. Sermo, iv, c. ii.
590b Eph. 2:21.

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ennobled by the announcement. However, he is a rock, not as
Christ is a rock, but as Peter is a rock. For Christ is by his very
being an immovable rock; Peter, only through this rock. Christ
imparts his gifts, and is not exhausted ... He is a priest, and
makes priests. He is a rock, and constitutes a rock” (c).

He who is the King of his Church, “who hath the key of
(139- David, who openeth and no man shutteth, who shutteth and no
140) man openeth” (a), having delivered the keys to Peter declared
him Prince of the Christian commonwealth. So, too, He, the
Great Shepherd, who calls Himself "the Good Shepherd,” con­
stituted Peter the pastor “of his lambs and sheep. Feed My lambs,
feed My sheep” (b). Wherefore Chrysostom says: “He was pre­
eminent among the apostles, he was the mouthpiece of the apos­
tles and the head of the apostolic college ... And Christ, to show
him that henceforth he ought to have confidence, and as it were
blotting out his denial, commits to him the government of his
brethren... He saith to him: ‘If thou lovest Me, be over My
brethren" (c). Finally He who confirms in “every good work
and word" (d) commands Peter to confirm his brethren.
591

592
Rightly, therefore, does St. Leo the Great say: “From the
(151 .whole world Peter alone is chosen to take the lead in calling all
153) nations, to be the head of all the apostles and of all the Fathers
of the Church. So that, although in the people of God there are
many priests and many pastors, Peter should by right rule all of
those over whom Christ Himself is the chief ruler" (a). And so
St. Gregory the Great, writing to the Emperor Maurice Augustus,
says: “It is evident to all who know the Gospel that the charge
of the whole Church was committed to St. Peter, the apostle and
prince of all the apostles, by the word of the Lord ... Behold!
he hath received the keys of the heavenly kingdom—the power
of binding and loosing is conferred upon him: the care of the
whole government of the Church is confided to him” (b).
The successors of Peter
593
It was necessary that a government of this kind, since it be(139. longs to the constitution and formation of the Church, as its prin590c
591a
591c
592a

Hom. de Pœnitentia, n. 4 in Appendice opp. S. Basilii.
Apoc. 3:7.
591b John 10:11.
Hom. LXXXVI1I in Joan., n. 1. 591d 2 Thess. 2:16
Sermo iv., cap. 2.
592b Epist. lib. v. Epist. xx.

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325

cipal element—that is as the principle of unity and the foundation 142.
of lasting stability—should in no wise come to an end with 161)
St. Peter, but should pass to his successors from one to anoth­
er (a). “There remains, therefore, the ordinance of truth, and
St. Peter, persevering in the strength of the rock which he had
received, hath not abandoned the government of the Church
which had been confided to him” (b).
For this reason the Pontiffs who succeeded Peter in the Ro- 594
man Episcopate receive the supreme power in the Church, jure (145,
divino. “We define” declare the Fathers of the Council of Flor- 147,
ence, “that the Holy and Apostolic See and the Roman Pontiff 149)
holds the primacy of the Church throughout the whole world: and
that the same Roman Pontiff is the successor of St. Peter, the
prince of the apostles, and the true Vicar of Christ, the head of the
whole Church, and the father and teacher of all Christians; and
that full power was given to him, in blessed Peter, by Our Lord
Jesus Christ to feed, to rule, and to govern the universal Church,
as is also contained in the acts of ecumenical councils and in the
sacred canons” (a). Similarly the Fourth Council of Lateran de­
clares: “The Roman Church, as the mother and mistress of all the
faithful, by the will of Christ obtains primacy of jurisdiction over
all other Churches.”

Tradition is in favor of the Roman succession
These declarations were preceded by the consent of anti- 595
quity which ever acknowledged, without the slightest doubt or (142
hesitation, the Bishops of Rome, and revered them, as the legit­
imate successors of St. Peter.
Who is unaware of the many and evident testimonies of the
Holyz Fathers which exist to this effect? Most remarkable is that
of St. Irenaeus, who, referring to the Roman Church, says: “With
this Church, on account of its preeminent authority, it is neces­
sary that every Church should be in concord” (a); and St. Cyp­
rian also says of the Roman Church, that "it is the root and
593a Ejusmodi autem principatum, quoniam constitutione ipsa tem­
perationeque Ecclesbc, vehit pars praecipua, continetur, videlicet
ut principium unitatis ac fundamentum incolumitatis perpetua’,
nequaquam cum beato Petro interire, sed recidere in ejus suc­
cessore ex alio in alium apportait.
593b S. Leo M., sermo iii., cap. 3.
594a Cone. Florentinum
595a Contra Ihercses, lib. iii., cap. 3. n. 2.

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326

mother of the Catholic Church" (b), “the chair of Peter, and the
principal Church whence sacerdotal unity has its source” (c).
He calls it the chair of Peter because it is occupied by the suc­
cessor of Peter; he calls it the principal Church, on account of the
primacy conferred on Peter himself and his legitimate successors;
and the source of unity, because the Roman Church is the effi­
cient cause of unity in the Christian commonwealth.
596
For this reason Jerome addresses Damasus thus: “My words
(N2)are spoken to the successor of the Fisherman, to the disciple of
the cross... I communicate with none save your Blessedness,
that is, with the chair of Peter. For this I know is the rock on
which the Church is built" (a). Union with the Roman See of
Peter is to him always the public criterion of a Catholic. “I ac­
knowledge everyone who is united with the See of Peter" (b).
And for a like reason St. Augustine publicly attests that “the
primacy of the Apostolic Chair always existed in the Roman
Church” (c); and he denies that anyone who dissents from the
Roman faith can be a Catholic. “You are not to be looked upon
as holding the true Catholic faith if you do not teach that the
faith of Rome is to be held” (d). So, too, St. Cyprian: “To be in
communion with Cornelius is to be in communion with the
Catholic Church” (e).

The Eastern tradition
597
In the same way Maximus the Abbot teaches that obedience
(142, to the Roman Pontiff is the proof of the true faith and of legiti161) mate communion. “Therefore if a man does not want to be, or
to be called, a heretic, let him not strive to please this or that
man ... but let him hasten before all things to be in communion
with the Roman See. If he be in communion with it, he should be
acknowledged by all and everywhere as faithful and orthodox.
He speaks in vain who tries to persuade me of the orthodoxy of
those who, like himself, refuse obedience to his Holiness the Pope
of the most holy Church of Rome; that is to the Apostolic See.”
The reason and motive of this he explains to be that “the Apos­
tolic See has received and hath government, authority, and power
of binding and loosing from the Incarnate Word Himself, and
595b
596a
596b
596c

Ep.
Ep.
Ep.
Ep.

xlviii ad Cornelium, n. 3. 595c Ep. lix.. ad Corn., n. 14.
xv., ad Datnasuin, n. 2.
xvi., ad Damasum, n. 2.
xliii., n. 7. 596d Sermo cxx., n. 13. 596e Ep. lv., n. 1.

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327

according to all holy synods, sacred canons and decrees, in all
things and through all things, in respect of all the holy churches
of God throughout the whole world. Hence, what this See binds
and loosens, the Word, who rules the heavenly powers, binds and
loosens in Heaven” (a).

Conciliar decisions and declarations
Wherefore what was acknowledged and observed as Chris- 598
tian faith, not by one nation only nor in one age, but by the East (142,
and by the West, and through all ages, this Philip, the priest, the 147)
Pontifical legate at the Council of Ephesus, no voice being raised
in dissent, recalls: “No one can doubt, yea, it is known unto all
ages, that St. Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, the pillar of the
faith and the ground of the Catholic Church, received the keys of
the kingdom from Our Lord Jesus Christ. That is: the power of
forgiving and retaining sins was given to him who, up to the
present time, lives and exercises judgment in the persons of his
successors” (a). The pronouncement of the Council of Chalcedon
on the same matter is present to the minds of all: “Peter has
spoken through Leo” (b), to which the voice of the Third Council
of Constantinople responds as an echo: “The chief Prince of the
Apostles was fighting on our side: for we have had as our ally
his follower and the successor to his see: and the paper and the
ink were seen, and Peter spoke through Agatho” (c). In the for­
mula of Catholic faith drawn up and proposed by Hormisdas,
which was subscribed at the beginning of the sixth century in the
great Eighth Council by the Emperor Justinian, by Epiphanius,
John and Menna, the Patriarchs, this same is declared with great
weight and solemnity. “For the pronouncement of Our Lord Jesus
Christ saying: Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build
My Church,’ etc., cannot be passed over. What is said is proved
by the result, because the Catholic faith has always been pre­
served without stain in the Apostolic See” (d).
We have no wish to quote every' available declaration; but 599
it is well to recall the formula of faith which Michael Paleologus (147)
professed in the Second Council of Lyons: “The same holy Roman
Church possesses the sovereign and plenary primacy and authori597a Defloratio ex Epistola ad Petrum illustrem. 598a Actio iii.
598b Actio ii.
598c Actio xviii.
598d Post Epistolam, xxvi., ad omnes Episc. Hispan., n. 4.

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ty over the whole Catholic Church, which, truly and humbly, it
acknowledges to have received together with the plenitude oi
power from the Lord Himself, in the person of St. Peter, the
Prince or Head of the Apostles, of whom the Roman Pontiff is the
successor. And as it is bound to defend the truth of faith beyond
all others, so also if any question should arise concerning the
faith, it must be determined by its judgment”(a).
The twelve Apostles
600
But if the authority of Peter and his successors is plenary and
(149, supreme, it is not to be regarded as the sole authority. For He
185- who made Peter the foundation of the Church also “chose twelve,
186, whom He called apostles” (a); and just as it is necessary’ that the
195) authority of Peter should be perpetuated in the Roman Pontiff,
so, by the fact that the bishops succeed the apostles, they inherit
their ordinary power, and thus the episcopal order necessarily
belongs to the essential constitution of the Church. Although they
do not receive plenary, or universal, or supreme authority, they
are not to be looked upon as vicars of the Roman Pontiffs; be­
cause they exercise a power really their own, and are most truly
called the ordinary pastors of the peoples over whom they
rule (b).
Bonds between Pope and Bishops
601
But since the successor of Peter is one, and those of the apos(187, ties arc many, it is necessary to examine into the relations which
190) exist between him and them according to the divine constitution
of the Church. Above all things the need of union between the
bishops and the successors of Peter is clear and undeniable. This
bond once broken, Christians would be separated and scattered,
and would in no wise form one body and one flock. “The safety
of the Church depends on the dignity of the chief priest, to whom,
599a Actio iv.
600a Luke 6:13.
600b Quo modo Petri auctoritatem in romano Pontifice perpetuam
permanere nccesse est, sic episcopi, quod succedunt Apostolis,
horum potestatem ordinariam hereditate capiunt; ita ut intimam
Ecclcsiæ constitutionem ordo episcoporum necessario attingat.
Quamquam vero neque plenam neque universalem ii, neque
summam obtinent auctoritatem, non tamen vicarii romanorurn
Pontificum putandi, qui potestatem gerunt sibi propriam, verissimeque populorum, quos regunt antistites ordinarii dicuntur.

UNITY ΟΙ

ΠΙΕ CHURCH

329

if an extraordinary and supreme power is not given, there are as
many schisms to be expected in the Church as there are
priests" (a).

It is necessary, therefore, to bear this in mind, viz., that noth- 602
ing was conferred on the apostles apart from Peter, but that (739.
several things were conferred upon Peter apart from the apostles. 141,
St. John Chrysostom in explaining the words of Christ (a) asks: 191)
' Why, passing over the others, does He speak to Peter about these
things?” And he replies unhesitatingly and at once, “Because he
was preeminent among the apostles, the mouthpiece of the dis­
ciples, and the head of the college" (b). He alone was designated
as the foundation of the Church. To him He gave the power of
binding and loosing; to him alone was given the power of feeding.
On the other hand, whatever authority and office the apostles re­
ceived, they received in conjunction with Peter. “If the divine
benignity willed that the other princes should have something in
common with Peter—which in fact it did not deny them—it gave it
only in view of him. Peter, instead, received—he alone—many
other things, but that which was given to the other princes was
also given to him” (c). From this it must be clearly understood
that bishops are deprived of the right and power of ruling, if they
deliberately secede from Peter and his successors; because, by
this secession, they are separated from the foundation on which
the whole edifice must rest. They are therefore outside the edifice
itself; and for this very reason they are’separated from the fold,
whose leader is the Chief Pastor; they are exiled from the King­
dom, the keys of which were given by Christ to Peter alone.

The divine plan of the Church
These considerations enable us to see the heavenly plan, and
the divine intention in the constitution of the Christian commonwealth, namely: When the divine Founder decreed that the
Church should be one in faith, in government, and in communion,
He chose Peter and his successors as the principal and center, as it
werc, of this unity. Wherefore St. Cyprian says: “The following
is a short and easy proof of the faith. The Lord saith to Peter: 'I
say to thee thou art Peter’; on him alone He buildeth his Church:
601a S. Hieronymus, Dialog, contra Luciferianos, n. 9.
602a John 21:15.
602b Hom. Ixxxviii. in Joan., n. 1.
602c S. Leo M. Sermo iv., cap. 2.

603
(45.
46.
56.
136137
161)

330

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

and although after his Resurrection He gives a similar power to
all the apostles and says: 'As the Father hath sent me,' etc., still
in order to make the need of unity clear, by his own authority He
laid down the source of that unity as beginning from one" (a).
And Optatus of Milevis says: “You cannot deny knowing that it
was on Peter that the Episcopal chair was first conferred in the
city of Rome. It is there that the head of all the apostles has sat—
Peter, who was called Cephas. In this chair alone unity was to be
preserved for all, lest any of the other apostles should claim any­
thing as exclusively his own. So much so, that he who would place
another chair against that one chair, would be a schismatic and a
sinner” (b). Hence the teaching of Cyprian, that heresy and
schism arise and are begotten from the fact that due obedience is
refused to the supreme authority. “Heresies and schisms have no
other origin than that obedience is refused to the priest of God,
and that men lose sight of the fact that there is one judge in the
place of Christ in this world” (c).
604
No one, therefore, unless in communion with Peter can share
(191) in his authority, since it is absurd to imagine that he who is out­
side can command in the Church. Wherefore Optatus of Milevis
blamed the Donatists for this reason: ".Against which gates (of
hell) we read that Peter received the saving keys, that is to say,
our prince, to whom it was said by Christ: ‘To thee will I give
the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and the gates of hell shall
not conquer them.’ Whence is it therefore that you strive to obtain
for yourselves the keys of the kingdom of heaven—you who fight
against the chair of Peter" (a)?

The episcopacy is subject to Peter
605
But the Episcopal order is rightly judged to be in communion
(44, with Peter, as Christ commanded, if it be subject to and obeys
111, Peter; otherwise it necessarily becomes a lawless and disorderly
148- crowd. It is not sufficient for the due preservation of the unity
151, of the faith that the head should merely have been charged with
153, the office of superintendent, or should have been invested solely
161, with a power of direction. But it is absolutely necessary that he
187- should have received real and sovereign authority which the
190, whole community is bound to obey. What had the Son of God in
603a DeUnit. Eccl., n. 4.
603b De Schism. Donat., lib. ii.
603c Epist. xii ad Cornelium, n. 5.
604a Lib. ii., n. 4, 5.

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

331

view when He promised the keys of the kingdom of heaven to 195)
Peter alone? Biblical usage and the unanimous teaching of the
Fathers clearly show that supreme authority is designated in the
passage by the word keys. Nor is it lawful to interpret in a differ­
ent sense what was given to Peter alone, and what was given to
the other apostles conjointly with him. If the power of binding,
loosening, and feeding confers upon each and every one of the
bishops, the successors of the apostles, a real authority to rule the
people committed to him, certainly the same power must have the
same effect in his case to whom the duty of feeding the lambs and
sheep has been assigned by God. “Christ constituted (Peter) not
only pastor, but pastor of pastors; Peter therefore feeds the lambs
and feeds the sheep, feeds the children and feeds the mothers,
governs the subjects and rules the prelates, because the lambs and
the sheep form the whole of the Church" (a).
Hence those remarkable expressions of the ancients concern- 606
ing St. Peter which most clearly set forth the fact that he was (147)
placed in the highest degree of dignity and authority. They fre­
quently call him “the prince of the college of the disciples; the
prince of the holy apostles; the leader of that choir; the mouth­
piece of all the apostles; the head of that family; the ruler of the
whole world; the first of the apostles; the safeguard of the
Church.”
The teaching of St. Bernard
In this sense St. Bernard writes as follows to Pope Eugene: 607
"Who art thou? The great priest—the high priest. Thou art the(147)
Prince of Bishops and the heir of the apostles........Thou art he to
whom the keys were given. There are, it is true, other gatekeepers
of heaven and other pastors of flocks, but thou art so much the
more glorious as thou hast inherited a different and more glorious
name than all the rest. They have flocks consigned to them, one
to each; to thee all the flocks are confided as one flock to one
shepherd, and not alone the sheep, but the shepherds. You ask
how I prove this? From the words of the Lord. In fact, to which,
not only of the bishops but even of the apostles, have all the sheep
been so absolutely and unreservedly committed? If thou lovest
Me, Peter, feed My sheep. Which sheep? Of this or that people,
605a S. Bmnonis Episcopi Signiensis comment, in Joan., part iii,
cap. 21, n. 55.

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UNITY OF THE CHURCH

of this city, or country, or kingdom? My sheep, He says: to whom
therefore is it not evident that He does not designate some, but
all? We can make no exception where no distinction is made” (a).
608
(58,
153,
190,
228229)

The Head of the College of Bishops
But it is opposed to the truth, and in evident contradiction
with the divine constitution of the Church, to hold that while
each bishop is individually bound to obey the authority of the
Roman Pontiffs, taken collectively the bishops are not so bound.
For it is the nature and object of a foundation to support the unity
of the whole edifice and to give stability to it, rather than to each
component part; and in the present case this is much more appli­
cable, since Christ the Lord wished that by the strength and
solidity of the foundation the gates of hell should be prevented
from prevailing against the Church. All are agreed that the divine
promise must be understood of the Church as a whole, and not
of any certain portions of it. These can indeed be overcome by
the assaults of the powers of hell, as in point of fact has befallen
some of them.

609
Moreover, he who is set over the whole flock must have au(140, thority not only over the sheep dispersed throughout the Church,
144- but also when they are assembled together. Do the sheep when
145, they are all assembled together rule and guide the shepherd? Do
151- the successors of the apostles assembled together constitute the
153, foundation on which the successor of St. Peter rests in order to
195) derive therefrom strength and stability? Surely jurisdiction and
authority. Christ the Lord, as We have quite sufficiently shown,
keys of the kingdom of heaven, not alone in all provinces taken
singly, but in all taken collectively. And as the bishops, each in
his own district, command with real power not only individuals
but the whole community, so the Roman Pontiffs, whose jurisdic­
tion extends to the whole Christian commonwealth, must have all
its parts even taken collectively, subject and obedient to their
authority. Christ the Lord, as We have quite sufficiently shown,
made Peter and his successors his vicars, to exercise forever in the
Church the power which He exercised during his mortal life. Can
the Apostolic College be said to have been above its master in au­
thority?
607a De Consideratione, lib. ii., cap. 8.

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

333

Testimony of history

This power over the Episcopal College to which We refer, 610
and which is clearly set forth in Holy Writ, has ever been ac- (141,
knowledged and attested by the Church as is clear from the teach- 153)
ing of General Councils. "We read that the Boman Pontiff has
pronounced judgments on the prelates of all the churches; we
do not read that anybody has pronounced sentence on him” (a).
The reason for which is stated thus: “There is no authority greater
than that of the Apostolic See” (b). “It is evident that the judg­
ment of the Apostolic See, than which there is no authority great­
er, may be rejected by no one, nor is it lawful for any one to pass
judgment on its judgment”. Wherefore Gelasius on the decrees of
Councils says: "That which the First See has not approved of can­
not stand; but what it has thought well to decree has been re­
ceived by the whole Church” (c). It has ever been unquestionably
the office of the Roman Pontiffs to ratify or to reject the decrees
of Councils. Leo the Great rescinded the acts of the Conciliabulum
of Ephesus. Darnasus rejected those of Rimini, and Hadrian I
those of Constantinople. The twenty-eighth canon of the Council
of Chalcedon, by the very fact that it lacks the assent and approval
of the Apostolic See, is admitted by all to be worthless. Rightly,
therefore, has Leo X laid down in the fifth Council of Lateran
"That the Roman Pontiff alone, as having authority over all Coun­
cils, has full jurisdiction and power to summon, to transfer, to
dissolve Councils, as is clear, not only from the testimony of Holy
Writ, from the teaching of the Fathers and of the Roman Pontiffs,
and from the decrees of the sacred canons, but from the teachings
of the very Councils themselves.” Indeed, Holy Writ attests that
the keys of the kingdom of heaven were given to Peter alone, and
that the power of binding and loosening was granted to the
apostles and to Peter; but there is nothing to show that the
apostles received supreme power without Peter, and against
Peter. Such power they certainly did not receive from Jesus
Christ.
610a Hadrianus ii. Allocutione Hi., ad Synodum Romanum an 869.
Cf. Actionem vii., Cone. Constanlinopolitani iv.
610b Nicholas, in Epist. LXXXV1 ad Michael, imp.: Patet pro­
fecto Sedis Apostolicæ, cujus auctoritate major non est, judicium
a nemine fore retractandum, neque cuiquam de ejus liceat judi­
care judicio”.
610e Epist. xxvi., ad Episcopos Dardaniis, n. 5.

334

UNITY OF THE CHURCH

611
Wherefore, in the decree of the Vatican Council as to the
(147)nature and authority of the primacy of the Roman Pontiff, no
newly conceived opinion is set forth, but the venerable and con­
stant belief of every age (a).
Subordination without confusion
612
Nor does it beget any confusion in the administration that
(149,Christians are bound to obey a twofold authority We are prohib151, ited in the first place by divine wisdom from entertaining any
154, such thought, since this form of government was constituted by
178, the counsel of God Himself. In the second place We must note
188, that the due order of things and their mutual relations are dis195) turbed if there be a twofold magistracy of the same rank set over
a people, neither of which is amenable to the other. But the au­
thority of the Roman Pontiff is supreme, universal, independent;
that of the bishops limited, and dependent. "It is not congruous
that two superiors with equal authority should be placed over
the same flock; but that two, one of whom is higher than the
other, should be placed over the same people is not incongruous.
Thus the parish priest, the bishop, and the Pope, are placed im­
mediately over the same people” ( a ).

The Pope is the support of the bishops
613
So the Roman Pontiffs, mindful of their duty, wish above all
(155,things, that the divine constitution of the Church should be pre160) served. Therefore, as they defend with all necessary care and
vigilance their own authority, so they have always labored, and
will continue to labor, that the authority of the bishops may be
upheld. Yea, they look upon whatever honor or obedience is given
to the bishops as paid to themselves. “My honor is the honor of
the universal Church. My honor is the strength and stability' of my
brethren. Then am I honored when due honor is given to every
one” (a).
Conclusion: love the Church
614
hi what has been said We have faithfully described the
(1, image and form of the Church as divinely constituted. We have
231) treated at length of its unity: We have explained sufficiently its
611a Sess. ft)., cap. 3.
612a St. Thomas, in iv. Sent. dist. xxii. a. 4, ad q. 4, ad 3.
613a S. Gregorius M., Epistolarum, Uh. 8., ep. 30., ad Eulogium.

UNITY OI THE CHURCH

B5

nature, and pointed out the way in which the divine Founder of
the Church willed that it should be preserved. There is no reason
to doubt that all those, who by divine grace and mercy have had
the happiness to have been born, as it were, in the bosom of the
Catholic Church, and to have lived in it, will listen to Our apos­
tolic voice: “My sheep hear My voice” (a), and that they will
derive from Our words fuller instruction and a more perfect dis­
position to keep united with their respective pastors, and through
them with the Supreme Pastor, so that they may remain more
securely within the one fold, and may derive therefrom a greater
abundance of salutary fruit.

Return to the Church
But We, who, notwithstanding Our unfitness for this great
dignity and office, govern by virtue of the authority conferred on
Us by Jesus Christ, as We “look on Jesus, the author and finisher
of our faith” (a), feel Our heart fired by hi.s charity. What Christ
has said of Himself We may truly repeat of Ourselves: “Other
sheep I have that are not of this fold: them also I must bring and
they shall hear My voice" (b). Let all those, therefore, who detest
the widespread irréligion of our times, and acknowledge and
confess Jesus Christ to be the Son of God and the Savior of the hunan race, but who have wandered away from the Spouse, listen
to Our voice. Let them not refuse to obey Otir paternal charity.
Those who acknowledge Christ must acknowledge Him wholly
and entirely.
< “The Head and the body
0 are Christ wholly
* and
entirely. The Head is the only-begotten Son of God. the bods is
his Church; the bridegroom and the bride, two in one flesh. All
who dissent from the Scriptures concerning Christ, although they
may be found in all places in which the Church is found, are not
in the Church; and again all those who agree with the Scriptures
concerning the Head, and do not communicate in the unity of the
Church, are not in the Church” (c).

615
(41,

59,
67,
231)

And with the same yearning Our soul goes out to those whom 616
the foul breath of irréligion has not entirely corrupted, and who (59.
at least seek to have the true God. the Creator of heaven and 67)
earth, as their Father. Let such as these take counsel with them*

614a John 10:27.
615a Heb. 12:2.
615b John 10.16.
615c S. Augustinus, Contra Donatistas Epistola, sive De Cnit. Eccl.,
cap. iv., n. 7.

336

THE HOLY SPIRIT, D IE SOUL OF THE CHURCH

selves, and realize that they can in no wise be counted among the
children of God, unless they take Christ Jesus as their Brother,
and at the same time the Church as their Mother.

We lovingly address to all the words of St. Augustine: “Let
617
(59. us love the Lord our God; let us love his Church; the Lord as our
67) Father, the Church as our Mother. Let no one say, I go indeed to
idols, I consult fortune-tellers and soothsayers; but I leave not the
Church of God: I am a Catholic. Clinging to thy Mother, thou
offendest thy Father. Another, too, says: ‘Far be it from me; I do
not consult fortune-telling. I seek not soothsaying, I seek not pro­
fane divinations, I go not to the worship of devils, I serve not
stones: but I am on the side of Donatus.’ What doth it profit thee
not to offend the Father, who avenges an offence against the
Mother? What doth it profit to confess the Lord, to honor God,
to preach Him, to acknowledge his Son, and to confess that He
sits on the right hand of the Father, if you blaspheme his
Church?... If you had a beneficent friend, whom you honored
daily—and even once calumniated his spouse, would you ever
enter his house? Hold fast, therefore, O dearly beloved, hold fast
altogether God as your Father, and the Church as your
Mother” (a).

THE HOLY SPIRIT, THE SOUL OF THE CHURCH
Encycl. Divinum illud, May 9, 1897.
(Christ has entrusted to the Holy Spirit the task of crowning
his work - The mystery of the Holy Trinity.—The Incarnation is
attributed to the Holy Spirit.)
The Church, already conceived, and issuing, so to say, from
618
(21, the loins of the new Adam in his sleep upon the Cross, manifested
32) herself for the first time to men in a striking manner on the won­
derful day of Pentecost. On this day the Holy Spirit began to dif­
fuse his benefits through the Mystical Body of Christ by that
admirable out-pouring which the Prophet Joel had foretold long
before (a). For the Paraclete rested upon the Apostles in order to
place on their heads in the form of tongues of fire, new spiritual
crowns (b).
I
Then it was, writes St. John Chrysostom, that the
617a Enarratio in Psal. Ixxxvii., scruio ii., n. 11.
618a Joel 2:28-29, Acts 2:17.
618b St. Cvril of Alexandria, Catech.. 17.

i

THE HOLY SPIRIT, THE SOUL OF THE CHURCH

337

Apostles "came down from the mountains, not bearing in their
hands tables of stone as Moses had done, but carrying in their
souls the Holy Spirit, a treasure which issued forth like a river of
truth and grace" (c). Thus was realized that final promise of
Christ to his Apostles, relative to the sending of the Holy Spirit
who was to complete, and as it were to seal, by his inspiration,
Christ’s teaching: “I have yet many things to say to you, but you
cannot bear them now. When he, the Spirit of Truth, is come, he
will teach you all truth” (d).
The Holy Spirit at work in the Church
He it is who, proceeding at once from the Father who is
Truth eternal, and from the Son who is substantial Truth, is Himself the Spirit of Truth, and derives from the Father and the Son
the essence of and at the same time all truth; He it is who gives to
the Church this same truth, and is ever vigilant by his constant
presence and assistance that she may never be exposed to error,
but will daily grow more fruitful in those abundant seeds destined
to produce the fruit of salvation for the nations. And since the
Church, the means of salvation to the world, must carry on her
task to the end of time, the Holy Spirit gives her, to ensure her
preservation and increase, eternal life and strength: "I will ask the
Father and He will give you another Paraclete, the Spirit of Truth,
who will abide with you forever" (a).

619
(32,
88,
227,
229)

It is through Him that are established bishops whose ministry
engenders not only sons but fathers, that is to say, priests, to
govern the Church and nourish it with the blood of Christ who
redeemed it: "The Holy Spirit has established bishops to govern
the Church of God which he acquired with his blood" (a). Both
of them, bishops and priests, by reason of a signal grace of the
Holy Spirit, have the power to take away sin. according to Christ's
words to the Apostles: "Receive ye the Holy Spirit; whose sins
you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; whose sins you shall
retain, they are retained" (b). Nothing can show more clearly the
divinity of the Church than the glorious splendor of the charismata
with which the Holy Spirit has adorned her. Let it be sufficient
for Us to affirm that if Christ is the Head of the Church, the Holy

620
(32.
8990)

618c Hom. 1 in Malt; Cf. 2 Cor. 3:3.
618d John 16:12-13.
619a John 14:16-17.
620a Acts 20:28.
620b John 20:22-23.

338

PROVINCIAL COUNCILS

Spirit is the Soul: "The Holy Spirit is in the Church, the Mystical
Body of Christ, what the soul is in the body" (c).
Since this is so, it would be impossible to imagine or to ex­
pect a greater or a more fruitful manifestation of the Divine
Spirit; that which is taking place now in the Church is perfect, and
will endure until the Church, after having completed this period
of struggle, rejoices in triumph in heaven.
(The Holy Spirit in the souls of the just.—The Cult of the
Holy Spirit.)
PROVINCIAL COUNCILS

Letter Compertum plane, August 19, 1897, to the Archbishop
of Burgos.
(The Holy Father congratulates the Archbishop on his pas­
toral zeal. )
621
The hopes which We founded on you have not been disap­
fl 93) pointed. We have testimony to this in the diligence with which
you have, without any delay, visited your diocese and responded
to Our wishes in assembling the Bishops of your Province in order
to make provision with them for the common needs of your
churches. What has most clearly shown Us your intention, is the
care you display in convoking a Provincial Council to take place
next year; no one of your predecessors did this. You are entirely
correct in thinking that this is one of the best means either of
suppressing abuses which may have crept in, or of promoting
solid piety. It is, therefore, with good reason that the Council of
Trent has emphasized the effectiveness of these councils and rec­
ommended them to bishops in particularly weighty words.
( Blessing for the approaching Conciliar assembly. )
THE INTERPRETATION OF SCRIPTURE

Encycl. Caritatis studium, July 28, 1898, to the Bishops of
Scotland.
(Zeal of the Holy Father for the dissidents.—The Holy See
and Scotland- relations in the past.—Signs of a reawakening of
Catholicism.—Prejudices of non-Catholics must be destroyed.)
620c Atque hoc affirmare sufficiat, quod quum Christus caput
sit Ecclesia:, Spiritus Sanctus sit ejus anima: "Quod est in cor­
pore nostro anima, id est Spiritus Sanctus in corpore Christi, quod
est Ecclesia”. (S. Augustin, serm. CXXXVII de temp.).

HH INTERPRETA ΓΙΟΝ OF SCRIPTURE

339

Since the Church is destined to endure forever, she must be 622
supported, not only by Scripture, but also by another foundation. (96,
It was her Divine Founder’s function to provide that the treasure 100)
of heavenly teaching in the Church would never be destroyed,
and this would necessarily be the case if this treasure had been
abandoned to the judgment of individuals. Therefore it follows
that, from the very beginning of the Church, there had to be a
living and eternal authority to which was entrusted, by the au­
thority of Christ, both the other doctrines of salvation, and the
certain interpretation of Scripture. It was necessary' that this au­
thority, relying on the assiduous help of Christ Himself, should be
incapable of falling into any doctrinal error.
The Apostolic mission
It is for this that God made generous provision and did it 623
with a sovereign wisdom through his Son, Jesus Christ. Our Lord (96)
ensured the true interpretation of Sacred Scripture when, in the
first place, he did not command the Apostles to do their work in
writing, or to distribute heedlessly and without reason the Books
of Holy Writ, but rather to teach all men entirely, by oral instruc­
tion, and to lead them by word of mouth to the knowledge
and profession of his heavenly teaching: “Go ye into the whole
world; preach the Gospel to every creature” (a).

As for the supreme teaching, Christ confided it to one man 624
alone; on him was to rest as upon a foundation the whole teach- (155,
ing Church. When He gave to Peter the keys of the Kingdom of 165.
heaven, He gave him at the same time the mission to direct the 167)
others who were to discharge the ministry of the word: “Confirm
thy brethren" (a). Thus, since the faithful were to learn from
this teaching authority everything that concerns their salvation,
it was necessary that they should be able to demand of it the
meaning of the sacred books.
The consec/uences of the repudiation of the teaching authority
It is easy to see how much there is that is uncertain, incom- 625
plete, and incoherent in the system of those men who believe it (96)
possible to seek out the meaning of Holy Scripture with the sole
aid of the Scriptures themselves. For, once this principle is ad623a Mark 16:15.

624a Luke 22:32.

340

HIE INTERPRETATION OF SCRIPTURF.

milted, the ultimate criterion of interpretation resides in the indi­
vidual judgment ol each man. Each one, according to the dis­
positions which he brings to the reading of Holy Writ—whether
1)\ reason of his character, his mind, his preferences, his moral
make-up-will be led, as We have said above, to translate in one
or another fashion the same passages of Sacred Scripture. These
differences in interpretation can only engender differences in doc­
trine, disputes, and provide food for disorder out of what was
given to us to produce unity and concord.

The facts themselves prove to what point We arc speaking
626
(39, the truth. All the sects which have branched off from the Catholic

Church and are now at odds with one another in religious matters.
102) attempt, each one after its own fashion, to bend the sense of
Sacred Scripture in conformity with their ideas and their insti­
tutions. So true is it that there is no gift of God so sacred that man
cannot abuse it to his own loss, since, as St. Peter severely warns
us: “the unlearned and the unstable wrest... the scriptures, to
their own destruction" (a). That is why St. Irenaeus, in the gen­
eration immediately following the Apostles and as their faithful
interpreter, never ceased to engrave this principle in the minds
of men: namely, that knowledge of the truth is not to be derived
from any other source than that which the Church herself opens
to us: “Where the Church is, there is the Spirit of God; and where
the Spirit of God is, there is the Church as well as every grace:
the Spirit, He is the truth... (b). Therefore, where the gifts of
God are to be found, the truth is to be learned from those who
are its guardians, that is to say, in the succession of the Church
from the Apostles" (c). If, in spite of all that separates them
from one another in the civil order, Catholics are united and at
one by reason of the marvelous unity of their faith, it cannot be
doubted that they owe this union principally to the virtue and
the power of this teaching authority.
(The Church possesses a true sacrifice.—Duties of the Catho­
lics of Scotland.)

dd.

626a 2 Pet. 3:16.
626b Adv. Hxr., Book HI.
626c Adv. Hxr., Book IV.

THE INTEGRITY OF THE DEPOSIT

Letter Testent) benevolentiae, January 22, 1899, to Cardinal
Gibbons.
(Errors contained in the French biography of Rev. Isaac T.
Hecker. )
The principles on which the new opinions We have men- 627
tioned are based may be reduced to this: that, in order the more(225)
easily to bring over to Catholic doctrine those who dissent from
it, the Church ought to adapt herself somewhat to our advanced
civilization, and, relaxing her ancient rigor, show some indulgence
to modern popular theories and methods. Many think that this is
to be understood not only with regard to the rule of life, but also
to the doctrines in which the deposit of faith is contained. For they
contend that it is opportune, in order to work in a more attractive
way upon the wills of those who are not in accord with us, to pass
over certain points of doctrines, as if of lesser moment, or to so
soften them that they may not have the same meaning which the
Church has invariably held.

The deposit of faith confided to the Church

Now, Beloved Son, few words arc needed to show how reprehensible is the plan that is thus conceived, if we but consider
the character and origin of the doctrine which the Church hands
down to us. On that point the Vatican Council says: "The doctrine of faith which God has revealed is not proposed like a
theory of philosophy which is to be elaborated by the human
understanding, but as a divine deposit delivered to the Spouse of
Christ to be faithfully guarded and infallibly declared.... That
sense of the sacred dogmas is to be faithfully kept which Holy
Mother Church has once declared, and is not to be departed from
under the specious pretext of a more profound understand­
ing” (a).

628
(99,
101,
111,
225)

The totality of the deposit
Nor is the suppression to be considered altogether free from 629
blame, which designedly omits certain principles of Catholic doc-(i02,
trine and buries them, as it were, in oblivion. For there is the one 109)
628a Const, de Fid. cath., c. iv

THE INTEGRITY OI THE DEPOSIT

342

and the same Author and Master of all the truths that Christian
teaching comprises: "The only-begotten Son who is in (he bosom
of the Father" (a). That they are adapted to all ages and nations
is plainly deduced from the words which Christ addressed to his
apostles: "Going therefore teach ye all nations: teaching them to
observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold
I am with you all days even to the consummation of the
world" (b).
Wherefore the same Vatican Council says: "By the divine
and Catholic faith those things are to be believed which are con­
tained in the word of God either written or handed down, and
are proposed by the Church whether in solemn decision or by the
ordinary universal magisterium, to be believed as having been
divinely revealed” (c).
630
Far be it, then, for any one to diminish or for any reason
(60) whatever to pass over anything of this divinely delivered doctrine;
whosoever would do so, would rather wish to alienate Catholics
from the Church than to bring over to the Church those who
dissent from it. Let them return; indeed, nothing is nearer to Our
heart; let all those who are wandering far from the sheepfold of
Christ return; but let it not be by any other road than that which
Christ has pointed out.

Ecclesiastical discipline
631
The rule of life which is laid down for Catholics is not of such
(67, a nature as not to admit modifications, according to the diversity
122, of tune and place. The Church, indeed, possesses what her Author
132, has bestowed on her, a kind and merciful disposition; for which
165, reason from the very beginning she willingly showed herself to
175, be what Paul proclaimed in his own regard: “1 became all things
2/1) to all men, that I might save all” (a). The history of all past ages
is witness that the Apostolic See, to which not only the office of
teaching but also the supreme government of the whole Church
was committed, has constantly adhered to the same doctrine, in
the same sense and in the same mind ( b ) : but it has always been
accustomed to so modify the rule of life that, while keeping the
divine right inviolate, it has never disregarded the manners and
629a
629c
631a
631b

629b Matt. 28:19.
Const. de Fid. cath., C. iii, above, No. 341.
1 Cor. 9:22.
Cone. Vatic., ibid., c. iv; above, No. 347.
John 1:18.

THE INTEGRITY ΟΓ THE DEPOSH

34 3

customs of I hr various nations which it embraces. If required for
the salvation of souls, who will doubt that it is ready to do so at
the present time? But this is not to be determined by the will of
private individuals, who are mostly deceived by the appearance
of right, but ought to be left to the judgment of the Church In
this all must acquiesce who wish to avoid the censure of Our
predecessor Pius VI. who proclaimed the 18th proposition of the
Synod of Pistoia “to be injurious to the Church and to the Spirit
of Cod which governs her, inasmuch as it subjects to scrutiny the
discipline established and approved by the Church, almost as
though the Church could establish a useless discipline or one
which would be to onerous for Christian liberty to bear” (a).

Nete theories

But in the matter of which we are now speaking. Beloved 632
Son, the project involves a greater danger and is more hostile to (72.
Catholic doctrine and discipline, inasmuch as the followers of 138)
these novelties judge that a certain liberty ought to be introduced
into the Church, so that, limiting the exercise and vigilance of its
powers, each one of the faithful may act more freely in pursuance
of his own natural bent and capacity. They affirm, namely, that
this is called for in order to imitate that liberty which, though
quite recently introduced, is now the law and the foundation of
almost every civil community. On that point We have spoken very
much at length in the Letter written to all the bishops about the
constitution ol States (a); where We have also shown the differ­
ence between the Church, which is of divine right, and all other
associations which subsist bv the free will ol men.
The definition of infallibility invoked as a pretext

It is of importance, therefore, to note particulari) an opinion 633
which is adduced as a sort of argument to urge the granting ol (709,
such liberty to Catholics. For they sa\, in speaking of the inlalli- 112)
hie teaching of the Homan Pontiff, that after the solemn decision
formulated in the Vatican Council, there is no more need of soli­
citude in that regard, and. because of its being now out of dispute,
a wider field of thought and action is thrown open to individuals.
A preposterous method of arguing, sure!) For il anything is sug­
gested bv the infallible teaching of the Church, it is certainh that
631c Above, No. 122.

632a Above, Nos 166 ff.

344

ΠΙΕ INTEGRITY OF HIE DEPOSIT

no one should wish to withdraw from it; nay, that all should strive
to be thoroughly imbued with and be guided by its spirit, so as to
be more easily preserved from any private error whatsoever.
Reasons for the definition
634
To this We may add that those who argue in that wise quite
fl, set aside the wisdom and providence of God, who desired that
96, the authority of the Apostolic See and its Magisterium be
106) affirmed by a very solemn definition, and has desired this, espe­
cially in order the more efficaciously to guard the minds of Catho­
lics from the dangers of the present times. The license which is
commonly confounded with liberty; the passion for saying and
reviling everything; the habit of thinking and of expressing every­
thing in print, have cast such deep shadows on men’s minds, that
there is now greater utility and necessity for this office of teaching
than ever before, lest men should be drawn away from conscience
and duty (a). It is far, indeed, from Our intention to repudiate all
that the genius of the time begets; nay, rather, whatever the
search for truth attains, or the effort after good achieves, will al­
ways be welcomed by us, for it increases the patrimony of doc­
trine and enlarges the limits of public prosperity. But all this, to
possess real utility, should thrive without setting aside the author­
ity and wisdom of the Church.

The consequences
635

We come now in due course to what are adduced as conse­
quences from the opinions which We have touched upon; in
which, if the intention seem not wrong, as We believe, the things
themselves assuredly will not appear by any means free from
suspicion.
In the spiritual life

636
For, in the first place, all external guidance is rejected as
(138, superfluous, nay even, as somewhat of a disadvantage, for those
225) who desire to devote themselves to the acquisition of Christian
perfection, for the Holy Ghost, they say, pours greater and richer

634a Licentia qux passim cum libertate confunditur; quidvis
loquendi obloquendique libido; facultas denique quidlibet senti­
endi litterarumque formis exprimendi, tenebras tam alte mentibus
obfuderunt, ut major nunc quam ante sit magisterii usus et ne­
cessitas, ne a conscientia quis officioque abstrahatur.

THE INTEGRITY OF THE DEPOSIT

345

gifts into the hearts of the faithful now than in times past; and by
a certain hidden instinct teaches and moves them with no one as
an intermediary. It is indeed not a little rash to wish to determine
the degree in which God communicates with men; for that de­
pends solely on his will; and He Himself is the absolutely free
giver of his own gifts. “The Spirit breatheth where He will" (a).
But to every one of us is given grace according to the measure
of the giving of Christ” (b). For who, when going over the history
of the apostles, the faith of the rising Church, the struggles and
slaughter of the valiant martyrs, and finally most of the ages past
so abundantly rich in holy men, will presume to compare the past
with the present times and to assert that they received a lesser
outpouring of the Holy Ghost?

But, aside from that, no one doubts that the Holy Ghost, 637
by his secret incoming into the souls of the just, influences (89)
and arouses them by admonition and impulse. If it were other­
wise, any external help and guidance would be useless. “If any
one positively affirms that he can consent to the saving preaching
of the Gospel without the illumination of the Holy Ghost, who
imparts to all sweetness in consenting to and accepting the truth,
he is misled by a heretical spirit” (a).

The magisterium and the interior impulse
But· as we know by experience these promptings and impulses of the Holy Ghost for the most part are not discerned
without the help, and, as it were, without the preparation of
an external guidance (a). In this matter Augustine says: “It
is He who in good trees cooperates in their fruiting, who both
waters and cultivates them by any servant whatever from
without, and who by Himself gives increase within” (b). That
is to say, the whole matter is according to the common law
by which God in his infinite providence has decreed that men
for the most part should be saved by men; hence He has ap­
pointed that those whom He calls to a loftier degree of holiness
636a John 3:8.
636b Ephes. 4:7.
637a Cone. Arausic., II, can. vii.
638a Vertun, qttod etiam experiendo novimus, h.v Sancti Spiritus
admonitiones et impulsiones plerumque, non sine quodam ex­
terni magisterii adjumento ac veluti comparatione, persentiuntur.
638b De grat. Christi, c xix.

638
(75.
89.
181)

346

ΠΙΕ CHURCH, HUMAN AND DIVINE

should he led thereto by men, “in order that,” as Chrysostom says,
“we should be taught by God through men” (c).
(This law is confirmed by the example of St. Paid and the
constant practice of the Church.—Inconsistency of the new theory.
—Americanism. )
One single Church: the Church of Peter
639
One in the unity of doctrine as in the unity of government,
(44, such is the Catholic Church, and, since God has established its
J43, center and foundation in the Chair of Peter, one which is rightly
184) called Roman, for “where Peter is there is the Church” (a).
Wherefore he who wishes to be called by the name of Catholic ought to employ in truth the words of Jerome to Pope
Damasus, "I, following none as the first except Christ, am asso­
ciated in communion with your Beatitude, that is, with the Chair
of Peter; upon that Rock I know is built the Church; whoever
gathereth not with thee scattereth” ( b ).
(The Holy Father has confidence in the United States.)

THE CHURCH, HUMAN AND DIVINE

Encycl. Depuis le jour, September 8, 1899, to the French
episcopate.
(The apostolic mission of France; the duties it implies.—
Formation of the clergy—Seminaries.—Philosophy, the sciences,
theology, Sacred Scripture, history.)
640
(3,
90,
104.
130)

The history of the Church is like a mirror in which shines
the life of the Church through the ages. Much more even than
civic or profane history, it shows the sovereign liberty of God
and his providential action on the course of events. Those who
study it should never lose sight of the fact that it comprises an
ensemble of dogmatic facts which are of faith and which no one
is allowed to call in doubt. This supernatural and guiding idea
which presides over the destiny of the Church is at the same time
the beacon whose light illumines her history. Yet because the
Church, which continues among men the life of the Word In­
carnate, is composed of a divine element and a human element,
638c Hom. 1, tn Inscr. altar.
639a S. Ambr. in P.s., xi, 57.
639b S. Jerome. Epist^jdDamas.

έ'Γ'·

‘ί

MOTHER OI HIE NATIONS

the latter must be expounded by teachers and studied by pupils
with great integrity. For it is said in the Book of Job: "God hath
no need of our lies” (a). The Church historian will be in a better
position to bring out the divine origin of the Church, an origin
superior to every concept of a purely earthly and natural order,
as he has been the more loyal in hiding nothing of the trials
which the sins of her children, and sometimes of her ministers,
have inflicted on the Spouse of Christ in the course of centuries.
Studied in this way the history of the Church, all by itself, con­
stitutes a magnificent and conclusive demonstration of the truth
and the divinity of Christianity.
(Canon Law.—Virtues necessary for young clerics: zeal, dis­
cretion, purity.—Faults to be avoided: worldly manners, danger­
ous innovations, activism.—Exhortation to become examples in
doctrina, in integritate, in gravitate.—Role of the clergy in the
approaching crisis.)
MOTHER OF THE NATIONS

All. to French workingmen, September 25, 1899.
(The Holy Father congratulates them: on their return from
the holy places, they have come to express to him their gratitude
for his social teachings. )

In fact, it is Our greatest desire to show the Church to be
the Mother of the nations. Her love knows no limits; it guides
souls towards heaven along the road of faith and virtue; but at the
same time she does not intend to despise here below the interests
of time: she sanctifies them when she ennobles the work of the
humble and eidi.sts the help of the powerful to do good. If it is a
question of maintaining order among different social classes, she
alone has the secret of assuring the happiness of all men, even
here below, as far as this is possible.
(The Holy Father counsels union in religious and social
matters under the guidance of the bishops.—Bring back to Christ
those who arc still far from him.)
THE TEACHING AUTHORITY OF THE BISHOPS

Letter Non abs re, October 12, 1899, to the Bishops of
Piedmont.
640a Cf. Job 13:7.

641
(67,
8.384)

348

THE TEACHING AUTHORITY OF THE BISHOPS

(The letters received from the Bishops, while they give an
account of the happy condition of the churches, complain of the
attitude of priests and laity who "withdraw themselves from the
teaching authority of their bishops", and go so far as to blame
those whom they believe to be "unfavorable to their opinions".)
642
What Our thought is in this matter We have more than once
(203)already indicated. And again quite recently We have, so to say,
answered your complaints in advance, in the Letter which We
have addressed to the Bishops of France and to their clergy. Cer­
tainly it is Our desire that Catholics should zealously address
themselves to the task of moral improvement at the same time that
they attempt to alleviate the misery of this unfortunate people,
to benefit the workers and men of the laboring classes. And so
We have rejoiced very much to see public meetings being held
with this end in view; to witness the development of associations
and benefits, of mutual aid societies, and other institutions of the
same nature; to see every type of social question being studied,
and that in books and periodicals the necessary conditions of civil
society and the eternal salvation of souls are being preached.
At the same time We desire and it is Our earnest wish that
these efforts should not serve party interests or interfere with the
demands of justice.

Necessary obedience

643
That is why it is absolutely necessary that in undertaking
(203, the aforementioned works and others like them the respect due to
208) ecclesiastical authority must be preserved whole and entire. To
resist the will of the Bishops, to wish to teach them a lesson rather
than to hear them with docility, is a procedure entirely at odds
with the duty of the laity. And nothing is more at variance with
the duty of ecclesiastics, since they should remember the oath
of obedience which, at the moment of their sacerdotal consecra­
tion, each one of them swore to his own bishop. For all priests
this is a thing which is well known and even sacred, not to deviate
in anything or for any reason from the established discipline and
the established order. Order requires that the members of the
hierarchy shall be bound to one another in such wise that those
who have an inferior office and occupy an inferior position (such
as priests) shall listen to their superiors who arc their bishops and
shall obey them.

Till· MISSION OF THE CHURCH

349

The fruits of obedience
It is this union of will and of forces which gives us the hope 644
and confidence of victor)' over the enemies of justice and of the (208)
faith; should this union ever be lacking, We would fight, certainly,
but to no avail. Therefore, We exhort the clergy, and each one
of them, to follow the bishops, as Christ is obedient to his
Father; let each one be on guard against those men who, while
calling themselves Catholics, foment discord, and endeavor by
word and in writing to deflect souls from their duty.
( Blessing. )
THE DIVINE PILOT

All. to the Cardinals, March 20, 1900.
(Gratitude due to God at the beginning of this new year of
the pontificate. )

The duty incumbent upon Us is that of not sparing the 645
strength which remains to Us, but, on the contrary, of spending it (146.
all, as We endeavor to do, in the service of Holy Mother Church. 160)
It is true that the burden of this high office weighs more heavily
upon the shoulders of an old man. But in this matter the Church
has received from on high a promise which guarantees her
against every human weakness. What does it matter that the
helm of the symbolic barque has been entrusted to feeble hands,
when the Divine Pilot stands on the bridge, where, though in­
visible, He is watching and ruling? Blessed be the strength of
his arm and the multitude of his mercies!
(The jubilee and the South African War.)
THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Tametsi, November 1, 1900.
(The signs of a reawakening of faith.—Public homage ren­
dered to Christ.)
Now, to maintain and to advance the kingdom of the Son 646
of God upon earth, to procure the salvation of men by their par- (76.
ticipation in divine grace, such is the mission of the Church. This 115.
mission is so high, and it belongs to her so exclusively, that her 119)
entire authority and all her power consist principally in this work.
(Christ is the source of every good.—His sovereignty is uni­
versal—He is the way. )

350

I Hl SACRAMENI OF UNI I Y

By the ministry of this Church so gloriously founded by Him,
647
(13. He willed to perpetuate the mission which He had Himself re­
19. ceived from Ins Father; and, on the one hand, having put within
61. her all the means necessary for man’s salvation, on the other hand.

He formally enjoined upon men the duty of obeying his Church as
102. Himself, and religiously taking her as a guide of their whole lives.
231) "He that heareth you. hcareth me; he that despiseth you, despiseth
me” (a). Therefore, it is from the Church alone that the law of
Christ must be asked: and. consequently, if for man Christ is the
wav. the Church, too. is the way. the former of Himself and by his
nature, the latter by delegation and communication of power.
Consequently, all those who wish to reach salvation outside the
Church, are mistaken as to the way and are engaged in a vain
effort.
(Christ is the truth and the life—The healing of the nations
is to be found in Him alone.—The "rights of man" are to be re­
placed by the rights of God. )
THE SACRAMENT OF UNITY

Encvcl. Mirae caritatis, May 28, 1902.
(The Eucharist and the present needs of the Church.-The
nead of life.-Continuation and extension of the Incarnation.Memorial of the Passion.—Pledge of hope.—Burning furnace of
Charity. )
64S
Let us add that the constitutive signs of this sacrament are in
(51; themselves a very appropriate encouragement of this union. On
this subject St. Cyprian writes: “Finally, this sacrifice of the Lord
in itself affirms the universal union of Christians among them­
selves by firm and indissoluble charity. For when the Lord calls
his body the bread made up of many grains, He indicates the
union of Our people; and when He calls his blood the wine made
out of thousands of grapes and forming one single liquid, He
also designates Our flock formed out of a multitude of different
men gathered together” (a). In the same way the Angelic Doc­
tor reproduces the thought of St. Augustine (b) in these terms:
“Our Lord has entrusted his body and his blood to these sub­
stances which are formed of a multitude of elements brought
647a Luke 10:16.
648a Epist. 69 ad Magnum, No. 5
648b Tract. 26 in Joan., Nos. 13. 17.

THE SAC RAMEN I OF UNITY

351

together in a single whole; first of all, bread, composed of many
grains; then, wine, the product of innumerable grapes; and this
is why Augustine says further: O sacrament of piety, O sign of
unity, O bond of charity!’’ (c).

The Fruit of the Eucharist

This teaching is confirmed by the Council of Trent, which
teaches that Christ left the Eucharist to his Church "as the symbol of the unity and the charity by which Me willed all Christians to be united and bound to one another ... ; the symbol of
this one body of which He is the head, and to which He willed
us to be closely bound as members by the very intimate bonds
of faith, of hope, and of charity” (a). It is also what St. Paul had
taught: “For we are one single bread, one single body, in spite
of the number, all we who partake of the same bread” (b). And
certainly it is a very beautiful and a very touching example of
Christian fraternity and social equality to see crowding without
distinction to the altars aristocrat and laborer, rich and poor,
learned and ignorant, all partaking equally of the heavenly ban­
quet. And if with justice in the early centuries the Church
derived a special glory from the fact that “all the multitude of
the faithful had but one heart and one mind” (c), there is cer­
tainly no doubt but that this precious result was due to fre­
quenting this divine banquet. In fact, we read, on the subject
of the first Christians: "they were persevering in the teaching of
the Apostles and in the communion of the breaking of the
bread” (d).
The Communion of Saints

649
(4646,
.5/)

Moreover, the benefit of mutual charity among the living, 650
to which the Eucharist brings strength and growth in an eminent (7.
degree, is imparted principally by virtue of the sacrifice to all 45.
those comprised in the Communion of Saints. This communion, ^1)
everyone knows, is nothing less than a mutual sharing of assist­
ance, expiation, prayer, and graces among the faithful, either
those already in possession of eternal beatitude, or those who
are still suffering in the expiatory fires (of Purgatory), or, final*
6I8c Sum. theol., pars Illa, q. Ixxix, a. 1.
649a Sess. XIII, De Each. c. II.
649b 1 Cor. 10:17.
649c Acts 4:32.
649d Acts 2:42.

352

FIDELITY OF THE CHURCH

ly, those who are still in via here below—all of whom form but
one community with Christ for head and charity for form.
(Faith in the Eucharist.)
651
Finally, this mystery is, as it were, the soul of the Church;
(51, towards it the fullness of the grace of priesthood rises through
IN) the different degrees of Orders. From it, again, the Church
draws; in it she possesses all her strength and all her glory, all
the treasures of divine grace and every good: and so she conse­
crates to it her greatest care, disposing the minds of the faithful,
bringing them to an intimate union with Christ by means of the
sacrament of his Body and Blood; it is for the same reason that
she seeks to enhance its veneration by the splendor of her holiest
ceremonies.
(Fruits of the Eucharist.—The Sacrifice of the Mass.—Fre­
quent Communion.)
FIDELITY OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Annum ingressi sumus, March 15, 1902.
(Anti-Christian conjuration.—State atheism—False remedies;
liberty, the school, the press, science—The true remedy: return
to Christianity.)
652
The return to Christianity will not be a complete and effec(10. tive remedy unless it implies a return with sincere love to the one,
13, holy. Catholic, and apostolic Church. Christianity is, in fact, in15- carnate in the Catholic Church, it is to be identified with that
16. perfect and spiritual Society, sovereign in its sphere, which is the
■10. Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, and has for its visible head the
75, Roman Pontiff, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles. She is
96, the continuator of the Savior’s mission, the daughter of the re228) demption and its heir; she has spread the Gospel and defended it
at the price of her life’s blood; and, strong in the divine assistance
and the immortality which have been promised her, she never
compromises with error, she remains faithful to the mandate
which she has received to bear the teaching of Jesus Christ to the
world, and to keep it inviolable in its integrity to the end of time.
(Only the Church can solve the social question.—She fosters
science, true liberty, the rights of the State.—This hidden enemy:
Freemasonry.—M olives for confidence.—Appeal to the clergy and
to the laity.)

LAST WORDS

All. for the 25th anniversary of his election, February 20.
1903.
(The Holy Father’s gratitude to God, and to all uho have
congratulated him on the 25th anniversary of his election. )
This is Our last lesson to you: receive it, engrave it in your 653
minds, all of you: by Clod’s commandment salvation is to lx 6/
found nowhere but in the Church; the strong and effective instnj- ]S1
ment of salvation is none other than the Roman Pontificate (a).

653a ll.rc vvro a Xohis tamauain mandata novisstma accipiti
mentihusque insculpite universi, salutem mm nisi in Ecclesia,
instrumentum salutis pr,v validum ac perpetuum in Pontificatu
romano Dei iussii esse uii.t rendum

ST. PIUS X
1903-1914

THE WAY TO CH KI ST
(His election.—His program.)
Encycl. E supremi apostolatus, October 4, 1903.

Where is the road which leads us to Jesus Christ? It is before 654
Our eyes: it is the Church. St. John Chrysostom rightly tells us: .6/
"The Church is thy hope, the Church is thy salvation, the Church 77
is thy refuge” (a).
95)
It was for this reason that Christ established her. after having
purchased her at the price of his Blood; for this that he entrusted
to her his teaching and the precepts of his law, lavishing upon her
at the same time treasures of divine grace for the salvation of men.
However, Venerable Brothers, it is in no way part of Our 655
thought that in the difficult task of the renewal of the nations in (J/9.
Christ you and your clergy should be left without helpers. We 217know that Cod has commanded each one to have care of his 218)
neighbor (a). So it is not only the priests, but all the faithful
without exception, who must devote themselves to the interests
of God and of souls: not, of course, each one according to his own
lights and inclinations, but always under the direction and ac­
cording to the will of the bishops, for the right to command, to
teach, to direct belongs to none other in the Church but to you,
who have been “established by the Holy Spirit to rule the Church
of Cod” (b).
THE PONTIFICAL OFFICE
All. to the Consistory, November 9, 1903.
(His election to the Sovereign Pontificate.)

We knew also all that is with justice expected of the Roman 656
Pontiff: why be astonished then that We judged Ourselves ab-i/60.
solutely incapable of bearing the weight of so great a burden? 162)
And certainly, to safeguard the observance of the precepts of
the Gospel, the respect due to its counsels, to keep intact the
edifice of ecclesiastical law; to deal with the most varied and
most serious questions which concern domestic society', the
education of youth, law and property; to reduce the unbalanced
elements of civil society to the order willed by Christ; in a word,
to purify the earth and prepare its citizens for heaven—these

654a Homil. de capto Eu trop. No. 6.
655a Eccli. 17:12.
655b Acts 20:28.
-357-

*58

IHI PONTIFICAL OFFICE

Junctions. We said to Ourselves, and others like it in the supreme
apostolate. seemed to Us so great that We despaired, given Our
own humble strength, of their worthy execution.
(Eu/ogi/ of Leo XI11.)

657
/59160,
165)

65S
/9,
13,
111.
158,
165.
167)

The aims of the Pontificate
A sublime mission is Ours, since, beyond this passing world,
it looks to everlasting possessions; no frontier bounds it; it must
embrace the interests of the universe, in every way assure respect
for the evangelical precepts, finally, extend Our solicitude not
only to the faithful, but to all men for whom Christ died (a).
(His motto: To restore all things in Christ.)

The political arena
Our function is, therefore, to defend truth and the Christian
law; hence, We will have the duty to throw light upon and to
define the highest truths, truths of the natural order or truths
divinely revealed, which We so often see obscured or forgotten
in our times. We will have to reaffirm the principles of discipline.
of power, of justice, and of equity, principles which men today
wish to root out; to bring back to law and to the straight path
of honestv, in public as in private life, in the social as well as in
the political arena, all men and each man. those who obey and
those who command, for they are all sons of the same Father who
is in heaven. Some, doubtless, will be shocked, in hearing Us say
that We shall have to think even of politics. But all right-minded
men will see that the Sovereign Pontiff, invested by God with
a supreme teaching authority, has no right to detach political af­
fairs from the domain of faith and morals; and as Head and
sovereign guide of the perfect society which is the Church, a
society composed of men and established among men. he can only
wish to maintain relations with the heads of Slates and the mem­
bers of governments, if the security and liberty of Catholics is to
be protected in all countries of the world.
(True liberty.—Harmony of faith and science.)

False principles
659
To reject and refute the principles of modern philosophy
'106. and the dicta of civil law which today direct the course of human
165, affairs in a way contrary to the prescriptions of the eternal law—
167)
657a Cf. 2 Cor. 5:14.

THE MOTHER OF THE MYSTICAL BODY

359

this is the duty incumbent upon Our apostolic office. And Our
conduct on this point, far from arresting the development of
humanity, will, on the contrary, prevent it from rushing headlong
to ruin.
The ministry of reconciliation

But if We have undertaken a struggle which is necessary
for the truth. We feel for the adversaries and enemies of this
truth the most lively compassion; We embrace them with a profound affection; We recommend them with tears to the Divine
Goodness. To approve and defend the truth, justice, good, to
reject and expose error, injustice, evil, this is a sacred rule of the
Roman Pontificate; but it is also a sacred rule to shower upon
sinners the treasures of pardon and mercy, so as to imitate the
Founder of the Church who prayed for the transgressors of the
law (a). For God who, through Christ, reconciled the world with
Himself (b), has chiefly chosen the Roman Pontiffs, Vicars of
his Son, to prolong to the end of time the ministry' of his recon­
ciliation (c). This reconciliation must, therefore, be requested
from the authority and at the judgment of the Popes. Thus, to
maintain that We have to curry favor with anyone, would be to
esteem in a harmful and perverse way Our charge and Our duty,
which, in themselves, bid Us to manifest to all men a paternal
benevolence (d).
(Wishes and hopes.—The creation of two cardinals.)

660
(60
lit.
/63)

THE MOTHER OF THE MYSTICAL BODY
Encycl. Ad diem ilium, February 2, 1904.
(The 50th anniversary of the definition of the dogma of the
Immaculate Conception.—Graces obtained for the Church by the
Blessed Virgin.)
Is not Marv the Mother of God?
Therefore, she is also our Mother.
For it must be laid down as a principle that Jesus, the Word 661
made flesh, is at the same time the Savior of the human race. (6.
Now, inasmuch as He is the God-Man. He has a body like other 33.
660a Isaias 53:12.

660b 2 Cor. 5:19.

660c 2 Cor. 5:18.

660d Autumare igitur reconciliandam esse Nobis cum quopiam
gratiam, esset id quidem injuriose et perversi judicantium de
munere officioque Nostro, quo ipso debemus pateram erga om­
nes gerere voluntatem

360

UNIVERSAL BISHOP

46) men; inasmuch as He is the Redeemer of our race, He has a
spiritual body, or, as it is called, a mystical body which is none
other than the society
* of Christians bound to Him in faith. In
spite of our number, we are only “one body in Christ Jesus" (a).
Now, the Blessed Virgin conceived the Son of God not only so
that by receiving human nature from her He could become man,
but even more so that, by means of that nature which He received
from her, He might become the Savior of men. This explains the
words of the Angels to the shepherds: “There is born to you a
Savior, who is Christ, the Lord” (b).
Therefore, in the chaste womb of the Virgin where Jesus
took mortal flesh, there, too, He joined to Himself a spiritual
body, made up of all those “who were to believe in Him”: and
it is possible to say that Mary, carrying Jesus in her womb, bore
there also all those whose life was included in the Savior’s life.
662
And so. united to Christ, we arc, as the Apostle says, “mein(33 hers of his body, flesh of his flesh, bone of his bone” (a), and
16) we must say that we sprang from the womb of the Virgin, issuing
thence after the manner of a body attached to its head. It is for
this reason that we are called, in a spiritual and mystical sense,
sons of Mary, and that she, for her part, is the Mother of us all,
“Mother according to the spirit, but true mother of the members
of Jesus Christ which we ourselves are” (b). Therefore, if the
Blessed Virgin is at one and the same time Mother of God and
of men. who can doubt but that she employs all her credit with
her Son, “the head of the body which is the Church" (c), that
He may shower upon us who are his members the gifts of his
grace, notably that of knowing Him and living by Him (d).
(Hou; Mary received the maternity of grace—Her eminent
sanctity —Her cult —Imitation of her virtues.—Announcement of
a jubilee.)
UNIVERSAL BISHOP
Decree Constat apud omnes, March 7, 1904, to the Italian
Episcopate.
663
By common agreement it is recognized that to the authority
/>>. of the Roman Pontiff belong the right and duty to know the
661a Rom. 12.5.
661b Luke 2:11.
662a Ephes 5.30.
662b St Augustine, L. de S. Virginitate, c. VI.
662c Coloss. 1:18.
662d 1 John 4:9.

THE FIRMNESS Ol

THE ROCK

Î6I

state ol all the churches and to require each prelate to give an 756.
account of his government. This is the meaning of Christ’s words. 790)
Feed my lambs, teed my sheep (a). This is also required for
the unity of the Church, and its history shows us the uninter­
rupted practice since the very beginning.
Now constant experience has shown that the stronger and
more intimate the union between the Roman Pontiff and the
bishops, the greater are the advantages for religion. For from
this union springs greater strength, the authority of the Ordi­
naries is increased, a more effective and more prompt bulwark
is afforded to error and vice, the salvation of souls is made
more secure.
It has been the custom of the Roman Pontiffs to gather in- 664
formation on the condition ol the churches in two ways: either T56)
thev have asked each Pastor to render to the Holv See an exact
and faithful account of his diocese, or they have sent representa­
tives whose titles have varied according to time, place, or the
nature of their missions.
Thus, to temporal rulers they have sent Ambassadors, Nun­
cios, Apostolic Delegates, with the sole mission of treating with
them ol the affairs of Christendom. In the same wav. they have
frequently sent Legates to individual churches or to the faithful
of a particular country or kingdom, to regulate local religious
affairs directly, sometimes with permanent ordinary' jurisdiction
(as with Legates properly so-called), sometimes in an excep­
tional and temporary' manner (as yvith Visitors Apostolic).
(Tin closer union which must reign between the Pope and
the dioceses of Italy.—Resumption of the Apostolic Visits begun
by Leo XIII.—The advantages expected from them.)
THE FIRMNESS OF THE ROCK

Encycl. Jucunda sane, March 12, 1904.
(The 13th centenary of St. Gregory the Great.—His example.
-The barbarian invasions.—The Savior of Italy.—The conversion
of England.—The man of faith.)
Thence came, in this man of God, that resolute determina· 665
tion to turn to the salvation ol all. the superabundant resources (75.
of the divine gilts with which the Savior has enriched his 102.
663a John 21.15, 17.

362

THE FIRMNESS OF THE ROCK

775, Church: the truth, certain above all others, of revealed teaching;
117) the effective preaching oi that truth throughout the whole world;
the sacraments which have the power to produce or to increase
within us the liie of the soul; finally, the grace of prayer in the
name of Christ, the sure pledge of heavenly protection.
666
The memory of all these things strengthens Us in a marvelous
(739) manner, Venerable Brothers. For when We look out across the
world from the height of the Vatican walls. We cannot but
experience a fear similar to Gregory’s, and perhaps even greater
than his, so many are the storms which assail Us, so numerous the
warlike hosts of enemies which beset Us, and at the same time,
so entirely without any human help do We find Ourselves, so that
We lack the means both to suppress and to resist their attacks.
And yet, when We think of the ground on which We stand, and
on which this Pontifical See is established. We feel absolutely
secure within the citadel of Holy Church. “Who does not know,
in fact.” Gregory wrote to Eu logins, Bishop of Alexandria, “that
Holy Church is firmly established on the solid foundation of the
Prince of the Apostles, who bears in his very name the firmness
of his soul, for it was from the comparison with the rock that he
received the name of Peter” (a). Never in the course of ages has
divine strength failed the Church! Never have the promises of
Christ disappointed her hope; they remain what they were when
they stimulated the courage of Gregory'; they seem to Us even
more powerful by reason of the test of the centuries and the
vicissitudes of historv.
✓
The Church is always young
667
(27.
6/.
227228)

Kingdoms and empires have crumbled; peoples famous for
the glory of their name and for their civilization have disappeared.
We see nations as it were weary with age breaking up from within. The Church, lor her part, is immortal by her very nature. Never
will the bond which unites her to her heavenly Spouse be broken;
hence old age cannot touch her She remains young and vigorous,
always overflowing with that strength with which she sprang
from the transpierced Heart of Christ in death on the cross. The
powerful ones of this earth have risen up against her; they have
vanished, but she remains! The learned ones in their pride have
devised an infinite variety of systems which, they thought, would
666a Ri nistr. VII. 40

TO TEACII ALL NATIONS

36?

make a breach in the teaching of the Church, destroy the dogmas
of her faith, demonstrate the absurdity of her teaching authority.
... But histon· shows us these systems abandoned and forgotten,
utterly destroyed. And all this time, from the heights of the
citadel of Peter, the true light has shone out in all the brilliance
which Christ communicated to it in the very beginning and which
lie nourishes with this divine sentence: “Heaven and earth will
pass away, but my word will not pass away” (a).
Strong in this faith, unshakably established on this Peter. 668
We turn the eyes of Our soul both to the heavy obligations of (61.
this holy primacy and at the same time to the strength divinely 225)
imparted to Our heart. In peace We wait for those to be silent
who are loudly proclaiming that the Catholic Church has had
her day, that her teaching is hopelessly reactionary’, that she will
soon be reduced either to conformity with the data of science and
a civilization without God, or to withdrawal from the society of
men. And while We wait, it is Our duty to recall to everyone,
great and small, as the Holy Pontiff Gregory did in ages past, the
absolute necessity which is ours to have recourse to this Church
to effect our eternal salvation, to obtain peace, and even pros­
perity', in our life here below.
That is why, to use the words of the Holy Pontiff, We say:
"Make firm the progress of your souls, as you have begun to do.
with the firmness of this rock: on it. as you know, our Redeemer
founded the Church throughout the world, so that sincere hearts,
guiding their steps by her, would not stray' on to the wrong
road" (a).
(The defender of the rights of the Papacy and of the super­
natural order.—Moral reform.—The duties of bishops.—The ideal
of the true priest.—The Church and civilization.)
TO TEACH ALL NATIONS

Apost. Let. In Apostolicum, March 25, 1904. to the Society
of the Propagation of the Faith.
Raised to the Apostolic charge and placed by the favor ol 669
the divine merev at the very summit of the Christian priesthood. (7 41Our solicitude extends far beyond Our Church of Rome. For 142.
Christ, at the moment of leaving this earth, ordered his Apostles 757,
667a Matt 24:35.

668a Recislr. VIII, 24, ad Sabinien. episc.

464

CANONICAL INSTITUTION

759-and especially Peler whom He wished to outshine the others bv
160. his zeal for heavenly glory and not merely by his dignity, to
166, teach all nations and to bear the saving tidings of the new
171) teaching to the most distant limits of the earth and the most bar­
barous countries of the world (a).
Therefore, obedient to the divine precepts and following
the illustrious example of Our predecessors, We believe that
nothing more becomes Our charge than to grant all Our benevo­
lence and favor to everything that can contribute to showing
forth the light of the Gospel and extending the frontiers of the
Church.
(The Society of the Propagation of the Faith.—The alms of
the faithful contribute to the spread of the Gospel.—St. Francis
Xavier named Patron of the Society. )
CANONICAL INSTITUTION
All. to the Cardinals, November 14, 1904.
(Rupture of the French Concordat.—Congregations expelled.)

670
Nevertheless, the more easily to ensure peace, the Church
<92, yields on this point something of the rigor of her law; she grants
154. the State the power to name those to whom the episcopal office
178. will be entrusted. But this favor has not, and obviously cannot
203) have, the same value as canonical institution. To establish a man
in that sacred dignity and to grant him the power equal to that
dignity, this is a right so entirely proper and special to the Church
that she could not share it with the State without ruining the es­
sential bases of her divine constitution. It remains, therefore, that
the nomination conceded to the State can signify only the right
of designating, of presenting to the Holy See. the one whom the
Pontiff, if he sees him to be worthy of this charge, will raise to the
honor of the episcopate.
And again, it is not required that canonical institution neces­
sarily follow upon the nomination; before this takes place the
merits of the candidate must be carefully considered. And if
some obstacle is discovered which prevents the Pope, in con­
science, from conferring the episcopate upon him, no law can
oblige the Pontiff to disclose the motives of his refusal.
( Deprivations of bishops —The Constitution of the Republic
and religion.)

669a Ct Matt 28; 19. Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8

THE FIRST DUTY OF THE SHEPHERD

Encycl. Acerbo nimis, April 15, 1905.
( Religious ignorance.—Its cause. )
Now we must inquire who has the duty to safeguard minds 671
from this pernicious ignorance and impart to them the necessary (198)
knowledge. On this point, Venerable Brothers, there can be no
doubt: tliis very grave obligation is incumbent on all those who
are pastors of souls. They are certainly obliged by the precept of
Christ to know and to nourish the sheep confided to them; now.
to nourish is first of all to teach. “I will give you,” God promises
bv the mouth of the Prophet Jeremias, “pastors according to my
own heart, and they shall feed you with knowledge and doc­
trine” (a). And so the Apostle said: “Christ sent me not to bap­
tize. but to preach the Gospel" (b), indicating thus that the first
office of those who arc set up in any was for the government of
the Church is to instruct the faithful in sacred doctrine.
(Doctrinal teaching.)

THE DOUBLE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Il fenno proposito, June 11, 1905.
The firm intention We formed at the beginning of Our
pontificate, to consecrate to the restoration of all things in Christ (5.
all the strength which God in his goodness grants Us, wakens in 40.
Our heart a great confidence in the power of God’s grace, with­ 194 )
out which, here below. We could neither conceive nor undertake
anything great or fruitful for the salvation of souls. At the same
time. We feel more deeply than ever that for this noble design
We need vour singleminded and constant assistance. Venerable
Brothers, you who have been called to share Our pastoral charge;
We need the help of each of the priests and of all of the faithful
entrusted to your care. In truth, every one of us in the Holy
Church of God is called to make up the single body whose head
is Christ; a body close!) knit together, as St. Paul teaches (a),
and that in virtue of the operation proper to each member, whence
the bods draws its proper increase and little by little grows
perfect in the bond of charity.
671a Jcrem. 3:15.
671b 1 Cor. 1:17.
672.1 Eph. 4:16.

366

llll· DOUBLE MISSION OI

HIE CHURCH

673
And if in this work of tlic building up of the Body of
(165, Christ (a) it is Our first duty to teach, to indicate the method
215. to he followed and the means to be employed, to admonish and
217) paternail) to exhort, it is also the duty of all Our beloved sons
throughout the entire world to welcome Our words, to realize
them first of all in themselves, and to contribute effectively to
their realization in others, each one according to the grace which
he has received from God, according to his rank and function,
according to the zeal which burns in his heart.
(The role and importance of Catholic Action.)
674
The field of Catholic Action is vast; of itself, it excludes
f217)nothing at all that belongs in any manner whatever, directly or
indirectly, to the divine mission of the Church.

Direct mission
675
It is easy to see the necessity of contributing individually
(220-to a work so important not only for the sanctification of souls but
222) also for the spread and the increasingly improving development
of the Kingdom of God in individuals, in families, and in society,
each one working according to his means for the good of his
neighbor by the propagation of revealed truth, the exercise of
Christian virtue, good works, or the spiritual and corporal works
of mercy. Such is the conduct worthy of God to which St. Paul
exhorts us: "That you may walk worthy of God ... being fruitful
in even' good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God:
Ul ambuletis digne Deo placentes; . . . in omni opere bono fruc­
tificantes, ct crescentes in scientia Dei" (a).
Civilizing mission
076
Beyond these benefits there are a great number of others of
(81- the natural order which, without being the direct object of the
S3.) Church’s mission, nevertheless flow from it as one of its natural
consequences. The light of Catholic Revelation is such that it
sheds great brilliance upon all knowledge; so great is the force of
the Gospel teaching that the precepts of the natural law find in it
a more solid foundation and a greater strength; finally, such is the
efficacy of the truth and the moral taught by Christ that even the
material well-being of individuals, of the family, and of human
society receives from it providential support and protection.
673a Ibid. 12.

675a Coloss. 1:10.

THE DOUBLE MISSION OI THE CHURCH

ib~

The Church, while she preaches Christ Crucified, a stum- 677
bling-block and foolishness to the world (a), has become the (84)
prime inspirer and promoter ol civilization. She has advanced civ­
ilization wherever her Apostles have preached, conserving and
perfecting the good in ancient pagan cultures, rescuing from
barbarism and raising to the level ol civilized society the new
nations who betook themselves to her maternal protection, and
giving the whole of human society—doubtless gradually, but with
steady and constant progress—that character which is so marked
that even today it is everywhere preserved. The civilization of
the world is a Christian civilization; it is all the more true, lasting,
more productive of precious fruit, as it is more distinctly Chris­
tian; it is the more decadent, to the great misfortune of societ}·,
as it has departed from the Christian ideal.

And so. by the very nature of things, the Church became also 678
in fact the guardian and protector of Christian civilization. And (80this fact was recognized and admitted in other centuries; it still 84.
forms the unshakable foundation of civil legislation. On this fact 94)
rested the relations of the Church and State, the public recogni­
tion of the authority of the Church in all matters which in any
way touch upon conscience, the subordination of all State laws to
the divine law of the Gospel, the harmony of the two powers,
civil and ecclesiastic, their agreement in working for the temporal
well-being of the peoples in such wise that their eternal well­
being should not suffer.
( The Church's struggles. )
The program of the Church
This is no reason to lose courage. The Church knows that the 679
gates of hell will never prevail against her; but she knows, too, (76that in this world she will meet with persecution, that her apos- 78.
ties are sent as sheep among wolves, that the faithful will always h>l.
be showered with hatred and contempt even as her Founder was
overwhelmed with hatred and contempt. Nonetheless, the
Church moves forward without fear, ami while she extends the
Kingdom of God into those regions where it has not yet been
preached, she endeavors by every means in her power to repair
the losses suffered in the Kingdom already won.
677a Cf. 1 Cor 1:23.

£

A'

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368

*

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—

THE CHURCH RESTS UPON THE BISHOPS

680
To restore all things in Christ has ever been the motto of the
(76. Church, and it is in a special way Our own in the perilous times
78, in which We live. To restore all things, not in an indiscriminate
83) fashion, but in Christ; "all things ... that are in heaven and on
earth, in Him” (a), the Apostle adds; to restore in Christ not only
what is directly incumbent on the Church by reason of her divine
mission to bring souls to God. but also, as We have explained,
whatever springs spontaneously from this divine mission: Chris­
tian civilization in the ensemble of each and all of the elements
which go to make it up (b).
(Works confided to Catholic Action. )
681
But in her long history the Church has always, on every oc(224) casion, demonstrated in luminous fashion that she possesses a
marvelous power of adaptation to the varying conditions of civil
society: without ever damaging the integrity of her faith, her
moral, and always safeguarding her sacred rights, she accommo­
dates herself with ease in all that is contingent and accidental, to
the needs of the times and the new demands of society.
(Conditions of Catholic Action.) (a)
THE CHURCH RESTS UPON THE BISHOPS
Encycl. Vehementer Nos, February 11, 1906, to the Bishops
of France.
(The denunciation of the Concordat.—Condemnation of the
principle of the separation of Church and State.—Injury done to
the Holy Sec by the law of separation, the manner of its promul­
gation, and its provisions.)

682
Scripture teaches us, and the Fathers confirm it for us, that
(6. the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ, a body ruled by pas13, tors and doctors (a), a society of men, hence, a society among
86, whose ranks are to be found men who have full and entire power
680a Ephes. 1:10.
(580b Ristora re in Cristo. non solo ciô chc apport icne propriamento
alia divina missione della Chicsa di condurrc le anime a Dio, ma
anche do. chc come ahbiamo spiegato, da quelle divina missione
spontaneamente deriva, la civiltà cristiana nel complesso di tutti
e singoli gli elementi che la costituscono.
68 la (I ΠΙΕ LAY APOSTOLATE where this encyclical is to be
found in its entirety.
682a Ephes. 4:11.

THE FIRST DUTY OF BISHOPS

,

369

to govern, to teach, and to judge (b). It follows that this Church 136,
is in its essence unequal, that is to say, it is a society comprising 214)
two categories, pastors and flock, those who occupy ranks in dif­
fering degrees of hierarchy and the multitude of the faithful. And
these categories are so distinct from one another that in the
pastoral group alone reside the right and authority necessary to
promote and direct all the members towards the end of the socie­
ty; as for the multitude of the faithful, they have no other duty
than to allow themselves to be led, and, like a docile flock, to fol­
low their Shepherds.

St. Cyprian Martyr expresses this truth in an admirable fash- 683
ion when he writes: ‘Our Lord, whose precepts we must revere 185)
and observe, in regulating the episcopal dignity and the mode of
life in his Church, says in the Gospel, addressing Peter: Ego dico
tibi quia tu es Petrus, “I say to thee, thou art Peter,” etc.,... And
so, through the ages and across the trials of the centuries the
economy of the episcopate and the Constitution of the Church
have unfolded in such a way that the Church rests upon the
Bishops and all our active life is governed by them: Dominus nos­
ter, cujus precepta mentuere et servare debemus, Episçopi
honorem et Ecclesia.· suae rationem disponens, in Evangelic
loquitur et dicit Petro: Ego dico tibi quia tu est Petrus, etc.... In­
de per temporum et successionum vices Episcoporum ordinatio et
Ecclesia ratio decurrit, ut Ecclesia super Episcopos constituatur
et omnis actus Ecclesiae per eosdem propositos gubernetur” (a).
St. Cyprian affirms that this is all founded upon a divine law:
divina lege fundatum.
( Les Associations Cultuelles.”—Spoliation.—Condemnation
of the hue and protest against its passage and promulgation—Ex­
hortation and directives for time of persecution.—Union icith the
Holy See. )
THE FIRST DUTY OF BISHOPS
Encycl. Pleni l'animo, July 28, 1906. to the Bishops of Italy.
( The spirit of insubordination in the clergy —Vigilance in the
formation of seminarians.—Supervision of preachers.)

You must all the more employ this vigilance and strictness 684
because the ministry of preaching belongs entirely to you as iiil9S)
682b Matt. 28:19-20; 16:18-19; Tit. 2:15; 2 Cor. 10:8; 12:10.
683a Epist. XXVII, ad laicos, II. 1.

370

THE FRUIT O1 PERSECUTION

proper and constitutive part of the episcopal office; outside your
ranks, anyone who exercises this ministry does so in your name
and m your stead; therefore, it will always be you who will have (
to render an account before God of the manner in which the
bread of the divine word has been distributed to the faithful (a).
(Supervise the work of the clergy in social work and in the
pi ess.—Measures to be taken.—Affirmation of episcopii authorify- )
PERSECUTION IS AN EVIL

Letter Une fois encore, January 6, 1907, to France.
(The struggles of the Church in France.—Victory will be the
lesult of the union of the faithful among themselves, and the union
of all with the Holy See. )
6&5
The Church does not want violent persecution. She has ex(67, perience of this type of persecution because she has suffered it in
228) every' age and in every land. The many centuries she has spent
bathed in blood give her the right, therefore, to say with a holy
pride that she does not fear persecution and that, whenever it is
necessary to do so, she will be able to face it. But in itself persecu­
tion is an evil, since it is an injustice and it prevents man from
adoring God in liberty. The Church, therefore, cannot desire it,
even in view of the good which, in infinite wisdom, Divine Provi­
dence always brings forth from it. Moreover, persecution is not
simply an evil, it is also a suffering, and this is another reason
why, out of pity for her children, the Church, the best of iMothers,
will never desire it.
(T/ic responsibility of the Church's enemies.—Spoliation of
the Church.—The "Associations Cultuelles."—Repudiation of the
recent laws.—Words of hope.)

THE FRUIT OF PERSECUTION

All. to the Capranica, January 26, 1907.
(The trials of 3500 clerics, leaving the seminaries for the
barracks. )
686
The Church is called one, holy, catholic, apostolic, and Ro(5, man, 1 will add, and persecuted. Did not Jesus Christ foretell it?
228) Persecution is the Church’s daily bread. It is one of the marks of
684a Cf. the volume on Preaching.

ERRORS ON THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH

371

the Church always to be persecuted. Persecution is the sign that
we are truly the children of the Church of Christ. In every cen­
tury she has had persecutions to deplore. The century in which
she has not had them to grieve over has been the most deadly for
her; in persecution faith revives and increases. Great works are
not born in times of repose. Stagnant waters corrupt. Therefore,
let us console ourselves in persecution and let us beg the Lord
to keep us faithful in the combat we engage in for him.
( Encouragement. )

ERRORS ON THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH
Decree Lamentabili, July 3, 1907.
(To check the spread of Modernist errors among the faithful,
Pius X instructs (he Holy Office to condemn the following errors: )
Errors concerning the magisterium

III. From the ecclesiastical judgments and censures passed 687
against free and more scientific exegesis, one can conclude that (J02)
the Faith the Church proposes contradicts history and that Catho­
lic teaching cannot really be reconciled with the true origins of
the Christian religion.

IV. Even by dogmatic definitions the Church’s magisterium 688
cannot determine the genuine sense of the Sacred Scriptures.
(102)

V. Since the deposit of Faith contains only revealed truths, 689
the Church has no right to pass judgment on the assertions of thef 106)
human sciences.
VI. The “Church learning” and the "Church teaching” col- 690
laborate in such a way in defining truths that it only remains for (97)
the “Church teaching" to sanction the opinions of the “Church
learning.”

VII. In proscribing errors, the Church cannot demand any 691
internal assent from the faithful by which the judgments shei/ZO)
issues are to be embraced.
VIII. They are Iree from all blame who treat lightly the con- 692
demnations passed by the Sacred Congregation of the Index or bv(/09)
the Roman Congregations.
(Errors concerning inspiration and Holy Scripture.)

372

ERRORS ON TUE NATURE OF HIE CHURCH

693
XXII. Opposition may, ami actually does, exist between the
(102) facts narrated in Sacred Scripture and the Church’s dogmas which
rest on them. Thus the critic may reject as false facts the Church
holds as most certain.
(Errors concerning exegesis of the Gospel, and the sacra­
ments. )
694
L. The elders who fulfilled the office of watching over the
(86) gatherings of the faithfid were instituted by the Apostles as priests
or bishops to provide for the necessary ordering of the increasing
communities and not properly for the perpetuation of the Apos­
tolic mission and power.
(Errors concerning the institution of the Church.)

695
LI I. It was far from the mind of Christ to found a Church as
(227)a society which would continue on earth for a long course of cen­
turies. On the contrary, in the mind of Christ the kingdom of
heaven together with the end of the world was about to come
immediately.
696
LI 11. The organic constitution of the Church is not irnmu(224) table. Like human society, Christian society is subject to a perpet­
ual evolution.
697
L1V. Dogmas, Sacraments and hierarchy, both their notion
(137)and realilv. are only interpretations and evolutions of the Chris­
tian intelligence which have increased and perfected by an ex­
ternal series of additions the little germ latent in the Gospel.

698
LV. Simon Peter never even suspected that Christ entrusted
(147) the primacy in the Church to him.
699
LVL The Roman Church became the head of all the church(143.es, not through the ordinance of Divine Providence, but merely
152) through political conditions.
700
LVII. The Church has shown that she is hostile to the prog(101 )ress of the natural and theological sciences.

701
LXI. It may be said without paradox that there is no chapter
(102) of Scripture, from the first of Genesis to the last of the Apocalypse,
which contains a doctrine absolutely identical with that which the
Church teaches on the same matter. For the same reason, there­
fore, no chapter of Scripture has the same sense for the critic
and the theologian.

MODERNIST CONCEPTION OI HIE CHURCH

373

LX11I. The Church shows that she is incapable of effective- 702
ly maintaining evangelical ethics since she obstinately clings to (101,
immutable doctrines which cannot be reconciled with modem 103,
progress ( a ).
106)

MODERNIST CONCEPTION OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Pascendi, September 8, 1907, on the teachings of the
Modernists.
(The new seducers.)
Origin of authority
A wider field for comment is opened when we come to what 703
the Modernist school has imagined to be the nature of the Church. (12)
They begin with the supposition that the Church has its
birth in a double need: first, the need of the individual believer
to communicate his faith to others, especially if he has had some
original and special experience, and secondly, when the faith has
become common to many, the need of the collectivity to form
itself into a society and to guard, promote, and propagate the
common good. What, then, is the Church?
It is the product of the collective conscience, that is to say,
of the association of individual consciences which, by virtue of the
principle of vital permanence, depend all on one first believer,
who for Catholics is Christ. Now every society needs a directing
authority to guide its members towards the common end, to foster
prudently the elements of cohesion, which in a religious society
are doctrine and worship. Hence the triple authority in the Cath­
olic Church, disciplinary, dogmatic, liturgical. The nature of this
authority is to be gathered from its origin, and its rights and du­
ties from its nature. In past times it was a common error that au­
thority came to the Church from without, that is to say directly
from God; and it was then rightly held to be autocratic. But this
conception has now grown obsolete. For in the same way as the
Church is a vital emanation of the collectivity of consciences, so
too authority emanates vitally from the Church itself.

Authority, therefore, like the Church, has its origin in the re- 704
ligious conscience, and, that being so, is subject to it. Should it (138)
disown this dependence it becomes a tyranny. For we are living
702a Regarding the authority to he attributed to the present De­
cree, cf. below, No. 709a. The text of the Decree may l>e found
in Denzinger, Nos. 2001-2065a.

374

MODERNIS I CONCEPTION OF TI IE CHURCII

in an age when the sense of liberty has reached its highest devel­
opment. In the civil order the public conscience has introduced
popular government Now there is in man only one conscience,
just as there is only one life. It is for the ecclesiastical authority,
therefore, to adopt a democratic form, unless it wishes to pro­
voke and foment an intestine conflict in the consciences of man­
kind. The penalty of refusal is disaster. For it is madness to think
that the sentiment of liberty, as it now obtains, can recede. Were
it forcibly pent up and held in bonds, the more terrible would
be its outburst, sweeping away at once both Church and religion.
Such is the situation in the minds of the Modernists, and their one
great anxiety is, in consequence, to find a way of conciliation be­
tween the authority of the Church and the liberty of the believers.
(Relations of the Church and State.)

Doctrinal authority
705
But much more evil and pernicious are their opinions on
(97) doctrinal and dogmatic authority. The following is their con­
ception of the magisterium of the Church: No religious society,
they say, can be a real unit unless the religious conscience of its
members be one, and also the formula which they adopt. But
this double unity requires a kind of common mind whose office is
to find and determine the formula that corresponds best with the
common conscience; and it must have, moreover, an authority
sufficient to enable it to impose on the community the formula
which has been decided upon. From the combination and, as it
were, fusion of these two elements, the common mind which
draws up the formula and the authority which imposes it, arises,
according to the Modernists, the notion of the ecclesiastical ma­
gisterium. And, as this magisterium springs, in its last analysis,
from the individual consciences and possesses its mandate of pul)lic utility for their benefit, it necessarily follows that the ecclesi­
astical magisterium must be dependent upon them, and should
therefore be made to bow to the popular ideals. To prevent in­
dividual consciences from expressing freely and publicly their
needs, to hinder criticism and prevent it from advancing along
necessary evolutionary lines, is not a legitimate use but an abuse
of a power given for the public weal.
So too a due method and measure must be observed in the
(137, exercise of authority. To condemn and proscribe a work without
216) the knowledge of the author, without hearing his explanations,

MODERNIST CONCEPTION OF THE CHURCH

375

without discussion, is something approaching to tyranny. And here
again it is a question of finding a way of reconciling the full rights
of authority on the one hand and those of liberty' on the other.
In the meantime the proper course for the Catholic will be to
proclaim publicly his profound respect for authority, while never
ceasing to follow his own judgment. Their general direction for
the Church is as follows: that the ecclesiastical authority, since
its end is entirely spiritual, should strip itself of that external
pomp which adorns it in the eyes of the public. In this, they for­
get that while religion is for the soul, it is not exclusively for the
soul, and that the honor paid to authority is reflected back on
Christ who instituted it.
(T/ic evolution of religion, according to the Modernists.)
Finally, evolution in the Church itself is fed by the need of 707
adapting itself to historical conditions and of harmonizing itself (225)
with existing forms of society.
Such is their view with regard to even' particular.
And here, before proceeding further, We wish to draw at­
tention to this whole theory* of necessities
or needs, for bevond
4
not only all of that We have considered so far. but also it is. as it
were, the base and foundation of that famous method which they
describe as historical.
»
The dialectic of evolution
Although evolution is urged on by needs or necessities, yet.
if controlled by these alone, it would easily overstep the boundaries of tradition, and thus, separated from its primitive vital
principle, would make for ruin instead of progress.
Hence, let us say, in order to present fully the ideas of the
Modernists, that evolution is a resultant from the conflict of two
forces, one of them tending towards progress, the other towards
conservation. The conserving force exists in the Church and is
found in tradition; tradition is represented by religious authority,
and this both by right and in fact. By right, for it is in the very
nature of authority to protect tradition; and in fact, since author­
ity. raised as it is above the contingencies of life, feels hardly,
or not at all, the spurs of progress. The progressive force, on the
contrary, which responds to the inner needs, lies in the indi­
vidual consciences and works in them—especially in such of them
as are in more close and intimate contact with life. Already we
observe, Venerable Brethren, the introduction of that most per-

70S
111.
138.
211,
225)

376

MODERNIST CONCEPTION OF THE CHURCH

nicious doctrine which would make of the laity the factor of
progress in the Church. Now it is by a species of covenant and
compromise between these two forces of conservation and prog­
ress, that is to say between authority and individual consciences,
that changes and advances take place. The individual consciences,
or some of them, act on the collective conscience, which brings
pressure to bear on the depositaries of authority to make terms
and to keep them (a).

Conscience and authority
709
With all this in mind, one understands how it is that the
(216, Modernists express astonishment when they are reprimanded or
225) punished. What is imputed to them as a fault they regard as a
sacred duty. They understand the needs of consciences better
than anyone else, since they come into closer touch with them
than does the ecclesiastical authority. Nay, they embody them,
so to speak, in themselves. Hence, for them to speak and to write
publicly is a bounden duty. Let authority rebuke them if it pleases
—they have their own conscience on their side and an intimate
experience which tells them with certainty that what they deserve
is not blame but praise. Then they reflect that, after all, there is
no progress without a battle and no battle without its victims;
and victims they are willing to be, like the prophets and Christ
Himself. They have no bitterness in their hearts against the au­
thority which uses them roughly, for after all they readily admit
that it is only doing its duty as authority. Their sole grief is that
it remains deaf to their warnings, for in this way it impedes the
708a Vis conservatrix viget in Ecclesia contineturque traditione.
Eam vero exerit religiosa auctoritas, idque tam jure ipso, est
enim in auctoritatis natura traditionem tueri, tam re, auctoritas
namque a commutationibus vitæ reducta stimulis ad progressio­
nem pellentibus nihil aut vix urgetur. E contra vis ad progredien­
dum rapiens ataue intimis indigentiis respondens latet ac molitur
in privatorum conscientiis, illorum prxeipue qui vitam, ut in­
quiunt, propius ataue intimius attingunt.—En hic, Venerabiles
Fratres, doctrinam illam exitiosissimam efferre caput jam cerni­
mus, qux laicos homines in Ecclesiam subinfert ut progressionis
elementa.—Ex convento quodam et pacto inter binas hasce vires,
conservatricem et progressionis fautricem, inter auctoritatem vi­
delicet et conscientias privatorum, progressus ac mutationes ori­
untur. Nam privatorum conscientix, vel harum quxdam, in con­
scientiam collectivam agunt, hxc vero in habentes auctoritatem
cogitque illos pactiones conflare atque in pacto manere.

SIGN OF UNITY

377

progress of souls, but the hour will most surely come when further
delay will be impossible, for if the laws of evolution may be
checked for a while they cannot be finally evaded. And thus they
go their way, reprimands and condemnations notwithstanding,
masking an incredible audacity under a mock semblance of
humility. While they make a pretense of bowing their heads, their
minds and hands are more boldly intent than ever on earn ing out
their purposes. And this policy they follow willingly and wittingly,
both because it is part of their system that authority is to be stim­
ulated but not dethroned, and because it is necessary for them to
remain within the ranks of the Church in order that they may
gradually transform the collective conscience. And in saying this,
they fail to perceive that they are avowing that the collective
conscience is not with them, and that they have no right to claim
to be its interpreters (a).
It is thus, Venerable Brethren, that for the Modernists,
whether as authors or propagandists, there is to be nothing stable,
nothing immutable in the Church.
(Errors of the Modernist historian, critic, apologist, reformer.
-The roots of heresy.—Its fruits.—Remedies.)

SIGN OF UNITY
Letter E Solemnibus, August 28, 1908, to Cardinal Vannu-

telli.
(Announcement of the Eucharistic Congress to be held in
London, September, 1908. )
The joy We feel is easy to understand if one realizes the 710
importance of these Congresses for reviving and increasing among (51)
709a The Motu Proprio Praestantia Script urx Sacra, of Nov. 18.
1907, while defining the authority of tne decisions of the Biblical
Commission, which require the same submission due the doc­
trinal Decrees of the Sacred Congregations, (“omnes conscientix
obstringi officio . . . perinde ac Decretis Sacrarum Congregatio­
num pertinentibus ad doctrinam probatisque a Pontifice, se sub­
jiciendi"), expressly confirmed the condemnations proclaimed by
the Decree Lamentabili and the Encyclical Pascendi: “By Our
Apostolic authority, We repeat and confirm not only that Decree
of the Sacred Supreme Congregation, but also that Encyclical
Letter of Ours, adding the penalty of excommunication against
all who contradict them. . .. This excommunication, however, is
to be understood with no change in the punishments, which

’>

378

SPOUSE OF JESUS CHRIST

the Christian people the worship, the love, and the fréquentation
of the Divine Eucharist.
In it is to be found the source whence flows to the whole
body of the Church the principle of supernatural life; in it resides
the bond which binds close the members of the body. In the au­
gust Sacrament, in fact, although in a mysteriously hidden man­
ner, Our loving Redeemer is truly present and living to the end of
time. For there is the fire of divine charity; there lies all our hope;
there is, for all of us, one and the same center of faith, just as the
manner of consecrating—which is common to all Catholic priests
no matter what the diversity of rites—attests the unity of our
government and of our life.
{The Eucharist as sacrifice.—A papal legate is appointed.)

SPOUSE OF JESUS CHRIST
All. to Bishop Touchet of Orleans, and the French pilgrims,
April 19, 1909.
{Fidelity to the Holy See.—Zeal for the propagation of the
faith.—Courage tn the face of confiscation.—Union—Patriotism.)

711
To the politicians who are waging a relentless war against
(15- the Church after denouncing her as an enemy, to sectaries who
16. never cease vilifying and calumniating her with a hatred worthy
63, of hell itself, to the false champions of science who study to
102. make her odious by their sophisms, declaring that she is the
105- enemy of liberty, civilization, and intellectual progress, you must
106) reply boldly that the Catholic Church, the Mother of souls and
the Queen of all hearts, is the mistress of the world because she is
the Spouse of Jesus Christ. She possesses all things in common
with Him; she is rich with His wealth and the guardian of truth;
she alone can command the love and veneration of all men.
{Church and State.—The children of the Church, a nation’s
greatest wealth.—Joan of Arc.)
those who have committed anything against the above-men­
tioned documents may incur, if at any time their propositions,
opinions or doctrines arc heretical; which indeed has happened
more than once in the case of the adversaries of both these docu­
ments, but especially when they defend the errors of modernism,
that is, the refuge of all heresies {omnium hæreseon collectum).’’
Cf. Denzingcr, Nos. 2113 ff.

THE STRENGTH OF THE CHURCH

All. to the French Bishops, April 20, 1909.
(Congratulations on their courage and their docility to the
Holy See.)
In these days when the wicked arc granted unbridled license 712
to do evil, you on your side must unite all your efforts to assert 639,
your own inviolable liberty to declare, to teach, and to enjoin all 52,
that is right and just, and, above all, to carry out before the eyes 91)
of men all that is necessary and useful to render to the divine
majesty a fitting homage. And here, if we urge harmony in your
efforts, We beg you not to take it amiss: it is of enormous value
to the Church. For in the unity of the Church, that is to say, in
the marvelous union of all her members, which she has received
from Christ her Founder, is to be seen that invincible strength by
reason of which she is said in Sacred Scripture to be “terrible as
an army in battle array” (a). On the contrary, Augustine says
that "the divisions of Christians are the victories of Satan” (b).
The enemy's objective

Now in your country nothing is more obvious than this de­ 713
sign of the bitter enemies of Christianity, to destroy unity and (181)
concord within the Church. To this end they have used incredible
skill to enact laws designed to separate ordained ministers from
the successor of St. Peter, that is to say, from the center of the
faith, to alienate the flocks from their shepherds, to sow the seeds
of discord among the shepherds themselves, and so to tear asun­
der the mystic robe of Jesus Christ.

Union for victory
It is for this reason that in the exercise of Our apostolic
charge We admonish you in the words of the Apostle: Let all of
yon say the self-same thing, let there be no divisions among you;
but be ye perfect in one mind and one thought (a). Let this
union of minds be dearer to you than all ('Ise: it will bear fruit in
that inner peace which is so necessary' to the sacred ministry', and
it will increase the efficacy of your apostolate. '1 has, like welldisciplined soldiers, you will more successfully resist the enemies
of Christ’s cross assailing you on all sides, and you will every712a Cant 6:3-9.

7121» P.L., XXXVIII, 1053.

714a I Cor. 1:10.

711
(52,
99,

1S1)

380

HEED THE CHURCH

where defend the deposit of faith. But yon have already shown
yourselves such as ought to receive, not these exhortations, but
Our highest praise.

715
For, loyally adhering to this Apostolic See, not only have you
(193) all regarded as a sacred and solemn obligation those things which
no one of you could neglect with impunity, but even in those
things where each one is free to think and act as he pleases, it
has been your custom to sacrifice personal policy to follow the
decision taken in common by all the rest.
In these sad times, Venerable Brethren, the magnanimity and
fortitude with which you have defended the Church’s rights have
consoled Us; so, too, the warm-hearted loyalty which you have
shown Us. But nothing has given Us so much consolation as this
union of all of you among yourselves and with Us. We give thanks
for these consolations and We implore of the most merciful Lord
that He will shower upon you an abundance of his gifts, but,
above all, that it will be possible for you to keep forever intact
this union among yourselves.
HEED THE CHURCH
All. to the students at the Second Congress of Catholic Uni­
versities at Rome, May 10, 1909.
( Reason and faith not at variance. )
1 recommend to you only to remain strong in your determina­
716
(9, tion to be loyal sons of the Church of Jesus Christ, at a time when
there are so many who, perhaps without knowing it, have shown
96, themselves disloyal. For the first and greatest criterion of the
109, faith, the ultimate and unassailable test of orthodoxy is obedience
214- to the teaching authority of the Church, which is ever living and
215) infallible, since she was established by Christ to be the columna
et firmamentum veritatis, “the pillar and support of truth” (a).
Jesus Christ, who knew our weakness, who came into the
world to preach the gospel to the poor above all, chose for the
spread of Christianity a very simple means adapted to the capac­
ity' of all men and suited to every age: a means which required
neither learning, nor research, nor culture, nor rationalization, but
only willing ears to hear, and simplicity of heart to obey. This is
why St. Paul says: fides ex auditu (b), faith comes not by sight,
716a 1 Tim. 3:15.

716b Rom. 10:17.

HEED THE CHURCH

381

but by hearing, from the living authority of the Church, a visible
society composed of masters and disciples, of riders and of
governed, of shepherds and sheep and Iambs. Jesus Christ Him­
self has laid on his disciples the duty of hearing the instructions
of their masters, on subjects of living in submission to the dictates
of nders. on sheep and lambs of following with docility in the
footsteps of their shepherds. And to shepherds, to nders, and to
teachers He has said. Docete omnes gentes. Spiritus veritatis doce­
bit vos omnem veritatem. Ecce ego vobiscum sum usque ad con­
summationem saeculi (c): “Going, teach ye all nations. The Spirit
of truth will teach you all truth. And behold I am with you all
days, even to the consummation of the world."
From these facts you can see how far astray are those Catho- 717
lies, who, in the name of historical and philosophical criticism and (111,
that tendentious spirit which has invaded every field, put in the 230)
foremost rank the religious question itself, insinuating that by
study and research we should fonn a religious conscience in
harmony with our times, or, as they say, “modern”. And so, with a
system of sophisms and errors they falsify the concept of obedi, cnee inculcated by the Church; they arrogate to themselves the
right of judging the actions of authority even to the extent of
ridiculing them; they attribute to themselves a mission to impose
. a reform—a mission which they have received neither from God
nor from any authority. They limit obedience to purely exterior
actions, even if they do not resist authority or rebel against it,
opposing the faulty judgment of some individual without any real
competence, or of their own inner conscience deceived by vain
subtleties, to the judgment and commandment of the one who
by divine mandate is their lawful judge, master, and shepherd.
Oh, my dear young men! Listen to the words of him who
truly wishes you well: do not let yourselves be seduced by mere
outward show, but be strong to resist illusions and flatteries and
you will be saved!

He that heareth you, heareth Me
But the official Church, they say, wants ignorance, impedes 718
the development of religious studies; an intolerable discipline ini-(101.
poses silence. No, dear students: the Church, representing Jesus 222)
Christ, continually preaches those same words He addressed to
716c Matt. 28:19-20.

HEED HIE CHURCH

382

AD LIMINA VISI TS

the Jews: Mea doctrina non est mea, sed eius qui misit me; “My
doctrine is not mine, but his that sent inc”; and He added: Si quis
oolueril voluntatem eius facere, cognoscet de doctrina, utrum ei
Deo sit, an ego a meipso loquar: If any man will do the will of
him, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or
whether 1 speak of myself” (a). That is why the Church has al­
ways honored, not only the early Fathers and Doctors, but also the
writers of every age who have studied and published works to
spread the truth, to defend it against the attacks of unbelievers,
and to throw into relief the absolute harmony which exists be­
tween faith and reason.

stone" (a). So We must have ever before our mind’s eye that
counsel of St. Paul to the Galatians: “If we ourselves or if an angel
should teach you any other Gospel than that which we have
taught you, let him be anathema” (b).
AD LIMINA VISITS

Decree of the Sacred Congregation of the Consistory,
December 31, 1909.
From the earliest ages of the Church, law and custom have 721
decreed that every bishop should come to Rome at stated periods(L90)
to venerate the See of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul and to lay
before the Apostolic See the condition of his diocese. The early
annals of the Church furnish documents to attest this fact.
The reasons for such a custom are to be found in the very
nature and constitution of the Church and are the necessary
consequence of the sacred primacy of Peter, to whose care the
entire Christian flock was committed by the divine words of
Christ's command: "Feed my lambs; feed my sheep” (a). For in
each of these obligations—in the visit to the sacred City as much
as in the relation of the state of the diocese—is contained the duty
of submission and reverence owed to the successor of Peter.
(Rules governing the ad limina visits.)

719
To find rational grounds for your faith, study the works of
(102) those eminent men whom the Church has always honored and
continues to honor at the present time: they are the great defend­
ers of religion. Do not let yourselves be taken unawares by these
new reformers. The world may judge them to be great minds,
men of powerful genius, brilliant intellect, and unsullied con­
science. Perhaps! But Jesus has judged them all by this verdict:
“Qui a semetipso loquitur, gloriam propriam quærit; qui autem
quierit gloriam eius, (pii misit eum hic verax est, ei iniustitia in
illo non est: “He that speaketh of himself, sccketh his own glory;
but he that seeks the glory of him that sent him, he is true, and
there is no untruth in him” (a).

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

The criterion of fidelity
Do not let yourselves l>e deceived by the subtle declarations
(20.3) of others who do not cease to pretend that they wish to be with
the Church, to love the Church, to fight for her so that she will
not lose the masses, to work for the Church so that she will
come to understand the times and so to win back the people and
attach them to herself. Judge these men according to their works.
If they maltreat and despise the ministers of the Church and even
the Pope; if they try by every means to minimize their authority,
to evade their direction, and to disregard their counsels; if they
do not fear to raise the standard of rebellion, what Church are
these men speaking about? Not, certainly, of that Church estab­
lished super fundamentum Apostolorum et Prophetarum, ipso
summo angulari lapide, Christo Jesus: ‘upon the foundation of the
Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief comer
718a John 7:16-17.

719a John 7:18.

383

Encycl. Editse s:epe, May 26, 1910.
The thought so often enunciated in the word of God and 722
expressed in Sacred Scripture, that the just man will leave behind
him an everlasting memorial to speak his praises even after his
death (a), is verified in a striking way by the constant practice
and teaching of the Church.
For the Church, the mother and support of sanctity, 723
ever activated by youthful vigor and the guidance of the (67,
Spirit “who dwells within us” (a), is not only the one who brings 88,
forth, nourishes, and fosters within her bosom the noble family 126)
of the just; she is ever more solicitous before all else, as by an in­
stinct of maternal love, to preserve their memory and to reestab­
lish their honor.
I

720a Eph. 2:20.
720b Gal. 1:8.
722a Ps. 111:7; Pros. 10:7; Heb. 11:4.

721a John 21:15-17.
723a Rom. 8:11.

384

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

A heavenly perfume rises from their memory and turns her
gaze from the misfortunes of her earthly pilgrimage: she already
sees in the blessed the heavenly citizens who are “her joy and
her crown" (b); she recognizes in them in an eminent way the im­
age of her heavenly Spouse; she impresses upon her children,
through this new witness, that ancient dictum: “All things work
together unto good, to them that love God, to such as, according
to his purpose, are called to be Saints” ( c). It is pleasing to Us not
only to recall their glorious deeds; it rejoices Us to imitate their
illustrious example; they are a powerful stimulus to virtue,
echoing that Pauline precept: “Be ye followers of me, as I also am
of Christ" (d).
(St. Charles Borromeo, the model of pastors.—True Catholic
reform: to restore all things in Christ.)
God brings good out of eoil for the Church
724
Certainly you have experienced. Venerable Brothers, that the
(130, Church harassed by constant suffering, is never deprived by
228- God of all consolation. For Christ “loved the church... and
229) delivered Himself up for it, that He might sanctify it,... and
present to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot or wrinkle,
or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without
blemish” (a). When license is more widespread and the attacks
of the enemy fiercer, when the persistence of wicked error seems
to reduce her to the last extremity, and to snatch from her arms
not a few of her sons to plunge them into the maelstrom of vice
and impiety, then she experiences more vividly the protection of
the Spirit. For God makes error itself—and this whether wicked
men desire it or not—serve the triumph of truth, of which the
Church is the most vigilant guardian; corruption contributes to
the growth of holiness, of which she is the mother and teacher;
and persecution effects a more remarkable “salvation from the
hands.of our enemies” (b).
Thus it comes to pass, that at the very time when in the
sight of the unwise the Church seems more than ever tossed about
by the waves and practically lost, then she reappears stronger,
purer, and more beautiful, radiant with the splendor of exceptional
virtue.
723b Cf. Philipp. 4:1; 1 Thess. 2:20
723c Rom. 8:28.
723d 1 Cor. 4-16.
724a Eph. 5:25ff.
724b Luke 1:71.

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

385

Thus the sovereign goodness of God confirms with new
arguments the fact that the Church is a divine work; because in
the most painful of trials, when error and sin erupt in her own
members, He gives her the power to overcome them; because He
ratifies the words of Christ: “The gates of hell shall not prevail
against her” (a); because in such times He realizes that promise:
“Behold, I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the
world” (b); because, finally. He bears witness to that secret
strength promised by Christ on his return to heaven, that “other
Paraclete” who would pour forth his grace upon her, guide her,
console her in every tribulation, the Spirit, “Who would abide
with her forever, the spirit of truth whom the world cannot
receive, because it seeth him not, nor knoweth him. because he
shall abide with you and will be in you” (c). From this source
the life and strength of the Church are derived; it is thanks to
this that, as the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican has it, she is
distinguished from every other Society by characteristic notes and
is "raised among the nations like a standard” (d).
For certainly, not without a miracle of the divine omnipotence
could the Church, the mystical body of Christ, maintain unharmed
the sanctity of her doctrine, her laws, and her purpose, in the face
of corruption and the occasional defection of her members. From
these causes she derives useful results; she reaps the richest
fruits of salvation from the faith and good works of the great
majority of her children. Nor is it the least indication of that life
which springs from God that in the midst of a noxious flood of
corrupt theories, among so many contumacious men, and in the
face of such multitudes of errors, she remains constant and un­
changed, “the pillar and ground of the truth"(a), in the profession
of one doctrine, in the communion of the same sacraments, divine
in her foundation, her government, and her discipline. And what
is more to be admired, not only does she resist evil, she even
"overcomes evil by good” (b), never ceasing to bless friend and
enemy alike, endeavoring with all her strength to effect what she
so ardently desires: to refashion society and individuals by means
725a Matt. 16:18.
725b Matt. 28:20.
725c John 14:16ff.; 26; 5$); 15;7ff.
725d Sess. Ill, cap 111 Hoc ex fonte vita et robur Ecclesiæ
derivatur, hinc auod eadem, ut Concilium Oecumenicum Vati­
canum habet, manifestis notis instructa et "tamquam signum
levatum in nationes", a quavis alia societate secernitur.

726a 1 Tim. 3:15.

726b Cf. Rom. 12:21.

725
(4,
229)

726
(83,
224,
228229)

386

THUE AND FALSE REFORM

of Christian institutions. For this is her proper mission here below,
and even her enemies reap the fruit of it.
(True and false reformers in the sixteenth century.-The
work of St. Charles Borromeo.)

True Reformers

727
The Church understands how true it is that “the imagination
(32, and thought of man’s heart are prone to evil” (a), and she nev88- er ceases to struggle against vice and error “that the body of
89, sin may be destroyed, to the end that we may serve sin no
102, longer” (b). In this struggle she is her own master and she is
213) guided by grace, which “is poured forth in our hearts by the Holy
Ghost” (c). Thus she lakes her rule of thought and action from
the Doctor of the Gentiles, who says, “Be renewed in the spirit
of your mind” (d); “and be not conformed to this world, but be
reformed in the newness of your mind, that you may prove what
is the good, and the acceptable, and the perfect will of God” (e).
Therefore, the son of the Church who is a true reformer never
thinks he has reached the goal, but he professes only that he is
striving to reach it, like that same Apostle: “Forgetting the things
that are behind, and stretching forth myself to those that are
before, I press toward the mark, to the prize of the supernatural
vocation of God, in Christ Jesus” (f).

728
So it comes to pass that, united to Christ in the Church, We
(28, may in all things grow up in him who is the head, even Christ,
226) from whom the whole body ... maketh increase unto the edifying
of itself in charity” (a); and our Holy Mother Church daily
ratifies that mystery of the divine will, which is “in the dispensa­
tion of the fullness of times, to reestablish all things in Christ” (b).
(Errors of that period and of today—Follow St. Charles
example in combatting them.—Unmask heresy and safeguard the
integrity of the faith.—Instruct the clergy.—Christian schools.Preaching and synods.)

Opposition of the two reforms
729
There is still another character which shows how unlike the
(230) true reform the false one is: those whopromote the false reform
727a Gen. 8:21.
727d Eph. 4:23.
728a Eph. 4:15-16.

727bRom. 6:6.
727eRom. 12:2.
728bEph. 1; 9-10.

727c Cf. Rom. 5:5.
727f Philipp. 3:13-14.

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

387

imitate the inconstancy of foolish men; they plunge into extremes,
now insisting on faith to such an extent that they exclude the
necessity of good works, now insisting that the highest virtue is
to be found in unaided nature, removing the need for the
assistance of faith and divine grace. Now, acts which spring from
natural goodness have only the appearance of virtue; they cannot
last of themselves, nor can they merit salvation. The work of these
men, therefore, is not adapted to the restoration of discipline; it
leads rather to the overthrow of faith and morals.
On the other hand, those who, following the example of 730
St Charles, are the real lovers of truth, eagerly promote a (230)
salutary reform; they avoid extremes, nor do they exceed those
limits outside which a reform cannot be affected. Very closely
united to the Church and to Christ her head, they derive from
this fact not only a vigorous interior life but also a standard of
exterior action so that they can safely undertake the mission of
reforming society (a). This divine mission, transmitted in per­
petuum to those who must act as Christ’s legates, is proper!) that
of “teaching all nations” (b) not only what they must believe,
but also what they must do, that is, according to Christ’s words:
“to observe all things whatsoever 1 have commanded you” (c).

Christ’s power given to the Church

For He it is who is "the way, the truth, and the life" (a), 731
who has come that men "may have life and may have it more (95,
abundantly” (b). But since to accomplish all these duties with 115
the help of nature alone is very difficult and even far beyond
what unaided human means can achieve, the Church possesses,
in addition to her right to teach, the power to ndc Christian so­
ciety, and the commission to sanctify it, by the agency of those
who, by virtue of their position and function have become her
ministers and collaborators. Through them she furnishes to the
world the necessary and efficacious means of salvation.
730a Contra qui ad Caroli exemplum, veritatis amici minitneque
fallaces, salutari rerum conversioni student, hi extrema devitant,
neque certos excedunt fines, quos ultra nequit instauratio ulla
consistere. Etenim Ecclesiae ejusque Capiti Christo firmissime
adhérentes, non modo inde robur vitiv interioris hauriunt, sed exteriois etiam actionis metiuntur modum, ut sananda: hominum
societatis opus tutu aggrediantur.
730b Matt. 28:19.
731b Ibid. 10:10.
730c Ibid. 20.
731a John 14:6.

.

r£

*

388

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

732
Deeply convinced of this fact, the authors of the true reform
fl 15, do not destroy the shoots in order to save the root of divine
123, grace: that is, they do not separate faith from sanctity of life.
230) but they nourish both with the warmth of charity, “which is the
bond of perfection” (a). Likewise, attentive to the Apostle's
precept, they “keep the faith” (b), not to conceal the knowledge
of it from the gentiles, or obscure its light, but to direct the
saving waters of this fountain of truth and life into constantly
widening channels. In the same way, they unite teaching and
practice, using doctrine to forestall “the seduction of error” (c),
and precept to influence morals and the actions of daily life. To
this end they prepare every instrument whether necessary or suit­
able for attaining the end. whether for the extirpation of vice or
"for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for
the edifying of the body of Christ” (d). To this goal tend the
decrees, the canons, the laws of the Fathers and the Councils; to
this goal, every means of teaching, of governing, and every sort
of good work; to this end all the discipline and every action of
the Church converge.
(The administrative reform of St. Charles: seminaries, reli­
gious orders, pastoral visits, foundations, diverse works.)
Disinterestedness or pride
733
Still another mark, you have learned by experience, Venerable
(230) Brethren, distinguishes reformers who worthily bear that name
from their false counterparts: the latter “seek the things that are
their own, not the things that are Jesus Christ’s” (a); lending an
eager ear to those insidious words once addressed to the divine
Master: “Manifest thyself to the world” (b), they cry out with
pride, “Let us make our name famous” (c).
This rashness, which We so often have to deplore, is the rea­
son why “priests have fallen in battle; while desiring to do man­
fully they went out unadvisedly to fight” (d). On the other hand,
he who sincerely works for the betterment of society “seeketh not

732a Col. 3:14. Quod plane

intelligentes verae instaurationis
auctores, non ii surculos, præservandæ radicis gratia, coercent,
hoc est, non fidem a vitae sanctitate sejungunt, sed utramque
alunt foventque halitu caritatis, quæ est vinculum perfectionis.
732b 1 Tim. 6:20.
732c E ph. 4 1 4.
732cl Eph. 4:12.
733a Philipp. 2:21.
733b John 7:4.
733c Cf. Gen. 11:4.
733d 1 Machab. 5:57, 67.

TRUE AND FALSE REFORM

389

his own glory, but the glory of him who sent him" ( e ) ; modeling
himself after Christ’s example, “he shall not contend or cry out,
neither shall his voice be heard abroad;—he shall not be sad nor
troublesome" (f), but “meek and humble of heart” (g). Such a
one will be approved by God and will bring forth abundant
fruits of salvation.
The principle of efficacy
They arc also distinguished one from another in that the 734
false reformer, relying solely on human strength, “trusteth in (116.
man, and maketh flesh his arm” (a); the true reformer puts all 230)
his trust in God; from Him and from his heavenly gifts he expects
to receive all his strength and effectiveness, repeating the words
of the Apostle: “I can do all things in him who strengtheneth
me” (a).
The means to effect the reform Christ has poured out
abundantly; the man of faith seeks them in the bosom of the
Church to apply them to the salvation of all men. They are
primarily zeal for prayer, sacrifice, and the sacraments, which
become “like a fountain of water springing up into life everlast­
ing” (c). Those who contemn these means and hasten to the
work of reform by an indirect road far from God, will never, it is
true, dry up these purest of all well-springs; but they can, cer­
tainly, trouble the purity of their waters so that the Christian
people arc turned away from them (d).
(The example of St. Charles.)
Catholic Action: conditions of its exercise
The same efforts and the same designs of a tender providence 735
find a practical application, Venerable Brothers, in that Catholic (219.
Action which We have so often commended. Men chosen from 221)
the people are called to associate themselves with an extensive
733e John 7:18.
733f Is. 42:2 ff.; Matt. 12:19.
733g Matt. 11:29.
734a Jer. 17:5.
734b Philipp. 4:13. 734c John 4:14.
734(1 Has opes, quarum uberent copiam Christus effudit, vir fide­
lis in média quierit Ecclesia ad communem salutem, in primis­
que precandi studium, sacrificium, sacramenta, qua' fiunt
quasi fons aquæ salientis in vitam ætemam. Ea omnia inique
ferentes qui, transversis itineribus et posthabito Deo. ad instau­
rationis opus contendunt nunquam desinunt haustus illos purissi­
mos, sin funditus exsiccare, at certe turbulentos facere, ut Chris­
tianus grex inde arceatur.

Ίι»ι

390

I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH

ministry which embraces every one of the works of mercy. The
kingdom of heaven will be their reward (a). Whoever takes
npon himself this burden must be prepared and trained to
give himself wholly, his goods and his person, to this best ol
causes; he must be prepared to be the butt of envy, detraction,
and hostility coming from those who return evil for good; lie
must be ready to work “as a good soldier of Christ” (b), and
to run “by patience to the fight proposed to us, looking on
Jesus, the author and finisher of faith” (c), a hard battle, doubt­
less, but an engagement that will redound to the good of
society, even if the day of complete victory is slow in coming.
(Firmness and courage of St. Charles before the enemies
of reform.—The Church today faces the same enemies.—Bishops
must show the same firmness and courage.
1 BELIEVE IN THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH

Motu Proprio Sacrorum Antistitum, September 1, 1910.
( The Pope adopts certain measures to repel Modernism and
enjoins them on the bishops.—Among other means he requires
professors of the sacred sciences to take an oath containing
the following propositions.)
736
I ... embrace and firmly hold each and every truth de(96, fined, asserted, and declared by the unerring magisterium of
109) the Church, especially those doctrinal matters which are directly
opposed by the errors of these our times.
737
Thirdly: likewise I hold with unswerving faith that the
(99- Church, guardian and teacher of revealed truth, was immedi100, ately and directly founded by that same true and historical
137- Christ during his mortal life and that the same Church was
140) established on Peter, the head of the Apostolic hierarchy, and
on his successors to the end of time.
738
Fourthly: 1 accept with sincere belief the doctrine of the
(111,faith as handed down to us from the Apostles by the orthodox
223, Fathers, always in the same sense and with the same interpre225) talion. And 1 reject absolutely the heretical doctrine of the
evolution of dogma, as passing from one meaning to another
and different from the sense in which the Church originally
held it. And likewise, I condemn every error by which phil735a Matt. 25:34ff. 735b 2 Tim. 2:3.

735c Hcb. 12:1-2.

I BELIEVE IX’ THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH

391

osophical inventions, or creations of the human mind, or products
elaborated by human effort and destined to indefinite progress
in the future are substituted for that divine depositum given
by Christ to the Church's faithful custody.
(Profession on the nature of faith.)

In the same way I reverently submit and with all my 739
heart adhere to all the condemnations, declarations, and pre-(I09)
scriptions contained in the Encyclical Pascendi and in the
decree Lamentabili, especially in what concerns the history
of dogma.

I also repudiate the error of those who hold that the 740
faith proposed by the Church is in opposition to history, and (224)
that Catholic dogma, in the sense in which it is understood
today, is incompatible with the origins of the Christian religion
as these are rightly understood.
(Against the deceptions of the believer and the historian.)
1 likewise repudiate that method of explaining and inter- 741
preting Sacred Scripture which, departing from the tradition of(102)
the Church, the analogy of Faith, and the norms established
by the Holy See, accepts the interpretations of the rationalists
and with as much license as temerity adopts the critical text as
the one and only rule.
(Rejection of errors concerning the tuiture of traditions.)

Finally, I most firmly hold, and will hold until my dying 742
breath, the faith of the Fathers on the certain rule of truth,(223which is, has been, and will ever be found in the succession 225)
of the bishops descended from the /Kpostles (a). And I hold it
not with the understanding that a thing can be held which
seems better and more suited to the culture of a certain epoch,
but in such wise that by the words nothing else is to be be­
lieved, and in no other way (b) is to be understood that abso­
lute and immutable truth preached by the Apostles from the
earliest times.

742a St. Irenaeus, Adv. Haar.. IV, XXI\
742b Ibid, especially XXVIII.

TOWARD UNION

Letter Ex quo, norm labente, November 26, 1910, to the
Apostolic Delegates of the Orient.
(The glories of the Eastern Churches.—Constant efforts of
the Popes for unity [a].—Errors contained in a recent article in
Roma e 1’Oriente.)

743
When the constitution of the Church was spoken of, the
(122, article began by renewing that error long ago condemned by
137, Our Predecessor Innocent X (b), namely, that St. Paul is to be
140, considered like a “brother”, in every sense equal to St. Peter;
147) then no less falsely we arc asked to believe that in the first cen­
turies the Catholic Church was not the government of one man,
that is, a monarchy; that the primacy of the Roman Church is
not founded on any valid arguments. Even the Catholic doctrine
on the Most blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist is not left in­
tact, since they state peremptorily as an opinion to be received
that among the Greeks the words of consecration have no effect
until after the prayer known as the epiclesis has been said,
although it is well known that the Church has no power to
change anything which touches on the substance of the sacra­
ments, nor does she wish to admit that one must consider as
valid the Sacrament of Confirmation when it has been conferred
by any priest whomsoever (c).
(Historical errors.—In particular on the responsibilities of
the Sovereign Pontiffs in the Oriental Schism.)
Errors on the nature of unity
744
They even go so far, in their disregard of historical accuracy,
(109, as to question the ecumenical character of the General Councils
193) held after the Greek Schism, that is, from the 8th Ecumenical
Council to the Council of the Vatican. Out of all this a proposition
for a kind of hybrid unity is put forward, according to which the
two Churches would recognize as legitimate only what was their
743a Of. the volume on the Church and other churches.
743b Decree of the Sacred Office, January 24, 1647.
743c Cf. Benedict XIV, Constitution Etsi pastoralis, addressed
to the Italo-Greeks, May 26, 1,42, in which he declares invalid
Confirmation conferred by a Latin priest in virtue of the
simple delegation of the bishop.

TOWARD UNION

393

common patrimony before the Schism; anything else would be
silently suppressed as superfluous, and perhaps spurious, addi­
tions.
The conditions of union

We have been led to point these things out to you, Venerable 745
Brothers, not only so that you may know that the propositions We (44,
have cited are false, temerarious, and reprobated by Us as alien to 46)
the Catholic faith, but also so that, as far as in you lies, you may
protect the flocks committed to your care from this baneful pesti­
lence, exhorting all to remain faithful to the teaching they have
received, and never consent to another, even if "an angel from
heaven should preach it’’ (a). At the same time We beg you most
earnestly to persuade them that there is nothing We desire more
urgently than to see all men of good will employ all their energy
in working to achieve this long-desired union, and that, as soon as
possible: so that the sheep whom discord has scattered may be
gathered once more in one profession of Catholic faith and unit­
ed under one supreme Shepherd (b). This end will be reached
with greater ease if We address our fervent prayer to the Holy
Spirit the Paraclete, who “is not the God of dissension, but of
peace” (c). Thus will be realized that prayer of Christ which He
offered with tears before undergoing the torments of the Cross:
“That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee;
that they also may be one in us” (d).
Finally, let all be persuaded of this: it will be utterly vain to 746
labor in this cause unless, in the first place, every effort is made to (60,
preserve the Catholic faith whole and entire such as it has been 100,
consecrated and transmitted to us in Sacred Scripture, the teach- 102,
ings of the Fathers, the interpretation of the Church, the General 168,
Councils, and the decrees of the Sovereign Pontiffs. Let them go 193)
forward then, all those who are fighting the good fight to further
the cause of unity: let them go forward clad with the armor of
faith, holding firm the anchor of hope, burning with the fire of
charity, devoted to the labor of this most divine undertaking. And
745a Cal. 1:8.
745b Simul tamen enixe oramus, ut eos persuasos faciatis, nihil
Nobis antiquius esse quam ut omnes home voluntatis homines
vires indefesse exorant, quo concupita unitas citius obtineatur, ut
in una fidei catholica; professione, sub uno pastore summo, adu­
nentur, quas discordia dispersas retinet oves.
745c 1 Cor. 14:33.
745d John 17:11.

394

ADAPTATION

may God, the author and lover of peace, in whose power are the
times and the moments (a), hasten the day when the peoples of
the Orient will return with joy to Catholic unity, and, once more
united to the Apostolic See, repudiating their error, will enter the
port of eternal salvation.
(Order to the Delegates to publish this letter—Submission of
the condemned author.—Blessing.)

THE MODEL OF UNITY

Apost. Let. Çuotics animum, February 2, 1911.

747
As often as We think of the prayer addressed by Christ to His
(37- Eternal Father, which is recorded in the seventeenth chapter of
38, the Gospel of St. John, We are deeply moved and We conceive
48) an ardent desire to see the multitudes of the faithful reach that
charity which will make them again one heart and one mind (a).
How greatly that union was desired by the Divine Master, the
prayer which He offered for his Apostles plainly shows: ‘'Holy
Father, keep them in thy name whom thou hast given me, that
they all may be one as we are” (b). Now these words do not
apply solely to the assembly of the Apostles; they refer to all the
servants of Christ, as these words which immediately follow
show: “1 pray not only for them, but for all those who through
their words will believe in me, that they all may be one, as thou,
Father, in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us, that
the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (c). How close
must be that union which is signified by these burning words: “1
in them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in
one" (cl).
( Approbation of the statutes of an association for the return
of English-speaking Christians to the unity of the Church.)
ADAPTATION

Motu Proprio Supremi disciplinée, July 2, 1911.

748
The Roman Pontiffs, supreme guardians and arbiters of ec(122. clesiastical discipline, are wont to moderate with kindly con·
716a Acts 1:7.
747c Ibid.. 20-21.

747a Acts 4:32.
7l7d Ibid., 23.

747b John 17:11.

LOVE EOR THE POPE

395

descension the sanctions required by sacred canons whenever the 176)
good of the faithful requires it.
(The Pope thinks it useful to change the ferial days.—Prac­
tical regulations.)
ALL THE ACTS OF THE CHRISTIAN
Encycl. Singulari quadam, September 24, 1912, addressed
to the German Episcopate.
(The controversy on the workers' associations.—The encycli­
cal Rerum Novarum.)
Whatever the Christian does, even in the temporal order, it 749
is not lawful for him to neglect his supernatural destiny; more, (121,
according to the precepts of Christian wisdom, he should direct 213)
all his actions to the sovereign good which is his last end. And
all his actions, morally good or evil according as they conform
to or deviate from the natural law and the divine law, are sub­
ject to the judgment and jurisdiction of the Church.
(The Catholic Workers Unions.—Cartels.—Syndicates.—The
Mission of the Bishops. )
LOVE FOR THE POPE

All. to the members of the Apostolic Union, November 18,
1912, on the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the Union.
(Congratulations on the piety of the Union pilgrims.—Duties
of priests.)
To love the Pope, it is sufficient to reflect who he is.
750
The Pope is the guardian of dogma and morals; he is the (144,
depositor}' of the principles which ensure ‘he integrity of the 163,
family, the grandeur of nations, the sanctity of souls. He is the 165)
councillor of princes and peoples; he is the chief under whose
sway none feels tyrannized, because he represents Cod Himself,
lie is par excellence the father who unites in himself all that is
loving, tender and divine.
It seems incredible, and yet it is a sad fact, that there are
priests to whom this recommendation must be made, but We
are nonetheless in Our limes under the liard, the unhappy neces­
sity to say to priests: Love the Pope!

396

THE TITLES OE THE CHUBCI 1

How the Pope should he loved
751
And how must the Pope be loved? Not in word alone, but
(782)in deed and in truth. Non verbo neque lingua, sed opere et veri­
tate: “Not in word nor in tongue, but in deed, and in truth” (a).
When we love someone, we seek to conform ourselves in every­
thing to his thoughts, to execute his will, to interpret his desires.
And if Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself said. Si (/uis diligit me,
sermonum meum servabit: “If anyone love me, he will keep my
word" (b), to show our love for the Pope we must obey him
752
And this is why, when we love the Pope, we do not dispute
f!82)whether he commands or requires a thing, or seek to know
where the strict obligation of obedience lies, or in what matter
we must obey; when we love the Pope we do not say that he
has not yet spoken clearly—as if he were required to speak his
will in every man’s ear, and to utter it not only by word of mouth
but in letters and other public documents as well. Nor do we
cast doubt on his orders, alleging the pretext which comes easily
to the man who does not want to obey, that it is not the Pope
who is commanding, but some one in his entourage. We do not
limit the field in which he can and ought to exercise his authority;
we do not oppose to the Pope’s authority that of other personsno matter how learned—who differ from the Pope. For whatever
may be their learning, they are not holy, for where there is holi­
ness there cannot be disagreement with the Pope.
(The priest members of the Union do not deserve these
reproaches. )
THE TITLES OF THE CHURCH

753
(16.
46,
48,
74,
91,
131)

All, to the pilgrimage from the diocese of Milan, on the oc­
casion of the 14th centenary of the Edict of Milan, April 3, 1913.
(The victory of the Church through Constantine.)
It is a sad fact that, in the face of the much vaunted progress
of civilization and in an era of scientific brilliance, it is in vain
that We claim for the Church—and that even from Christian
governments—the liberty which they recognize, or ought to recognize, is necessary for the development of her supernatural
action on earth.
The Church, that great religious society of men living in
one faith and one love under the supreme guidance of the
75la 1 John 3:18

751b John 14:23.

THE HILES ΟΙ

HIE CHURCH

397

Roman Pontiff, has an end superior to and very distinct from
that of civil societies: the latter tend to bring about temporal
welfare here below, the former aims at the perfection of souls
for eternity. The Church is a kingdom whose master is none
other than God; her mission is so great that it goes beyond fron­
tiers and makes of the people of every language and every
nation, one family. It is impossible, therefore, to suppose that
the kingdom of the soul can ever be subject to that of the body,
that eternity can become the instrument of time, that God Him­
self can become man’s slave.
The Mission of the Church, received from Christ
In fact, Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of the Father, to whom 754
was given all power in heaven and upon earth, imposed this (700,
mission on the first ministers of the Church, his Apostles: "As 115,
the Father hath sent me, so I also send you (a). Going, there- 119,
fore, teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, 125)
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And behold I am
with you all days, even to the consummation of the world" (b).
The Church, therefore, received from God Himself the
mission to teach, and her word must come to the knowledge of
all without let or hindrance, and without impediments to inter­
fere with it. For Christ did not say: Let your words be addressed
to the poor, the ignorant, the multitude; but, to all without dis­
tinction, because in the spiritual order you are superior to all
earthly powers. The Church has the power to govern souls and
to administer the sacraments, and consequently since no one,
for any reason whatever, can presume to enter the Sanctuary',
she must oppose anyone who, by arbitrary' interference or unjust
usurpation, would presume to invade her domain.
The imprescriptible rights of the Church

The Church has the mission to teach the observance of the 755
precepts and to exhort souls to the practice of the evangelical (9,
counsels, and woe to him who would teach the contrary', bring- 13,
ing disorder and confusion to Society! The Church has the right 103,
to hold property, because she is a society not of angels, but of 129)
754a John 20:21.
754b Matt. 28:19-20.

398

THE TITLES OF THE CHURCH

men, and she needs the temporal goods which the piety of the
faithful has furnished her; and she keeps possession of them legiti­
mately to carry out her ministry, for the exterior exercise of divine
worship, for the building of churches, for the works of charity
confided to her, and to live and perpetuate herself to the end of
time.
756
And these rights are so sacred that the Church has ever felt
(125) it her duty to guard and defend them, knowing well that, if she
were to yield ever so little to her enemies, just in so much would
she give the lie to the mandate she has received from heaven and
fall into apostasy. And so history presents the record of a series
of protests and reclamations on the part of the Church against
those who have tried to enslave her. Her first word to Judaism,
spoken by Peter and the other Apostles—“It is better to obey Cod
rather than men’' (a)—this sublime word has always been and
will always be repeated by their successors to the end of the
world, even if it be necessary to confirm it by a baptism of blood.
And our adversaries are so persuaded of this that they repeat
in their discourses the boast that their flag protects every sort of
liberty; the fact is, however, that they grant liberty—or rather,
license—to all. but they do not grant liberty to the Church.
(Liberty in the hands of the Church's enemies.—Liberties re­
fused to the Church.—The struggle for the Church’s freedom.)

756a Acts 5:29.

BENEDICT XV
1914-1922

UNION ΟΓ MINDS

Encycl. Ad beatissimi, November 1, 1914.
We had scarcely been called to the throne of the Prince of 757
the Apostles, through no merit of Our own but rather by the(131)
hidden dispensation of God’s providence, than We seemed to hear
addressed to Us in the same voice with which Christ the Lord
called Peter, those words, “Feed my lambs, feed rny sheep" (a).
Immediately, with the most tender charity. We turned Our eyes
toward that flock which has been committed to Our care, an in­
numerable flock, surely, since it embraces all men, under one
aspect or another. For all, whoever they are, have been freed from
the slavery' of sin by Jesus Christ at the cost of the shedding of his
blood; nor is anyone, in fact, excluded from the benefits of this
redemption. Therefore, the Divine Shepherd says of the human
race that while on the one hand many are already happily shel­
tered within the fold of his Church, the others will be sweetly
compelled to enter it: “And other sheep 1 have, that are not of this
fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice” (b).
(Present evils: the uxir, lack of charity, contempt for author­
ity, disordered appetite for the goods of this world.—Remedies.—
Progress of the Church. )

And therefore, Venerable Brothers, since We are addressing 758
you all for the first time by letter, it has seemed good to Us to
touch upon certain points to which We propose to direct Our
special attention, so that, hastening to bring Us the assistance of
your labors, Our efforts may more quickly be crowned with
success.
Necessity of the union of all
In the first place, just as in every society, whatever be its 759
origin, it is of the greatest importance that co-workers unite in (52prosecution of the common end, it is incumbent upon Us to see 53)
that all dissension and discord among Catholics cease, whatever
be their cause, and that they never reappear. On the contrary,
all must think and act with unanimity. The enemies of God and
of the Church understand that dissensions among ourselves at
the moment when we are defending our position, represent a vic­
tory’ for them. And they use the most subtle reasoning, whenever

757a John 21:15-17.

757b John 10:16.
-401-

w

402

UNION OF MINDS

they find men joined together, to sow the seeds of discord among
them and to destroy this union. Would that these tactics had not
so often succeeded at their hands, to the great damage of religion!

Therefore, where legitimate authority has prescribed a certain
(97, thing, it is not lawful for anyone to neglect the precept because it
125, does not please him: but let each one submit his viewpoint to the
177) authority which rules him and obey, regarding this duty as an
obligation in conscience. In the same way, let no private person
interfere in the office of the Church by the publication of books,
journals, or speeches. Everyone knows to whom the office of
teaching in the Church has been given by God: he must have full
and entire liberty to speak when he wishes to; it is the duty of the
rest to hear his word and to conform religiously to his teach­
ing (a).
Freedom of opinion
760

761
But in matters where neither faith nor discipline are at stake,
(53, both sides of an issue may be debated, since the /Apostolic See has
110, not rendered a decision; no one is forbidden to say what he thinks
211) or to defend his opinion. But from these discussions intemperate
language is to be barred, because this can gravely offend charity;
let each one support his position freely but modestly; let him not
think he is permitted to bring against others, who hold the
opposite, and simply because they do hold the opposite, the
charge of bad faith or lax discipline. We wish Our sons to refrain
also from certain appellations which have lately been adopted to
distinguish certain groups of Catholics from others: they should
be avoided not only because they are "profane novelties of words"
(a), which agree neither with truth nor with justice, but still more
because they give rise to great disturbance and great confusion
among Catholics. The nature of the Catholic faith is such that
nothing can be added to it, nothing taken away: either it is held
in its entirety, or it is rejected totally. “This is the Catholic faith,
which unless a man faithfully and firmly believes, he cannot be
saved" (b). Qualifications are not needed to signify profession of
760a Item nemo privatus, uel libris diariisve vulgandis vel sermoni­
bus publice habendis, se in Ecclesia pro magistro gerat. Norunt
omnes cui sit a Deo magisterium Ecclesiæ datum: huic igitur
integrum jus esto pro arbitratu loqui, cum voluerit; ceterorum of­
ficium est, loquenti religiose obsequi dictoque audientes esse.
761a Cf. 1 Tim. 6:20.
761b Athanasian Creed.

UNION OF MINDS

403

the Catholic faith; it is enough for each man to be able to say:
“Christian is my name, and Catholic, my surname (c). Let
each one, therefore, strive to be in truth what his name signi­
fies (d).
Persistence of “modernism”

For the rest, the Church now asks something very different 762
from those of us who devote ourselves to the good of the Cath-(2J5olic cause; she does not ask them to delay over questions which 216)
are of no profit to anyone; she asks them to strive with might
and main to keep the faith intact, free from the least taint of
error, following him whom Christ appointed custodian and inter­
preter of the truth. There are still those today, and they are not
few in number, who, as the Apostle says, “Having itching ears,
when they will not endure sound doctrine, according to their
own desires, they will heap to themselves teachers, and will
indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned
into fables” (a). Puffed up and elated by a high opinion of the
human mind which, with God’s help, has certainly made incred­
ible progress in the exploration of nature, some of them despise
the authority of the Church to prefer their own judgment, and
they have pushed their temerity so far as to measure the very
761c Pacien, epist., I, 4.
761d in rebus autem, de quibus, salva fide et disciplina—cum
Apostolicx Sedis judicium non intercesserit—in utramque partem
disputari potest, dicere quid sentiat idque defendere, sane nemini
non licet. Sed ab his disputationibus omnis intemperantia ser­
monis absit, qux graves afferre potest offensiones caritati; suam
quisque tueatur libere quidem, sed modeste sententiam; nec sibi
putet fas esse, qui contrariam teneant, eos, hac ipsa tantum
causa, vel suspectai fidei arguere vel non bonx disciplina’. Absti­
neant se etiam nostri, volumus, iis appellationibus, qux recens
usurpari cœptx sunt ad catholicos a catholicis distinguendos:
casque non modo devitent uti profanas vocum novitates, qux nec
veritati congruunt nec xquitati; sed etiam quia inde magna inter
catholicos perturbatio sequitur, magnaque confusio. Vis et natura
catholicx fidei est ejusmodi, ut nihil ei possit addi, nihil demi:
aut omnis tenetur, aut omnis abiieitur. Haec est fides catholica,
quam nisi quisque fideliter finniterque crediderit, salvus esse non
poterit. Non igitur opus est appositis ad professionem catholicam
significandam; satis habeat unusquisque ita profiteri: “Christianus
mihi nomen, catholicus cognomen”; tantum studeat sc re vera
eum esse, qui nominatur.
762a 2 Tim. 4:3-4.

404

UNION ΟΓ MINDS

mysteries of God and all that God has revealed to man by then
own faculty of intelligence, and they do not hesitate to adapt
them to the taste of Our times.
763
Thus have risen up those monstrous errors of Modernism,
(101- which Our Predecessor rightly pronounced to be “the meeting102) ground of all heresies,” and he solemnly condemned it (a). This
condemnation. Venerable Brothers, We repeat here in all its
force; and since this deadly infection is not yet completely
eliminated, but even now appears here and there in cunning
guise, We exhort all to exercise the utmost diligence to guard
themselves against the slightest contact with this evil, to which
can be applied what Job said so aptly of another scourge: "It is
a fire that devoureth even to destruction, and rooteth up all
things that spring” (b). Nor do We desire that Catholics detest
only the errors of Modernists, as they are called: they should
avoid their tendencies and their spirit (c). The one who is in­
fected by this spirit fastidiously repudiates anything that savors
of the past; he avidly seeks novelty wherever it is to be found:
in the manner of speaking of sacred things, in celebrating divine
worship, in Catholic institutions, even in the exercise of private
devotion. Therefore, We make Our own that sacred law of Our
ancestors: “Change nothing; be content with tradition" (d). If
this law must be kept inviolate in matters of faith, it must also
serve as norm for those matters which are subject to change,
although in these latter cases most often to the point is that other
rule which says: Non nova, sed noviter: “Not new things, but in
a new way.”
763a Encycl. Pascendi
763b Job 31:12.
763c Itaque exstiterunt monstruosi errores Modernismi, quem recte
Decessor Noster “omnium hæreseon collectum” edixit esse et soleumiter condemnavit Earn Nos igitur condemnationem, venerabiles Fratres, quantacumque est, hic iteramus; et quoniam non
usquequaque oppressa est tam pestifera lues, sed etiamnum hac
illae, quamvis latenter, .serpit, caveant omnes diligentissime, hor­
tamur, a quavis hujus contagione mali; de quo quidem apte af­
firmaveris quod Joh alia d< re dixerat: Ignis est usque ad perdi­
tionem devorans, et omnia eradicans genimina.—Nec vero tantum
ah erroribus catholici homines, cunimus. abhorreant, sed ah in­
genio etiam, seu spiritu, ut aiunt'. Modernistarum.
763d Nihil innovetur, nisi quod traditum est (St. Stephen I cited
by St. Cyprian, epist. LXXIV ad Pomp.
’

'j

UNION OF MINDS

405

Catholic associations
Lastly, because. Venerable Brothers, most men need frater- 764
nal advice anil mutual example to profess the Catholic faith (218,
openly and live accordingly, We rejoice greatly at the number 220)
of Catholic associations which are being formed. Not only do
We hope that this number will increase, We wish to see them
flourish under Our patronage and encouragement. They will
prosper if they constantly and faithfully obey the directives
which this Apostolic See has given in the past and will give in
the future. None who works for God and the Church in these
societies should ever forget that word of Wisdom: “An obedient
man shall speak of victory” (a). For if he does not obey God by
his submission to the Head of the Church, he will not win divine
favor and he will work in vain.
(Duties of priests.—Formation of seminarians.)
There is, however, one point that should not be passed over 765
in silence: We wish to admonish all priests, who are all dear to (185,
Us as Our sons, that it is most necessary, both for their own 208)
salvation as well as for the success of their sacred ministry, that
they be very closely united to and most obedient to their re­
spective Bishops (a). Certainly not all sacred ministers—and this
We have already deplored—are free from that spiritual pride
and insubordination which are characteristic of Our times. Nor
is it rare that Pastors in the Church meet with grief and oppo­
sition precisely where they have the right to expect solace and
assistance. Let those who have so miserably failed in Lheir duty
reflect again and again that it is divine, the authority of those
whom "the Holy Ghost hath placed Bishops, to rule the Church
of God” (b). And if, as We have seen, those who resist any
legitimate authority are resisting God, they are acting with all
the greater impiety who refuse to obey the Bishops consecrated
by God under the seal of his own authority. “Charity does not
allow me to be silent in your regard,” says St. Ignatius Martyr.
“I have resolved to exhort you to be of one mind in God s thought.
764a Prov. 21:28.
765a Quotquot enim sunt sacerdotes, omnes, uti filios \obis peni­
tus dilectos, volumus admonitos. quam piam opus sit, cum ad
propriam ipsorum salutem. Ium ad sacri ministerii fructum, eos
quidem suo quemque Episcopo conjunctissimos esse, atque obs.
quentissimos.
765b Acts 20:28.

406

UNION OF MINDS

For if Jesus Christ, to whom our life is inseparably linked, is
the Thought of the Father, so the bishops, in the areas where
they have been appointed, are in the thought of the Father.
Whence it comes about that you should conform yourselves to
the thought of the bishop” (c). What this illustrious Martyr has
said, all the Fathers and Doctors of the Church have con­
curred in.

766
Because Our times are very difficult ones, the burden of
(44) Bishops is already exceedingly heavy; still weightier is their
concern for the salvation of the flocks entrusted to their care:
“For they watch as having to render an account of your souls” (a).
Should they not be judged cruel, therefore, those who refuse the
obedience they owe, and make still heavier that burden, still
more anxious that solicitude? “For this is not expedient for
you” (b), the Apostle would say to them: and that because "the
Church is the people united to the priest, and the flock following
its shepherd” (c). Whence it follows that he who is not with
his bishop is not with the Church (d).
(The Pope prays for peace, for the good of society and of
civilization, and for the Church. )
The liberty of the Holy See

767
Already for too long a time, surely, the Church has not en(91, joyed that liberty which her work requires; that is to say, since
178- the day when her Head, the Roman Pontiff, was deprived of
179) that safeguard, which, by the dispensation of divine providence,
he had acquired in the course of centuries to assure the protec­
tion of that liberty. Once this guarantee was removed, a great
disturbance inevitably ensued among Catholics: all men, who­
ever and wherever they are, who profess themselves sons of the
Roman Pontiffs, have every right to insist that there shall never
be any doubt that their common Father is free in fact and shall
appear free before the world from any interference by human
power with the exercise of his Apostolic charge. Therefore, while
We most earnestly wish that the nations restore peace among
themselves as quickly as possible, We wish no less earnestly that
765c Epist. ad Eph., III.
766a Heb. 13:17.
766b Ibid.
766c St. Cyprian, Florentia, ep. 66 or 69.
766d Ex quo sequitur, cum Ecclesia non esse, qui cum Eoiscono
non sit.

nil QUI I X ΟΙ

I 111·. APOS II IS

407

lhc Head of the Church may bo relieved of this abnormal condi­
tion, which in many ways is very harmful to the peace of the
nations themselves. It is lor this reason that We wish to renew the
protests often made by Our Predecessors. They were not moved
by human considerations, but by the sanctity of their office and
the duty of defending the rights and dignity of the Holy See. The
same motives inspire Our protests.
( Prayer to God and Our Lady for peace. )

THE NOTE OF UNITY

Apost. Let. Romanorum Pontificum, February 25, 1916, to
the Society of the Atonement, New York.
In every age the Roman Pontiffs Our Predecessors have had
much at heart, and it is Our own very particular concern, that
Christians who have separated themselves from the Catholic
religion should return to the Church as to a mother whom they
have abandoned (a). For it is especially in unity of faith that
shines forth the note of the truth of the Church; and the Apostle
Paul, to exhort the Ephesians to keep unity in the bond of
peace, tells them that there is only “one Lord, one faith, one
baptism” (b).
(Approbation of the Society—granting of privileges.)

76S
(42,
50,
52.
56,
59)

THE QUEEN OF THE APOSTLES
Letter to Rev. Joseph Hiss, Superior General of the
Marianists, on the occasion of the centenary of the Congre­
gation: Anno jam excunte, March 7, 1917.

(God raised up apostles after the Re vault ion to restore the
Christian spirit in France; among them was Père Chaminade.)
Il is not with vain praise that We honor Mary when We hail 769
her Queen of the Apostles, but as she, together with the Apostles, (.33)
received the charge of rearing the infant Church, so she must be
said to be ever present to those who fall heirs to the apostolic
duty either of winning new recruits to, or repairing the damage
done to the Church in the full vigor of her growth.
(Foundations of Père Chaminade.)
768a Cf. the volume on the Church and other churches.
768b Eph. 4:5.

CANON LAW

Apost. Const. Providentissime Mater Ecclesia, May 27, 1917,
770
(13,
67,
100,
1 ΙΟ­
Ι 20,
137)
771
(84,
120)

The Church, our most prudent Mother, by the constitution
received from her Founder Christ, was endowed with all the
marks suitable to a perfect society. So, too, from her very begin­
ning, since she was to obey the Lords command to teach and
govern all nations, she has undertaken to regulate and protect by
laws the discipline of clergy and laity alike.
In the course of time, especially after she achieved liberty
of action and was from day to day becoming more widespread,
she has never ceased to exercise her proper and inalienable right
to make and to apply laws, as witness the variety and multiplicity
of decrees formulated by the Roman Pontiffs and the Ecumenical
Synods according as need and circumstance required. By these
laws and precepts she has not only' provided for the wise govern­
ance of clergy and laity', but she has even, as history attests,
contributed to the welfare of the state and the progress of civili­
zation. The Church not only abrogated the laws of barbarous
nations and informed their savage customs with humanity'; but
confident in the help of divine light, she even tempered and im­
proved the Roman law itself, that conspicuous achievement of
ancient wisdom which is rightly called ratio scripte (reason in
written form), so that by establishing a more correct and regular
manner of public and private life she has accumulated ample
material for legislation whether in medieval or more recent times.

772
But in reality, as Our Predecessor ol happy memory, Pius X,
(83- has wisely noted in the Motu Proprio "Arduum Sane" of the 16th
84) day before the kalends of April, 1904, canon law taken as a whole
scarcely answers its purpose today, given the changes in condi­
tions and needs of men inherent in the very nature of things. For
of the multitude of laws promulgated in the course of ages, some
have been abrogated by the supreme authority of the Church,
some have become obsolete, not a few are difficult to apply be­
cause of changing conditions, or are today less useful or effective
in securing the common good. It has happened also that canon
laws have so increased in number, are so extensive in their appli­
cation have so little interior cohesiveness, that large numbers of
them have become obscure even for the experts, still more for the
majority of men.

PREACII ING

409

It was for these reasons that Our Predecessor of happy mem- 773
ory, immediately upon his accession to the Supreme Pontificate, (224)
realizing how useful for the reestablishment and preservation of
ecclesiastical discipline it would be if the grave abuses We have
listed above were carefully removed, resolved that all the laws of
the Church up to the present time should be gathered into one
well-ordered collection, and that revoked or obsolescent decrees
should be discarded. Further, where it was necessary to do so,
laws should be brought into harmony with Our present customs;
and where it seemed necessary or expedient to do so, new laws
should be formulated (a).
(Consultation of the bishops.—Institution of a commission.—
Ratification and promulgation of the new code: Constitutione hac
Nostra, quam volumus perpetuo valituram, præsentem codicem
sic ut digestus est, promulgamus, vim legis post hac habere pro
universa Ecclesia decernimus, jubemum.—Legal clauses.)

;

;
|
I

PREACHING
Encycl. Humani generis, June 15, 1917.
(Preaching of salvation.—Three causes of the present decline
in its efficacy: 1 ) it is undertaken by unauthorized persons. )
The function of preaching, according to the teaching of the 774
Council of Trent, is “in a special manner the function of bish- (186.
ops” (a). And the Apostles, to whose office the bishops have sue- 198)
ceeded, considered it to be the principal part of their duties. Thus
Paul states, “Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gos­
pel” (b). The thought is the same as that of the other Apostles:
“It is not reasonable that we should leave the word of God, and
serve tables” (c). However, even if this duty (of preaching) is
proper to bishops, nonetheless they must busy themselves in the
many cares which pertain to the government of their churches,
and what they cannot always and everywhere perform themselves
they must entrust to others.

Wherefore, it cannot be doubted that those who. while not 775
being bishops, exercise this charge, fulfill an episcopal func- (206)
773a The Holy See having forbidden the publication of transla­
tions of the Code, we do not here give the canons which concern
the Church. Those of our readers with sufficient Latin can easily
refer to the Code.
774a Sess. XXI\ de Ref., c. IV.
774b 1 Cor. 1:17.
774c Acts 6:2.

!

I

-HO

PREACHING

tion (a). Therefore, this first law is established: no one may, of
his own initiative, assume the office of preaching; he who desires
it must receive it as a legitimate mission, and it cannot be author­
ized except by a bishop: "How shall they preach, unless they be
sent?” ( b ).
776
For the Apostles were sent, and that by Him who is the Su­
(85) preme Shepherd and Bishop of our souls (a); the seventy-two

disciples were also sent. Likewise, Paul—although already consti­
tuted by Christ a vessel of election to carry his name before the
gentiles and kings (b)—entered upon his apostolate only when
the ancients, obeying the commandment of the Holy Spirit,
“Separate me Saul... for the work (of the gospel)” (c), with the
imposition of hands sent him on his way. This was always the
custom in the first ages of the Church. For all those who distin­
guished themselves in the priestly rank—like Origen, and those
who were afterward raised to the episcopate, for example, Cyril
of Jerusalem, John Chrysostom, Augustine, and other ancient
Doctors of the Church,—all devoted themselves to preaching by
virtue of the authority of their respective bishops.

method seems io
to have
But now, Venerable Brothers, another metnoci
nave
(190, been customary for a long time. Among sacred orators there are
198) not a few to whom can aptly be applied what the Lord spoke by
the mouth of Jeremias: “I did not send prophets, yet they ran (a).
Because he is richly endowed, or from some other motive, a
man will see fit to assume the ministry' of the world: it is easy for
him to gain access to the pulpits of our churches: as if anyone
who so pleased could exercise himself in oratorical displays! This
is the reason, Venerable Brothers, why you must now make pro­
visions to do away with such abuses; and since you will have to
render an account to God and to the Church of the food you have
furnished your flocks, do not permit anyone, without an order
from you, to enter your folds and, according to his own good
•JJ
pleasure, feed Christ’s lambs. And let no one in your dioceses,
unless called and approved by you, any longer enjoy the right
to preach.
777

775a Quare in hoc munere quicumque prieter episcopos versantur,
auhitadum non est quin, episcopali fungentes officio, versentur
775b Rom. 10:15.
776a 1 Pet. 2:25.
776b Acts 9:15.
776c Acts 13 2.
777a Jer. 23:21.

THE LAWS OF THE CHURCH

411

(Other causes of the lack of efficacy: 2) the preacher has a
false concept of his mission; 3) he performs it badly.—Remedies:
train preachers in learning, the spirit of sacrifice, and the spirit of
prayer. )
SPIRITUAL PATERNITY
All. to the Cardinals, December 24, 1918.
(Christmas Wishes.—Peace. )
It is with the liveliest satisfaction that We have heard you 778
formulate the wish for the daily increase of the fruits of the (163)
spiritual paternity which has been given to Us in a very special
way by God, “of whom all paternity in heaven and earth is
named” (a). This paternity desires to imitate as far as possible
the inexhaustible charity of God and his ceaseless benevolence.
We are grateful to the eminent Dean of the Sacred College for
having indicated that in that paternity which has been granted to
Us lies the initial source of the activity
y which We exercised in the
course of that frightful calamity which has just ended.
(The intervention of the Pope in the course of the tear, in
favor of its victims and in favor of peace.—Prayer and negotiations
to obtain fruitful and lasting results of the Peace Congress.)
If in the past We have taken Our spiritual paternity as a rule 779
of action, We do not intend to seek Our directives elsewhere in (163)
the future. We have been a Father in the past; We are a Father
today; We will be a Father in the future so long as breath remains
in Our body, Our eyes constantly fixed, as on the ultimate rule
and law of Our conduct, on that paternity which God has given
Us, a paternity as universal as the one of which it is the repre­
sentation and participation.
(Social union and the union of peoples.—Neiv Tears wishes.)
THE LAWS OF THE CHURCH
Letter Multiplices quidem, March 12, 1919, to the Primate
of Hungary.
(Meetings of priests treating the abolition of ecclesiastical
celibacy. )
Let them bear in mind that they must submit themselves 780
entirely to those “whom the Holy Ghost hath placed bishops to (203,
rule the Church of God" (a); for, as Ignatius Martyr says, As 208)
778a Eph. 3:15.

780a Acts 20:28.

412

LITURGICAL LAW

many as are of God and Christ Jesus, they are also with their
bishop” (b); therefore, those who are not with the bishop, are
not with God; neither arc they with Christ Jesus.
We wish them also to understand how unfitting it is for a
Catholic priest, who ought to surpass others in the control of
his passions, to seem himself more subject to them than other
men are. Wherefore, bishops must proclaim clearly and energet­
ically that the Holy See will not tolerate any questioning of the
law of sacerdotal continency, a law which has always been held
to be a special ornament of the Latin Church, as it is also the
chief source of its powerful influence (c).
(Bishops must repress this temerity at the same time that
they suppress any attempt to remit Church property into the
hands of lay assemblies.)

LITURGICAL LAW
Apost. Const. Sedis huius Apostolicæ, May 14, 1919.
781
Because it is the supreme arbiter of liturgical law, it has
(176) ever been the most urgent concern of this Apostolic See to main­
tain the sacred rites of the Catholic Church in all their integrity,
or, if perchance they have deteriorated, to restore them to their
former purity (a). This care is a necessary consequence of the
pastoral office confided to the Roman See, to guard with vigi­
lance “that exterior worship of God may be accomplished with
due reverence, that the sacred mysteries may be celebrated in
such a way as to contribute to the great edification of the faithful
by exciting piety and stimulating devotion" (b).
782
This vigilance is particularly exact when sacred rites differ
(49) from each other; for the variety of rites, if it is legitimate, con­
tributes not a little to increase the splendor of divine worship.
Nor does this diversity prevent unity of faith: it expresses more
vividly and states more clearly the revealed truths: “Unity of
faith is totally consistent with a variety of legitimate rites, and
780b Pbiladel., Ill, 2.
780c Quam oh causam alte vehcmentcrque denuntient Episcopi
nullam prorsus ah Apostolica Sede de sacerdotalis continentix lege
permitti posse quæstionem, qux quidem lex ah ipsa tamquam
peculiare ornamentum habetur Ecclesiae Latinat, episdemque fons
quidam prxeipuus actuosx virtutis.
781a Council of Trent, Sess. XXII, and Sess. VII, canon 12.
781b Instr. Sacred Congregation de Prop. Fide, June 30, 1890.

LITURGICAL LAW

4B

there results therefrom in a wonderful way a greater splendor
and magnificence within the Church” (a). This is also the
thought of St. Leo IX: "Customs which vary according to time
and place do not constitute an obstacle to the salvation of the
faithful so long as one faith, effecting through charity all the
good it can, commends all to the one God” (b). Thanks to a
wonderful harmony among the various liturgies, faith in almost
every one of the dogmas of the Catholic Church is strengthened
against the heretics, and theologians have come to recognize that
there is a most fruitful source of theological teaching in the litur­
gies, by means of which the doctrine of the Church is strikingly
manifested.

On this point Our Predecessor Leo XIII has most truly 783
said (a): “The venerable antiquity which ennobles the different (49,
rites, is at one and the same time a distinguished ornament for 122,
782a Pius IX, Ap. Letter, Romani Pontifices, June 6, 1862.
782b Epistle to Michael, Patriarch of Constantinople.
783a Leo XIII, Apostolic Letter, Orientalium, November 30, 1891
The following is the entire passage from which Benedict XV
took the citation given above: “Augusta enirn, qua varia ea rituum
genera nobilitantur, antiquitas, ci prmclaro est ornamento Ecclegiæ omni, et fidei catholiciv divinam unitatem affirmat. Inde enimvero, dum sua pnucipuis Orientis Ecclesiis apostolica origo testatior
constat, apparet simul et enitet earumdem cum Romana usque ah
exordiis summa conjunctio. Neque aliud fortasse admirabilius est
ad catholicitatis notam in Ecclesia Dei illustrandam, quam singu­
lare quod ei prxhcnt obsequium dispares civremoniarum formae
nobilesque vetustatis linguiv, ex ipsa Apostolorum et Patrum con­
suetudine nobiliores: fere ad imitationem obsequii lectissimi quod
Christo, divino Ecclesiae auctori, exhibitum est nascenti, quum
Magi ex variis Oientis plagis devecti venerunt . adorare cum
(Matt. 2:1-2). Quo loco illud apte cadit animadvertisse, quod
sacri ritus, tametsi per se instituti non sunt ad dogmatum catholi­
corum evincendam veritatem, eadem tamen viva propemodum
exprimunt, splendidcquc declarant. Quo propter vera Christi Ec­
clesia, sicut magnopere studet ea custodire inviolata qu.e, utpotc
divina, immutabilia accepit, ita in usurpandis eorumdem formis
nonnunqtiam concedit novi aliquid vel indulget, in iis priesertim
quie cum venerabili antiquitate conveniant. IIoc etiam modo et
ejus vit.v nunquam senescentis proditur vis. et ipsa magnificentius
Christi sponsa excellit, quam sanctorum Patrum sapientia vcluti
adumbratam in effato agnovit davidico: Astitit regina a dextris
tuis in vestitu deaurato, circumdata varietate ... in fimbriis aureis
circumamieta varietatibus ’ This Apostolic Letter may be read
in its entirety in the volume, THE LITURGY.

414

CATHOLICITY

176, the entire Church and an affirmation of the unity of the Catholic
224, faith. This is the reason why, if Christ’s true Church displays
226, such zeal to maintain inviolate those elements—as it were, divine
228) and immutable—which she has received, she also makes conces­
sions or tolerates new forms, especially when these are in agree­
ment with ancient usage. In this way is made manifest the vigor
of her eternal youth, and Christ’s Spouse appears all the more
magnificent, foreshadowed, as the wisdom of the Holy Fathers
recognized, in the Davidic statement: The queen stood on thy
right hand, in gilded clothing; surrounded with variety...in
golden borders, clothed round about with varieties'" (b).
Cognizant of all these facts, the Roman Pontiffs not only
have never repudiated those sacred rites, whose antiquity' should
guarantee respect, so long as they maintain the obedience due to
the Holy See with the unity of faith; they have also desired to
see these rites reverently' preserved and exactly performed in
every way not opposed to one or another new and lawful disposi­
tion made by the Apostolic See, to which, it is clear, every’ rite
owes obedience, as to the sovereign Teacher.
(Approbation of the new breviary of Braga.)
CATHOLICITY
Apost. Let. Maximum illud, November 30, 1919, to the
bishops of the Universal Church.
(History of the missions.—Responsibilities of Vicars Apostol­
ic and Superiors of the Missions.—Need for native clergy.)

784
In fact, the native clergy should not be prepared merely to
(131, assist foreign missionaries in the humbler functions of the min135) istry; but they themselves, once equal to undertaking this divine
mission, can rightly assume the government of their people. The
Church of Cod is catholic; it is nowhere extraneous to any people
or nation; it is fitting, therefore, that every nation furnish sacred
ministers who will become teachers of the divine law and leaders
in the way of salvation for their people (a).
783b Psalm 44:10, 14-15.
784a Nam ut Ecclesia Dei catholica est nullamque apud gentem
vel nationem extranea, ita consentaneum est ex unaquaque gente
sacrorum administros exsistere quos divin.T legis magistros viiequc
ad salutem duces sequantur populares sui.

ENFORCEMENT OF DISCIPLINE

415

(Exhortation to all missionaries.—The Pope invites them to
abandon any display of indiscreet zeal in favor of their country
of origin.—Disinterestedness.—Formation of missionaries.)
ENFORCEMENT OF DISCIPLINE
Letter Cum in catholiae, January 29, 1920, to the Archbishop
of Prague.
(Rebellion of certain priests.—Formation of an association.)

So that ecclesiastical discipline may remain intact, it is absolutely necessary that the clergy, even when they meet in an
assembly, remain under the authority and supervision of the
bishops, who must govern and direct them. Moreover, it is superfluous to insist again that the Apostolic Sec will never consent to
abrogate or attenuate its position either with respect to a new and
popular administration of its property, or to the law of clerical
celibacy, which the Latin Church regards as its singular orna­
ment and glory.
(The Pope felicitates the Bishops of Czechoslovakia on their
firmness. )

785
(85,
-92,
207,
208)

FIDELITY TO THE CHURCH
Encycl. Spiritus Paraclitus, September 15, 1920.
(The 15th centenary of St. Jerome.—His work.—St. Jerome
as exegete. )
To the Church, the sovereign teacher in the person of the 786
Boman Pontiff. Jerome was dutiful and obedient with his whole(165)
heart. From the Syrian desert where h had been set upon by
heretical factions, he referred to the Roman See the task of settling
the controversy of the Orientals on the mystery of the Most Holy
Trinity, and wrote in the following terms to Pope Damasus: “I
have, therefore, decided to consult the Chair of Peter and the
faith praised by the Apostle’s word (a), today asking food for
my soul at the source where, in the past, I received the liven of
Christ.... Following no one but Christ, I align myself in com­
munion with Your Beatitude, that is, with the Chair of Peter. I
know that the Church was built on that rock.... Judge, I be­
seech you: if I have leave, I do not fear to speak of three hypos­
tases; if you order it. I accept that a new faith will replace the one
786a Rom. 1:8.

416

FIDELITY TO THE CHURCH

formulated at Nicaea, and that, as orthodox, we shall make our
profession in terms similar to the Arians'” (b). And this striking
profession of faith is renewed in the following letter: "In the
meanwhile, I cry aloud: If any man is united to the See of Peter,
I am with him” (c). Persevering constantly in that rule of faith
in the study of the Scriptures, he refutes any false interpretation
of the sacred text with this single argument: “But the Church of
God does not accept it ” (d), and the apocryphal book which the
heretic Vigilantius had urged against him, Jerome rejects with
this terse statement: “This book I have never read. For what need
is there to take up what the Church does not accept?” (e).
787
So zealous was he in maintaining the integrity of the faith,
(60) that he bitterly opposed those who had separated themselves
from the Church, considering her enemies to be his own: "1 will
answer briefly: I have never spared heretics, and I have used all
my energy' to make the Church’s foes my own" (a); and he writes
to Rufinus: “There is one point on which 1 cannot agree with you;
1 cannot spare heretics; I cannot refrain from showing myself a
Catholic" (b). Nonetheless, deploring their defection, he begged
them to return to their sorrowing Mother, the one source of sal­
vation (c), and he prayed that “those who have left the Church
and abandoned the doctrine of the Holy Spirit to follow their
own opinion” might return wholeheartedly to God (d).
If there ever has been a time, Venerable Brothers, when
clergy and faithful needed to be imbued with the spirit of this
great Doctor, that time is certainly our own century, when the
sovereignty of God’s revelation and the authority of the Church’s
teaching office are attacked by not a few proud minds.
(Temerity of certain exegetes.)
788
Would that We could see all Catholics follow that golden rule
(110) of the holy Doctor: attentive to the voice of their Mother, they
would remain modestly within the ancient limits set by the Fa­
thers and approved by the Church.
(The Bible is the source of spiritual life.—Duty of priests
and religious to study the Bible.—Rules governing exegesis.Teaching mid example of St. Jerome.)
786b
786d
787a
787c

Ep. XV. 1. Nos. 2. 4.
tn Dan., HI. 37 .
Dial cont Pelag., Prolog., 2.
In Mich.. 1, lOff.
787d In

786c Ep. XVI, 2, Nt
786c Adv. Vlg. VI.
787b Coni. Ruf., HI. 43.
Is., book VI, eb. XVI. 1-5.

THE FAITH OF PETER

417

Love of the Church
For the rest, how passionately he loved the Church appears 789
even in his commentaries, where he neglects no opportunity to (41,
sound the praises of Christ’s Spouse. Thus, for example, in the 63,
commentary on the prophet Aggeus we read: The elite of every 231)
nation have come, and glory has filled the House of God which
is the Church of the living God, the foundation and pillar of truth.
... By reason of these precious metals the Church of our Savior
is made more splendid than the synagogue was: from these living
stones Christ’s house is built, and everlasting peace is her
crown” (a). And, commenting upon Micheas: “Come let us as­
cend into the mountain of the Lord: a man must ascend if he wish
to come to Christ and to that house of the God of Jacob, the
Church, which is the House of God, the foundation and pillar of
truth" (b). In the preface to the Commentary on St. Matthew we
read: “The Church ... was founded on a rock by the Lord’s word;
she it is whom the King has brought into his chamber and to her,
by a secret opening, He has stretched forth his hand” (c).
As is the case in the last extracts We have cited, our Doctor
generally celebrates the close and intimate union which exists
between the Lord Jesus and the Church. For the head cannot be
separated from the mystical body; love of Christ necessarily en­
tails zeal for the Church, which must be regarded as the principle
result and sweetest fruit of the study of Sacred Scripture.

THE FAITH OF PETER
Encycl. Principi Apostolorum, October 5, 1920.
The Divine Founder of the Church confided to Peter, the
Prince of the Apostles adhering to God by a faith exempt from
all error (a), the leader of the choir of the Apostles as it were (b),
and the common master and ruler of all (c), the mission to feed
his flock, which is the Church, which He (Christ) founded on
the authority of the visible, permanent, and stable magisterium
of Peter himself and his successors (d). It is upon his mystical
rock, that is, upon this foundation of the entire ecclesiastical struc789a
789c
790b
790c
790d

In Agg„ II, Iff.
789b In Mich., IV, Iff.
fn Mat th., Prol.
790a Cf. Luke 22:32.
St. Theodore Stud, Ep. II ad Michselum Imperatorem.
St. Cyril of Alexandria, De Trinitate, dial. IV.
Matt.' 16:18.

790
(44.
141,
165,
169}

418

ΤΙ IE FAITH OF PETER

ture (e), as upon its pivot and center, that communion, not only
in the Catholic faith, but even in Christian charity must rest.
791
(48,
144,
159,
161,
163166)

That the primacy of Peter included the singular charge of
diffusing and safeguarding the riches of charity, as also of faith,
in the hearts of all, Ignatius Theophorus beautifully set forth
soon after the Apostolic period. In that most noble epistle which,
en route, he sent to the Roman Church to announce his arrival
in the Eternal City, where martyrdom for Christ’s cause awaited
him, he gives striking testimony to the primacy which that Church
exercises over all the others when he calls it “the President of the
universal assembly of charity” (a), signifying by this not only
that the universal Church is the image of divine charity', but also
that St. Peter left to the Roman See, along with the Primacy, the
legacy of the triple avowal of his own love for Christ, that it
might enkindle the hearts of all the faithful with the same fire.

The Testimony of the Fathers
The ancient Fathers—especially those who occupied the more
(147, illustrious of the Eastern Sees—were profoundly convinced that
153) this double character was peculiar to the pontifical authority; they
were accustomed to have recourse to the Apostolic See, where
alone salvation is to be found in times of crisis, whenever they
were troubled by incursions of heresy or by internal strife. It is
thus that we see Basil the Great acting (a), thus Athanasius, val­
iant defender of the faith of Nicaea (b), and John Chrysostom (c),
—these messengers of God and Fathers of the orthodox faith ap­
pealed from the authority of the Councils of Bishops to the final
judgment of the Roman Pontiffs, in conformity with the prescrip­
tions of the most ancient ecclesiastical canons (d).

792

The Testimony of history
793
And who shall say that these Pontiffs have ever failed in that
(153, duty to confirm their brethren, which they have received from
155) Christ? Far from it: rather than neglect that office, some, like
790e St. Cyril of Alexandria, Comm, in Luc., chap. XXII, v. 32.
79la St. Ignatius, Epist. ad Rom., Preamb.
792a Epist. cl. II, ep. LXIX.
792b Cf. St. I-elix II, Epist. et Deer.—Epist. Athanas. ct episcop.
Acgyptior.
?!* Johc Custom. Epist. ad Innocent, episc. Rom.
792d Cone. Sardtc., can. 3, 4, 5.

THE FAITH OF PETER

419

Liberius, Sylvester, Martin, have gone unflinching into exile;
others have vigorously defended the cause of the orthodox faith
and of its proponents who appealed to the Pontiff, and they have
vindicated the memory of these champions, if need be, after their
death. We have an example in the person of Innocent I, who or­
dered the Eastern bishops to restore the name of Chrysostom to
the liturgical diptychs, so that he might be commemorated dur­
ing the Holy Sacrifice with the other orthodox Fathers (a).
(The fame of St. Ephrem.—His life, his learning, his virtue.
his sacred poems.—His influence. )
Λ great work, and one which is enormously difficult, Venerable Brothers, is laid upon Us, upon each one of you, upon all
good men everywhere: it is to restore in Christ whatever remains
of human and social culture, to recall to God and to the holy
Church of God an erring society. To the Catholic Church, We say;
though the institutions of our fathers have crumbled and human
affairs are in chaos because of political disturbances, she alone
has not wavered and can confidently face the future; she alone
was horn to immortality, guaranteed by the promise of Him who
declared to St. Peter: “On this rock I will build my church, and
the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (a).
May they all follow in the footsteps of St. Ephrem, all who
are called in the Church to exercise the function of teaching
others; may they learn from him what attentive and assiduous
work is necessary for him who would preach Christ’s doctrine; for
the piety of the faithfid will not be solid or fruitful, except inas­
much as it is deeply rooted in the mysteries of faith and adheres to
its teaching.
Those who have the official mission of teaching the sacred
sciences will learn from the example of the Doctor of Edessa not
to disfigure the Sacred Scriptures with the caprices of their own
ingenuity, and in their commentaries not to deviate by a hair’s
breadth from the traditional teaching of the Church.
(Reference to the texts: 2 Peter 1:20-21; Luke 24:45; 1 Tim.
3:15.—Sf. Ephrem, Doctor of the spiritual life.—The poet of the
Blessed Virgin.)

794
(78,
98,
160,
162,
275,
227)

The holy Doctor is transported by the same enthusiasm 795
when, from distant Edessa, he turns his eyes toward Rome to sing (147)
793a Theodorei, l>ook V, chap. 34.

794a Matt. 16:18.

THE FAITH OF PETER

420

the praises of Peter’s Primacy: “Hail, holy kings, Christ’s Apos­
tles”—it is thus that he salutes the choir of Apostles; “Hail, light
of the world ... The torch is Christ, the torch-bearer is Peter, the
oil is the mysterious action of the Holy Spirit. Hail, O Peter, gate
of sinners, tongue of disciples, voice of preachers, eyes of the
Apostles, guardian of heaven, first-born key-bearer” (a). And else­
where: “Blessed art thou, O Peter, head and tongue of the body
of the brethren, of the body, I say, which the disciples compose
whose two eyes are the sons of Zebedee. Blessed are they who,
looking on the Master’s throne, have requested a throne for them­
selves. The very voice of the Father is heard favoring Peter,
whom He makes an unshakable rock” ( b ). And in another hymn,
this is how he represents the Lord Jesus speaking to his first Vicar
on earth: “Simon, my disciple, I have made you the foundation of
holy Church; I have first called you Peter so that you may sup­
port my entire building. You are the overseer of those who will
build my Church on earth. If they wish to do it ill, it is you,
whom I have placed as the foundation, who must correct them.
You are the fountainhead from which my teaching will flow; you
are the chief of my disciples; by means of you I will slake the
nations’ thirst. It is yours, this life-giving spring which I will pour
forth. It is you whom I have chosen to be, in my designs, the first­
born and heir of all my treasures. The keys of my kingdom I have
given to you, and I have given you power over all my riches” (c).

796
When We recall these things, with tears We beseech the most
(57- merciful Father that the Oriental churches, too long, alasl sepa58) rated from this blessed See of Peter by schism which is contrary
to the thinking of their ancient Fathers whom We commemorate,
may return at last to the loving embrace and to the heart of the
Roman Church, the Church with whom, according to the testi­
mony of St. Irenaeus—the heir, through his master Polycarp, of
the teaching of the Apostle John—“because of her preeminent
jurisdiction, every Church must agree, and therefore all the faith­
ful of the entire world” ( a ).
( The Pope confers on St. Ephrem the title and rank of Doctor
of the Universal Church.)
795a
795b
795c
796a

St.
St.
St.
St.

Ephrem, Encom, in Petrum et Paulum.
Ephrem, Hymni de Virginitate.
Ephrem, Hymni et Serm.
Iranaeus, Adv. Hxres., book III, chap. HI.

USURPATION OF POWER
All. to the Consistory, December 16, 1920.
(Formation by the clergy of Czechoslovakia of an association
attempting to substitute its authority for that of the bishops and
to abolish the law of ecclesiastical celibacy.)

We now solemnly and formally renew the declaration, which 797
We have already many times had occasion to pronounce: the(138)
Apostolic See will never mitigate in any way or abolish that most
holy and salutary law of ecclesiastical celibacy. We likewise declare-as We have already done in Our Letter to the Archbishop
of Prague—that the democratic innovations which some are
attempting to introduce into the Church’s discipline can never be
approved by the Holy See (a).
(The condemnation of the association by the bishops is confirmed.—Catholic missions. )
THE HEADS OF THE CHURCHES

Letter Cum semper, February 10, 1921, to the Belgian
bishops.
(Divisions occasioned by the Flemish question.—The clergy
and politics.—Their duties.)
In the same way that the Roman Pontiff is the supreme Head 798
of the Universal Church, the bishops are the rulers of individual (195,
churches, and therefore all the faithful, but especially the priests, 203,
owe them obedience and submission.
208)
(Directives on the subject of the regular clergy.—Exhorta­
tion.)

DANTE AND THE CHURCH
Encycl. In præclara, April 30, 1921, to Catholic universities.
(The sixth centenary of Dante.—His testimony in The Di­
vine Comedy. )
It is only right, therefore, says Dante, speaking of that eter- 799
nity which will follow this mortal life, “that we should derive our(231)
certainty' from the infallible teaching of Christ, who is the Way,

797a Item negamus eas, quas nunnuUi contendunt inducere in Ecclesiic disciplinam, exactas ad popularem rationem, rerum novi­
tates, unquam ab Apostolica Sede approbari posse.

4

422

DANTE AND THE CHURCH

the Troth, and the light (a): the Way, because by it we hastened
unimpeded towards eternal beatitude; the Truth, because it is
tree from all error; the Light, because it illumines our minds in
the darkness of this worlds ignorance” (b). Nor has he less re­
spect and attention for "those venerable General Councils in
which, as none of the faithful doubts, Christ participated.” He
also esteems highly “the writings of the Doctors, Augustine and
others; the man who doubts that they were assisted by the Holy
Spirit (he says), either has never discovered their excellence, or,
if he has discovered it, has not appreciated it” (c).

800
Alighieri has the greatest respect for the authority of the
(171)Roman Church and the power of the Roman Pontiff—a power
From which the laws and institutions of the Church herself derive
their efficacy. And for this reason he energetically admonishes
Christians that since they have the Old and New Testament as
well as the Pastor of the Church to guide them, they should be
content with these means of salvation. He was as saddened by
the misfortunes of the Church as if they had been his own; he
deplored and condemned any defection, on the part of Christians,
from the Sovereign Pontiff; after the transfer of the Apostolic
See from Rome he addressed the Italian Cardinals in the follow­
ing terms: “What shame for us who believe in the same Father
and Son, in the same God and Man. and in the same Mother and
Virgin; for whom, and for whose salvation, it was said to Peter
after the triple question about his love: Peter, feed the sacred
flock. What shame for Rome, in whose favor, after the triumphs
of so many victors, Christ by word and deed confirmed the gov­
ernment of the entire world; Rome, whose /Xpostolic Chair was
consecrated by the blood-shedding of Peter and of Paul, the
Apostles of the Gentiles; Rome, for whom now like Jeremias we
must lament for our contemporaries and not for posterity, that
she has been widowed and abandoned. What shame, a shame as
great as the sorrowful wound of the heresy!” (a)
801
And so he calls the Roman Church a most sweet Mother, or
(162,the Spouse of the Crucified; and Peter he proclaims the infallible
171) judge of the truth received from God, and all are obliged to obey
him in every thing which concerns their eternal salvation, wheth­
er in matters of faith or conduct. It is for this reason that, al799a Cf John It.6
799c Mon 111. 3.

4

799b Cono., II, 9.
800.1 Epist. VIII.

π
HU· '-•--'I·
A

•■

v:

423

AUTHORITY OF BISHOPS

though he believes the Emperor’s dignity is derived from God,
yet "this truth”, he says, “is not to be held absolutely so that the
Homan Prince need not submit, in one or another instance, to the
Roman Pontiff; for prosperity in this world is in a certain sense
ordered to happiness in the next” (a).
This is an excellent principle and full of wisdom, which, if
faithfully practiced in our own time, would doubtless produce the
richest fruits of prosperity for the State.
(Views on the divine economy.—Faith and the arts— Reme­
dies for naturalism—Dante is a master of Christian learning.)

AUTHORITY OF BISHOPS

Letter Libenter quidem, October 15, 1921, to the Apostolic
Delegate of the East Indies.
(India’s devotion to the Blessed Virgin.)
We judge it timely to trace here the line of conduct which
every Catholic must follow religiously, whether in his private
or his public life. This rule of life, as is evident from the Gospels,
from the Apostles’ letters, and from the writings of the Holy Fa­
thers, consists in the obedience of the faithful to their lawfid
pastors, according to the dictum: “Obey your prelates, and be
subject to them” (a). For Bishops are in no way dependent on
the good pleasure of their subjects in what concerns the govern­
ment of their dioceses, nor do they owe an account of their ac­
tions to any but the Holy See, since to Peter alone was said: “Feed
my lambs; feed my sheep” (b). Therefore, it is the duty of the
clergy’ as well as of the faithful to disapprove, in themselves as
well as in others, any manifestation of the spirit of independence,
for this gives occasion to the enemies of our religion to sow cockle
in the Lord’s vineyard.

802
(53,
203,
214)

He who is against the Bishop is against the Church
Let all beware, therefore, of discussing the Bishops’ decrees 803
when they do not concur with their own ideas; let them beware (203)
also of criticizing them, of treating them lightly, whether in pub­
lic or private, in speaking or writing, as We have already advised
in Our encyclical letter Ad Beatissimi Apostolorum·. “Let no in­
dividual pose as a master in the Church, whether in books, news­
papers, or public speeches. All men know to whom God has
801a Mon. Ill, 16.

802a Heb. 13:17.

802b John 21:15-17.

vn?y i < k

424

Jkn: '.3^4X481

AUTHORITY OF BISHOPS

committed the government of the Church.” The Church is the
people united to their pastor, the flock adhering to its shepherd.
From this it follows that he is not with the Church who is not
with his Bishop. Priests and faithful who act otherwise only imi­
tate the non-Catholics among whom they live; they cause scandal
and furnish these non-Catholics with a pretext for remaining
away from the fold of the one true Church. Let them put their
energy at the disposition of the Bishop, and reverently obey him.
It is certainly permissible for anyone to appeal to the Holy See
for an adequate reason; but let no one withdraw from the au­
thority of his Ordinary or refuse obedience to his decrees under
pretext of wishing to follow the prescriptions of the Apostolic
See, or those of other Bishops, granted, perhaps, for an individual
diocese.
The triple competence of Bishops
804
But if it is proposed to submit certain remarks or requests to
(91, the Ordinary, this shall be done in a respectful way, and only with
203) a view to the triumph of truth or the greater good of the Church,
and never with demands or threats, or, what is worse, by invoking
civil powers, which are, by their very nature, extraneous to eccle­
siastical affairs.
805
Nonetheless, the authority of bishops is not exercised solely
(196, in religious and ecclesiastical matters; it has a direct bearing on
201) other questions, too, which by their nature are linked directly or
indirectly to the welfare of Holy Church and the salvation of
souls. Therefore, Bishops, using their triple power of teaching,
ministering, and ruling, must safeguard and exercise authoritative
influence on the following ( a ) :
a—ecclesiastical administration (except that for the direction
of the works they may invoke the laudable assistance of priests
and laymen ) since the Bishop is recognized by the sacred canons
to be the natural protector of every pious work or foundation;
806
b—the Catholic education of youth, which should never be
(198, separated from religious instruction; for since Christ our Loro
203) speaking of Himself says: "One is your Master, Christ” (a), and
He lives and teaches in the person of the Bishops, according to
these words: "He that heareth you, heareth me” (b), it belongs
805a Episcopi triplici sua potestate utentes, magisterii scilicet, mi­
nisterii atque regiminis, tueri debent et auctoritative moderari qua
sequuntur .. . 806a Cf. Matt. 23:8.
806b Luke 10 16

AUTHORITY or BISHOPS

425

to the Bishops to establish the legitimate norms which must be
followed with great care by Catholic teachers in the direction of
Catholic schools and the formation of the clergy in major and
minor seminaries;
c—finally, the necessary intercourse of the faithful with non- 807
Catholics in civil life; the Bishops will decide whether or not grave (59,
danger to faith exists in belonging to and participating in certain 201)
so-called neutral or non-sectarian societies or philanthropic asso­
ciations. in a given case or area.

In him who governs is to be recognized, before all else, God 808
who speaks to us, admonishes us, rules us, according to that (203)
passage of Scripture: “God as it were exhorting by us” (a).
A native episcopate

Certainly everyone hopes, even in religious affairs, to be 809
governed by men of his own people; in this matter, to be sure, (III,
the Catholics of India are not to be reproved for wishing to be 131,
ruled by native Pastors. The Church has never really been 135)
opposed to this desire, for within her borders “there is neither
Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision. Barbarian nor
Scythian, bond nor free” (a), nor “acceptance of persons.” This is
clearly seen from the fact that the Sovereign Pontiffs have always
shown the greatest concern that the native clergy should make
daily progress in holiness and learning. But it is for the Church to
decide when the time has come to satisfy this desire; for the
Church, We say, who, watching, so to say, from an observatory'
over the needs of each and every diocese, in ancient times sent
out missionaries who carried the Christian name into those
regions in spite of the dangers of distance, suff(‘ring, and persecu­
tion. Whoever, therefore, by hastening the course of events, would
wish to anticipate the judgment of Rome, whether in speaking or
writing, would show that he was rash and disobedient to the Vicar
oi Jesus Christ, as if the Pope were unconcerned about the sal­
vation and prosperity of his sons in India.
(Evangelization of India by Indian priests.—Remain united
in charily.—Mary, Patroness of India.)
808a 2 Cor. 5:20.
809a Coloss. 3:11

PIUS XI
1922-1939

THE INSTRUMENT OF THE MINISTRY
Letter Officiorum omnium, August 1, 1922, to Cardinal
Bisleti, Secretary of the Congregation of Seminaries and Univer­
sities.
Among all the very holy duties which the Pope’s office em- 810
braces, none certainly is greater or more far-reaching than to (115,
foster and to secure a sufficiently large number of priests to ful- 160)
fill her divine mission. Here, in fact, are bound up the honor, the
efficacy, and the very life of the Church; nothing could more
intimately concern the salvation of the human race, for the im­
mense benefits which our Redeemer Jesus Christ won for the
world are withheld from men unless given to them by “the min­
isters of Christ and the dispensers of the mysteries of God” (a).
(Formation of the clergy.—Fostering of vocations.—Seminaries.-Study of Latin.)

Latin, the “catholic” language

For the Church, in view of the fact that she includes every’
nation in her fold, and that she is destined to last to the end of the
world, and that she excludes entirely from her governing office
the simple faithful, requires by her very nature a language which
is universal, immutable, and not vulgar. And since Latin meets
these conditions, it was provided by God to serve the teaching
needs of the Church in a wonderful way, while at the same time
it serves the more educated people of every nation as a strong
bond of unity. It gives them the means, whether separated by
distance or gathered in one spot, not only to exchange ideas and
opinions with great ease, but also—something even greater—to
know more profoundly the things which concern their Mother
the Church, and to remain in more intimate contact with the
head of the Church.
(The philosophy of St. Thomas—Scholastic theology—Posi­
tive theology—Pastoral theology.—Regional seminaries.)

PRIMACY OF CHARITY
All. to the Consistory, December 11, 1922.
(Eulogy of Benedict XV.—State of the Church in the Orient.
Assistance sent to famine victims in Russia.)
810a 1 Cor. 4:1.

- 429 -

811
(49,
107,
131,
132,
163,
211,
227)

430

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

812
In exercising this mission of charity, Venerable Brothers, We
(82, have done no more than follow the customs and traditions of the
163) Roman Church, of which Ignatius Martyr was able to say in all
truth that she is, in this sense also, the President of Charity; it is
the same note of praise which is to be found in the letter where
Denis, Bishop of Corinth, expresses to Pope Soter the fullness ol
his admiration and gratitude for the Roman Church for the
benefits which, in time of extreme need, she procured with her
mother’s hand for his flock, and especially for the confessors of
the faith.
813
This primacy of charity is a consequence of the primacy of
(I63)honor and jurisdiction, and the Roman Pontiff possesses it in vir­
tue of his universal fatherhood. This fatherhood derives, on the
one hand, from God, since from Him is derived all paternity in
heaven and upon earth; and, on the other hand, from Christ Jesus,
who conferred it on the Pope in the person of Peter when He said,
"Feed my lambs: feed my sheep’ (a), a formula which embraces
all men, those who are already part of the flock, or those who will
come to join it, until one day there will be only one flock and one
Shepherd. ( Efforts to strengthen the peace of the world.—Justice
and charity.—Announcement of the Encyclical Ubi arcano.)
THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

Encycl. Ubi arcano, December 23, 1922.
(The Peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ.—Evils of the
present times.—Their causes.—Their remedies.—The Church alone
is the depository of these remedies.)
814
Let Us note what are the teachings and commandments of
(89, Christ on the dignity of the human person, purity of conduct, the
102- duty of obedience, the divine constitution of human society, the
103, sacrament of matrimony, and the sanctity of the family,—all these,
133) We say, and other truths like them which He brought from heav­
en to earth, He gave only to his Church and with them the sol­
emn promise never to fail her in the present or the future, and
He commanded her never to cease to teach all men, as an in­
fallible teacher, to the end of the world. This shows clearly what
and how powerful are the remedies which the Catholic Church
can and must bring to the task of rendering peace to the world.
813a John 21:15-17.

THE MISSION ΟΓ THE CHURCH

431

Her exclusive mandate
Now, since she alone was the divinely ordained interpreter,
and custodian of these truths and precepts, the Church alone has
the real and inexhaustible power to purge from society and do­
mestic and civil life the blight of materialism, which has already
worked such havoc; to penetrate society with Christian thinking,
far superior to philosophical systems, on the spirituality and
immortality of the human soul; to unite all classes of men among
themselves and to bring about the union of the entire race in a
feeling of benevolence, and as it icere of brotherhood (a); to de­
fend the dignity of every man and to lift him up to God Himself
(b); finally, to correct and improve public and private morals, so
that, when all things have been made subject to God who “seeth
the heart” (c) and conformed to his teaching and laws, and the
knowledge of the holy law fills the minds of all men, governors
and governed alike, and every rank of civil society', “Christ may­
be all, and in all” (d).

Wherefore, the Church, which has the truth and strength of 816
Christ, is the only one who can form men’s minds aright; she alone (80,
can reestablish the true peace of Christ in the present time and 119)
also assure peace in the future by forestalling the new dangers
of war which We have indicated. She alone, by virtue of divine
mandate and decree, teaches that all men must conform to the
eternal law of God, whatever they do, in public as in private,
whether individually or as a group. Moreover, it is evident that
whatever touches the salvation of many souls is of far greater
moment.
(Christ’s precepts must control politics.—Example of medi­
eval Christianity. )
815a Cf. St. Augustine, De moribus Eccl., I, 30.
815b Nam quia una divinitus constituta est harum veritatum præceptorumque interpres et custos, in ipsa unice vera et inexhausta
qUivdam facilitas inesl, ut cum a communi vita domesticaque so­
cietate et civili materialism! maculam. qu;v tanta ibi jam fecerat
damna, prohibeat, christianamque disciplinam de spiritu, seu de
animis hominum immortalibus, philosophia multo potiorem, eo­
dem insinuet; tum ut omnes inter ipsos ordines civium ac plebem
universam ollioris quodam benevolenti.e sensu et quadam quasi
fraternitate conjungat, ac singulorum quoaue dignitatem homihomi­
um ipsum extollat.
num jure vindicatam, ad Deum
815c 1 Sani. 16:7.
815d Coi. 3:11.

432

WITNESS OF THE SAINTS

Above all nations
But there is a divine institution which can guarantee the
817
(15, sanctity of the laws of men; an institution, as it were, which be­
81, longs to all nations and is superior to all nations, endowed with
96, the highest authority and venerable for the fullness of her teach­
131, ing authority, the Church of Christ: she alone can show herself
133) ready for so great a task by reason of her divine mandate, her
nature, and her constitution, as well as the majesty—the result of
so many centuries—which is never diminished by the ravages of
war, but rather increased in a wonderful way.
(No true peace without respect for the laws of Christ.)
818
For this task We appeal hopefully for the assistance of all
(139, good men, but We turn to you first of all, Venerable Brothers, you
185, whom Christ our Leader and Head—the same Who committed the
194) care of the universal Church to Us—has summoned, surely, to bear
a very large part of Our solicitude. In fact, you have been placed
by the Holy Spirit "to rule the church of God” (a); you have
been signed in a special manner for “the ministry’ of reconcilia­
tion ... ambassadors for Christ” (b), participants of that same
divine authority and “dispensers of the mysteries” (c), and for
that reason you are called “the salt of the earth” and "the light
of the world” (d), the doctors and fathers of the Christian
peoples, “made a pattern of the flock from the heart” (e), and
“called great in the kingdom of heaven” (f). Finally, you are,
all of you, like the principal members and golden links on which
rises up “the whole body (of Christ) ... connected and fitly
joined together” (g) which is the Church, founded on the un­
shakable rock which is Peter.
(Missions.—Catholic Action—Modernism in practice.—The
Church and the nations.)
WITNESS OF THE SAINTS
Encycl. Rerum omnium, January 26, 1923.
(The world is sick—It must be brought back to Christ by
the Church.)
819
The teaching and governing office of the Catholic Church
(78, has only one end: to teach men by the announcement of divinely
818a Acts 20:28
818b 2 Cor. o:18, 20
818d Matt. 5:13-14. 818e 1 Pet o:3.
818g Ephes. 4:15, 16.

8I8c 1 Cor. 4:1.
818f Matt. 5:19.

ONE AND UNIVERSAL

433

received truth, and to sanctify them by the abundant effusion
of divine grace. In this way the Church strives to bring back to
its original state civil society wherever she sees it has deviated
from the Christian principles according to which she fashioned
and shaped it in earlier times.
The Church pursues this sanctifying work with happier
results whenever it happens, by God’s favor and gift, that she can
propose to the imitation of the faithful some of her children who
have distinguished themselves by the practice of admirable
virtues. When she does so, the Church acts in strict conformity
with her nature, for Christ her Founder made her holy in herself
and the efficacious instrument of holiness in others, since it is
Cod’s will that all who use her teaching and guidance must tend
to holiness of life. “This is the will of God,” says Paul, “your
sanctification” (a). And what kind of sanctity' this should be.
the Lord Himself explains in these words: "Be ye therefore per­
fect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (b).
(The third centenary of St. Francis de Sales.—His spirit, his
work, example of the social virtue of meekness —Patron of Catho­
lic publicists.—Solemnities and spiritual favors on the occasion of
the centenary. )

84,
96,

115,
126,
128,
213)

ONE AND UNIVERSAL
Encycl. Ecclesiam Dei, November 12, 1923.
The Church, in the wonderful plan of God, was established 820
to become in the fullness of time an immense family embracing (4,
the whole human race; among other distinguishing signs We know
that it was to show its divine origin by its unity and universality. 69,
131)
For Christ our Lord not only handed on to the Apostles that 821
mission which He had received from the Father when He said. (46,
All power is given to me in heaven and upon earth. Going, there­ 85,
fore, teach ye all nations” (a); He also wanted the Apostolic col­ 137,
lege to be a perfect unity, its members doubly bound by a very 155,
strong chain: inwardly by that faith and charity, which “is poured 161.
forth in (your) hearts ... by the Holy Spirit” (b), outwardly by
the rule of one man over all, since He gave the primacy among the
Apostles to Peter, the perpetual principle and visible foundation
819a 1 Thess. 4:3
821a Matt 28:18-19.

819b Matt. 5:48
821b Rom. 5:5.

434

ONE AND UNIVERSAL

of unity (c); this same unity He most lovingly recommended to
them on the eve oi his death (d); this unity also He petitioned
irom his Father in his last prayer, and He obtained it: “He was
heard for his reverence” (e).

One single head
And so the Church was developed into "one body”,
822
(24, vivified and animated by a single spirit, whose "head is Christ:
43) from whom the whole body ( is ) compacted and fitly joined to­
gether, by what every joint supplieth” (a).
823
But, for the same reason, the visible head is he who fills the
(140, office of Christ’s Vicar on earth, the Roman Pontiff. It is to him,
142, as successor of Peter, that are addressed from age to age those
144) words of Christ: “upon this rock I will build my Church’ (a);
he it is who, always exercising the charge of Vicar conferred
on Peter, must confirm his brethren when the need arises, and
never cease to feed the lambs and sheep of the Lord’s flock.

Causes of schisms
824
Now there is nothing “the enemy” so fiercely assaults as this
(56, unitv of the government of the church, which cannot be separated
137) from “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (a). If he has
never been able to prevail against the Church herself, he has
nonetheless brought about the defection of not a few of her
children, and even whole nations, which have left her fold. These
misfortunes are due in great part to national rivalry, or to laws
from which religion and piety have been divorced, or to too
great a zeal for the goods of this world.
(The Eastern Schism.—The third centenary of St. Josaphat,
martyr of unity.—Conditions of return to unity.)
82le Etenim Christus Dominus non modo quod ipse a Patre munus
acceperat, solis Apostolis demandavit, cum dixit: data est mihi
omnis potestas in ca-lo et in terra. Euntes ergo docete omnes
gentes; sed etiam Apostolorum summe unum voluit esse collegium,
dupliciter coagmentatum arctissimo vinculo, intrinsecus quidem
fide eadem et caritate, qux diffusa est in cordibus . . . per Spiri­
tum Sanctum; extrinsecus autem unius in omnes regimine, cum
Apostolorum principatum Petro contulerit, tamquam perpetuo
unitatis principio ac visibili fundamento.
821d John 17:11, 21-22.
821e Heb. 5:7.
822a Ephes. 4:4-5, 15-16.
823a Matt. 16:18.
824a Eph. 4:3.

THE LANGUAGE OF THE CHURCH
Letter Unigenitus Dei Filius, March 19, 1924, to Superiors
General of religious orders and congregations for men.
(Directives for the formation of the religious.)

The importance for young religious of knowing Latin well is
to be seen not only from the fact that the Church uses this lan­
guage in some sense as the bond and instrument of her unity, but
also because we read the Bible in Latin, we recite the psalms and
celebrate the Holy Sacrifice in Latin, we carry' out the ensemble
of liturgical ceremonies in Latin. Moreover, when the Sovereign
Pontiff addresses the Catholic world to communicate his teach­
ing to it, he does so in Latin; and the Roman Curia uses no other
language to conduct its business and draw up the decrees which
concern the general good. Those who are ignorant of Latin can
only with great difficulty draw from the very' rich fountains of
the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, who, for the most part,
have used only this language to set forth and defend Catholic
doctrine. Have much at heart, therefore, that your clerics, who
will one day be ministers of the Church, apply themselves dili­
gently to study and practice this language.
(The Novices—Scholasticism and Revelation; faith and
science; charity and piety—The Brothers.)
THE FUNCTION OF INTERCESSION
Apost. Const. Umbratilem, July 8, 1924—Approbation of the
new statutes of the Carthusian Order.
( Praise of the contemplative life. )

By their very close union with God and by their interior 826
sanctity, those who lead a solitary life within the silence of thefI29J
cloister contribute abundantly to maintain that splendor of sanc­
tity which the immaculate Spouse of Christ Jesus offers for imita­
tion to the eyes of all men. Nor is it remarkable that ecclesiastical
writers of ages past, in explaining the power and efficacy inherent
in the prayers of these religious men, have gone so far as to com­
pare it to the prayer of Moses, recalling this well-known fact:
namely, that when Josue fought the Amalecites on the plain,
Moses, on the summit of a nearby mountain, was begging and
imploring God for the victory of his people. Now, as long as his
hands were raised to heaven, the Israelites were victorious; but

436

THE FUNCTION OF INTERCESSION

when, on the contrary, his hands fell from weariness, the
Amalecites overcame the Israelites; and so Aaron and Hur sup­
ported the arms of Moses on both sides until Josue left the combat
victorious (a).
827
Indeed, there is in this example a most apt figure of the
(209) prayers of the religions whom We have recalled, they are sus­
tained, as it were, by two supports: the august Sacrifice of the
altar and the exercise of penance, the one prefigured by Aaron,
the other by Hur. For it is the solemn and almost principle dut)’
of these solitaries, as We have said above, to offer themselves and
dedicate themselves to God, in virtue of an official function, as it
were, as victims and sacrificial oblations for their own salvation
and that of their neighbor.
(The origins of monasticism.)
Importance for the Church of the contemplative life

828
It is, therefore, of verv great importance for the Church that
(209) this most holy manner of life, which, for so many centuries, had
been preserved intact in the monasteries, be restored to its first
state, that intercessors may never be lacking: relieved of ever)'
other care, ceaselessly imploring the divine mercies, they will
draw down from heaven upon men more negligent of their own
salvation, every kind of benefit ( a ).
(The Carthusians.)
The support of Apostles
829
Moreover, it is easy to see that those who apply themselves
(220) diligently to the offices of prayer and penance contribute much
more to the growth of the Church and the salvation of the human
race than those who give their labor to the Lord’s vineyard; the
former draw down an abundance of divine grace from heaven,
and unless the field is watered by this, the evangelical laborers
will certainly reap a meager reward from their toil.
(History of the Constitutions of the Carthusians.)
826a Cf. Exodus 17:8-16.
828a Ecclesiae igitur vehementer intererat, sanctissimum vitx genus,
quod per tot sxcula incolume in coenobiis exstiterat, sic in pristi­
num restitui, ut nunauam deforent, cujusvis curx expertes, depre­
catores, qui, perpetuo divinx misericordix instantes, e cado in
homines, sua· neglegentiores salutis, omne genus beneficia de­
rivarent.

ONE FAITH

All. to the Consistory, March 30, 1925.
(The success of the Jubilee and the Missionary Exposition.)

But above all else, the objects assembled in this Exposition 830
offer the thoughtful visitor a demonstration of the unity and im­
mortality of the Catholic Church: not only has she never ceased, 46,
in conformity with the mission she holds from her Divine Founder. 227)
to teach all nations; further, she has taught and continues to teach
all men one single faith, preserved intact under the sole guidance
of the Roman Pontiff. In fact, the name of Jesus must be made
known to all nations, so that at the name of Jesus every knee may
bow, in heaven, on earth, and under the earth; for He must reign.
(The approaching celebration of the 16th centenary of the
Council of Nicaea.—Creation of two Spanish Cardinals.)
THE POPE AND THE COUNCIL

Letter Cum in superiore, April 4, 1925, to Cardinal Tacci,
Secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the Eastern Church.
(The Pope charges the Cardinal to organize the forthcoming
commemoration of the Council of Nicaea. )
The event We have in mind, which is of such great impor- 831
tance to Us and to the Apostolic See, is known to everyone, even (153)
those who have very little knowledge of Church history. For, as
written documents prove, the Council of Nicaea, which had as
its object to crush the Arian heresy by condemning and excom­
municating Arius and his partisans if they would not recant, was
only assembled with the consent of Pope Sylvester. And he was
present at it in the persons of his Legates, who were the first of
all—specifically because they represented the person of the
Pontiff—to sign the Acts, as We said on the occasion of the Con­
sistory, though Vitus and Vincent were only simple priests. Nor
should we forget that the anathema against the Arians was pro­
nounced by the Fathers in the name of the Holy, Catholic, and
.Apostolic Church, and that the Apostolic See has even considered
the doctrines of Nicaea as coming from her, approved by her,
and has even defended them as such.
(The works of Nicaea.—Directives for the celebration of the
16th centenary.)

THE NOTES OF THE CHURCH
All. to the Fourth International Congress of Catholic Youth,
September 19, 1925.
(The Pope’s love for this assembly of youth.—The Missionary
Exposition is a living witness to the unity and universality of the
Church.)
One and universal
832
And you have come here to see the Church at its center, to
(5, see it all in one glance, to taste something of its beauty, and you
41, add still more yourselves, by your presence, to this vision of great131) ness and power.
Here she is then, the great, the divine Internationale: thus
you sing of her, thus you confess her to be in your Credo: Credo
unam, sanctum, catholicam, apostolicam Ecclesiam! Here she is
before your eyes, one and universal! The unity and universality
of the Church'. Never have they been so visible; they shine forth
from the events of each day during this Holy Year, and with what
splendor! That universality is yourselves, and, on your side, you
contribute to make it resplendent.

Holy, Mother of Saints
833
Here she is, Holy Church! Whose voice did you obey when
(126, you set out for Rome? You obeyed the invitation to sanctify
161) yourselves. “It is the Holy Year, it is the invitation to pray ad­
dressed to the whole Catholic world: come, draw forth treasures
of holiness! Come, enrich your souls with the treasures of the
Jubilee!” And the entire Catholic world, as if by a holy instinct,
has understood the invitation of its Mother, and it has come. And
the Mother was there: she prepared not only her treasures of
forgiveness, of prayer, of grace,—but still more an awe-inspiring
lesson of sanctity, very fitting in her regard, great teacher, great
fashioner of saints that she is. She is here: in this incomparable
series of beatifications and canonizations, a real exposition of
sanctity, for every walk of life, for all tastes, for every spiritual
state which is the product of grace.

Apostolic
834
And you see her, again with your human sight, adorned with
(155, that other distinctive note with which the great Divine Author
223- enriched his Church, as with an identification card by which each
224) one can, at every instant, recognize the true Church of Jesus, the

TUE KINGDOM OI CHRIST

439

one divine Church. You have found these proofs, these testimonies
in all the stones of Rome. For in Rome the holy, Rome the eternal,
the very stones speak, the stones cry out (a). You have heard
them proclaiming especially the apostolicity of the divine Inter­
nationale. He who, at present, is the last successor of Peter—not
only, alas! in order of time—is speaking to you now as Peter him­
self used to speak under the arches of the basilicas, in the cata­
combs. for the living Pope, whatever be the name he bears or the
time in which he exercises his ministry, will always be the latest
link in that golden chain which binds the Roman Church, and,
by her, all the Churches of whom She is the Mother, to the
Apostles, to Peter—the “cornerstone” (b)—to the Divine Founder
Himself. A thought, in truth, full of the most thrilling joy!
This Church which We see, in which We live, this Church today
so great, then so small, is identically the same mystical person
who spoke with St. Peter, with Christ.
(Duties of youth.—Catholic Action.—Youth and politics.—De­
fense of religion.)

THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST
Encycl. Çuas primas, December 11, 1925.
(The coils of the present are due to the neglect of Christ and
the Church.—The Missionary Exposition.—The Jubilee.—Canoni­
zations. )
While men and godless governments have become the sport 835
of envy stirred up by hatred and internecine strife and are driven (128)
toward ruin and death, the Church of God. continuing to provide
the human race with the nourishment of eternal life, brings forth
and rears for God holy generations of men and women. Christ
does not cease to call to the eternal beatitude of his kingdom
those whom He has recognized for his most faithful and obedient
subjects on earth.
(Institution of the feast of Christ the King.—Its doctrinal
foundation.— The fruits the Pope expects from it.)
Liberty of the Church

Certainly, the honors which it is necessary to pay to the 836
divine authority will not fail to recall to mens' minds the fact that (13,
the Church was founded by Christ as a perfect society, and that 91834a Cf. Luke 19:10.

834b Cf. Is 28:16

440

THE HERITAGE OF FAITH

92, she claims by virtue of that original right which she cannot re97, linquish full liberty and immunity from the civil authority. She
121) cannot depend upon another’s will in obeying her divinely com­
missioned duty to teach and rule all men, and to lead to ever­
lasting bliss all those who are of Christ’s kingdom.
Religious, assistants of the Pastors

g37
Moreover, the state must extend the same liberty especially
(126
religious orders and congregations of both sexes, who are the
229 most useful auxiliaries to the Pastors of the Church. They labor
^09) valiantly in extending and strengthening the kingdom of Christ.
whether by opposing the triple concupiscence of the world with
the sacred vows of religion, or by embracing the profession of the
more perfect life, so that holiness, which the Divine Founder
commanded should be a distinguishing mark of the Church, may
shine before the eyes of all with a constant and increasing
splendor.
( Restoration of public official worship.—Reign of Christ in
the minds and hearts of the faithful—Return of those outside the
fold to Christ.)

THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS
838
(45)

All. to the Consistory, December 14, 1925.
(The Holy Year.—Recent canonizations.)
At the same time We wish to recall to Our sons, so that they
may understand and appreciate it more deeply, the charm and
the consolation which stem from our article of faith on the Com­
munion of Saints. By it we know in fact that it is in the unity of
the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, in the immense treasures o(
grace and merit which it possesses, that we discover the sources
whence the Holy Year draws in such abundance its power of
remission and pardon which purify the Christian people and assist
it in a marvelous way to sanctify its life.
(The Missionary Exposition—Centenary of Nicaea.—The
Church in Italy, Chile, Mexico, France, Bavaria, Poland.—Cen­
tenary of St. Francis of Assisi .-Feast of Christ the King.)
THE HERITAGE OF FAITH
Apost. Let. Paterna sane, February 2, 1926, to the Mexican
Episcopate.

SOVEREIGNTY OF THE CHURCH

441

(Persecution in Mexico.—Laws contrary to the general good
are not laws.—Liberty is refused to the Church. )
That liberty which governors refuse to the Catholic Church 839
they grant in large measure to the schismatical sect which they (57)
call “the national church”. Since this sect repudiates the sacred
rights of the Roman Church, they favor its initiatives and its
enterprise, while they hold you to be enemies of the State for
the simple reason that you protect the integrity and purity of your
ancestral faith.
But although We are grievously afflicted by this course of
events, one thing brings Us not a little consolation: We see the
Mexican people strenuously resisting the machinations of the
schismatics. Therefore, while We give great thanks to a most
loving God for this, it is certainly fitting to praise you, Venerable
Brothers, and all the faithful of Mexico, at the same time that
We exhort you most earnestly to continue to defend with your
whole strength the Catholic religion.
(Catholic Action must remain outside party politics.—Cath­
olics and the political situation.—Their civil rights—The clergy
and the common good. )

SOVEREIGNTY OF THE CHURCH
Holograph Si ê annunciato, February' 18, 1926, to Peter
Cardinal Gasparri.
(Project of the law of the Italian State on ecclesiastical
matters. )
Now that the propositions are to be translated into laws, and 840
they wish, by the very nature of the business, to legislate for (92.
people and things subject for the most part to the sacred power 177)
confided to Us by God, We have the duty, as a result of Our
apostolic charge, to say and to declare that with regard to these
persons and these things We cannot acknowledge in others the
rights and powers to legislate, except through the medium of suit­
able negotiation and legitimate agreement with the Holy See
and with Us.
And certainly, no one in the world will easily allow himself
to be persuaded and convinced that without some such negotia­
tion and accord reached with the Sovereign Roman Pontiff. Cath­
olics in this very city of Rome can pretend to give a new legal
status to the Catholic Church in Italy. For this is the matter in

442

MISSIONARY EXPANSION

question at the moment, and not simply one or another provision
for restoring religious teaching to the schools of a Catholic people,
or to the clergy and the Churches some part of what they were
wrongly deprived of.
(Reference to the allocution of December 14, 1925 [al.-No
suitable negotiation, no legitimate agreement has been arrived al,
nor could it have been, nor will it be reached so long as the un­
just treatment of the Holy See and the Roman Pontiff continues.)
MISSIONARY EXPANSION

841
(76,
77,

159J60,
166)

Encycl. Rerum Ecclesiae, February 28, 1926.
No one who meditates on the history of the Church can escape the fact that from the earliest period of Christianity it has
been the very special concern and preoccupation of the Roman
Pontiffs to bring the light of the gospel teaching and the benefits
of Christian civilization to the peoples “sitting in darkness and the
shadow of death” (a), and they have never been deterred by dif­
ficulties or obstacles.
For no other reason did the Church come into being, except
to make all men partakers of the saving redemption by spreading
the kingdom of Christ throughout the world. Whoever he is there­
fore, who by divine appointment holds on earth the place of
Jesus, Prince of Pastors, it is not enough for him to serve and
protect that flock which has been given him to rule by the Lord;
on the contrary, he would fail in his principal duty' if he did not
strive by every means to increase the flock and unite to Christ
those estranged from Him and those outside the Church.
840a [Felicitations on Italy’s welcome to the Holy Year pilgrims.]
“These acts are powerless to wipe out all the injustice or to erase
all the wrongs committed in the past toward the Church and
religion. They cannot be otherwise. Unless a man were blind, he
could not fail to recognize the profound disturbance of soul and
the immense damage which result from them for a Christian
people, touched in its most precious possession. Let us add also
that never, at any period, could so great a number of the faithful
coming here from almost every country' of the world see with
their own eyes and recognize the true state of affairs: the situa­
tion of the supreme Head of the Catholic Church, a situation
very different from what is necessarily and legitimately due to
his universal authority, to the place which he occupies in a so­
ciety universal in its essence and perfect in itself, founded as such
by Cod."
841a Cf. Matt. 4:1Θ; Luke 1:79.

MISSIONARY EXPANSION

44 3

No one of Our Predecessors at any time lias failed to observe
the divine mandate which bound him to teach and baptize all
nations (b).
(Van/ing success of the Missions through the ages.—
Development of modern missionary enterprises.—The Missionary
Exposition. )
The duly of the faithful

To live in Christ’s fold without any concern for those who 842
wander unhappily outside it would be so at variance with that(277;
charity We should have for God and man, that We do not need
to say much about it.
Our duty to love God certainly supposes not only that We
should increase the number of those who know Him and adore
Him "in spirit and in truth” (a). It also supposes that We should
gather as many as possible under the yoke of Our most loving
Redeemer, so that "profit in (his) blood" may grow from day to
day (b) and We may please Him more and more, for nothing is
so pleasing to Him as that men should be saved and come to a
knowledge of the truth (c).
In fact, Christ declared that it would be a peculiar mark of 843
his disciples that they should love one another (a), and what'217:
greater sign of charity towards our neighbor could We show than
concern that he should be snatched from the darkness of super­
stition and made brother of Christ b\ faith? This mode of charitv
surpasses other works and testimonies, as the soul is more ex
cellent than the body, heaven than earth, and eternity than time.
Whoever employs himself in this charitable work as far as he is
able shows that he esteems the gift of faith at its true value;
to hand on this gift, the most precious of all, together with all
the benefits which accompany it, to unfortunate pagans, is to
show one's gratitude to the divine goodness (b).
841b Cf. Matt. 28:19. 842a John 1:24
842b Psalm 19.10
842c I Tim. 11:4.
843a John 13 35; 15:12.
843b Hoc immo ceteris caritatis operibus testimoniisqtie sic pnvstat.
quemadmodum animus corpori, culum terris, .éternités tempori
antecellit, quod quidem caritatis opus quicumque, quantum in se
est, exercet, donum fidei tanti se facere ostendit, quanti .equum
est, et gratum pnrterea erga numinis benignitatem animum suum
patefacit, id ipsum donum, omnium pretiosissimum, et alia quibusemn conjungitur, cum miserrimis ethnicis communicando.

444

MISSIONARY EXPANSION

The duty of pastors
844
And if from this duty no one of the community of the faithful
(194- can excuse himself, how can one of the clergy, who participates
195, by a wonderful choice and a special gift in the priesthood
MI· and
199, mission of Christ our Lord? How can you, Venerable Brothers,
205- who, each in your own diocese, are divinely appointed to rule
206) clergy and people and distinguished with the fullness of the
priesthood? For we read that it was not to Peter alone but to all
the Apostles, to whose place you have succeeded, that Jesus
Christ commanded, “Go ye into the whole world, and preach
the gospel to even' creature” (a). It follows then, that the charge
of propagating the faith is incumbent upon Us, but that you must
beyond a doubt, come to Our assistance in this labor and help
Us in it, as far as the accomplishment of your own duties will
permit. Therefore, Venerable Brothers, do not be slow in obeying
Our paternal exhortation, for in this important matter God will
one day require an account.
(Duties of bishops: have prayers offered for the Missions,
favor vocations and missionary enterprises.—St. Theresa of llii
Child Jesus, Patron of the Missions.—Missionary bishops.)
The aim of the Missions: to establish the Church

845
What is the end of the missions, we ask you, if it is not to
(135) found and establish Christ’s Church in these immense
regions? (a) And how shall she be established among the pagans
today unless from all those elements with which she nourished
herself in our regions in former times: that is, from the people
and clergy, from religious men and women of every region? Why
should the native priest not be permitted to till the field which
belongs to him and is his by right, and even to govern his own
people?
You must be ready daily to march to the conquest for Christ
of one pagan people after another; would it not, therefore, be
extremely advantageous to leave in the charge of native priests
the care and prosperity of older mission stations?
844a Mark 16:15.
845a Quorsurn, quæsumtu, sacrae Missiones pertinent, nisi ut in
tanta immensitate locorum Ecclesia Christi instituatur ac sta­
biliatur?

ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
Apost. Let. Singulare illud, June 13, 1926, to the General of
the Jesuits.
(Affection of Jesus for youth.—The Church as educator.)
Never has the Church failed to defend her right to educate 846
as inviolable and proper to her nature; it would be impossible for (103,
her not to affirm before the whole human race, which is com- 105)
mitted to her care, that she is the unique guardian of the true
science of moral, the one and infallible mistress of that most dif­
ficult art, which consists in the Christian formation of souls.
(St. Aloysius Gonzaga the model of youth—His virtues.—Cult
of the Blessed Sacrament and of the Blessed Virgin.—Spiritual exercises.-Prayer and mortification.—New methods of educa­
tion.) (a)
Docility required
Whoever desires to fight under Christ’s standard must hold 847
this principle as certain, that in rejecting the yoke of discipline (125,
they will reap not the palm of victor)', but ignoble defeat. For it 218)
has been divinely ordained that youth cannot progress either in
intellectual or moral culture, or in the general formation of life
according to Christian principles unless it submits to the direction
of another. Now if the other disciplines require a great docility,
still more is this the case when the soul is being formed to the
work and duty of the apostolate: this duty, since it is attached to
the function of the Church received from Christ, cannot be
carried out in a holy or useful fashion except in subordination
to those whom the I loly Spirit "hath placed bishops, to rule the
Church of God" ( a ).
(The qualities of the apostle.—Centenary of St. Aloysius
Gonzaga. )
WITHOUT DISTINCTION OF RACE
Letter Ah ipsis pontificatus, June 15. 1926, to the Vicars
and Prefects Apostolic of China.
(Solicitude of the Holy Sec for the Missions.—Hopes for their
development in the near future.—Calumnies pretending that the
missionaries' aim is not religious, hut political.)
846a Cf. EDUCATION.
847a Acts 20:28.

446

WITHOUT DISTINCTION OF RACE

848
As a result oi this pernicious error, peoples and rulers come
(93, to suspect the Church, as if she were plotting against their rights,
131) and unfortunately souls are alienated from the Catholic faith
And yet even the very name of the Church, "Catholic”, that is
"universal”, shows that she belongs to every nation and embraces
all peoples, that there can be in her—and this is her Divine Found­
er's will—no distinction of race or people. “Where there is neither
Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian nor
Scythian, bond nor free. But Christ is all, and in all” (a). In fact,
all men are brothers: "All you are brethren,” since they are all
born of one Father: “For one is your father, who is in heav­
en” (b); and the fruit of the saving Redemption, which has won
the right to eternal beatitude, is offered to all without exception:
"heirs indeed of God, and joint-heirs with Christ" (c). This is
why the gospel must be preached to all nations according to
Christ’s precept: “Preach the gospel to every creature" (d).
The missionary mandate
849
But missionaries are not summoned to this holy labor by the
(134, heads of civil society; it is God Himself who calls them: “You have
228) not chosen me, but I have chosen you” (a); and it is from the
Church that they receive the office and duty of preaching. There­
fore. they are not human messengers but divine, those who continue in a religious manner the work confided to the Apostles by
Christ. The Church has never neglected the divine precepts and
commands; she has ever cherished with all possible zeal and care
the peoples to whom she has brought the benefit of Christian
truth; more, history' gives abundant proof of the fact that she has
often defended their rights against the whims and tyranny of
princes and governors. Therefore, she has always been opposed
to her ministers (especially those whom she sends on the holy
crusades of the missions) favoring in any way the interest of their
own nation. She wishes them not “to seek the things that are their
own, but the things that are Jesus Christ’s” (b), and to cany' “the
name of Jesus before the gentiles and kings” (c), and to have no
other end but the glory of God and the salvation of souls. But if
in certain cases—and these are very rare—one or another of the
848a
848c
849a
849c

Col.
Rom
John
Acts

3:11.
8:17.
15:10
9:15.

848b Matt. 23:8-9.
848d Mark 16:15.
849b Philipp. 2:21.

W1TH0U I DISTINCTION OF RACE

447

Gospel workers turns aside from this route which the Church
holds to inflexibly, she herself reproves such conduct and hastens
to apply proper remedies.

Native clergy
The Church, moreover, has always shown a concern for the 850
institutions of the native clergy, who will not only assist the work(134of the foreign missionaries, but will even, when their numbers 135)
warrant it. step into their places. Does not this show clearly that
the Church, by word and deed, wishes to remove even' vestige of
that inordinate patriotism of which we have spoken from her
ministers?
(Missionaries in the past were foreigners.—Recall the teach­
ing of the Popes on these matters.) (a)
It has pleased Us to recall these things to you, Venerable 851
Brothers and Beloved Sons; certainly they are grave; We have (76done so that you may bring them to the attention of the priests
and faithful under your care. Today it is most important to fore­
warn the faithful so that they will not be led astray into error by
men who, under pretext of patriotism, have only one end in view:
to make of their fellow citizens enemies of the Church of God.
By your preaching and writing strive to give those who unhappi­
ly are outside the Church at least a true idea of her nature;
let them know and acknowledge in her a society which has as its
object the worship of God and the eternal salvation of souls by
the exercise of perfect charity.

The Church is very careful not to interfere or become in­ 852
volved in civil and political matters; she has never permitted her (94)
missionaries either to favor the designs or promote the interests
of foreign powers. Moreover, everyone knows—the history of all
ages bears witness to the fact—that the Church adapts herself to
the laws and customs which are proper to every nation and to
every' state; she has respect for, and inculcates respect for,
legitimately constituted government; she asks nothing but the
common good, security, and liberty for her workers and for her
faithful If, in certain countries, state officials have undertaken to
protect the Church, she herself has never used this protection to
850a See Analytical Index: (134)

448

IN THE MIDST OF TEMPESTS

the detriment of the natives, but solely that she may keep herself
and her children in safety’ from the vexations of wicked men. It is
incontrovertible that every state, by reason of a proper and
natural right, has the obligation to protect the lives, the rights
and the possessions of its nationals wherever they live; the mis­
sionaries also have experienced this protection, especially in times
of persecution. For this reason, the Holy See has not refused a
protection of this sort, but in doing so it has had no other motive
than to preserve the missions from the arbitrary and violent deal­
ings of wicked men; still less has it wished to favor the designs
which foreign governments may wish to promote, when the
opportunity presents itself, by protecting their nationals.
(Wishes and blessings.)

IN THE MIDST OF TEMPESTS
Encycl. Iniquis afflictisque, November 18, 1926.
(Persecution in Mexico.)

853
Bom as she was to immortality, the Church, from the ven
(21, day of Pentecost when she came forth from the seclusion of the
88, Cenacle and showed herself openly before the eyes of men en·
228) riched by the lights and gifts of the Paraclete, what has she done
in the space of these twenty centuries passed among the nations.·'
Has she not, after the example of her Founder, “gone about doing
good"J (a) Her benefits should have won for the Church the
love of every nation; but the contrary' is the case, as her Divine
Master Himself clearly predicted (b). And so, Peter’s barque
has sometimes sailed glorious and magnificent with favorable
winds; at other times she seems tossed about and almost sub­
merged by the waves; but is she not always guided by that
Divine Sailor, who, in good time, will calm the fury of wind
and wave? Even persecutions, in which the Catholic name is
sorely tried, Christ who alone is omnipotent, has ordained shall
work to the good of the Church: "It is a property of the Church."
Hilary testifies, “to conquer when she is persecuted, to be under­
stood when she is attacked, to prevail when she is deserted” (c).
(Benefits to the Mexican Church.-Prayer to Our Lady of
Guadalupe. )
853a Acts 10:38.
853b Matt 10:17-25.
853c St. Hilary, De Trinitate, bk. VII, 4.

TRUE UNITY
Encycl. Mortalium animos, January 6, 1928.
(Desire of peace and fraternity among nations.)

False notions of unity
It is something of the same nature that some men today are
striving to introduce into the order of the New Law established
by Christ our Lord. Since it is recognized that it is extremely
rare to find men entirely deprived of the religious sense, they
entertain the hope, however difficult it may be to realize, that
nations, in spite of their differing religious viewpoints, may be
brought to unite as brothers in the profession of certain doctrines
as a common foundation of the spiritual life. Consequently, they
hold congresses, assemblies, conferences attended by considerable
numbers of people; they invite to these meetings all men without
distinction to take part in the discussion: unbelievers of every
kind, the faithful, even those who have been so unhappy as to cut
themselves off from Christ, or those who bitterly and obstinately
deny the divinity of his nature and his mission.
Certainly, efforts like these cannot receive the approbation of
Catholics, for they rest on that false opinion that holds any
religion whatever to be more or less good and praiseworthy, al­
though not all in the same way, because they all reveal and ex­
plain the significance of the native, inborn instinct which turns us
towards God and makes us acknowledge his sovereignty. Those
who hold this opinion are not only in gross error, they even debase
the concept of true religion and little by little lapse into natural­
ism and atheism. It is obvious that to join the adherents and
propagators of such opinions is to withdraw entirely from a
divinely revealed religion (a).
855a Ejusmodi sane molimenta probari nullo pacto catholicis pos­
sunt, quandoquidem falsa eorum opinione nituntur, qui censent,
religiones quaslibet plus minus bonas ac laudabiles esse, utpotc
qux etsi non uno modo, æque tamen aperiant ac significent na­
tivum illum ingenitumaue nobis sensum, quo erga Deum ferimur
ejusque imperium obsequenter agnoscimus. Quam quidem opi­
nionem qui habent, non modo ii errant ac falluntur, sed etiam,
cum veram religionem, ejus notionem depravando, repudient,
tum ad naturalismum et atheismum, ut aiunt, gradatim deflectunt;
unde manifesto consequitur, ut ab revelata divinitus religione
omnino recedat quisquis talia sentientibus molientibusque adstipulatur.

854
(61)

855
(61)

450

TRUE UNITY

Pan-Christians

856
Some will easily be deceived since it is a question of pro·
(37) moling union among Christians. Is it not just—so the argument
runs—is it not even a duty for all those who invoke the name oi
Christ to abstain from mutual recriminations and to unite at last,
at least from time to time, in mutual charity? Would anyone dare
to say that he loves Christ, unless he strives with all his powers
to realize Christ’s desire when He prayed to his Father that his
disciples be "one"? (a) And did not Christ likewise wish his dis­
ciples to be known by this mark and distinguished from others bv
the fact that they loved one another: “In this shall all men know
that you are my disciples, that you have love one for another”? (b)
Would to God—they go on to say—that all Christians were “one":
for then they would be able to do much more to counteract
the poison of impiety which, penetrating and spreading more
each day, threatens to annul the Gospel.
857
Such, and others like them, are the arguments put forward by
(60) those who are called pan-Christians. Nor are they few and far
between: on the contrary, they are completely organized and they
have founded wide-spread associations which are for the most
part directed by non-Catholics however widely they may be
separated from one another in matters of religious truth. This
enterprise is actively promoted, moveover, and it has won wide
acceptance, raising even in the minds of many Catholics the hope
that this may be a means of effecting a union with Holy Mother
Church, who certainly has no dearer wish than to call to her and
bring back to her fold her wandering children. But under these
seductive thoughts and flattering words one of the gravest errors
lies hid. one capable of undermining the foundations of the Cath­
olic faith.
858
Therefore, the consciousness of Our Apostolic duty forbids Us
'/73)to allow the Lord’s flock to be led astray bv these pernicious
errors. We call upon your zeal. Venerable Brothers, to prevent
such an evil. We are confident that by your writings and by your
words each one of you can reach the faithful and make them
understand the principles and the reasons which We will soon lay
down. Catholics will find in them a rule oi thought and action
856a Jehu 17:21.
856b John 13:35.

TRUE UNITY

451

for those movements which aim to unite in one body, by what­
ever means, all those who bear the name of Christian.

Rule Io be followed by Catholics
By God, the Author of all things, we were created that we 859
might know Him and serve Him; therefore, as our Creator, He has (40)
an absolute right to our service. God could have imposed upon
man, as a rule of conduct, only the natural law, which He im­
planted, as it were, in his soul in creating him, and subsequently
regulated the developments of this law by his ordinary provi­
dence. But in fact he preferred to impose precepts which we
should obey, and, in the course of time, that is to say, from the
dawn of the human race to the coming of Christ Jesus and his
teaching, God Himself taught man the duties which devolve on
every rational creature towards his Creator: “God, who, at sun­
dry times and in diverse manners, spoke in times past to the
fathers by the prophets, last of all, in these days hath spoken to
us by his Son" (a).
It follows, therefore, that there can be no true religion other
than that revealed by the word of God: this revelation, begun at
ûte creation and continued under the Old Law, Christ Himself
completed under the New. But, if God has spoken—and that He
did speak, history attests—no one can deny that man must believe absolutely what God reveals and obey Him in all things
when He commands. And so that we might act correctly for the
glory of God and our own salvation, the only-begotten Son of God
founded his Church upon earth. Now, those who profess to be
Christians cannot not believe, it seems to Us, that there is one
Church, and only one Church, founded by Christ; but if they
are asked further what, according to the will of the Founder, this
Church must be, they no longer agree. Many among them, for ex­
ample, deny that the Church of Christ must be an external and
visible society, and that it must present the appearance of one
body of faithful, all united in one faith under a single teaching
authority and government. On the contrary*, they understand the
external and visible Church as nothing more than a Federation
made up of the various Christian communities, which adhere to
different—and sometimes contradictory'—doctrines.
859a Heb. 1:1-2.

860
fl­
2,
40,

re­
77)

TRUE UNITY

452

True nature of the Church
861
But Christ the Lord founded his Church a perfect society,
(4, by its very nature external and perceptible to the senses, with the
13, mission to save the human race in the future, under the guidance
70- of one head (a), by teaching and preaching (b), by the admin73, istration of the sacraments, sources of heavenly grace (c). This
77, is why He compared it to a kingdom (d), a household (e), a
86, sheepfold (f), a flock (g). And this Church, so marvelously con100, slituted, after the death of its Founder and the first Apostles
115, charged with extending it, certainly could not perish or disappear.
137, for she had been given the command to lead all men, without dis229) tinction of time or place, to eternal salvation: “Going, therefore.
teach all nations” (h). In the perpetual accomplishment of this
mission could the Church ever fail in virtue or efficacy, when
Christ Himself is always present with her, as He solemnly prom­
ised: "Behold 1 am with you all days even to the consummation
of the world”? ( i )
862
It is therefore necessary not only that Christ’s Church exist
(224, today and always, but also that she remain identical with what
229) she was in the Apostolic age, unless we wish to say—which God
forbid!—either that Christ our Lord could not accomplish his
design, or that He erred when He affirmed that the gates of hell
should never prevail against her (a).

863
(37,
44,
46)

Errors on the true nature of the Church
This is the moment to expose and refute a certain false
opinion, on which this whole matter seems to depend, and from
which the multiform activity and scheming of the non-Catholics
proceeds toward the federation of the Christian churches, as We
have said. The instigators of this project are accustomed to re­
peat almost endlessly the words of Christ: "That they all maybe
one ... That there may be one flock and one shepherd" (a), as if
they wished to signify that the wish and prayer of Christ Jesus
had, until now, failed of their effect. They hold, in fact, that unity
861a
861b
861c
861d
861 f
861h
862a

Matt. 16:18ff.; Luke 22:32; John 21:15-17.
Mark 16:15.
John 3:5; 6:48-59; 2O:22ff; cf. Matt. 18:18; etc.
Matt. 13.
861e Cf. Matt 16:18.
John 10:16.
861g John 21:15-17.
Matt. 28:19.
861i Malt. 28:20.
Matt. 16:18.
863a John 17:21; 10:16.

TRUE UNITY

453

of faith and government—which is a sign of the one true Church
of Christ—has never until now existed and that it does not exist
today; that it is possible, so to say, to will it and to effect it some­
times by a common effort of will, but that it must, nevertheless,
be considered a kihd of Utopia. They add that the Church, in
herself, and by her nature, is divided into parts, that is to say,
made up of many churches or individual communities, which, al­
though separate, hold some points of doctrine in common though
they differ on the rest; each Church, according to them, has the
same rights. The Church, in sum, was one and unique from the
Apostolic Age to the period of the first Ecumenical Councils.
Therefore, they say, we should forget or suppress those contro­
versies and even those very ancient doctrinal differences, which
continue to this day to disfigure the name of Christian, and from
the other truths we should establish and propose a common norm
of belief, a profession of belief which will do more than we can
imagine to make men feel like brothers. And then the various
Churches and communities, if united in some kind of a federation,
will be in a position to oppose vigorously and successfully the
progress of impiety.

Errors concerning the Roman Primacy

These are the statements. Venerable Brothers, which they
commonly make. However, there are some who declare and
freely admit that Protestantism, as they call it, has rejected inadvisedly certain dogmas and certain practices of external worship
which are certainly consoling and useful, which, on the contrary
the Roman Church has retained. And they soon add, to be sure,
that she has corrupted primitive religious practice by adding to
it certain teaching which is at variance with the Gospel and
which has been proposed to the faithful as of faith. They cite
among these, and in first place, the primacy of jurisdiction which
has been attributed to Peter and to his successors in the See of
Rome. Among these men there are some, although they are not
numerous, who would grant either a certain primacy of honor,
or of jurisdiction or power; but they hold, all the same, that it
does not proceed from divine right but rather from a certain
consent on the part of the faithful. Others go so far as to desire
that their assemblies—which could be called motley—be presided
over by the Pontiff himself. But if it is possible to find many of
these non-Catholies loudly preaching fraternal union in Christ

864
(37,
40,
56,
148)

454

TRUE UNITY

Jesus, you will certainly find none to whom it occurs to submit
himself to and obey the teaching and governing authority of the
Vicar of Jesus Christ. Nevertheless they claim that they are will­
ing to treat with the Roman Church, but on an equal footing,
as equals to an equal. But if they could do so, there does not
seem to be any doubt that they would have the intention that
the pact, when concluded, would not oblige them to renounce
their opinions, which are the real cause why they still wander at
a loss outside Christ’s fold.

The Church is the guardian of Revelation

Since this is the case, it is clear that the Holy See cannot
(32, participate, under any conditions, in these gatherings, nor is it
■10, lawful for Catholics, under any conditions, to participate in or to
57, assist these enterprises. If they were to go, they would be attribut­
ed, ing authority to an erroneous form of the Christian religion, on88- tirely alien to the one Church of Christ. Can We tolerate—what
89, would be the height of iniquity—the truth, especially divinely re111, vealed truth, to be the subject of debate? For in fact, it is here a
224)question of defending revealed truth (a). Since Christ Jesus sent
his Apostles into the whole world to teach the faith of the Gos­
pels to all nations, and since, to preserve them from error, He
willed them to be taught all truth by the Holy Spirit: could
that teaching of the Apostles ever completely disappear or suf­
fer change in the Church whose ruler and guardian is God?
But if our Redeemer says so explicitly that his gospel is to
reach not only the Apostolic age but all future ages as well,
could it be that the object of faith might become dim or uncertain
with the passage of time, so that opinions which are even self­
contradictory should be tolerated today? If this could be true,
we should also have to say that the descent of the Spirit Paraclete
upon the Apostles, and the abiding presence of that same Spirit
in the Church, and the very’ teaching of Jesus Christ lost all
their efficacy centuries ago: and to say this is certainly
blasphemous.

865

Further, the only-begotten Son of God, by the very' fact
(f)6, that He commanded his envoys to teach all nations also imposed
866

865a Num Nos patiemur-quod prorsus iniquum foret-veritatem,
eamque divinitus revelatam, in pactiones deduci? Etenim de veri­
tate revelata tuenda in priesenti agitur.

.

I Bill

UNITY

455

upon men the duty to believe the things declared to them by 100)
the witnesses pre-ordained by God (a), and He sanctioned his
command thus: He that believeth and is baptized, shall be
saved: but he that believeth not shall be condemned” (b). Now
this double precept of Christ—to teach and to believe in order to
possess eternal salvation—cannot be accomplished or even under­
stood unless the Church propounds the Gospel teaching fully and
publicly, and unless she be in that very teaching immune from
the danger of any error at all (c). They also are in error who hold
that there is indeed a deposit of truth in this world, but that it
would require such arduous labor and such protracted study
and discussion to seek it out, that a man's life would scarcely be
long enough to discover and assimilate it. As if the most merciful
God spoke by the mouth of his prophets and by his only-begotten
Son so that a few men of advanced age could learn what He
revealed by them, and not rather to communicate a doctrine of
faith and morals which should govern man in the whole course
of his mortal life.

Charity impossible without faith
These pan-Christians, moreover, who seek to federate the 867
Churches, seem to pursue the very noble design of promoting (46)
charity among all Christians; and yet what can be done, when
charity grows’ at the expense of faith? Certainly no one is ignorant
of the fact that John himself, the Apostle of charity, who in his
Gospel seems to reveal the secrets of the most Sacred Heart of
Jesus, and who never ceased to remind his disciples of that new
commandment “Love one another” (a), absolutely forbade any
intercourse with those who did not profess the doctrine of Christ
whole and entire: "If any man come to you, and bring not this
doctrine, receive him not into the house, nor say to him, God
speed you'’ (b). Therefore, since charity requires as a foundation
pure and unfeigned faith, unity in faith is the principal bond
to unite Christ’s disciples.
866a Acts 10:41.
866b Mark 16:16.
866c Sed utrumque Christi prteceptum, quod non impleri non po­
test, alterum scilicet docendi, alterum credendi ad æternæ adep­
tionem salutis, ne intclligi quidem potest, nisi Ecclesia euangeli­
cam doctrinam proponat integram ac perspicuam sitque in ea
proponenda a quovis errandi periculo immunis.
867a Cf. 1 John 4:7, 11.
867b 2 John 10.

456

TRUE UNITY

868
How is it possible then, to imagine any kind of a Christian
(60) union whose signatories, even in matters of faith, would keep
their own manner of viewing and thinking, even when this was
repugnant to the opinions of others? And by what formula, we
ask, could men who hold contrary opinions participate in a union
of the faithful? When, for example, some would affirm and some
would deny that sacred tradition is a source of divine revelation? |
When some would hold that the ecclesiastical hierarchy of
bishops, priests, and ministers is of divine constitution, and some
declare that it was little by little introduced according to time
and circumstance? When some adore Christ Himself really present
in the Most Holy Eucharist by that wonderful conversion of
bread and wine which is called transubstantiation, and some say
that the body of Christ is only there by faith or by a sign and
virtue of the sacrament? When some acknowledge in the Eucha­
rist the nature of the sacrifice as well as of sacrament, and some
hold that there is nothing there but the memorial or commemora­
tion of the Lord’s Supper? When some will hold that it is a good
and useful thing humbly to invoke the Saints reigning with
Christ—especially the Holy Virgin Mother of Cod—and to pay
reverence to their images, and others will contend that this type
of worship cannot be admitted because it is contrary to the honor
due to “the one mediator of God and men” Jesus Christ? (a)
Absolute character of the rule of faith

Given such a discrepancy of opinions, We do not see how a
(44, way can be cleared for the unity of the Church, unless it springs
46, from one teaching authority, one rule of belief, and one faith
101) shared by Christians. But We know well that it is easy to pave
a way from here to neglect of religion or indifferent ism and to
modernism, as they call it, and those unfortunates tainted with
this error hold that dogmatic truth is not absolute but relative,
that is, that it must adapt itself to the varying necessities of the
times and the varying dispositions of souls, since it is not con­
tained in an immutable revelation, but is, by its nature, meant
to accommodate itself to the life of man (a).
869

868a 1 Tim. 2:5.
869a Qua quidem tanta opinionum discrepantia nescimus quomodo
ad unitatem Ecclesia: efficiendam muniatur via, quando ea nisi
ex uno magisterio, ex una credendi lege unaque Christianorum
fide oriri non potest; at scimus profecto, facile inde gradum fieri

TRUE UNITY

457

Furthermore, for what regards articles of faith, it is never 870
licit to make use of that distinction between what they call funda- (109)
mental articles of faith and non-fundamental, as if the former must
be received by all men, and, on the contrary, the latter could be
left to the free assent of the faithful. For the supernatural virtue
of faith has as a formal cause the authority of God revealing, and
this authority admits of no distinction of this kind. Wherefore,
as many as are truly Christ’s disciples believe, for example, the
mystery of the August Trinity; they have the same faith in the
dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mother; in
the same way they believe in the Incarnation of Our Lord, and
with the same faith embrace the infallibility of the teaching
authority of the Roman Pontiff, in the sense, of course, in which
this was defined by the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican. And
for all that the Church by solemn decree has proclaimed and
defined some of these truths in other ages and some quite recently,
these truths are nonetheless equally certain, and equally binding
in faith; for has not God revealed them all?
For the magisterium of the Church—which by divine decree 871
was established here below to guard revealed truth intact in (99perpetuity’ so that men could easily and safely corne to know it— 100,
although it is exercised daily by the Roman Pontiff and the 107Bishops in communion with him, has also the duty—whenever it is 108,
necessary to oppose an efficacious resistance to the errors and 168)
attacks of the heretics, or to explain more clearly or in greater
detail some points of sacred doctrine so that they may be imprinted in the minds of the faithful—to proceed by solemn ceremonies and decrees to timely definitions ( a ). By this extraordinary
use of the magisterium nothing, of course, is introduced nor is anything added to the sum of those truths which are contained, at
ad religionis neglegentiam seu indifferentismum et ad modernismum, ut ajunt, quo qui misere infecti sunt, tenent iidem, veritatern dogmaticam non esse absolutam sed relativam, idest variis
temporum locorumque necessitatibus variisque animorum inclina­
tionibus congruentem, cum ea ipsa non immutabili revelatione
contineatur, sed talis sit, qure hominum vitre accommodetur.
871a Quo quidem extraordinario magisterii usu nullum sane in­
cenium inducitur nec quidquam adaitur novi ad carum summam
veritatum, qure in deposito Revelationis, Ecclesiae divinitus tra­
dito, saltem implicite continentur, verum aut ea declarantur qure
forte adhuc obscura compluribus videri possint aut ea tenenda de
fide statuuntur qure a nonnullis ante in controversiam vocabantur.

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458

THUE UNITY

least implicitly, in the deposit of Revelation divinely committed
to the Church. But those truths are proclaimed which up to this
time could have seemed obscure to certain minds, or the status
de fide is proclaimed for a point which may have been controver­
sial lor other minds.
Congresses for unity
872
It is clear, therefore. Venerable Brothers, why this rXpostolic
(6, See has never permitted its subjects to take part in the congresses
8- of non-Catholics. The union of Christians cannot be fostered oth9, erwise than by promoting the return of the dissident to the one
39- true Church of Christ, which in the past they so unfortunately
/0, abandoned. To the one true Church of Christ, We say, plainly
54, visible to all and by the will of her Founder forever remaining
57, what He Himself destined her to be for the common salvation
77, of men. For the Mystical Spouse of Christ has never been con228- laminated in the course of centuries, nor will she ever be con229) laminated, as St. Cyprian says, “The Spouse of Christ cannot be
defiled: she is incorruptible and pure. She knows only one home,
she keeps her sanctity by the chaste modesty of a single bridal
chamber" (a). And the holy martyr marvels very much, and
rightly, that anyone can believe that “this unity in the Church
which comes from divine stability, made firm by heavenly sacra­
ments, could be sundered and rent apart by the shock of opposing
wills” (b). The Mystical Body of Christ, that is to say, the Church,
is one (c), unified and articulated (d), after the manner of a
physical body. It is therefore inconsistent and foolish to say that
the Mystical Body could be formed of disjointed and separated
parts; therefore, whoever is not joined to it is not a member of
it and is not in union with Christ the Head (e).

873
No one is in the Church of Christ, and no one remains in it.
(56, unless he acknowledges and accepts with obedience the authority
88. and power of Peter and his legitimate successors. Did they not
872a De cath. Ecclesias unitate, 6.
872b Ibid.
872c 1 Cor. 12:12.
872<1 Cf. Eph. 4:15.
872e Cf. Eph. 5:30, 1.22. Cum enim corpus Christi mysticum, sci­
licet Ecclesia, unum sit. compactum et connexum, corporis ejus
physici instar, inepte stulteque dixeris mysticum corpus ex mem­
bris disjunctis dissipatisque constare posse: quisquis igitur cum
eo non copulatur, nec e/us est membrum nec cum capite Christo
cohxrct

TRUE UNITY

459

obey the Bishop of Home, the ancestors of the men who are im-18O
plicated in the errors of Photius and the innovators? Alas! sons
have left their father’s house, but not for that did it collapse and
perish, for it was furnished with the constant help of God. Let
them return, therefore, to their common Father, and He will for­
get the injuries unjustly heaped on the Apostolic See, and will
receive them most lovingly. If, as they often repeat, they wish to
join Us and Our children, why do they not hasten to the Church,
"the Mother and Mistress of all the faithful of Christ”? (a) Let
them hear the voice of Lactantius crying out, “She alone... the
Catholic Church, retains the true worship. Here is the source of
tnith, this is the house of Faith, this, the Temple of God: if any
man enters not, or if any man departs from it, he is far from the
hope of life and of salvation. Let no one be led astray by stubborn
disputes. This is a question of life and salvation: unless a man
act with caution and diligence, the one is lost and the other
forfeited”(b).
Limits of tolerance

Therefore, to this Apostolic See, founded in the City which 874
Peter and Paul, the Princes of the Apostles, consecrated with their (60.
blood, to this See, We say, “root and matrix of the 139)
Catholic Church” (a), may' our dissident sons return, but
not with the thought and hope that “the Church of the living
God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (b), will sacrifice the
integrity' of faith or tolerate their errors, but, on the contrary', with
the intention of submitting to her authority and government.
Would to God that there might come to pass in Our times what
so many of Our predecessors did not see: that We might em­
brace with paternal affection the sons whose separation from Us
by unfortunate schism We deplore. May the Lord our God “who
Mils all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the
truth” (c), hear Us as We pray with all Our heart that He may
deign to call all these souls from errors to the unity of the Church,
hi this very grave matter We implore, anil We wish all to implore
the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary', Mother of Divine
grace, conqueror of all heresies and Help of Christians, that she

873a
873b
874a
874b

Cone. Lateran. 4, c. 5.
Divin. Instit., IV, .30, 11-12.
St. Cyprian, Ep. 48 ad Cornelium, 3.
1 Tim. 3:15.
874c 1 Tim. 2:4.

460

CHRIST AND THE CHURCH

may obtain as soon as possible the coming of that day so ardently
desired by Us, on which all men will hear the voice of her Divine
Son, “keeping the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace” (d).

CHRIST AND THE CHURCH

Encycl. Miserentissimus Redemptor, May 8, 1928.
(The Saviors promise of assistance to the Church.)

375
This divine promise, just as in the beginning it infused cour(88) age into the hearts of the weak Apostles and fired them with zeal
to sow the seeds of the gospel teaching through the whole world,
has since then sustained the Church in her victorious struggle
against the forces of evil. In fact, the Lord Jesus Christ has never
failed his Church, but his help and protection have been all the
more manifest as she has been beset by more serious dangers and
difficulties, for she has then been given remedies suitable to the
conditions of the age and the circumstances, in accord with that
Divine Wisdom which “reacheth from end to end, and ordereth
all things sweetly” (a).
(Devotion to the Sacred Heart.)
Priesthood of the faithful
876
They are not the only ones to enjoy participation in Christs
(212)mysterious priesthood and the office of sacrifice and satisfaction,
those whom our High Priest Christ Jesus has chosen as ministers
for the clean oblation offered to his Divine Name in every' place
from the rising to the setting of the sun (a). The entire Christian
people also, whom the prince of the Apostles rightly calls “a
chosen people, a kingly priesthood” (b), must, whether for them­
selves, or for the whole human race, make an offering for sins (c),
in somewhat the same way that the high-priest “taken from
among men is ordained for men in the tilings that appertain to
God” (d).
Union of the faithful with Christ

fili
The more perfectly our oblation and our sacrifice resemble
(45) the Lord's sacrifice, that is, if we have immolated our self-love
and our cupidity and crucified the flesh by that mystical cruci­
fixion of which the Apostle speaks, the richer will be the fruits
874d Eph. 4:3.
876b 1 Pet. 2:9.

875a Wisdom 8:1.
876c Heb. 5:3.

876a Malach. 1:11.
876d Heb. 5:1.

Cl IBIS I AND THE CHURCH

461

of propitiation and expiation we receive for ourselves and for
others. For there exists a wonderful relation between Christ and
each of the faithful, similar to that which is to be found between
the head and the other members of the body. More, by that
mysterious communion of Saints which we profess in the Catholic­
faith, each man and every race arc not only united among them­
selves, they are also united with Him “who is the head, even
Christ, from whom the whole body, being compacted and fitly
joined together, by what every joint supplieth, according to the
operation in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the
body, unto the edifying itself in charity” (a). This is the prayer
which the Mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus Himself,
addressed to the Father before his death: “I in them and thou
in me, that they may be made perfect in one” (b).
(Consecration to the Sacred Heart; holy hour; Conununion
of reparation.)
So it is that the expiatory passion of Christ is renewed and 878
in a certain manner continued and filled up in his Mystical Body (29)
which is the Church. For, to quote St. Augustine again: “Christ
suffered all that He had to suffer; now nothing is lacking to
the measure of his sufferings. But the sufferings have been com­
pleted only for the Head; there still remain the sufferings of
Christ’s body" (a). This truth Christ Himself deigned to express,
when He said to Saul “as yet breathing out threatenings and
slaughter against the disciples” (b), “I am Jesus, whom thou
persecutest” (c), signifying clearly that when persecution is
unleashed against the Church, the Divine Head of the Church
is opposed and harassed. It is therefore only right that Christ,
who suffers still in his Mystical Body, should wish to have us
associates of his expiation. Our very relationship with Him even
requires it; for since we are “the body of Christ and members of
member" (d), whatever the head suffers, all the members should
suffer with Him (e).
(Opportuneness and fruits of devotion to the Sacred Heart.)
877a
877b
878a
878b
878c
878d
878e

Eph. 4:15-16.
John 17:21.
In psalm. LXXXVI
Acts 9:1.
Acts 1:5.
1 Cor. 12:27.
Cf. 1 Cor. 12:26

NATURE OF TUE LITURGY
Apost. Const. Divini cultus, December 20, 1928.
879
The Church has received from Christ her Founder the charge
(121) of safeguarding divine worship. It is therefore her duty, while
protecting the essence of the Holy Sacrifice and of the sacraments,
to prescribe whatever will best control that august and public
ministry—ceremonies, rites, texts, prayers, chant—which is properly
called liturgy, or sacred action par excellence.
(Dogma and liturgy.—Action of the Popes on the liturgy.)

VATICAN CITY
All. to the Pastors of Rome and the Lenten preachers,
February 11, 1929.
(The close of the Jubilee.—The signing of the Lateran
Treaty.)
880
A treaty with the intention of recognizing, and, as far as
(179)it is permitted to men, of securing to the Holy See. a true, proper,
and real sovereignty—given that people do not recognize, at
least up to this time, any other true sovereignty-which is
evidently necessary and due to him who, by the divine mandate
and the divine representation he is invested with, cannot be
subject to any earthly power (a).
(The Concordat.—Response to criticism of the Lateran
Treaty.—The Holy Father wished to go to the limits of possible
concessions. )
880a Ci. Treaty between the Holy See and Italy. 2 11 29: "In
the Name of the Most Holy Trinity. Whereas:
“The Holy Sec and Italy have recognized the need to eliminate
any cause of dissension existing between them and to arrive at a
definitive ordering of their mutual relationship, which shall be
m conformity with the dignity of the two August Parties, and
which, while assuring to the Holy See in a permanent manner a
condition in fact and in law which guarantees its absolute inde­
pendence lor the accomplishment of its exalted mission in the
world, permits that same Holy See to recognize as resolved in
a final and irrevocable manner 'the Roman Question’, which arose
in 1870 out of the annexion of Rome by the Kingdom of Italy
under the dynasty of the House of Savoy;
"It is necessary, to assure to the Holy See an independence which
is absolute and visible, to guarantee its indisputable sovereignty
even in the international domain, and that, as a result, it has

JURIDICAL CONDITION OF THE HOLY SEE

463

We wished to demonstrate in a peremptory fashion that no 881
earthly greed moves the Vicar of Jesus Christ, but simply the (178consciousness of what it is impossible not to require; for some 179)
sort of territorial sovereignty is a condition universally recognized
as indispensable to any true juridical sovereignty: therefore, at
least as much territoryJ as is needed to serve as basis for the
exercise of sovereignty; that much territory without which
sovereignty could not subsist since it would have nothing
to rest on. (77ic example of St. Francis'): the body reduced to
what is strictly necessary to serve the soul and continue human
life, and with life, beneficent action. It will, We hope, be clear
to all that the Sovereign Pontiff has only as much material ter­
ritory as is indispensable for the exercise of a spiritual power
given to men for the benefit of men. We do not hesitate to say
that We are very well satisfied with this state of affairs. We are
pleased to see the material domain reduced to the minimum so
that everyone can and ought to consider it spiritualized by the
immense, the sublime, and truly divine spirituality which it is
destined to support and to serve.
(The artistic riches of Vatican City.—Economic stipulations
of the Treaty.)
JURIDICAL CONDITION OF THE HOLY SEE
All. to the Students of the University of the Sacred Heart
of Milan, February 13, 1929.
(The sacerdotal jubilee of the Holy Father.—The peace of
Christ in the reign of Christ.—Opportunity for clarifications on the
subject of the Lateran Treaty.—The Treaty justifiable in itself;
justifiable by reason of the Concordat. )

The Treaty had no other end in view than to regulate within 882
the limits absolutely indispensable and sufficient the juridical fl78,
condition essential to the Holy Sec and to the Roman Pontiff, 179)
to him who, bv the divine responsibility with which he is invested,
whatever be the name he bears and the epoch in which he lives,
cannot be subject to any domination. This end would have been
seemed necessary to constitute, with a particular modality, the
‘City of the Vatican,’ by recognizing, as belonging to the Hol\
See. full proprietary lights, exclusive power, and absolute and
sovereign jurisdiction over this territory . .. (the names of the
plenipotentiaries and the Articles of the Treaty follow.)

464

HIE MISSION or PETER

attained as soon as the conditions of true sovereignty had been
reached, and sovereignty (at least in the present conditions of
history) is not recognized except under the conditions of a certain
measure of territoriality.
(Impossibility of negotiating such a treaty without the best
conditions granted to the Church by the other contracting parly;
conditions which the Concordat realizes.—The Concordat.) (a)
THE MISSION OF PETER

Autograph letter, Ci si é domandato, May 30, 1929, to
Cardinal Gasparri.
(Discussions following upon the Lateran Treaty.)

883
But it is here that Our hope was most sorely disappointed.
(109. We say disappointed hope, because long and not always easy
131) negotiations had opened Our soul to the most sanguine expecta­
tions, and We could not in any way have anticipated heretical
and worse than heretical expressions on the very nature of
Christianity and of Catholicism. A remedy for the situation was
sought: not, it seemed to Us, with success. To distinguish-as
seems to be the tendency—between historic affirmation and
doctrinal affirmation would be in casu the worst and most exe­
crable modernism. The divine command to teach all nations is
anterior to the vocation of St. Paul, and anterior to this vocation
is the mission of St. Peter to the Gentiles. Universality is already
to be met with in right and in fact in the very beginnings of the
Church and the Apostolic preaching. This preaching, by the work
of the Apostles and of apostolic men, soon went beyond the con­
fines of the Roman Empire, which, as is known, was far from em­
bracing the known world. If We wish simply to recall the providetial help provided for the diffusion and organization of the
Church by reason of the organization of the Roman Empire, it
would be sufficient to recall Dante and Leo the Great, two great
Italians, who in a few magnificent words have said what in­
numerable others since them have repeated with more or less
abundant erudition, often tinged with inexactitude and error, bv
reason especially of Protestant and Modernist influence.
(In the Concordat with Italy two sovereignties were
engaged.)
882a Cf volume on the Church and State.

THE CHURCH AS EDUCATOR

465

Sovereignty of the Holy See

To say that the Holy See is the supreme organ of the uni­ 884
versal Catholic Church, and that it is therefore the legitimate (146,
representative of the organization of the Church in Italy, is a 158)
formula that cannot be admitted except in the sense that the
head is the supreme organ of the human body, and that the
central and sovereign power of a country is the legitimate
representative of each province of that same country. The
Sovereign Pontiff is always the one who intervenes and who
negotiates in the fullness of the sovereignty of the Catholic
Church. To speak exactly: he does not represent that sovereignty;
he is the embodiment of it and he exercises it by direct divine
mandate. Therefore, it is not the Catholic organization in Italy
which submits itself to the power of the State, even if this were
to be under particularly favorable conditions, but it is the
Sovereign Pontiff, the supreme and sovereign authority of the
Church, who disposes what, in his judgment, can and should be
done for the greater glory of Cod and the greater good of souls,
ind at the worst (which is very far from being Our case) for the
east offense to God and the smallest detriment to souls.
(Liberty of conscience and liberty of discussion: errors on
'hese subjects.—The Church and education.—False philosophy.—
State and clergy.—Christian marriage.—Sacred character of Rome.
-Union of the Concordat and the Lateran Treaty.)
THE CHURCH AS EDUCATOR
Encycl. Divine illius Magistri, December 31, 1929.
(Nature, importance, and excellence of Christian education.—
Hie three societies responsible for education: the family, the
date...)

The third society, into which man is born to the life of
pace through baptism, is the Church. This is a supernatural
iociety which embraces all mankind, and a perfect society also,
iince she possesses within herself all the means necessary to her
•nd, which is the eternal salvation of men. She is, therefore,
.upreme in her own domain.
As a consequence, education, which has to do with the whole
)f man, individual and social, living in the natural order as well
is in the order of grace, belongs necessarily to all three societies

885
(3,
13,
50.
77,
134)

466

THE CHURCH AS EDUCATOR

in the measure proportioned to and corresponding with the co­
ordination of their respective ends, according to the plan of
Providence for the present order of things.
The Church’s titles

886
In the first place, education belongs preeminently to the
(.96, Church in virtue of the double title of a supernatural order
100, which God conferred on her alone, and which is absolutely
109) superior, therefore, to any other title of merely natural origin.
The first of these titles is to be found in the explicit mission
and the supreme authority of the teaching office which her Divine
Founder gave to her: “All power is given to me in heaven and in
earth. Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have com­
manded you: and behold 1 am with you all days, even to the
consummation of the world” (a). Upon this teaching authority
Christ conferred infallibility at the same time that He gave the
Church the mission to teach his doctrine. It follows from this that
the Church “was established by her Divine Founder as the pil­
lar and ground of truth to teach divine faith to all men. to keep
whole and inviolate the deposit confided to her, to guide men
and to make them, their mutual relations and their actions con­
formable to the purity of morals and integrity of life required
by revealed truth” (b).
887
The second title is that supernatural motherhood in virtue
(68, of which the Church, immaculate Spouse of Christ, brings forth.
/05) nourishes, and educates souls in the divine life of grace by her
sacraments and her teaching. Therefore, St. Augustine correctly
affirms that "he who refuses to have the Church for mother, will
not have God for his father” (a).

Independence of the Church
888
Hence, in what concerns the proper object of her educational
(13, mission, that is, “faith and the moral law. God Himself has made
91, the Church participate in his divine authority, and. by a divine
886a Matt. 28:18-20.
886b Pius IX, Letter, Quum non sine. Above, No. 251.
887a De Symbolo ad catech. XIII: "Non habebit Deum patrem, qui
Ecclesiam noluerit habere matrem'.

HIE CHURCH AS EDUCATOR

467

privilege, has put her beyond the reach of error. She is, therefore,
the supreme and very sure teacher of men, and .she has an invio­
lable right to the free exercise of her office” (a).
The necessary consequence of this is the independence of the
Church with regard to every earthly power, as much in the origin
as in the exercise of her educational mission, and not only in what
concerns the proper object of that mission, but also in the choice
of the means, whether necessary or suitable, to carry it out. And
so, with regard to every ether human science and teaching, which,
considered in themselves are the patrimony of all, individuals
and societies, the Church has the independent right to use, and
above all. to judge them, in the measure in which they can prove
usefid or harmful to Christian education. This is so because the
Church, since she is a perfect society, has an independent right
to the means proper to attain her end; moreover, all teaching,
every institution, no less than all human activity, has a necessary
relation of dependence with regard to man’s last end. and cannot
escape the control of the divine law of which the Church is the
guardian, interpreter, and infallible teacher.
(Recall lhe teachings of St. Pius X.) (b)

96.
103.
106,
121)

Extent of the educational mission

The scope of the Church’s educational mission is such that 889
it extends to all nations without exception according to Christ’s (77)
command: 'Teach ye all nations” (a), and no earthly power can
legitimately oppose her or hinder her.
(The work accomplished by the Church.)
The Church has been able to accomplish so much because
her educational mission embraces even infidels, since all men
are called to enter the kingdom of God and reach eternal
salvation.
(Rights of the family and the State.)

And this array of priceless educational treasures, which We 890
have only been able to enumerate in part, is so much the peculiar (6.
property of the Church, that it forms, as it were, her very' sub­ 63.
stance. since the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ, his
888a Encyclical, Libertas, Above, No. -193.
888b Encyclical, Singulari quadam, Above No. 749.
889a Matt. 28:19

υ

468

THE ARK OF SALVATION

105) Immaculate Spouse, and consequently a most fruitful mother
and sovereignly perfect educator.
(St. Augustine’s praise of the educational toork of the
Church.) (a)
THE ARK OF SALVATION

891
(77,
88,
90.
228)

Encycl. Ad salutem, April 20, 1930.
Founded by divine providence for the salvation of the
human race, the Church has ever been assisted by the presence
of Christ Jesus and will continue to be assisted by Him in the
future. If this were not evident from the very nature and necessity
of the case and from the promise of the Divine Founder which
we read in the Gospel, it would be apparent and could be proved
abundantly from the very history of the Church. For no contagion
of error has effected her; she has not faltered at the defection
of her children, however numerous; the persecution of impious
men, however fierce and protracted, has not prevented her from
a constant renewal of her youthful vigor.
(The 15th centenary of St. Augustine.—His teaching: God,
man's last end.)

Miracles confirm the Church
892
However, when Augustine speaks of man’s last end, ht
(20, hastens to add this counsel to anyone who wishes to reach it:
102) “Their attempt will be vain if they do not submit to the Catholic
Church and humbly obey her, for she alone has been divinely in­
stituted to give light and strength to sotds without which they
will necessarily stray from the right path and risk their eternal
salvation. God in his goodness has not willed that men seek Him
as it were blindly and uncertainly: ‘To seek God, if happily they
may feel after him or find him' (a), but He has dispelled the
darkness of ignorance, and He has shown Himself to them by
revelation, calling sinners to the duty’ of penance: ‘And God in­
deed having winked at the times of this ignorance, now declareth
unto men, that all should everywhere do penance’ (b). Having,
therefore, guided the sacred writers by his spirit. He committed
the custody and interpretation of the Bible to the Church founded
by his only-begotten Son. At the same time, from the very begin890a De moribus Ecclesix catholicx, bk. 1, c. 30.
892a Acts 17:27.
892b Ibid., 30.

THE ARK OF SALVATION

469

ning, He demonstrated and confirmed the divine origin of the
Church by the miracles worked by Christ her Founder. ‘The sick
are cured, the lepers cleansed; the lame walk, the blind see, hear­
ing is restored to the deaf. Men of those times saw water turned
to wine, five thousand fed with five loaves, seas trodden under
loot, and the dead rise again; so it was that certain miracles
brought manifest benefit to the body; others spoke to the mind
by a less obvious sign, but all showed men the seal of divine
majesty. In such wise did divine authority instruct the ignorance
of men’ ” (c).
The Church, sign of credibility
It is true that miracles became less frequent in the course 893
of time. But what was the reason, we may ask, if not that with the (4,
passage of time the divine witness was all the more manifest 90,
with the marvelous spread of the faith itself and the improvement 117)
of human society from the infusion of Christian teaching? “Do you
think it only a slight improvement in human affairs,” says
Augustine to his friend Honoratus, whom he wished to win back
to the Church, “that not just a few of the learned, but the un­
lettered multitude of men and women believes and proclaims that
no element of earth or fire, nor anything that can be reached by
the senses is to be worshipped as God, but that we can rise to
Him by the intelligence alone? that this multitude is content with
a little bread and water, and observes fasts not of a single day,
but of many days’ duration? that chastity is carried to the point
of foregoing marriage and the hope of a posterity? that patience
is pushed to contempt of torture and the flames? liberality, to
distributing one’s inheritance to the poor? finally, that contempt
of this world goes so far as to desire death?
“Few accomplish so much, fewer still do so prudently and
well: but the people approve these ideals, they praise, favor, and
even love them. They condemn their own weakness and the
fact that they cannot attain to these heights, and this is not with­
out a movement of the soul toward Cod, or some sparkles of
virtue enkindling them.
“Divine providence has accomplished this by the sayings
of the prophets, by the humanity and teaching of Christ, by the
jeumeyings of the Apostles, the contumely, agony, blood, and
death of the martyrs, by the admirable lives of the saints, and by
892c De utilitate credendi. 16:34.

470

ΠΙΕ ARK OF SALVATION

the miracles which such actions and such virtues merit, according
to the needs of the times. Since we see God granting such as­
sistance, and men deriving such profit and fruit, shall we hesitate
to hide ourselves in the heart of the Church, which—and the whole
human race confesses it—lias received supreme authority from
the Apostolic See through the succession of bishops, while
heretics vainly assault her and draw down condemnation on
themselves sometimes by the judgment of the people, sometimes
by the power of the councils, and sometimes even by the authority
of miracles’? (a)

Indefedibility of the Church

894
These words of St. Augustine, which even today have lost
(228) nothing of their vigor and gravity, are fully confirmed today
after a space of fifteen centuries. No one doubts it. In the course
of these ages God’s Church, the butt of so many calamities and
social upheavals, torn by so many heresies and schisms, saddened
by the defection and unworthiness of so many of her children,
has remained nonetheless—relying on the promises of her Founder,
while merely human institutions have been tossed to and fro
around her—not only stable and unharmed; more: in every age,
she has stood forth more glorious by reason of the wonderful
examples of holiness and sacrifice; she has quickened and in­
creased the fire of charity in numberless faithful; and especially,
thanks to the labors of her missionaries and martyrs, she has added
new peoples to her fold, and among them the rare privilege of
virginity as well as the priestly and episcopal dignity have taken
root anil grown strong. Finally, she has imbued all men with her
own spirit of charity and justice, so that even those who neglect
or oppose her cannot avoid receiving from her their manner of
speaking and acting.
Catholicity

895
With good cause, therefore, did Augustine, after he had
(131)shown the Donatists, who dared to limit and restrict the true
Church of Christ to a single corner of Africa, the universality, or,
as it is called, the catholicity of the Church, which is open to all
men in order to help and provide them with the means of grace,with good cause did he conclude his argument with these solemn
893a De utilitate credendi, c. 17, η. 35.

THE ARK ΟΓ SALVATION

471

words: "Securus judicat orbis terrarum" (a), a statement which
so deeply impressed a certain well-known and very noble person
that he hesitated no longer to enter the one true fold of Christ (b).
The Rock divinely chosen
Moreover, Augustine openly professed that this unity of the 896
whole Church no less than the immunity from error of her teach- (26
ing authority proceeds not only from her invisible Head, Christ 27
Jesus, who “governs his body” (a) from heaven and speaks II
through the teaching Church (b), but also from her visible head 112
on earth, the Boman Pontiff, who by right of succession occupies
the Chair of Peter. For this series of successors to Peter “is that
very rock against which the proud gates of hell cannot pre­
vail’ (c). Likewise, within the body of the Church we are most
securely "held, since the pontificate of Peter the Apostle—to whom
the Lord after his resurrection confided the feeding of his
flock—by the succession of Pontiffs up to the present pontifi­
cate" (d).
When the Pelagian heresy began to spread and its adherents 897
sought by guile and falsehood to trouble the hearts and minds of (152'1
the faithful, the Fathers of the Council of Mila, which, like many
others, assembled under the inspiration and the direction of
Augustine,—did they not present the questions they had discussed
and the decrees they had prepared for the approbation of In­
nocent I? In his response the Pope praised the bishops for their
zeal for religion and their submission to the Roman Pontiff.
"They know,” he said, "that Our reply springs from the apostolic
source and goes to all who ask it in every province. Especially,
each time that an article of faith is under discussion. We think
that all your brothers and Our brothers in the episcopate ought
to refer the matter to none other than Peter because of his name
and title, as your Charity now does, for he alone can bring aid
to all the Churches of the world at one and the same time" (a).
Therefore, after the sentence of the Roman Pontiff against 898
Pelagius and Caelestius reached Mila. Augustine, in his discourse J75)
to the people, pronounced these memorable words: "On this mat-

895a
895b
896b
896d
897a

Contra epist. Parmentoni, book 3, n. 24.
Newman, Apologia.
896a Enarrat, in ps. 56, n. 1.
Ibid.
896c Psalmus contra partem Donati.
Contra epist Manichaei quam vocant fundamenti, c. 4, n. 5.
Innocent I, Epist. CLXXXIL.2, inter augustinianas.

472

THE ARK OF SALVATION

ter the decisions of two Councils have been sent to the Apostolic
See; and from this See the answers have come back. The matter
is closed; may the error also come to an end!” (a) These words,
in a somewhat shortened form, have passed into a proverb: Rome
has spoken, the matter is closed. And elsewhere, too, after having
reported the judgment of Pope Zosimus condemning and reproving
the Pelagians wherever they were to be found, Augustine adds.
“So certain and clear is the Catholic faith as it is expressed in
these words of the Apostolic See, so ancient and well established,
that it would be a sacrilege for any Christian to doubt it” (b).
Grace
Whoever serves the Church, which has received from her
899
(113, Divine Spouse the administration of the riches of divine grace
115) above all through the sacraments, pours oil and wine into the
wounds of the sons of Adam after the example of the good Samar­
itan. Thus the guilty are cleansed of their faults, the weak and
sick are strengthened, the just are formed to greater holiness of
life. Let us admit that an individual minister of Christ may some­
times have failed in his duty; would the power of Christ, for all
that, have failed to be efficacious? “And I say”—let us listen to
the Bishop of Hippo—“and we all say that the ministers of such
a judge ought to be just; let the ministers be just, if they will;
but if those who sit in the chair of Moses do not will to be just, my
Master reassures me. whose Spirit has said, ‘It is he who bap­
tizes’ ” (a).
Would to God that they had listened to the voice of Augustine
in the past, and that all men might hear him today, wherever
they are, who, seizing upon the pretext of some lapsed priests,
like the Donatists, rend the seamless robe of Christ, and cast
themselves miserably outside the path of salvation!
(Dogmatic exposition·. God, the Trinity, Christ, the Blessed
Virgin.—Providence.—Duties of the Christian ruler.-Nature and
grace.—The virtues of St. Augustine.)
H oliness
900
It is therefore just that the Church, whose sacraments are
(126. the means of grace to us, should be called holy. Not only does
898a Sermo 131, c. 10, n. 10.
898b Epist. 190, ad Optatum, c. 6, n. 23.
899a In Joan, evang., tract. V, n. 15,

THE UNION OF CHRIST AND 'HIE CHURCH

473

she at all times effect the union of innumerable men with God by
the close ties of friendship and assure their perseverance; she also
leads and guides many of them to invincible nobility of soul, to
perfect holiness of life, and even to the heights of heroism.
(The monastic legislator.—Eulogy of St. Augustine by St. Jer­
ome.-Hatred of heresy.—The Congress of Carthage.)
THE UNION OF CHRIST AND THE CHURCH
Encycl. Casti Connubii, December 31, 1930.
(Christian marriage—Its excellence.—The Pauline privilege.)
This exception does not depend on the will of men, nor 901
on any merely human power, but on divine law of which the sole(I03,
guardian and interpreter is the Church of Christ. No faculty of 116)
this type, however, for any motive whatever, can ever be appli­
cable to a Christian marriage which has been contracted and con­
summated. In such a marriage the marital pact has received
its fulfillment, and is, therefore, by God’s will, dignified with the
greatest possible stability and indissolubility; it cannot be dis­
solved by any human authority.
Meaning of marriage
If We wish reverently to investigate the inner reason for this 902
divine will, Venerable Brothers, We shall easily find it in the (65)
mystical significance of Christian marriage, which reaches its
full and perfect meaning in a marriage consummated between the
faithful. The Apostle is the witness to this (We recalled it at the
beginning of this encyclical) in his Epistle to the Ephesians:
the marriage of Christians reproduces that most perfect union
which exists between Christ and the Church: “This is a great
sacrament, but I speak in Christ and in the church" (a). Now this
union, as long as Christ shall live and the Church shall live by
Him, can certainly never be dissolved by any separation.
(The sacrament of marriage.—Errors on the subjects of
children, conjugal faith, the sacrament.—Remedies for the faults
against marriage.)

Docility to the Church
Therefore, so that it may not be some fiction or a corruption 903
of the divine law but a real and authentic knowledge of that (703,
902a 5:32.

.·

474

THE UNION OF CHRIST AND THE CHURCH

110, law which enlightens men’s minds and directs their morals, there
214) must be joined to piety and zeal for God’s service a sincere and
humble obedience towards the Church. For it is Christ the Lord
Himself who has established the Church as mistress of the truth,
even in those matters which touch on the ordering and regulating
of conduct, even if in these matters many things are not, perse,
inaccessible to human reason. For if in what pertains to the natural
truths of religion and morals God has added revelation to the
light of reason, so that “even in the present condition of the human
race all men can come to know with firm certitude unmixed with
error” (a) what is right and just, He has also established the
Church, for the same end, as guardian and mistress of the whole
truth, whether of religion or morals.
904
Let the faithful obey her, therefore, so that they may be
( 110, preserved unharmed from erroneous opinions and corrupt con214- duct; let them obey her and submit to her both mind and spirit
215) And if they do not wish to deprive themselves of God’s help
granted with such liberality and mercy, they ought to manifest
this obedience not only where they must, with regard to the
more solemn definitions of the Church, but also, with due propor­
tion guarded, with reference to the other constitutions and decrees
which proscribe and condemn certain opinions as dangerous or
evil (a). Consequently, in questions which are raised today with
regard to matrimony, let the faithful beware of trusting too much
in their own judgment, and take care lest they be seduced by
that false liberty of the human mind which is called autonomy.
905

(108
109.
111.
145,
214,

For nothing is more foreign to the Christian worthy of the
name than to trust so entirely in his own powers as to credit only
those things which he knows of himself, and to think that the
Church sent bv God to teach and rule the nations is ill-informed
of recent happenings and their various aspects, or to limit his
assent and obedience to those definitions which are called solemn,
as if it could prudently be held that her other decisions are tainted
with error or have an insufficient foundation in probity' and
truth (a). On the contrary, it is characteristic of all followers of
903a Cone. Vat., sess. Ill, cap. 2.
904a Cone. Vat., sess. Ill, ch. IV, Cod. jur. can., can. 1324.
905a Alienissimum enim est ab omni veri nominis christiano, suo
ingenio ita superbe fidere, ut iis solum, quæ ipse ex interioribus
rerum visceribus cognoverit, assentiri velit, et Ecclesiam ad om-

COMPETENCE OF HIE CHURCH

475

Christ, learned and unlearned alike, to let themselves be ruled
and guided in all that concerns faith and morals by the holy
Church of God, through her Supreme Shepherd, the Roman Pon­
tiff, who in turn is directed by Our Lord Jesus Christ.
φ (The teaching of Christian doctrine on marriage.—Prepara­
tion for marriage.—Social and economic reforms.—Role of the
State. )
Role of the Church
But to safeguard the moral order neither the external powers 906
of the state nor its penalties are sufficient; nor is it enough to (40,
propose to men the necessity and beauty of virtue. Religious 83)
authority must be joined to these, for it enlightens the mind with
truth, directs the will, and strengthens human frailty with the
help of divine grace. Now the sole religious authority is the
Church instituted by Christ our Lord.
(Collaboration of Church and State.—Exhortation and
prayer. )
COMPETENCE OF THE CHURCH
Autograph letter, Dobbiamo intrattenerla, April 26, 1931.
to Cardinal Schuster, Archbishop of Milan.
(Protestation against the speech of Giuratti attacking Catho­
lic Action.-Christian education. )
“1 have come that they may have life and have it more 907
abundantly” (a). When it is a question of this life and tins salva­ (61.
tion, we can and we must say of the Church what St. Peter said
of Jesus Christ Himself: “Neither is there salvation in any
other' (b). For it is to the Church alone that Jesus Christ has
conferred the mandate and the means: the doctrine of faith, the
divine and ecclesiastical law, tile divine word, the sacraments,
prayer, the theological and infused virtues. It is precisely in
consideration of this exalted function of salvation and sanctifica­
tion conferred upon the Church and her hierarchy—a function
nes t’entes ducendas regendasque a Deo missam, rerum et adjunc­
torum recentium minus gnaram existimare, vel etiam iis tantum,
quic per solcmniores quas diximus definitiones ea jusserit, assen­
sum et olxedientiam præstare, perinde ac si opinari prudenter
liceat cetera ejus decreta aut falso laborare aut veritatis
honestatisque causa niti non satis.
907a John 10:10.
907b Acts 4:12.

fll

476

-Vf

THE MORAL LAW

in which from the beginning of the Christian era the laity have
been called to collaborate in Catholic Action-that We desired
Catholic Action to be assured a position and a guarantee in the
Concordat.
(Terms of the Concordat.- Totalitarianism of the State can­
not extend to the supernatural life.)

The supernatural life with all that pertains to it (as We have
(61, already said above,) beginning with the judgment as to its nature
217- and as to what pertains to it, was confided to the Church and to
218) her alone by Jesus Christ, the Redeemer and Ruler of the human
race. Now, the Church has always said—both by word and deedthat Catholic Action belongs to the supernatural life, in collabo­
ration with, and consequently in dependence upon the Hier­
archy (a).
(Catholic Action and politics.—Authority of the Church over
Catholic Action. )
909
It is no less certain and evident that the action of the
(79- Church, by the essential necessity of her nature and her divine
81. mandate, extends and must extend to every area where the good
120) of souls or their ruin, the honor of God or offenses against Him,
the keeping or the violating of divine or ecclesiastical law are in
question (a). It extends and must extend in fact to problems and
interests which are not simply material, mechanical, or economic,
but also moral, and which have inevitable moral repercussions on
the individual, his family, and society.
(Social virtues.—Corporations and Catholic Action.)
908

THE MORAL LAW
Encycl. Quadragesimo anno, May 15, 1931.
(The 40th anniversary of the encyclical Renim novanim.Doctrinal errors and social teaching which it remedied.—Its three
great benefits.)
910
Certainly, it is not the Church’s province to lead humanity
C77, to a merely passing and worldly prosperity; it is her mission to
908a Cf. THE LAY APOSTOLATE; Nos. 526 ff.
909a /? altrettanto certo cd évidente che I’Azione della Chiesa, per
essenziale nécessité del suo essere e del suo divino mandato, si
cstende e deve cstendersi dovunque trattasi del bene e del (latino
dette anime, dcWonorc o deU’offesa di Dio, dcU'osservanza o violazione dellc leggi divine cd ecclesiastiche.

HIE CHURCH AND SCIENCE

477

lead men to eternal felicity. More, “the Church thinks it wrong 93,
to interfere without reason in temporal affairs” (a). But she can- 165)
not, for any reason, abdicate the mission she has received from
God to interpose her authority, not, of course, in technical areas
for which she has neither the competence nor the duty, but in
all fields which have reference to the moral law. Where these
areas are concerned, the deposit of truth committed to Us by God
and the very grave duty of promulgating, interpreting, and even
urging the moral law, in season and out of season, also subject
to Our supreme authority both the social and even the economic
order.
(The right to property.—Relations of capital and labor.—
Just wages.—Charity.—Exhortation. )
The Church of Christ, built on the immovable rock, has 911
nothing to fear for herself, since she knows for certain that lhefSSSJ
gates of hell shall not prevail against her (a). She has the proof
of this in the experience of so many centuries, for she emerges
from the most violent combats stronger than before and adorned
with new triumphs (b). (Blessing.)

THE CHURCH AND SCIENCE
Apost. Const. Deus scientiarum, May 24. 1931, on ecclesiasti­
cal universities and faculties.
The Lord, the God of all knowledge (a), in giving his divine
command to the Church to teach all nations (b), established her,
beyond doubt, as infallible teacher of divine truth and by that
very fact principal patron and inspiration of all human learning.
For it is the Church’s mission to transmit to all men the sacred
precepts which she has herself received and drawn from God’s
revelation; since faith and human reason not only “can never con­
tradict one another,” but, given their perfect harmony—"they lend
one another mutual support’’—there has never been a period when
the Church of Christ has not considered it her duty to assist and
promote the growth of human arts and disciplines (c). This fact
is well attested by many irrefutable historical witnesses.
910a
911a
9111)
on
912a
912c

Encycl. Ubi arcano, December 23, 1922.
Cf. Matt. 16:18.
This encyclical may be read in its entirety in the volume
social problems.
I Kings 2:3.
912b Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15.
Cone. Vat. Const. De Eide catholica, IV.

912
(96.
102.
106)

478

THE RIGHTS OF THE CHURCH

{Schools and universities of antiquity and the .Middle Ages
—Teaching in the missions.—Intervention of the secular StateThe struggle against ignorance.—The reorganization of Catholic
Universities.)

THE RIGHTS OF THE CHURCH
Encycl. Non abbiamo bisogno, June 29, 1931.
{Italian Catholic Action persecuted by the Fascist govern­
ment.—Responses to various Fascist calumnies—Recall of tin
principles on which Catholic Action is founded; it is not a
political movement.)
913
As for Us, certain as We are that evidence shows We are
(151, and have maintained Ourselves in the religious sphere, We never
156) believed that We could ever be considered “a foreign power,'
especially by Catholics and by Italian Catholics.
It is by reason of the apostolic power given Us by Cod, in
spite of Our unworthiness, that good Catholics of the entire
world—you know this very well. Venerable Brothers-consider
Rome the second home of each and every one of them.
(Fascism wishes to alienate youth from the Church.-Violaon of the rights of souls and of the Church.)

914
(77.
96.
105,
213,
216’213)

We have said "the sacrosanct and inviolable rights of sot
and of the Church.” There is in question here the right of souls
to procure for themselves the greatest spiritual good under the
magisterium and the educational work of the Church, the only
representative of that magisterium and that work, divinely constituted in this supernatural order founded on the Blood of God
the Redeemer, necessary and obligatory for all, so as to partici­
pate in the divine Redemption (a). There are in question the
rights of souls thus formed to impart the riches of the Redemption
to other souls by collaborating in the activity of the Apostolic
Hierarchy.
914a Si trotta del diritto dette anime di procurarsi il maggior bene
spirituale sotto it magistero e Γopera formatrice della Chicsa, di
tale magistero e di tale opera unica mandataria, divinamente
costituita in quest'ordinc soprannaturale fondâto nel Sangue di
Dtt> Rcdentore, necessario cd ohbligatorio a tutti per partecipare
alta divina Redcnzionc.

THE RIGHTS OF THE CHURCH

479

It is in consideration of this double right of souls that We
have said recently that We are happy and proud to fight the
good fight for the liberty of consciences, not ( as some, perhaps by
inadvertence have made Us say) for liberty of conscience, which
is an equivocal expression, and one too often abused to signify
absolute independence of conscience, an absurd thing in a soul
created and redeemed by God (b).

The commandment to teach
There is in question here, moreover, the no less inviolable 915
right of the Church to carry out the imperative divine mandate (77,
with which she was invested by her Divine Founder, to carry to 91)
souls, to all souls, all her treasures of truth and goodness, doctrinal
and practical, which He Himself procured for the world: "Going
teach ye all nations... teaching them to observe all things what­
soever I have commanded you" (a).
(Limits of the rights of the State.)
Extent of the commandment
The divine and universal mandate with which the Church 916
cf Jesus Christ was invested by Jesus Christ Himself in an incom- (96,
inunicable and exclusive fashion, extends to the eternal, the 102)
heavenly, the supernatural order; this order is, on the one hand,
strictly binding on every reasonable being, and. on the other,
requires that everything else must be subordinate to and co­
ordinated with it.

The Church of Jesus Christ is certainly within the limits of 917
her mandate not only when she plants in souls· the first indis- (105)
pensable principles and elements of the supernatural life, but also
when she promotes and fosters that life according to the oppor­
tunities and capacities which are present, and in the way and
with the means which she judges suitable, even with the intention
of preparing for the apostolic hierarchy an enlightened and
courageous assistance. It is the solemn declaration of Jesus Christ

914b £ inconsiderazione di questo duplice diritto delle anime, die
Ci dicecamo teste lieli e fieri di comhaltere la buona battaglia
per la liberté delle coscienze, non già (come qualcuno forse inavvertitamenle Ci ha fat to dire) per la liberté ai coscienza, mani­
era di dire equivoca e troppo spesso abusata a significare la assoluta independenza della coscienza, cosa assurda in anima da
Dio creata c redenta.
915a Matt 28:19-20.

■ ?- -c··!

4.

480

that
kind
they
may

THE FAITH OF EPHESUS

He came precisely so that souls might have, not merely a
of beginning or the elements of the supernatural life, but that
might have it in great abundance: “1 have come that they
have life and have it more abundantly” (a).

918
And Jesus Himself has laid the foundations of Catholic
(177) Action, He Himself chose and educated in his Apostles and his
disciples the collaborators of his own divine apostolate, an ex­
ample immediately imitated by the first holy Apostles, as the
Sacred Text shows.
It is, consequently, an unjustifiable pretense, and one that
cannot be reconciled with the name and with the profession of
Catholics, that simple Catholics should tell the Church and her
Head what suffices and what should suffice for the education
and Christian formation of souls, and for salvation, for the foster­
ing in society, especially among the youth, of the principles of
faith and their full development in this life.
(Errors of Fascism.—Totalitarian doctrine.—Formula of the
unlawful oath.—Condemnation, not of the Fascist regime, but of
its abuses.—The Pope’s duty.—Anxiety for the future— Motives
for hope.)
919
(18:
186
104195.
199,
203)

We know that you arc, and that you know that you are,
Our Brothers in the Episcopate and in the Apostolate. We know
and you know. Venerable Brothers, that you are the successors
of the Apostles whom St. Paul terms, in words of exalted sublimity, “the glory of Christ” (a). You know that no mortal man,
be he Chief of State or of Government, but the Holy Spirit has
placed you, in that part of the flock assigned to you by Peter,
to rule the Church of God.
( Rely on the prayer of the universal Church.—Wishes and
blessing. )
THE FAITH OF EPHESUS

Encycl. Lux veritatis, December 25, 1931.
920
Ί he light of truth and the witness of the past which is
(229) history teach us, if we judge correctly and search diligently, that
the divine promise given by Jesus Christ: "I am with you... to
the consummation of the world” (a), has never failed his Spouse
the Church, and will never fail her in the future. What is more,
917a John 10:10

919a 2 Cor. 8:23.

920a Matt. 28:20.

»0

A 1.

THE FAITH OF EPHESUS

481

the more furiously the divine barque of Peter is buffeted by the
waves in the course of centuries, the more she feels his presence
and the more effective is the help of heavenly grace.

So it was especially in the early ages of the Church, when 921
not only was it a heinous crime punishable by death to bear the (58,
name of Christian, but the perfidy of heretics, which was partie- 229)
ularly active in the East, troubled the true faith of Christ and put
it in the gravest peril. For while the persecutors of the Christian
name perished miserably, one after the other, and the Roman Em­
pire itself was crumbling, all the heretics, like so many withered
branches (a) wrenched from the divine stock, could no longer
draw the sap of life or bear its fruits.
But God’s Church, in the midst of so much turmoil and so
many ruins, placed her trust in God alone, constantly and in full
security moving forward and never ceasing to protect with energy
in all its integrity the sacred deposit of the truth of the Gospel
confided to her byr her Founder Himself,
(The loth centenary of the Council of Ephesus.—Its Acts
bear witness to its faith in pontifical primacy and infallibility.)

Indeed, the documents which We have signalized significant­
ly and explicitly evince that a common faith was already vigorous (171)
in the universal Church; a common faith in the independent and
infallible authority of the Roman Pontiff over the entire flock
of Christ; so explicit that it recalls to Our mind the clear and lucid
expression of Augustine on the judgment pronounced a few years
before against the Pelagians by Pope Zosimus in his doctrinal let­
ter: "In these words the Catholic faith in the Apostolic See is so
ancient and well established, so certain and clear, that no Chris­
tian is permitted to doubt it” (a).
(Condemnation of Nestorius.—Errors of the schismatic
churches. )
Adherence to the Church
Therefore, from the high dignity of this Apostolic See, We 923
paternally exhort all those who glory in the fact that they are (61,
Christ’s disciples, who place in Him all hope for the salvation 112,
not only of individuals but of society, to adhere each day more 161 )
closely and firmly to the Roman Church. In her alone is Christ
believed with a faith whole and entire, worshipped with sincere
921a Cf. John 16:6.

922a Epist. CXC.

482

Π ΙΕ PRAYER ΟΙ

1 HE MYSTIC Al BODY

homage of adoration, and loved with the constant flame oi ardent
charity. Let them remember, especially those who preside over
the flock separated from Us, what was the faith professed by
their forebears at Ephesus; the same which this supreme Chair
of truth, in the past as in the present, keeps intact and strenuously
defends. Let them remember that the unity of the true faith rests
on that unique rock established by Christ, and that this unity
can be preserved in full security only by the supreme authority
of the successors of Blessed Peter (a).
A few vears ago We spoke at greater length of this units
924
(38, of the Catholic religion in Our encyclical letter Mortalium

44) animos (a). It will be useful here briefly to recall this matter
to mind, since the hy postatic union of Christ, solemnly defined
at the Council of Ephesus, contains and offers an image of that
unity with which our Redeemer wished to adorn his Mystical
Body, that is, the Church, “one body” (b) “compacted and
joined” (c). For if the personal unity of Christ constitutes the
mysterious exemplar to which He Himself willed to see the close
union of the Christian society conform, this certainly could never
be the result of an unreal union of many warring elements, hut
onlv of a single hierarchy, a single supreme teaching authority,
a single rule of belief, and one faith embraced by all Christians.
No intelligent man can fail to see this.
(The divine maternity.—Refutation of the errors of Nestorius.—Mary's greatness.—Power of her intercession.—The Holy
Family—Mass and Office of the Divine Maternity.)
THE PRAYER OF THE MYSTICAL BODY

Encycl. Caritate Christi, May 3, 1932.
(Progress· of atheism in the world—Social disorders which
923a Meminerint iidem, H yræsertim qui sejuncto a Nobis prepi
pnesunt. quam majores sui Ephesi sollemniter professi sunt fidem,
eam, quemadmodum anteacta ivtale ita in priesens, a suprema
hac veritatis Cathedra immutatam servari strenueque defendi,
meminerint hujusmodi permana· fidei unitatem in una tantum­
modo petra inniti ac consistere a Christo posita, itemque. per
supremam Beati Petri successorum auctoritatem, sartam tectamque servari posse.
924a Above, Nos. 851 ii.
924b 1 Cor. 12:12
924c Ephes 4:16,

THE FIRST MAGISTRACY OF THE WORLD

483

spring from it.-Causes of these eoils-Remedies.-Union of all
believers-Prayer. )
What a beautiful sight the Church at prayer presents to 925
heaven and earth! Without interruption all day long and through (117)
the night the divinely inspired psalms ring out across the globe.
There is no hour of the day which is not sanctified by its own
liturgy, no state of human life without its own place in the hymn
of thanksgiving, praise, petition, reparation which is the common
prayer of the Mystical Body of Christ, which is the Church. And
so this prayer makes God present among men, as the Divine
Redeemer Himself promised: “Where two or three are gathered
together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (a).
(Effects of prayer.—Penance: its nature and effects.—Thanks­
giving—Exhortation. )
THE FIRST MAGISTRACY OF THE WORLD

All. to the International Congress of Jurists, November 17.
1934.
(The work of the Congress—Juridical studies of the Holy
Father.—Conformity of the Digest and the Decretals.—Lessons to
be learned from their agreement.)
It is easy to see how the codes of Roman and Canon Law
not only can contribute to their mutual perfection and harmony,
hut can, so to speak, fuse into one whole for the inestimable advantage of that admirable creation of the Catholic Church,
Christian society or Christianity.
Further, one understands better that famous and profound
statement of Leo XIII: “Canon Law without civil law is like
theology without philosophy.” Finally, we appreciate the full
meaning and truth of this thought of St. Thomas, and how true
it is even today: "The Roman Empire has not ceased to exist;
it was transformed from a temporal to a spiritual entity, thanks
to the government of the most Holy Roman Church, which con­
stitutes the first judicial body of the entire world” (a).
(The Holy Father desires to see this research resumed.—
Blessing for the members of the Congress.)
925a Matt. 18:20.
926a In II ad Thcss., XI.

926
(1-,
15,
15-j

THE SACERDOTAL FUNCTION

Encycl. Ad catholici sacerdotii, December 20, 1935.
(Preceding documents on the priesthood.—The priesthood
under the Old Late and the New.—The power of the priest over
the Body of Christ.)

927
Beyond this power which the priest exercises over the real
(42, Body of Jesus Christ, he has another sublime and very extensive
114, authority over his Mystical Body which is the Church. We do not
206) need, Venerable Brothers, to speak at length on this most beauti­
ful doctrine of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, so dear to the
heart of the Apostle Paul. This doctrine teaches us that the
Divine Person of the Incarnate Word embraces all men as his
brothers, and on them breathes that heavenly spirit which derives
from Him, forming one body of all the members, whose head is
Christ. Now the priest—as the ordinary minister of almost all
the sacraments, which are like so many rivulets through which
the Redeemer’s grace flows to the entire race of men—has been
made “the dispenser of the mysteries of God” (a), so that he may
impart them to the members of the Mystical Body of Jesus
Christ (b).
(The priest and the administering of the seven sacraments.)
The ministry of the word

928
Again, the priest is the minister of Christ and the dispenser
(96, of the mysteries of God (a) by the "ministry of the word" (b),
102, a right, certainly, which cannot be alienated, and also an inescap206) able duty imposed on him by the Redeemer Himself: “Going
teach ye all nations ..., teaching them to observe whatsoever I
have commanded you" (c). The Church of Jesus Christ, guardian
and infallible teacher of Divine Revelation, dispenses the riches
of heavenly truths by means of her sacred ministers, preaching
Him who is “the true light, which enlighteneth every man coming
into this world ’ (d). She sows with divine generosity that little
seed, despised, it is true, by human wisdom, but which, nonethe­
less, like the grain of mustard, plunges strong and deep roots in
927a Cf. 1 Cor. 4:1.
927b Passages here omitted may be read in the volume on the
Christian Priesthood.
928a Cf. 1 Cor. 4:1.
928b Cf. Acts 6:4.
928c Matt. 28:19-20.
928d John 1:9.

THE SACERDOTAL FUNCTION

485

souls thirsting sincerely and zealously for the truth, anti a sturdy
tree grows up. capable of resisting the violence of the storms (e).

In the midst of the errors spawned by the mind of man swolten with lawless and unbridled license, in the general profligacy
of morals which human malice has engendered, the Church of
God rises like a lighthouse dominating the sailors’ course. She
condemns every deviation from the truth, by excess or defect.
She peints out to each and to all the way to follow the right
path. And woe to us if this luminous beacon, We do not say
should be extinguished—this will never come to pass because of
the unfailing promises of Jesus Christ—but should be prevented
from shedding her radiance in all directions! (a) It is already
clear to the eyes of all how far the human race has fallen because
man has proudly rejected divine revelation, because he has fol­
lowed false philosophical and moral theories, even when he did
so under the specious pretext of truth. If on the steep slope of
error and vice he has not yet reached the depths, this is doubtless
due to the teaching of Christian truth which is spread every­
where among the nations.
Now the Church exercises the “ministry
y of the word" entnisted to her, through her sacred ministers, appointed in the
different orders of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. She sends them
everywhere to act as indefatigable heralds of this truth which
alone can give birth to, or restore, or preserve unharmed human
civilization. The word of the priest goes to all men to bring
them light and comfort. The word of the priest, even amidst the
storms of human passion, rises serene, exhorts to virtue, and
fearlessly announces the truth. We say the truth: that truth which
sheds light on the doubtful areas of human life and brings with
it order; We say that virtue which no misfortune, not even death,
can destroy, rather which death renders safe and everlasting.
(The different truths which the priest must preach.)

929
(99.
228)

930
(97)

But from the very fact that the Catholic priest is an alert 931
and energetic soldier, it follows of necessity that he must be im- (190.
hued with the spirit of discipline, or—to speak in the Christian 208)
928c Cf. Matt. 13:31-32.
929a Ac oæ nobis, si hsec veluti Pharos, nedum restinaucrcturqtiod procul dubio ex non deficientibus Jesu Christi pollicitationi­
bus umquem fieri nequit—suam tamen radiantem lucem usque­
quaque ne diffunderet praepediretur!

486

TUE OXLY CHRIS! ΙΑΝΙΤΥ

manner—with a zeal for obedience, that obedience which unites
in a harmonious fashion all the ranks of the ecclesiastical hierar­
chy. "A wonderful variety reigns in the constitution and govern­
ment of holy Church: some are consecrated bishops, others,
priests of a lower order, and out of many members of unequal
dignity the one hods of Christ is built up” (a). This obedience
the priest promised to his bishop immediately alter receiving the
sacred anointing; likewise the bishops on the day when they were
raised to the fullness of the priesthood, took a sacred oath to the
supreme head and visible ruler of the Catholic Church, the suc­
cessor of Peter and Vicar of Jesus Christ.
(Exhortation to obedience; to study.—Vocations.—The priest's
assistants. )

THE ONLY CHRISTIANITY

All. at the International Exposition of the Catholic Press at
the Vatican, May 12, 1936.
(Welcome Io journalists from all parts of the tcorhl.-Ah·
since of Russians and Germans noted.—Importance of the Cath­
olic Press.—Gratitude of the Pope.)

932
And you will say also, beloved sons, and you will not weary oi
(40, repeating what the Vicar of Christ believes and proclaims-not
144, simply as Common Father of all the faithful, but also as a man
163) (if his own time; not simply for the well-being of the Church of
which he is the Head, but also for the general good-: that the
Catholic Church is the irreplaceable support and the sole con­
serving force of real and genuine Christianity. In fact, what re­
mains outside the Catholic Church after the real havoc wrought
by the so-called free thought, liberalism, and various pretended
reforms, what remains of the doctrine of Jesus Christ transmitted
by the Gospel and legitimate Tradition? What remains of the
sacraments instituted by Jesus Christ? What remains of his Di­
vine Person itself? And for what concerns the Catholic Church.
We cannot fail to add, at the present time, what particularly
providential help is given by Catholic Action, which was so ef­
ficacious a collaborator of the Apostolic hierarchy in evangelizing
a world submerged in pagan antiquity.
(Church and St ate.-Education.-Catholic Action.)
930a Pont. Rom., De ordinatione presbvteri.

(

” κκ ·<-■ ■

Λ SUBORDINATE APOSTOLATE

All. to the Catholic Action delegates, May 31, 1936.
(The Pope’s eightieth birthday.—Exhortation to union.)
For Catholic Action is not, it does not wish to be, it cannot 933
be, more than a participation, a collaboration of the faithful with (218
the apostolic hierarchy; that is to say, a coordination, a subor­
dination to that apostolate established by the Divine Redeemer
Himself as the essential structure of the Church. For this coor­
dination and this subordination are part of the very essence of
Catholic Action. It is with this characteristic that we find Cath­
olic Action, in the early day of the gospel preaching.
(Watch and pray.—The Communist danger.—The Interna­
tional Catholic Press Exhibit.—Apostolate and Catholic Action.)

THE CHURCH. OBJECT OF FAITH
Encycl. Mil brennender Sorge, March 14, 1937, to the Ger­
man Episcopate.
(The Concordat with the Reich.—Its violation by the Ger­
man government .—Recall the fundamental religious truths.—Faith
in a personal God.—Christ, the only Savior.)
Faith in Christ cannot be maintained pure and unalloyed 934
when it is not protected and supported by faith in the Church, (41.
“the pillar and ground of truth" (a). It is Christ Himself, the
ever-blessed God, who erected this pillar of faith. His command­
ment to hear the Church (b), to receive in the teaching and 96.
commandments of the Church his own teaching and com­ 131 )
mands (c), is binding on all men. on every period, and every
country The Church founded be the Redeemer is one—for all
peoples and nations. Beneath her cupola, which like God’s firma­
ment arches the entire globe, is a place and a homeland for all
tribes and tongues, is room for the development of all special
characteristics, advantages, all tasks, and vocations given by God
the Creator and Redeemer to individuals as well as to ethnic
groups. The maternal heart of the Church is wide enough and
big enough to see in the divinely-designed development of each
of these characteristics and special gilts more the wealth of variety
rather than the danger of deviations. She rejoices in the spiritual
superiority of individuals and of peoples. She* sees, with maternal
931.1 I Ti

9311) Matt. 18:17.

934c Luke 10:16

488

THE CHURCH, OBJECT OF FAITH

joy and pi ide, the fruits of education and progress in their suc­
cesses, which she blesses and encourages wherever she can, in
conscience, do so. But she knows also that limits are imposed
on this liberty by the majesty of God’s command, which ordained
and founded the Church as, in its very nature, an indivisible uni­
ty. He who infringes upon this unity and this indivisibility robs
the Bride of Christ of one of the crowns with which God Himself
has crowned her. He subjects her divine structure resting on an
eternal foundation, to the probing and alterations of architects
to whom the Heavenly Father has given no commission to build.
The Divine and human in the Church
935
The divine mission of the Church, which works among men
(19J)and must work through men, may be sadly obscured by the in­
trusion of human frailty, which, in time, may spread ever more
widely, like cockle among the wheat of the kingdom of God.
Anyone who knows the Savior’s words about scandals and scan­
dalmongers knows what is the judgment of the Church and what
is the judgment of each of her children, on what sin was and
what sin is. But he who, faced with the regrettable discrepancies
between faith and life, word and deed, external conduct and
internal standards of individuals—however numerous—forgets or
consciously neglects the enormous sum of authentic virtues, of
self-sacrifice, of fraternal love, and of heroic striving after sanc­
tity', such a one shows a deplorable blindness and injustice. If
subsequently it becomes clear that the severe measures which he
employs against the Church which he hates, he at the same time
neglects to employ against communities of a different nature
which are closer to him by reason of sympathy or interest, then
it is evident that the pretended injury' to his sense of purity makes
him kin to those who according to the Savior’s incisive judgment
overlook the beam in their own eye because of the mote in their
brother’s (a).
It is not enough to belong to the Church;
a man must be a living member
936
But however impure is the intention of those who make a
(1·38)vocation of signalizing the merely human in the Church (and
often they go so far as to make it a vile profession), and although
935a Cf. Matt. 7: 3-5.

THE CHURCH, OBJECT OF FAITH

489

the priestly power stemming from God is not dependent on the
human or moral greatness of the man, it is nonetheless true that
no period, no individual, no community is exempt from the duty
of loyal self-scrutiny, relentless self-purification, and thorough
self-renewal in spirit and in action. In Our encyclical on the
priesthood (a), in Our letters on Catholic Action, We have, with
emphatic insistence, pointed to the sacred duty, for all who be­
long to the Church, and above all for those who are members of
the priestly and religious state, as well as members of the lay
apostolate, to bring their faith and conduct in harmony with the
requirements of God’s law, and with what the Church insists
upon with untiring energy.

And once more today We repeat with the utmost gravity: 937
it is not enough to belong to the Church of Christ. A man must (53,
also be a living member of the Church—in spirit and in truth (a). 231)
And they alone are who keep themselves in Cod’s graces and
live continually in his presence—in innocence or in a sincere and
active penance. When the Apostle of the Nations, the “vessel ol
election”, brought his body under subjection by chastisement,
lest, after he had preached to others, he be himself rejected (b),
can there be for those in whose hands lie the exemplification
and the spread of God’s kingdom any other way but that which
closely unites their apostolate and their own sanctification? Only
thus can mankind today, and in the first instance the enemies of
the Church, be shown that the salt of the earth (c), the leaven
of Christianity (d), has not grown weak, but that it is able and
ready, amidst doubt and error, indifference and spiritual aban­
donment, infidelity and estrangement from God, to bring to men
the method of spiritual renewal and rejuvenation, which—wheth­
er they know it or not—they need more than ever before. A
Christianity which has, in all its members, renewed itself, re­
jecting all compromise and worldliness, earnest in observing the
commandments of God and of the Church, maintaining itself in
love of God and effective love of neighbor, could be and will
have to he for a profoundly ailing world in search of support
and guidance, a model and a leader, if an unspeakable catastro­
phe, an unimaginable collapse, is to be avoided.
936a Encycl. Ad catholici Sacerdotii; above: 927 ff.
937b 1 Cor. 9:27.
937a Cf. John 4:23.
937(1 Matt. 13:33.
937c Matt 5; 13.

490

938
(21,
32,
229231)

HIE CIIUBCH. OBJECI’ OF FAITH

The starting point of any reform
Every true and lasting reform stems, in the last analysis,
from holiness, from men impelled by the fire of love of God and
neighbor. By their courageous readiness to hear every one of
God’s appeals, and to realize it first in their own lives, they have
been in a position, by reason of their humility and the awareness
of their own vocation, to bring light and renewal to their times
But where reforming zeal has not sprung from personal purity,
but was the expression and explosive manifestation of passion,
it has disturbed instead of clarifying; destroyed rather than raised
up; it has been not seldom the starting point of errors worse than
the evils it expected or intended to remedy. Certainly, the Spirit
of God breatheth where lie will (a). From the very' stones He
can raise up those who will prepare the way for his designs (b .
He chooses the instruments of his will according to his plans and
not according to the plans of men. But He who founded the
Church and called it into being in the mighty wind of Pentecost
will not destroy the bases of that institute of salvation willed by
Himself. The one who is moved by the spirit of God has spon­
taneously the appropriate interior and exterior attitude toward
the Church, that sacred fruit on the tree of the Cross, that Pente­
costal gift of God’s Spirit to a world in need of leadership.

Fidelity to the Church
939
In your countries. Venerable Brothers, the chorus of voices
(54, swells ever louder, bidding men to leave the Church. Among the
231) leaders there are many who. by their official position, seek to
create the impression that such abandonment of the Church and
the infidelity towards Christ the King which it signifies would be
an especially convincing and meritorious form of fidelity to the
modern State. Bv covert or open restrictions, by' intimidation, by
the prospect of disadvantages whether economic, professional,
civic, or other, the attachment of Catholics to the true faith, and
in particular ol certain classes of Catholic functionaries, is Mill·
jected Io pressure which is as illegal as it is inhuman. All Our
paternal sympathy anil deepest compassion go to those who must
pay so high a price for their loyalty to Christ and the Church. But
the point has now been reached where the ultimate and highest
938a John 3:8
938b Matt. 3:9 ; Luke 3:8.

TUE CHURCH, OBJECT OF FAITH

491

interests, salvation or perdition are at stake, and where, conse­
quently, for the believer there is only one road to salvation, the
wayol heroic courage. If the tempter or the oppressor proposes
that he, like Judas, should leave the Church, he’can only-even
at the price of the heaviest material sacrifices—repudiate the prop­
osition with the Savior's words: Begone, Satan: for it writ­
ten, The Lord thy God shalt thou adore, and him only shaft thou
serve” (a). But to the Church he will say, "Thou my Mother
from the days of my childhood, my surety in life, my advocate
in death,-may my tongue cleave to my palate (b) if I—yielding
to earthly promises or threats—renounce the pledge of my bap­
tism.” But as for those who believe they can combine exterior
abandonment of the Church with interior fidelity to that Church,
let the Savior’s words be a serious admonition: “He that shall
deny me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who
is in heaven” (c).
The Roman primacy, strength of the Church

Faith in the Church cannot be maintained pure and free 9-10
from error if it is not based on belief in the primacy of the Bishop (41.
of Home. In the same moment in which Peter, before all the .57Ipostles and disciples, professed faith in Christ the Son of the .58
living God, his faith and his profession were rewarded bx Christ’s 89.
answer,—the word which founded his Church, the one Church, 139.
on Peter the Boek (a). Faith in Christ, faith in the Church, faith /17)
in the primacy stand together, therefore, in a sacred close connec­
tion. Authentic and legal authority is everywhere a bond of unity,
a source of strength, a guarantee against division and ruin, a bul­
wark for the future. In the highest and most sublime sense this
is verified where, as in the Church and there alone, such an
authority has the promise of the guidance of the Holy Spirit and
is promised his invincible aid. II men who arc not even united
in faith in Christ offer you the attractive image of a German na­
tional Church, realize that it is nothing else than a denial of the
one Church of Christ, an open betrayal of her evangelical mission
to the entire world, for which only a universal Church can suf­
fice and live up to. The historical late of other national churches,
their spiritual apathy, their enslavement or domestication by
939a Matt. 4:10.
939c Luke 12:9.

939b Psalm 136:6.
940a Matt. 16:18.

492

ONE SINGLE BODY

earthly powers prove the hopeless sterility to which is doomedwith unfailing certainty—every branch separated from the living
vine which is the Church (b). The one who presents from the
very beginning an alert and implacable NO to such false develop­
ments, renders service not only to the purity of his faith in Christ,
but also to the health and strength of his people’s life.
( False interpretations of sacred formulas.—Moral and the notural law.)

The. Church is the guardian of the natural law
941
The Church, the guardian and interpreter of the natural law
(J03)which is divine in origin, cannot do otherwise than declare that
the recent school registrations taken up with a notorious abuse
of freedom, are the result of constraint, and are devoid of am
legal character.
ONE SINGLE BODY

Encycl. Firmissimam, March 28, 1937, to the Mexican Epis­
copate.
(Persecution in Mexico.—Directives for meeting it.-Formalion of future priests.—Formation of the laity for Catholic
Action. )
942
But, as We have already told you, since We are addressing
(29, Pastors who must reconstitute a persecuted and sometimes a dis45, persed flock, We recommend urgently that you employ the help
212) of the laity in whom, as in the living stones of God’s Temple,
Blessed Peter himself recognized a hidden dignity by means of
which they participate in a certain way in the holy and kingly
priesthood (a).
In fact, any Christian who understands his dignity’ and real­
izes his condition as a son of the Church and a member of the
Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, “we being many, are one body in
Christ, and everyone members one of another” (b), cannot fail
to recognize that there must be a reciprocal communication of
life among the members of the Body and a mutual sharing of in­
terests. Therefore, each one must contribute his effort to that life
and to the development of the whole organism, “for the edifying
of the body of Christ (c), and the glorification of the Head.
940b John 15:5.
942b Rom. 12:5.

942a I Peter 2:9.
942c Cf. Ephes. 4:12-16.

·■

11 IE WHOLE MAN

493

(Social action.—Instruction of students and children.—Rela­
tions with the State.—Role of the clergy.—Civic duty.—Obedience
and charity.)
THE WHOLE MAN
All. to the members of the CFTC, September 18, 1938.
(France, eldest daughter of the Church.—Work the penalty
of sin.-Work sanctified by Jesus Christ— Two errors, collectivism
and individualism.—State totalitarianism. )

If there is a totalitarian regime—totalitarian in fact and by 943
right—it is the regime of the Church, because man is God’s (40.
creature, the prize of divine Redemption, God’s servant, destined 125)
to live for God here below and with God in heaven. And the rep­
resentative of these ideas, designs, and rights of God is none
other than the Church. Therefore, the Church really has the right
and the duty to claim the totality of her power over individuals:
the whole of man, man in his entirety', belongs to the Church,
because he belongs wholly to God. There is no doubt on this
point unless a man wishes to deny, to refuse, everything.
(Christian charity, antidote for class struggle.—Catholic Ac­
tion and the life of the Church.)

PIUS XII
1939-1958

IN THE SERVICE OF THE TRUTH
All. to the Sacred College, March 12, 1939.
(Expressions of gratitude and hope.)

In the course of the centuries, the office of the Sovereign 944
Pontiff has had no other end than the service of the truth. (163,
We say the truth, which must be integral and pure, without 165)
shadow, not subject to any weakness, never separated from
the charity of Jesus Christ. In fact, in every' pontificate, and
especially in Our own, which is called upon to accomplish its
mission in favor of a human community afflicted by so much
discord and conflict, the words of the Apostle St. Paul must
predominate, like a sacred mandate: “Veritatem facientes in
caritate: doing the truth in charity” (a).
(Assist the Pope by prayer, zeal, friendship.)
THE ROMAN CURIA
All. to the Roman Curia. April 5. 1939.
(Welcome.—To serve the Church “Regnare est”)

The sacred Roman Curia bears the name and evokes the 945
memory of the Curia of the Quirites, the Consuls, and the(180)
Caesars, that tribunal where the destiny of peoples was decided
in antiquity, and which now remains to us a mute monument
among the ruins of the Forum. But it has its own proper life and
character which raise it above the mortal character of empires
and kingdoms, as the mind is raised above the body, grace
above nature, Cod’s work above that of man.

Coining into existence with the assembly of the pontifical 946
presbyterium of Rome, like a hard-working and wise senate (180)
crowned with great experience, it .has grown in importance and
influence under the Pontiffs, even more as a result of its quali­
ties of wisdom and prudence than by reason of its venerable
age. The heir of a past which has often been troubled, reshaped,
re-organized, and developed to meet growing needs, the in­
crease of apostolic difficulties in the defense and spread of the
faith and discipline among pastors and flock, the Roman Curia
944a Ephes. 4:15.

- 497 -

498

THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD

in its present form, its inner structure, or its procedure regu­
lated to the smallest detail, while it keeps in its essential con­
stitution the practice and experience of centuries, adds to it
the advantage and the glory of never having hesitated to adapt
itself wisely, when the opportune moment came, to new neces­
sities and changing duties. To the powerful impetus of a Sixtus V.
the holy reforming zeal of a Pius X. the legal wisdom of a Bene­
dict XV, this noble instrument of the central government of
the Church owes that distinction and cohesiveness, that dis­
tribution of offices, that unhurried moderation in action which
make the intelligence and will fit for ordered and fruitful work,
whose indispensable quality and highest glory must consist in
the apostolic inspiration which animates it.

947
It seems to Us that the Roman Curia, with the external
(123, multiplicity of its commissions, the unity of their organic con280,) nection, the unique central idea which dominates it, the common
role and duty which bind all its members,—those members, who.
certainly, non eumdeni actum habent, but move together to the
same exalted end: to be precious cooperators in the service of
souls for the growth and preservation of the Kingdom of Christ
on earth, and unite around him who, for the responsible mind
of Gregory the Great is serous servorum Dei,—it seems to Us.
We say, that the Roman Curia is a diamond unmatched in the
brilliance of the multiform splendor of its facets, beautiful with
the living and brilliant reflections of all the sacred congregations,
set among the jewels of the pontifical tiara as a symbol of your
radiance and your love.
THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD
All. to the Sacred College, June 2, 1939.
(The Cardinals' feast wishes.)

948
The Church is not the daughter of this world; but she is in
(11. it, she lives in it. from it she receives her children; she shares
63. all its alternatives of joy and sorrow; it is in the setting of this
67) world that she suffers, strives, and prays,—just as, in the period
of her origin, she prayed with the great Apostle Paul and
offered "supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings
for all men: for kings, and for all that are in high station;
that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all piety

THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD

499

and chastity. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of
God our Savior, who will have all men to be saved, and to
come to the knowledge of the truth" (a). What is this, if not
a prayer for peace among men which the Church, from the
dawn of Christianity, raises to God who wills all men to be
saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth?
The Church’s mission as peace-maker
But in the course of history, in the reality of the events 949
through which she passes, the Church’s progress has become (84,
more difficult and more arduous than in other ages. She finds 133)
herself in a world of opposition and faction, of conflict in
ideas and interests, of immoderate theory and measureless am­
bition, of fear and temerity;—in the heart of a humanity which
seems unable to recognize or decide what stand it should take:
to accept as primary rule of action and final arbiter of its
own destiny the power of the sword or the noble sovereignty
of law, to place its confidence in reason or in strength. This
is the reason why the Spouse of Christ encounters more ob­
stacles and objections in her efforts to assure the reception she
desires for her principles and her exhortations, always dictated
by her religious mission and tending in their development to
the good of individual peoples as well as of the entire human
community; to assure likewise that loyal eagerness to accept
these principles, without which her words will remain "a voice
crying in the desert: uox clamantis in deserto" (a). On the
other hand, the sacred duties of Our apostolic ministry can
admit only exterior obstacles: neither the fear of seeing Our
intentions misinterpreted nor Our plans misunderstood (though
they are always directed toward the good), prevent Us from
exercising that salutary office of peace-maker which is proper to
the Church.
Arbitration of the Church
The Church does not allow herself to be seduced or en- 950
slaved by particular interests. She does not intend, without an (93.
invitation, to concern herself with territorial disputes between 131.
States, nor to be drawn into the complexity of the conflicts which 133,
easily result from them. However, she cannot, in times when 162)
peace is gravely endangered and passions are inflamed in dis948a 1 Tim. 2:1-4.

949a Isolas 40:3; Matt. 3:3.

500 I HE JURIDICAL CHURCH, THE CHURCH OF CHARITY
cussion, id tain from a maternal word, and, if circumstances
permit, she oflers her maternal services to prevent the imminent
use of force, with its incalculable results, material, spiritual,
and moral (a).

(Negotiations of the Holy See with heads of Slates to se­
cure peace—Confidence in God.)
THE JURIDICAL CHURCH
AND THE CHURCH OF CHARITY

All. to the Roman seminarians, June 24, 1939.
(The end of the priesthood.—The constitution Deus scienti­
arum of Pius XI.—The error of relativism.—Science and theology.
—Prayer and sacrifice.)
951
Beloved sons, use the excellent and special opportunity
(131) which your stay in Rome provides, to exercise this charity' toward
the multitude of young men, who, although widely different in
national origin, are of the same age, of the same faith, the same
vocation, the same love for Jesus Christ, and finally the same
rights in the Church as you enjoy. Use this occasion, We say,
to cultivate charity, and neither say nor do anything that can
wound it. however slightly. Leave the disputes of political parties
to others: this is not your affair. Do you communicate to one
another what may concern or aid the apostolate, the care of souls,
the state of the Church and its increase.

952
(12,
17,
69,
144,
160,
182)

Obedience
Finally, if you wish to grow in the love of Christ, you must
cultivate the obedience, the confidence, the love of sons towards
the Vicar of Jesus Christ. For in him you venerate and obey
Christ; Christ is present to you in his person. It is false to distinguish the juridical Church from the Church of charity. There
is no such distinction, the Church which was founded juridically,
whose head is the Pontiff, is also the Church of Christ, the
Church of charity, the world-wide family of Christians. Let those
sentiments which in a true Christian family closely unite father
950a For interventions of the Church to secure peace, cf. INTER­
NATIONAL PEACE.

■?>·
_________________

THE SACRAMENTS OF CHRIST AND THE CHURCH

501

with sons and sons with father reign between Us and yon (a).
And you who live in this City are witnesses to the fact that
this Apostolic See, laying aside every human consideration, thinks
of nothing, desires nothing else but the good, the happiness, the
salvation of the faithful and of the entire human race; you have
acquired this confidence from your own experience of the
Church; communicate it to your brothers throughout the entire
world, so that you may all be one with the Sovereign Pontiff in
the charity of Christ, (bruits and consolations of the apostolate.)

THE SACRAMENTS OF CHRIST AND THE CHURCH
All. to the Tribunal of the Sacred Rota, October 2, 1939.
(The Pope’s love for the college of auditors of the Rota —
The nobility of their function: the service of justice.)
Among the decisions handed down by the Roman Rota, the 953
greater number are pronouncements in matrimonial cases which (64,
lave reference to the dignity and inviolability' of the sacrament 65)
which is great in Christ and the Church (a). It is the sublime
bond of the spouse and his beloved which is the love and the
union of Christ and of the Church: it is a communion of holiness,
which generates the blessed; an inseparable union whose end is
life eternal. For his militant Church, Christ is the conqueror to
the end ol time; lor the Church suffering. He is the consoler by
reason of the infinite merits ol his divine Blood; for the Church
triumphant, He is the one who crowns the victory in the struggles
of this world.
(The number of causes is a sign of the extension of the
Church. )
The universality which the great number of causes from the 954
entire world gives to the tribunal of the Roman Rota constitutes ( 139.
952a Denkpic .si amorc Christi crescere vultis, foveatis oportet
obivdicntiain tpta filiorum fiduciam, ainorem erga Jesu Christi
Vicarium. Christo enim in Eo reverentiam et obœdientiam exhibe­
tis, Christus in Ipso vobis pnesens est Perperam secernitur
ecclesia juridica ah ecclesia caritatis. Non ita, sed illa Ecclesia
ture fundata, cujus caput Pontifex est. eadem est Ecclesia Christi.
Ecclesia caritatis, utiiversat/tte Christianorum familia. Sensus illi,
qui in familia vere Christiana patrem cum filiis, filios vero cum
patre ardissime conjungunt, inter Nos et vos regnent.
953n Cf. Ephes. 5:32.

502

PROGRAM OF A PONTIFICATE

161) the glory of its wisdom and prudence. At the same time it is a
sign of the unity of the Church founded on Peter, in whose name
she renders justice, thanks to the jurisprudence whose competence has won for it a world-wide reputation.
(Impartiality and disinterestedness of the Rota.)
PROGRAM OF A PONTIFICATE
Encycl. Summi Pontificatus, October 20, 1939.
(Inauguration of the Pontificate on the 40th anniversary of
the consecration of the human race Io the Sacred IIcart.-Thc
royal dignity of Christ.—Gratitude to Catholics, to nations, to
heads of States. )
955
As Vicar of Him who, in a decisive hour, before the one who
(144, exercised the greatest authority of the day, pronounced the mag165. nificent words: “For this was I born, and for this came I into
167) the world; that I should give testimony to the truth. Everyone
that is of the truth, hearcth my voice’ (a), there is nothing, We
led. will so acquit us of Our duty to Our office and Our times
as “to give testimony to the truth.’ This duty, which We must
perform with apostolic firmness, necessarily comprises the expo­
sure and refutation ol the errors and faults of men, which it is
necessary to recognize and acknowledge so that the proper
remedy and care may be brought to bear: “you shall know the
truth, and the truth shall make you free” (b). In this duty which
is incumbent upon Us, We will not be moved by human and
worldly considerations; nor will We refrain from the purpose We
have proposed by reason of diffidence, or misunderstanding, or
rebuffs. Neither will fear that either Our actions may not be
understood by others, or that they may be falsely interpreted,
deter Us from Our purpose. But. earnestly and diligently We
will pursue that purpose, compelled by fatherly love which,
while it commands Us to struggle against the evils which afflict
Our children, commands Us at the same time to indicate to them
the proper remedies, in imitation of the example of the Divine
Shepherd. Christ the Lord, who is at once light and love: "doing
the truth in charity” (c).
(Christ’s rights.—The tear, result of modern errors.—Natural
law and moral laic.)
955a John 18:37

955b John 8:32.

955c Ephes. -1:15.

PROGRAM Ol /\ PONTIFICATE

503

The Church, principle of cohesion for Europe
As you know, Venerable Brothers, the negation of the fonn- 956
dation of the moral order in Europe in the past sprang from the (7/2.
rejection by many of the doctrine of Jesus Christ, of which the 165)
See of Blessed Peter is the guardian and exponent. By means
of this teaching, the peoples of Europe were, in former times,
given a coherent Christian mentality, so that, ennobled and
civilized by the Cross, they made such progress in civil matters
that they were able to instruct other nations and other lands in
these disciplines. But when they asserted themselves against the
infallible authority of the Church and separated themselves from
Us, many went so far, unfortunately, as to repudiate the very
divinity of our Savior, the chief and. as it were, the central
Christian teaching, thus hastening the destruction and dissolution
of religion itself (a).
(The ruin of all social order.—Return to fundamental prin­
ciples: unity of the human race.—Legitimate diversity in unity.)

All those who enter the Church, whatever their origin or 957
their language, must know for certain that they arc in the house (213
of a common Father, in which all enjoy the law and the peace of
Christ, and all have the ven' same rights of sons.
(Church and stale.—The state, its mission. its rights, its limits.
-Errors of state absolutism.—Their results.—Remedies.)
Catholic Action
In every class of citizens and at every level of society, the 95S
collaboration of the laity given to the sacred ministers manifests (217,
very precious energy to which is committed a dutv as noble and 219)
as beautiful as the most faithful heart could wish; nor is anv dtitv
more consoling. This apostolic labor, carried out in the spirit
and bya the methods of the Church,
· bv that· verv fact consecrates
laymen as ministers of Christ, as St. Augustine explains so well:
“Brethren, when ... you hear the Lord say, ‘Where I am. there
shall my minister be,’ do not think only of good bishops and
priests. For you also minister to Christ in your own way. by holy
956a At cum ab inerranti Ecclesia· magisterio se vindicavissent
plurcs a Nobis sejuncti fratres eo, proh dolor, processerunt, ut
ipsam Servatoris nostri divinitatem, quod Christian.e doctrina·
caput est ac veluti centrum, respuendo subverterent, reliRionis
conversionem dissolutionemque maturantes.

504

PROGRAM OF A PONTIFICATE

living, by giving alms, by preaching his name and doctrine to
any you can, so that by that very name every head of a family
may recognize that he owes a father’s love to his family. Let it be
for Christ and with a view to eternal life that he admonishes,
teaches, exhorts, corrects them; let him (in this name) show
kindness or exert discipline towards them; so in his home he will
fulfill the office of priest and in some sense that of a bishop, min­
istering to Christ, so that he may dwell eternally with Him” (a).
(Role of the family.—Civilizing mission of the Church.)

959
(75,
9192,
162)

Hopes for liberty of the Church
Therefore, We ardently desire nothing so much as this: that
the anguish of the present may dispel the blindness of many men
so that they can attentively consider in its true light their duty
to Christ the Lord and to the Church, and so that all governors
may grant freedom to the Church to form a new generation and
establish it on bases of justice and peace. This work of peace
certainly supposes that no impediments will be placed in the way
of the Church’s exercise of the function entrusted to her by God.
that no unjust limits restrict the Church’s field of activity, finally,
that multitudes of the people—and especially the youth-shall
not be withdrawn from her beneficent influence. Therefore, as
representative of Him who is called “Prince of Peace’’ by the
holy prophet (a), We appeal to all rulers of states and to all
those who in any way are engaged in government, and We ur­
gently entreat them to allow the Church enjoyment of that en­
tire liberty which is her right, so that she can pursue her work of
education, to impart truth to minds, to inculcate justice in souls,
and to enkindle hearts with the divine charity of Jesus Christ.

900
For if the Church cannot, on the one hand, relinquish the
(76, exercise of her office, whose end is to carry out that divine comS3, mand, namely, “to re-establish all things in Christ, that are in
125) heaven and on earth" (a), on the other hand her work seems
more necessary today than ever before. For We are learning by
experience that external means by' themselves cannot bring an ef­
ficacious remedy to the grave evils humanity' suffers, any more
than can merely human measures or political expedients.
958a In Evang. Joan, tract., LI, 13.
959a Isaias 9:6.
960a Ephes. 1:10.

PROGRAM OF Λ PONTIFICATE

505

Many men, therefore, appreciating the sad insufficiency of 961
these human measures, hoping to calm the storms and cjuell the (84,
forces which are threatening to overturn civilization and human- 99,
ity, turn their eyes with renewed hope towards the Church, the 133,
ark of true charity, and towards the See of Blessed Peter, which, 181)
they know, can restore that unity of religion and moral discipline,
which in former times assured continuance of pacific relations
among the nations.
The benefit of unity
To such unity, indeed, many men upon whom the welfare of 962
nations depends, look forward with ardent longing. They have f 159)
daily experience of the ineffectualness of the measures in which
they formerly had so much confidence (a). Unity, We say, which
the innumerable army of Our sons implores with ardent prayer
and desire, for which they daily petition “the God of peace and
of love" (b). Finally, unity which is desired by many noble
minds, separated from Us, but nonetheless hungering and thirst­
ing after justice and peace; they turn their eyes to the See of
Peter to receive light and counsel from it.

They recognize in the Catholic Church an unshaken stability 963
in the profession of the Christian faith and moral precepts which (44.
has been tried by almost twenty centuries. They recognize, too, 67
the closest union in the ecclesiastical hierarchy, which, united to 194
the successor of the Prince of the Apostles, labors incessantly to 197
enlighten minds with the truth of the Gospel teaching, to guide 228
men to holiness of life, and, while showing maternal kindness to
all, stands firm even in the face of cruel torture and martyrdom
itself when she has to condemn any procedure with the words
Non licet!
(The Church is unjustly suspected of undermining civil
authority. )
The “corner-stone”
For Christ alone is “the chief corner-stone” (a), in whom 964
alone civil society as well as individual men can find stabilit} and (228salvation. Indeed, since it is on this corner-stone that the Church 229)
was founded, never will she be overthrown by hostile forces,
962a Ad quam quidem unitatem tot homines, a quibus nationum
fortuna pendet, incenso respiciunt desiderio, cum continenter
earum rerum fallaciam experiantur, quibus tantopere olim confisi
erant.
962b Cf. 2 Cor. 13:11.
964a Cf. Ephes. 2:20.

506

THE CHAIR OF PETER

never deprived of her strength: "the gates of hell shall not pre­
vail" (b). On the contrary, internal and external struggle will
rather increase her vitality and strength, furnish her with new
victories, confer on her new triumphs. On the other hand, even
structure whatever which is not founded on the doctrine of Jesus
Christ as on a solid basis, will be seen to have been raised on
shifting sand and is doomed to miserable collapse (c).
(Homage to Poland.—Time of trial.)
965
The Catholic Church, the city of Cod, "whose king is truth,
(67, whose law is charity, whose form is eternity" (a), teaching Chris72, tian truth unharmed by error or extenuation of any kind, spend99) ing herself with a mother’s love in the works of Christian charity,
towers above the ebb and flow of error and greed like a blest
vision of peace, awaiting the day when the all-powerful hand of
Christ the King will still the raging storms and banish the spirit
of dissension which has provoked them.
( Exhortation to prayer. )

THE CHAIR OF PETER

All. to newly-weds, January 17, 1940.
(The ancient custom of newly-married couples reciting their
Credo in the Vatican basilica.)
966
The episcopal throne is a seat, more or less raised and more
(.99- or less solemn, from which the bishop teaches his flock. Look at
100, the throne where the first pope spoke to the first Christians, as
142, We are doing at this moment. There he excited them to vigilance
144, against the devil, who, like a roaring lion, goes about seeking
160, whom he may devour (a). There he exhorted them to firmness
165- in the faith, that they might not be led astray’ by false proph·
166, ets (b). This teaching of Peter continues in his successors, and
169) it will continue, unchanged, through all time, for such is the
mission which Christ Himself has given to the Head of the
Church.
To emphasize the universal and indefectible character of
this teaching, the seat of the spiritual primacy was, after a pro9641) Matt 16:18.
964c Matt. 7:26-27.
965a St Augustine, Ep. CXXX\ 111 ad Marcellinuni, c. 3, n. 17.
966a 1 Peter 5:8-9.
966b 2 Peter 2:1; 3:17.

HIE VICAR OF CHRIST

507

vidential preparation, fixed in the city of Rome. God, according
to the words of Our great predecessor Leo I, by his providence
brought people to unite in a single empire of which Rome was
the capital, so that from Rome the light of truth, revealed for the
salvation of all peoples, might spread more easily in all its
members (c).
Perennial character of the Primacy
The successors of Peter, mortal like other men, die like them, 967
more or less quickly. But the primacy of Peter will last forever. (60,
thanks to the special assistance promised to him when Jesus 142.
charged him to confirm his brethren in the faith (a). What mat- 165,
ters the name, the face, the human origins of each Pope? It is 170,
always Peter who lives in him; it is Peter who guides and directs 175)
him; it is Peter above all who teaches and who spreads through
the world the light of the truth which sets men free. This fact
has made one great sacred orator exclaim that God has estab­
lished at Rome an eternal chair: "Peter will live in his succes­
sors; Peter will speak forever from his chair” (b). Now, here is
the great warning-We have already mentioned it—which St. Pe­
ter addressed to the Christians of his own day: "There were also
false prophets among the (chosen) people, even as there shall
he among you lying teachers.... You, therefore, knowing these
things before: take heed, lest being led aside by the error of the
unwise, you fall from your own steadfastness” (c).
(Do not listen to false prophets.—Imitate the courage of
Peter.-Receive his teaching with docility.)

THE VICAR OF CHRIST

All. to newly-weds, April 17, 1940.
( The benefit of a papal audience. )
The real and true cause of your joy? It is that sou see in the 968
Pope, whoever he may be, the representative of God here below, (142.
the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the successor of Peter, of I’eter whom 144
Our Lord made the visible head of his Church when he gave him 145)
the keys of the kingdom of heaven and the power to bind and
loose (a). The senses, so to speak, here second faith; what you
966c Sermon LXXXII, 2 and 3.
967a Luke 22:32.
967b Bossuet, Sermon on the uniti/ of the Church. /.
967c CL 2 Peter 2:1; 3:17.
968a Matt. 16:18-19.

<c

MARY AND PETER

508

see and hear strengthens within you what you must believe.
Certainly, it is not Jesus Christ in person who appears to
you now, as the multitudes saw Him on the shore of the Lake
of Tiberias in Palestine (b), or Martha and Mary in their house
at Bethany (c). At the same time, when you approach the Pope
you have the impression of being taken back twenty centuries,
into the presence of the Divine Nazarene, It seems to you that
you hear in the voice of the Pope the voice of the Redeemer,
that voice of which the Pope has always been the echo through
the centuries. When he raises his hand to bless you, you know
that this poor hand transmits to you, so to say, heavenly help
and favors. Finally, when you feel the heart of the Pope beat
close to your own, you are not at all mistaken in believing
that you see in the attitude, the words, the deeds which the
Lord inspires in him, something of the beating and the intimate
emotions of the Heart of Jesus. This is true because Christ gave
his Vicar when He said to him. “Feed my lambs, feed my
sheep’’ (d), something of his own redemptive and compassionate
love for souls.
(See God in the Eucharist, in nature, in personal and family
prayer.—Pray icith the Church, for the Church, and for the Pope.)

MARY AND PETER

All. to pilgrims of Genoa, April 21, 1940.
(The 450th anniversary of 'Notre Dame de la Garde at Genoa.
—The Blessed Virgin in the history of Genoa.—Christopher
Columbus.—The protection of the Blessed Virgin.)
969
Raised above Peter, the Vicar of Christ on earth, the Mother
(33, of Our Lord Jesus shares with Peter, in a manner which is en·
141, tirely her own. a dignity, an authority, a magisterium which
163) associates her in everything with the .Apostolic college. Because
she loved Jesus more than Peter did it was to her that Jesus
confided in the person of John, beneath the world’s redemptive
Cross, all men to be her sons: the sheep and the lambs
of the flock, in the fold and outside it, making of her in some sort
a divine guardian, the common and universal Mother of all the
believers, and making her like to Peter who is the common and
968b Cf. John 6:1-2.
968d Cf. John 21:15-17.

i______

968c Cf. John 11:1,

THE THREE CHURCHES

509

universal Father and the earthly Shepherd. She is the august
Sovereign oi the Church militant, suffering, and triumphant, the
Queen of Saints, the mistress of every virtue, of love, of fear,
of knowledge, and of holy hope. In her bloomed the pure rose
of paradise. In her began that new era for humanity which
brings to flower in the Church lilies, violets, and corollas of
the sweetest and most admirable fragrance. If Peter holds the
keys of heaven, Mary has the keys of the heart of God. If Peter
binds and looses, Mary binds also with the chains of love. She
also looses, by the art of forgiveness. If Peter is the guardian
and the minister of indulgence, Mary is the prudent and gen­
erous Treasurer of divine favors, and "To desire grace without
recourse to her, is to desire to fly without wings (a).
(Confidence in the Blessed Virgin.) (b)
THE THREE CHURCHES
All. to newly-weds, November 6, 1940.
(Memory of the deceased.)

You are not ignorant of the fact that the sacred liturgy close- 970
ly unites the commemoration of the faithful departed to the (7,
solemnity of All Saints. This union throws into singular relief 45)
the dogma of the Communion of Saints, that is to say, the dogma
of the intimate spiritual body which unites with Cod and with
each other all souls in the state of grace. These souls are divided
into three groups: some are already crowned in heaven and
form the Church Triumphant; others are detained in Purgatory'
until their full and final purification; they constitute the Church
Suffering; others, finally, still journey on this earth and compose
the Church Militant. The solemnity of All Saints coidd. in some
senses, be called the Feast of the Three Churches. The oration
of this feast invokes the mercy of God by' the merits of all the
Saints; omnium Sanctorum merita sub una tribuisti celebritate
venerari: “O God, who has granted us to celebrate in one
solemnity' the merits of all Your Saints.” Now, merits exist in
the three Churches: glorified merits in the triumphant; merits
which have been acquired and which can neither be increased
969a Dante. Parad,, XXXIII, 13-15.
969b The portions of this discourse which are here omitted may
be read in the volume OUR LADY, Nos. 358 ff.

510

MATERNITY OI THE CHURCH

or lost, but which still await their reward, in the suffering
Church; merits which have been acquired and which can be
increased, but also completely lost, in the Church militant
The feast of All Saints is, therefore, a great feast for all soub
in the state of grace.
(Nature of sanctity.)
MATERNITY OF THE CHURCH

971

(63.
67.
116.
206)

All. to members of the Catholic Action of Italv, Novem­
ber 10, 1940.
(The Pope's affection for the young.—Competitive sporls.Emulation in study and virtue—The Church, mother anil
teacher. )
When you were very little, right after your birth, you
were brought to the Church; baptismal water flowed over your
head and lorehead; the salt of wisdom was put on your lips,
your breast was anointed with the oil of salvation; your soul,
purified from original sin, was as if spiritualized, like a celestial
being. Who performed this miracle in you? Who regenerated
vou? Who gave you a new life which neither your father nor
vour mother could give you with their blood? The Spouse o(
Christ, Holy Church, was the mother of your soul; she kissed
you on the forehead with heavenly affection; she pressed you
to her heart as the child of the blood poured out by her Divine
Spouse who loves you and delivered Himself to death for you.
The Church, by the hand and the voice of her priest, accom­
plished in you this great miracle of divine grace; mystenr of
the redeemed soul, fathomless abyss of the justice and of the
mercy of God in your call to salvation, thanks to the baptism
of regeneration. Then, grace, with the divine seeds of faith,
hope, and charity, and all the other virtues, was infused in
you; it made you participants of the divine nature. To our
Holy Mother the Church, who asked for your profession of
faith, you answered by the lips of your god-parents, that vou
believed in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and
earth; that you believed in Jesus Christ. His only Son, Our
Lord, who was born and who suffered; that you believed
also in the Holy Spirit, in the holy Catholic Church, the Com­
munion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of
the dead, and life everlasting.

·;

Illi LIVING SLONES OF THE CHURCH

But if the Church was a loving Mother to you in baptism. 972
she was both your teacher and your strength in confirmation, (116)
confirming and strengthening you in faith and virtue against
the spiritual enemies who lay their snares for your mind and
the integrity of your will. By the admirable gifts of the Holy
Spirit she clothed vou. like soldiers of Christ, crusaders, knights
of faith and of virtue, in that divine armor of which the Apos­
tle Paul speaks so profoundly in his epistle to the Ephesians,
when he urged the first Christians to struggle against the
powers of this darkness (a). Here, beloved sons, is the field
on which you will be able to show your Christian valor, for
which you have been given your preparation, your formation,
your direction by the Church, the Mother of heroes.
(Faith.—The Eucharist and the Mass.—To grow in the
knowledge of Christ.)
THE LIVING STONES OF THE CHURCH

All. to newly-weds, January’ 15, 1941.
(Two privileged states of life: orders and matrimony, for
which the Savior has instituted sacraments.)
When the Son of God deigned to become incarnate, the
word of the Savior of the human race brought back to its
initial splendor the conjugal bond of man and wife which
human passions had caused to fall from its noble origin, and
He raised it to the dignityof a sacrament, of a very great
sacrament in the union of Christ with his spouse, the Church,
our Mother, made fruitful by the divine Blood to regenerate
us in the word of faith and the water of salvation (a), and
“to give the power to be made the sons of God, to them that
believe in his name. Who are born, not of blood, nor of the
will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (b).
(The double paternity of marriage and the sacrament of
orders. )
Such is the high idea which the Church gives us of the
priesthood and of marriage, the Church which John saw coming
down from heaven, like the Holy City, the New Jerusalem,
prepared as a bride adorned lor her husband (a). In the course
972a Ephes. 6:10 if.
973b John 1:12-13.

973a Cf. Ephes. 5:26.
974a Apoc. 21:2.

973
(65.
68)

(6465)

512

975
(86,
116,
160)

BIRTH OF THE CHURCH

of the centuries she is raised on high, formed of living stones,
the baptized and sanctified souls, as the sacred liturgy sings,
until that day at the end of time, when she will ascend to
unite herself to Christ in the heavenly joy of the eternal mar­
riage feast.
Who are the workers who labor at her slow construction?
First of all, the successors of the Apostles, the Pope and the
bishops with her priests, who place in position, polish and
cement the stones according to the architect’s plans. It is they
whom the Holy Spirit has established to rule the Church of
God. But what woidd they be able to do if they had not
beside* them other workers to quarry, to cut, and to dress the
stones, according to the needs of the building? And who are
these workers? They are the married couples who give to the
Church the living stones and skillfully prepare them.
(The ministry of parents in the natural and the super­
natural order.—Parents cannot escape their responsibilities.)
THE PATERNITY OF THE POPE

All. to newly-weds, March 19, 1941.
(Welcome.)
976
Your faith is not deceived when it sees in the Pope above
(16C all else the Father. But however great it is, this spiritual and
universal fatherhood, it is only a distant reflection of that supreme
paternity, that transcendant and infinite paternity, which St. Paul,
the Apostle of the Nations, adored as he bent the knee before
the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ: “For this cause I bow my
knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom all pater­
nity in heaven and earth is named” (a).
(The divine paternity in the Trinity,—in creation,—in man,
according to nature and according to grace.—Parents, collabora­
tors of the Heavenly Father.—The example of Tobias.)
BIRTH OF THE CHURCH

All. to the Cardinals, June 1. 1941.
(The feast of Pentecost.)
977
On the shores of the Lake of Tiberias, which Christ stilled in
(20- the storm and whose waters He filled with fish for the Apostles’
976a Ephes. 3:14-15.

THE SACRAMENT OF UNITY

513

nets, the Church was born with Peter, the Shepherd of the lambs 21,
and the sheep. But the fire of the Spirit, which was to accomplish 88)
its baptism, the Church received within the peaceful walls of
the Cenacle, that there might he verified in her also the law of
supernatural birth: ex aqua et Spiritu Sancto— ’of water and the
Holy Spirit”—in the likeness of her Divine Founder and Spouse,
on whom, as He left the waters of the Jordan, the heavens
opened, and in the form of a dove the Spirit of God descended,
and the voice of the Father proclaimed Him the beloved Son.
the object of his complacency. The Father and the Son and the
Holy Spirit love the Church and abide in her; they make her, as
a great poet sings, “the Mother of Saints” and “the camp of
those who hope.”
(The feast of St. Eugene, the Pope’s patron.—The present
trials of Christianity and the responsibilities of the Pope.—The
50th anniversary of Rerum Novarum.)
THE SACRAMENT OF UNITY

R. M. to the 9th National Eucharistic Congress of the
United States, at St. Paid. Minnesota, June 26, 1941.
(The marvels of creation.—The Eucharist is a still greater
marvel. )
0 sacrament of tender love! O sign of unity! O Bond of
charity!" exclaimed St. Augustine (a). And the zealous Apostle
of the Gentiles, whose honored name your city has borne for
just one hundred years, has taught us the divinely inspired truth
in these words: “For we, though we be many, are one bread, one
body, all that partake of one bread" (b). “For what is the bread?"
asks St. John Chrysostom. “The Body of Christ. And what do they
become who partake of it? The Body of Christ; not many bodies,
but one body ... There is not one body for thee, and another for
thy neighbor to be nourished by. but the very same for all" (c).
Yes. the sacrament of our altars is a source of union which
transcends all the accidents of history, all the diversifying traits
and peculiarities, which have divided our scattered human family
into different groups. It reconsecrates, it elevates, it sanctifies
978a In Joannis Evang., tract. XXVI, c. 6, n. 13.
9781) I Cor. 10:17.
978c In Epist. I ad Cor., Ilomil., XXIV, n. 2.

97S
(51)

979
(51)

WORKS OF MERCY

514

that union which our common nature and our universally shared
destiny proclaim. It purifies that love which every human heart
should cherish for all his fellowmen—that love which quickens
our zeal to come to the defense of the spiritual and moral rights
of our fellowmen—it deepens that love and steadies it, so that
no withering blast may make it droop and die. “By this shall all
men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for
another” (a). And if through Holy Communion we become one
with Christ, how can we fail to love all men, for whose love Christ
died on the Cross?
(The importance of personal sacrifice in our daily Christian
life. )
The persecuted Church
980
But you must not forget that you belong to a Church whose
(29) Founder and Head was scourged, mocked, and crucified (a);
and that His Body, which is the Church, as it has always suffered
persecution, so it is today being persecuted—persecuted in some
of its members so artfully, that it is difficult to measure how farreaching the effect may be.
( Exhortation. )
WORKS OF MERCY

Letter, Intimo gaudio, June 29, 1941, to the Spanish
episcopate.
(Felicitations on the zeal shown in the organization and
studies in seminaries.—The benefit of integrity of faith.—The
witness of the members of the clergy who died for the faith in
the recent revolution.—What should be the formation of sem­
inarians. )
981
For if of every priest it is required beyond doubt that he
(78, appear and be in reality "the man of God ... perfect, furnished
82, to every good work" (a), this can be asked especially of the
133) priests of Spain since they are your collaborators not only in the
administration of the sacraments, but also in the exercise of
works of charity, which the Church properly claims as a right
and duty proper to herself. Through her ministers she alleviates
grief with consolation, soothes bitter sufferings, softens bitter
want and misery. She must also work actively to pacify minds,
to strengthen the faithful, finally, to call back to her maternal
979a John 13:35.

980a Matt. 20:19.

98la 2 Tim. 3:17

ECCLESIASTIC AL I AW

515

embrace all who, whether led astray by false opinion and error,
or victims of their own frailty and lightness, have wandered
from her.
(The priest must keep himself foi his ministry.—Clerical
studies. )
ECCJ ESIASTICAL LAW
All. to the tribunal of the Rota. October 3. 1941.
(Opening of the new juridical year.—For the third time it
takes place amid the sorrows of war.)
By reason of the charge given yon by the Apostolic See, you 982
arc at the spiritual center of Christendom, ministers of the law,(120)
chosen representatives ol a juridical power penetrated with the
sacred sense of responsibility, dedicated to the good ordained
with justice and equity in the Catholic world. Hence, it is not a
new idea for yon that the administration of justice within the
Church is a function of the care of soids, an emanation of that
pastoral power and solicitude whose plenitude and universality
are rooted and founded in the bestowal of the keys on the first
Peter.
This is why, in the midst of the contradictory and corrosive 983
tendencies of an agitated and tormented world, the Church has (49.
ever proceeded firm and serene on her road of justice, not 89.
intimidated by enemies, not committed in a servile way to friends. 123,
bid yon, in your studs of her history so crowded with struggle 131,
and victory, you see her unchanged and immovable on the un- 224.
shakable foundation of the constitution given her bv her Divine 228)
Founder, erecting, in the course of the centuries, under the
inspiration ol the Spirit and as an expression of the fruitful
fullness of her life, a body of Jaw which, offering to all people
and to all nations, to every tribe and tongue the same juridical
situation, has given to the universal grex dominicus—“the flock
of the Lord”—an order in which unitv and breadth, liberty ami
discipline, are admirably conjoined, vivified, and sustained.
\nd, at the present time, when it appears that many men have
lost their respect for the majesty of the law', when considerations
of utility and interest, of force and of wealth, prevail against
the law, it is all (he more necessary that the organ ol the Church
dedicated to the administration ol justice give to and inculcate
in the Christian people tin* vivid consciousness that the Spouse
of Christ is never less than herself, does not change her way

516

THE VICAR OF THE PRINCE OF PEACE

with the passing of time, but is always the same and advances
in fidelity to her divine mission (a). This is the very noble pur­
pose to which your illustrious College, tends in an eminent
manner.
(The authority of the Rota.—Matrimonial cases: The right
to marriage, declaration of nullity, indissolubility.)
The Power of Vicar
(Absolute indissolubility of a marriage ratum et consumma­
tum.)
984
Other marriages, although intrinsically indissoluble, nonethe(124, less have not an absolute extrinsic indissolubility, but given cer176) tain conditions, can—and there is question, as is known, of cases
relatively very rare—be dissolved, otherwise than by the Pauline
privilege, by the Roman Pontiff in virtue of his ministerial privi­
lege. [Norms of judgment to be applied.] In every case, the
supreme norm, according to which the Roman Pontiff makes use
of his power as Vicar to dissolve marriages is the one which We
have already indicated at the beginning as the rule for the exer­
cise of judicial power in the Church, that is to say the salus ani­
marum, the salvation of souls, for obtaining which the common
good of the religious society and, in general, of human societ}’, as
also the good of the individual find their due and proportionate
reasons (a).
(Inauguration of the new seat of the Rota.—Benediction.)

THE VICAR OF THE PRINCE OF PEACE
All. to the Sacred College, December 24, 1941.
(Christ, the Prince of Peace.—Divisions in the world.)
98S
You, Venerable Brothers and Beloved Sons, who are the most
(46· intimate and faithful collaborators in Our work, you can appre983a E neir età présente, (/nanto più appare scosso in non pochi

il rispetto alla maestà del diritto, quanto più al diritto prcvalgono
considerazioni di utilité e di intéressé, di forza e di ricchezza.
tanto più conviene che pli organi della Chiesa dediti αΙΓoimninistrazione della giustizia diano e infondano al popolo Cristiano l/i
viva coscienza che la Sposa di Christo non viene mai mena a jc
stessa, nè muta cammino per mutare di giornata, ma seinpfe t c
si avanza fedele alla sua sublime missione.
984a In ogni caso, la norma suprema, seconda la quale il Romann
Pontcficc fa uso della sua potestà vicaria di sciogliere matrimoni,

THE MINISTRY ΟΓ I ME WORD

517

date and weigh what are the burdens and duties, what are the 45
preoccupations and labors, what are the sufferings and anxieties 16].
in this stormy time which press upon the shoulders and lie heavy 163)
on the heart of him who by the inscrutable divine design has been
called to be the Father loving all without exception, the under­
standing comforter of another’s sufferings, the firm spokesman
of the truth, the vigilant guardian of a unity of spirit willed by
God above all that can separate, in the whirlpool of the contra­
dictions of this world the untiring defender and promoter of that
sense of brotherhood which is rooted in faith, in hope, and in
charity (a). Our soul, when it struggles for truth and for justice,
for goodness and for sanctity, for concord and for peace, does
not refuse and cannot refuse labor and action, prayer and sacri­
fice. We are the Vicar of the Prince of Peace, who pacifies and
reconciles, uniting in Himself heaven and earth, and inaugurating
from his cradle the reign of peace among men of good will.
(Prayers are begged for the Pope.—The new order cannot be
established without light from on high.)

THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD
All. to newly-weds, January 21, 1942.
(W/iy the Pope speaks to newly married couples.—The in­
stitution of deacons by the Apostles, who are reserved for prayer
and the ministry of preaching.—Increase in the Church since that
time. )
The little grain of mustard seed sown in Jerusalem lias grown
into an immense tree: its branches cover the earth and in its
foliage dwell almost four hundred million believers. This is the
Kingdom of God, the Heavenly Father, of which the Divine
è quelle che Ria in principio abhiamo additata come la reRola delI’csercizio del polere Rutdiziario nella Chiesa. vale a dire la salus
animarum, per il cui conseRuimento cost il bene comune della
société religioso, c in generale dell'umano consorzio, come il bene
dei singoli trovano la dovuta e pronorzionata considerazione.
985a Di chi per inscrutabile Consiglio divino c chiamato ad esserc
Padre amante di tutti senza eccezione, dclle pene altrui comprensivo confortatore, della verità ferma annunciators, vigile
custode di un’unità di spiriio voluta da Dio sopra tutto ciô che
separa, nel vortice dei contrasti terreni instaneahile assertore c
promotorc di quel sentimento fraterno, che è radicato nella fode,
nella speranza, e nella caritâ.

986
(9.

10.
13.

518

44,
73,
137,
180)

THE MINIS I ID Ol

HIE WORD

Redeemer, in (lie Lord’s prayer, has us ask for the advent A
spiritual kingdom without doubt, hut one which develops and
carries out its work in this world, where we journey as pilgrims
on our way to a homeland situated beyond the stars. An immense
kingdom, in which has spread with eagerness and the certaintv
of a future which will encl only with time itself, the tiny family of
the first years. Made up of men united among themselves b\
visible bonds, and like an immense flock guided by a single and
sovereign Shepherd, it cannot dispense with an organ of govern­
ment, a hierarchy of persons, an administration of affairs. And
so, there are very many who imitate the first deacons, at Rome
and throughout the world, who second the Pope with admirable
zeal in the accomplishment of his heavy task.

The Teaching Office
987
But. however vast and numerous be the cares of the govem(165) ment of the Church, he who sits in the Chair of the Apostles
cannot forget “the ministry of the word’(a), which St. Peter
considered, together with prayer, the most important of the du­
ties of the Apostle. Had not Christ said to him, to him and to
the other disciples: “Go, teach all nations what I have taught
you" (b)? And did not St. Paul cry out, “I owe my preaching to
the wise and to the ignorant" ( c )? “Is it not by the hearing that
faith enters the heart" (d )? Is not the word of God the way and
the truth and the life? It “is living and effectual, and more pierc­
ing than any two-edged sword; and reaching unto the division of
the .soul and the spirit, of the joints also and the marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (e). We love
the word of Cod: in it, it is the Word of God who shines forth,
manifests Himself, and in some way becomes incarnate a second
time for us.
988
Doubtless We exercise this ministry, in the first place, when
(166) on solemn occasions We address the entire Church, the Bishops,
Our Brothers in the episcopate. But, Father of all, as We are,
and even of the most humble, Shepherd not only of the sheep,
but also of the lambs, how could We reconcile Ourselves to re98 / a Acts 6:4: No.s vero orationi et ministerio verbi instantes eri­
mus, But we will give ourselves continually to praver. and to
the ministry of the word."
987b Cf. Matt. 28:19.
987c Of. Hom. 1:14.
987d Cf. Bom. 10:17.
987e Heb. 4:12.

THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE CHURCH

519

nounçe the simple exercise of this holy ministry of the word, and
not earn' directly with Our own voice to Our children the teach­
ing which Christ Our Master has confided to us (a)? Has not
God put into the heart of every priest, of every bishop, and
kindled there by the very grace ol priestly ordination or epis­
copal consecration, an unquenchable thirst for this holy ministry
among the Christian people?
You will therefore understand, beloved sons and daughters, 9S9
the intimate joy and the real comfort that penetrates and kindles (166)
Our soul when, in the midst of the grave cares of the universal
Church, We can come among you without any other thoughts
(han those of a Father, happy to be surrounded by his children;
any other thoughts than those of a priest, breaking the living
and nourishing bread of the Gospel teaching with the listeners
whom God sends to him, cooperating in this way with the work
of grace, to strengthen, increase, and stabilize in their minds
faith, confidence, and love, those virtues which sanctify for
heaven the course—sad or joyful, as God wills—of their lives
here below.
This is why—and here We show you the very' bottom of
Our heart—this is why We love to address you.
(Greatness of God's word.—We must open our hearts to
Him. )
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE CHURCH
All. to the Lenten preachers, February 17, 1942.
(Preach on the second part of the Apostles' Creed.—The
Inst judgment. )

It is toward that great day of God that the Church is
advancing, the mistress of faith and of morals for all peoples.
baptizing in the name of the Father, of the Son. and of the Holy
Spirit. And we, as we believe in the Father, Creator of heaven
and earth, and in the Son. the Redeemer of the human race, so
988a Scnza dubbio Noi esercitiamo talc ministero, in primo luopo,

quanclo in occasioni solenni Ci indirizziamo a lutta la Chiesa. ai
Vcscovi, Nostri I'ratelli nell’episcopalo; ma Padre di tutti, come
siamo. anche dei più umili. Pastore non solamento dello pecorelle.
hensi ancora denti agnelli, come Ci darebbe Γanimo di rinunciare
all'esercizio scmplice e sanlo del ministero della parola. a portare
(lireltamente con la Nostra voce ai Nostri fipli prinsepnamenti
che Ci ha affidati Cristo Nostro Maestro?

99G
(43,
48.

77,
88,

520

THE IIOLY SPIRIT AND THE CHURCH

99, we believe also in the Holy Spirit: Credo in Spiritum Sanctum,
102- Ί believe in the Holy Spirit." He is that Spirit, proceeding from
103, the Father and the Son as their consubstantial love, promised
110, and sent by Christ upon the Apostles on the day of Pentecost,
126, as virtue from on high who should fill them, as Paraclete and
131, Comforter to remain with them forever, the Spirit of truth, the
229) Spirit invisible, unknown to the world, who should teach them
and recall to them all that Jesus had said to them (a). Show the
Christian people the infinite and divine power of this Creator
Spirit, the gift of God most High, the giver of every spiritual
gift, the gentlest of consolers, the light of hearts, who purifies
what is sinful in our souls, slakes our thirst, heals our wounds.
From Him, eternal love, comes down the fire of that charity
which Christ wishes to see kindled here below; that charity which
makes the Church one, holy. Catholic; which animates her, sus­
tains her and makes her invincible before the assaults of the as­
sembly of Satan; that charity which is the bond of union in the
communion of Saints; that charity which restores friendship with
God and remits sins. Are these not the great marvels of the grace
of the Holy Spirit? Is He not, by his gifts, the sanctifier of the
Church and of the union of the Christian people who restores the
dead to life, and men from the slavery of sin?
Rome, the center of the Church
991
O holy Catholic Church, by the grace of the Holy Spirit,
(10. we believe that you are, that you live, that you “suffer, struggle.
/39, and pray, and that your tents extend from sea to sea". Credo
142. sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam·. "I believe in the holy Catholic
153- Church." The stronghold of those who believe, of those who
156, hope, of those who love in the intimacy of their souls, show het.
161. O Beloved Sons, this Church, the Mother of souls, visible upon
165- the mountain (a), the light of the nations (b), visible in her life
167, in her history, in her struggles and in her triumphs, in her wor173, ship, in her sacraments, in her ministers, in her Hierarchy; via189) ble in this Rome, where the Vicar of Christ is the center of that
unity and the fountainhead of that authority, as the one to whom
must be united all other Shepherds and from whom they receive
immediately their jurisdiction and their mission. It belongs to
him to confirm them in faith, as the first and universal Pastor.
990a John 11:16-17, 26.
991a CL Matt. 5:11.

9911» CL John 11.10.

HIE HOLY SPIRIT AX'D 1 HE CHURCH

521

the Pastor of Pastors, to prevent and correct abuses, to keep in­
violable the deposit of Christ's doctrine and the sanctity of
morals, to give authentic condemnation to error. He alone, the
Successor ol Peter, the Inundation stone of the Church, can, after
the example of Peter among the Apostles at the first Council of
Jerusalem—of Peter, cuius dignitas etiam in indigno herede non
deficit, "whose dignity does not fail, even in an unworthy suc­
cessor" (c).—rise up. and. conscious of the dignity which he has
received horn Christ, can speak and say: “Men, brethren, you
know, that in former days Cod made choice among us, that by
my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel, and
believe" (d).
The politics of the Church
No; the Church, if she is in this world and composed of 992
men like the good and bad fish in the net (a), is not a (3,
kingdom of this world. Her “politics" is not and cannot be
9.
anything else but incessant work and fruitful sacrifice in the 45,
service of the truth and of love, of justice and peace among 63,
men, peoples, and nations. And the name of Catholic can be
employed only in an unfitting and improper manner, when 68,
it is used to mean and favor other sentiments and ideas among 93.
children who have the same faith, who have the same Mother, 116)
the Church. And no Christian, if he is a true son, should ever
be ashamed of her Catholicity any more than he should be of
the Gospel. Make her lovable and venerable, this holy Mother,
who regenerates her sons to the life of grace; who fortifies
them for the struggles of the spirit with the Bread of the
strong; who accompanies them with her ministers along their
way through life in joy and in sorrow; she gives them a share
in each of her treasures and favors in the Communion of Saints,
with her prayers, with her sacred mysteries, with all those graces
which How like a river from their source in charity in the
bond of peace, and penetrate even sinners, glorifying the
generous maternity of the Spouse of Christ.
The sense of the Church
Arouse and revivify in the faithful, especially in the young. 993
that spiritual strength, so necessary today, but which they too (2.
991c St. Leo, Senna III in anniv. die assumpl sun·. cap I\
991d Acts 15:7.
992a Cf Matt. 13:47-18.

522

YOUTHFULNESS OF THE CHURCH

13, often lack; the sense of Catholic honor. It is the pride and the
31) admiration of the son for his Mother. It is the sentire cum
Ecclesia. It is the consciousness that, for the faithful, religion,
Christ, and the Church are all one. The consciousness that
the Church is a perfect Society, with a sovereign right to
all that she needs for the accomplishment of her divine mission
The consciousness that the Church is Christ who continues to
live here below, and that love for Christ is equivalent to love
for the Church, and that love for the Church is love of Christ
994
(39,
4346,
51,
84,
137,
144,
163,
210)

The Church, the principle of peace
Credo Sanctorum communionem, “I believe in the Com·
munion of Saints.” Membership in the Church of Christ, one.
holy, Catholic, in which all the faithful have the same right of
citizenship; the one faith, which makes them all one in the most
intimate and the most noble sense; the one sacred table, which.
across mountains and seas, unites them all in Christ; the one
Holy Spirit, of whom all are the temples by virtue of sanctifying
grace; the one visible Head of the Catholic Church, who cmbraces all in the same love—all tins, by its very nature, and by
reason of the experience of centuries, constitutes the most power­
ful means to heal the wounds of war, to reconcile peoples, and
to restore peace.
(The communion of Saints.—The forgiveness of sins.-The
resurrection of the body.—Life everlasting.)

YOUTHFULNESS OF THE CHURCH
R. M. to the world. May 13, 1942.
(The episcopal jubilee of (he Holy Father—Anguish and
suffering of the war.—St. Peter and the first Christians.—The four
characteristics of primitive Christianity; certitude of victory,
promptness in sacrifice, ardor of Eucharistic life, spiritual and
hierarchical unity.)
|
995
True Christianity today is not different from primitive
(227)Christianity. The youthfulness of the Church is eternal, because
the Church does not age; in her progress towards eternity she
only adapts her exterior according to the needs of each epoch.
The centuries she already numbers are for her but a day; the
centuries she looks forward to are no more than a day.
(The certainty of victory.)

YOU I HFULNESS Ol THE CHURCH

523

The Church adapts herself but remains the same
The Church of our times cannot return purely and simply 996
to the rudimentary forms of the first tiny flock. In her maturity, (224,
which is not old age, she holds her head high and shows in her 226)
members the unfailing vigor of her youth; she remains what she
has been since her foundation: always the same. She changes
neither in her teaching nor in her strength: she is unassailable,
indestructible, invincible. She is unchangeable, inalterable in the
charter of her foundation which was sealed by the Blood of the
Son of Cod; and yet she moves, yet she clothes herself in new
forms as she advances with the times, progressing always without
changing her nature, because, as Vincent of L.erins says so ad­
mirably, the religion of the soul imitates the growth of bodies:
they develop and grow with the years; nonetheless, they remain
what they have always been, the same (a). The Church certainly
can look proudly and fearlessly at her past, at the gigantic edi­
fice, almost two thousand years old, of her magisterium and her
discipline, an edifice raised in virtue of the full development
and study of the truth confided to her; in virtue of the growth,
in strength and perfection, of her interior unity; in virtue of the
development of her liturgy, which is entirely centered on the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the sacraments; in virtue, finally,
of that leaven of the Christian spirit, which, adapting itself to
the times, penetrates more and more into every element and
even· condition of life. The Church, now arrived at the maturity
oi her mission as universal mother of all believers, faced with
needs and duties which are vaster than ever, could not consent,
without being unfaithful to herself, to turn back to the forms of
life and action of primitive Christianity (b).
(Generosity in sacrifice.—Today's persecutions.)

Fervor of Eucharistic life
(The Eucharist teas the principle of the fortitude of the
early Christians. )
The idea of the Eucharist is the center of faith today just 997
as it was in the first centuries. Its progress in the Church, its (51)
996a Commonit., XXII.
996b La Chiesa, pervenuta ormai alia matura sua missione di ma­
dré universale del popolo credente, davanti a hisopnl e dooeri
più vasti, non conscntirehhe, senza esserc infedele a se stessa. di
torcerc i suoi passi verso le forme di vita e di azione dei primi
tempi.

524

YOUTHFULNESS 01

ΠΙΕ CHURCH

spiritual and life-giving radiation on a humanity tortured by
egotism, envy, conflict, contradictions, and abandonment of the
dogma of the Cenacle, must become more living, more powerful,
to draw hearts to the divine banquet, to melt them, to inflame
them, to prepare in them the youthful warmth of union ol
hearts, of fraternal action which will assemble all men in peace
around the God of the tabernacle. In this sanctifying sign of the
Eucharist, the Church of today joyously and tenderly joins bands
with the primitive Church. The appeal of Christ’s goodness and
kindness, living among us, will never be silenced, and if, by the
providential act which He inspired in the incomparable Pius X.
He opened wide the sluices of the beneficent stream of the Eu­
charist, He did so because He considered that the age in which
we live requires in us no less firmness of faith, no less purity of
conduct, no less fraternal charity, no less a disposition for sacri­
fice than those which made the early days of the Church so
great and so admirable.

Union of mind and of hierarchy
998
Not less admirable, not less ardent was the zeal of the
(52, young Spouse of Christ at that time for the conservation, the
58. organization, and the strengthening of an indivisible unity' bind761) ing the faithful with their leaders. And now that the tragic
consequences of separation have been verified, of that separa­
tion which keeps at a distance from the Chair of Peter so many
of our brothers, to the detriment of the whole of Christianity
and their own power for action in the world, when, on the
contrary, the vital union between the Shepherd and the flock
in the Catholic world is being extended and manifests more and
more clearlv the benefits of its action, the hearts of Christs
faithful raise more urgently to heaven that prayer til untim sint,
“that they may be one”! To this prayer many others even among
those who live outside the visible Church, unite themselves with
ardent sincerity', because they realize that in a world hostile to
Christ the very existence of Christianity is imperiled.
999
But this prayer for the union of all believers,... whence
(152, could it arise with the fervor of a more intimate charity towards
155, Him who first directed it to his Father, enlightening souls and
160. touching hearts, than from this sacred hill towards which, at
167) the present moment, are directed the minds and the attention
of the entire Catholic world, towards the Chair of Peter, towards

DOUBLE MISSION ΟΓ· HIE CHURCH

525

this Mother, the Church, source of priestly union-ad Petri
cathedram atque ad Ecclesiam principalem, unde unitas sacer­
dotalis exorta est (a)? From this citadel of truth and salvation,
the noble and vast goal of which no one understood more pro­
foundly or described more eloquently than Leo the Great, Pope
and Doctor of the Church, when he wrote these memorable words:
"Beatus Petrus, Princeps Apostolici ordinis, ad arcem Romani des­
tinatur imperii, ut lux veritatis, quæ in omnium revelabatur salu­
tem, efficacius se ab ipso capite per totum mundi corpus effunde­
ret. Blessed Peter, Prince of the Apostolic college is placed at the
citadel of the Roman Empire so that the light of truth which was
revealed for the salvation of all men could spread with greater
effectiveness from the head to the entire body of the world” (b).
The prayer ut unum sint, when we think again of the primitive
Church, the unique and immaculate Mother of all the Churches,
where could it resound with a more powerful tone than on these
banks of the Tiber, providential seat of the first Peter, spiritual
fortress of Christendom, where the manifestations of heavenly
grace have been more striking and more liberal; on this shore
whose annals count among their most splendid pages the glorious
martyrdom of the Prince or the Apostles, and the eminent privilege
of giving to his mortal remains their last resting-place?
(The excavations of the Vatican Basilica.—The war and the
Church—The war and the family.—Appeal to statesmen in favor
of peace.)
DOUBLE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

All. to the men of the Catholic Action of Italy, Septem­
ber 20, 1942.
(Audience given on the occasion of the 20th anniversary
of the foundation of the men's union of Catholic Action in Italy.—
The mission of Catholic Action for the renewal of society.)
The Church of Christ is the light of the world, the salt of 1000
the earth, the pillar of truth and of grace, the throne of peace
and of justice. In the painful disorder in which humanity finds
itself, there is question of nothing less than the restoration and 40.
reorientation of all things in Christ, of re-establishing in its 58.
999a St. Cyprian, Epist. LIV ad Cornelium Rom , Xl\ .
999b Semi., LXXX1I. 3.

526

76,
84,
99,
112)

DOUBLE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

integrity and its vigor the entire make-up of that body of which
Christ is the head, and which, while triumphant in heaven
suffers and struggles here on earth. The one fold of Christ is
the Church founded on Peter, the Prince of the Apostles. And
Christ who gave his life for his sheep so that they might live
in Him and from Him in his own mystical body, has other sheep
which are not yet of this fold, erring sheep who know not their
Shepherd, members not grafted on the one life-giving body, but
separated, withered, deprived of the spiritual sap, who must,
nonetheless, be brought back to their Divine Shepherd so that
there may be but one flock and one Shepherd. In a word, this
work of renovation is none other than the re-establishment ol
the kingdom of God, inaugurated by Christ, which we must seek,
and all the rest will be added unto us (a).

1001
There is much talk today of building a new order. On the eve
(76, of the first coming of Christ, when the Roman world seemed to
84) be the whole universe, they were already expecting a new order.
and the gentle Vergil sang of that great hope and of the return of
the virgin goddess of justice: Magnus ad integro sæclorum nasci­
tur ordo; iam redit et Virgo (a). Again today the entire world feels
the need of a re-birth of order, in which each one will work in his
own way, in his own place, and for his own interests. Look at the
statesmen: what is, what should be their noble mission? Is it not
to ensure the common good in the temporal order, in harmony,
of course, with the exigencies of the eternal and supernatural
order? Look, on the other hand, at the Church. Her mission is
even higher: to restore, to promote, to extend, in the midst of
human society, the kingdom of God, outside of which it is not
possible to stabilize, even naturally speaking, this true and sincere
order, this permanent and calm order, which is the just definition
of peace. Without doubt, not all are, or can be, statesmen or
churchmen, but even private citizens, even the ordinary faithful,
in the mature strength of their judgment and their action,
resolutely devoted to the Church and to the State, can, by a
labor which is sometimes humble and obscure, but diligent and
effective, give aid and support to the two societies, ecclesiastical
and civil, in the progress and pursuit of their respective ends (b).
1000a Matt. 6:33.
1001a Eclog. IV, 5-6.
100lb This discourse in its entirety is to be found in DIRECTIVES
TO LAÎ APOSTLES, Nos. 46-73.

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

527

(The reform of self —The influence of a Christian life —
The apostolate in the family, professional life, society.—Exhor­
tation.)
THE MYSTICAL. BODY

Encycl., Mystici Corporis Christi, June 29. 1943.
Introduction
The doctrine of the Mystical Body of Christ, which is the 1002
Church (a), first received from the lips of the Redeemer Him­
a,
self, by which the great benefit—never sufficiently praised—of
2,
our close union with this august Head is placed in its true light
6)
is a matter of such excellence and dignity as to invite all men­
as many as are moved by the Divine Spirit—to contemplate it
And by illuminating their minds it stimulates them to the works
of salvation which are in keeping with this teaching. It is for this
reason that we are led to speak to you on this subject b\ an
Encyclical Letter, and to clarify and develop especially the
teaching which concerns the Church militant. Not only the great­
ness of the doctrine moves Us to do this, but also the present
condition of the world in which we live.
It is Our intention, in fact, to speak of the treasures hidden 1003
in the heart of the Church which Christ won for Himself with (23.
his blood (a), and whose members glory in their thorn-crowned 29)
Head. It is a striking testimony to the fact that the most glorious
and the most precious goods are born only of suffering, and that
consequently we must rejoice to share the passion of Christ, so
that we may exult with joy in the revelation of his glory (b).
The Church is misunderstood
And first we must note that just as the Redeemer of the 1004
human race was received with insults, calumnies, and torture by
(1,
the very men whose salvation He had undertaken to secure, so
the society instituted by Him had to resemble in this her Divine 130)
Founder. Indeed, We do not deny, rather We acknowledge with
gratitude to God, that in our troubled era some, even of those
separated from the flock of Jesus Christ, look to the Church as
to the one haven of salvation. But neither are We ignorant of
the fact that the Church of God is contemned, and with pride and
hostility calumniated by those who, contemning the light of
1002a Cf. Col. 1:21. 1003a Acts 22:28. 1003b Cf. 1 Peter 4:13.

528

THE MYSTICAL BODY

Christian wisdom, miserably return to the teachings, the morals,
the institutions of pagan times. Some Christians, even, seduced
by the false appearance of error, or won over by depravity and
corruption, are often ignorant of the Church, or neglect her, or
have a kind of fastidious contempt for her. This is why,
Venerable Brothers, from a duty of conscience, and in responsi­
to the desires of many, We extol Holy Mother Church, to whom.
after God, We owe all things, placing before the eyes of all her
beauty, her praise, and her glory.
Fruit expected of this exposition: for the faithful
1005
It is Our hope that Our teaching and exhortation, in the
present conditions of the world, will be abundantly fmitful for
the faithful of Christ. For We know that in these stormy times,
when so many misfortunes and so much suffering afflict almost
innumerable men, if these are accepted with peace and resigna­
tion from the hand of God, they will turn souls by a natural
impulse away from earthly and changing reality to the abiding
and heavenly joys of eternity’. And they will give rise to a certain
profound thirst for spiritual reality and an intense desire, which,
under the impulse of the Divine Spirit, will stimulate and, as it
were, compel men to séek more diligently after the Kingdom
of God. The more men are withdrawn from the vanities of this
world and from an inordinate love of things present, the more
apt they will become to receive the light of heavenly mysteries.
And today, perhaps more clearly than at any other time, the
triviality and emptiness of earthly' goods are perceived, when
kingdoms and states are crumbling, when immense works and
every kind of riches are disappearing in the vast spaces of the
ocean, when cities, towns, and fertile fields are strewn with
mighty ruins and polluted with fratricidal strife.
For non-Catholics
100G
Moreover, We are confident that even for those who are
(1)
separated from the body of the Catholic Church, what We shall
soon have to say about the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ will
not be displeasing and will not be useless. For not only does their
benevolence towards the Church seem to grow from day to day;
when they see—as they do at present—nation rise against nation,
and kingdom against kingdom, and discord, hatred, rivalry grow
rapidly to immense proportions, then, if they turn their gaze
toward the Church, if they contemplate that unity which she

t

THE MYSTICAL BODY

529

has received from God—by which all rnen, of whatever stock,
are joined to Christ in a fraternal bond—then certainly they are
compelled to admire this assembly founded in charity, and they
will be attracted, under the influence and with the help of divine
grace, to participate in this same unity and charity.

Proof of this teaching
There is a particular reason, and that a very sweet one,
why the central fact of this doctrine comes to Our mind, and
why it fills Us with delight. In the past year, the twenty-fifth
since We received episcopal consecration, We have seen with
the greatest consolation a sight which makes the image of the
Mystical Body of Jesus Christ shine with peculiar and significant
splendor in every part of the globe. In fact, in spite of a pro­
tracted internecine war which unfortunately destroyed the
fraternal community of the nations, We have seen all Our sons
in Christ, wherever they are, turn with one will, one charity,
one mind, toward the common Father of all, who, bearing the
cares and anxieties of all, directs the course of the Church in
these troubled times. This fact of the marvelous unity of the
Christian people We have not only noticed, We have seen the
proof of it: in the same way that We clasp all men of whatever
nation to Our paternal heart, so on every side Catholics, even of
combatant nations, turn to the Vicar of Jesus Christ as to a most
loving Father of all men, who, in perfect impartiality for both
sides and with unprejudiced judgment, above the turbulent
storms of human struggles, preaches truth and justice and
charity and defends them with all his strength.

1007

(162.
163,
165,
167)

It has not given us less consolation to learn further of the 1008
voluntary' subscription by means of which it is hoped to erect (71,
at Rome a basilica dedicated to Our holy Predecessor and 139,
Patron Eugene I. As this temple raised at the wishes and by 210)
the contributions of all the faithfid will perpetuate the memory
of this jubilee, so We desire to give a proof of Our gratitude
in this Encyclical Letter, in which are concerned those living
stones which, set on the living cornerstone which is Christ, are
built up into a holy temple, far more sublime than any temple
built with hands, that is, the dwelling-place of God in the
Spirit (a).
1008a Cf. Ephes. 2:21-22; 1 Peter. 2:5.

530

1009
(167)

1010
(1,
17,
88)

1011
(1)

II IF MYSTICAL BODY

Errors to he corrected
But Oui pastoral solicitude is especially the cause why We
propose at the present time to treat this lofty doctrine at some
length. Many works have been published on it, nor are We
ignorant of the fact that many men arc today giving themselves
with a most active zeal to these studies, in which the piety ol
Christians is both nourished and delighted. This, it would
seem, is chiefly because the renewal of interest in the sacred
liturgy, the habit of the more frequent reception of the Eu­
charistic food, and. finally, the more ardent devotion to the
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, which today fills Us with joy,
have led many souls to a deeper contemplation of the un­
searchable riches of Christ stored up within the Church.
Moreover, the documents on Catholic Action which have
appeared in recent times, which have increasingly strengthened
the bonds between Christians, and between the faithful and
the hierarchy, especially' with the Roman Pontiff, have be­
yond a doubt contributed much to highlight this matter.
Nevertheless, if We can with good reason rejoice at the
facts which We have mentioned, it cannot be denied, not
only that there are some errors touching this doctrine, but
even among the faithful, inaccurate, and sometimes entirely
false, opinions are circulating which draw minds away from
the straight path of truth.
For, while on the one hand there persists a pretended
rationalism, which holds that anything which transcends or
surpasses the powers of human reason is absurd, and while
there is another error which goes hand in hand with it and is
similar in kind, called common naturalism, which neither sees
nor wishes to see in the Church of Christ anything but a merely
juridical or social bond; on the other hand, a false mysticism
has arisen, which falsifies the Sacred Scriptures by attempting
to remove the fixed limits between created things and their
Creator.
These false theories, mutually contradictory and incompatible. have brought it about that some, in the throes of an
empty fear, consider this sublime doctrine to be dangerous,
and they shrink from it as from the beautiful, but forbidden,
fruit of Paradise. This is far from the case: the mysteries revealed
by God cannot be perilous to men, nor should they, like treas­
ures hidden in a field, remain fruitless. Rather, they have been

Γ11Ε MYSTICAL BODY

531

given by God to confer spiritual profit on those who contemplate
them with piety. For, as the Vatican Council teaches, when
reason enlightened by faith seeks with care, piety and modera­
tion, it attains a certain very profitable understanding of the
mysteries given by God. either by analogy with what it knows
naturally, or by the connection of the mysteries with one another
and with the last end of men”; although, as the same Sacred
Council warns, “reason never becomes capable of penetrating
these mysteries in the same way in which it penetrates the
truths which constitute its own proper object” (a).
Having considered all these matters at length before Cod, 1012
so that the matchless beauty of the Church may shine forth with
(1)
new splendor; so that the extraordinary and supernatural nobility
of the faithful united with their Head in the Body of Christ may
be shown with all the more clarity; finally, so that the way may
be closed to many errors in this matter. We have considered it a
duty of Our pastoral office to propose to the entire Christian
people in this Encyclical Letter the doctrine of the Mystical
Body of Jesus Christ, and the doctrine of the union of the faith­
ful in this same Body with their Divine Redeemer, and at the
same time to deduce certain teachings from this most consoling
doctrine, by means of which a more profound study of this
mystery will produce still more abundant fruits of perfection
and holiness.
First Part

The Church Is the Mystical Body of Christ
While We were meditating on this point of Christian 1013
teaching, the words of the Apostle occurred to us: “There where (75)
sin abounded, grace did more abound” (a). It is well known
that the father of the human race was placed by God in such
a state of excellence that he was to hand on to his posterity,
together with earthly life, the supernatural life of heavenly
grace. However, after the disastrous fall of Adam, the entire
human race, infected with an hereditary sin, lost the participa­
tion in the divine nature (b), and all men became the sons of
wrath (c). But our most merciful God “so... loved the world,
that he gave his only-begotten Son" (d), and the Word of the

1011a Sess. Ill: Const, de fide Cath., c. 4.
1013a Rom. 5:20.
1013b Cf. 2 Peter 1:4.
1013c Ephes. 2:3.
1013d John 3:16.

532

THE MYSTICAL BODY

Eternal Father, impelled by that same divine love, took to
Himself a human nature from the offspring of Adam, but
innocent and exempt from all sin, so that from Him, as from a
new and heavenly Adam, the grace of the Holy Spirit might flow
to all the sons of the first parent, and that they who had Im
deprived of divine adoption by the sin of the first man, through
the Incarnate Word, made brothers, according to the flesh, of
the only-begotten Son of God, might receive the power to
become the sons of God (e). And so, hanging on the Cross.
Christ Jesus not only made reparation to the affronted justice
of his Father, but He merited for us his brothers an ineffable
abundance of graces. He could have communicated these graces
directly, by Himself, to the entire human race; but He willed
to do so by a visible Church in which all men would be gathered,
so that by it all men would become collaborators with Him in
distributing the divine fruits of the Redemption. For if the
Word of God wished to use our nature to redeem men by his
sufferings and torment, in almost the same way He uses his
Church, in the course of centuries, to make permanent the work
He began (f).
1014
Now, to define and to describe this true Church of Christ—
(2,
which is the holy, Catholic, apostolic, Roman Church (a)5there is nothing nobler, nothing more excellent, finally, no more
6)
divine expression can be found than that which designates her
"the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ”. This is the expression from
which flows, from which blossoms, so to speak, what the Sacred
Scriptures and what the writings of the Holy Fathers propose
to us.
The Church, a Body
one, indivisible, visible
1015
That the Church is a body. Holy Scripture often repeats
(6, "Christ.” says the Apostle, "is the head of the body, which is
9,
the Church' (a). But if the Church is a body, it must be an
37, organism, one and indivisible, according to the words of
41) St. Paid, "We. being many, are one body in Christ” (b). Nor
is it sufficient to say one and indivisible; it must also be
concrete and perceptible to the senses, as Our Predecessor of
holy memory Leo XIII in his Encyclical Letter Satis cognitum
1013e Ci. John L12. 10131 Cf. Cone. Vat., Const. de Eccl., pn»I.
1014a Cf. /b/d , cap. 1.
1015a Col. L18. 1015b Hom. 12:5.

ΠΙΕ MYSTICAL BODY

533

affirms: "It is because the Church is a body that she is visible
to our eves” (c). Therefore, they are straying from divine truth
who imagine the Church to be something which can neither be
touched nor seen, that it is something merely “spiritual”, as
they say, in which many Christian communities, although
separated from one another by faith, could be joined by some
kind of invisible link.

But a bods also requires many members, united among 1016
themselves in such a way that they can be of mutual assistance.
(8,
And if in our mortal body when one member suffers the others 45,
suffer with it, and the healthy members come to the aid of the 48)
ailing, so in the Church, individual members do not live for
themselves alone, but they support the others, and all the
members give mutual assistance, both for their mutual conso­
lation as well as for the better development of the entire Body.
Constituted "Organically", “Hierarchically"

Moreover, as in the natural order a body is not made up 1017
of a haphazard grouping of members, but. as they say, it must
(8)
be composed of organs, or members, which do not all have
the same functions, and which are disposed in a proper order,
so the Church with much greater reason is called a Body
because she is formed of well-organized and coordinated parts,
and made up of different members which are in harmony with
one another. Nor does the Apostle describe her otherwise when
he says: “As in one body we have many members, but all the
members have not the same office, so we being many, are one
body in Christ, and every one members one of another” (a).
But it must not be supposed that this well-ordered structure.
or “organic” structure, as it is called, of the Body of the Church
is completed and defined by the grades of the hierarchy alone;
or, as an opposite opinion would hold, that it is made up solely
ol the “charismatics’’, those men who arc endowed with exceptional gifts, who are never lacking in the Church. It must
certainly be maintained that those who possess sacred power
in this Body are the ones who constitute its primary and
principal members, since it is through them, according to the
mandate of the Divine Redeemer, that the gifts of Christ.
1015c See above No. 5 12

1017a Rom. 12:1

1018
(9.
126127.
185.
205,
209,
217,
221)

534

THE MYSTICAL BODY

Teacher, King, and Priest, are made perpetual. It is nonetheless
true that when the Fathers of the Church celebrate the praises
of the ministry, the orders, the conditions, states, degrees, and
functions of this Body, they have in mind not only those who
have received sacred orders, hut they include all those who
have embraced the Evangelical counsels, whether they lead
an active life among men, or a contemplative life in the silence
of the cloister, or strive to carry out both according to their
own special institute. They include, too, those who live in the
world, actively devoting themselves to the works of mercy for
the help of soul and body, and, finally, all those who are joined
in chaste wedlock. Even more, it must be noted that especially
in the present condition of the world, fathers and mothers,
godfathers and godmothers, and. in particular, those among the
laity’ who collaborate with the ecclesiastical hierarchy in helping
to extend the kingdom of the Divine Redeemer, have an
honored, no matter how humble, place in Christian society.
And they also can, with the help and favor of God. rise to the
heights of sanctity' which, according to the promise of Jesus
Christ, will never fail in the Church.

Prodded with life-giving means of sanctification,
or the sacraments
1019
Just as the human body finds itself in possession of the
(13, proper instruments to provide for its life, its health, and the
5/. development of each of its members, so the Savior of the human
67, race in his infinite goodness in a wonderful fashion provided for
115, his Mystical Body', enriching it with the sacraments which
11β) sustain the members, as by an uninterrupted series of graces,
from their first to their last breath, and provide abundant help
also for the social necessities of the entire Body. By means of
the waters of Baptism, men born into this mortal life are not
only re-born from the death of sin and made members of the
Church, but they are also signed with a spiritual character which
makes them capable and fit to receive the other sacraments
By' the sacred oil of Confirmation a new strength is given to
the believer so that he can courageously’ defend and protect
his Mother the Church and the faith he has received from her.
By the sacrament of Penance a saving remedy is offered to
the members of the Church who have fallen into sin, not only
to protect their own salvation, but also to remove the peril of

•L

—

rm MYSTICAL BODY

535

contagion from the members of the Mystical Body, or rather to
afford them an incentive to virtue, and the example of a virtuous
act. Nor is this enough: for by the Sacred Eucharist the faithful
are strengthened and nourished on one and the same food, and
by an ineffable and divine bond they are linked among themselves
and with the Divine Head of the entire Body. And finally, our
sweet Mother the Church is beside her children as they approach
their death. If. by the sacred anointing of the sick she does not
always restore the health of this mortal body, for so God wills
it, she provides a heavenly remedy for the afflicted soul, so that
she may send to heaven new citizens, new pledges of herself,
to enjoy the divine goodness for all eternity.

Christ has provided for the social needs of his Church in 1020
a special manner bj the institution of two sacraments. For bx (114.Matrimony, in which the spouses are the ministers of grace to 116)
each other, He has provided the ordered and external increase
of the Christian community; and. what is more, for the moral
and religious education of the offspring, without which his
Mystical Body would be exposed to the gravest danger. And
by Holy Orders are devoted and consecrated to God men who
will offer the Eucharistic Sacrifice, nourish the flock of the
faithful with the Bread of Angels and the food of sacred teaching,
direct them by sacred precepts and counsels, and strengthen
them bv the other sacraments.

Composed of definite members
In this connection it must be noticed that just as God at 1021
the beginning of time endowed man with the rich apparel of
his body, by means of which he was to subject all created things
to his sway and multiply and till the earth, so at the beginning
of the Christian era He furnished his Church with all the means
necessary, not only to fill the earth after overcoming almost
Innumerable perils, but also to fill the Kingdom of Heaven.
hi the Church they alone are to be counted as members 1022
who have received the baptism of regeneration and profess the f39.
true faith, who. moreover, have not had the misfortune to 42separate themselves from the assembly of the Body, or been 43,
excommunicated by the legitimate authority by reason of ven 46.
grave faults. “For all we have been baptized in one Spirit," says 50,
the Apostle, “in one Body, whether Jews or Gentile, whether 54.

536

THE MYSTICAL BODY

bond or free” (a). Consequently, as in the real assembly of
112) the faithful there can be only one Body, one Spirit, one Lord.
and one Baptism, so there can be only one faith (b): and In­
veho refuses to hear the Church must be considered, by the order
of the Lord, as a heathen and a publican (c). And they who are
divided by reasons of faith or of government cannot live in this
one Body, and in its one Divine Spirit (d).

58,

The Church does not exclude sinners
1023
Nor should it be thought that the Body of the Church which
(9, has the honor to bear Christ’s name, is made up in this time ol
53, her earthly sojourn solely of members outstanding in holiness,
55) or that it consists entirely of the assembly of those who are pre­
destined by God to everlasting happiness. For it is a tribute to
the infinite mercy of Our Savior that He does not deny a place
in his Mystical Body now to those whom formerly He did not
refuse a place at his table (a). For not every fault, even if it be
a grave crime—like schism, heresy, or apostasy—is by its ven
nature such as to separate a man from the Body of the Church (b).
Nor does all life depart from those who have lost divine char­
ity and sanctifying grace by sin. and are consequently inca1022a 1 Cor. 12:13. 1022b Cf. Ephes. 4:5. 1022c Cf. Matt. 18:17.
1022d In Ecclesiæ autem membris reapse ii soli annumerandi sunt,
qui regenerationis lavacrum receperunt veramque fidem profi­
tentur, neque a Corporis compage semet ipsos misere separarunt,
vel ob gravissima admissa a legitima auctoritate seiuncti sunt
“Etenim in uno Spiritu, ait Apostolus, omnes nos in unum Corpus
baptizati sumus, sive ludæi, sive Gentiles, sive servi, sive liberi
Sicut igitur in vero cnristifidelium cretu unum tantummodo ha­
betur Corpus, unus Spiritus, unus Dominus et unum Baptisma, sic
haberi non potest nisi una fides; atque adeo (pii Ecclesiam audire
renuerit, jubente Domino habendus est ut ethnicus et publicanus.
Quomobrem qui fide vel regimine invicem dividuntur, in uno ejihmodi Corpore, atque uno ejus divino Spiritu vivere nequeunt.
1023a Cf. Matt. 9:11; Mark 2:16; Luke 15:2.
1023b Neque existimandum est Ecclesùv Corpus idcirco quod
Christi nomine insigniatur, hoc etiam terrenæ peregrinationis
tempore, ex membris tantummodo sanctitate pnvstanlihus constare,
vel ex solo eorum coctu exsistere, qui a Deo sint ad sempiternam
felicitatem prédestinât i. Id enim est infinita· Servatoris nostri
misericordia· tribuendum, quod heie in mystico suo Corpore iis
'?.c,,ni. 110,1 deneget, quibus olim in convivio non denegaverit.
Siquidem non omne admissum, est i grave scelus, ejusmodi est
ut—sicut schisma, vel hreresis, vel apostasia faciunt—suapte natura
hominem ab EcclesiiV Corpore separet.

—-

THE MYSTICAL BODY

--------

■

537

pablc of meriting a supernatural reward; at least they keep faith
and Christian hope, and, enlightened by grace, under the inte­
rior inspirations and impulses of the Holy Spirit they are
impelled to a salutary fear, and moved to prayer and penance
for their sin.
Therefore, let all have a horror of sin which stains the mysti­ 1024
cal members of the Redeemer. But let him who has been so un­ (53, '
happy as to fall, but has not by his obstinacy made himself 130)
unworthy of the communion of the faithful, be received with the
greatest love, seeing in him, by means of an ardent charity, an
infirm member of Jesus Christ. For it is better, as the Bishop of
Hippo warns us, “to he cured in the assembly of the Church than
to be cut off from this body as incurable members" (a). “For
while the member is still attached to the body, his cure is not
beyond hope; when he has been cut off, he can neither be cared
for nor made whole" (b).
The Church is the Body of Christ
Up to this point. Venerable Brothers, we have seen that the 1025
Church in her constitution can be likened to a body. It remains (18for Us to explain accurately and in detail why it must be called
19,
not simply “a body", but the Body of Jesus Christ. And this can 21)
be deduced from the fact that Our I.ord is the Founder. Head,
Support, and Savior of this Mystical Body.

Christ is "the founder" of this body
As We proceed to explain briefly whv it was that Christ 1026
founded a social Body, the statement of Our Predecessor of happy (19.
memory9 . Leo XIII. comes immediately
to mind: "The Church. 21)
9
which had already been conceived, sprang from the side of the
second Adam, as it were sleeping on the Cross, and showed her­
self for the first time to men in a striking manner on that most
solemn day of Pentecost" (a). For the Divine Redeemer began
the building of the mystical temple of the Church when He gave
his doctrine in his preaching; He completed it when He hung
publicly suspended from the Cross; and finally He procured its
manifestation and promulgation when He sent the Spirit Para­
clete down on his disciples.
1024a St. Augustine, Epist., CLVII, 3:22.
1024b St. Augustine, Senn., CXXXVI1, 1.
1026a Encvcl. Divinum illud. \ S.S., 29. 649.

I

538

THE MYSTICAL BODY

a) As He preaches the Gospel
1θ27
In the accomplishment of his preaching mission He chose
(19- the Apostles, sending them forth as He Himself had been sent
20, forth from the Father (a), as teachers, guides, agents of holiness
50, in the midst of the believers. He named their Chief as his own
116) Vicar on earth (b); everything which He had heard from the
Father He made known to them (c). He also indicated Bap­
tism ( d ) as the means whereby future believers were to be grafted
on to the Body of the Church; and when at length He came Io
the evening of his life, celebrating the last supper, He instituted
the Eucharist, admirable sacrifice and admirable sacrament.

b) /Vs He suffered on the Cross
1028
That He consummated his work on the gibbet of the Cross.
(19, the uninterrupted testimony of the Holy Fathers bears witness,
21, they note that the Church was born from the Savior’s side on the
63, Cross like a new Eve, the Mother of all the living (a). “And
67) now," says the great St. Ambrose, speaking of the pierced side
of Christ, "is built, now is formed, now ... is figured forth, now
is created ... now rises up the spiritual home for the holy priest­
hood" (b). Whoever religiously studies this sacred teaching will
easily discern the reasons on which it rests.

1029
First, by the death of the Redeemer, the New Testament
(19, succeeded to the Old Law which was thus abolished; then, the
21) law of Christ, together with its mysteries, its laws, institutions,
and sacred rites, was sanctioned for the entire world by the blood
of Jesus Christ. For so long as the Divine Redeemer preached
within narrow earthly limits—for He was not sent except to the
lost sheep of the house of Israel (a)—the Law and the Gospel
continued to nin simultaneously (b). But by his death on the
Cross, Jesus annulled the law with its decrees (c). the band­
writing of the Old Law He affixed to the Cross (d). establishing
the New Alliance in his blood poured out for the entire human
race (e). “Then." says St Leo the Great, speaking of the Cross
1027a John 17:18.
1027b Cf. Matt 16:18-19.
1027c John 15:15; cf. 17:8. 1-1.
1027d Cf. John 3:5. 1028a Cf. Gen. 3:20. 1028b In Luc. 11,87.
1029a Cf. Matt. 15:2-1
1029b Cf. St. Thomas, 1-2, q. 103, a. 3, ad 2.
1029c Cf Ephes. 2.15
1029d Cf. Col. 2:14.
1029c Cf. Matt. 26:28, 1 Cor. 11:25

11 IE MYSHCAL BODY

539

of the Lord, "the passage from the Law to the Gospel, from the
Synagogue to the Church, from the many sacrifices to the one
victim became evident, so that when the Lord gave up the ghost,
that mystical veil, which hid the interior of the Temple and the
secret sanctuary, was lent with sudden violence from top to
bottom" (f).
Therefore, on the Cross the Old Law died, soon to be 1030
buried and become a cause of death (a) to give place to the New (19,
Law of which Christ bad chosen the Apostles to be the qualified
ministers (b). And, thanks to the virtue of the Cross, our Savior,
24,
who already from the Virgin’s womb had been constituted the 116)
head of the whole human family, could exercise the office of
Head in the Church in all its fullness. “For by the victory of the
Cross." following the opinion of the Angelic Doctor. "lie merited
the power and sovereign dominion over the nations" (c). By it He
acquired that immense treasure of graces, which, while
gloriously reigning in heaven. He bestows with uninterrupted
bounty on his mortal members. By the blood poured out on the
Cross, once the obstacle of the divine wrath had been removed.
He caused all the heavenly gifts and especially the spiritual gifts
of the New and Eternal Testament to flow from the fountains
of the Savior for the salvation of men. and especially for the
faithful. Finally.
y on the tree of the Cross He won for Himself his
Church, that is. all the members of his Mystical Body, who can
be incorporated in this Mystical Body by the waters of Baptism
through the saving virtue of the Cross, in which they are made
partakers of the riches of Christ.
But if by his death Our Savior became the Head of the 1031
Church in the full and perfect sense of the yvord. it is also by
19,
reason of his blood that the Church yvas enriched with that
23,
superabundant communication of the Spirit, with which she was
32.
endowed by God when “the Son of Man" had been raised up and
75,
glorified on (he gibbet of his passion. For then, as Augustine
86says (a), after the veil of the Temple had been sundered, the dew
89.
oi the gifts of the Paraclete, which up to then had rested only on
1029Γ Semi. LXVIH. 3.
1030a Cf, St. Jerome and St. Augustine. Epbl. ( XII. I I. CXVI.
16; St. Thomas, l-II, q. 103. a. 3 ad 2; a. 2. a. I ad 1. Concil.
Flor., pro lacob.
1030b Cf. 2 Cor 3:6.
1030c Cf. St. Thomas. III. <|. 42. a I
1031a Cf. Dr pccc. orin

540

95,
115,
131,
227)

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

the fleece which was the people of Israel, watered in great abun·
dance—leaving the fleece dried up—the entire earth, that is to say.
the Catholic Church, which is not confined to any land or to anv
people. Just as in the first moment of the Incarnation the Son ol
the Eternal Father adorned with the fullness of the Holy Spirit
the human nature which He had united substantially to Himself
that it might become a fit instrument of the divinity in the bloody
work of the Redemption, so in the hour of his precious death
He willed to enrich his Church with the abundant gifts of the
Paraclete so that it might become a worthy and unfailing instru­
ment of the Incarnate Word in the distribution of the divine fruits
of the Redemption. In fact, both the juridical mission of the
Church and her power of teaching, governing, and administering
the sacraments have supernatural strength and vigor to build the
Body of Christ only because Christ Jesus hanging on the Cross
opened to his Church the source of his divine gifts, thanks to
which she can teach men an infallible doctrine, she can guide
them in the way of salvation by divinely enlightened Shepherds,
and she can pour out upon them the dew of heavenly graces (b).

1032
If we consider attentively all these mysteries of the Cross,
(19, the words of the Apostle will no longer be obscure to us in which
22) he taught the Ephesians that Christ by his blood had made of
the Jews and Gentiles one single people: "breaking down in his...
flesh ... the partition" which divided the two peoples; likewise
that He had suppressed the Old Law “so that He could build up
both for Himself in one new man", that is, the Church: and that
in one Body He would reconcile both to God by the Cross (a).

c) As lite Church is proclaimed on the day of Pentecost

1033
The Church which He had founded in his blood He consoli(19, dated on the day of Pentecost by a special strength which came
21, from heaven. In fact, after having solemnly confirmed in his
63, lofty function the one whom He had previously designated as
1031b Juridica enim, quam vocant, Ecclesia· missio, ac docendi,
gubernandi sacramentaque administrandi potestas, idcirco ad
xdificandum Christi Corpus supernam vim habent atque vigo­
rem, quod Christus Jesus c Cruce pendens Ecclesix sua· divi­
norum munerum fontem aperuit, quibus et fallentem numquam
doctrinam homines docere posset, et eos per divinitus illuminatos
Pastores salutariter regere. ac coelestium gratiarum imbre per10.32a Cf. Ephes. 2:1 1-16.

Illi MYSI KAI BODY

541

his Vicar, Ik· ascended into heaven. And sitting at the Father’s
right hand, He willed to manifest and proclaim officially his
Spouse by a visible coming of the Holy Spirit, accompanied by
the sound of a mighty wind and tongues of flame (a). For just
as He, when He began his office ol preaching, was proclaimed by
his Eternal Father through the Holy Spirit descending in the form
of a dove and remaining upon Him (b), so, likewise, when the
Apostles were about to begin their sacred office of preaching,
Christ the Lord sent his Spirit from heaven, to touch them with
tongues of flame, and to indicate, as by a divine finger, the super­
natural mission and the supernatural function of the Church.

90)

Christ, the “Head” of the Body
In the second place, this Mystical Body which is the Church 1034
glories in bearing the name of Christ because He must be consid- (12,
ered by al) men to be its true Head. He Himself,' as Paul tells 24,
us, "is the Head of the Body which is the Church’ (a). He is the 27)
Head, from which the whole Body, established in harmony,
grows and increases to its full development (b).
You know, Venerable Brothers, with what brilliant and 1035
luminous treatises the masters ol sacred theology, and especially (31)
the Angelic Doctor, have commented on this fact; doubtless you
know, too, that the arguments advanced by him respond faith­
fully to the thought of the Holy Fathers, which, for the rest, have
no other object than to elucidate and comment upon the words of
God in the Sacred Scriptures.
a) By reason of his excellence
Nevertheless, it pleases Us here to review the matter briefly 1036
for the profit of all. First of all, it is evident that the Son of God (25)
and of the Blessed Virgin must be called Head of the Church by
reason of his very special excellence. For the head is located at
the summit. And who was ever placed in a higher position than
Christ as God, who, as the Word of the Eternal Father, must be
regarded as “the first-born of every creature”? (a) Who was
raised to a higher elevation than Christ as man, who, born of the
stainless Virgin, is the true and natural Son of God. and by his
marvelous and glorious resurrection when He rose triumphant
1033a Cf. Acts 2:1-4.
1034a Col. 1:18.
1036a Col. 1:15.

1033b Cf. Luke 3:22; Mark 1:10.
1034b Cf. Ephes. 4:16; Col. 2:19.

542

THE MYSTICAL BODY

over death, became "the first-born among the dead”? (b) Fiuaik
who has occupied a position superior to Him who, as Wone
mediator between God and men” (c), in a marvelous manner
unites earth with heaven; who, raised up on the Cross, as 0» a
throne of mercy, draws all things to Himself (d); and who, as the
son of man chosen from among thousands, is loved by God mort
than all men, all angels, and all created things (e).
1037
(26,
120)

103S
(8586,
95)

b) By reason of his government
Since Christ occupies so sublime a place, He is with good
reason the only one who can ride and govern the Church; and
therefore, for this reason also He must be likened to the head. In
the same wav<· that the head—to use the words of St. Ambroseis the "royal summit” of the body (a), and all the members over
which it presides to provide for their needs (b) are naturally
directed by the head, and the head is endowed with superior
qualities for this end. so the Divine Redeemer holds the key of
the entire Christian community and directs its course. And since
to rule a community of men is nothing other than to direct them
to (heir proper end (c) by an effective providence, by suitable
assistance, and by right methods, it is easy to see that Our Savior,
archetype and model of good Shepherds (d) acquits Himself n[
these functions in a marvelous wav.
*
For when He was on earth, by his laws, his counsel, Ins
warnings, He taught us in words which will never pass away and
which will be for men of every age, spirit and life (a). Beyond
this, He communicated to the Apostles and their successors a
triple power, that of teaching, ruling, and guiding men to
sanctity, and this power, made explicit by peculiar precepts, laws
and duties, constitutes the primary law of the whole Church.

Invisibly and in an extraordinary manner
1039
But it is directly also and in his own person that our Divine
(26, Savior rules and directs the societv He established. For He rules
33, in the minds and souls of men. subjects to his good pleasure and
1036b
1036c!
1036c
I. <i1037b
1037c
l037d

Col. 1:18; Apoc. 1:5.
1036c 1 Tim. 2:5.
Cf. John 12:32.
Cl. St. Cyril of Alexandria. Comm. in Joli.. I, 4; St. Thomas
20. a. 4, ad 1.
1037a Hexaem., VI, 55.
Cf. St. Augustine, De Anon Christ.. XX, 22.
Cf. St. Thomas, I, q. 22 a 1-4.
Cf John 10:1-18; 1 Peter 5:1-5.
1038a Cf. John 6:63

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

543

compels even stubborn wills. 'The heart of the king is in the hand 66,
of the Lord, wheresoever He wills He will incline it (a). By this 88,
internal direction He not only cares for each individual as "the &9,
shepherd and bishop of our souls” (b), but He also provides for 128)
the entire Church, either when He enlightens and strengthens her
rulers to perforin their duties faithfully and fruitfully, or when—
above all in dangerous circumstances—He raises up within the
heart of the Church, their Mother, men and women resplendent
with the aura of holiness, so that they may serve as an example
to the other faithful for the increase of his Mystical Body. We
must add to this that from heaven Christ ever regards with a
special love his immaculate Spouse laboring here in this land of
exile; and when He sees her endangered, either Himself, or by his
angels (c); or by her whom we call Help of Christians, and by
other heavenly patrons, He saves her from the buffeting of the
storm, and when the sea is calm and tranquil once again, He
consoles her with that peace “which surpasses understanding" (d).
Visibly and in an ordinary manner by the Roman Pontiff
But it must not be thought that his direction is limited to an
invisible or extraordinary manner (a); quite the contrary. The
Divine Redeemer also governs his Mystical Body in a visible and
ordinary way through his Vicar on earth. For all men know,
Venerable Brothers, that Christ the Lord, after He had Himself in
a visible way ruled his "little flock" (b) in his mortal life, at the
moment when He was to leave the world and return to his
Father, committed to the Prince of the Apostles the visible
direction of the entire society founded by Him. He who was so
wise could never leave without a visible head the social body
which He had founded. Neither can it be asserted, to deny this
truth, that by a primacy of jurisdiction established within the
Church the Mystical Body had been provided with a double
head. For Peter, by virtue of the primacy, is only the Vicar of
Christ, and there is consequently only one principal Head of
this Body, namely Christ. It is He who, without ceasing to
govern the Church in a hidden manner by Himself, nonetheless
1039a
1039c
1039d
1040a
1040b

Prov. 21:1.
1039b Cf. 1 Peter 2:25.
Cf. Acts 8:26; 9:1-19; 10:1-7, 12:3-10.
Phil. 4:7.
Cf. Leo MIL S«/is rogm/nm, above No. o37 fl.
Luke 12:32.

1040
(26,
139140,
144.
151)

544

THE MYSTICAL BODY

rules the Church in a visible manner by him who takes his place
on earth, for after his glorious Ascension into heaven, the Chinch
rests not only on Him, but also on Peter as on a visible founda­
tion. That Christ and his Vicar form only one single Head, Our
Predecessor of immortal memory, Boniface VIII, solemnly taught
in his Apostolic Letter Unam Sanetam (c) and his successors
have never ceased to repeat it after him (d).
1041
Therefore, they are in dangerous error who think that they
(56, can attach themselves to Christ the Head of the Church, without
139) adhering faithfully to his Vicar on earth. For those who would
remove the visible Head of the Church and break the bonds of
visible unity, obscure and deform the Mystical Body of the
Redeemer, so that it cannot be seen or recognized by men who
seek the port of eternal salvation.
1042
(49,
131,
185190,
195,
203)

In particular churches by the bishops
What We say here of the universal Church must also be ah
firmed of individual Christian communities, whether Oriental or
Latin, which together form one single Catholic Church: they, too,
are governed by Christ Jesus through the word and the
jurisdiction of each of their own bishops. Therefore, the Bishops
are not simply' to be considered the most eminent members of
the universal Church, those who are joined to the Divine Head of
the whole Body by a special link and so are rightly called “the
first among the Lord’s members" (a), but. in what concerns the
individual diocese of each one. as true Shepherds they will, eadi
of them, rule and nourish the individual flocks assigned to them
in the name of Christ (b). But they will do so, not as entirely
independent, but as submissive to the legitimate authority of the
Roman Pontiff, although they enjoy the ordinary power of
jurisdiction immediately conveyed to them by the same Supreme
Pontiff (c). And so they should be honored by the people as the
1040c Cf. Corp. lur. Can., Extr. comm., I, 8, 1.
lOlOd Unum solummodo Caput constituere Christum efutquc
Vicarium, Decessor noster imm. mem. llonifacius V II I per Apostolicas Litteras Unam Sanctam sollemniter docuit, idque subinde
Successores ejus iterare non desiere unquam.
1042a St Gregory the Great. Moral., XIV, 35, 43.
1042b Ci. Cone. Vat., Const, de Eccl., cap. 3.
1042c Quamobrem sacrorum Antistites non solum eminentiora uni­
versalis Ecclesiæ membra habendi sunt, ut qui singulari prorsus
nexu junguntur cum divino totius Corporis Capite, atque adeo

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

545

divinely appointed successors ol the Apostles (d); and more than
to the rulers of this world, even the most eminent, the words of
the psalm apply to Bishops as consecrated with the unction of the
Holy Spirit: "Touch not my anointed ones" (e).
Therefore We were deeply grieved when We were told that 1043
not a few of our Brothers in the Episcopate, because they had (155)
made themselves models for their flocks (a), and, as they should,
had energetically and faithfully guarded the sacred "deposit of
faith” (b) confided to them, and because they had urged the
very great sanctity of the laws divinely implanted in the hearts
of men, and, after the example of the Supreme Pastor they de­
fended the flock entrusted to them against the ravening wolves,
not only have they to suffer attacks and vexations perpetrated
against themselves, but—what is much more cruel than these,
and more serious—against the faithful in their charge, against
(he associates of their apostolic labor, and even against virgins
consecrated to God. This injury unjustly inflicted on them We
consider done to Ourselves, and We repeat the noble statement
of Our Predecessor of immortal memory, Gregory the Great.
Our honor is the honor of the universal Church; Our honor is
the undiminished strength of Our Brothers; and then only are
We truly honored, when the honor due to each one of them is
not denied ( c ).
1044
c) By reason of the need which they have of each other

At the same time, it must not be thought that Christ being
the Head, occupying so sublime a position, has no need of the
Body. For We must affirm of the Mystical Body the same words
which Paul affirms of the human body; "The head cannot say
to the feet: I have no need of thee" (a). It is abundantly clear
that the faithfid have an absolute need of the Divine Redeemer.
iure tocanlui "partes membrorum Domini priime''. sed, ad propri­
am cuiusque Dirvcesim uuod spectat, ulpote veri Pastores assigna­
tos sibi greges singuli singulos Christi nomine pascunt ac regunt;
id tamen dum faciunt, non plane sui piris sunt, sed sub debita
Romani Pontificis auctoritate positi, quamvis ordinaria jurisdic­
tione potestate fritanlur. immediate sibi ad eodem Pontifice Sum­
mo impertita.
1042d Cf. Cod. Jur. Can., Can. 329. I.
1012c 1 Parai 16:22; Ps 104:15. 1043a Cf. 1 Peter 5:3.
1043b Cf. 1 Tim 6:20.
1013c Cf. Ep. ad Eulog., 30.
1044a 1 Cor. 12:21.

(23,

30,
66,
180,

546

THE MYSTICAL BODY

202) for He Himself says: "Without me you can do nothing" (b),
and, following the teaching of the Apostle, every increase in this
Mystical Body for its development is from Christ the Head (c).
At the same time it must be maintained, although this may
seern extraordinary, that Christ needs his members. And this
is so in the first place because the Sovereign Pontiff holds the
place of Jesus Christ, and if he is not to be crushed by the
burden of the pastoral office, he must summon many others to
take their part in his solicitude, and daily he must be supported
by the assistance of the whole Church at prayer. Moreover, just
as Our Savior ndes the Church invisibly by Himself, He wills
to be helped in carrying out the work of Redemption by the
members of his Mystical Body. This is not a result of his poverty
or his weakness, but rather of the fact that He Himself has
willed it so for the greater honor of his immaculate Spouse.
For while He lay dying on the Cross He conferred on his
Church, without any collaboration on her part, the immense
treasure of the Redemption; but when it is a question of dis­
tributing this treasure, not only does He share with his sinless
Spouse the work of sanctifying souls, but He wills it to be the
result, in a certain fashion, of her work. Certainly, this is a
tremendous mystery, and one We cannot sufficiently ponder:
the salvation of many soids depends on the prayers and voluntary
mortifications, undertaken for this end. of the members of the
Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, and on the collaboration of pastors
and faithful, especially on the assistance of fathers and mothers
of families, which they should bring to our Divine Savior.

d) Bi/ reason of their resemblance
1045
To the reasons here set forth to substantiate the claim of
(30) Christ the Lord to be called the Head of his social Body, three
others must be added which are intimately connected with
each other.
We begin with that mutual conformity which we sec exist
between the head and the body, since they are of the same
nature It should be noted here that our nature, although inferior
to the angelic, yet, by reason of the goodness of God, surpasses
the nature of the angels: For Christ," says Aquinas, "is the
Head of the angels. He rules over the angels even according
to his humanity.... Likewise, even as man He enlightens the
1044b John 15:5.

1044c Cf. Ephes. 4:16, Col. 2:19.

THE MYSTICAL BODY

547

angels and acts upon them. But with respect to conformity of
nature, Christ is not the Head of the angels, for He has not laid
hold of the angels, but—according to the Apostle—of the seed
of Abraham” (a). Christ has not only assumed our nature; but
even in His weak, passible, mortal body He has become our
brother. And, if the Word "emptied himself, taking the form of
a servant” (b). He did so in order to make his brothers accord­
ing to the flesh partakers in his divine nature (c), as much in
this land of exile by sanctifying grace, as in that heavenly
homeland by the reward of everlasting bliss. For the onlybegotten Son of the Eternal Father wished to become the son
of man to make us conformable to the image of the Son of
God (d), that we might be renewed according to the image of
Him who created us (e). Therefore, all those who glory in the
Christian name should look upon our Divine Redeemer not only
as the highest and most perfect example of all the virtues, but
by vigilant flight from sin and a most zealous striving after
sanctity, let them so express his teaching and life in their
conduct that when the Lord shall appear, they may be like to
Him in glory', seeing Him as He is (f).

As Christ wishes each one of his members to be like
Himself, so He wills it also for the entire Body of the Church.
This comes to pass when the Church, following the footsteps
of her Founder, teaches, governs, and offers up the divine
victim. Furthermore, when she embraces the evangelical coun­
sels, she reproduces within herself the poverty, obedience, and
xnrginity of the Redeemer. By the multiple and varied institutes,
with which she is adorned as by so many jewels, she shows
forth Christ, Christ, as it were, either praying on the mountain­
side, or preaching to the multitudes, or healing the sick and
infirm and converting sinners to the good life, or, in a word,
doing good to all. There is nothing to be astonished at. therefore,
if, during her life here below, she is also subjected to assaults,
vexations, and suffering, just as Christ was.

1046
(30,
95,
129,
228)

e) Bi/ reason of his plenitude
Christ must also be regarded as Head of the Church from 1047
the fact Ithat since He exercises in their plenitude and their (25J
1045a Comm in ep. ad Eph.. cap. 1. lect. <S. Heb. 2:16-17.
Phil 0-7
Cf. 2 Peter 1:4
IO45d Cf. Rom 8 29

548

THE MYSTICAL BODY

perfection the supernatural iunctions, it is from this same pleni­
tude that his Mystical Body draws. In fact—as several of the
Fathers have noted—the head of our mortal body has the
advantage of all the senses while the other parts of our body
enjoy only the sense of touch; just so whatever virtues there
are in Christian society, whatever gifts, whatever charisms, all
of these are to be found most perfectly in its Head, Christ. “It
has pleased him (the Father) that in him all fullness should
dwell’ (a). All the supernatural gifts which accompany the
hypostatic union adorn Him in a particular way: for in Him the
Holy Spirit dwells with such a fullness of grace that a greater
cannot be imagined. To Him is given “power over all flesh" (b);
most abundant in Him are “all the treasures of wisdom and
knowledge" (c). Even that knowledge which is called vision
acts in Him with such perfection that it surpasses absolutely
in fullness and clarity the same kind of knowledge in all the
saints of heaven. Finally, so great is his fullness of grace and
truth, that of his inexhaustible plenitude we have all received (d).

f) By reason of his influence
1048
These words of the disciple whom Jesus loved with a special
(28) love bring us to develop the last reason which shows in a special
manner that Christ the Lord must be said to be the Head of
His Mystical Body. As the nerves leave the head and spread
through all the parts of the body imparting to them the faculty’
of feeling and self-movement, so Our Savior infuses into the
Church bis own strength and vigor so that (he faithful know
divine reality more clearly and desire it more ardently. From Him
there flows into the Body of the Church all light, by which the
believers are divinely illumined, all grace, by which they are
made holy, even as He Himself is holy.

Enlightening
1049
Christ gives light to the universal Church: this can be proved
(27, from almost innumerable passages of Sacred Scripture and the
88, writings of the Holy Fathers. “God no man has seen at any
145, time: the only-begotten son, who is in the bosom of the Father.
165, he has revealed him” (a). A teacher coming from God (b), to
1047a Col. 1:19.
1047c Col. 2:3.
1049a Cf. John 1:18.

1047b Cf. John 17:2.
1047d Cf. John 1:14-16.
1049b Cf. John 3:2.

TUE .MYSTICAL BODY

give testimony to the truth (c), He imparted his light to the primitive Church of the Apostles so that the Prince of the Apostles
exclaimed: “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of
eternal life” (d). From Heaven He was present to the Evangelists
so that they wrote as members of Christ what they had learned,
so to speak, from the dictation of their Head (e). And still to­
day, for us who remain in this land of exile, He is the author of
our faith, as He is its finisher in paradise (f). He it is who in­
fuses into the faithful the light of faith; He it is who divinely en­
riches with gifts of supernatural knowledge, understanding, and
wisdom, the pastors and teachers, and especially his Vicar on
earth, that they may faithfully keep the treasure of the faith, en­
ergetically defend it, and support and explain it with care and
reverence. He it is, finally, who, even if He is not seen, presides
over the Councils of the Church and directs them with his
light (g).
Sanctifying
Christ is the author and the artisan of sanctity. There can
be no salutary act which does not emanate from Him. "Without
me.” He says, "you can do nothing" (a). If. because of our sins.
we are moved to sorrow of heart and repentance, if we turn to
Cod with hope and filial fear, it is always a result of his drawing.
Grace and glory spring from his inexhaustible plentitude. Our
Savior continually endows especially the more eminent members
of his Mystical Body with graces of counsel, fortitude, fear, and
piety, so that the whole Body will grow from day to day in holi­
ness and in purity of life. And when the sacraments of the Church
are administered exteriorly, He Himself produces the effect in
souls (b). Likewise, it is He who, feeding redeemed men on his
own body and blood, calms the disturbances and troubles of the
soul. It is He who increases grace in them and prepares both soul
and body for a glorious future. And these treasures of the divine
bounty, it must be said He communicates to the members of his
Mystical Body not solely because, as Eucharistic victim on earth,
or as glorified victim in heaven. He petitions them from his
Eternal Father, showing his wounds and uttering prayers, but
1049c
1049e
1049f
1049g
1050a

Cf. John 18:37.
1049d Cf. John 6:68.
Cf. St. Augustine, Dr cons, evanp., I, 35. 54.
Cf. Heb. 12:2.
Cf. St. Cyril of Alexandria. Ep. 55 de Synod.
Cf. John '15:5.
1050b Cf St. Thomas, HI. q. 64, a. 3.

167,
193)

1050
(28,
88,
115,
126)

550

1051
(31)

1052
(31,
34)

1053
(31,

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

also because He chooses, determines, distributes to each one his
share of these graces “according to the measure of the giving ol
Christ” (c). From this it follows that from the Divine Redeemer
as drawing strength from the principal source "the whole body,
being compacted and fitly joined together, by what every joint
supplieth, according to the operation in the measure of every
part, maketh increase of the body, unto the edifying of itself in
charity" (d).
Christ, the “support” of his Body
What We have explained above. Venerable Brothers, show·
ing briefly how Christ the Lord wills the abundance of his gifts
to flow into the Church from his own divine plenitude so that
she may be conformed to Him in the greatest possible measure,
will be of great assistance in explaining the third reason from
which it is deduced that the social Body of the Church is
honored with the name of Christ. This reason relies on the fad
that Our Savior Himself sustains in a divine fashion the society
which He founded.
As Bellarmine remarks with subtlety and point (a) this
term Body of Christ is not to be explained solely from the fad
that Christ must be said to be the Head of his Mystical Body,
but also from the fact that He supports the Church, and so in
a certain fashion He lives in the Church, so that she is like
another person of Christ. This is what the Doctor of the Gentiles
affirms when he writes to the Corinthians, when, without adding
anything further, he calls the Church “Christ” (b), certainly,
in this, imitating the Master Himself, who from heaven cried
out to Paul as he was persecuting the Church; “Saul, Saul, why
persecutes! thou me?” (c). Even more, if we are to believe
Gregory of Nyssa, not infrecpiently the Church was called
“Christ" by the Apostle (d). Nor are you ignorant, Venerable
Brothers, of that statement of Augustine: “Christ preaches
Christ" (e).
a) In the exercise of her juridical mission
At the same time, this most noble appellation is not to lie
understood to mean that the ineffable bond by which the Son
z

1050c
1052a
1052b
1052d

Ephes.
Cf. De
I Cor
Cf. De

4:7.
1050d Ephes. 4:6; cf. Col. 2:19.
Hom. Pont., 1. 9; De concil.. II. 19.
12:12.
1052c Acts 9:4; 22:7; 26:14.
vita Moysis.
1052e Scrm. CCCL1V, 1

I HE MYS I 1CAL BODY

551

of God assumed a concrete human nature extended to the entire 35)
Church, hut in the sense that Our Savior shares with his Church
goods which are entirely proper to Him, so that she may
express as perfectly as possible the image of Christ in her
entire way of life, visible as well as invisible. For through what
is called her juridical mission, by which the Divine Redeemer
sent the Apostles into the world as He Himself had been sent
into the world by his Father (a), it is He who through the
Church baptizes, teaches, governs, binds, looses, offers, and
sacrifices.
b) By reason of the Spirit of Christ
And by reason of that higher gift, interior and absolutely 1054
sublime, which We have spoken of above in describing how (25,
it is that the Head influences the members, Christ the Lord 31)
makes his Church live with his heavenly life, permeates the
whole Body with his virtue, nourishes and sustains each of
the members according to the place it occupies in the Body in
almost the same way that the vine nourishes the branches and
makes them fruitful (a).
If we consider closely this divine principle of life and 1055
virtue given by Christ insofar as it constitutes the source of (32,
every gift and created grace, we will easily understand that it 88.
is nothing other than the Holy Spirit, which proceeds from the 113)
Father and the Son, who in a peculiar sense is called the “Spirit
of Christ” or the "Spirit of the Son” (a). For it is by this
Breath of grace and truth that the Son of God adorned his
soul in the immaculate womb of the Virgin; this Spirit takes his
delight in residing in the sacred soul of the Redeemer as in his
holy temple; it is this Spirit which Christ merited for us by
pouring out his blood on the Cross; finally, it is this Spirit
which, breathing on the Apostles. He imparted to the Church
for the remission of sins (b). But while Christ alone received
this Spirit without measure (c). He is given to the members of the
Mystical Body only according to the measure of the giving of
Christ, out of Christ’s own fullness (d). And after Christ was
1053a Cf. John 17:18; 20:21.
1054a Cf. Leo XIII. Sapienti;v Christiana·. above No. 505; Satis
cognihnn, above No. 537 ff.
1055a Rom. 8:9; 2 Cor. 3:17; Gal. 4:6.
1055b Cf. John 20:22.
1055c Cf. John 3:34.
I055d Cf. Ephes. 1:8; 4:7.

552

TUE MYSTICAL BODY

glorified on the Cross, his Spirit was given to the Church in a
most abondant outpouring, so that every single member of the
Church could grow daily more and more like the Savior. It
is the Spirit of Christ who makes us the adoptive sons of God (e).
so that one day “we all, beholding the glory of the Lord with
open face, are transformed into the same image from glon
to glory” ( f ).
c) Who is llie soul of the Mystical Body
1056
It is to this Spirit of Christ as to an invisible principle that
(32, is to be attributeci the fact that all the parts are united among
43, themselves as well as with their sublime Head, since He is
58, entire in the Head, entire in the Body, entire in each of the mem88) bers; and for their diverse duties and functions, whether greater or
less, according to the degree of spiritual health which they enjoy
He is present, and gives his assistance, in varying degrees. It is
He who. by imparting to each one of the parts of the body his
supernatural life, must be reckoned the very principle of that vital
action and salvation. It is He who, while He is present in person
in all the members and exercises his divine activity in them
nonetheless acts in the inferior members through the agency of the
superior members. Finally, it is He who. while He daily gives new
increase to the Church by the infusion of his grace, yet refuses
to dwell by sanctifying grace in members entirely cut off from
the Church. This presence and operation of the Spirit of Jesus
Christ Our learned Predecessor of immortal memory, Leo XIII
expressed in succinct and energetic fashion in his Encyclical
Letter Divinum illud: “It is .sufficient to affirm that if Christ is
the Head of the Church, the Holy Spirit is its soul’ (a).
1055e Cf. Rom. 8:14-17; Gal. 4:6-7.
1055f Cf. 2 Cor. 3:18.
1056a I lie est qui cælesti vit.v habitu in omnibus corporis /xirtibin
cujusvis est habendus actionis vitalis ac reapse salutaris princi­
pium. Ille est, qui licet per se ipse in omnibus membris habeatur,
in iisdemque divinitus agat, in inferioribus tamen etiam per su­
periorum ministerium operatur, ille denique est. qui dum Eccle­
sia· nova semper in dies, sua afflante gratia, incrementa |Miri(
membra tamen, a Corpore omnino abscissa, renuit sanctitati'
gratia inhabitare. Quam quidem Jesus Christi Spiritus pr.vsentiau.
operationemque sapient issimus Decessor Noster hnm. nicm
Leo XIII, Encyclicis Litteris Divinum Illud per hrve verba presse
nervoseque significavit: 'Hoc affirmare sufficiat, quod cum
Christus Caput sit Ecclesia·, Spiritus Sanctus sil eius anima' (See
above No. 620.)

THE MYSTICAL BODY

553

Ιί we now consider that vital force and virtue by means of 1057
which the whole Christian community is sustained by its Founder, (27not now in itself, but in the effects which spring from it, we see 28,
that it consists in those heavenly gifts which Our Redeemer, to- 3;.
gether with his Spirit, communicates to his Church, and that 32)
together with his Spirit He acts as the giver of supernatural light
and the author of sanctity. Therefore, the Church, with all her
holy members can apply to herself the sublime statement of the
Apostle: "I live, now not I; but Christ liveth in me” (a).
Christ, the “Savior” of his Body

Our words on the “Mystical Head’ (a) would remain in- 1058
complete if We omitted to say at least a few words on that state- (18,
ment of the Apostle: "Christ is the Head of the Church. He is the 22,
Savior of his Body’’ (b). For these words express a final reason
23,
why the name of Body of Christ must be given to the Church.
88,
For Christ is the Divine Savior of this Body. He is rightly called 217)
by the Samaritans “the Savior of the world" (c); and beyond any
doubt He must be called “the Savior of all” though we must add
with Paul: “especially of the faithful” (d). For before all
others, it is his members who constitute the Church whom He
acquired with his blood (e). However, as We have sufficiently ex­
plained this subject above in writing of the birth of the Church on
the Cross, of Christ as the giver of light and author of holiness
and the support of that same Mystical Body, there is no reason for
us to write more at length; rather, with undying thanks to God,
we should all meditate upon these things with humility and
attention. For what Our Savior began when He hung upon the
Cross, He never ceases to labor at, uninterruptedly, in the bliss
of paradise: "Our Head," says St. Augustine, “is interceding
for us: He receives some members. He chastises others; some
He cleanses, some He consoles; He creates some, calls others,
summons back to Himself still others; some He is correcting,
others He is making whole" (f). And in this saving work, we
must all give our cooperation to Christ in “whom and by whom
alone we are both saved and saving" (g).
1057a Gal. 2:20.
1058a Cf. St. Ambrose. De Elia et jejun., 10, 36-37 et In Psalm
188, semi. 20, 2.
1058b Ephes. 5:23.
1058c John 4:42.
1058d 1 Tim. 4:10.
IO58e Acts 20:28.
1058f Enarr in
Ps.. LXXXV, 5 1058g St. Clement of Alexandria, Strom., \ II, 2

554

THE MYSTICAL BODY

The Church, "Mystical" Body of Christ
1059
We may now, Venerable Brothers, pass to another stage oi
(35- the development, in which We desire to show how the Body of
36) Christ which is the Church must be called mystical. This
appellation, already employed by many writers of the earliest
times, is confirmed by many documents of the Sovereign Pon­
tiffs. More than one reason influences Us to employ this term;
for by it the social Body of the Church, of which Christ is the
Head and the Chief, can be distinguished from his physical
Body, which, born of the Virgin Mother of God, now sits at
the right hand of the Father, and is hidden under the veil of the
Eucharist. Further, it can be distinguished, and this is of greater
importance on account of the errors of our times, from any
natural or physical body whatsoever, or from any so-called
moral body (a).
The Mystical Body and a physical body
1060
For while in the natural body the principle of unity joins
(35, all the parts in such a way that each one lacks in an absolute
76) manner what is called proper subsistence, on the contrary in
the Mystical Body the force of the mutual union, although
intimate, joins all the members among themselves in such a way
that each one of them has full enjoyment of his proper per­
sonality. It results that if we consider the relationship between
the whole and each one of the members in any living body
whatsoever, each one of the members is destined uniquely for
the final good of the whole; while any social body of men, if
we look only to the final end of its usefulness, is ultimately
ordered to the good of all and of each of its members, for they
are persons. Therefore, to return to Our subject, as the Son of
the Eternal Father came down from heaven for the eternal
salvation of all of us, so, too, He founded the Body which is
(he Church and He endowed it with His Divine Spirit to give
to immortal souls the means of procuring beatitude, according
to these words of the Apostle: "For all are yours; and you are
1059a Non autem unit de causa hiec vox adhibenda est; quando­
quidem per illam sociale Ecclesiæ Cornus, cujus Christus Caput
est ac moderator, internosci potest a physico ejus Corpore, quod
e Deipara VirRine natum nunc ad Patris dexteram sedet, velisque
Eucharisticis delitescit; ac discerni item potest, quod ob hodier­
nos errores majoris momenti est, a naturali quovis corpore siti
physico, sive, ut ajunt, morali.

THE MYSTICAL BODY

555

Christ’s, and Christ is God’s” (a). For il the Church is ordained
lor the good of the faithful, she is destined also to procure the
glory of Cod and of Him whom He sent. Jesus Christ.
The Mystical Body and a moral body

But if we compare the Mystical Body with what is called 1061
a moral body, it must be acknowledged that the difference is (36,
great, and even one of a supreme moment and the utmost 43)
importance. In the body which is called moral, there is no
other principle of unity than the common end and the common
pursuit by all of the same end by means of a social authority.
But in the Mystical Body of which We are speaking, another
internal principle of unity is added to this common pursuit,
which, existing truly in the entire organism as well as in each
one of its parts, and active there, is of such excellence that by
itself it immeasurably surpasses every other bond of unity which
supplies the cohesive force for any body, whether physical or
moral (a). This is, as we said above, something which is not
of a natural, but of a supernatural order, even more, something
in itself absolutely infinite and uncreated: namely, the Divine
Spirit, who, as the Angelic Doctor says, “one and unique, fills
the whole Church and makes its unity” (b).

Consequently, the exact significance of this word calls to 1062
mind that the Church, which must be regarded as a perfect
(3,
socieh' of its kind, does not consist simply of its social and 12juridical elements and principles. She is much more excellent 13,
than any other human community (a); she surpasses them in 16the same way that grace surpasses nature and immortal realities
17.
surpass all perishable reality (b). Communities ol this kind, 137)
especially Civil Society, certainly cannot be despised or counted
for little; but the Church is not entirely in realities of this order,
1060a 1 Cor. 3:23; Pius XI, Divini Redemptoris A.A.S., 1937.
p. 80.
1061a Dam in mystico, de quo agimus, Corpore conspirationi huic
internum aliud adjungitur principium, quod tam in universa
compage, quam in singulis ejus partibus reapse exsistens virtute­
que pollens, talis et excellenti.e, ut ratione sui omnia unitatis
vincula, quibus vel physicum vel morale corpus copuletur, in
immensum prorsus evincat. 1061b Dr Veritate, Q 29, a. 4, e
1062a Cf. Leo XIII, Sapient i.v christiamv, above No. 507.
10621) Leo XIII. Satis cognitum, above No. 578.

556

THE MYSTICAL BODY

just as the whole man does not consist entirely of the mortal
body (c). Nevertheless, the juridical elements on which the
Church relies and of which she is composed, stem from the
divine constitution given bv Christ; they serve to attain the
supernatural end; but what raises the Christian society to a
level which is higher than any merely natural order is the Spirit
of Our Redeemer, who, as source of graces, gifts, and all
charisms, perpetually and intimately fills the Church and works
in her (d). Assuredly, the organism of our mortal body is a
wonderful work of God, but how far below the exalted dignity
of our soul! So, too, the social structure of the Christian state,
although it proclaims the wisdom of the Divine Architect, is
something of an altogether inferior order, when compared with
the spiritual gifts which embellish it and make it live, and to
their divine source.
The juridical Church and the Church nf love
1063
From what We have already treated and explained to you
(3,
up to this point. Venerable Brothers, it is abundantly clear what
9grave error is theirs who have imagined, according to their own
10, desires, a hidden and invisible Church, it is the same for those
17, who regard her as a kind of human institution with a certain
21) body of discipline and exterior rites, but without the communica­
tion of supernatural life (a). On the contrary: as Christ, Head
and Model of the Church “is not entire if only his human and
visible nature is seen in Him .... or if only a divine and invisible
nature ..., but He is one by and in one and the other nature...:
so it is with His Mystical Body” (b); for the Word of God
assumed a human nature subject to suffering so that, once the
visible society had been founded and consecrated with his blood
“through a visible government man might be brought back to
invisible realities” (c).
1062c Cf. Ibidem.
J062d Quamvis enim juridicæ rationes, quibus Ecclesia etiam innititur atque componitur, ex divina oriantur a Christo data con­
stitutione, ad supernumque finem assequendum conferant, id
tamen, qui Christiana societas ad gradum evehitur, qui omnem
naturx ordinem prorsus evincit. Redemptoris nostri Spiritus est
qui ceu fons gratiarum, donorum, ac charismatum omnium, per­
petuo et intime Ecclesiam replet et in ea operatur.
1063a Cf. Leo XIII, Ibid.
1063b Cf. Leo XIII, Ibid.
1063c St. Thomas. De Veritate, q. 29, a. 4, ad 3.

I HL MYSTIC AL BODY

557

Therefore, We deplore and condemn the pernicious error 1064
(3,
of those who dream of some kind of a false Church, a sort of
society nourished and formed by charity, to which—not without 13.
disdain—the) oppose another society which they call juridical. 17.
But it is useless to introduce this distinction: they do not 30,
32.
understand that for this very reason the Divine Redeemer willed
46.
the assembly of men set up by Him to be an organized society
73,
perfect in its kind, and equipped with all the juridical and social
75,
elements, to perpetuate on this earth the saving work of the
88Redemption (a), and to attain this end He willed that it should
89)
be enriched by the Holy Spirit with supernatural gifts and
benefits. Likewise the Eternal Father willed that the Church
should be "the Kingdom of the Son of his love" (b). but also that
it should be a kingdom in which all believers would pay the
perfect homage of their intellect and their will (c). and con­
form themselves in obedience and humility to Him who for us
“became obedient even unto death" (d). Therefore, there
cannot be any opposition or repugnance worthy of the name
between what is called the invisible mission of the Holv Spirit,
and the juridical function, received from Christ, of the Pastors
and the Doctors; for—as in us the body and the soul—thev com­
plete and perfect one another, and thev proceed from one and
the same Savior, who not only said as He imparted the Divine
Spirit. Receive the Holy Spirit” (e). but also clearly gave the
order. “As the Father has sent me. so 1 also send you" (f). and
again, “He that heareth you, heareth me” (g).

But if the Church shows signs which bespeak the weakness 1065
of our human condition, this is not to be attributed to her (53.
juridical constitution, but rather to that lamentable inclination 130,
1064a Cone. Vat., Sess IV, Const. dom. de Eccl., prof.; Deuz.
1827.
10611) Col 1 13
1064c Cone. Vat., Sess. HI, Const de fide cath., cap. 3.
1064d Phil. 2:8.
1064e John 20:22
10641 John 20:21
1064g Luke 10:16.—Nulla igitur veri nominis oppositio vel repug­
nantia haberi potest inter invisibilem, quum vocant. Spiritus
Sancti missionem, ac juridicum Pastorum Doctorumque a Christo
acceptum munus; quippe quic—ut in nobis corpus animusque—se
invicem compleant ac perficiant, et ab uno eodemque Servatore
nostro procedant, (pii non modo divinum afflato halitum dixit
"Accipite Spiritum Sanctum", sed etiam clara voce imperavit
"Sicut misit me Pater, et ego mitto vos"; itemque; “Qui vos
audit, me audit."

558

138)

1066
(67,
77,
127130)

i HE MYSTICAL BODY

to evil in each individual, which her Divine Founder suffers Io
exist even in the more elevated members of his Mystical Body to
test the virtue of pastors and flock and to increase the merits of
the Christian faith in all men. For Christ, as We have said above,
did not will to exclude sinners from the assembly which He
founded. If, therefore, some members suffer from spiritual de­
fects, this is no reason why we should lessen our love of the
Church; it is, rather, a reason for us to grow in patience towards
her members.

Certainly our Holy Mother shines out spotless in her sacraments by means of which she brings forth her children and
nourishes them; in her faith, which has never suffered contamination; in her most holy laws, by which she commands all men,
and in her evangelical counsels which she proposes to all men;
finally, in her heavenly gifts and charisms, by means of which,
with inexhaustible fecundity (a), she brings forth armies of
martyrs and virgins and confessors. Hut it is not to her that sin
should be imputed, if some of her members suffer from weak­
nesses and failings; in their name she daily prays to God: “For­
give us our sins”; she consecrates herself, with all the maternal
vigor of her sold, to their spiritual restoration.

1067
Therefore, when we call the Body of Jesus Christ "mystical,
(36) the very meaning of the word gives us a grave warning. It is the
same admonition which resounds in the words of St. Leo: “Ac­
knowledge, O Christian, thy dignity, and, become a participant
of the divine nature, return not by unworthy conduct to your
former vileness. Remember of what Head and what Body thou
art now a member” (a).
Second Paht

The union of the faithful with Christ

1068
(24,
34,
36,
38,

We now desire, Venerable Brothers, to speak in a very special manner of our union with Christ in the Body of the Church.
For if this union, as St. Augustine says so well (a), is a great, a
mysterious and divine reality, it is just for this reason that it is
often badly understood and badly explained by some persons.
1066a Cf. Cone. Vat., Sess. Ill, Const, de fide cath.. cap. 3.
1067a Semi. XXI, 3.
1068a Cf. St. August., Contra Faust., 21, 8.

THE MYSTICAL BODY

559

In the first place, it is clear that this union is the closest possible;
(or in Sacred Scripture it is not only compared to the bond of
chaste wedlock, to the vital union of the vine and the branches,
and to the organic unity of the body (b), but also it is shown
to be so intimate that-according to the words of the Apostle—
"He (Christ) is the Head of the Body which is the Church (c).
The very ancient and constant teaching of the documents re­
ceived from the Fathers shows us that the Divine Redeemer to­
gether with his social Body constitutes one mystical person, or,
as Augustine has it. the whole Christ (d). What is more, Our
Savior Himself in his sacerdotal prayer did not hesitate to com­
pare this union with that marvelous units by means of which the
Son is in the Father and the Father is in the Son (e).

42,
63)

Juridical and social bonds
Our union, therefore, which is in Christ and with Christ, 1069
consists in the first place in the fact that since the Christian so­
(8,
42ciety by the will of its Founder exists as a perfect social Body,
there must exist in it that union of all the members which will
permit them to reach their end. Now the nobler this end is to
which the union tends, the more divine is the source from which
78)
it proceeds, and the more sublime, doubtless, is the union which
results from it. Now in fact the end is the highest kind: namely,
the continued sanctification of the members of this Bodv to the
glory of God and of the Lamb that was slain (a). And the source
is most divine: none other than the good pleasure of the Eternal
Father, and the express will of Our Saxior. but within our minds
and hearts the interior inspiration and impulse of the Holy Spirit
For if it is impossible to perform the least act conducive to sal­
vation except in the Holy Spirit, how could innumerable multi­
tudes of every race and every nation imite in a common accord
for the supreme glory of God, one and triune, except bv the virtue
of Him who proceeds from the Father and the Son bx a love
which is unique and eternal? (b)
1068b Cf. Ephes. 5:22-23; John 15:1-5; Ephes. 1:16.
1068c Col. 1:18.
1068d Cf. Enarr. in Ps., XVII. 51; XC. II. 1.
1068e John 17:21-23.
1069a Apoc. 5:12-13.
1069b Si enim ne minimus quidem actus, qui ad salutem conducat,
elici potest, nisi in Spiritu Sancto, quomodo possunt innumera

560

THE MYSTICAL BODY

1070
But because, as We have said above, by the will of its
Founder this social Body which is the Body of Christ must lx·
(9,

26,
32,

46,
49,
5152,

144,
149,
161,
175)

a visible body, it is necessary that the agreement of all the mem­
bers shall be manifested externally also, as much by their profes­
sion of faith as by their communion in the same mysteries, bv
their participation in the same sacrifice, and, finally, by their ex­
plicit observance of the same laws. Above all, it is absolutely nec­
essary that there should be conspicuous to the eyes of all one
supreme Head, by whom the mutual assistance of all in the pro­
secution of the end to be attained may be directed: We mean the
Vicar on earth of Jesus Christ. For in the same way in which our
Divine Redeemer sent the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth, who
acting in his place (a), should assume the invisible government
of the Church, so He ordered Peter and his Successors, acting in
his person on earth, to provide a visible direction to the Christian

Theological virtues
But to these visible bonds, which are sufficient in themselves
1071
(12, to leave far behind any bonds of a merely human society, even a
45- supreme one, it is necessary to add another reason for this unity
48) by reason of those three virtues which unite us very closely with
God: We mean Christian faith, hope, and charity'.
1072

(44,
46)

In fact, as the Apostle warns us: "there is one Lord, one
faith” (a), that faith by which we adhere to the one God and to
Him whom He has sent, Jesus Christ (b). And how intimately we
are bound to God by this faith we are taught by the words of
that disciple whom Jesus loved with a special love: "Whosoever
shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him,
and he in God’ (c). We are not less closely bound among our­
selves and with our Divine Head by this Christian faith. Foras
many of us as believe, "having ... the same spirit of faith” (d),
we are enlightened by the same light of Christ, we are fed by the
same nourishment of Christ, we are governed by the same au­
thority and teaching of Christ. But if it is the same spirit of faith
cujusvis gentis, cujusvis stirpis multitudines in supremam unitu
trinique Numinis gloriam communi consilio conspirare, nisi ci
illius virtute, oui a Patre Filioque una eternoque efflatur amore?
I070a Cf. John 14:16, 26.
1072a Ephes. 4:5.
1072b Cf. John 17:3.
1072c I John 4:15.
1072(1 2 Cor. 4:13.

THE MYSTIC AL BODY

561

which acts in all, then nil live the same life: “We live in the faith
of the Son of God, who loved ns and delivered Himself for
us” (e); and Christ our Head, received within us by living faith
and dwelling in our hearts (f), as He is the author of our faith,
so He will also be its finisher (g).
As by faith we adhere to God here below as to the source 1073
of truth, so by the virtue of Christian hope we desire Him as the (42,
source of beatitude, “looking for the blessed hope and coming of 47)
the glory of the great God" (a). It is by reason of this common
desire for the heavenly Kingdom, for which we have renounced
here below the possession of an abiding city to seek for one that
is to come (b), and to aspire to supernal glory, that the Apostle
of the Gentiles does not hesitate to say: “One Body and one
Spirit; as you are called in one hope of your calling" (c); even
more, it is Christ, as the hope of glory, who dwells within us (d).
But if the bonds of faith and hope by which we are bound 1074
to Our Divine Redeemer in his Mystical Body are of very great (48)
gravity and importance, assuredly the bonds of charity are of not
less gravity and efficiency. For, if even in the reality of our nature
love is something of the highest excellence from which true
friendship is born, what must be said of that supernatural love
which is poured into our souls by God Himself? “God is charity:
and he that abideth in charity, abideth in God. and God in
Him" (a). This charity, as by a law established by God. has as its
effect to make Him come down into us. to love us in return for our
loving Him, as He said: “If any man love me ..., and my Father
will love him, and we will come to him and make our abode with
him”(b). Charity, therefore, binds us more closely to Christ than
any other virtue; it is in the ardor of that heavenly fire that so
many of the Church’s children have rejoiced to suf fer contumely
for Him. to face the most arduous trials and to overcome them,
even to the last breath of life and the shedding of blood, if need
be. Therefore, Our Divine Savior exhorts us so vehemently in
these words: “Abide in my love" (c). And since charity is vain
and useless if it docs not manifest itself and become effective in
someway in good works. He adds immediately: "If you keep my
1072e
1072g
1073c
1074a

Cf. Gal. 2:20.
Cf. Heb. 12:2.
Ephes. 4:4.
1 John 4:16.

1072f Cf. Ephes. 3:17.
1073a Tit. 2:13. 1073b Cf. Hcb. 13:11.
1073d Cf. Col. 1:27.
1074b John 14:23.
1074c John 15:9.

562

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

commandments. you shall abide in my love; as I also have kept
my Father’s commandments, and do abide in his love” (d).

Love of neighbor
1075
To this love of God. of Christ, must correspond the love of
(42. neighbor. How, indeed, can we say that we love our Divine
48) Redeemer if we hate those whom He has redeemed with his
precious blood to make them members of his Mystical Body?
Therefore, he whom Christ loved more than the other Apostles
gives us this warning: “If any man say, 1 love God, and halet*his brother; he is a liar. For he that loveth not his brother, whom
he seelh. how can he love Cod, whom he seeth not? And this com­
mandment we have from God, that he, who loveth God, love
also his brother” (a). Even more, it must be affirmed that we
will be more united to God. to Christ, the more we are members
one of another (b), solicitous for one another (c). Just as, on the
other hand, we will be more closely united among ourselves and
bound by charity, the more fervent is the love which binds us to
God and to our Divine Head.
Christ embraces us with infinite knowledge and eternal love
1076
The only-begotten Son of God embraced us already before
(19) the beginning of the world in his eternal and infinite knowledge
and in a love which knows no end. And so that He might mani­
fest this love in a visible and truly marvelous way He united our
human nature to Himself in the hypostatic union; whence it
results,-;as Maximus of Turin remarks with a certain candid
simplicity—that "in Christ our flesh loves us” (a).

The Church, the fulness of Christ
1077
This most loving knowledge, by means of which Our Divine
(19) Redeemer has pursued us from the first moment of his Incarna­
tion. surpasses the most intense effort of any human mind. By
virtue of the beatific vision, which, scarcely conceived in the
womb of the Virgin Mother He already enjoyed, He had perpet­
ually and continually before Him all the members of his Mys­
tical Body, and He embraced them with a redeeming love. 0
marvelous condescendence of the divine goodness in our regard!
() inestimable plan of immense charity! In the cradle, on the
1074d John 15:9-10.
1075a I John 4:20-21.
1075b Rom. 12:5.
1075c 1 Cor. 12:25.
1076a Senn. XXIX

THE MYSTICAL BODY

563

Cross, in the eternal glory of the Father, Christ has visible to
Him and joined to Himself all the members of the Church, far
more clearly, and far more lovingly than the mother has her son
pressed to lier heart, than any man knows anti loves himself.

“From all that We have said. Venerable Brothers, it will 1078
easily he seen why the Apostle St. Paul writes so frequently that (32,
Christ is in us, and that we are in Christ. This can also be proved 42)
by a more subtle reasoning. Namely, Christ is in us, as We have
explained in sufficient detail above, by his Holy Spirit, whom He
communicates to us, and by whom He acts in us in such sort that
whatever divine operation is carried out in souls, it must be said
(hat it is Christ also who accomplishes it (a). "Now if any man
have not the Spirit of God.” says the Apostle, "he is none of his.
And if Christ be in you ... the spirit liveth because of justifica­
tion" (b).
And from this same communication of the Spirit of Christ, it
results that the Church is as it were the plenitude and complement of the Redeemer, for all the gifts, virtues, and charisms,
which inhere in the Head in an excellent, most abundant, and
effective manner, flow into all the members of the Church.
and in them, according to the place which they occupy in the
Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, they grow daily more perfect.
Therefore. Christ may be said to be completed in all respects in
the Church (a). And with these words We touch upon the reason
why, according to the opinion of St. Augustine already briefly
indicated, the Mystical Head, which Christ is, and the Church,
which here on earth is as it were another Christ and takes his
place, constitute the one new man, in whom are joined heaven
and earth for perpetuating the redeeming work of the Cross:
namely,
• Christ. Head and Body;
* the whole Christ.
Indwelling of the Holy Spirit in sotds
Certainly We are not ignorant that in the understanding and
exposition of this doctrine—which focuses on our union with our
Divine Redeemer, and the peculiar mode of the indwelling of
the Holy Spirit in souls—many veils are interposed, by which
this same mysterious doctrine is hidden as in a kind of cloud
1078a Cf. St. Thomas. Comm m Ep. ad Eph., cap. II. lect. 5.
1078b Rom. 8:9-10.
1079a Cf. St. Thomas. Comm in Ep. ad Eph . cap 1. lect S.

1079
(25,
32,
34,
88)

10S0
(32,
101)

564

ΠΙΕ MYSTICAL BODY

because of the weakness of our inquiring minds. But We know
also that from an honest and assiduous investigation of this
matter, and from the conflicts of various opinions as well as the
concurrence of various theories, if only love of the truth and due
obedience to the Church direct (his inquiry, will come precious
light, which means, in sacred disciplines as in others, real
progress. Therefore, We do not reprove those who open new
ways and expose new theories to reach and to expose to men
such a profound mystery as that of our marvelous union with
Christ. But this principle must be common and inviolable for
all if they do not want to stray from the authentic doctrine and
the exact teaching of the Church: every type of mystical union
is to be rejected by which the faithful in any way whatever step
outside the order of creation and invade the divine realm, so
that even one attribute of the eternal God is attributed to them
as proper. Moreover, they must keep this other principle firmly
in mind: in these matters, all must be held to be common to the
persons of the Most Holy Trinity of those things which envisage
God as the supreme efficient cause (a).
1081
It must also be noted that this is a question of a hidden
(32) mysten,', which, in the exile of this earth, covered by a kind of
veil, can never be penetrated in its entirety and expressed in
human language. The Divine Persons arc said to dwell within
us. inasmuch as present in an inscrutable manner in living
creatures endowed with intelligence, they may be reached by
these latter through knowledge and love (a), but in a way
which transcends all nature and which is absolutely intimate and
unique. If we wish to have at least some understanding ol it.
1080a Non eos igitur improbamus, qui diversas vias ralioncsaw
ingrediantur ad tam altum attingendum et pro viribus collus·
I random mirandiv hujus nostr.e cum Christo conjunctionis iiii/shrium. Verumtamcn id omnibus commune 'atque inconcussum esto,
si a germana velint doctrina, a rectoque Eceleshr magisterio non
aberrare, omnem nempe reicicndum esse nujsticiv hujus coml·
mentationis modum, quo christifideles. quavis ratione ita creata­
rum rerum ordinem pnvtcrgrcdiantui. atque in divina perperam
invadant, ut vel una sempiterni Numinis attributio de eisdem
tamquam propria praedicari queat. Ac pr.vterca certissimum illud
firma mente retineant, hisce in rebus omnia esse habenda Sanctissimor Trinitati communia, quatenus eadem Deum ut supremam
efficientem causam respiciunt.
1081a Cf. St. Thomas, I, q. 43, a. 3.

THE MYSTICAL BODY

565

we should not neglect that method which the \ atican Council (b)
warmly recommends in questions oi this nature: to obtain
some light by which at least something of the mysteries of God
can be known, it is useful to compare the mysteries among them­
selves and with the last end to which they are directed. Most
appropriately therefore did Our very wise Predecessor of happy
memory, Leo XIII, when he spoke of our union with Christ and
with the Divine Paraclete dwelling within us, direct our gaze
towards that beatific vision, where, in heaven, this same mystical
union reaches its perfect consummation. "This marvelous union."
he says, "which is known under the name of indwelling, differs
only in condition or state from that in which God embraces the
elect in beatifying them (c). It is in this vision that, in an
ineffable fashion, it will be given us to contemplate the Father,
the Son. and the Holy Spirit with the eyes of our mind strength­
ened by supernatural light, lt> be present at the processions of
the Divine Persons for all eternity, and to be blessed with a joy
very’ similar to that which is the beatitude of the Most Hole and
Undivided Trinity.

The Eucharist, the sign of unity

What We have up to this point exposed concerning the 1082
ven’ dose union of the Mystical Body of Christ with its Head (51,
would seem to Us incomplete, if We did not now add at least a 116)
few words on the Most Holy Eucharist, by which such a union
finds as it were its culmination in this mortal life.
For Christ the Lord willed this marvelous union, which can
never sufficiently be praised, which unites us among ourselves
and with our Divine Head, to be shown to the faithful in a
special manner by the Eucharistic Sacrifice. For in it the sacred
ministers not only take the place of Our Savior, but they take the
place also of the entire Mystical Body and of each one of the
faithful. There, too. the faithful themselves, united by common
devotion and prayers, offer the Immaculate Lamb made present
on the altar by the words of the priest; they offer Him up to the
Eternal Father by the hands of the same priest, a most agreeable
victim of praise and propitiation for the needs of the entire
Church. And just as the Divine Redeemer, dying upon the Cross,
1081b Sess. 111. Const, de fide cath , cap. I
1081c Cf. Divinum illud, see above No. 653.

1083
(31.
51,
114,
212)

566

THE MYSTICAL BODY

as Head of the entire human race offered Himself to his Eternal
Father, so “in this clean oblation" (a), not only does He oiler
Himself, as Head of the Church, to his Heavenly Father, but in
Himself his mystical members, too, for He includes them all,even
the most weak and infirm, in his most loving Heart.
1084
The sacrament of the Eucharist, while it constitutes a vivid
(51) and most wonderful image of the unity of the Church—since this
bread which is destined to be consecrated is formed from the
union of many grains—gives us the author of supernatural (a)
grace Himself, that from Him we may draw that Spirit of charity
by which we are permitted to live, nt) longer our own life, but
the life of Christ, anti in .ill the members of his social Body to
love the Redeemer Himself.
If, therefore, in these calamitous times in which we live to­
1085
(43, day many men adhere to Christ the Lord hidden beneath the
51) veils of the Eucharist, so that neither tribulation, nor anguish,
nor hunger, nor nakedness, nor danger, nor persecution, nor the
sword can separate them from his love (a), then beyond a
doubt Holy Communion, providentially restored in recent times
to more frequent reception from childhood on, can become the
source of that strength which can often, among Christians, rouse
and support heroism.
Turno Part
Pastoral Exhortation
Errors Concerning the Ascetical Life
1086
These are truths. Venerable Brothers, which if the faithful
understand them with piety and exactitude and keep them with
diligence, can easily keep from then) those errors which spring
from the investigation of this difficult matter, investigation
conducted by' some with an arbitrariness which is not without its
danger for the Catholic faith and the disturbance of minds.
False “mysticism"
1087
There are some who. not sufficiently considering that the
(35, Apostle Paul speaks here with terms employed in a figurative
63)
sense, and not distinguishing, as it is absolutely necessary to do.
the peculiar and proper senses of physical, moral, and mystical
body, introduce a false notion of unity, when they make the
1083a Mai. LU
1085a Cf. Hom 8:35.

1081a C.'f. Didache, IX, 4.

1111 MYSIICAI BODY

567

Divine Redeemer and the members of the Church fuse and
coalesce into one physical person; and while they attribute
divine attributes to men, they make Christ the Lord subject to
error and to a human inclination to evil. It is not only Catholic
faith and the teaching of the Fathers which repudiate absolutely
this false doctrine, but also the mind and the whole teaching of
the Apostle of the Gentiles, who, although he joins Christ and
his Mystical Body in a wonderful union of persons, at the same
lime opposes them one to the other as Spouse and Beloved (a)
False “(/uietisnr
Not less far from the truth is that dangerous error of those 1088
who, from that mysterious union of all of ns with Christ seek to (29,
deduce some kind of unhealths ciuietism, as thev call it, attribut- 32.
ing the entire spiritual life of Christians and their progress in 43)
virtue solely to the action of the Divine Spirit, excluding from it
and neglecting what must be our part in it. the accompanying,
and, as it were, the helping action. No one. certainly, can deny
that the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ is the one source from which
all supernatural strength in the Church and in each of her mem­
bers comes. For, “grace and glory,” as the Psalmist says,
“the Lord will give” (a). At the same time, that men should
persevere constantly in good works, that they should progress in
grace and in virtue with an eager heart, finally, that they should
press forward to the heights of Christian perfection and urge
others also to the same end with all their .strength—all this the
Holy Spirit does not will to accomplish unless these same men
play their role by daily effort. “The divine benefits.” says
St. Ambrose, “are given not to the sleeping, but to the active (b).
For if in our mortal bodies the members grow strong and
vigorous by constant exercise, much more so is this the case in
the social Body ol Jesus Christ, in which each member enjoys
his own proper liberty, his own responsibility, and his own
activity. And he who says, “If I live, it is no longer I, but Christ
lives in me (c), does not hesitate to affirm at the same time:
His grace (that is, God’s) in me hath not been void, but 1 have
labored more abundantis than all they: yet not I, but the grace
1087a Cf. Ephes. 5:22-23,
1088a Ps. 83:12.
1088b Expos. EvanR. sec. Luc., IV, 49.
1088c Gal. 2:20.

568

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

of God with me" (d). it is therefore clear that in these fake
teachings the mystery of which We speak does not contribute to
the spiritual perfection oi Christians, but unfortunately, to then
ruin.
Errors concerning confession and prayer
1089
This is the result also of that false doctrine which asserts
(117) that not so much should be made of the frequent confession of
faults which are called cental, which holds of more value that
general confession which the Spouse of Christ with those of her
children joined to her in the Lord makes each day through the
priests as they approach the altar. It is true that there are many
ways, and they are very laudable, as you know, Venerable
Brothers, by which these faults may be expiated; hut to make
daily and more rapid progress along the path of virtue. We wish
to commend most especially the pious use of frequent confession
introduced by the Church under the impulse of the Holy Spirit
By it we grow in a proper self-knowledge; Christian humility is
increased, bad habits are eradicated; spiritual negligence and
tepidity are warred against; the conscience is purified, the will,
strengthened; salutary spiritual direction is obtained; and grace
is increased by the power of the sacrament itself. Therefore, let
those among the younger clergy who diminish and attenuate the
esteem for frequent confession realize that they are doing a work
foreign to the Spirit of Christ and most harmful to the Mystical
Body of Our Savior.

1090
(45,
6566,
117,
213)

Besides, there are some who deny to our prayers all power
of impétration worthy of the name, or who try to insinuate in
men’s minds the opinion that prayers made privately to Cod
are of little value, that those rather, which are made publicly in
the name of the Church are of real value since they come from
the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ. This is also an error: for the
Divine Redeemer not only willed his Church to be most closely
united to Him. as a dearly loved Spouse, but in her every single
one of the souls of the faithful as well, and with them He desires
most ardently, most especially when they approach the
Eucharistic banquet, to speak with intimacy. And although public
prayer, proceeding as it does from our Mother the Church,
excels all other because of the dignity of the Spouse of Christ,
at the same time, all prayer, even when privately offered, lacks

ΤΙ IE MYSIICAL BODY

569

neither dignity nor power, and it even contributes greatly to the
good of the entire Mystical Body, in which nothing good, nothing
just, can be done by any one of the members which does not
redound to the salvation of all through the Communion of Saints.
Nor are individual men forbidden, because they are members
of this Body, to beg for themselves special graces, even when
these pertain to this life, provided they remain dependent on
the divine will. For they remain independent persons, with
individual necessities (a). As for the esteem which all should
have for meditation on divine tilings, not only the documents of
the Church approve it, but also the use and example of all those
eminent in sanctity,
z
Finally, there are those who say that our prayers should 1091
not be addressed to the person of Jesus Christ, but rather to God, (7,
or to the Eternal Father through Christ, since our Savior, as 24Head of his Mystical Body must be considered solely as 25.
“mediator between God and man" (a). But this is not only 117)
opposed to the mind of the Church and to the custom of Chris­
tians, but even offends truth. For Christ, to speak properly and
exactly, is the Head of the whole Church according to his divine
nature and according to his human nature at one and the same
time (b); moreover He Himself has solemnly declared it: “If you
shall ask me anything in my name, that I will do” (c). And
although, especially in the Eucharistic Sacrifice—in which Christ,
who is Himself the priest and the victim, exercises in a special
way the office of mediator—prayers are addressed for the most
part to the Eternal Father through his only-begotten Son. never­
theless it is not rare, even in this Holy Sacrifice, to have prayers
addressed also to the Divine Redeemer. In fine, it must be clearly
known by all Christians that Christ Jesus is at the same time Son
of God and God Himself. And consequently, when the Church
militant adores and prays the spotless Lamb and the sacred Host,
she seems to be answering the voice of the Church triumphant
which sings without interruption: "To Him that sitteth on the
throne, and to the Lamb, benediction, and honor, and glory, and
power, for ever and ever” (d).
1090a Cf. St. Thomas. 11-11, q. 83. a. 5. 6.
1091a 1 Tim. 2:5
1091b Christus enim, ut proprie accurateque loquamur, secun­
dum utramque naturam una simul, totius Ecclesi.e est Caput (St
Thomas, Dc Veritate, q. 29. a. 4, c.)
109 lc John 14:14.
1091d Apoc. 5:13.

570

THE MYSTICAL BODY

Exhortation to love the Church
1092
Venerable Brothers, alter We have enlightened minds with
(231) the light of truth in the explanation of this mystery which
embraces the mysterious union of all of us with Christ as Doctor
of the Universal Church, We believe it to be conformable to
Our duty' to stimulate them to love this same Mystical Body with
a charity so ardent that it will be manifest not only in thought
and word but also in works of zeal. For if the faithful of the
Old Law sang these words about their earthly City: “If I forget
thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand be forgotten. Let my tongue
cleave to my jaws, if I do not remember thee: il I make not
Jerusalem the beginning of my joy" (a), with how much greater
pride and effusive joy must we not exult that we dwell in a Cits
built of living stones in the holy mountain, “Jesus Christ Himself
being the chief cornerstone” (b).

1093
Indeed, nothing more glorious, nothing more noble, nothing
(5,
more honorable can be conceived than to belong to the holy.
210) catholic, apostolic, and Roman Church, by which we are made
members of so holy a Body, we are governed by so sublime a
Head, penetrated by one Divine Spirit. Finally, we are nourished
by one doctrine and one Angelic Food in this our earthly exile,
until at last we come to the enjoyment of a single and everlasting
beatitude in heaven.
With a total love
1094
But lest we be deceived by the angel of darkness transform(29, ing himself into an angel of light (a), let this be the supreme
115, law of our charity, that we love the Spouse of Christ such as
117, Christ willed her to be and redeemed her with his blood. There231) fore, not only the sacraments, with which Holy Mother Church
nourishes us, must be very dear to us, not only her solemnities by
which she brings us solace and joy, and her sacred canticles
and liturgical rites, with which she raises our minds to heavenly
things, but also hcr sacramentels and all those various exercises
ol piety by means of which she sweetly imbues the minds of the
faithful with the Spirit of Christ and consoles them. It is a duty for
us not only to respond, as becomes sons, to her maternal love for
us. but to revere in her the authority which she has received from
Christ, which subjects our minds to the obedience of Christ (b).
1092a Ps 136:5-6.
1091a Cf 2 Cor. 11:11

1092b Ephes. 2:20; 1 Peter 2:1-5
10941) Cf. 2 Cor. 10:5.

11 IE MYS IICAL BODY

571

Finally, we must obey her laws and moral precepts, some­
times hard for our nature in its deviation from original innocence
even to control our rebellious flesh by voluntary mortification;
we are even recommended to abstain at times from pleasures
which arc not in themselves harmful. Nor is it enough to love
this Mystical Body because of its Divine Head and the glory
of its heavenly gifts; we ought to love it with an effective love,
such as it is made manifest in our mortal flesh, made up as it
is of weak human elements, even if sometimes they are unworthy
of the place they occupy in this venerable Body (c).
Which makes us see Christ in the Church

But so that this total and entire love may live in our souls 1095
and increase from day to day, it is necessary for us to accustom (27,
ourselves to see Christ in the Church For it is Christ who lives 31,
in his Church, who leaches through her, governs, and communi­ 34,
cates sanctity. It is Christ also who manifests Himself in various 231)
wavs in various members of his society. Where Christians force
themselves to live truly by that living spirit of faith, not only do
they render the honor and obedience which are due to them to
the higher members of this Mystical Body, to them, namely, who
bv- order of the Divine Head will have to render an account of
their souls (a), but they will hold in affection, too, those for
whom Our Savior had a very special love: We mean the weak,
the diseased, the sick, who are in want of either natural or
supernatural medicine; the children, whose innocence is so easilx
endangered today, whose tender souls are as impressionable as
wax, lastly, the poor, in helping whom they must recognize with
the greatest compassion the* very person of Jesus Christ.

For as the Apostle .so rightly warns us: Yea. much more 1096
those that seem to be the more feeble members of the body are (29)
more necessary. And such as we think to be the less honorable
members of the body, about these we put more abundant hon1094c Arc Λ«/ΙΛ est mysticum hoc Corpus diligere, divino Capite
avleslibusque dotibus insigne; sed actuose etiam amore idem
prosequi aebemus, prouti in mortali manifestatur carne nostra,
ex humanis nempe infirtnisque elementis constans, etsi minus
eadem nonnumquam ei loco congruunt, quem in venerando illlo
Corpore occupant.
1095» Cf. Hei). 13:17.

572

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

or" (a). This very grave pronouncement, conscious of the ven
high office which is Our lot, We feel We must repeat today, while
with profound affliction We see those deformed in body, the
insane, or the victims of hereditary disease, regarded as a heavy
burden upon society, and even sometimes deprived of life. And
this way of acting is praised by some as if it were a new invention
of human progress, in conformity with the best general interest.
But what man of heart does not see that this is opposed not onh
to the natural and the divine law (b) which is inscribed in the
hearts of all men, but also violently opposed to the thinking of the
more civilized? The blood of these individuals, who are all the
more dear to Our Redeemer because they deserve the greater
compassion, “crieth to God from the earth” (c).
Let us imitate the love of Christ for the Church
1097
But lest this sincere charity, by means of which we should
(66, see Our Savior in the Church anti her members, grow progres231) sively weaker, it is very useful to consider Jesus Himself as the
supreme model of love for the Church.

a) Extent of this love
1098
And first let us imitate the extent of this love. Certainly, the
(22, Spouse of Christ which is the Church is unique; nonetheless, the
48, love of the Divine Bridegroom extends so widely that, excluding
59, no one, He embraces in his Spouse the human race in its entiretv.
63, II Our Savior poured out his blood on the Cross, He did so in or·
66) der to reconcile all men with God, separated as they are by nation
and race, and to unite them in one Body. Therefore, the true love
of the Church requires, not only that we should be members one of
another within the Body itself, and solicitous for one another (a)
members who will rejoice with the member who receives glory,
and feel compassion when he suffers (b), but it requires also that
other men, not yet joined to us in the Body of the Church,
should be recognized as brothers of Christ according to the flesh,
called together with us to the same eternal salvation. Doubtless,
alas! there are not lacking those especially today, who proudly
glorify struggle, hatred, and jealousy, as a means of extolling anil
1096a 1 Cor. 12:22-23.
1096b Cf. Decret. S. Officii. Dec. 2. 1940; MARRIAGE. N. 598a
‘S, Cf. ?SS 11:26.
,09β" Cf· Rom· 12* 1 C"r- ,2:25·

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

573

heightening human dignity and human virtue. But we, who see
with sorrow die pernicious fruits of this doctrine, let us follow
our King of Peace, who teaches us to love not only those who are
sprung from another nation or another people (c), but even our
very enemies (d). With souls penetrated with the most sweet
teaching of the Apostle of the Gentiles, let us celebrate with him
the length and breadth, the height and depth of the charity of
Christ (e). which neither the diversity of race or custom can
break, nor immense wastes of ocean diminish, nor even wars,
whether undertaken for just or unjust causes, can destroy.
In this very grave hour. Venerable Brothers, when so much
suffering harasses the body and such grief weighs upon the mind.
we ought to exhort all to this supernatural charity, so that, the
forces of all men of good will working together—We have
especially in mind those who are working in societies dedicated
to relief of every kind—help may be brought to the immense
needs of soul and body in an admirable effort of piety and mercy.
It is thus that the generous liberality and inexhaustible fecundity
of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ will shine resplendent in the
whole world.
b) Its eager activity
But since to the amplitude of the charity wherewith Christ
has loved the Church there corresponds an active constancy in
charity, let us all in our turn, with an assiduous and active will.
love the Mystical Body of Christ. For it is impossible to name a
moment in the life of Our Redeemer when He did not labor at
the formation or the consolidation ol his Church: from his Incar­
nation, when He laid the foundation of his Church, to the end of
his mortal life, by the shining example of his sanctity, by his
preaching, his teaching, his appeals, his institutions: labored even
to exhaustion, although He was the Son of God. We desire,
therefore, that all men who acknowledge the Church as their
Mother carefully weigh the fact that not only the ministers ol the
altar and those who have consecrated themselves to religious life,
but also all other members of the Mystical Body ol Jesus Christ,
each in his own way, have the duty to labor diligently for the
edification and the increase of this Body. We wish this to be borne
in mind especially by members of Catholic Action who collaborate
1098c Cf. Luke 10:33-37.
1098d Cf. Luke 6:27-35; Matt. 5:11-18.

1098e Cf. Ephes. 3:18

1099
(82)

1100
(217.
231)

574

THE MYSTICAL BODY

with the Bishops and clergy in the Apostolic function-and to their
praise, be it said, they do realize it—and also by those, too, who in
pious associations give their services for the same end. There is no
one, in fact, who does not see that the assiduous activity of all men
is, under present conditions, of the highest importance and the
utmost gravity.
1101
Nor can We here pass over in silence the fathers and mothers
(221) of families to whom Our Savior has confided the most tender
members of his Mystical Body. We urge them for the love ol
Christ and of the Church to watch over the children entrusted
to them with the most diligent care; and to forearm them against
the dangers of every sort into which it is so easy to fall today

1102
(231)

1103
(56,

c) By continual prayer
Our Redeemer has shown his burning love for the Church
in a special way by the pious supplications He addressed to his
Fatheron her behalf. Everybody knows, Venerable Brothers,-and
We only recall these things here—that when He was about to
undergo the torment of the Cross He prayed repeatedly for
Peter (a), for the other Apostles (b). finally, for all those
who by the preaching of the divine word would come to
believe in Him (c). We, too. imitating the example of Christ,
daily beseech the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into his
harvest (d); daily our common prayer should rise to heaven Io
recommend every member of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ
In the first place, the Bishops, to whom is confided the particular
care of each diocese; then priests, religious men and women, who,
called to God’s service, either at home or abroad in pagan lands,
piotect, increase, and extend the Kingdom of the Divine Redeem­
er. Let this common supplication forget no member of this
venerable Body; and let those especially be remembered who are
afflicted with suffering and trials on this earth, or who are being
purified by expiatory fire after death. Nor should our prayer
omit those who are being instructed in the Christian teachings
so that as soon as possible they may be purified in the waters of
Baptism.
And We ardently desire that these common prayers look with
burning love towards those who have not vet received the light
1102a Cf. Luke 22:32.
1102c Cf. John 17:20-23.

1102b Cf. John 17:9-19.
1102d Cf. Matt. 9:38; Luke 10:2.

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

575

of the Gospel and have not yet entered into the safe fold of the
Church; or those who, by reason of an unfortunate division in
the unitv of faith, are separated from Us who in spite of Our
unworthiness hold the place of Jesus Christ on earth. To this
end We repeat the divine prayer of Our Savior to his Heavenly
Father: “That they all may be one. as thou. Father, in me and I
in thee, that they all may be one in us, that the world may believe
that thou has sent me” (a).

59)

For those who are not yet his members
For those who do not yet belong to the visible organism of 1104
the Catholic Church, you know well, Venerable Brothers, that (40,
from the beginning of Our Pontificate We have committed them 59to the divine protection and guidance, solemnly affirming that, 62)
following in the footsteps of the Good Shepherd, We have nothing
so much at heart as that they may have life and have it more
abundantly (a). This solemn assurance, after having implored the
prayers of the entire Church, We wish to reiterate in this Encycli­
cal Letter, in which We have celebrated the praise of the
great and glorious body of Christ" (b), inviting all men. and
each one in particular, in a most loving manner to yield themselves
freely and willingly to the interior movements of divine grace so
as to liberate themselves from that state in which no man can
be sure of his own eternal salvation (c). For even if they should
find themselves turned towards the Mystical Body of the Redeem­
er by unconscious desire and aspiration, they would lack very
many and very great supernatural helps which it is possible to en­
joy only in the Catholic Church. Therefore, let them enter into
Catholic unity, and joined with Us in the one organism of the
Body of Jesus Christ, let all hasten to the one Head in a most
glorious society of love (d). Without ever interrupting Our
prayers to the Spirit of love and truth. We await them, with arms
wide open, as those who approach, not a stranger’s house, but
the home of their father.
But if We desire to see rise up to God this uninterrupted 1105
prayer of the whole Mystical Body, that all wanderers may enter (59,
1103a John 17:21.
1104a Cf. Encyel. Summi Pontificatus; above No. 955 if.
1104b St. Irenaeus, Adv. Haer., IV, 33. 7.
1104c Cf. Pius IX. Jain vos omnes, Sept. 13, 1888; above. No.
313 if.
1104d Cf. St. Gelasius I. Epist. XIV.

576

THE MYSTIC AL BODY

60) as soon as possible into the one fold of Jesus Christ, We declare
at the same time that it is absolutely necessary that this he done
freely and willingly, since no man can believe unless he will it (a).
Therefore, if there are any who, though they do not believe,
are in reality compelled to enter the edifice of the Church so as
to approach the altar and receive the sacraments, beyond any
doubt they do not become true Christians (b); for faith, without
which “it is impossible to please God" (c) must be an entirely
free "homage of the intellect and the will” (d). Hence, if it should
happen that, contrary to the constant teaching of this Apostolic
See (e), anyone should be brought against his will to embrace
the Catholic faith. We cannot do otherwise, in the realization of
Our duty, than disavow such an action. For, since all men possess
free will, and can, under the impulse of passion or base desires,
abuse their liberty, it is necessary that the Father of lights draw
them effectively to the truth by the Spirit of his beloved Son
But if many, alas! still wander far from the Catholic truth and are
unwilling to yield to the inspiration of divine grace, the reason is
to be found in the fact that not only they themselves (f) but even
the faithfid do not address more fervent prayers to God for this
intention. We earnestly beg all, therefore, who have a burning
love for the Church to prav constantly for this end. after the ex­
ample of the Divine Redeemer.
For rulers
1106
Moreover, in the present state of affairs it seems not only
(04/ opportune but necessary to address fervent prayers for kings
and princes and for all those who, exercising the office of ruler,
can assist the Church by giving her their external protection, so
that, when right order has been established, “peace, the work of
justice” (a) breathed out by divine charity, may rise up over the
human race, exhausted by the terrible waves of this tempest, and
our Holy Mother the Church will be able to lead a quiet and
peaceable life in all piety and chastity (b). We must ask God
that all those who rule the peoples may love wisdom (c), so that
1105a Cf St. Augustine, In Joann. Ev. trad.. XXVI, 2.
1105b Cf. St. Augustine, Ibid.
1105c Heb. 11:6.
1105<l Cone. Vat., Const, de fide cath.. cap. 3.
1105e Cf. Leo XIII, Immortale Dei; above no. 166 ff.; Cod.
Can., c. 1351.
1 105f St. Augustine, Ihid.
1106a Isaias 32:17.
1106b Cf. 1 Tim. 2:2.
1106c Wisdom 6:23.

Jur.

HIE MYSTICAL BODY

577

this grave verdict of the Holy Spirit may never touch them:
‘The Most High will examine your works, and search out your
thoughts: because, being ministers of his kingdom, you have not
judged rightly, nor kept the law of justice, nor walked according
to the will of God. Horribly and speedily will He appear to you:
for a most severe judgment shall be for them that bear rule.
For to him that is little, mercy is granted; but the mighty shall
be mightily tormented. For God will not except any man’s per­
son. neither will He stand in awe of any man’s greatness: for He
made the little and the great, and He hath equally care of all.
But a greater punishment is ready for the more mighty. To you,
therefore, 0 kings, are these my words, that you may learn wis­
dom, and not fall from it” (d).

(I) By filling up what is wanting in the sufferings of Christ
But it is not only* by9 his incessant labor and his constant 1107
prayer that Christ the Lord has shown his love for his immac- (29)
ulate Spouse, but by his sufferings and his agony, which He bore
freely and lovingly for her. ’’Since he had loved his own, he
loved them to the end" (a). And it was only with his blood that
He redeemed the Church (b). Let us. therefore, willingly follow
in the bloody footsteps of our King, as we must to assure our sal­
vation: “For if we have been planted together in the likeness of
his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection" (c).
and “if we be dead with him, we shall live also with him" (d).
it is this, too, which true and active charity requires, whether for
the Church, or for the souls which she brings forth to Christ. For
in fact, even if Our Savior, by his cruel suffering and bitter death
merited a truly infinite treasure of graces for his Church, nonethe­
less, in the designs of God's providence the gifts of these graces
are given to us only by degrees, and their greater or lesser
abundance depends largely on our good acts, winch draw down
spontaneously upon the souls of men the dew of God’s heavenly
favors. Now this dew of heavenly graces will certainly be most
abundant, if, not content with offering our fervent prayers to
Cod, especially by piously participating daily, where possible.
1106d
1107a
1107b
1107c
1107d

Wisdom 6:4-10.
John 13:1.
Cf. Acts 20:28.
Rom. 6:5.
2 Tim. 2:11.

578

'ΠΙΕ MYSTICAL BODY

in the Eucharistic Sacrifice, not content with endeavoring to re­
lieve by the works of Christian charity the very great suffering
of the needy, we prefer to the perishable goods of this world the
imperishable goods of the next, and if we also subdue the mortal
body by voluntary mortification, denying it illicit pleasures and
even imposing upon it severity and austerity; finally, if we humbly
accept from God’s hand the labor and difficulty of this present life.
For thus, according to the Apostle “we will fill up those things
that are wanting of the sufferings of Christ, in our flesh, for his
Body, which is the Church” (e).
1108
While We write We have before Our eyes the multitude.
(25) almost infinite, alas! of those unhappy ones whom We must
grieve over with tears: We mean the sick, the poor, the mutilated,
and so many others, who, by reason of their own sufferings or
those dear to them, it is not rare to see languishing unto death.
We extend a paternal invitation to all, whatever be the nature
of the misfortune or suffering that afflicts them, to look with
confidence to heaven, and to offer their pain to Him who will
one day give them a rich reward. And let all of them remember
that their suffering is not in vain, but that it is of great profit to
themselves and to the Church, if, with eyes turned towards the
goal they suffer with patience. For a more effective realization
of this end, it is of very great advantage to offer oneself daily
to God, as the members of that pious association called the
Apostleship of Prayer, an association which We have much at
heart to recommend here as most pleasing to God.
1109
If in every epoch we should associate our sufferings with
(116) those of our Divine Savior to procure the salvation of souls,
this is particularly a duty of all men today, Venerable Brothers,
when the gigantic conflagration of war covers almost the whole
earth, and causes so many deaths, so much suffering, so much
distress. Likewise, let all today make it their special duty to
abstain from vice, from the allurements of the world, and the
frenzied search for pleasures of the flesh, as well as the vanity
and emptiness of the things of earth, which do not avail for the
formation of a Christian mentality or the conquest of heaven.
Rather, we should engrave on our minds the sober words of
1107e Cf. Col. 1:24.

THE MYSTICAL BODY

579

Our immortal Predecessor Leo the Great, warning us that by
baptism we have become the flesh of the Crucified (a), and
the splendid prayer of St. Ambrose: "Bear me, O Christ, on the
Cross, which is the salvation of the wanderers, in which alone
is the rest of the weary, and the life of those who die" (b).
Before closing, We cannot refrain from exhorting all men 1110
once more to love Holy Mother Church with zealous and active (231)
charity. For her safety and happy increase let us offer our
prayers, works, and sufferings of each day to the Eternal Father,
if we have truly at heart the salvation of the human family,
redeemed by the Divine Blood. And while the sky grows dark
with clouds streaked by lightning, and great dangers threaten
the human race as well as the Church herself, let us entrust
ourselves and our interests to the Father of mercies, praying:
“Look down, we beseech Thee, O Lord, on this Thy family,
for which Our Lord Jesus Christ did not hesitate to let Himself
be betrayed into the hands of the wicked and undergo the death
of the Cross” (a).
Epilogue

The Blessed Virgin Mary
May the Virgin Mother of God, Venerable Brothers, ac- 1111
complish Our paternal desires, which are certainly yours: may (33)
she obtain for us all the true love of the Church, for her most
holy soul was, more than all other creatures of God taken to­
gether, filled with the Spirit of Jesus Christ. She consented, “in
the name of the whole human race” that “a spiritual marriage
between the Son of God and human nature” (a) should take
place. She it was who in a marvelous birth brought forth Christ
the Lord, the source of all heavenly life, and already, in her
virginal womb, adorned with the dignity of Head of the Church.
It was she who presented Him as a newborn child to those who
came first to adore Him. from Jews and Gentiles, as Prophet.
King, and Priest. Besides, her only-begotten Son. yielding to his
mother’s prayer “in Cana of Galilee," worked the miracle as a
result of which “his disciples believed in Him” (b). It was she
who, free from all guilt inherited or actual, and ever most closelyunited to her Son, offered Him to his Eternal Father as a holo-

1109a Cf. Senn., LX11I, 6; LXVI, 3.
1109b In Ps. 118, XXII, 30.
1111b John 2:11.
1111a S. T/iom., Ill, q. 30, a. 1. 1110a Off. Major. Hebd.

Jr · u.

580

GUARDIAN OF HOLY SCRIPHIRE

cans! on Golgotha, together with her maternal rights and her
mother’s love, like a new Eve, for all the sons ol Adam bearing
the wretched taint of Ins sin. So she who in her body was the
Mother of our Head became the Mother of all his members In
a new’ title of suffering and of glory. It was she who by her
most powerful prayers obtained that the Spirit of the Divine
Redeemer, already given on the Cross, was conferred on the
newborn Church in miraculous gifts on the day of Pentecost.
Finally, it is she who, bearing in her strong and faithful soul
immense suffering, more than all the faithful, the true Queen
of Martyrs, ‘'filled up those things that are wanting of the suf­
ferings of Christ... for his body, which is the Church” (c),
she who lavishes on the Mystical Body of Christ, born from the
pierced Heart of Our Savior (d) the same maternal care and
eager charity with which she cherished the Child Jesus in the
crib and fed Him with her milk.
Therefore, may she who is the most holy Mother of all
1112
(33) Christ’s members (a), to whose Immaculate Heart We have with
confidence consecrated all men. and w'ho is now splendid in
heaven in the glory ol her body and soul as she reigns with her
Son, hasten to obtain from Him abundant showers of grace rain­
ing down from the Head on all of the members of the Mystical
Body without interruption. And may her most efficacious
patronage protect the Church today as it has done in the past,
and obtain at last from God lor the whole race of mankind more
peaceful times.
GUARDIAN OF HOLY SCRIPTURE

Encycl. Divino Afflante, September 30. 1943.
(The fiftieth anniversary of the encyclical “Providentissimus
Deus".—Leo XI11 and the impulse given by him to biblical
studies.—Pius X and the Biblical Institute.—Pius XI and the
revision of the Vulgate.—Present state of biblical studies.)
1113
Let exegetes of Holy Scripture, remembering that they have
(102) to do with a divinely inspired word whose custody and inter­
pretation has been confided to the Church by God himself, be
not less diligent in taking account of the interpretations and
1111c Col. 1:24.
mid Cf. Off. SSmi. Cordis, in hymno ad vesn.
1112a CL St. Pins X, Ad diem ilium: OUR LADY

THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH

581

declarations of the Magisterium of the Church, as also of the
explanations given by the Holy Fathers, and also of "the analogy
of faith”, as Leo XIII warns them so wisely in the encyclical
Procidenlissitnus Deus.
(The spiritual sense of Scripture.—Rules of biblical exegesis.
-The Bible and the instruction of the faithful and of semimirians.-Exhortation.)

THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH

All. to the Roman Curia, December 4, 1943.
(Closing of the spiritual exercises at the Vatican.)
The Lord who rules the universe governs us also and
directs the destiny of the human race by his inscrutable counsels.
But among the mysteries of his Providence which are beyond
the reach of our intelligence, God has willed that there should be
one that we can, so to say, touch with our hands: the visible
mystery of the indefectibility of the Church in the world. Around
her, many thrones and empires and public institutions have
crumbled; strewn in ruins they lie in the remnants of their
grandeur along the path which for twenty centuries the Church
has walked, seeking to bring back to the Divine Shepherd the
lost sheep or those led astray into error, to purify, perfect, and
sanctify those already belonging to the fold of Christ and
nourished with his Body and his Blood. This mission, which
she has lovingly confided to her priests, imposes upon them,
especially today, very grave obligations in their own regard,
very grave responsibilities and duties with regard to the faithful
confided to their care.
The Catholic Church is the great visible mystery, visible
as is her Head on earth, the Vicar of Christ, visible as are her
ministers, visible in her life, visible in her cult, visible in her
work for the salvation and perfection of men. Visible likewise
is her indefectibility, inasmuch as it is historically demonstrable,
the past through which she has lived being the gauge of her
future (a). Hence a great non-Catholic historian of the last
century, after recognizing, as it were in spite of himself, that
1115a La Chicsa cattolica è il Rran mist ero visibile, perché visibili
c il suo Capo stilla terra, il Vicario di Cristo, visibili sono i suoi
ministri, visibile la sua vita, visibile il suo culto, visibile Topera e
Tazione sua per la salvczza e Ia perfezionc defili uomini. Visibile

1114
(3,
78,
205,
228229)

1115
(2,
910,
88.
228229)

582

THE STRENGTH OF THE CHURCH

the Catholic Church has remained “full of life and youthful
vigor,” observed, “If we reflect upon the frightful assaults
which she has survived, it is difficult for us to imagine how
she can perish” (b). But if this indefectibility is a matter oi
experience, it remains, nonetheless, a mystery, for it cannot be
explained naturally, but only by reason of the fact, which is
known to us by divine revelation, that Christ who founded the
Church is with her in every trial to the end of the world (c).
(Benefits of the spiritual exercises.—Recommendations in
those which have just been given .—Gratitude for good wishes.)

THE STRENGTH OF THE CHURCH
All. to the Cardinals, December 24, 1943.
(The Pope’s joy at the proof of the Cor Unum of his immedi­
ate collaborators. )
111G
This “cor unum et anima una” (a) which united the fini
(48, followers of Christ, was the burning spiritual weapon of the
89, little flock of the primitive Church which, without earthly
133) means, by the word, by disinterested charity, and die sacrifice
of life, began and brought to a conclusion her victorious action
in the face of a hostile world. Against the force of their re­
sistance,'of zeal, of contempt for torture and death, the products
of this heart and mind, the blandishments and the attacks of
adverse powers which combatted her existence, her doctrine,
her growth and consolidation, could do nothing.
Thus, by union the hearts and minds of all the faithful
formed, as it were, one single heart and one single mind, which
the propagation of the faith through the centuries developed
and continues to develop in so many regions and peoples. And
such a beautiful garland of hearts and minds from every land
and every shore is presented to Us, and even with a renewal
r anche la sua indefettibilitii, in quanto che c sloricamente di·
most rahHe. ment re il suo passai o cammino è arra del stio oovenire....
1115h Macaulay. Critical and Historical Essays, von Ranke, Lon­
don. I860, vol. 2. pp. 128-131.
1115c Ma se tale inaefettibilità si pud most rare per via di esnerienza. e tultavia un inistero, perché non è spiegabile naturalmentr,
bensi solo con lotto, da not conosciuto per rivelazionc divina, chi'
Cristo, il quale l'ha fondata. è con lei in tutti i cimcnti allti fine
dei sccoli.
1116a Acts 4:32.

BONDS OF UNITY

583

oi strength and vigor at the present time, a moment of common
afflictions and anguish, of common desires and hopes. Thanks
be to the Divine Spirit, Life-giver and Sanctifier, who establishes
and conserves the Spouse of Christ, always the same in her
unity and universality, even in the midst of revolutions which
bring the downfall of nations (b).
(The meaning of the approaching message of ChristmasThe cross, a sign of contradiction.)
BONDS OF UNITY

Encycl. Orientalis Ecclesia*, April 9, 1944.
(The 15th centenary of Saint Cyril of Alexandria.—His
authority in the East.—His life and doctrine.)
But if We congratulate from the heart all the Christian 1117
peoples of the Orient because of their fervent veneration of (40.
Saint Cyril, We grieve nonetheless that all have not come to 44.
that most desirable unity which he so ardently loved and propa- 46.
gated. Especially do We regret this in these our times when 48)
it is so necessary for Christians, united in intention and in forces,
to be gathered into the one Church of Jesus Christ to form
a single, compact army, united and unshakable, to repulse
the increasing attacks of impiety.
But to obtain these results it is absolutely necessary that
all, pressing forward in the footsteps of Saint Cyril, realize this
unanimity of mind, which must be assured by that triple bond
by which Christ Jesus, the Founder of the Church, willed it to
l>e bound and maintained as by a heavenly and unbreakable
bond established by Himself; namely, by that single Catholic
faith, that single charity towards God and towards all men,
and, finally, by that one single obedience and submission to the
1116b Com dalTunionc dei cuori e delle anime di tutti i fedcli si
fonnava conic un cuor solo c un’anima sola, che la propagazionc
della fede altraverso i tempi estese e ancora estende per tante
regioni e popoli-, e un cosi bel vincolo di cuori c di anime da
tittle le terre e da tutti i lidi arriva fino a noi, c più vivo c forte si
rinnova nelTora présenté delle comuni afflizioni c invocazioni <
délie comuni brame e speranze, mercè dei divino Spirito Virificalofc, e Santificatore, che fa c conserva la Sposa di Cristo, sempre la incdcsima nella sua unità e universalità, anche in mezzo ai
rivolginicnti che sovvertono le Nazioni.

BONDS OF UNITY

584

legitimate hierarchy given by the Divine Redeemer Himself
These three bonds, as you know well, Venerable Brothers, an
so necessary that were one of them to be lacking, true ùnitv
and concord in the Church of Christ could not even he
conceived.
(The defender of the unity of the faith.)

The living magisterium
1118
(60,
96,
102,
109)

And he makes this abundantly clear—as all those who have
read through the letters which he wrote on the Antioch affair
admit without much difficulty—that the Christian faith, which
must be safeguarded and defended with all our strength, was
given to us by Holy Scripture and the teaching of the Holy
Fathers (a), and that it is proposed to us clearly and legitimate­
ly by the living and infallible magisterium of the Church. For
when the bishops of the province of Antioch pretended that to
establish and preserve peace it was sufficient to retain simply
the faith of Nicaea, Saint Cyril, while adhering firmly himself
to the Nicaean Creed, required from his brothers in the episco­
pate the repudiation and condemnation of the heresy of Nestorius
in order to strengthen unity. For none knew better than he that
it is not enough to accept with submission the ancient documents
of the ecclesiastical magisterium, but that it is also necessary to
embrace with a humble and faithful mind all those things which
afterwards the Church, in virtue of her supreme authority, orders
us to believe. Even more, even under the pretext of restoring
peace and concord, it is wrong to dissemble even so much as a
single dogma; for as the Alexandrian Patriarch admonishes us:
“To desire peace is certainly the highest and principal good,
but we may not, for that reason, despise the virtue of piety in
Christ" (b). Therefore, it does not lead to the much desired
return of the erring children to real and true unity in Christ,
this method which accepts merely certain doctrinal headings, on
which all. or very nearly all, of the communities who glory in
the name of Christian are agreed; rather that method should be
adopted which lays down as the basis of concord and harmony
among Christians all the divinely revealed truths in all their
integrity.
(//is union with the Pope.—His suffering for the faith.)
1118a Cf. Epist. LV.

A

1118b Epist. LXI, Ibid., 325.

I

BONDS OF UNI 1Ύ

585

The bond of charity
To the bond of faith must be joined charity, which unites 1119
us all with one another and with Christ; charity which, ani­ (43,
mated and moved by the Divine Spirit, connects all the members 48.
of the Mystical Body of the Redeemei among themselves with 59)
an irrefragable bond. This charity does not refuse to embrace
all men in error or deceived as to the way.
(The work of the reconciliation of the Eastern Churches
pursued by the Popes. )
The legitimate diversity of rites
Moreover, all must know and hold for certain that they will 1120
never be forced to change their own lawful rites and the ancient (49)
institutions they have received for Latin rites and institutions;
all of them, indeed, Latin and Eastern, must be held in the
same esteem and the same honor for they surround the Church,
the common Mother, with a quasi-regal variety. Even more, this
diversity of rites and institutions, while it keeps intact and in­
violable what is precious and ancient for each one, is in no sense
an impediment to true and sincere unitv (a). More than ever
in our times when discord and warring rivalry have almost
everywhere on earth alienated the minds of men from one an­
other, is it fitting that all men, moved by Christian charity be
more and more impelled, by every means in their power, to
re-establish unity in Christ and through Christ.

However, the work of faith and charity would be absolutely 1121
faulty and ineffective to strengthen unih' in Christ Jesus unless (139,
it were founded on that unshakable rock on which the Church 161)
was divinely founded: namely on the supreme authority of
Peter and his Successors.
(Saint Cyril presided at the Council of Ephesus in the name
oj the Pope—Work and pray for the return of the dissidents.—
Incitation to the dissidents to return to unity.)
1120a ...qux quidem omnia, xquali xstimatione xqualique de­

cora habenda, communem matrem Ecclesiam quasi regia circum­
dant varietate. Quin immo ejusmodi rituum institutionumque
diversitas, dum id, quod unicuique antiquum est atque pretiosum,
sartum tectumque servat, verx sincerxque unitati minime
obsistit.

THE MANDATE CONFIDED TO PETER
All, to the Consistory, June 2, 1944.
( The feast of Saint Eugenius.—The tear and Us ruins.-Tht
sufferings of Rome.—Solicitude of the Holy See for the victims

1122
But above all these exterior cares and the particular duties
(91, imposed by the necessities of time and place, Venerable Bmth141) ers, Our central and supreme duty, from the complete and
conscientious execution of which it is not in any human power
to turn Us aside, nor can any exterior difficulty separate Us
from it. Our duty remains the absolute obedience to the Lords
command: Pasce agnos meos! Pasce oves meas! Feed my lambs!
Feed my sheep! (a).
1123
This divine command, which, from the first Peter through
(58, the long series of Roman Pontiffs has come at last to Us. their
141- unworthy Successor, comprises in the confusion and anguish ol
142) today’s world a still greater accumulation of sacred responsibili­
ties, and encounters impediments and opposition which requin
of the Church, in her visible Head and in her members, increased
activity and vigilance.
Today in fact more than ever, there appear before the eyes
of every clear-sighted and impartial observer the sadly deficient
results which separation from Holy Mother Church has brought
about for Christianity in the course of the centuries.
(Influence expected of Christianity in the organizational
the tcorld.)
Evil results of separation
1124
Mother Church, Catholic, Roman, which has remained
(99, faithful to the constitution received from her Divine Founder.
140, which still stands firm today on the solidity of the rock onwhich
144, his will erected her. possesses in the primacy of Peter and of his
145, legitimate successors the assurance, guaranteed by the divine
161, promises, of keeping and transmitting inviolate and in all its
224, integrity through centuries and millenia to the very end of time.
228- the entire sum of truth and grace contained in the redemptive
229) mission of Christ.
1125
And. stimulated and strengthened in the consciousness of
0-33) this double treasure, the Church finds in it the power to triumph
1122a John 21: 15-17.

THE MANDATE CONFIDED TO PETER

587

over the darkness of error and deterioration of morals, while
she extends her action not only for the benefit of Christianity,
but for the entire world, by inspiring sentiments of conciliatory
justice and of genuine fraternal love in the great controversies,
in the midst of which blessings and calamities, abundant crops
and poor harvests are often to be found side by side.

But how much stronger anil more efficacious would be the 1126
radiation of Christian thought and life on the moral foundations (58)
of future plans for peace and social reconstruction, if it were not
for this wide division and dispersion of religious confessions,
which in the course of time have detached themselves from the
Mother Church! Who today can fail to recognize how much the
support of faith, how much the intimate strength of resistance
to anti-religious influences have lost in these numerous groups
as a result of this separation?
Of this sad reality, one eloquent proof among many is the 1127
histon’ of rationalism and naturalism in the last two centuries. (178)
There where the office committed to the one invested with the
primacy—confirma fratres tuos, "confirm thy brethren" (a)—,
was not able to exercise and exert its protective and preserving
influence, the cockle of rationalism has penetrated in a thou­
sand different ways with its noxious tendrils and roots into the
thoughtsand sentiments of many souls who call themselves Chris­
tian; it has poisoned what still remained in them of the divine
seed of revealed truth, causing above all a darkening of, a
separation from, and a growing abandonment of faith in the
divinity of Christ (b).

The will of Christ in the institution of the primacy
Between Christ and Peter there existed from the day of the 1128
promise at Caesarea Philippi and its accomplishment by the sea (110,
of Tiberias a mysterious but eminently real bond, occurring 114)
1127a Luke 22:32.
1127b Là ovc I'ufficio commesso a chi c investito del primato, “con­
firma fratres tuos”, non puô esercitare e svolgere la sua azione
protcttrice e préservatrice, la zizzania del razionalismo è pene­
trata iu mille specie diverse, roi suoi culmi e le sue cariossidi in­
feste, ncl pensiero e ncl senso di moite anime chc si dicono cristianc, c ha intossicato cio chc in essa era ancora rirnasto del seme
divino della verità ri velat a. causando soprattutto oscuramento. scis­
sione e un crescente ahhandono dolia fede nella divinità di Cristo

■ ·*.:·.· ·τ r · ' ·»·Λ 3 «*> '■

■* ·■

588

· -iâf

■ . Λ . :λ..

-■·- ’ * Λ. ■ ■

THE MANDATE CONFIDED TO PETER

once in time, but which had its roots deep in the eternal designs
of the Almighty. The heavenly Father, who revealed to Simon
son of Jonah the mystery of the divine filiation of Christ, also
made him ready to respond with an open and prompt confession
to the Redeemer’s question, and had from all eternity predestined
the fisherman of Betlisaida to his extraordinary function; and
Christ Himself did nothing more than accomplish the will of his
Father when, in the promise and conferral of the primacy. IL
used expressions which were to fix forever the uniqueness of the
privileged position granted to Peter.
1129
(28,
144145,
147,
155,
165)

From that time those who—as not long ago it was stated (or
better, repeated ) by certain representatives of religious codes·
sions who profess to be Christians—those who declare that then
is no Vicar of Christ upon earth because Christ Himself has prom·
ised to remain with his Church as its Head and Lord to the end
of time, not only destroy the foundation of even’ episcopal
office, but they misunderstand and falsify the profound meaning
of the papal primacy, which is not a denial but a fulfillment of
this promise of Christ. This is why if it is true that Christ in the
plenitude of his divine power disposes of a great variet)' of
means of enlightening and sanctifying, thanks to which He is
really present to those who confess Him, it is not less certain
that He willed to confide to Peter and to his successors the di­
rection and government of the universal Church and the treasures
of truth and of grace in his redemptive work. The words of
Christ to Peter admit of no doubt as to their meaning: so did
the West and the East recognize and believe in them in admira­
ble harmony at a period which is beyond suspicion. To wish to
create an opposition between Christ as Head of the Church and
his Vicar, to wish to see in the affirmation of the one the nega­
tion of the other, this is tantamount to corrupting the clearest
and most luminous pages of the Gospel, to close the eyes to the
most ancient and venerable witnesses of tradition, and to de­
prive Christianity of that precious heritage, the correct knowl­
edge and proper esteem of which, at the moment known to God
alone and thanks to the light of grace which He alone can impart,
can arouse in our separated brethren the longing desire for the
Father's house and the efficacious will to return to it.

1130
When, each year, on the eve of the feast of the Prince of
(60, the Apostles, We visit Our patriarchal Basilica of the Vatican,

CATHOLICITY

589

to implore on the tomb of the first Peter the strength to serve
(he flock confided to Us according to the designs and for the
ends of the eternal High Priest, in the majestic entablature of
this lofty edifice there appear to Our gaze in gleaming mosaic
the mighty words with which Christ expressed his desire to
build the Church on the rock of Peter, and We are reminded of
Our imprescriptible duty to guard intact that incomparable
legacy of the Divine Redeemer. Then We see shining before
Us the glory of Bernini, and above the cathedra, held on high
by the gigantic figures of an Ambrose and an Augustine, of an
Athanasius and a John Chrysostom, We admire the symbol of
the Holy Spirit, resplendent and dominant in magnificent light.
We feel and experience all the sacred character, all the super­
human mission, which the will of the Lord with the assistance
oi the Spirit promised and sent by Him, has conferred on this
central point of the Church of the living Cod, columna et firma­
mentum veritatis, "the pillar and ground of the truth" (a). And
in this octave of Pentecost from Oui heart and from Our lips
wells up the prayer to the Creator Spirit, that He may deign to
give to our separated brethren the desire to return to the lost
unity and the strength to follow that desire. May all those, </ui
Christiana professione censentur (b), understand what incom­
parable field of action is reserved for Christianity at the present
moment, if, in plenary union of faith and will, they dedicate
themselves to the salvation of the human family and to pre­
paring for it a better future!
(The problem of peace.—Wishes in favor of a true public
order. )
CATHOLICITY

75,
79.

89.
160)

All. to the Pontifical Missionary Societies, June 24, 1944.
(Words of welcome.)
While in fact there still rages the most gigantic struggle of 1131
peoples which history has ever recorded, your international (131)
character and your fraternity in work make evident and as it
were palpable that distinctive sign of the Catholic Church, which
is the negation and the living contradiction of the discords by
which the nations are torn and engulfed: We mean the univer1130a I Tim. 3:15.
11301) Who are numbered among Christians.

590

1132
(131·
132)

1133
(134)

1134
(131.
134)

CATI lOLICn Y

sality of faith and love which rises above all battlefields and
all the frontiers of States, of every continent and every ocean, a
universality which is a stimulus and a spur to your goal, which
is to extend the borders of the Kingdom of God until they coin­
cide with the limits of the world.
This characteristic note may suffer somewhat under the
influence of the events and the propaganda of the war, and
become obscure in the thoughts of the faithful; but it is so
proper and essential to the very nature of the Church that no
adverse force can weaken or diminish it in her, for in her there
is no longer "pagan or Jew, Barbarian or Scythian, slave or free,
but Christ is all and in all” (a).
Nevertheless, the war has had this result: it has in great
part restricted the exterior and visible forms of that catholicity.
For We Ourselves, for some years, have had to endure with
bitter pain the lack of personal and direct contact with many
countries. All the more agreeable to Us, therefore, is it to be
able to salute in you as it were the sign and symbol of the
Church universal (a).
Is there a more evident manifestation of the profound consciousness which the Spouse of Christ has of her mission in all
countries and among all peoples than her missionary action in
the last centuries? Certainly the idea of catholicity has ever
remained living in the Church, who, faithful to the command
of her Divine Founder: "Go ye into the whole world, preach
the Gospel to every creature" (a), has ever and always turned
her hand to missionary labor wherever doors hitherto closed to
the preaching of the gospel have been opened before her.
(Crusades and missions.—The future of the missions.)
1132a Tale nota carattcristica puo ben soffrirc, sotto I’influsso (Idle
t icende c della propaganda di guerra, qualche offuscamento nd
sentimenti dt singoli fcdeli; ma alia Chiesa come talc è cosi propria
cd cssenziale, che nessuna forza contraria potrebbe in lei indebolirla o scemarla, "dove non è pin Gentile nè Giudco, . .. barbaro
o Scita, servo o libero, ma tutto e in tutti è Cristo"; Col., 3:11.
1133a Una cosa nondimcno la guerra ha conscguito: essa ha in
gran parte slegatc le forme esteriori c visibili di questa cattolicitù.
Ed invero anche Noi da vari anni abbiatno dovuto con amarezza
sentire la mancanza del contatto personale c diretto con molti
Paesi Tanto pin grato ed accetto Ci è quindi il poter salutare in
t οι quasi il segno c il simbolo della Chicsa universale.
1131a Mark 1615.

|

!

THE PROPER END OF THE CHURCH
All. to the members of the Tribunal of the Sacred Rota,
October 2, 1944.
(Matrimonial cases.)

The matrimonial process in the ecclesiastical court is a 1135
function of the juridical life of the Church. In Our encyclical (179
on the Mystical Body of Christ We have explained how the 76Church-the so-called “juridical Church”—is certainly of divine 77,
origin, hut is not the whole Church, how in some sort she repre- 137)
sents only the body which must be vivified by the Holy Spirit
and by his grace. In the same encyclical We have explained, on
the other hand, how the whole Church, in its body and in its
soul, in what concerns the participation of goods and the profit
which derives from them, is established exclusively for ‘ the sal­
vation of souls," according to the words of the Apostle: Omnia
vestra stint (a). There is the indication of the supreme unity
and the supreme goal to which have been designed and are
directed the juridical life and every juridical function within
the Church. It follows that even the thoughts, the will, the
personal actions in the exercise of this activity must tend to the
end proper to the Church: the salvation of soids. In other words,
the last end, the first principle, the supreme unity, are nothing
else than "the care of souls”; as the entire work of Christ on earth
was the care of souls, such has been and such is the whole work
of the Church (b).
But the jurist who, as such, considers the law in all its purity 1136
and strict justice, usually shows himself, as if by instinct, a (79.
stranger to the ideas and intentions of the “care of souls”; he 125)
defends a clear separation between the two “courts”, the interior
forum of conscience and the external order of juridico-social life.
This tendency towards a clear division between the two domains
1135a “All things are yours"; 1 Cor. 3:22.
1135b Con cic) è indicata la superiore unità c il superiore scopo,

cui sono destinate e si dirigono la vita giuridica e ogni giuridica
funzionc nella Chiesa. Ne segue che anche il pensiero, il colere
c 1’opcra personale nelFesercizio di una talc attività debbono
tendere al fine proprio della Chiesa: la salute delle anime. In
altri termini il fine superiore, il principio superiore, l'unità
superiore non dice altro che "cura delle anime", come tutta
Fopera di Cristo sulla terra fu cura delle anime, e cura delle
anime fu cd è tutta Fazione della Chiesa.

■

592

CHRIST THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

is, up to a certain point, legitimate, inasmuch as the judge and
his collaborators in the juridical process have not as their proper
and direct function the care of souls. But it would be a penu
clous error to affirm that they too do not find themselves in tin
last resort at the service of souls. This would be equivalent to
putting oneself, in an ecclesiastical judgment, outside the goal
and the unity of action which are proper to the Church by virtue
of her divine institution; it would be as if the members of a
body were no longer to be part of the totality of the body, and
were unwilling to order their activity and submit it to the end
and aim of the whole organism.
(Effectiveness of this ordering.)

I

(
i
'
|

Juridical consequences
1137
The thought of belonging to a service which works to attain I
f3, the end of the Church confers, moreover, on all those who par13, ticipate in her juridical activity the necessary' independence and
91. autonomy vis-à-vis the civil judiciary. Between Church and
123- State, as We noted in the aforementioned encyclical on the
124) Mystical Body of Christ, there exists a profound difference, al­
though they are both, in the full sense of the word, perfect
societies. The Church has a particular character proper to her­
self which is of divine origin and imprint. From this derives,
even in her juridical life, a characteristic peculiar to her, an
orientation, even in ultimate consequences, towards superior,
other-worldly, eternal thoughts and goods. Hence, it is not as
an opinion, but rather as an erroneous judgment—and that for
more reasons than one—that we must consider the assertion of
those who hold that the ideal toward which ecclesiastical juris­
prudence should tend is the closest possible conformity and
assimilation to civil juridical organization.
(This subordination of the juridical activity to the universal
end of the Church will assist in finding the proper balance in
judgment. )
CHRIST THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

All. to the prelates of the Curia, December 9, 1944.
(Close of the retreat preached to the Curia.—The exercitanti
have been lining in Christ's intimacy.)
1138
In fact, in the course of these exercises Christ has shown
124- Himself to us as our Head, that is to say, He is more, incoin·

CHRIST THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

593

parably more than simply our Master, more, incomparably more
than companion, counselor, and support. He has appeared to us as
He truly is, the Head of the Body of which we are the members,
the Head which moves and directs the entire organism of his
Mystical Body, over which He exercises his triple power of teach­
ing. governing, and leading to holiness the whole Body and each
one of those who compose it. He does all this because He is the
Head, the Center from which life passes into the organs and into
the members with the blood, in the same way in which the
strength passes from the sap of the vine into the branches and the
grapes, making us eius divinitatis esse consortes, qui humanitatis
nostrae fieri dignatus est particeps, Jesus Christus... Dominus
noster ( a ).
{Meditation forms the bond between one's personal life and
the life of the Church.)
Perpetual youth of the Church
And, in truth, to the end of the world, because Christ has
willed it to be so, because his omnipotence divinely supports
her, the Church lives and will live in a state of ever-youthful
freshness. This is a profound consolation for all of us who have
consecrated our lives to her service. Our times, which can truly
be said to be apocalyptic, have seen the destruction of organiza­
tions, powers, earthly systems, already ages old, or which men
hoped to create for the ages, and the present war seems likely
to give to formidable transformations both sanction and realiza­
tion. And is it not possible that we will see verified in our day,
for those who despise or persecute the Church, the words of
the Prophet: "Thy arrogancy hath deceived thee, and the pride
of thy heart... but though thou shouldst make thy nest as high
as an eagle, 1 will bring thee down from thence, saith the
Lord”? (a)
No doubt, great political and social revolutions usually bring.
exteriorly, profound consequences, even in the Church; but they
cannot touch and never will touch her life. Divine Providence
has, up to now, extended its protecting hand over us, too. Let
us tmst ourselves to it calmly for the future. Violent storms can
raze temple of stone, the symbols of the Church; they can exact
1138 "Take part in the divinity of Him who was pleased to become
partaker of our humanity, Jesus Christ. Our Lord" (Canon of
the Mass.)
1139a Jer. 49:16.

25.
28,
89,
95)

1139
(227)

1140
(93,
228)

594

THE POPE SLIPPORTS THE BISHOPS

a toll ol human life, and certainly all of ns will be ready, if the
Lord so will, to offer our lives, these brief mortal lives, for our
brothers. But the Church and the Papacy—we have the sure
guarantee of the divine promise on this—the rock of Peter and
the world Church built upon it can emerge from the storm only
with renewed strength and greater solidity.
( Exhortation. )
THE POPE SUPPORTS THE BISHOPS
All. to the Cardinals, December 24, 1944.
(Thanks for good wishes.—Too many episcopal sees arc
vacant. )
1141
Not less intensely are We afflicted by reason of the obsta(156) des which make more difficult, or, in many parts of the world
quite impossible for the Bishops to come to the Eternal City to
venerate the tomb of Peter and visit his Successor, however un­
worthy he may be; such a visit is the symbol and the powerful
support of the union of al) the members of the Church with its
visible Head. We look forward anxiously to the day on which,
when the route to Rome has been re-opened to travel from all
countries, We will be able to greet here Our Venerable Brothers,
and confer with them about their needs, which are more acute
than any known in the past, as well as about the formidable
problems which the Church, in her active solicitude, will have
to solve in every part of the world after the war, but which
require special attention in mission lands.
(Glance over the past year.—Concern for the post-war
period. )
The charity of the Church

1142
At the very center of humanity which, passing through this
(72, tragic present, is making its way towards an uncertain future,
228) there rises up, vigilant and protective, the Civitas supra montem
posita, "the City set on a mountain,” the Church of Christ.
The turbulent fury' of the sea’s waves breaks against her
walls; but, within, the Sancta Sanctorum of her faith and of her
hope remains unshakable.
In the tempest of earthly events, and in spite of the defi­
ciency anil weakness which may dim her luster to our eyes, she
has the security ol remaining imperturbably faithful to her
mission to the end of time.

ufiir

j

nui

II ’

i

Il II POPE SUPPORTS H 11 BISHOPS

595

Strong in so consoling a certainty, which is not founded on 1143
human ability but on the assistance of the divine omnipotence, (67,
the Spouse of Christ can and must, in the midst of the present 88)
turmoil, with a tenderness that is as profound as it is intimate,
and an even greater devotedness, bend over the immense multi­
tudes ol her children in distress, in anguish, perplexed, and so
often in error and misled.
In our time when the victims of error, be they innocent or 1144
culpable, have become legion, when the number of those who, (67,
whether because of suffering, want, oppression, injustice, spirit­ 88)
ual abandonment, or bad example, have strayed from the right
path, has increased in such an alarming way, a luminous mes­
sage shines before the eyes of the Church, of her ministers, of
all her children called to the apostolate of word or action.
Animated with the generous, salvific love of God, the Church
repels the proud rigidity, the vain-glorious justice of pharisaism
in its proud and haughty isolation, mindfid of the Redeemer’s
words: "Non veni vocare justos, sed peccatores” (a).
The defense of the truth
Nonetheless a limit, a barrier, rises before this merciful 1145
charity, a barrier which charity itself has not the right to (60)
disregard: the Truth.
In a period when is verified in a more poignant and painful
fashion than ever before the complaint: “Desiit fidelitas inter
filios hominum” (a);
in a period in which error, widely disseminated with a
violence sometimes open, sometimes ill concealed, endeavors
to seize key positions and mold public opinion;
in a period in which the words liberty, independence,
democracy are for some aspirations and the tendency of
certain minds only a means of rendering ineffective the vigilance
of those whose fidelity would never allow them willingly to
abandon or to endanger the heritage received from the whole
of the Christian past;
in a period when, more skillfully than ever, the enemy of
Christ and of his Church is seeking, according to the expression
1144a “I came not to call the just, but sinners"; Luke 5:32.
1145a Ps 11:2. “Truths are decayed from among the children of
men."

THE POPE SUPPORTS THE BISHOPS

596

146

100.
59,
67)

1147

(160161)

of the Apostle of the Gentiles, to transform himself into an
angel of light (b);
in such a period the Church and her Supreme Pastor,
responsible for the inheritance of the Lord, have, more than
ever, the duty of proclaiming the Truth, of defending it against
the insidiousness ol prevalent errors, without human respect and
without weakness, of opening the eyes of all men of good will,
and especially of the faithful, to the dangers of certain modem
tendencies, to help them to judge with discernment so that
they will recognize in time the errors which are garbed in an
appearance of truth (a), so that the peoples will not learn too
late and to their own great cost the bitter words of the Prophet:
Arastis impietatem, iniquitatem messuistis, comedistis frugem
mendacii (b).
The message of Christmas
Anxious to fulfill this grave duty, as in the past years so
on the present solemnity of the Nativity, We address on this
very day a message to the faithful of the whole world. Many
of them, materially separated by reason of the world conflict
from this See of Peter, have an added reason to feel united, as
members equally real and equally loved, to the great family of
the Church. Happy shall We be if Our words reach them, hearers
of love and beneficence, even to those who are not united to Vs
bv the holy bond of faith.
Z

Z

1145b In un tempo in cui le parole: liberté, indipendenza, democrazia, non son© per alcune aspirazioni e tenderize di snirito ch(
tin mezzo per sopire la vigilanza di coloro, la cui fedeltà non ji
presterebbe mai scientemente ad abbandonare o a mettcre in
pericolo il retaggio loro trasmesso da tutto il passato Cristiano,
in un tempo in cui. piti abilmcnte che mai, il nemico di
Cristo e della sua Chiesa cerca, sccondo Fespressionc dell’Apostolo
delle Genii. It travesfirsi in Angelo di luce; cf. 2 Cor. 2:14
1146a In un tempo come questo, la Chiesa e il Pastore Supremo,
responsabile della crédita del Signore, hanno più che mai il
dovere di proclamare la Vcrità, di difenderla contre le insidu
dcgli errori dominanti, senza rispetto emano e sense debolezza,
di aprire gli occhi agli uornini di buona volonté, e. segnatamente
ai fedeli, sui pcricoli di alcune moderne correnti, di acuire Id per­
spicacia dei loro giudizi per discernere tempestioamente gli erron
che rivestono unapparenza di vérité . . .
1146b You have ploughed wickedness, you have reaped iniquity
you have eaten the iniit of lying"; Osee 10:13.

1

A BEACON TO THE NATIONS

R. M. to the world, December 24. 1944.
(The conditions of a sane democracy.—The characteristics
proper to citizens of such a government.—The characteristics of
the governors—Peace and the United Nations.—War crimes.—
The Church the protector of human dignity.)
If the future belongs to democracy, an essential part in the
implementation of it must revert to the religion of Christ and
to the Church as the bearer of the Redeemer’s words and the
continuer of his saving mission. She it is, in fact, who teaches
and defends the truth; she communicates the supernatural
strength of grace to realize the order of being and of ends willed
by God. as ultimate foundation and directive norm of any democ­
racy.
Bv her very existence the Church stands before the world a
shining beacon which constantly recalls this divine order Her
history clearly reflects her divine mission. The struggles which,
constrained by the abuse of force, she has had to sustain for the
defense of the liberty received from God, have been, at the same
time, struggles lor the true liberty of man.
The Church has the mission to announce to the world, de­
sirous of better and more perfect forms of democracy, the most
noble and the most necessary message that there is: the dignity
of man, his vocation to become a son of God (a).
(Appeal for charity and alms.)

ORIGIN OF ECCLESIASTICAL POWER
All. to the members of the Tribunal of the Sacred Rota,
October 2, 1945.
(In spite of apparent resemblances, the judiciary powers of
the Church and the State differ by reason of: 1) their origin and
nature; 2) their object; 3) their end.—On this occasion the Holy
Father treats the first point only, reserving treatment of the
others for future occasions) (a).
1150a La Chiesa ha la missione di annunziare al inondo. bramoso
di inigliori e pin perfette fornu di dcmocrazia. il niessafigio pin
alto e pin necessario che possa csscrvi: la dinnità dcIFuomo. la
vocazione alla figliolanza di Dio.
1151a Cf. below, Nos. 1195 II and 1207 If

1148
96,
115)

1149
(4,
125)

1150
(100)

598

ORIGIN OF ECCLESIASTICAL POWER

1151
The judicial power is an essential part and a necessary
(13, function of the power of the two perfect societies, the ecclesi120, astical and the civil. This is why the question of the origin of
124) the judicial power is identified with the question of the origin
of power.
But precisely because of this, besides the resemblances al­
ready noted, it has been thought possible to find others still
more profound.
It is strange to see how certain partisans of various modem
concessions have in turn invoked the civil power to confirm and
to support their opinion of the presumed analogies with the
ecclesiastical power. This is valid neither for what is called
totalitarianism or authoritarianism, nor for their opposite, modem
democracy. For in fact these more profound resemblances do
not exist in any one of the three cases, as a brief examination
will easily demonstrate.

Examination of the three forms of civil power
1152
It is incontestable that one of the vital needs of any human
(9, community, as much for the Church as for the State, consists
39, in assuring in a durable fashion unity in the diversity of its
41) members.
(No one of the three forms mentioned above can fully
satisfy this requirement.) (a)
1153
If, on the other hand, we consider the preferred thesis of
(138) democracy—a thesis which distinguished Christian thinkers
have defended in every age—that is to say, that the original
subject of the civil power derived from God is the people (but
not the ’‘mass”), we get an even clearer idea of the distinction
between the Church and the State, even the democratic State.

Comparison between the power of the State
and the power of the Church
1154
Essentially different from (he civil power in fact is the
(12- ecclesiastical power, and In the same token, the judicial power
jg* of the Church.
j
The origin of the Church, unlike the origin of the State, is
138) not rii be found in the natural law. The most extensive and most
accurate analysis of the human person offers no basis for con1152a The portions of this discourse herein omitted may be found
in their entire»} in PEACE WITHIN THE NATION, Nos. 897 if.

ORIGIN Ol ECCLESIASTICAL POWER

599

eluding that the Church, like civil society, would have come
to he and would have developed naturally. She derives from a
positive action of God, above and beyond the social character
of men, with which she is, notwithstanding, in perfect harmony,
wherefore the ecclesiastical power—and with it the corresponding
juridical power—was born from the will anti the act by which
Christ founded his Church. But this is no hindrance to the fact
that, once constituted as a perfect society by the action of the
Redeemer, there should spring from her inmost nature many
elements of resemblance with the structure of civil society.
In one point especially the fundamental difference seems
particularly evident. The foundation of the Church as a society'
was effected, contrary to the origin of the State, not from be­
neath, but from above—not from lower elements to higher ones,
but from above, that is to say. that Christ, who in his Church
has realized the Kingdom of God upon earth announced by
Him and destined for all men of every age, did not confide to
the faithful the mission of Master, of Priest, and of Pastor
received bv Hirn from his Father for the salvation of the human
race, but He gave it and communicated it to a college of
Apostles or envoys, chosen by Him. so that bv their preaching,
by their sacerdotal ministry, and the social power of their office,
they would effect the entry into the Church of a multitude of
faithful to sanctify them, to enlighten them, and to guide them
to the fullness of the following of Christ (a).

1155
(77-

8586,
100,
138,
194.
205)

The testimony of Holy Scripture
Examine the words bv which He communicated his powers 1156
to them: power to offer the sacrifice in memory of Him (a),
1155a La fondazione della Chiesa come socictà si c effettuata, contrariamente all'origine dello Stalo. non dal basso alialto. ma dal!'
alto al basso; calc a dire che Cristo, il quale nella suit Chiesa ha
attuato sulla terra il Regno di Dio da lui annunziato e destinato
per tutti gli uomini di tutti i tempi, non ha affidato alla comunità
dei fedeli la missione di Maestro, di Sacerdote c di Pastore riccvuta dal Padre per la solute del genere umano, ma I’ha trasmessa
c coinunicata a un collegio di Apostoli o messi, da lut stesso
eletli affinchè con la loro predicazione, col loro ministero sacer­
dotale e con la potestà sociale del loro ufficio faccssero entrare nella
Chiesa la mollitudine dei fedeli, per santificarli, illuminarli e
condurli alla piena maturità det seguaci di Cristo.
1156a Luke 22:19.

600

85,
95,
223,
119,
138,
141.
145.
150)

1157
(91,
138,
145,
189)

1158
(9192,
138,
145146,
157,

ORIGIN OF ECCLESIASTICAL POWER

power to remit sins (b), the promise and conferring of the supreme power of the keys on Peter and on his successors personally (c), the communication of the power of binding and loosing
to all the Apostles (d). Finally, meditate on the words with
which Christ, just before his Ascension, transmitted to these same
Apostles the universal mission which He had received from his
Father (e). Is there in all this anything which can give rise to
doubt or equivocation? The whole history of the Church, from
its beginning down to our own time, does not cease to echo (host
words and to render the same testimony with a clarity and a pre­
cision which no subtlety can disturb or cloud. Now all these
words, all this testimony proclaims with one voice that in eccle­
siastical power the essence, the central point according to the
express will of Christ, and therefore by divine right, is the mis­
sion given by Him to the ministers of the work of salvation
for the community of the faithful and for the entire human race.

Canon Law
Canon 109 of Canon Law has set forth this entire structure
in full light and with lapidary precision: Çt/i in ecclesiasticam
hierarchiam cooptantur, non ex populo vel potestatis sæcularis.
consensu aut vocatione adleguntur; sed in gradibus potestatis
ordinis constituuntur sacra ordinatione; in supremo pontificatu.
ipsomet jure divino, adimpleta conditione légitima' electionis
eiusdemque acceptationis; in reliquis gradibus juridictions, cano­
nica missione (a).
Non ex populo vel potestatis saecularis, consensu aut iocaHone: The faithful people and the secular power often may have
in the course of the centuries, taken part in the designati
those upon whom were to be conferred the ecclesiastical funcGons—for which, moveover,-and this includes the Supreme ontiff-the descendant of a noble family might be chosen as we
as the son of humble working folk. But in reality, the members
1156b John 20:21-23.
1156c Matt. 16.19; John 21:15-17
1156d Matt 18:18.
1156c Matt. 28:18-20; John 20:21
1 157a ‘The title or source of power in the hierarchy is not the
popular will nor the secular power. For the power of order, it is
sacred ordination. For the power of jurisdiction, it is canonical
appointment with the single exception of the Supreme Pontifi­
cate, in which the primacy of power comes by divine law. upon
the acceptance of the office by one who has been legitimately
elected.”

ORIGIN OF ECCLESIASTICAL POWER

601

of the ecclesiastical Hierarchy received and always do receive 177,
their authority from on high, and they must answer for the exer- 203)
vise of their functions either immediately to God, to whom alone
is subject the Roman Pontiff, or, in other degrees, to their eccle­
siastical superiors alone, but they have no account to render
either to the people or to the civil power, save, naturally, the
faculty which every one of the faithful has to present to compe­
tent ecclesiastical authority in due form, or directly to the su­
preme power in the Church, his demands and requests, especially
when the petitioner or plaintiff is motivated by considerations
touching his personal responsibility for his own salvation or the
salvation of another person.

Conclusions
From what We have explained two conclusions are princi- 1159
pally to be derived :
(119,
(1) In the Church, contrary to what is true in the State, the *
primordial subject of power, the supreme judge, the highest court
of appeal, is never the community of the faithfid. There does not
exist in the Church, therefore, and there cannot exist in the
Church which was founded by Christ, a popular tribunal or a
judicial power emanating from the people.

(2) The question of the extent and the greatness of ecclesi- 1160
astical power is also presented in a mode quite different from (13that which regards the State. For the Church what is of prime 14,
importance is the express will of Christ, who could give her, ac- 80,
cording to his wisdom and goodness, means and powers more 124or less great, excepting always that minimum necessarily 125)
required by her nature and her end. The power of the Church
embraces the whole man, interiorly and exteriorly, in all that
concerns the achievement of his last end, inasmuch as he is
entirely subject to the law of Christ, of which the Church has
been constituted by her Divine Founder the guardian and the
executor, as well for the external forum as the internal forum, or
conscience. It is a power, therefore, which is both plenary and
perfect, although quite alien to that 'totalitarianism” which
does not admit or recognize the honest appeal to the clear and
imprescriptible dictates of conscience, and which violates the
laws of individual and social life written in the hearts of men (a).
1160.1 Rom. 2:15.

602

THE COUNCIL OF TRENT

The Church, in fact, with her power, does not intend to subject
the human person, but to ensure its liberty and perfection,
delivering it from its weakness as well as from the errors and
deficiencies of mind and heart which sooner or later always end
in dishonor and enslavement.
(Grandeur of the office of the ecclesiastical judge, who
demonstrates the beauty of the Church.)

THE COUNCIL OF TRENT

Letter, Quartum exactum, November 21, 1945, to Arch­
bishop de Ferrari of Trent.
(The fourth centenary of the Council.—Congratulations on
the preparations for this anniversary.)
1161
When We recall the very turbulent period which the ap(64, proaching commemoration refers to, and the very sad events
66, which were the cause for holding the Ecumenical Council, and
88, when We review its most happy results and salutary fruits
228) which arose from it and followed upon it, We see once again in
light which shines before the eyes of all men the truth which
Christ guaranteed and of which history is the witness: that the
Church can be assailed, but that she cannot be conquered. In
fact, just as she is united with her Divine Founder by an interior
and unchanging love, so, too, she is united with Him to share in
his struggles and to have part in his victory. Therefore, as often
as Peter’s boat is buffeted by violent waves and seems on the
point of foundering, then Christ is nearer to her than ever, and
He, commanding the wind and the waves once again pronounces
these divine words: “Why are you fearful, O ye of little faith?* (a)
... “Have confidence, I have overcome the world” (b).
(The ills which afflict Christianity.)
1162
(88,
151,
155,
193)

If the Church of Christ had relied solely upon human
strength, then beyond a doubt it would have been necessary
to fear her decay and even her dissolution; but even then shone
forth that infallible promise of her Divine Founder: "...Behold,
1 am with you all days even to the consummation of the
world” (a).
But in the very midst of such havoc to minds and to things,
the Roman Pontiffs, to whom byJ divine mandate is confided
1161a Matt 8:26._ 1161b John 16:33.

1162a Matt 28:20

j
■

!

THE COUNCIL OF I REN I

603

the care of feeding the entire Church (b), and of confirming
in their faith their erring brethren (c), mindful, happily, that
■often in moments of gravest danger to the Christian state that
excellent and most opportune remedy of the General Council
and the general assembly of the Bishops had been em­
ployed" (d), set about realizing this project.
(The history of the convocation of the Council of Trent.)
The fruits of the Council
All men who have impartially and with penetration studied 1163
history, that "light of truth and witness to the times" (a), know, (193)
Venerable Brothers, what great anti providential benefits for
the Catholic Church had their beginnings in this most famous
Council, and how much it contributed "towards extiqiating very
many and most pernicious heresies, correcting morals, restor­
ing ecclesiastical discipline, procuring peace and concord for
die Christian people” (b).

For this sacred Synod had been convoked with two principal 1164
ends in view: so that the Catholic faith and the principles of (193)
Christian doctrine which had been profoundly disturbed by the
Reformers, should be placed in their primitive light and effec­
tively protected and defended against error; secondly, so that
public and private morals and discipline of people and clergy’
should he restored to their original decorum and reformed ac­
cording to the Gospel teaching. Both these objectives were real­
ized by the Fathers of the Council with admirable zeal and
laudable wisdom ( a ).
(Extraordinary influence of the Council's work.—Appeal to
separated Christians. )
1162b Cf
Cf. JJohn 21:15-17.
1162c Cf. Luke 22:32.
1I62d Paul
-— III, Bulla indie. Cone. Trid.
1163a Cf. Cicero, De Orat. II, c. 9, 36.
1163b Pins IV, Bulla confirm. Cone. Trid., January 26, 1561
1164a Etenim, cum duabus præsertim de causis lure sacra fuisset
Synodus coacta, ut nempe catholica fides christiameque doctrinaprincipia, funditus a Novatoribus perturbata, iterum in germana
sua luce ponerentur, et ab erroribus tuta ac defensa. redintegra­
retur in pristinum, parique modo ut privati puoliciquc mores ac
cleri populique disciplina ad debitum reducerentur decus et
evangelico reformarentur afflatu, utrumque a Concilii Patribus
mirabili studio niirabilique sapientia prrestitum est.

À

SUPRA-NATIONALITY OF THE CHURCH
All. to the Cardinals, December 24, 1945.
(The approaching consistory.—The nationality oj the ncu
Cardinals.—They conic from the four corners of the globe.)

1165
The Catholic Church, of which Rome is the center, is supra(6. national by her very essence. This is to be understood in two
36, senses: one positive, the other negative. The Church is a Mother.
39, Sancta Mater Ecclesia, a real Mother, the Mother of all nations
41, ançl of every people, no less than of each and every' man, and
131, precisely because she is a Mother, she does not belong and she
133, cannot belong exclusively to one or another nation, or to one
131) nation more than another; she belongs to all equally. She is a
Mother, and consequently she cannot be a stranger to any place,
she is living, or at least by her nature she ought to live in even
nation (a). Moreover, just as the Mother, with her husband and
her children, forms a family, so the Church, by virtue of a union
which is incomparably closer and more intimate, constitutes
more than a family and better than a family: the Mystical Body
of Christ. The Church is therefore supra-national because she is
an indivisible and universal whole.
The indivisibile unity of the Church

1166
The Church is an indivisible whole because Christ with his
(41, Church is undivided and indivisible. Christ, as Head of the
131) Church, is, to use the profound thought of St. Augustine (a).
the totus Christus, the whole Christ. This integrity of Christ, ac­
cording to the holy Doctor, signifies the indivisible unity of the
Head and the body in plenitudine Ecclesiæ, in which plenitude
of life of the Church is conjoined every' country and every age of
redeemed humanity, without exception.
1165a La Chiesa cattolica, di cui l'Urbe è il ccntro, è sopraniiazionale per la sua stessa essenza. Ciô ha un duplice senso, uno
negativo cd uno positivo. La Chicsa è madré. Sancta Mater
Ecclesia, una vera madré, la madré di lutte le nazioni e di tutti
i popoli, non mena chc di tutti i singoli uoniini, e precisamentc
perché madré, non apport iene né puô appartencre cscltisicamente a questo o a quel popolo, e neanche ad un popolo più i
ad un altro meno, ma a tutti egualmente. L madré, e quittai non
è nè puô esscre straniera in alcun luogo, essa vive, o ahneno per
la sua natura deve vivere, in tutti i popoli.
1166a Serni. 341, c. 1.

SLJI’KA ΝΑ Ι ΙΟΝΑΙ 11 Y Of HIE CHURCH

605

Solidly established and profoundly rooted, the Church,
placed as she is at the center of the whole history of the human
race, in an arena made tumultuous by diverse forces and torn by
opposing tendencies, is the butt of every assault against her in­
divisible integrity, but in vain; far from being disturbed by this
state of affairs, she never ceases to radiate her own life of
integrity and unity, and she diffuses through the fabric of a
tom and divided humanity new forces of healing and harmony,
(be unifying forces of divine grace, forces of unifying Spirit for
which the world is longing, truths which everywhere and always
retain their validity, ideals which every where and always inspire
the heart.
Consequences of secularism

1167

Whence it is evident that every attempt which has been made
or which is being made to make the Church the captive or the
slave of one or another particular people, or to confine her with­
in the narrow limits of one nation, or to banish her, has been
and is a sacrilegious attempt against the totus Christus, Christ in
his integrity, and at the same time a dastardly crime against the
unity of the human race. Such a dismemberment of the integrity
of the Church has diminished and is diminishing—all the more
seriously as it is further prolonged—for the people who arei the
victims of %it, the benefit of their real and full life.
But the national and political individualism of the last
centuries has not only sought to wound the integrity of the
Church, to weaken and thwart her power of union and unifica­
tion, that force which in former times was an essential part in
the formation of the unity of western Europe. A superannuated
liberalism wished to create a unity without the Church and
against the Church by means of a secular culture and a secular­
ized humanism. Here and there, as a result of its disintegrating
action and at the same time as its enemy, totalitarianism succeeded
it (a). In one word, after a little more than a century, what were
the results of all these efforts exorcised without, and often against,
the Church? The grave of a healthy human liberty; organization
by force, a world which, for brutality and savagery, lor destruction

1168

1169a Un victo libéralisme voile senza c contra la Chicsa creare la
tinitâ mediante la cultura laica e un umanesimo secolarizzato.
Qua c là, come frutto dclla sua azione dissolvente c al tempo
stesso come nemico, ali succedette il totalitarismo.

(84,
127,
133,
228)

(131,
231)

1169

(133)

606

SUPRA NATIONALITY OF TUE CHURCH

and ruin, but above all for scandalous disunion and lack <d
security, has never seen the equal.
Exercise of supra-nationality
j
1170
In a troubled time like our own the Church, for her own
(41) good as well as for the good of humanity, must do all she can !.
derive the greatest benefit from her own indivisible and undividi :
integrity. Today more than ever she must be supra-national
This spirit must penetrate and permeate her visible Head, lb
Sacred College, the entire activity of the Holy See upon which,
today especially, are incumbent important duties which concern
not only the present but the future.
1171
This is, before all else, a question of point of view; of having
(132- the proper understanding of this supra-nationality. and not d
133) measuring it or determining it according to mathematical
proportions or rigorous statistics lysed upon the nationality o[
individual persons. For long periods in which, by the dispositior
of Providence the Italian nation more than any other has given
the Church hcr I lead and many of his collaborators in the central
government of the Holy See, the Church in her totality lias always
kept intact her supra-national character. And in fact not a feu
circumstances have contributed, precisely by this means, to
preserve her from dangers of which she would otherwise have
been very sensible. We may think, to cite only one example, of thstruggles for hegemony of the national European States and ol
the great dynasties of the past centuries.

1172
Even after the reconciliation of Church and State by the
(133) Lateran Treaty, the Italian clergy, as a whole and without any
prejudice to their natural and legitimate love of country, haw
continued to be faithful supporters and defenders of the supra­
national character of the Church. We hope and We pray that
they will remain so, especially' the young clergy, in Italy and
throughout the entire Catholic world; in any case, the delicate
conditions of the present hour require a particular care of and
safeguard for the supra-nationality and indivisible unity of the
Church.
The universality of the Church
1173
Supra-national because she embraces with the same love
(48. every nation and all peoples, she is so also, as We have already
94. emphasized, because in no place is she a stranger. She is living

SUPRANATIONALITY OF THE CHURCH

607

and developing in every country oi the world, and every country 131)
in the world is contributing to her life and to her development.
There was a time when the life of the Church, inasmuch as it is
visible, developed in all its richness by preference in the countries
of the Old World, whence it spread, like a majestic river, to what
might be called the periphery of the world; today, on the cont ran .
she presents the picture of an exchange of life and energy among
all the members of the Mystical Body of Christ upon earth. Many
countries on other continents have long since emerged from
missionary status in their ecclesiastical organization; they are
governed by their own hierarchy and today they are giving of
their spiritual and material goods to the entire Church, where
formerly they only used to receive.
Such progress and such enrichment in the supernatural— 1174
and even in the natural—life of humanity, does it not reveal the (3,
true sense of the supra-national character of the Church? This 9,
supra-nationality does not keep the Church, as it were, suspended 11,
at some inaccessible and intangible distance above the nations;
31,
but, as Christ was in the midst of men, so the Church, in which He 84,
continues to live, is also to be found among the nations. As the Son 131,
of God assumed a real human nature, so too the Church assumes 133)
all that is authentically human, and elevates it by making it a
supernatural force, wherever and in whatever form she finds it (a).

In this way there is realized in the Church of today what
St. Augustine celebrated in his City of God: “The Church,” he
wrote, "recruits her citizens from every nation; it is from every
tongue that she gathers her people pilgrimaging upon this earth;
she cares not for differences of customs, or laws, or institutions;
sht neither rescinds nor destroys any of that; rather it is her
custom to conserve and to adapt. But what is different in dif­
ferent nations, if it is no impediment to the worship of the unique
and sovereign and true God, is always directed to the unique and
single aim of peace on earth” (a).

1175
(11,
84,
132)

Like a luminous beacon the Church, in her world-wide 1176
integrity, sheds the splendor of her light on these dark days (71,
1174a Come Cristo assunse uno vera natura tnnana, cosi anche la

Chiesa prende in sè lu pienezza di tutto ciô che è genuinamente
απκπιο c lo eleva a survente di forza sopraniiaturalc, doyunqiic
c comunque lo trova.
1175a De Civitate Dei, L IX, c. 17.

608

THE CHURCH IS THE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

228) through which we are passing. No less dark were those days in
which the great Doctor of Hippo saw the world which he loved
so much passing into the shadows. This light comforted him then,
and in its brightness he saluted, as in a prophetic vision, the
new dawn of a still more beautiful day. His love for the Church
which was none other than his love for Christ, was his blessed
consolation. May all those who today in the suffering and perils
of their fatherland, are burdened with sorrows like Augustine's,
find as he did in his love for the Church, that universal Home,
which according to the divine promise will last to the end of time,
courage and strength!
As for Our part. We desire to make this Home ever more
secure, ever more habitable for all men without exception. This
is why We wish to omit nothing which can express in a visible
way the supra-national character of the Church, as a sign oilier
love for Christ whom she sees and whom she serves in each one
of his members throughout the entire world.
(The three conditions of peace: 1) good will and reciprocal
confidence; 2) need to halt the distortion of public opinion; 3)
need to renounce totalitarianism.—Prisoners.)
THE CHURCH IS THE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

All. to the Consistory, February 20, 1946.
(Words of welcome and of congratulation to the new
( ordinals. )
1177
Our gaze rests upon you with satisfaction and it sees in you
(46, who have come from all parts of the world the entire Church
48, that “house of the living God”, as the Vatican Council calls it.
155, that paternal home which “welcomes all those united by the bond
161) of one faith and love” (a). You have come to Peter in whom
according to the words of the same Council, the Episcopate and
the faithful find “the principle and the visible foundation ol
unity” (b).
Manifestation of the supra-nationality
and unity of the Church
1178
When in Our discourse on the vigil of Christmas We an·
(4,
nounced to the Sacred College Our intention of elevating you
1177a S’e.w I\ Const, dogm prima de Eccl Christi; Denz., n. 1821
1177b I hid

THE CHURCH IS HIE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

609

to the sacred purple (a), We were well aware of the profound 17,
interest which such a manifestation of the supra-national 38,
character of the Church and of her world-wide unity would 73,
arouse in the World; poor world, which everywhere hungers and 78,
thirsts lor unity and in various ways struggles to obtain it! The
80,
faithful found in Our words a new motive for encouragement and 131,
consolation, to others-We mean men of good will, not those who 134)
are bondmen to the “father of lies” (b)-they have offered mat­
ter for serious reflection. The Church, as We then said, possesses
in God. in the God-Man, in Christ, the invisible but unshakable
principle of her units and integrity, that is, of the unity of her
Head and his members in the total plenitude of his own life,
which embraces and sanctifies all that is truly human, and the
multiple aspirations and particular ends she focuses on and orders
to the final and common end of man, which is the most perfect
possible likeness to God (c). This Church rises today above a
torn and divided world as a warning sign, as a signum levatum in
nationes, “a standard unto nations." (d), calling to herself all
those who do not yet believe and confirming her children in
the faith they profess (e). for without God and far from God,
there can be for men no true, solid, and certain unity.
Hoiv the Church exercises her influence...

II therefore today so many men everywhere, in anxious 1179
expectation and fearful hope are turning towards the Church and (133)
are asking her what is her part in the salvation of human societ}·.
1178a Above No. 1165 ff.
1178b John 8:44.
1178c La Chicsa possiede in Dio. nell'tomo-Dio, in Cristo, rinvisibilc, ma incrollabile principio della unite e della sua intcrezza,
vale a dire della unité del suo Capo e dello sue membre nella
intiera pienezza della sua propria vita, la quale abbraccia c santifica tutto ciô chc è veramente umano, c le molteplici aspirationi
e i fini particolari rivolge e ordina allo scopo totale c cotnunc
dell’tionu), chc è la sua somiglianza il pin possibile perfetta con
Dio.
1178d Cone. Vatic. Scss. Ill Const
dogm. de fide cath·, Denz. n. 1794.- Isaias 11:12.
1178e Pius X1Ï returned to the same idea in the allocution to
the Diplomatic Corps on February 25. 1946: "This double uni­
versality of the Sacred College and of the Diplomatic Corps
gives a visible image of the true supranationality of the Churcn.
who. far from taking umbrage at the differences of nationalité
and seeking to reduce them to a single gray uniformity, on the
contrary favors them, and by harmonious combinations brings

610

I HE CHURCH IS THE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

in the establishment of that inestimable good, more precious than
all other treasures, which is a true and lasting peace at home and
abroad, the Church’s reply can be multiple and varied, as the
possibilities are varied, nt the same time, the great, the definitive
reply, to which all the others can be reduced, remains always the
unity and the integrity of the Church founded in God and in
Christ. Whence the necessity—in the first place for the Church's
children, but also for human society in general-to have a clear
and exact notion of the influence which this unity and this
integrity will exercise in practice. This influence will be exercised
on the foundation, on the structure, and on the dynamism of
human society. The prime importance of the first of these three
points invites Us to make it the object, in connection with Our
Christmas message, of the words which We address to you today
on this solemn and extraordinary occasion which gathers about
Us the new members of the Sacred College, worthy repre­
sentatives of the Universal Church.

On the point of security:
The Church and modern imperialism
1180
“The unity and the integrity of the Church," high-lighted by
(132) the manifestation of her supra-national character, are of great
importance for the foundation of social life. Not that it is the office
of the Church to comprise and in some way to enclose, like a
gigantic world Empire, the whole of human society. Such a
concept of the Church, as an earthly Empire and a world power,
is fundamentally false; in no period of history has it been either
true or in line with the facts, unless we wish—wrongly—to transfer
to past centuries the ideas and the terminology proper to our own
times.
•
1181
The Church—for all that she is accomplishing the command
of her Divine Founder to spread through the whole world and to
subject every creature to the Gospel (a)—is not an Empire,
above all not in the imperialistic sense which is ordinarily given
to this word. She follows in her progress and her expansion a
direction which is the reverse of that followed by modem im­
perialism. She makes progress first of all in depth, then in length
out the true value of the character and resources of each in her
respect for their autonomy and their originality.**
1181a Cf. Mark 16:15,

THE CHURCH IS THE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

611

and breadth. She seeks first of all man himself; she endeavors to
form man, to fashion him and perfect in him the divine resem­
blance. Her work is carried on in the depths of the heart of each
one, but it has its repercussion on the whole of his life, in every
field of his activity. In men formed in this way the Church is
preparing for human society a basis on which it can rest secure.
Modern imperialism, on the contrary, moves in the opposite
direction. It grows in length and breadth. Not man as such,
but tilings and the power which he must serve; consequently, it
bears within itself the seeds of destruction for the bases of human
society. In such conditions, can anyone be surprised at the
present anxiety of the peoples for their reciprocal security? An
anxiety which derives from the exaggerated tendency towards
expansion which bears within it the canker of continual worn ,
and causes one need for security to tread hard upon the heels of
another, perhaps even more urgent.

Consistency and balance —
Action of the Church on mans nature
But the solidity' of the foundation would be in vain if the 1182
constmction were to lack cohesion and balance. Now the Church (84)
contributes also to the cohesion and to the balance of all the
multiple and complex elements of the social structure. Here, too,
her action is before all else an interior one. The supports, the
buttresses applied from outside to a crumbling structure are onlv
a precarious remedy, which at best put off for a time the fatal
collapse. If the eroding action of time, which has not spared so
many monuments of recent date, has respected the magnificent
Gothic cathedrals of the thirteenth centurv,
r if they continue to
rise serenely above the ruins that surround them, it is because
their buttresses do no more than furnish from without an
assistance, precious, no doubt, but accessory to the intrinsic power
of the ogival organism of an architecture of genius, no less firm
and precise than bold and light.
μ

So with the Church: she acts on the most intimate part of 1183
man. on man in his personal dignity as a free creature, in his (84)
infinitely higher dignity as a son of God. This man the Church
forms and educates, because he alone, complete in the harmonv
of h.s natural and supernatural life, in the orderly development
of his instincts and his inclinations, in his rich qualities and his

612

THE CHURCH IS I HE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

varied aptitudes, is at the same time the origin and end of social
life, and consequently also the principle of its equilibrium (a
1184
This is the reason why the .Apostle of the Gentiles, speaking
(213) of the Christians, says that they are no longer (a) unsteady on
their feet in the midst of human society, Our Predecessor of
happy memory, Pius XI, in his encyclical on the social order
Quadragesimo anno, drew from this same thought a practical
conclusion when he enunciated a principle which is of general
application, namely: what individual men can do by themselves
by the exercise of their own strength ought not to be taken from
them and transferred to the community; a principle which is
equally valid for smaller groups of a lower order with respect
to larger groups of a higher order. For—thus the Holy Pontiff
continued—every social activity is by its nature subsidiary, it
must serve as support for the members of the social body, never
to destroy or absorb them (b). These arc truly luminous words
valid for social life in every one of its degrees, and also for the
life of the Church without prejudice to her hierarchical
structure (c). (Comparison with imperialistic regimes
Equality. — Man the center of the social order
(The State is turned in upon itself.)
1185
Once again it is the Church who can tend and cure such a
(84, sickness. And here again she does so by penetrating to the inmost
224) depths of the human being and by placing him at the center of
all social order. Now this human being is not man in the abstract
or man considered solely in the order of pure nature, but die
complete man such as he is in the eyes of God, his Creator and
Redeemer, such as he is in his concrete and historic reality, which
we cannot lose sight of without compromising the normal économe
of the human community. The Church knows this and she acts
accordingly. If, at certain times and in certain places one or
1183a "Questo uomo la Chiesa forma cd educa, perché egli solo
completo nell'armonia della sua vita naturale e soprannaturoh
nell'ordinato sviluppo dei suoi istinti c dclle sue inclinaxioni,
delle sue ricche (pudita e delle sue svariate attitudini, è ol tempo
stesso l’origine e lo scopo della vita sociale, e con cià anche il
principio del suo equilibria”.
1184a Eph. 4:14.
1184b Pius XI, Quadragesimo anno, cf. PEACE WITHIN THE
NATION, Nos. 638-640.
1184c For the portions of this discourse herein omitted, see Ibid.
Nos. 950 ff.

HIE CHURCH IS lilt SUPPOR 1 OF SOCIAL LIFE

615

another civilization, one or another ethnic group or social class
has surpassed others in its influence upon the Church, this does
not signify either that she is in vassalage to it. or that she be­
came petrified, so to say. at a given moment of history and closed
herself to any further development. On the contrary, inclined
toward man as she is with constant attention, listening to all the
heatings of his heart, she knows all his rich possibilities, she
perceives all his aspirations with that clairvoyant intuition and
penetrating finesse which can derive only from the supernatural
light of Christ’s teaching and the supernatural warmth of his
divine charity. Thus, the Church in her progress, neither pausing
nor stumbling, walks on the providential road of time and
circumstance. Such is the profound meaning of her vital law of
adaptation, which some men, incapable of rising to so magnifi­
cent a concept, have interpreted and presented as opportunism.
No, the universal comprehension of the Church has nothing to do
with the narrowness of a sect, or with the exclusiveness of an
imperialism imprisoned within its own tradition.
She is tending with all her strength towards the end which 118G
St. Thomas Aquinas, following the thought of the Stagirite,
(8)
assigns to the life of the community, which is to unite men among
themselves with the bonds of friendship (a). It has been said
that with all the modern means of communication peoples and
men are more isolated now than they* ever were before. But this
cannot be said of Catholics, of the members of the Church.

Normal development in time and space
The Church is, in fact, the perfect society', the universal 11S7
society, which embraces and unites in the Mystical Body of (6,
Christ all men: “All the nations thou has made shall come and
8,
adore before Thee, O Lord" (a). All people and each individual -L3.
man is called to come to the Church.
39,
(The term “come" docs not conjure up pictures of emigration 131 )
or deportation.—Necessity for stable territory and traditions.—The
Church endeavors to secure these for men.)
The Church living in the heart of man and man living ir. 1188
the bosom of the Church, here. Venerable Brothers, is the most (78)
profound and the most efficacious union that can be conceived.
Bv this union the Church raises man to the perfection of his
1186a St. Thomas. la-Hae, q. 92. art. 2.

1187a Psalm 8-5:9.

614

1189
(80)

1190
(74,
94,
105)

THE CHURCH IS THE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

being and his vitality to give to human society men like the idlowing: men founded in their inviolable integrity as images e
God; men proud of their personal dignity and wholesome liberty
men rightly jealous of their equality with other men in all that
touches most profoundly their human dignity; men attached ni
a stable way to their country and their tradition; men, in a word
characterized by these four elements—this is what gives to humin
society a solid foundation and procures for it security, balance
evenness, normal development in time and space. Such is there­
fore the true meaning and the practical influence of the supra­
nationality of the Church, which—far from resembling an Empire
—rises above all differences, above space and time, and is
constantly constructing the unshakable foundations of all humin
society. Let us have confidence in her; if everything is crumbling
about her, she remains firm. To her can still be applied in om
day the words of the Lord: “The earth is melted, and all that
dwell therein: I have established the pillars thereof (a).
(The two principal supports of society: the family and the
State. )
The difficult mission of the Church
And now, what are the consequences of all this for the
Church? She must, today more than ever, live her mission; she
must, more energetically than ever, reject that narrow and false
conception of her spirituality and of her interior life, which
would confine her, blind and dumb, to the retreat of the
sanctuary.
The Church cannot shut herself up inactive in the seclusion
of her temples and thus abandon the mission which Divine
Providence has confided to her of forming the complete man.
and, by so doing, constantly collaborate in laying a solid founda­
tion for society. This mission is essential to her. Considered from
this point of view, the Church can be said to be the society ol
those who, under the supernatural influence of grace, in the
perfection of their personal dignity as sons of God and in the
harmonious development of every’ human inclination and energy,
are building up the powerful armature of the human com­
munity (a).
1188a Etsi moveatur terra cum omnibus incolis suis, ego finnan
columnas eius (Psalm 74:4).
1190a "La Chiesa puo dirsi la société) di coloro chc, sotto finflusso
soprannaturalc della grazia, nella perfezione della loro dignifri

THE CHURCH IS THE SUPPORT OF SOCIAL LIFE

615

From this point of view, Venerable Brothers, the faithful,
and more precisely the laity, find themselves in the front lines
of the Church’s life; through them the Church is the vital
principle of human society. Consequently they, especially they,
must have an ever clearer consciousness not only of belonging to
the Church, but of being the Church, that is to say the community
of the faithful on earth under the guidance of a common Head,
the Pope, and the Bishops in communion with him (a). They are
the Church, and consequently from the earliest times of her
history the faithful, with the consent of their Bishops, were
united in special associations concerned with the various
manifestations of her life. And the Holy See has never ceased
to approve of them and to praise them.
Hence, the principal meaning of the supra-nationality of the
Church is to give in a lasting manner figure and form to the
foundation of human society, over and above all diversities, over
and above the limits of time and space.
(Difficulties of this work in the midst of present antagonism
and forgetfulness of the past. )

1191
(74,
133,
210,
217,
221)

The Sacrifice of the Mass and unity
The Church alone can bring man back from the shadows 1192
into the light; she alone can give him back the consciousness of (51,
a vigorous past, a master}' of the present, security for the future. 67But her supra-nationality does not operate in the manner of an
68,
Empire which extends its tentacles in all directions with a 132)
view to world domination. Like the mother of a family, each
day she gathers together in intimacy all her children scattered
throughout the world; she reunites them in the oneness of her
own divine life principle. Do we not see daily on our innumer­
able altars how Christ the Divine Victim, with arms extended
personale di figli di Dio e nello sviluppo armonico di tuttc le in·
clinazioni c le énergie umane, edificano la potente armatura della
convivenza umana".
1191a Sotto questo aspetto, V.l·'., i fedeli, c più precisamente i laid,
si Irovano nella linea più avanzata della vita della Chiesa; per
loro la Chiesa è il principio vitale della società umana. Percid essi,
specialrnente essi, dehhono avere una semprc più chiara consa·
pcvolezza, non soltanto di appartenere alla Chiesa. ma di essere
la Chiesa, vale a dire la coinunità dei fedeli sulla terra sotto la
condotta del Capo comtine, il Papa, e dei vescovi in cornunione
con lui.

616

1193
(132)

1194
(41,
126,
133)

THE CARE OF SOULS

|

from one end of the world to the other, enfolds and contains «
one and the same time the entire human race in its past, its
present, and its future? It is Holy Mass, that unbloody sacrifia
instituted by the Redeemer at the Last Supper, “destined to
represent the bloody sacrifice accomplished once and for all oo
the Cross, and to perpetuate the memory of it to the end of timr
and to apply its saving fruits for the remission of the sins which
we daily commit" (a).
(Meditation on the Mass gives an understanding of unity
Venerable Brothers, in the Holy Sacrifice the Church givb
therefore, her greatest support to the foundation of human
society. Every day, from the rising of the sun to its setting, with­
out distinction of peoples or nations, there is offered up a pure
oblation (a), in which participate in intimate fraternal union
all the children of the Church throughout the entire world, and
each one finds there a refuge in his necessities and security in
his dangers.
Love the Church
Let us love the Church, that Holy Church, lovable and
strong, that truly supernatural Church. Let us make her loved by
all nations and by all men. Let us be ourselves the stable foundstion of society, that it may become in fact that "one nation, uno
gens", of which the great Bishop of Hippo speaks. "One nation,
because of only one faith, only one hope, only one love, only one
expectation, (a)
( The Pope hopes that all will understand their duty.—
Blessing. )
THE CARE OF SOULS

All. to the Lenten preachers, March 16, 1946.
(The duties of the post-war period—Charity.)
1195
Innumerable souls are turning their eyes and their hearts
(115, towards the Church with hope and faith. And it is this very
205) spectacle, always present to Our thoughts, which moves Us to
consider particularly the direct, immediate care of souls in parish
life, in the daily action of the priest at the altar, in the pulpit,
in the confessional, in the teaching office, among the young, at
the bedside of the sick, in personal contact. This assiduous labor
1192a Council of Trent, sess. XXII, c. I. No. 938.
1193a Cf Malach. 111. 1191a EnOrr in Ps. 85; f. L., 37-1092

THE (. ARI ΟΓ SOULS

617

nas been and is everywhere and always the fundamental basis
and, as it were, the solid armature which assures the perennial
vitality of the Church.
Through this work the Church brings in a real way to the
restoration of human society its precious contribution; We have
spoken of this in a recent discourse (a). It consists in fact in
forming man himself, the complete man, image and son of God,
the man who is prepared and ready to observe faithfully in the
natural and the supernatural order the commandments received
from God, his Creator and his Father (b). But a man like this,
how does the Church form and prepare him, if not, before all
else in the daily ministry of souls? This supernatural education
has in view primarily the supernatural and eternal life, but at the
same time it assures to human society dignity and order, happi­
ness and peace. In this way, in the obscure and incessant labor
carried on in the whole world by priests in each individual soul,
is prepared and fostered the great and difficult work of the
Church for the greater good of humanity.
(Anxiety for those living far from the Church.—Preaching.—
True eloquence.)
Object of the preaching of faith
The object of the preaching of faith is the Catholic teaching,
that is to say, revelation with all the truth it contains, with all
the fundamentals and the notions which it supposes, with all the
consequences implicit in it for the moral conduct of man. with
respect to himself, in domestic and social life, in public life, even
in political life. Religion and moral in their close union constitute
an indivisible whole; and the moral order, the commandments
of God, are equally valid for every domain of human activity,
without any exception; however extensive these domains may be,
the mission of the Church extends to all of them, and consequent­
ly, so does the word of the priest, his teaching, bis admonitions,
his counsels to the faithful confided to his care. The Catholic
Church will never allow herself to be shut up in the four walls
of her temples. Separation between religion and life, between the
1196a Cf. above Nos. 1173 if
1196b Esso incero consiste net formare luomo stesso, Inorno com­
pleto, immagine e fip.Uo di Dio, 1'nomo properato e pronto ad
ossercare fedclmente nelTordine naturale e soprannaturale la
conscgna ricevuta da Dio, suo Creatore e suo Padre.

1196
(84,
205)

1197
(102103)

618

THE OBJECT OF THE JUDICIARY POWER

Church and the world, is contrary to the Christian and Cathoht
idea (a).
Rights and Duties of the Priest
in Questions which Concern Public Life
1198
Let us conclude with some propositions which are more pre·
(79, cise and more concrete:
99)
1. It is a right and at the same time an essential duty of the
Church to instruct the faithful, by word and by writing, (ra­
the pxdpit and in all the other usual forms, in all matters touch
ing faith and morals, or on any matter which is irreconcilable
with her own teaching, and which is therefore inadmissible for
Catholics, whether it be a philosophic or religious system, or Ik
objectives which their authors propose, or their moral concepts
with regard to individual or community life,
(The right to cote.—The priest and political parlies.)

THE OBJECT OF THE JUDICIARY POWER
All. to the members of the Tribunal of the Sacred RoU.
October 6, 1946.
(The Pope recalls the preceding discourse [a] on the differ­
ence, in nature and origin, between the two supreme powers of
the Church and State.)

1199
We come to the same conclusion if we consider the proper
(13, object of each one. There again are to be found common ele79, ments and characteristics. In fact, in both these perfect societies
124) the protection of the bonum commune, the common good, re­
quires that the rights and the goods of their members should be
recognized, guaranteed, and restored by juridical means. Fur
thermore, these rights and these goods are in part the same for
both Church and State. The Church is also a visible societv*
whose life is necessarily bound to a physical order of being, to
conditions in time and space in which man lives. But on the
other hand there are rights and goods so peculiar and so proper
1197a Fin doce questi giungono, si estende anche la missione deli.'.
Chiesa, c percio anche la parola del sacerdote, il suo insegnamento, le sue ammonizioni, i suoi consigli ai fedeli affidaü alh
suc cure. La Chiesa cattolica non si lascerà mai chiudere nelh
quattro mura dei tempto. La separazione fra Ia religione e lu viti
fra Ia Chiesa e il monde è contraria alia idea cristiana c cattolicu
1199.1 Cf. above. Nos. 1151-1160.

THE OBJECT OE THE JUDICIARY POWER

619

to ecclesiastical jurisdiction that by their nature they are not and
cannot be (be objects of the juridical power of the State (b).
The defense of the Faith—the Holy Office
Among the goods which the ecclesiastical tribunals (those 1200
of the Ordinaries of dioceses as well as those of the Apostolic (120)
See) have bad to defend in the course of history—sometimes for­
cibly to defend—should be noted the faith itself, the foundation
of all supernatural life. The tribunal for the defense of the faith
is, therefore, a legitimate organ of the judicial power of the
Church, inasmuch as she is a perfect religious society. Her role
is to respond juridically to every attack directed against one of
her most vital and important possessions. The evils of heresy and
apostasy cannot find the Church indifferent or inert. Doubtless
in the course of centuries the tribunal for the defense of the faith
may have assumed forms and methods not required by the ven
nature of things, but which are to be explained in the light of
particular historical circumstances; it would, nonetheless, be false
to wish to derive from this fact an argument against the legiti­
macy of such a tribunal in itself (a).

We are not unaware of the fact that the very name of this 1201
tribunal is offensive to many men in our time. They are the ones (120.
whose thought and judgment is fascinated by a teaching which. 173,
rejecting all idea of the supernatural and of revelation, attributes 216)
to human reason the power to understand the world thoroughly,
the prerogative to dominate the whole of life, and consequently
requires complete independence of man with respect to any
authority whatever. Of this doctrine We know the sources, the
adherents, and the progress: We know its influence upon the in11991) Poichè anche la Chiesa c una società visibile, la cui vita c
ncccssarianiente legata al modo di cssere fisico, allé condizioni di
snazio e di tempo, in cui vive l’uomo. D’altra parte pero. vi sono
diritti e bene cost peculiari e propri della giurisdizione ecclesias­
tica, che per la loro natura non sono nè possono cssere oggetto
del pot ere giudiziario dello Stato.
1200.1 / delitti dell'ercsia e dell'apostasia non potevano nè possono
lasciarc la Chiesa indifferente od inerte. Senza dubbio nel volger
dei secoli il tribunale per la difesa della fede ha potato assumere
forme e melodi non richiesti dalla natura stessa delle cose, ma
che trovano la loro smegazione alia luce delle /Mrticolari circostanze storiche; sarebbe tultavia falso di voleme trarre tin argomento contra la legittimità del tribunale stesso.

620

THE OBJECT OF THE JUDICIARY POWER

|

tellectual life, the moral, social, economic and political life, but
We know too its vagaries in the course of the history of the last
centuries, especially in the last hundred years. Its representatives
appeal to the principle of “liberty of conscience”, to the principle
of “toleration’’ in matters which concern the spiritual life, above
all the religious life. Nonetheless, it is all too often the case tint
when they themselves have acquired power they press ionvan!
to do violence to consciences and to impose on the Catholic part
of their people an oppressive yoke, especially where the rights
of parents over the education of their children are concerned

1202
If it may appear to our way of thinking that the repression</.
(59- dangers to the faith did, on occasion, overstep just limits in past
60) centuries, on the other hand in our own day human society in
general shows an excessive insensibility and indifference in these
matters. Increasingly frequent contacts and the spread of differ­
ent religious confessions within the boundaries of a single nation
have induced civil tribunals to follow the principle of “tolera­
tion” and of “liberty of conscience." Moreover, there is in this
a political, civic, and social tolerance for the members of other
confessions, which in such circumstances is also a moral danger
for Catholics.
(Citation of Cation 1351: "No one may be forced against hiv
will to embrace the Catholic faith," of the teaching of Leo XIII.
and of a text of Lactantius.—Λ recent statement of a public of/icial that the Pope would have approved “forced conversions'
is denied.)
Limits of “liberty of conscience"
1203
(13,
55,
102,
110,
123)

We must add that the ecclesiastical tribunal in the exercise
of its jurisdiction cannot make her own the rule followed by the
civil courts. The Catholic Church, as We have already said, is
a perfect society which has as its basis the truth of faith infallibly revealed by God. All that is opposed to this truth is neces·
sarily an error and we cannot objectively' grant to error the same
rights as those granted to truth. In this way, liberty of thought
and liberty of conscience have their essential limits in the veraci­
ty of God revealing. We said “their essential limits,” if in fact
truth is not equal to error and if in fact a right conscience in
man is the voice of God. It follows that a member of the Church
cannot without fault deny or repudiate the Catholic truth al­
ready known and admitted; and if the Church, after having as-

TUE OBJECI’ OF TUE JUDICIARY POWER

621

certained the fact of heresy or apostasy, punishes it,—for exam­
ple, excluding the culprit from the communion of the faithful,—
she remains strictly within her competence and acts to protect,
so to say, her domestic rights (a).

Matrimonial cases
Another object which dearly brings out the difference be- 1204
tween ecclesiastical and civil judicial procedure is marriage. (79)
Marriage is, according to the will of the Creator, a res sacra. That
is why, when it is a question of union between baptized persons,
it remains, by its nature, outside the competence of the civil
authority. (Competence of the State over the civil effects.) But
much more far-reaching and more profound is the compe­
tence of the Church in matrimonial questions, because it is
on her, by divine institution, that depends primarily what
concerns the protection of the marriage bond and the sanctity
of the union.
(The multiplication of annulment cases, a sign of decadence
oj morals. )

Matters falling under the jurisdiction of the Holy Office
Among the objects of the ecclesiastical judiciary We should 1205
also mention those matters which—over and above the defense (79)
of the faith—are proper to the Tribunal of the Supreme Sacred
Congregation of the Holy Office. The severity of the procedure
is determined by the sanctity of the goods which it has a mission
to defend and by the gravity of the offenses which it is called
upon to judge. There would be no reason to make particular
mention of this if the method of procedure had not been de­
nounced as contrary to the principle, today generally admitted,
of the publicity given to the verdicts, considered as a necessary
guaranty against arbitrary decisions.
1203a In tai guisa la liberté di pensiero e la liberté di coscienza
hanno i loro limiti csscnziali nella vcridicité di Dio rivelatorc
Diciaino: i loro limiti csscnziali, sc realmente la vérité non c
ugualc all'errore e se realmente la sana coscienza nelTuomo c la
voce di Dio. Da cio conscgue che un membro della Chiesa non
put) senza colpa negare o ripudiare la vérité cattolica gié conosciuta cd amtnessa; e se la Chiesa, dopo di aver accertato il fatto
della eresia e dclTapostasia, Io punisce. per esempio, escludendolo dalla comunione dei fedeli, rimane strettamente nella sua
competenza ed agiscc a tutela, per cost dire, del suo diritto do­
mestico.

622

HIE EDII K E OF ΠΙΕ CHURCH

The activity of the Supreme Tribunal, even in criminal cases,
is certainly, in fact, carried out with the obligation of secrecy
But it is particularly necessary to recall that penal codes of the
civil State make provision for the debates taking place, in wholt
or in part in camera, when such a procedure is required for the
common good; it is just this same principle which the Church
applies in the penal cases before the Holy Office.
( Furthermore, the accused are not depriced of the proper
guarantees.—Importance of the function of a judge of the
Church.)
THE EDIFICE OF THE CHURCH

1206
(63,
68,
7.5,
77,
99100.
115,
126,
134,
139,
142,
160161,
227228)

R. M. to the National Catechetical Congress (Boston.
U.S.A.), October 26, 1946.
In the Sermon on the Mount the Dix’ne Redeemer has il·
lumined the path that leads to the Father’s will and eternal life,
but from Golgotha’s gibbet flows the full and steady stream of
graces, of strength and courage, that alone enable man to walk
that path with firm and unerring step.
Those graces are channeled to your souls through the
Church. Christ’s work was not wholly accomplished at his death
In one sense it was only beginning. He has finished, finished
perfectly, the work assigned to Him by his Father to do in his
mortal body. But he would live on to ensure that his beloved
creatures should profit by the redemption He had wrought. And
so He told his disciples that He was going to build a Church; its
foundation, the basis of its strength and unity, would be one of
them. Peter. Impregnable against the powers of evil, imperturbable amid the crash of mere human institutions, deriving always
its comprehensiveness and its oneness from him who in an un­
broken, continuous line would be the successor of the first ChristVicar, it was to carry on until time and space are no more, until
the book of human history is closed He gave it the divine man­
date to go forth and to teach all men of all nations. It would be
the pillar and mainstay of the truth. It would be the holy mother
imparting to her children a life of faith and sanctity which is the
pledge of everlasting life. It would be his beloved spouse, for
whom He delivered Himself up, that He might sanctify her...
that she might be holy and without blemish (a).
1206a Ephes. 5:26 ff.

RECOGNITION BY THE CHURCH
Apost. Const. Provide Mater Ecclesia, February 2, 1947.
(The Church and the practice of the evangelical counsels.)
How closely and intimately the history of sanctity in the 1207
Church and the Catholic apostolate is linked with the history of (129,
canonical religious life, which under the life-giving impulse of 136the grace of the Holy Spirit never ceases to increase and grow 137,
strong, marvelously varied as it is in the midst of a very deep 209)
and profound unity, is clear to all. It is not to be wondered at
if the Church, too, has faithfully followed in the field of law,
the movement which a wise Providence has so clearly indicated
to her, and that she has surrounded with vigilance and stipulated
with deliberation what shall constitute the canonical state of
perfection, to the point that she has raised upon it, as on one
of the foundation stones, the edifice of ecclesiastical legislation.
Hence, first of all, the public state of perfection was counted
among the three principal ecclesiastical states, and the Church
took no other state but this one to constitute the second canon­
ical order or degree of persons (a). This thing, in fact, merits
great attention: while the two other canonical orders of persons,
namely, clerics and laymen, are founded, by reason of the divine
law (to which is added ecclesiastical institution) (b), on the
Church as a society hierarchically constituted and ordered, the
grade of religious, placed between clerics and laity (c), is de­
rived from the close and peculiar relation of this state to the
Church’s end, namely, sanctification, and to the efficacious and
adequate means for effecting it.
Nor is this enough. In order that this public and solemn 120S
profession of sanctity may never be thwarted and fall into disuse, (209)
the Church, with a constantly increasing rigor, wishes to recog­
nize this canonical state of perfection only in societies founded
and ruled by her, namely in "Religions” (a), for which, after
mature deliberation, she has, by her magisterium, fixed the
general form and rule, for which, finally, in each case, she has
examined closely the constitution and rides, not only with regard
to doctrine and in the abstract, but also in the light of her own
experience and in the practical order.
1207a Canon 107. 1207b Canon 107. 108 § 3.
1207c Canon 107. 1208a Canon 188, 1

624

SPOUSE OF BLOOD

(Congregations with simple vows.—Secular institutes.—Par.
ticular law for these institutes.)
THE BA VAGES OF TIME
Encycl. Fulgens radiatur, March 21, 1947.
(Christ present through his Saints.—Saint Benedict, a light
in a period of decadence.)
1209
In fact, while earthly enterprises and earthly institutions
(227, since they can count only on human wisdom and human strength
229) one after another in the course of the ages grow, reach their
zenith, and then of their own nature, decline, fall into ruins,
and disappear, on the contrary the community which our Re­
deemer established, enjoys heavenly life and perpetual vigor b\
his divine foundation. Supported and sustained by Him, she
victoriously surmounts the destructive forces of time, of events
of men, and even brings forth from their disgrace and ruin a
new era happier than the last, while at the same time she creates
and rears in Christian teaching and Christian understanding a
new society of citizens, of peoples and of nations.
(The 14th centenary of St. Benedict.—His life and founda­
tions.—His rule and its present vigor.—The restoration of Monte
Cassino. )
SPOUSE OF BLOOD
All. to the members of Italian Catholic Action, September
7, 1947.
(The objectives of Catholic Action: regain lost ground, make
new conquests.)
1210
The Church is always young! Strength and virtue of God.
(29, custodian and eternal dispenser of the divine to the world, she
66, cannot, in the course of time, succumb to age, but, exempt from
88, all error, she lives an indestructible life, she finds over and over
227- again her youthful vigor, according to the will and the grace ol
228) Him who is at her side until the end of time.
But the immortal youth of the Church is manifest-oh
marvel!—especially in suffering. She is a “spouse of blood" (a)
In blood are her children, her ministers calumniated, imprisoned
killed, tortured. Who would ever have believed possible, in thr
1210a Cf. Exod. 4:25.

HIE ULTRA TERRESTRIAL EXH OF THE. CHURCH

625

twentieth century—after such progress in civilization, after so
many affirmations of liberty—such oppression, so many persecu­
tions, so much violence? But the Church does not fear. She wishes
to be a Spouse of blood and of suffering, to reproduce in herself
the image of her Divine Spouse, to suffer, to do combat, to tri­
umph with Him.
(The patrons of Catholic Action.)

THE ULTRA-TERRESTRIAL END OF THE CHURCH

All. to the members of the Tribunal of the Sacred Rota, Oc­
tober 29, 1947,
(Reproaches addressed to the Church by reason of her in­
terventions in favor of truth and justice.)
But the Church continues straight ahead on her road, al­ 1211
ways tending towards the end for which she was instituted by (14,
her Divine Founder, that is, to lead men by the supernatural 77)
paths of virtue and the good life to eternal and celestial happi­
ness: by this very fact she favors at the same time the peace and
prosperity of the human community.
This thought leads Us naturally to the third point of the
theme which We proposed for your consideration in these last
two years (a). And so, having treated of the differences
between the ecclesiastical judicial order and the civil judicial
order in what concerns the origin and nature as well as the ob­
jects of both, it remains for Us today to speak of the essentially
different ends of the two societies.
Distinction, not separation
This ultimate difference, founded on the respective ends, 1212
excludes beyond a doubt the forced submission to and the in- (13sertion of the Church within the State, contrary' to the nature of 14,
each of the societies, which all totalitarian systems tend, at least 91,
in principle, to realize. At the same time it certainly does not 94)
deny all union between the two societies, still less does it create
between them a cold and divisive atmosphere of agnosticism and
indifference. Whoever would wish to interpret in such a fashion
the real doctrine according to which the Church and the State
are perfect societies, would fall into error. He could not explain
the multiple forms, proper to the past and to the present, and.
in different degrees, fruitful of union between the two powers;
1211a Cf. above Nos. 1151 ff: Nos. 1199 ff.

626

TUE ULTRA-TERRESTRIAL END OF THE CHURCH

above all, he would not be taking into account the fact that
Church and State both spring from the same source, God, and
that both are concerned with the same man, in his personal dig·
nity, both natural and supernatural. All of this Our glorious
Predecessor Leo XIII could not, and did not wish to neglect
when in his Encyclical Immortale Dei of the 1st of November
1885 he clearly defined, from the perspective of their diverse
ends, the limits of the two societies, and pointed out that it is
incumbent upon the State, directly and before all else, to watch
over the temporal interests, and, upon the Church, to procure for
men heavenly and eternal goods (a), inasmuch as men need
security and support either from the State, for earthly matters,
or from the Church in things eternal.

i

|
i

The body and soul
1213
Do we not see in this, from certain points of view, some
(14, analogy with the relationship between body and soul? Both work
94) together in such fashion that the psychological character of man
feels the effects at every moment of his temperament and his
physical condition, while, vice versa, the moral impressions, the
emotions, the passions, are reflected so powerfully in his physi­
cal make-up that the soul even moulds his facial features, on
which it imprints, so to say, its image.

1214
There exists, therefore, a difference of end between the two
(14, societies, a difference which exercises a profound and disparate
123- influence on the Church and on the State, principally upon the
124) supreme power in both societies, and also on the judiciary' power,
which is nothing else but a part and a function of the former
Independent ot this circumstance, and whether individual
judges are conscious of it or not, all their judicial activity' is and
remains included in the fullness of the life of the Church with
her sublime end: cælestia ac sempiterna bona comparare, “to pro­
cure the heavenly and everlasting good." This finis operis of the
ecclesiastical judicial power gives it an objective character and
makes of it an institution of the Church as a supernatural socie­
ty (a). And because this character comes from the ultra-terrestri­
al end of the Church, the ecclesiastical judicial power will never
1212a Cf. above No. 466 ff.
1214a Existe dnnque quella differenza del fine, differenza che
esercita tin diverso e profondo influsso stiUa Chiesa e stillo State

j
1
|

THE ULTRA-TERRESTRIAL END OF THE CHURCH

627

fall into the rigidity and immobility to which purely earthly in­
stitutions for fear of responsibility, or through indolence, or
again from ill-intentioned solicitude for the protection of the
good-certainly a high one—of the security of the law, are easily
subject.
(The error of “the vitality of the lato’’.)
Rightly to understand the juridical norm in the sense of the
legislator and correctly to analyze each case in order to apply
the norm to it, is an intellectual labor which is an essential part
of concrete judicial activity. Without such a procedure the sen­
tence of the judge would be a simple commandment and not
what the term “positive law” intends to express, that is to say,
in each individual case, and therefore in each concrete case, to
put order into the world which was created by the divine wisdom
as a whole in order and for order.
Is not this domain of the judicial activity rich in life? More,
the ecclesiastical law is ordered to the common good of the ec­
clesiastical society; it is consequently inseparably bound up with
the end of the Church. Whenever, therefore, the judge applies
the law to a particular case, he contributes to the realization of
the fullness of the end for which the Church lives (a).
(This connection serves as a light for the judge, and as a
guarantee for the lato. )
Delicate cases
For all that, We do not intend in any way to minimize the
practical difficulties which, in spite of everything. modern life
occasions also to the ecclesiastical judiciary, more, from certain
points of view, than in the area of civil powers. Consider only
certain spiritual possessions, with respect to which the judicial
priiwlpalniente sut potere supremo di ambcduc le société, c
t/uindi anche suite potestà guidiziaria, la quale non ne è chc una
/farte e una funzione. Indipendemente dalla circostanza se i singoli giudici ecclesiastici ne siano o no consapevoli, lutta la loro
attività giudiziaria c e rimanc inclusa nella pienezza di vita della
Chiesa col suo alto fine: eælestia ac sempiterna bona comparare.
Questo finis operis della potestà giudiziaria ecclesiastica le dà It.
uiipronta oggettiva c ne fa una istituzione dalla Chiesa corne
società soprannaturale.
1215a La legge ecclesiastico è volta al bene comune della société
ecclesiastica, e quindi inseparahilmentc legata al fine della Chiesa
Mentre dunque il giudice applica la legge al caso particolare,
coopéra a coinpicrc la pienezza del fine che vive nclla Chiesa.

1215
(123)

1216
(123,
216)

628

Illi III IRA TERRES I RIA1 INI) OI HIE CHURCH

power of the State feels less committed, or maintains a conscious
indifference. Typical, in this sense, are the inisdemcanon
against the faith or apostasy, those which concern “liberty ol
conscience” and ‘‘religions toleration”, as also matrimonial casts
In these cases, the Church, and consequently the ecclesiastical
judge, cannot adopt the neutral attitude of States of mixed reli­
gious confession and still less the attitude of a world fallen into
unbelief and religious indifferentism, but she has to allow her­
self to be guided solely by the essential end given to her by God
1217
In this way we are constantly meeting the profound differ(3,
once which diversity of end sets up between the ecclesiastical
89, and the civil judiciary. Doubtless nothing prevents one from
123) reaping the results attained by the other, in theory as well as in
practice; at the same time it would be an error to wish to trans­
fer automatically elements and norms from one to the other, and
still more to wish to establish an absolute equivalence between
them. The ecclesiastical judiciary and the ecclesiastical judge
have no need to seek elsewhere their ideal, but ought to bear it
within themselves; they must have ever present before their eves
the fact that the Church is a supernatural organism possessing an
innate supernatural principle, a principle which must animate
and direct even the judicial power and the ecclesiastical
judge (a).
BH
(The judicial power is included in the power of government

1218
(89,
120,
124,
200,
211)

Judges in the Church in virtue of their office and by reason
of the divine will arc the Bishops of whom the Apostle says that
they "are constituted by the Holy Spirit to govern the Church
of God” (a). But “to govern" includes “to judge" as a necessan
function. Therefore, according to the Apostle, the Holy Spirit
calls the Bishops no less to the office of judge than to that of
governor within the Church. Hence it is from the Holy Spirit that
the sacred character of this function derives (b). The faithful
1217a
potestà giudiziaria ecclesiastica e il giudic'C ecclesiastic,
non hanno da cercare altrove il loro ideate, ma debbono portario
in sc stessi; debbono aver sernpre presente al loro sguardo chi
la Chiesa è tin organismo soprannaturale, cui è insito un principu
vitale divino, principio che deve rnuovere e dirigere anche M
potestà giudiziaria e 1’ufficio di giudice ecclesiastico.
1218a Acts 20:28.
1218b Ma i/ reggere include il “giudicare” corne una necessary,
funzione. Dtinque secondo l'Apostolo lo Spirite Santo chiama r

THE WORSHIP OI I HI MYSTICAL BODY

629

of the Church of God. "bought by Him at the price of his owi
blood", are those to whom the judicial action has reference. The
law of Christ is fundamentally the one according to which, in the
Church, sentences are pronounced. The divine vital principle
moves all the faithful and everything in the Church to her end,
therefore the juridical power and the judge, too, cadestia ac
sempiterna bona comparare, "procure the heavenly and everlast­
ing good.”
( Exhortation to the judges. )

THE WORSHIP OF THE MYSTICAL BODY
Encycl. Mediator Dei, November 20, 1947.
(The work of the Redemption.)
The Divine Redeemer has so willed it, that the priestly life
begun with the supplication and sacrifice of his mortal Body
should continue without intermission down the ages in his Mystical Body which is the Church. That is why He established a visihie priesthood to offer everywhere the clean oblation (a) which
would enable men from East to West, freed from the shackles of
sin, to offer God that unconstrained and voluntary homage which
their conscience dictates.
In obedience, therefore, to her Founder’s behest, the Church
prolongs the priestly mission of Jesus Christ mainly by means of
the sacred Liturgy. She does this in the first place at the altar,
where constantly the Sacrifice of the Cross is re-presented (b)
and, with a single difference in the manner of its offering, re­
newed (c). She does it next by means of the Sacraments, those
special channels through which men are made partakers in the
supernatural life. Siu does it finally by offering to God. all good
and great, the daily tribute of her prayer of praise.
(The liturgical revival.—The character of the liturgy —From
heaven Christ the High Priest assists the human race.)
He aids us likewise through his Church, where He is present
indefcctihlv as the ages run their course; through the Church
which He constituted “the pillar of truth." and dispenser of grace.
and which, by his sacrifice on the Cross, He founded, consecratcd and confirmed forever.
Vescovi non mono αΙΓafficio di giudice chc al governo della
Chiesa Dallo Spirit o Santo deriva perciô d carat tere sacro di
queliufficio.
1219a Cf. Malachy 1:11
1219b Council of Trent. Sess. XXII, c. 1
1219c Ibid., c. 2

1219
(113114,
115,
117)

1220
(31,
78,
95)

630

THE WORSHIP OF THE MYSTICAL BODY

The Church has, therefore, in common with the Word In­
carnate the aim, the obligation and the function of teaching ill
men the truth, of governing and directing them aright, of offer­
ing to God the pleasing and acceptable Sacrifice; in this way the
Church reestablishes between the Creator and his creatures that
unity and harmony to which the Apostle of the Gentiles alludes
in these words: "Now, therefore, you are no more strangersand
foreigners; but you are fellow citizens with the saints and domes­
tics of God, built upon the foundations of the apostles and the
prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone: in
whom all the building, being framed together, groweth up into
a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are built together
into a habitation of God in the Spirit" (a).
1221
(28,
31.
71,
78)

Thus the society founded by the Divine Redeemer, whether
in her doctrine and government, or in the Sacrifice and Sacraments instituted by Him, or finally, in the ministry, which He has
confided to her charge with the outpouring of his prayer and the
shedding of his blood, has no other goal or purpose than to in­
crease ever in strength and unity.
This result is in tact achieved when Christ lives and
thrives, as it were, in the hearts of men, and when men's hearts
in turn are fashioned and expanded as though by Christ. This
makes it possible for the sacred temple, where the Divine Majesty
receives the acceptable worship which his law prescribes, to in­
crease and prosper day by day in this land of exile on
earth. Along with the Church, therefore, her divine Founder
is present at every liturgical function: Christ is present at the
august Sacrifice of the altar both in the person of his minister
and above all under the Eucharistic species. He is present in the
Sacraments, infusing into them the power which makes them
ready instruments of sanctification. He is present finally in the
prayer of praise and petition we direct Io God, as it is written.
"Where there are two or three gathered together in My Name,
there am I in the midst of them" (a).

The worship of the Mystical Body
1222
1 he sacred Liturgy is consequently the public worship
(117) which our Redeemer as Head of the Church renders to the Fa­
ther as well as the worship which the community of the faithful
1220a Ephes. 2:19-22.

1221a Matt. 18:20.

HIE WORSHIP ΟΓ THE MYSTICAL BODY

631

renders to its Founder, and through Him to the Heavenly Father.
It is, in short, the worship rendered by the Mystical Body of
Christ in the entirety of its Head and members (a).
(Origin of the Liturgy.—Exercise of the priestly function by
the Liturgy, both an interior and an exterior worship.)
Sources of efficacy
It should be clear to all, then, that God cannot be honored 1223
worthily unless the mind and heart turn to Him in quest of the (66,
perfect life, and that the worship rendered to God by the Church 117)
in union with her divine Head is the most efficacious means of
achieving sanctity.
This efficacy, where there is question of the Eucharistic Sac­
rifice and the Sacraments, derives first of all and principally from
the act itself (a). But if one considers the part which the Im­
maculate Spouse of Jesus Christ takes in the action, embellishing
the Sacrifice and Sacraments with prayer and sacred ceremonies,
or if one refers to the “Sacramentals” and the other rites instituted
by the Hierarchy of the Church, then its effectiveness is due
rather to the action of the Church (b), inasmuch as she is holy
and acts always in closest union with her Head.
(Errors concerning "objective piety"—Divine action and hu­
man cooperation.)
Harmony and equilibrium among the members
of the Mystical Body
Here is the source of the harmony and equilibrium which 1224
prevails among the members of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ. (39,
When the Church teaches us our Catholic faith and exhorts us to
45,
obey the commandments of Christ, .she is paving a way for her
80,
priestly, sanctifying action in its highest sense; she disposes us 112.
likewise for more serious meditation on the life of the Divine 221)
Redeemer and guides us to profounder knowledge of the myste­
ries of faith where we may draw the supernatural sustenance,
strength and vitality that enable us to progress safely, through
1222a Sacra igitur Liturgia cultum publicum constituit, 'quem
Redemptor Noster, Ecclesiæ caput, cælesti Patri habet, quemque
Christifidelium societas Conditori suo et per Ipsum retemo Patri
tribuit; utque omnia breviter perstringamus, integrum constituit
publicum cultum mystici Jesu Christi corporis, capitis nempe
membrorumque ejus.
1223a Ex opere operato.
1223b Ex opere operantis Ecclesiæ

632

THE WORSHIP OF THE MYSTICAL BODY

Christ, towards a more perfect life. Not only through her ministers,
but with the help of the faithful individually, who have imbibed
in this fashion the spirit of Christ, the Church endeavors to per­
meate with this same spirit the life and labors of men-their private
and family life, their social, even economic and political life—that
all who are called God’s children may reach more readily the end
He has proposed for them.
(Personal piety prepares for the Liturgy.—There is no
contradiction between “the jurisdiction and teaching office of the
ecclesiastical Hierarchy, and the specifically priestly power exer­
cised in the sacred ministry”.)
The hierarchy of order

1225
(8,
13,
45,
47,
136137)
1226
(113114,
207)

The Church is a society, and as such requires an authority
and Hierarchy of her own. Though it is true that all the members
of the Mystical Body partake of the same blessings and pursue
the same objective, they do not all enjoy the same powers, nor
are they all qualified to perform the same acts. The Divine Redeemer has willed as a matter of fact, that" his Kingdom should
be built and solidly supported, as it were, on a holy' order, which
resembles in some sort the heavenly Hierarchy (a).
Only to the Apostles, and thenceforth to those on whom their
successors have imposed hands, is granted the power of the
priesthood, in virtue of which they represent the person of Jesus
Christ before their people, acting at the same time as representa­
tives of their people before God. This priesthood is not trans­
mitted by heredity or human descent. It does not emanate from
the Christian community. It is not a delegation from the people.
Prior to acting as representative of the community before the
throne of God, the priest is the ambassador of the Divine Re­
deemer. He is God’s vicegerent in the midst of his flock precisely
because Jesus Christ is Head of that Body of which Christians
are the members (a). The power entrusted to him, therefore,
bears no natural resemblance to anything human. It is entirely
1225a Divinus siquidem c Redemptor Regnum suum sacro constare
ordine voluit, ac stabili veluti fundamento inniti; qui quidem ordo
cælestis Hierarchise imaginem quodammodo refert.
1226a Antequam poptdi nomine apud Deum agat, sacrorum ad­
minister divini Redemptoris legatus exsistit, atque idcirco quod
Jesus Christus illius Corporis Caput est, cujus christiani sunt mem­
bra, ipse Dei vices apud demandatam sibi gentem gerit.

THE WORSHIP Ol THE MYSTICAL BODY

633

supernatural. It comes from God. "As the Father hath sent me,
1 also send you”. ..(h) "He that heareth you heareth me”. ..(c)
Go ve into the whole world and preach the gospel to every
creature; he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (d).

That is whv the visible, external priesthood of Jesus Christ
is not handed down indiscriminately to all members of the
Church in general, but is conferred on designated men, through
what may be called the spiritual generation of Holy Orders.
This latter, one of the seven Sacraments, not only imparts the
grace appropriate to the clerical function and state of life, but
imparts an indelible "character" besides, indicating the sacred
minsters’ conformity to Jesus Christ the Priest, and qualifying
them to perform these official acts of religion by which men are
sanctified and God is duly glorified in keeping with the divine
laws and regulations.
In the same way, actually, that Baptism is the distinctive
mark of all Christians, and serves to differentiate them from those
who have not been cleansed in this purifying stream and conse­
quently are not members of Christ, the Sacrament of Holy Or­
ders sets the priests apart from the rest of the faithful who have
not received this consecration. For they alone, in answer to an
inward supernatural call have entered the august ministry’, where
they are assigned to service in the sanctuary and become, as it
were, the instruments God uses to communicate supernatural
life from on high to the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ. Add to
this, as We have noted above, the fact that they alone have been
marked with the indelible sign "conforming" them to Christ the
Priest, and that their hands alone have been consecrated “in
order that whatever they bless may be blessed, whatever they
consecrate may become sacred and holy, in the name of Our
Lord Jesus Christ” (a). Let all then who would live in Christ,
flock to their priests. Bv them they will be supplied with the
comforts and food of the spiritual life. From them they will pro­
cure the medicine of salvation assuring their cure and happy re­
covery' from the fatal sickness of their sins. The priests, finally,
will bless their homes, consecrate their families and help them,
as they breathe their last, across the threshold of eternal hap­
piness.
1226b John 20:21.
1226c Luke 10:16.
1226d Mark 16:15-16.
1228a Pont. ram.. De ordinatione presbyteri.

1227
( 113·
115)

1228
(50,
113,
115,
205)

634

THE WORSHIP OE HIE MYSTICAL BODY

The Liturgy depends on ecclesiastical authority
1229
Since therefore it is the priest chiefly who performs the
(104, sacred Liturgy in the name of the Church, its organization, reg121) ulation and details cannot but be subject to Church authority
This conclusion, based on the nature of Christian worship itself
is further confirmed by the testimony of history.
Additional proof of this indefeasible right of the Ecclesiasti­
cal Hierarchy lies in the circumstance that the sacred Liturgy is
intimately bound up with doctrinal propositions which the
Church proposes as perfectly true and certain, and must as a
consequence conform to the decrees respecting Catholic faith
issued by the Supreme Teaching Authority of the Church with
a view to safeguarding the integrity of the religion revealed bv
God.
{The liturgy attests the faith of the Church.—Stability of the
divine elements of the liturgy.—Development of the human de­
ments·. their regulation.)
Its development may not be left to private judgment
1230
It follows from this that the Sovereign Pontiff alone enjoys
(104, the right to recognize and establish any practice touching the
121) worship of God, to introduce and approve new rites, as also to
modify those he judges to require modification (a). Bishops, for
their part, have the right and duty carefully to watch over the
exact observance of the prescriptions of the sacred canons re­
specting divine worship. Private individuals, therefore, even
though they be clerics, may not be left to decide for themselves
in these holy and venerable matters, involving as they do the re­
ligions life of Christian society along with the exercise of the
priesthood of Jesus Christ and worship of God; concerned as
they are with the honor due to the Blessed Trinity, the Word In­
carnate and his august Mother and the other Saints, and with
the salvation of souls as well. For the same reason no private
person has any authority to regulate external practices of this
kind, which arc intimately bound up with Church discipline and
1230a Quainobrem uni Summo Pontifici jus est quemlibet de divino
cultu agendo morem recognoscere ac statuere, novos inducere ac
probare ritus, eosque etiam immutare, quos quidem immutandos
indicaverit; Cf. Canons 1257, 1261.

THE WORSHIP OI THE MYSTICAL BODY

635

with the order, unity and concord of the Mystical Body and fre­
quently even with the integrity of Catholic faith itself (b).
Some rash abuses

The Church is without question a living organism, and as 1231
an organism in respect of the sacred Liturgy also, she grows, (224)
matures, develops, adapts and accommodates herself to temporal
needs and circumstances, provided only that the integrity of her
doctrine be safeguarded. This notwithstanding, the temerity and
daring of those who introduce novel liturgical practices, or call
for the revival of obsolete rites out of harmony with prevailing
laws and rubrics, deserve severe reproof.
(Various abuses.—Introduction of the vernacular.)

Latin, a sign of unity
The use of the Latin language, customary in a considerable 1232
portion of the Church, is a manifest and beautiful sign of unity, (49)
as well as an effective antidote for any corruption of doctrinal
truth. In spite of this, the use of the mother tongue in connection
with several of the rites may be of much advantage to the people.
But the Apostolic See alone is empowered to grant this permis­
sion. It is forbidden, therefore, to take any action whatever of this
nature without having requested and obtained such consent,
since the sacred Liturgy, as We have said, is entirely subject to
the discretion and approval of the Holy See.
(Ancient rites.)
The more recent liturgical rites likewise deserve reverence 1233
and respect. They too owe their inspiration to the Holy Spirit, (78,
who assists the Church in every age even to the consummation of 8S)
the world (a). They are equally the resources used by the ma­
jestic Spouse of Jesus Christ to promote and procure the sanctity
of men.
(Culpable antiquarianism.)
Authority in liturgical matters
In every measure taken, then, let proper contact with the 1234
Ecclesiastical Hierarchy be maintained. Let no one arrogate to (117.
1230b Eademque ratione privato nemini ulla facultas est externas
hoc in genere actiones moderari, qux cum Ecclesiastica disciplina
et cum mystici Corporis ordine, unitate ac concordia, itnmo haud
raro cum catholica’ etiam fidei integritate conjunguntur quam
maxime.
1233a Cf. Matt. 28:20.

636

779,
142,
753,
185,
188,
200)

THE WORSHIP OF THE .MYSTICAL BODY

himself the right to make regulations and impose them on other
at will. Only the Sovereign Pontiff, as the successor of Saint Ptter, charged by the Divine Redeemer with the feeding of his en
tire flock (a), and with him, in obedience to the Apostolic Set
the Bishops "whom the Holy Ghost has placed... to rule th
Church of God" (b), have the right and the duty to govern th
Christian people. Consequently, Venerable Brethren, whenever
you assert your authority—even on occasion with wholesome se­
verity—you are not merely acquitting yourselves of your duty; you
are defending the very will of the Founder of the Church.
(The Eucharistic sacrifice.)

The life of Christ communicated to his members
1235
The cooperation of the faithfid is required so that sinners
(28, may be individually purified in the Blood of the Lamb. For
45) though, speaking generally, Christ reconciled by his painful
death the whole human race with the Father, He wished that al!
should approach and be drawn to his Cross, especially by means
of the Sacraments and the Eucharistic Sacrifice, to obtain the
salutary fruits produced by Him upon it. Through this active ant!
individual participation, the members of the Mystical Body not
only become daily more like to their divine Head, but the lift
flowing from the Head is imparted to the members, so that we
can each repeat the words of St. Paul: “With Christ I am nailed
to the Cross: I live, now not I, but Christ liveth in me" (a).
(Participation of the faithful in the sacrifice.)
Errors concerning the ‘priesthood' of the faithful
1236
The fact, however, that the faithful participate in the Euchi(207, ristic Sacrifice, does not mean that they also arc endowed with
272) priestly power. It is very' necessary that you make this quite clear
to vour flocks.
For there are today, Venerable Brethren, those who, approx­
imating to errors long .since condemned (a), teach that in the
New Testament by the word "priesthood" is meant only that
priesthood which applies to all who have been baptized; and
hold that the command by which Christ gave power to his Apos­
tles at the Last Supper to do what He Himself had done, applies
directly to the entire Christian Church, and that thence, and
1234a John 21:15-17. 1234b Acts 20:28. 1235a Gal. 2:19-20
1236a Cf. Council of Trent, Sess. XXI11, c. 4.

|
L

U IE VVORSI IIP OF I HI MYS IICAL BODY

637

thence only, arises the hierarchical priesthood. Hence they assert
that the people are possessed ol a true priestly power, while the
priest only acts in virtue of an office committed to him by the
community.
(The faithful participate in the Sacrifice, not by 'co-celebrating but by offering with the priest; by offering themselves with
the Victim.)
The Sacrifice of the Mystical Body
For if, as St. Augustine writes, our mystery is enacted on the 1237
Lord’s table, that is Christ our Lord Himself (a), who is the (51,
head and symbol of that union through which we are the Body 114)
of Christ (b) and members of his Body (c): if St. Robert Bellarmine teaches, according to the mind of the Doctor of Hippo,
that in the Sacrifice of the altar there is signified the general
sacrifice by which the whole Mystical Body of Christ, that is all
(he city of the redeemed, is offered up to God through Christ,
the High Priest ( d ) : nothing can be conceived more just or fit­
ting than that all of us in union with our Head, who suffered for
our sake, should also sacrifice ourselves to the Eternal Father
For in the Sacrament of the altar, as the same St. Augustine has
it, the Church is made to see that in what she offers she herself
is offered ( e ).
(How to make the faithful participate in the Mass.—Dioce­
san liturgical commissions.—The priest’s Communion.—Com­
munion of the faithful.)
The Church of Jesus Christ needs no other bread than this 1238
(o satisfy fully our souls’ wants and desires, and to unite us in (51)
the most intimate union with Jesus Christ, to make us "one
body (a), to get us to live together as brothers who, breaking
the same bread, sit down to the same Heavenly Table to partake
of the elixir of immortality (b).
(How to receive Communion.—Eucharistic worship.—Divine
office—The liturgical year.—Practices not strictly liturgical—Li­
turgical arts—The liturgical life.—Vigilance against errors in mat­
ters liturgical. )
1237a
1237c
1237d
I237e
1238b

Cf.
Cf.
Cf.
Cf.
Cf.

Senn. CCLXXII.
1237b Cf. 1 Cor. 12:27.
Ephes. 5:30.
St. Robert Bellarmine. De Missa. Book II. e 8.
De Civitate Dei, Book X, e 6
1238a 1 Cor. 10:17.
St. Ignatius Martyr, Ep. ad Ephes., XX

638

THE CHURCH’S POWER OVER THE SACRAMENTS

. 1239
Watch with like diligence lest the false teaching of thou
(88) be propagated, who wrongly think and teach that the glonfie:
human nature of Christ really and continually dwells in the 'just
by his presence and that one and numerically the same grace, a
they say, unites Christ with the members of his Mystical Bods
(Obedience to the hierarchy.—Hopes for a still greater unie,
in the holy liturgy.)
THE CHURCH’S POWER OVER THE SACRAMENTS

1240
(113,
122,
137)

Apost. Const. Sacramentum Ordinis, November 30, 194*.
The Sacrament of Orders, instituted by Christ the Lord, a
sacrament which transmits spiritual power and confers grace lor
the proper fulfilling of ecclesiastical functions, is unique and
identical for the universal Church; this is what the Catholic faitr
professes; for as Our Lord Jesus Christ gave the Church only
one government under the authority' of the Prince of the Apostles,
one single faith, one single sacrifice, so He gave only one single
treasury of signs producing grace, namely, the sacraments. Nor
has the Church in the course of centuries substituted other sacra
ments for those sacraments instituted by Christ, nor has she th
power to make this substitution, for, according to the teaching
of the Council of Trent (a), the seven sacraments of the New
Law were instituted by Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Church
has no power over “the substance of the sacraments", that is,
over those things which, according to the. sources of divine
revelation, Christ the Lord Himself prescribed must be main­
tained in the sacramental signs.
( Doubts on the subject of the matter and form of Orders.According to the Council of Florence itself, the tradition of in­
struments is not part, by the toil! of Our Lord, of the substance of
the sacrament.)

1241
But if, by the will and prescription of the Church, these
(122) rites were at one time necessary' for the validity (of the samment), everyone knows that what the Church has decreed she
also has the power to change or to abrogate.
(Matter and form of Orders.)
1240a Cone. Ί rid. Sess. VII, can. I, De Sacram, in gcnerc.

A STANDARD UNTO THE NATIONS
All. to the members of Italian Catholic Action, September 12,1948.
(The will to maintain Christian civilization—The triple vic­
tori/ which has Overcome the world.—Victory over the denial of
God. )
Was there ever a time when the Catholic Church appeared,
as she does today, as signinn levatum in nationes, “a standard
unto the nations” (a)? We are today witnesses of formidable
upheavals, perhaps even more grave in their consequences than
the fall of the ancient Roman Empire. Political power has
changed radically, within nations and among nations. Ancient
dynasties have disappeared, one after the other; dictators who
dreamed of the domination of the world for a millenium have
been overthrown; entire continents find themselves on the de­
cline or in the ascendant; social organizations are undergoing
profound transformations. But one institution remains firm, for­
ever identical with herself, and yet always new and adapted to
the realities of each age: the Church of Christ, strong with the
strength of truth and grace, of which she is the depository', the
herald, and the dispenser; strong in the firmness of faith and the
constancy of her children.
(Victory over matter.—Victory over social ills.—The condi­
tions of this triple victory. )

1242
(102,
115,
224,
228)

CONFIRM THY BRETHREN

R.M. to the world, December 24, 1948.
Crave and at the same time tender, like the testament and
farewell words of a most loving Father, are the words of the
Divine Redeemer to his first Vicar on earth: Confirma fratres
tuos, “Confirm thy brethren!” (a) They have not ceased to
resound in Our mind and Our heart since the day when, .n
his inscrutable designs. He willed to confide to Our weak hands
the helm of Peter’s barque.
Immortal words deeply graven in the depths of Our soul,
they become all the more penetrating each time when, in the
exercise of the apostolic ministry, We have to communicate to
the Episcopate and to the faithful of the world the teaching,
1242a Isaias 11.12.

1243a Luke 22:32,

1243
(155,
165·
166,
224)

640

ROME TUE ETERNAL

the norms, and the exhortations which the plenary accomplish­
ment of the saving mission of the Church requires, and which,
without prejudice to their substantial immutability, must never­
theless be adapted as occasion demands to the constantly chang­
ing circumstances and a variety of times and places.

(Persecutions against the Church.—The courage of the
martyrs.—Disasters. )
The impossible condition
1244
The Church’s maternal eye follows these souls, temporarii)
(60, lost or in danger, with vigilant love and redoubled solicitude.
88) She is not troubled. She prays. She waits: she waits for the
return of her children and is anxious to find means of hastening
that hour. To this end she does not recoil from any sacrifice,
no effort is too painful for her to reach that end. She is ready
for anything. For anything, with the exception of one thing: let
no one ask her to obtain the return of the children separated
from her—either in times past or in recent ones-at the price
of minimizing or clouding any item at all in the deposit of
Christian faith confided to her safe-keeping (a).
(The Christian in the trials of this world—The true Chris'ian will for peace.)

ROME THE ETERNAL
All. to Roman students, January 30, 1949.
(The privilege of Roman youth: to live in a city rich in
world history.—The Latin language.—The Italian language.-Secular history of Rome: the ruins of the Roman Empire.)
1245
On the contrary, when we stand before the witnesses of the
(224, Christian past we always feel something immortal: the faith
226- which they reveal still lives, and is multiplied indefinitely in the
227) number of those who profess it; the Church still lives to which
1244a Essa non si adira. Essa prega. Essa attende: attende il ritorno di qttei figli, pensosa di trovare i mezzi atti ad accelcrarnc fora
Pi t cio Essa non indietreggia dinanzi a nessun .sacrificio; ncwtin
pena e per lei troppo grave a tai fine. Essa è pronia a tutto. A
tutto, Iran ne soltanto nna rose: che non Ic .si chicgga di oltcncn
il rit orno dei figli da lei separat i-sia in tempi passati, sia recentrmente-al prezzo di qualsiasi menomazionc od offuscamento del
deposito della fade crisliana affidato alia sua custodia

ROME ΠΙΕ ETERNAL

641

they belong, and she is always the same through the centuries.
She is the Church of Christ, today, in what concerns her visible
aspect, more perfect, more complete, more developed than in
the dawn of her nativity and the first ages of her external mani­
festation. Today the Church, with her more than 350 million
faithful spread over the face of the earth, needs quite another
cohesiveness, different bonds of organization and laws, a more
effective guidance by means of a central government, than in
primitive times when Christians numbered only a few thousand,
and, with very rare exceptions, belonged to the very' State and
civilization of the Roman Empire itself. But the structure of the
Church in its essential characteristics and in its interior life was
then, as always, the same, even more in certain points than
historical research would have led us to expect. In her maturity
which knows no enfeeblement, the Church has not changed the
expression of her face; her voice, keeping its own unalterable
tonality, has acquired still more vigor and force.

The gauge of immortality

With this affirmation we find ourselves once more at Rome 1246
near Peter’s Chair. Because Christ has realized his will to found (20,
a Church, one and indestructible, and to do so by the promise 40,
made to Peter, by the institution of the primacy, or, what is the 137same thing, the Papacy. The Church established on Peter and 140,
his successors, and she alone, must be the Church of Christ, one 161»
in herself and destined to remain until the end of time by9 means I5*-1
of submission to a personal and visible Head (a).
It was a disposition of divine Providence that Peter chose
Rome as his episcopal See. Here, in the circus of Nero—we pos­
sess incontrovertible archeological proofs of this—he died as a
confessor of Christ; beneath the central point of the gigantic
cupola was, and is, the place of his entombment. His successors,
the Popes, have continued his mission to the present day.
1216a Con questa affermazione ci troviamo di nuovo in Roma presso
la Cattedra di Pietro. Perché Cristo ha attuato la sua volontù di
fondera una Chiesa indistruttibile cd una con la promessa a
Pietro, con la istituzione del priinato o. cid che è lo stesso, del
Pupato. La Chiesa. stabilita su Pietro e sui suoi Successori. e sollanto essa. doveva cssere la Chiesa di Cristo, una in sà c duratura
vino allo fine dei tempi mediante la sottomissione ad un Capo per­
sonale e visibile

642

1247
(145,
169170,
228)

HOME THE ETERNAL

In the succession of Roman Pontiffs there are many who.
like the Prince of the Apostles, have sealed with their own blood
their fidelity to Him whose visible representatives they were
Many were great by reason of their sanctity, their genius, their
learning, the authority of their person. There were others whose
purely human qualities corresponded less accurately to the dig­
nity of their supreme pastoral office. But the most formidable
tempests unleashed from the time of the Apostle Peter down to
our own have not been able to shake the Church or prejudice
the divine mission of her Rulers. Each Pope, in the very moment
in which he accepts his election, receives it immediately from
Christ with the same power and with the same privilege of in­
fallibility (a).

1248
If there should ever come a day—We say this as a matter
(143) of pure hypothesis—when the physical reality of Rome were to
crumble; if ever this Vatican Basilica, the symbol of the one,
invincible, and victorious Catholic Church, were to bury be­
neath its ruins the historical treasures and the sacred tombs it
enshrines, even then the Church would not, by that fact, be
overthrown or undermined; the promise of Christ to Peter would
always remain true, the Papacy would continue unchanged, as
well as the one, indestructible Church founded on the Pope alive
at that time.
Thus it is: Rome the Eternal in the Christian and supernat­
ural sense, is superior to the Rome of history. Her nature and
her truth are independent of the historic City.

1249
And such, beloved sons and daughters, should your faith be.
(215) too; unshakable, because it has for foundation the rock on which
the Church is built. Proclaim it and bear it, this faith of yours,
among your associates and your fellow students, with clear-sight­
ed vision, with profound conviction, with a courage certain of
victory. And pray for the Pope, that the Lord, who has willed him
to be the shepherd and bishop of your souls (a), may grant him
to help by word and example those whom he rules, and with
them to attain life everlasting (b).
1247a Ogni Papa la riceve, nel momento st esso in cui accctta L·
sua elezione, immediatamente da Cristo, con gli stessi poteri t
con lo stesso privilegio della infallihilità
1249a Cf. 1 Peter 2:25.
1249b Cf. Miss. Rom. Oral, pro Papa.

CAN THE POPE BE SILENT?

All. to the faithful of Rome, February 20, 1949.
(The condemnation of Cardinal Mindszenty.—Persecutions
today and in the past. )
Romans! The Church of Christ is following the way marked
out by her Divine Redeemer. She feels that she is eternal; she
knows that she cannot perish, that the most violent storms will
not overpower her. She docs not beg for favors; the threats of
disgrace of earthly powers do not intimidate her. She does not
meddle in questions which are purely political or economic; she
does not care to debate on the utility or the lack of it in one or
another form of government. Always desirous, as far as it de­
pends upon her, to have peace with all men (a), she gives to
Caesar what belongs to him by right, but she cannot give up
or abandon what belongs to God.

1250
(9394.
227)

Now. it is well known what the totalitarian and anti-religious
state exacts and expects of her as the price of her toleration and
her problematic recognition. This is what it wants her to be:
a Church that will be silent, when she should speak;
a Church that will water down God’s law, adapting it to
the tastes of the human will when she should proclaim it aloud
and defend it;
a Church that would detach itself from the unshakable
foundation on which Christ built it, and take up a convenient
position on the moving sands of the opinions of the day, or yield
herself to the passing currents;
a Church that will not resist the oppression of consciences
and will not defend the legitimate rights and the just liberties of
the people;
a Church that, with shameful servility, will remain enclosed
in the four walls of the temple, forgetting the divine mandate
received iron» Christ: "Go ye into the highways (a); teach all
men" (b).

1251
(100,
Ill,
117.
125.
225)

Beloved sons and daughters! Spiritual heirs of an innumcr- 1252
able legion of confessors and of martyrs!
(145Is this the Church that you love and venerate? Do you recog- ne,
nizc in such a Church the features of your Mother’s face? Could 1601250a Cf. Rom. 12:18.

1251a Malt. 22:9

1251b Matt 28.19.

644

ALWAYS UP TO DATI

161, you imagine a Successor of the first Peter, who would yield to
163, such exigencies?
165,
The Pope has the divine promises, even in his human weak·
167) ness he is invincible and unshakable; herald of truth and of jus­
tice, the principle of the unity ol the Church, his voice denounces
errors, idolatry, superstition; it condemns iniquity; it makes
charity and justice loved.

1253 Can he then be silent, when in a nation, by violence or
(57. guile, churches which are united to the center of Christianity, to
92) Rome, are torn from her; when all the Greek Catholic Bishops
are imprisoned, because they refuse to deny their faith; when
priests and faithful are arrested and persecuted because they re­
fuse to be separated from their true Mother the Church?
Can the Pope be silent when the right to educate their own
children is taken from parents by a minority which wishes to
alienate them from Christ?
1254
Can the Pope be silent when a State, overstepping the limits
(160) of its competence, arrogates to itself the power of suppressing
dioceses, of deposing Bishops, of overturning the ecclesiastical
hierarchy and of reducing it below the strict minimum required
for effective ministration to souls?
Can the Pope be silent when they go so far as to punish in
prison a priest guilty of being unwilling to betray the most sacred
and inviolable of secrets, the secrecy of sacramental confession?
Is all this “unlawful interference” in the political power of
the State? Who could honestly say so? Your exclamations have
already given the answer to these questions and to a multitude
of similar ones.
ALWAYS UP TO DATE

All. to the Pontifical Seminary' of Anagni, April 29, 1949.
|
(The 50f/i anniversary of the foundation of the Seminary.Its work.)
1255
If it is true that they are in error who, moved by a childish
(6,
and immoderate desire for novelty, attaint bv their teaching, their
11. actions, their agitation, the immutability of the Church, it is not
223- less certain that they, too, are in error who seek, consciously or
224) otherwise, to fix her in a sterile immobility (a). The Church, the
1255a Si è vero che sono in errore coloro che, inossi da una puerile
e smoderata brama di novità, ledono, con le loro dottrine, coi lorn

THE SALVATION OF NON CATHOLIC S

645

Mystical Body of Christ, is, like the men who compose her, a
living organism, substantially always equal to herself; and Peter
would recognize in the Church. Catholic, Roman, of the twenti­
eth century that first society of believers whom he addressed on
the day of Pentecost. But a living body grows, develops itself,
lends towards maturity. The Mystical Body of Christ, like the
physical members who constitute it, does not live and move in
the abstract, outside the constantly changing conditions of time
and place; she is not, and cannot be, separated from the world
which surrounds her, she is always of her own time, she advances
with it from day to day, from hour to hour, continually adapting
her altitude and her bearing to the society in the midst of which
she must work.

(Remain united and faithful to the traditions and the idea
oj the Seminary. )

THE SALVATION OF NON-CATHOLICS
Letter of the Sacred Congregation of the Holv Office
August 8, 1949, to the Archbishop of Boston.
(Controversy which arose at Boston College on the subject
oj the axiom, “Outside the Church there is no salvation." )

We arc bound by divine and Catholic faith to believe all 1256
those things which arc contained in the word of God, whether (61,
it be Scripture or Tradition, and are proposed by the Church to 97.
be believed as divinely revealed, not only through solemn judg­ 109,
ment but also through the ordinary and universal teaching HD
office (a).
Now, among those things which the Church has always
preached and will never cease to preach is contained also that
infallible statement by which we are taught that there is no
salvation outside the Church.
However, this dogma must be understood in that sense in
which the Church herself understands it. For. it was not to
private judgments that Our Savior gave for explanation those
things that are contained in the deposit of faith, but to the
teaching authority of the Church.
allie con Ic loro uRitazionL la immutabilité della Chiesa. non è men
ccrto che s’ingfjnnerebbero anche quelli i quali cercassero, scienlemcnte o no, d'irrifiidirla in una sterile immobilité.
1256a Vatican Council. Sess. III. c. Ill; Denz.. n. 1792.

646

THE SALVATION OF NON-CATHOLICS

Now, in the first place, the Church teaches that in this mat­
ter there is question of a most strict command of Jesus Christ.
For He explicitly enjoined on his apostles to teach all nations
to observe all things whatsoever He Himself had commanded (b:

Obligation to enter the Church
1257
(50,
60,
62,
116,
131,
184)

Now, among the commandments of Christ, that one holds
not the least place, by which we are commanded to he incorporated by Baptism into the Mystical Body of Christ, which is
the Church, and to remain united to Christ and to his Vicar.
through whom He Himself in a visible manner governs the Church
on earth.
Therefore, no one will be saved who, knowing the Church
to have been divinely established by Christ, nevertheless refuses
to submit to the Church or withholds obedience from the Roman
pontiff, the Vicar of Christ on earth.
Not only did the Savior command that all nations should
enter the Church, but He also decreed the Church to be a means
of salvation, without which no one can enter the kingdom o.
eternal glory.
The “desire" may suffice

1258
In his infinite mercy God has willed that the effects,
(62, necessary for one to be saved, of those helps to salvation which
75) are directed toward man’s final end, not by intrinsic necessity,
but only by divine institution, can also be obtained in certain
circumstances when those helps are used only in desire and
longing. This we see clearly stated in the Sacred Council of
Trent, both in reference to the Sacrament of Baptism and in
reference to the Sacrament of Penance (a).
The same in its own degree must be asserted of the Church
in as far as she is the general help to salvation. Therefore, that
one may obtain eternal salvation, it is not always required that he
be incorporated into the Church actually as a member, but it is
necessary that at least he be united to her by desire and longing.

The implicit “desire"
1259
However, this desire need not always be explicit, as it is in
(62) catechumens; but when a person is involved in invincible
1256b Matt. 28:19-20.
1258a Sess. \ 1, c. \ et XIV. Denz. n. 797 et 807.

THE SALVATION OF NON-CATHOLICS

647

ignorance, God accepts also an implicit desire, so called because
it is included in that good disposition of soul whereby a person
wishes his will to he conformed to the will of God.
These things are clearly taught in that dogmatic letter which
was issued by the Sovereign Pontiff, Pope Pius XII, on June 29,
1943. On the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ” (a). For in this
letter the Sovereign Pontiff clearly distinguishes between those
who are actually incorporated into the Church as members, and
those who are united to the Church only by desire.
Discussing the members of which the Mystical Body is
composed here on earth, the same August Pontiff says: “Actually
onlv those are to be included as members of the Church who
have been baptized and profess the true faith, and who have not
been so unfortunate as to separate themselves from the unity of
the Body, or been excluded by' legitimate authority for grave
faults committed” (b).
Toward the end of this same Encyclical Letter, when most
affectionately inviting to unity those who do not belong to the
body of the Catholic Church, he mentions those who “are related
Io the Mystical Body' of the Bedeciner by a certain unconscious
ycaniing and desire" (a), and these he by no means excludes
from eternal salvation, but on the other hand states that they
are in a condition “in which they
4P cannot be sure of their salvalion "(b) since “they still remain deprived of those many heav­
enly gifts and helps which can only be enjoyed in the Catholic
Church" (c).
With these wise words he reproves both those who exclude
from eternal salvation all united to the Church only by implicit
desire, and those who falsely assert that men can be saved equally
wdl in every religion ( d ).
Necessity of faith
But it must not be thought that any kind of desire of enter­
ing the Church suffices that one may be saved. It is necessary
that the desire by which one is related to the Church be animat­
ed by perfect charity. Nor can an implicit desire produce its
effect, unless a person has supernatural faith: For he who comes
1259a Cf. above No. 1002 ff.
1259b No. 1002.
1260a No. 1104.
1260b Ibid.
1260e I hid.
1260d Cf. Pius IX, Singulari quadam, Denz. No. 1641 f; Pius IX.
Quanto conficiamur moerare, Denz.. No. 1677.

1260
(6162)

1261
(62)

648

PATERNITY, THE FOUNDATION OF AUTHORITY

to God must believe that God exists and is a rewarder ol those
who seek Him” (a). The Council of Trent declares (b): "Faith
is the beginning of man’s salvation, the foundation and root of
all justification, without which it is impossible to please God
and attain to the fellowship of his children" (c).
(Practical dispositions relative to Reverend Leonard Feeney.!
Submission to the Church

1262
Therefore, let them who in grave peril are ranged against
(62, the Church seriously bear in mind that after "Rome has spoken’
184) they cannot be excused even by reasons of good faith. Certainly.
their bond and duty of obedience toward the Church is much
graver than that of those who as yet are related to the Church
“only by an unconscious desire”. Let them realize that they are
children of the Church, lovingly nourished by her with the milk
of doctrine and the sacraments, and hence, having heard the
clear voice of their Mother, they cannot be excused from culpa­
ble ignorance, and therefore to them apply without any restric­
tion that principle: submission to the Catholic Church and to
the Sovereign Pontiff is required as necessary for salvation
PATERNITY. THE FOUNDATION OF AUTHORITY

1263
(105,
111.
165)

All. to the Second Congress of the Italian Catholic Union of
secondary school teachers, September 6, 1949.
(The responsibility of teachers.)
In recalling to your conscience as educators this dignity and
this responsibility. We Ourselves, Vicar of Christ by the disposition of Divine Providence, and by that fact invested with the
same offices as he was. who while on earth loved to be called
Master.” We Ourselves arc included in the number of those
who represent in various ways the hand of Providence leading
man to his last end.
For is not Our throne principally a pulpit? Is not Our first
(unction teaching? Has not the divine Master and Founder of
the Church given to Peter and to the Apostles the fundamental
precept: “teach, make disciples"? (a)
1261a Heb, 11:6.
1261c Deuz. No. 801.

1261b Sess. VI c. VIII.
1263a Matt. 28:19.

JURIDICAL SOCIETY

649

Educator of souls We feel Ourselves to be and We are; a 1264
sublime school-in no secondary sense—is the Church, since a (105,
ireat part of the sacerdotal function consists in instructing and 163)
educating. It could not be otherwise in the new order instituted
by Christ, which is entirely founded on the fact of God’s pater­
nity, from which all paternity in heaven and on earth is de­
rived (a), and from which proceeds, in Christ and for Christ, Our
own paternity for all souls (b). Now, whoever is a father is by
that very fact an educator, for, as the Angelic Doctor explains so
clearly, the primordial pedagogical right rests on no other title
than on that of paternity (c).

(Teaching and educat ion.-Rights of the Church and of the
family.—Modem pedagogy.—The end to be achieved.—The needs
of our times. )
JURIDICAL SOCIETY

All. to the Rota, November 13, 1949.
(The work of the tribunal of the Rota.—True and false law.
-The divine iriil, the foundation of law.—Error of juridical
positivism-juridical order and the moral order.)
The juridical organization of the Catholic Church has never 1265
ussed nor does it run the risk of passing through such a crisis, (12,
low could it be otherwise? Her alpha and omega are thus ex­ 19,
pressed by the Psalmist: In æternum, Domine, est verbum tuum, 79,
stalrile ut cadum ... Verbi caput constantia est, ea ivternum est, et 123,
rtcmurn est omne decretum iustitiæ tuæ, “Forever, O Lord, 224)
Thy word standeth firm in heaven . .. The beginning of Thy
words is truth: all the judgments of Thy justice are forever" (a).
These words hold for the whole of the divine law, and also for
the one which the Man-God established as the foundation of his
Church. In fact, from the beginning, numbered among his great
1264a Cf. Ephes. 3:15.
12641) Educatori di anime Noi Ci sentiamo e siamo, sublime scuola
e, in misura non secondaria, la Chicsa, come gran parte dell uffi­
cin sacerdotale consiste nelTinsegnare e nelFeducare. Nè poteva
esserc diversamentc nell'ordine nuovo instaurato da Cristo, che si
fonda tuito sui rapporti della paternità di Dio, da cui deriva ogni
dira paternità in cielo e sulla terra, e dalla quale, in Cristo e per
Cristo, promana la Nostra paternità verso tutte le anime.
1264c Cf. St. Thomas, I la-1 lac, q. III. a. 1.
1265a Ps. 118:89, 160.

650

THE SECRET OF THE CHURCH’S POWER

promises (b), we find that of the institution of his Church as a
juridical society. Blind indeed would be the man who would
close his eyes to this reality (c).
The science and the practice of canon law do not recognize
it is true, any legitimate law which would not also be true law;
their function is to direct, in the limits fixed by the divine law,
the ecclesiastical juridical system, constantly and entirely towards
the end of the Church herself, which is the salvation and good oi
souls: To this end the divine law serves in a perfect manner, to
the same end must tend ecclesiastical law, and that as perfectly
as possible.
THE SECRET OF THE CHURCH’S POWER
R. M. to the faithful of Haiti, December 8, 1949.
(The Church and Haiti, united since the time of the landing
of Columbus.)
Doubtless the Church’s efforts have in view the supernatural
1266
(79- order, so that, as far as possible, all men may have the benefits
80, of true faith and divine grace, and may render to God, by ob­
84) serving his commandments, the homage which is due to Him,
may live and grow and die in friendship with Him and thus
enjoy in his presence eternal life and happiness.
But, in striving relentlessly and unreservedly, with all her
powers and all her strength in the pursuit of this goal, the Church
UJJ
makes an incalculable contribution even to the common gr
and the interests of the state.
1267
For in reality the real secret of the moral power of the
(80, Church is hidden in the sources of grace at her disposal, above
84) all in the principal sources which are the sacraments. In this way
she contributes, indirectly it is true, but with a very high degree
of efficacy, to the good of civil society. How is this? Especially
in forming really Christian families where fidelity, a peace full
of affection reigns between the partners, where children are
brought up in the filial fear of God. in respect towards all legiti­
mate authority, in loyalty, honesty, purity. Conjugal chastib
1265b Cf. Matt. 16:16-20.
1265c Ciô vale per tutto il diritto divino, per quelle «Itre.vi du
I'l'amo-Dio ha posto a fondamento della sua Chiesa. Infatli, /in
dal principio, nelle prime arandi promesse, ha stabilito la îua
Chiesa corne nna société giuridica. Cieco in vérité dovrebbe cw rt
chi chiudesse ali occhi a questa realté.

ECUMENISM

651

the joys of family life, the vigor of a morally healthy youth, such
is the armature, and, so to say, the backbone of a national
community.
In forming men to Christian virtues the Church by that
ven1 fact teaches them to rise above the pettinesses of egotism
and, for the love of God, to render to the State what is due to
the State; she directs them and initiates them in the good works
of fraternal charity; she opens their minds and hearts to the
meaning of social justice.
(This influence of the Church proved by history.—Invitation
to cooperate in this work.—Our Lady of the Assumption, Patron
of Haiti. )
ECUMENISM

Instruction of the Holy Office, to the Bishops, Decem­
ber 20,1949.
(Without taking part in ecumenical meetings, the Church
has much at heart the unity willed by Christ.—This “reunion"
depending upon the Church, the Bishops should watch over tt
anil promote it [a].—Directives for the Bishops.)

In the same way they will take care that, under the false pre­ 1268
text that we should attend to what unites us rather than to what (60)
separates us, there be not fostered a dangerous indifferentism,
especially among those who are less well versed in theological
matters and less profoundly anchored in their religion For it is
to be feared lest because of the so-called ironical spirit the
Catholic doctrine—whether in questions of dogma or in questions
of tniths connected with dogma—by a comparative studs or the
vain desire of a kind of progressive assimilation of differing pro­
fessions of faith, the Catholic doctrine itself be assimilated or in
some way accommodated to the teaching of the dissidents, so
that the purity of Catholic teaching would suffer, or its true and
certain meaning in some way be obscured.
They will also carefully avoid that dangerous manner of 1269
speaking which would give rise to erroneous opinions and false
1268a Quum prxfata “reunio” ad Ecclesia: munus et officium po­
tissimum pertineat, speciali cura Episcopos, quos “Spiritus Sanctus
jtosiiit regere Ecclesiam Dei" eidem attendere apport et Ipsi
igitur non solum diligenter et efficaciter univcrs.v huic actioni
invigilare debent, verum etiam prudenter eam promovere et
dirigere.

652

ECUMENISM

60, hopes which could never be realized; saying, for example, that
173) the teaching of the Sovereign Pontiffs in the encyclicals on theretorn of the dissidents to the Church, on the constitution of the
Church, on the Mystical Body of Christ, ought not to lie taken
into consideration, since not everything in them is of faith, or
what would be worse, that in dogmatic matters not even the
Catholic Church has the plenitude of Christ, but that she can
be made perfect by the other churches (a).
They will carefully avoid and firmly insist upon the fact that
in teaching the history of the Reformation and the Reformers,
the failings of Catholics not be exaggerated and the faults of the
Reformers not be dissembled, or that the more accidental aspects
of the question not be so highlighted that what is essential is
hardlv seen or felt: the defection from the Catholic faith. Finally,
they will guard against too great and false external zeal or
imprudence and excessive ardor, lest harm be done to the cause
rather than benefit.

1270
Therefore. Catholic doctrine must be propounded and ev
(40, plained in its totality and in its integrity, it is not permitted to
60, pass over in silence or to veil in ambiguous terms what is
144) comprised in the Catholic truth on the true nature and stages
of justification, on the constitution of the Church, on the primacy
of jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiff, on the unique true union by
the return of separated Christians to the one true Church of
Christ. Certainly they can be taught that in returning to the
Church they will lose nothing of the good which, by Gods
grace, they have accomplished up to the present, but rather that
by this return it will be completed and rendered perfect. But this
should not be said in such a way that it would seem to them that
in returning to the Church they would be bringing something
substantial to it. which, up to that moment, had been lacking
These things must be said clearly and unambiguously, first be
cause they arc seeking the truth, then because outside the truth
no true union is possible.
(Mixed assemblies. Practical dispositions.)
1269a Arcebunt quoque periculosum illum loquendi modum, quu
falsa opiniones gignantur ac fallaces spes, quæ nunquam impleri
possunt. < λ gr. dicendo quii· de dissidentium ad Ecclesiam reditu
d> Ecclesia constitutione, de Corpore Christi Mystico in Littrm
Encyi licis Romanorum Pontificum traduntur non ita .rstimaii

VATICAN CITY

All. to the members of the Diplomatic Corps, Decem­
ber 28,1949.
(The significance of the reception of the Diplomatic Corps
and of the mission of the Ambassadors...)

...in this State of Vatican City, whose importance cannot 1271
Im? measured in statistics, or in the extent of its territory', or (179)
evaluated in terms of armed forces (a).
Its territory—on which yon are here gathered together—an
imperceptible dot on atlases and maps! But in the spiritual order
a symbol of very great value and universal extension, the
guarantee of the absolute independence of the Holy See for the
accomplishment of her mission in the world.
Its armed forces? A material reality almost non-existent!
The war potential ol this minuscule State is nil; its potential for
peace, incalculable. And Our hope, founded on the Lord's help,
the master and friend of peace, is to see this peace-potential rise
once more, rise to its complete efficacy for the good of all nations.
Yes, this .spot of earth, chosen by Providence, is, by reason
of its moral value and the strength and direction of its influence,
one of the centers about which gravitates the history of the
world, a reality outside which the whole development of the
past would be nothing more than an insoluble riddle.
(Vatican City, the hope and support even of those who lice
outside the Church.—Desires for the rapprochement of peoples. )
debere, quippe non omnia sint fide tenenda, vel. quod pejus est.
in rebus dogmaticis ne Catholicam quidem Ecclesiam jam haberi
plenitudinem Christi, sed ah aliis eandem perfici posse.

1271.1 Some years later, on the 27th of July, 1956. speaking to the
faithful of the tiny Kingdom o! Liechtenstein, the Hol) Fathei
returned to the same idea, ahead) expressed by his pudecessoi
(Cf. above. No. 881 L. "W hen Our predecessor of immortal mem­
or)', Pius XI, on that important date Februar) 11, 1929 when
the Literan Treaties were signed, spoke of tins solution to the
Roman Question, he remarked with the wit which was charac­
teristic ol him, that the small size of the Slate which the Vatican
would henceforth be would be very largely compensated for
Ixith by the treasures of art and science contained in its buildings,
museums, and archives, and by the noble function which this
State was to fulfill as temporal foundation, condition of security
and independence of the representative of Christ.

OPINION IN THE CHURCH
All. addressed to the Catholic Press Congress, Febru
ary 17, 1950.
(The Catholic Press in the service of truth, justice, and peace
—The struggle against totalitarianism and juridical positivism.}

1272
Finally, We wish to add one more word relative to public
(9,
opinion within the Church itself (naturally in matters which are
111) open to discussion). There is no reason to be astonished at this
unless a person does not know the Church, or does not know it
well. For, in fact, the Church is a living body, and there would
be something lacking in her life if public opinion were deficient
within her, a deficiency whose blame* would fall on pastors and
faithful. But here again the Catholic press can be very useful.
In this service nonetheless, more than in any other, the journalist
must display that character which We have described and which
is a compound of inalterable respect and profound love for the
divine order, that is to say, in the present case, for the Church as
she is. not only in the eternal designs, but in her concrete exist­
ence here below in space and time, divine, yes, but made up of
human members and organs.
(Hold a middle course between illusory and unreal spiritual·
ism and a defeatist and coarsening realism.)
POSITIVE LAW

■■
All. to the International Congress of Civil Law, July 15, 1950.
(All laic has its roots in God.)
1273
As for the Church, since she is herself a great social organism.
(9,
a solidly established supra-national community, would it be pos12, sible for her to subsist without a definite and precise law? Beyond
19, this consideration whose logic cannot be gainsaid, but is of a pure78- Iv natural order nonetheless, she knows that she was constituted
79, by her Divine Founder as a visible society provided with a
213) juridical order, and the* basis of this order, of this juridical
system, is none other than the positive divine law. The goal of
the whole life of the Church, her function to lead men to God,
to promote their union with God, is to be found, it is true, in the
ultra-terrestrial sphere, in the supernatural; it is. in the last
analysis, something which takes place immediately, personally,
between God and man. Yes, but all along the wav which leads
to this goal and where this function is exercised, each one of the

11 IE AIM oi THE MISSIONS

655

faithful journeys as a member of the ecclesiastical community,
under the guidance of the Church, in the particular and concrete
conditions of his existence. Now, when we speak of a communi­
ty and the direction of an authority, we speak of the power of
authority and of the law.
(Aim of the Congress—Rendering national legal codes uniform.-Three important points. )
THE AIM OF THE MISSIONS

Letter Perlibenti quidem, August 9, 1950. to the Interna­
tional Mission Congress.
(How to interest all the faithful in the missions.)
Besides, in the allocution which We gave on June 24, 1944. 1274
to the Executive Committee of the Pontifical Missionary Socie(6,
ties meeting in Home (a) We declared openly that the end par
77,
excellence of the Missions is to establish the Church so firmly
82in mission countries that, as it continues to plunge its roots deep84.
erand deeper, it will be able to live and prosper by itself without
93,
the help of Missionary Societies; this help should be discontinued 133,
when there is no longer any reason for it.
135)
For the Church has no intention of dominating peoples or of
exercising her power in purely temporal concerns; her only desire
is to bring the higher light of faith to all nations, to favor the
development of human and civil culture, and to promote frater­
nal concord.
(Appeal Io secular and regular clergy engaged in teaching.)

For the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ, in which "if
one member suffer, all the members suffer with it” (b). And so,
since todav many of the members are covered with wounds ami
suffering cruelly, all the faithfid must consider it a sacred duty
to unite themselves to them in close material and spiritual col­
laboration.
(Help the missions laid waste by the tear.)
THE LIVING TEACHING AUTHORITY
Encycl. Humani generis, August 12, 1950.
(Dissensions and errors of the present day.)

In all this confusion of opinion it is some consolation to Us 1275
Io see former adherents of rationalism today frequently desiring (96,
1271a Above No. 1131.

127 lb 1 Cor 12:26.

656

HIE LIVING TEACHING AUTHORITY

99, to return to the fountain of divinely communicated truth, and to
101- acknowledge and profess the word of God as contained in
102) Sacred Scripture as the foundation of religious teaching. But at
the same time it is a matter of regret that not a few of these, the
more firmly they accept the word of God, so much the more do
they diminish the value of human reason, and the more they exalt
the authority of God the Revealer, the more severely do they
spurn the teaching office of the Church, which has been insti­
tuted by Christ, Our Lord, to preserve and interpret divine rev­
elation. This attitude is not only plainly at variance with Holy
Scripture, hut is shown to be false by experience also. For often
those who disagree with the true Church complain openly of
their disagreement in matters of dogma and thus unwillingly bear
witness to the necessity of a living Teaching Authority.
(The mission of theologians and Catholic pliilosoplicrs.Attempts to modify dogmatic formulae.)

Dogmatic formulae
1276
It is evident from what We have already said, that such
(102) tentatives not only lead to what they call dogmatic relativism,
but that they actually contain it. The contempt of doctrine com­
monly taught and of the terms in which it is expressed strongly
favor it. Everyone is aware that the terminology employed in the
schools and even that used by the Teaching Authority of the
Church itself is capable of being perfected and polished; and
we know also that the Church itself has not always used the
same terms in the same wav.
z It is also manifest that the Church
cannot be bound to every system of philosophy that has existed
for a short space of time. Nevertheless, the things that have been
composed through common effort by Catholic teachers over the
course of the centuries to bring about some understanding of dog­
ma are certainly not based on any such weak foundation. These
things are based on principles and notions deduced from a true
knowledge of created things. In the process of deducing, this
knowledge, like a star, gave enlightenment to the human mind
through the Church (a). Hence it is not astonishing that some of
these notions have not only been used by the Ecumenical Conn1276.1 Nituntur enim principiis ac notionibus ex vera rerum creata­
rum cognitione deductis; in quibus quidem deducendis cognitio­
nibus humaine menti veritas divinitus revelata, quasi stella, per
Ecclesiam illuxit

THE LIVING TEACHING AUTHORITY

657

cils, but even sanctioned by them, so that it is wrong to depart
from them.
Hence to neglect, or to reject, or to devalue so many and 1277
such great resources which have been conceived, expressed and (102)
perfected so often by the age-old work of men endowed with no
common talent and holiness, working under the vigilant super­
vision of the holy magisterium and with the light and leadership
of the Holy Ghost in order to state the truths of the faith ever
more accurately, to do this so that these things may be replaced
bv conjectural notions and by some formless and unstable tenets
of a new philosophy, tenets which, like the flowers of the field,
are in existence today and die tomorrow; this is supreme im­
prudence and something that would make dogma itself a reed
shaken by the wind. The contempt for terms and notions habitu­
ally used by scholastic theologians leads of itself to the weaken­
ing of what they call speculative theology, a discipline which
these men consider devoid of true certitude because it is based
on theological reasoning (a).

The proximate criterion of truth
Unfortunately these advocates of noveltv easily pass from 1278
despising scholastic theology to the neglect of and even contempt
(2,
for the Teaching Authority of the Church itself, which gives 98such authoritative approval to scholastic theology. This Teach- 99.
ing Authority is represented by them as a hindrance to progress 101and an obstacle in the way of science. Some non-Catholics con- 102,
rider it as an unjust restraint preventing some more qualified 106,
theologians from reforming their subject. And although this sa- 109.
cred Office of Teacher in matters of faith and morals must be 272)
the proximate and universal criterion of truth for all theolo1277a Quapropter neglegere, vel reicerc. vel sua valore privare
tot ac tanta, quæ pluries sieculari labore a viris non communis
ingenii ac sanctitatis, invigilante sacro Magisterio, nec sine Sancti
Spiritus lumine et ductu, ad accuratius in dies fidei veritates ex­
primendas mente concepta, expressa ac perpolita sunt, ut eorumdem in locum conjecturales notiones sufficiantur ac quædatn
flux;r ac vagir nov.e philosophia’ dictiones, quae ut flos agri
hodie sunt et cras decident, non modo summa est imprudentia,
rerum etiam ipsum dogma facit quasi arundinem tento agitatam
Despectus autem vocabulorum ac notionum quibus theologi scho­
lastici uti solent, sponte ducit ad enervandam theologiam, ut a/unf
speculativam, quam, cum ratione theologica innitatur, vera certi­
tudine carere existimant.

658

HIE LIVING TEACHING AUTHORITY

gians (a), since to it has been entrusted by Christ Our Lord th '
whole deposit ol faith—Sacred Scripture and divine Traditionto be preserved, guarded and interpreted, still the duty that L
incumbent on the faithful to flee also those errors which more or i
less approach heresy, and accordingly "to keep also the consti­
tutions and decrees by which such evil opinions are proscribed
and forbidden by the Holy See" (b), is sometimes as little known
as if it did not exist. What is expounded in the Encyclical Letters
of the Roman Pontiffs concerning the nature and constitution of
the Church, is deliberately and habitually neglected by some
with the idea of giving force to a certain vague notion which
thev profess to have found in the ancient Fathers, especially the
Greeks. The Popes, they assert, do not wish to pass judgment on
what is a matter of dispute among theologians, so recourse must
be had to the early sources, and the recent constitutions and de­
crees of the Teaching Church must be explained from the writ­
ings of the ancients.
1279
Although these things seem well said, still they are not Ire
(109, from error. It is true that Popes generally leave theologians free
111) in those matters which are disputed in various ways by men of
very high authority in this field; but history teaches that many
matters that formerly were open to discussion, no longer now ad­
mit of discussion.
The authority of the Encyclicals
1280
Nor must it be thought that what is expounded in Encyclical
(109, Letters does not of itself demand consent, since in writing such
111, Letters the Popes do not exercise the supreme power of their
168, Teaching Authority. For these matters are taught with the or
/73) dinars' teaching authority, of which it is true to say: "He who
heareth you, heareth me" (a), and generally what is expounded
1278a Utique, proh dolor, rerum novarum studiosi a scholastica
theologix contemptu ad neglegendum, ac vel etiam ad despici­
endum facile transeunt ipsum Magisterium Ecclcsix, quod theo­
logiam illam sua auctoritate tantopere comprobat. Hoc enim
Magisterium ab ipsis tamquam progressionis sufflamen ac scientix obex exhibetur; ab acatholicis vero quibusdam jam vcluti
injustum frenum consideratur quo cxcultiorcs aliqui theologi «
disciplina sua innovanda detineantur. Et quamquam hoc sacrum
Magisterium, in rebus fidei et morum, cuilibet theologo proxima
et universalis veritatis norma esse debet. ...
1278b C.I.C.. can. 1324. cf. Cone. Vat Const. De Fide cath., can

4; above No. 351.

1280a Luke 10:16.

ΠΙΕ LIVING TEACHING AUTHORITY

659

and inculcated in Encyclical Letters already for other reasons
appertains to Catholic doctrine. But ii the Supreme Pontiffs in
their official documents purposely pass judgment on a matter up
to that time under dispute, it is obvious that that matter, accord­
ing to the mind and will of the same Pontiffs, cannot be any longer
considered a question open to discussion among theologians (b).
Return to the sources
It is also true that theologians must always return to the
sources of divine revelation: for it belongs to them to point out
how the doctrine of the living Teaching Authority is to be found
either explicitly or implicitly in the Scriptures and in Tradi­
tion (a). Besides, each source of divinely revealed doctrine con­
tains so many rich treasures of truth, that they can really never
be exhausted. Hence it is that theology through the study of its
sacred sources remains ever fresh; on the other hand, speculation
which neglects a deeper search into the deposit of faith, proves
steril. as we know from experience. But for this reason even posi­
tive theology cannot be on a par with merely historical science.
For, together with the sources of positive theology God has given
to His Church a living Teaching Authority to elucidate and ex­
plain what is contained in the deposit of faith only obscurely
and implicitly. This deposit of faith our Divine Redeemer has
given for authentic interpretation not to each of the faith­
ful, not even to theologians, but only to the Teaching Authority of the Church. But if the Church does exercise this function
of teaching, as she often has through the centuries, either in the
ordinary or extraordinary way. it is clear how false is a procedure
which would attempt to explain what is clear by means of what
is obscure. Indeed the very opposite procedure must be used
Hence Our Predecessor of immortal memory. Pius IX. teaching
that the most noble office of theology is to show how a doctrine
1280b Neque putandum est. ea quiv in Encyelicis Litteris propo­
nuntur, assensum per .se non postulare, cum in iis Pontifices
supremam sui Magisterii potestatem non exerceant Magisterio
enim ordinario hivc docentur, de quo illud etiam valet: “Qui vos
audit, nic audit", ac plerumque quiv in Encyelicis Litteris pro
ponuntur et inculcantur, jam aliunde ad doctrinam catholicum
pertinent Quodsi Summi Pontifices in actis suis de re hactenus
controversa data opera sententiam ferunt, omnibus patet rem il­
lam, secundum mentem ac voluntatem eorumdem Pontificum,
quæstionem liberie inter theologos disceptationis jam haberi non
posse.
1281a Pius IX, Inter gravissimas; alsove NO. 156.

1281

(98,
101,
107,
108)

TUE LIVING TEACHING AUTHORITY

660

defined bv the Church is contained in the sources of revelation
added these words, and with very good reason: ‘‘in that sense in
which it has been defined by the Church” (b).
(The analogy of faith and Tradition.—Reference Io jxipal
teachings [c].—Theology, errors regarding the Eucharist.)

The Mystical Body
1282
Some say they an* not bound by the doctrine, explained in
(38, Our Encyclical Letter of a few years ago. and based on tin·
61) sources of revelation, which teaches that the Mystical Body of
Christ and the Roman Catholic Church are one and the same
thing (a). Some reduce to a meaningless formula the necessity
of belonging to the tine Church in order to gain eternal salvation.
(Philosophical errors.—Exceptional value of the method and
teaching of St. Thomas Aquinas.)
1283
(106,
110)

1284
(99.
102,
215)

The Magisterium and philosophy
It would indeed be unnecessary to deplore these aberrations
from the truth, if all. even in the field of philosophy, directed
their attention with the proper reverence to the Teaching Au­
thority of the Church, which by divine institution has the mission
not only to guard and interpret the deposit of divinely revealed
truth, but also to keep watch over the philosophical sciences
themselves, in order that Catholic dogmas may suffer no harm
because of erroneous opinions.
(Errors concerning the biological sciences.)
The Teaching Authority of the Church does not forbid that
in conformity with the present state of human sciences and sacred
theology, research and discussions, on the part of men experienced
in both fields, take place with regard to the doctrine of evolu­
tion. in as far as it inquires into the origin of the human body
as coming from pre-existent and living matter—for the Catholic
faith obliges us to hold that souls are immediately created by
God. However this must be done in such a way that the reasons
for both opinions, that is. those favorable and those unfavorable
to evolution, be weighed and judged with the necessary serious128 lb
1281c
No.
1282a

Ibid.
Providcntissinius, above- No. 527.—Spiritus Paraclitus. above
186.— Divino afflante, above. No. 1113.
Cf Encycl. Mystici Corporis Christi, above Nos. 1002 If

I
I
j
I
,
!

11 IF SAC 1 BIX) 1 Al

OFFICE

661

ness, moderation and measure, and provided that all arc prepared
to submit Io the judgment of the Church, to whom Christ has
given the mission of interpreting authentically the Sacred Scrip­
tures and of defending the dogmas of faith (a).
(Errors concerning the historical sciences—Exhortation to
cigiliincc on the part of ecclesiastical authorities.)
THE SACERDOTAL OFFICE

Apostolic Exhortation Monti nostrie, to the clergy of the
Catholic world. September 25, 1950.
There ever echoes in Our mind the voice of the Divine 1285
Redeemer saying to Peter: "Simon, son of John, lovest thou me (156,
more than these? .. . feed my lambs, feed my sheep” (a), and the 206)
voice of the Prince of the Apostles himself, exhorting the Bishops
and priests of his own day with these words: "Feed the Lord’s
flock which is confided to von... becoming models of the
flock” (b).
Considering these words with attention, We judge it to be
a special part of Our supreme ministry to put forth every effort
Io see that the work of the venerable Pastors and priests in teach­
ing the Christian people to avoid evil, to overcome difficulties.
Io cultivate holiness, is each day made more effective.
(The Pope's solicitude for the priesthood.—The duties of the
priests.—Perfection and charity.—Imitation of Christ.—Priestly
virtues.—Sacrifice of the Mass.)
The voice of the Church
In the same wax the Divine Office is ever the "voice of the 1286
Church’, which expresses the prayers and desires of all the faith­ (206)
ful. who. associated with the prayers and in the faith of the
priest, praise Jesus Christ, and through him render thanks to the
Eternal Father, begging him for the necessary graces of each day
and each hour. So it is that what Moses did in ancient tunes, when
on the mountain top he raised his arms in pray er to God for his
people and petitioned God’s merex loi them as they struggled in
the valley below, is daily renewed bx the sacred ministers.
( Liturgical prayer.—Private prayer -Devotion to Our Lady.
-Confession and spiritual exercises.)
1284a cf. All. to the Pontifical Academy. Xovcinlx-i 30. 1911
1285b I Peter 5 2. 3.
1285a Ci. John 21 :

662

UOVV Λ DEFINI ΓΙΟΝ IS PREPARED

Dispenser of the mysteries
1287
On the mount of Calvary the side of the Divine Redeemer
(206) was pierced, and from it there flowed forth his sacred Blood,
which, like an overflowing torrent, courses through the centuries
to purify the souls of men, to expiate their sins, to bestow upon
them the treasures of salvation.
To the execution of so sublime an office the priests are
destined. In fact, they have the duty, not only of procuring the
life and grace of Jesus Christ for the members of his Mystical
Body and of communicating it to them, but also of watching over
the increase of that same Mystical Body, for they should continu­
ally be giving new children to the Church, educating, instructing,
and guiding them. Since they are the “dispensers of the Mysteries
of God” (a), they ought to serve Jesus Christ in perfect charity
and devote all their strength to the salvation of their brothers

1288
Since they are apostles of the light, they must enlighten the
(206) world with the Gospel teaching, and the Christian faith must
be so vigorous within them that they will be able to share it with
others, and, ever imitating the examples and precepts of the
Divine Master, succeed in bringing every soul to him. They arc
apostles of grace and pardon, and so they should be entirely dedi­
cated to procuring the salvation of men, to bringing them to the
altar of God where they may be fed with the bread of heavenly
life. They are apostles of charity; therefore they must promote
the works and enterprises of charity, which, especially in our
times, when the needs of the poor have greatly increased, are all
the more urgent.
Moreover, the priest will take special care that the faithful
rightly understand the doctrine of “ the Communion of Saints',
he will endeavor to have them penetrate its meaning and
experience it.
(The modern apostolate.—The heresy of action.—The exam­
ple of Christ.—Recruitment and formation of the clergy.—Prob­
lems of today.—Indigent clergy.-Final exhortation.)
HOW A DEFINITION IS PREPARED
All. to the Consistory, October 30, 1950.
(Announcement of the definition of the Dogma of the
Assumption.)
1287a 1 Cor. 4 1.

Illi SOLIRC I 8 Ol II 11 DOGMA

663

But before arriving at this decision, We thought it good,
as you know, to confide the matter to learned men for investiga­
tion and consideration. On Our order they have gathered together
all the petitions touching on the question which have come to the
tpostolic See, they have examined them and carefully studied
them, in order to make perfectly clear what the Sacred Magister­
ium and the whole Church holds to be of faith in this doctrine.
Likewise, by Our order the testimony of the common faith
of the Church, the indications and traces of this common faith on
the corporeal Assumption ol the Most Blessed Virgin into heaven,
have all been scrutinized with the greatest care, whether these
are Io be found in the common teaching of the Sacred Magister­
ium, or in Sacred Scripture and in the oldest liturgy of the
Church, or in the writings of the Fathers and the theologians, or
in the ensemble of other revealed truths.
And besides, We have addressed letters to all Our Bishops
in which We asked them not only to tell Us their opinion on this
matter, but to signify to Us at the same time what their clergy
and people thought, and what they desired.

1289
(102,
107,
109)

Then from all over tire whole earth in almost unanimous and 1290
wonderful agreement there arose to Us the voices of Pastors (102.
and the Christian people, who professed the same faith, and 107.
begged for the same thing as something most earnestly desired 228)
by all, so that We thought We ought not to delay any longer;
and therefore We have decided to proceed to the definition of
the dogma.
For if the whole Catholic Church can neither deceive nor be
deceived since her Divine Founder Himself, who is truth itself (a),
said to his Apostles: "Behold 1 am with you all days even to the
consummation ol the world" (b), it follows necessarily that this
truth, which the Bishops and their people believe most firmly, is
divinely revealed and can be defined by Our supreme authority.
(Spiritual benefits hoped for through the intercession of the
Blcstcd Virgin. )
THE SOUBCES OF THE DOGMA
Bull, Munificentissimus, November 1, 1950.
(The privileges of the Blessed Virgin.-Thc Immaculate
Conception.—PctiHons of the clergy and the faithful in favor of
1290a Cl John 11.6

1290b Matt. 28:20.

HIE SOURCES 01 HIE DOGMA

664

the definition of the dogma of the Assumption.—The Pope recalls
the consulting of the Bishops.)
1291
Î89,
96,
99,
102,
108109)

And those whom “the Holy Spirit has established bishops, to
govern the Church of God" (a) gave to both questions an almost
unanimous affirmative response. This “singular agreement of the
Catholic Bishops and faithful” (b) who hold that the corporeal
Assumption of the Mother of God into Heaven can be defined as
a dogma of faith, since it presents Us with the agreement of the
teaching of the ordinary Magisterium of the Church with the failli
of the Christian people—which the same Magisterium supports
and directs—therefore manifests by itself in an entirely certain
way, and exempt from all error, that this privilege is a truth re­
vealed by God and is contained in the divine deposit which Christ
committed to his Spouse for her faithful keeping and infallible
declaration (c). The Magisterium of the Church, not, certainly,
by human means, but by the protection of the Spirit of truth (d),
and therefore, without any least error, carries out the mission con­
fided to her of keeping the revealed truths in their purity and
integrity age after age; therefore, she transmits them unalloyed,
neither adding anything to them, nor subtracting anything from
them. “For neither—as the Vatican Council teaches—was the Holy
Spirit promised to Peter and his successors so that by his revela­
tion they might proclaim a new doctrine, but he was promised so
that with his assistance they might keep in a holy fashion the rev­
elation delivered to the Apostles—or the deposit of faith—and
might teach it faithfully” (e).

Therefore, from the ordinary' Magisterium of the Church
(108- with common consent a certain and solid argument is drawn to
109) prove that the corporeal Assumption into Heaven of the Blessed
Virgin Marv—which, in what concerns the heavenly "glorification
itself of the virginal body of God’s dear Mother, could not be
known Iw any human mind by virtue of its merely natural powers
—is a truth revealed by God and therefore to be firmly and faith­
fully believed by all the children of the Church. For, as the same
Vatican Council asserts: “All those things arc to be believed with
1292

1291a
1291b
1291c
336
1291e

Acts 20:28.
Pius IX. Bull. Ineffabilis Deus. Cf. above No. 220.
Cf Vatican Council. De fide catholica, cap. 4., above Nos.
ff.
129Id Cf. John 14:26.
\ atican Council, De Ecclesia Christi, IV. above Nos 356 ff

VISIBLE CATHOLICITY

665

a divine and catholic faith which are contained in the word of
Cod written or handed down, and which are proposed to our
faith as divinely revealed, by the Church, either in a solemn pro­
nouncement or by her ordinary and universal teaching
authority" (a).
(Development in the course of the centuries in the knowledge
of recclation.-Belief in the Assumption attested by the liturgy,
witness of (he Fathers of the Church, theologians, from the
beginning. )
The assistance of the Holy Spirit
Since therefore, the universal Church, in which lives the 1293
Spirit of Truth who directs her infallibly in perfecting the knowl­ (32,
edge of revealed truths, has manifested its faith in many ways in 89)
the course of the centuries, and since the Bishops of the whole
world petition almost unanimously to have the truth of the cor­
poreal Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven
defined as a dogma of the divinely revealed Catholic faith—which
truth is supported by Sacred Scripture and is profoundly rooted
in the souls of the faithful, is proved by the liturgy' of the Church
from very ancient times, is consonant with other revealed truths,
is brilliantly defended and explained by the zeal, science, and
wisdom of theologians—We believe the moment has come, fixed
by the designs of God and his Providence, when We should
solemnly declare this signal privilege of the Virgin Mary.
(Definition of the dogma of the Assumption.)
VISIBLE CATHOLICITY

All. to the Cardinals and Bishops, November 2, 1950.
(The Pope thanks them for having come to surround him at
the moment of the definition of the dogma of the Assumption.)
But you have come here from very distant regions, even from 1294
the ends of the earth, which fact furnishes new and very striking (131)
proof of the nature of the Church of Christ, which gathers togeth­
er and unites within it all the nations. Your presence and your
assembling here is the crowning point of the spectacles which
this Holy Year has afforded: no other Holy Year can be compared
toit: for vou have shown in a magnificent way how men ol the
Catholic Church from every- race and every tongue are united
in faith and charity.
1292a De fide catholica, III, above No. 341.

666

MIRROR ΟΓ THE SANCTITY OF THE CHURCH

(Refutation of the calumnies launched against the Church.Exhortation to prayer and penance to escape the scourge of war.
—Marriage and the family.—The ambiguous term “social se­
curity’.)
THE CHAIR OF PETER

1295
(142,
144,
168)

All. to the teachers and pupils of the secondary schools,
November 4, 1950.
(The Pope thanks them for the gifts they offer: a ‘'cathedra”
and a missionary booklet.—He recalls the allocution of Janu­
ary 17, 1940 [Above No. 966].)
A Cathedra! The Master’s Chair: Cathedra docentis! Is not
teaching—as We said then—the first duty of Our Apostolic Sec?
You have offered Us a Chair, emphasizing the symbolic meaning
of the figures—historical and allegorical personages-which the
artist’s chisel has sculptured there. On this pontifical throne, on
the Chair of Peter, We take Our place solely as the Vicar ol
Christ. We are his representative on earth; We are the organ by
means of which is heard the voice of him who alone is the Master
of all (a), Christ, the Eternal Word of the Father, born of the
Virgin Immaculate, the throne, the seat of Divine Wisdom. Is it
not this, doubtless, that the entire Catholic world felt in the
depths of its soul, what We Ourselves felt in the depths of Our
own, more than the whole universe, in that solemn moment
solemn above all others, in which, by a supreme act of Our
Magisterium, We proclaimed the glory' of Mary Triumphant with
her Son, glorious in heaven in her soul and in her body? This
thought has made you engrave on the front of the cathedra, as a
luminous comment on the Pope as Teacher: Unus est Magister,
“One is your master" (b). Receive, therefore, the expression ol
Our gratitude which We address to you from the bottom of Our
heart.
(Zeal for distant missions.)
MIRROR OF THE SANCTITY OF THE CHURCH
Letter Laetanti admodum, November 12. 1950—to Cardinal
Micara on the occasion of the Congress of Religious.
(Organization of the first international Congress of Religious
—The spirit and aim of the Congress. )
1295a Ecce dedi verba rnea in orc tuo, “Behold, I have given \h
words in thy mouth”; Jer. 1:9. 1295b Cf. Matt. 23:8.

Till IU IJGIOUS STATE

667

Like a most loving Mother, the Church still recognizes 1296
publicly today, as she has never ceased to do at any time, the (129)
importance of the life of religious perfection, and with all her
strength she encourages and promotes it. because she sees shining
in it, as in a mirror, the image of that many-sided sanctity, a
valid exhortation to the just to cultivate virtue, a gentle encour­
agement to the guilty to return to the ways of probity.
(Good wishes for the success of the Congress.) (a)
THE RELIGIOUS STATE

All. to the first International Congress of Religious, Decem­
ber 8,1950.
(The benefits of the Holy Year.—Common interests of
religions institutes—Nature of the religious life, of the religious
state. )
First it will he helpful for Us to say a few words about the
place of Religious Orders and Congregations in the Church. You
know well that our Redeemer founded a Church which is bv
nature hierarchical. Now, between the Apostles and their succes­
sors, to whom must be added the assistants in their office, and
the simple faithful, He placed a clear distinction, and it is from
the union of these two elements that the Kingdom of God upon
earth is made up. Wherefore, it is by divine law that the clergy
are to he distinguished from the laity (a). Between these two
grades of the hierarchy is to be found the state of the religious
life, which, ecclesiastical in its origin, exists and draws its value
from the fact that it is closely connected with the proper end of
the Church, which is to lead men to the acquisition of sanctity (b).
If ever)' Christian, under the Church's guidance, ought to climb
this sacred summit, the religious man for his part tends towards
it bv a way which is proper to himself and In means v hich are
of a more excellent nature.
Moreover, the religious state is not reserved for one or
another of the two parts which by divine right exist in the Church.
1296a Cf. THE STATES OF PERFECTION.
1297a Cf. C I.C.. Can. 107.
1297b Quocirca divino ipso jure statutum est. ut clerici distingu­
antur a laicis Inter duos hos gradus religiostc vitæ status intericitur, qui, ecclesiastica origine defluens, ideo est atque ideo valet,
quia arcte proprio Ecclesiae fini eoh.eret, qui eo spectat, ut
homines ad sanctitatem assequendam perducantur.

1297

(78,
129,
136,
209,
313)

1298
(/.37.

668

THE RELIGIOUS STATE

since clerics, as well as laymen, can also be religious, and, on the
209) other hand, both religious and those who arc not religious, have
access to the dignity of clerics. It is, therefore, an error in the
appreciation of the foundations on which Christ built his Church
to hold that the peculiar form of the secular clergy, inasmuch as
it is secular, was established and sanctioned by the Divine Re­
deemer, and that the peculiar form of the regular clergy, good
and legitimate as it is, since it derives from the secular, should
be considered secondary and auxiliary. Consequently, if we have
in mind the order established by Christ, neither of the two special
types of clergy enjoys the prerogative of divine right, since this
right does not give preference to one or the other, and does not
exclude one or the other (a). As far as what is the difference be­
tween them, what are their mutual relationships, what share has
been committed to them in working out the salvation of man­
kind,—all these things Christ left to be determined by changing
times and circumstances, or, if We wish to express Our thought
more definitely, he handed them over to the decision of the
Church.
The priest, collaborator of the Bishop

205,

Without any hesitation, according to the precept of the divine
(205, law, the priest, be he secular or religious, ought so to exercise
207) his office that he is the assistant of the Bishop and is subordinate
to the Bishop. This is, in fact, what, in conformity with the cus­
toms of the Church, the prescriptions of the Code of Canon
Law (a) with regard to religious men such as pastors and local
Ordinaries, clearly define. Nor is it rare that in mission lands
all the clergy, not excepting the Bishop, arc regulars. Nor should
it be imagined that this is an extraordinary or abnormal state
of affairs, or that it is a merely temporary' arrangement, and that
as soon as it is possible, this sacred administration should be
given to secular clergy.
1299

1298a Deerrat igitur in arstimandis fundamentis, quæ Christus
constituenda! jecit Ecclesiiv, qui securn reputat peculiarem
sarcularis cleri formam, utpote stecularis, a divino Redemptore
statutam sanctitamque esse, peculiarem autem regularis clen
formam, licet ipsa nona et rata habenda sit, quippe ex altera
manet, secundariam et auxiliarem esse. Quocirca, ordine a Christo
statuto ob oculos habito, neutra peculiaris gemini cleri forma
divini juris praerogativam tenet, cum idem jus neque alteri ol·
teram prxponat neque alterutram emoveat.

1299a C.I.C., can. -154, 5; 626-631.

nil·. RELIGIOUS SLATE

669

Exemption of religious
Even the exemption of Religious Orders is not at variance
with the divinely given constitution of the Church, nor does it in
any way oppose the law in virtue of which the priest must obey
thé Bishop. For according to canon law, exempt religious are
under the dependence of the Bishop of the diocese, inasmuch as
the accomplishment of the Bishop’s office and the good ordering
of the care of souls require. But without speaking of this, in the
discussions which have taken place in the last ten years on the
subject of exemption, it has not, perhaps, been sufficiently recog­
nized that exempt religious, in virtue even of the prescriptions
of canon law, arc always and everywhere under the jurisdiction
of the Roman Pontiff as to their highest Superior, and must obey
him even in virtue of their vow of obedience (a). Now the Sov­
ereign Pontiff exercises his ordinary and immediate jurisdiction
not only over the whole Church, but also over each diocese, and
over each of the faithful. Therefore, it is evident that this funda­
mental law coming from God, according to which clerics and lavmen must be under the control of the Bishop, is fully carried out,
and, finally, the will and mandate of Christ must be executed by
both orders of clergy with equal zeal (b).
(The duty of tending to perfection.—True and false reasons
for embracing the religious life —Obedience and liberty.—Exter­
nal works and the interior life. )

1300
(151153,
157)

The place of contemplatives in the Church
This is true not only of individual religious, who ought to be 1301
religious at heart, not merely by reason of their habit, but it is (36,
true also of religious life as a whole, which ought to be, in the 129,
sight of Cod and men, solidly based and worthy of the highest 209)

1300a C.I.C., can. 499, §1.
1300b Quod etiamsi praetermittamus, in disceptationibus per pos­
trema decennia super exemptione habitis haud satis fortasse
animadversum est religiosos exemptos, etiam ex proscripto juris
canonici semper el ubique Romani Pontificis potestati, ut pote
supremo suo Moderatori, subici, cui obirdire tenentur etiam vi
toti oboedientiae,—Jamvero Summus Pontifex, ut in universam
Ecclesiam, ita in unamquamque diœcesim et in singulos christifidelcs ordinarium et immediatam jurisdictionem habet. Ergo constat
primaria’ a Deo latae legi, qua clerici et laid Episcopi regimini
nbesse debent, etiam ad religiosos exemptos quod attinet satis
superque obtemperatum esse ac denique Christi voluntati et sta­
tuto utriusqtie militai’ clerum pari respondere obsequio.

670

THE PERMANENT AND HIE ACCIDENTAL

esteem. What the Church urgently asks of you is that vour ex­
ternal work be in harmony with your interior life, and that the
two be established in constant balance. For do you not, clerics
and lay alike, profess the state of evangelical perfection? If this
is so, bring forth its fruits, that the Mystical Body of Christ which
is the Church, may draw new strength from your vigor and zeal
It is because of this that the contemplative Religious Orders are
in a certain sense necessary to the Church, for which they remain a perpetual adornment and a source of heavenly graces,
(Charity and philanthropy—Adaptation to our times.)

The triple heritage of the Church

1302
But there is a patrimony of the Church which, from earliest
(99, times, has remained intact, which does not change with the pass224) age of the years, and which remains ever adapted to an eminent
degree to the needs and desires of the human race: for the most
part, it is the Catholic faith, which recently We have defended
against new dangers in the Encyclical Letter Humani generis (a).
This faith, unspotted and unstained, keep most carefully, and be
intimately convinced that it has within it whatever resources are
needed for any century.
1303
Next, the goal of this state of perfection is part of this patri(129, mony; that end towards which you are striving with all your
224) strength, so that by its help and through its means you will be­
come saints, and, directly or indirectly, you will make others
saints by bringing the neighbor to a more abundant participation
in divine grace and so procuring for him a pious life and a happy
death. In this patrimony is, finally, contained this truth, so noble
so important, that there is only one way to perfection: self-re­
nunciation for the love of Christ. This truth the changing times
do not alter.
But there are many accessories where you can and yon ought
to conform to the mind of the men and the needs of vour age.
(Religious spirit and the apost olate.—Exhortation.)
THE PERMANENT AND THE ACCIDENTAL
All. to the directors of Catholic Action and Marian Con­
gresses. May 3, 1951.
(Nature of Catholic Action.—Precisions on certain aspects
1302a Above, No. 1275 ff.

ΠΙΕ MISSIONARY C HURCH

671

On the other hand, it would be an error to see in Catholic 1304
Action—as some have recently stated—something essentially new. (218)
a change in the structure of the Church, a new apostolate of the
hit}’ parallel to the priest’s apostolate and not subordinate to it.
There has always been in the Church a collaboration of the laity
in the apostolate of the hierarchy, in subordination to the Bishop
and to him to whom the Bishop has confided the care of souls
under his authority. Catholic Action has given to this collabora­
tion simply a new form and accidental organization for its better
and more effective exercise (a ).
(Catholic Action activity.—Its organization.—The Marian
Congregations. )
THE MISSIONARY CHURCH
Encycl. Evangclii præcones, June 21, 1951.
(Twenty-fifth anniversary of the Encyclical “Rerum Ecclesix.’-Progress and sufferings of the missions.—The work which
remains to be accomplished. )
The aim of the Missions, as everyone knows, is to make the
light of Christian truth shine in all its brilliance on new nations,
so that new Christians may be added to the fold. But the final
end towards which they tend—and this must ever be before our
eyes—is to establish the Church so firmly among these new na­
tions that they may receive a Hierarchy chosen from the native
clergy. (The native clergy.—Catholic Action.—Social action.—
Discipline of missionary institutes.—The Church respects diverse
civilizations and cultures.—Cooperation with missionary works.)
It is certain that your charity cannot be better employed than
in this work, that is, in extending the Kingdom of Christ and
1304a Sarcbbe inoltrc erroneo il vedere nell'Azione cattolica . . .
qualche cosa di essenzialmente nuovo, un mutamento nclla
struttura della Chicsa. un nuovo apostolato dei laid, che sarebbe
a lato di quello del sacerdote, e non a questo subordinate Sempre
vi è stata nclla Chiesa una collaborazionc dei laid all'apostolato
i’crarchico, in suhordinazione al Vescovo e a coloro, cui il Vcscovo
ha afjidato la responsabilité della cura délie anime sotto la sua
autorità. L'Azione cattolica ha voluto dare a questa collaborazionc
soltanto una nuova forma e organizzazione accidentale per il suo
migliore e più efficace csercizio.
Im data du 9 avril, donnée pour cette allocution par les A.AS.
icmble être une erreur. Les DR. sont d accord avec les journaux
du temps, pour indiquer celle du 3 mai.

1305
(135)

1306
(39,

45, bringing salvation to souls deprived of the faith, for the Lord
G7, Himself “has given to everyone.. . (the salvation) of his neigh­
82) bor” (a).

Consequently, We are pleased to repeat urgently and with
renewed solicitude what We wrote in a letter to Our Beloved
Son, Cardinal Fumasoni Biondi, Prefect of the Sacred Congrega­
tion of the Propaganda, August 9, 1950: “Let all the faithful per­
severe in their good will to assist the missions; let them multiply
their endeavors for them; let them raise earnest prayers to God
for them; let them help the missionaries and furnish them the
necessary assistance.
“For the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ, in which,
if one member suffer, all the members suffer with it’ (b). And
since today a great number of members are in bitter suffering
and covered with wounds, all the faithful must consider it a sa­
cred dutyJ to united themselves to them in intention and fact” (c).
' '
(Appeal to the generosity of the faithful—Blessing.)

THE TESTIMONY OF A COUNCIL
Encycl. Sempiternus Rex, September 8, 1951.
(The 15th centenary of the Council of Chalcedon—The presnee of 600 Eastern Fathers—The Pope's Legates.)
The legates of the Roman Pontiff occupied the first places
1307
(147) among the Bishops; they are the first named, they are the first
ό speak, they are the first to sign the Acts; by reason of the
authority which is delegated to them, they approve or reject the
votes of the others, as is manifest in the* condemnation of Dioscorus, which they ratified in the following terms: “The most holy
and most blessed Archbishop of great and ancient Rome, Leo.
by us and by this present Holy Synod, together with the thrice
blessed and worthy of all praise Peter the .Apostle, unshakable
rock of the Catholic Church, and foundation of orthodox faith,
has despoiled him (Dioscorus) of his episcopal dignity and has
excluded him from every priestly function" (a).
Moreover, that the Pontifical Legates not only exercised the
authority of presiding officers, but that the right and honor of
presiding was accorded to them by the Conciliar Fathers with
no opposing voice, is abundantly clear from the synodal letter
1306a Eccl. 17 2 1306b 1 Cor 12:26. 1306c Cf. Above. Xo. 1274.
1307a Mansi, Cone. ampl. col., VI, 1047 Act. III.

THE TESTIMONY OF A COUNCIL

673

sent to Leo: “It is thou,” they write, “who, as the head presides
over the members, wast presiding in thy delegates, and showing
thy benevolence” ( b ).
The first See
It is not Our purpose here to pass in review every one of the J 308
acts of the Synod, but simply to touch upon the principal ones, (147)
as far as this is useful to throw light upon the truth and to pro­
mote piety. Therefore, since it is a question of the dignity of the
Apostolic See, We cannot pass over in silence Canon XXVIII of
that Council, by which the second rank of honor after the Roman
See was given to the See of Constantinople as the imperial citv.
Doubtless there is nothing here against the divine primacy of
jurisdiction which was held as certain, but this canon, composed
in the absence of the Pontifical Legates and against their will,
and by that very fact in a clandestine and surreptitious manner,
lacked all juridical value and was rejected and condemned by
St. Leo in a great number of letters. Moreover, Marcianus and
Pulcheria accepted this condemnation, and even Anatolius him­
self. who, excusing the evil committed, wrote to St. Leo: “As for
what was recently decreed at the universal Synod at Chalcedon
in favor of the See of Constantinople, Your Beatitude mav take
for certain that the fault was none of mine ..., but it was the
most reverend clergy of the Church of Constantinople who
showed this zeal... ; and all the value and confirmation of what
was done was reserved for the authority of Your Beatitude” (a).
Peter has spoken by Leo

But we must come to the heart of the matter, that is to say. 1309
to the solemn definition of the Catholic faith, by which the most (142)
pernicious error of Eutyches was repudiated and condemned. In
the fourth session of this sacred Synod, when the imperial ma­
gistrates were demanding that a new Creed be drawn up, the
Pontifical Legate, Paschasinus, interpreting the common desire,
responded that there was no need to do so, since there were al­
ready enough Creeds and canons accepted by the Church, and
on the present subject, there was, in the first place, the letter of
Leo to Flavian: “Thirdly (that is, after the Nicene Creed and the
Creed of Constantinople and the explanation of them given by
1307b Mansi, VI, 147.
1308a Anatolius ad Leonem M., Ep. CXXXII, 1.

674

THE PURPOSE OF AN ENCYCLICAL

St. Cyril at the Council of Ephesus), there are the writings of
that most blessed and apostolic man Leo, Pope of the Universal
Church, condemning the heresy of Nestorius and Eutyches, and
explaining what is the true faith. Likewise it is this same faith
which the holy Synod holds and professes” (a).
It is fitting to recall here that the important letter of the
same St. Leo to Flavian on the Incarnation of the Word was
read at the third session of the Council; and scarcely had the
voice of the reader grown silent, when all who were present
cried with one heart and one voice: “This is the faith of the
fathers, this is the faith of the Apostles. So we all believe, so all
orthodox believers hold. Let him be anathema who does not be­
lieve. Peter has spoken through Leo” (b).
(The dogma of Chalcedon.—Some modern deviations.-Appeal to the Orientals to return to unity. )

1310
(51)

1311
(106,
111,
167)

THE FOOD OF THE MYSTICAL BODY
All. to the Eucharistic Congress at Assisi, September 9, 1951.
(Catholic Italy is resuming the tradition of national Eucha­
ristic congresses.—The Eucharist is the center of Christian life.)
And as it nourishes each one of the members, so it nourishes
the life of the whole Mystical Body in the vicissitudes of its pain­
ful pilgrimage; it purifies it, enriches it in every' domain, effect­
ing with the sanctification of the members the exaltation and
final glory of the entire Body, destined to triumph over the world
and over hell by the virtue of Him who redeemed it.
(The triumph of Christ.—Fruits hoped for from the Con­
gress. )
THE PURPOSE OF AN ENCYCLICAL
Exhortation to Discalced Carmelite Professors, Septem­
ber 23, 1951.
(Religious virtues.—Latin language and culture.)
Finally, We praise your plan to regulate your philosophical
and theological studies by taking for directives of the course the
indications recently promulgated bv Us in the Encyclical Letter
"Humani generis’ (a).
It is not without a painful surprise that We have learned
that some have taken this document somewhat ill, as if We had
1309a Mansi, VII, 10.
1309b Mansi, VI, 971. —Act. II.
1311a Above, Nos. 1275 ff.

COLLABORATORS OF THE CHURCH

675

wished to inhibit the progress of science and coerce individual
opinions which, in the schools of philosophy and theology, have
admitted of free discussion up to now, without danger to the
faith. These men are in error and are leading others into error.
It was not Our plan to restrict this liberty. But what We certainly
did wish, in virtue of Our Apostolic office, was to separate erron­
eous and exaggerated opinions from Catholic truth, such as it
has been and ever will be, the common heritage of the Church,
which must be kept safe and secure, because it transcends all
ages and every form of human civilization and culture.
(Final exhortation.)
COLLABORATORS OF THE CHURCH

All. to the World Congress of the Lay Apostolate, Octo­
ber 14, 1951.
(History of the lay apostolate movements.)

As for the Church, she has a triple mission to perform with
regard to all men: to raise fervent believers to the level of the
exigencies of the present hour; to bring those who hesitate on the
threshold into the warm and salutary intimacy of the home; to
bring back those who have strayed away from religion and whom
she cannot abandon to their unhappy lot. A beautiful mission for
the Church, but made more difficult by the fact that if she has
grown very much in total numbers, her clergy has not at the
same time grown in proportion. Now the clergy must be reserved
before all else for the exercise of the sacerdotal ministry, properly
so-called; in this no one can replace them.
An assistance in the apostolate, furnished by laymen, is there­
fore an indispensable necessity.
(Recent developments in the apostolate of the laity.)
The ‘good odor of Jesus Christ"
All the faithful without exception are members of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ. It follows that the law of nature, and,
even more imperative, the law of Christ, makes it an obligation
for them to give the good example of a truly Christian life: “We
are the good odor of Christ among those who are saved and
among those who arc lost” (a). All the faithful are also committed.
1313a 2 Cor. 2:15.

1312
(78,
208.
217)

1313
(210.
220221)

676

IJ IL· CHURCH IS ABOVE PARTY

and today more than ever, to think in prayer and sacrifice, not
only of their personal necessities, but even more of the great in­
tentions of the kingdom of God in the world, according to the
spirit of the Pater Noster which Jesus Christ Himself taught.
Can we also say that all are equally called to the apostolate
in the strict acceptation of that term? God has not given to all
either the possibility or the aptitudes for this. We cannot require
the work of this apostolate to be assumed by the wife, the moth­
er who is bringing up her children in a Christian fashion, and
who, besides, has to take in work to help her husband provide
for the needs of the family. The vocation of the apostle is not.
therefore, given to all.
(The domain of the lay apostolate—Discipline and initia­
tive. )
In the structure of the Church
1314
637,
137,
205,
218)

It goes without saying that the apostolate of the laity is subordinate to the ecclesiastical hierarchy; the latter is of divine
institution; the apostolate of the laity cannot, therefore, be
independent of it. To think otherwise would be to undermine
the foundations on which Christ Himself built his Church.
This premise once laid down, it would still be an error to
think that within the framework of the diocese, the traditional
structure of the Church, or her present form, place the apostolate
of the laity essentially in a line parallel to the apostolate of the
hierarchy, so that even the bishop cannot submit to the pastor
the apostolate of the laity in the parish. He can; and he can make
it a rule that the works of the lay apostolate destined for the
parish itself shall be under the authority of the pastor. The bish­
op has made him pastor of the whole parish, and he is, as such,
responsible for the salvation of his entire flock.
(Understanding betu>cen priests and laity.—Apostolate in ev­
ery domain of human life.—Union among peoples.)
THE CHURCH IS ABOVE PARTY

R.M. Christmas, December 24, 1951.
(The evils of the present time and the feast of ChristmasThe Church and peace.)
1315
Now, those who, incorrectly, consider the Church to be
(14, some kind of earthly power, like a kind of world-wide empire,

TUE CHURCH IS ABOVE PAR I Y

677

are easily led to require of her, as of other powers, the renuncia­
tion of neutrality, the definite declaration in favor of one or
other part}'. However, it can never be a question for the Church
of renouncing political neutrality, for the simple reason that she
cannot put herself at the service of interests which are purely
And let no one imagine that this is a mere play on words or
juggling of ideas. It is enough to have an elementary notion of
the foundation on which the Church rests as a society to under­
stand Us; there is no need of further explanations.

The very essence of the Church

The Divine Redeemer founded the Church in order to com­ 1316
municate to humanity by its means his truth and his grace to
(6,
the very end of time. The Church is his “Mystical Body.” She
18,
is entirely Christ’s, and Christ is God’s (a).
93,
Men in politics, and sometimes even men in the Church,
wishing to make the Spouse of Christ their ally or their instru­
ment in their political combinations, whether national or inter­
national, would injure the very essence of the Church, would
damage the life which is proper to her; in a word, they would
bring her down to the same plane on which are debated the
conflicts of temporal interests. And this is true and remains true
even if the interests and ends in question are in themselves
legitimate ones.

Anyone, therefore, who would wish to turn the Church from
her neutrality, or bring pressure to bear on her in the question
of peace, or minimize her right to determine freely if and when
and how she wishes to intervene in various conflicts, would not
facilitate her collaboration in the work of peace, because such
a stand on the part of the Church, even in political matters, could
never be purely political, but must always be viewed “sub specie
aeternitatis”, in the light of the divine law, of its order, its values,
its norms.
The case is not rare in which powers and institutions purely
terrestrial leave their neutrality to take sides today in one camp.
1315a Tuttavia non put) per la Chiesa t rattarsi di rinunziare ad una
neutralité politica per la sein plice ragione che essa non puo inettersi al servizio di interessi puramente politici.
1316a Cf. 1 Cor. 3:23.

131/

(93.
133,
162)

1318

(81-

678

83,
89,
93,
123)

THE CHURCH IS ABOVE PARTY

tomorrow, perhaps, in another. It is a game of combinations
which can be explained by the incessant fluctuations of temporal
interests. But the Church holds herself aloof from such changing
combinations. If she judges, it is not, on her part, because she
has abandoned a neutra ity which she has observed up to this
point, for God is never neutral in human affairs, face to face
with human history, and neither can the Church be. If she
speaks, it is in virtue of the divine mission willed by God. If she
speaks, and renders judgment on the problems of the day, it is
with the clear consciousness of anticipating, in the strength of
the Holy Spirit, the sentence which at the end of time her Lord
and Head, the Judge of the Universe, will confirm and sanc­
tion (a).
Such is the proper and superhuman function of the Church
in political matters. What, then, is the meaning of that empty
phrase about a neutrality which the Church must abandon?
Superior criteria

Others, on the contrary, wish the neutrality of the Church
1319
(39, in the interest of peace. But these again have not a correct idea
of the position which the Church has in the great events of
79,
81,
the world.
83)
She cannot come down from that high supernatural sphere
which knows no political neutrality—in the sense in which this
idea is applied to earthly Powers—; this does not exclude, rather
it increases her share in the anguish and suffering of her mem­
bers, separated from one another in opposing camps, in the
anxiety' which she feels in seeing opinions and desires at variance
within her own ranks. The Church cannot consent to judge
things according to criteria which are exclusively political; she
cannot bind the interests of religion to orientations determined
by purely earthly objectives; she cannot expose herself to the
danger of arousing doubts as to her purely religious character;
she cannot forget, even for a moment, that her role of God’s
representative on earth does not permit her to remain neutral,
even for a moment, between “good” and “evil” in human affairs.
1318a Se parla, è in virtu della sua divina missione voluta da Dio.
Sr parla e giudica sui problemi del giorno, è con la chiara coscienza di anticipare, nella virtu dello Spiritu Santo, la sentenza
che alia fine dei tempi il suo Signore e Capo, Giudice dell’imiverso, confcrmerà e sanzionerà.
J

DISINTERESTEDNESS OF THE CHURCH

679

li this is asked of her, she must refuse it, and the faithful of
both camps must, in virtue of their supernatural faith and hope,
respect such an attitude on her part.
(Nature of the peace mission of the Church.—Ί he Church
and the Nations.—The Christian order—The problem of dis­
armament.-Ord er and liberty.—The Church of silence.)

DISINTERESTEDNESS OF THE CHURCH
Apost. Letter, Cupimus in primis, January 18, 1952, to the
Catholics of China.
(The ancient glories of China.—The new riches which the
Gospel brings her.)
Therefore, it is a cause of immense sorrow to Us when We 1320
see that among you the Catholic Church is held to be, and is (78described and attacked, as something inimical to your nation; 79.
her Bishops, other ministers, and religious men and women often, <82.
alas, expelled from their residences and impeded in the free 93,
exercise of their functions, as if this Church, wholly consecrated 100,
to the things of heaven, had any other task than inculcating and 123strengthening virtue in souls, enlightening minds in schools and 124,
colleges, alleviating human suffering in hospitals, uplifting and 131)
consoling children and old folk in homes, instead of seeking
material advantages and earthly domination.
(The greatness of the present persecutions.)

Be strong
But it is a question here of the cause of God and of the 1321
Holy Church; “be you therefore not affrighted by the adver- (75.
saries’ (a), but be strong with that strength of soul which relies
77,
noton human resources but on divine grace obtained in fervent 97.
prayer. And your difficulties, your sufferings, your anguish, offer -2<9)
them all to God as a fragrant holocaust so that He may at length
deign in his goodness to grant the Church in China peace and
tranquility, and may convince all men (it is, moreover, clearer
than daylight) that the Church is not seeking earthly goods, but
heavenly, and that, in accord with her mission, it is to the heav­
enly homeland that she directs and guides her children by the
acquisition of virtue and the practice of good works.
1321a Phil. 1:29.

680

DISINTERESTEDNESS OF THE CHURCH

The supraterrestrial end of the Church

1322
There is no dearth of men—as all know and see clearly—
(52, who are attempting to seize earthly power, to extend it and
57- increase it from one day to the next; but that is not what the
58, Church desires, what she demands. She is striving to spread
78, the light of the Gospel; with it she adorns the souls of men, she
84, makes them better men and worthy of heaven, she endeavors
100, to bring about the reign of fraternal harmony among citizens,
131- to console and relieve the afflicted according to her means, to
133, consolidate and reinforce the very foundations of human societ)'
140, by Christian virtues, more powerful than any weapons. Those
142) who receive her (the Church) yield to none in their love of
country; they obey public authority as a duty of conscience
and according to the rules established by God; they pay what
is due to each one, beginning with God. The Church calls to
herself not one people, not one nation; it is all men of ever)'
race that she loves with the divine charity of Christ, which must
unite them all with fraternal bonds. Therefore, no one can assert
that she is at the service of any particular power; in the same way
it would not be right to require of her that, breaking away from
that unity with which her Divine Founder wished her to be
marked, she should allow separate churches to be set up in each
nation, churches unfortunately cut off from the Apostolic See
where Peter, Vicar of Jesus Christ, lives in each of his successors
to the end of time. A Christian community which would act in
this way would wither like the branch cut from the vine (a), and
could not produce fruits of salvation. (The native hierarchy.)
Sign of universality

1323
To require that all the missionaries who have left their
(131, own beloved countries and by their labors and in the sweat of
134) their brow have toiled in the Lord’s vineyard in your land should
now be driven out as if they were enemies, this is not only a
painful measure but one that is most harmful to the very growth
of your Church. For the fact that the missionaries are not citizens
of a single foreign nation, but that they have been chosen from
many nations where the Christian religion is already flourishing
and the zeal of the Christian apostolate is already vigorous,
shows clearly that the Catholic Church has as one of its proper
1322a Cf. John 15:6.

’

THE CHURCH AND MORALITY

681

marks to be universal; and that these heralds of the Gospel
seek nothing else than to adopt your land as a second home, to
enlighten if with the light of Catholic teaching, to form it to
Christian manners, to assist it by a supernatural charity, and to
bring it, by a progressive increase of native clergy among you
to a state of full maturity which will permit it to do without the
help and collaboration of missionaries from abroad.
(The unselfishness of the nuns.)
The mandate and the assistance of Christ
As you know very well, the Catholic Church does these 1324
things under the mandate and on the order received from her (88,
Divine Founder; she acts thus, We say, without asking anything 91,
else but to enjoy among you the liberty which is due to her to 134)
accomplish her mission for the salvation and well-being of the
people themselves. And if she is the target of calumnies and false
accusations, let her pastors and faithful not be troubled; let
them, rather, rely with confidence on the promises of Jesus
Christ, which are expressed in these solemn words: “The gates
of hell shall not prevail against her” (a), “and behold I am with
you all days, even to the consummation of the world” (b).

THE CHURCH AND MORALITY
R.M. to Italian families, March 23, 1952.
(The duty of parents—Education of the conscience.—The
“new moral”.—The natural law and revelation, foundations of
morality. )
Both of these, the law written in the heart or the natural law, 1325
and the truths and precepts of supernatural revelation, Jesus Our (77.
Redeemer remitted into the hands of the Church as the moral 102treasure of humanity, for her to preach to every creature, expound 103)
and transmit, intact and preserved from every contamination
of error from one generation to the next.
Against this teaching, unchallenged for long centuries, there
arise today difficulties and objections which must be explained.
Of dogmatic teaching, as also of Catholic moral doctrine,
it is proposed to make some sort of radical revision to deduce a
new order of values.
1324a Matt. 16:18.
13241) Ibid. 28:20.

682

HIE CHURCH AND MORALITY

The first step, or better, the first blow aimed at the edifice
of the Christian moral norms, would be to detach it—or so it is
pretended—from the strict and oppressive surveillance of the
authority of the Church, so that, liberated from the sophistical
subtleties of the casuistic method, morality would be brought
back to its original form and to the determination of the individual
conscience.
Where the “new morality” leads
1326
Everyone can see to what dreadful consequences such an
'103) overthrow of the very foundations of education would lead.
Not to mention the manifest inexperience and immaturity
of judgment of those who maintain such opinions, it will be use­
ful to unmask the central vice of the “new moral”. In remitting
every ethical criterion to the individual conscience, jealously
walled up within itself and made absolute arbiter of its deter­
minations, this theory, far from making the way smooth before
it, will turn it from the true way, which is Christ.
The Divine Redeemer has consigned his Revelation, of
(6,
which moral obligations are an essential part, not to any mere
88men, but to his Church, to which He has given the mission of
89,
bringing men to embrace this sacred deposit with faith (a).
97,
In the same way, the divine assistance, ordained to preserve
99,
Revelation from error and deformation, has been promised to the
103, Church, and not to individuals. This again is a wise provision.
119, because the Church, a living organism, can thus, with security
224) and ease, either throw light upon or deepen these same moral
truths, or, while she maintains them intact in their substance, ap­
ply them to the varying conditions of time and place (b). Take,
for example, the social doctrine of the Church, which, springing
up to answer new needs, is nothing more, at bottom, than the
application of the perennial Christian moral to the present
economic and social circumstances.

1327

1327a // divin Redentore ha consegnato la sua Rivelazione, di cut
fanno parte essenziale gli obblighi morali, non già ai singoli no­
mini, ma alla sua Chiesa, cui ha dato la missione di condurli ad
abbracciare fedelmente quel sacro deposito.
1327b Sapiente provvidenza anche questa, poichè la Chiesa, orga­
nismo vivente, puà cost, con sicurezza ed agilité, sia illuminare
cd approfondira le vérité anche morali, sia applicarle, mantenendone intatta la sostanza, aile condizioni variabili dei luoghi e dei
tempi.

THE CENTER OF FAITH

Autonomy of conscience?

How is it possible, therefore, to reconcile the prevenient 1328
disposition of the Savior, who confided to his Church the (103,
protection of the Christian moral heritage, with a sort of 124)
individualistic autonomy of conscience?
The conscience, withdrawn from its natural climate, could
produce only poisonous fruit, which will be recognized simply
)v the comparison with certain characteristics of traditional con­
duct and Christian perfection whose excellence is proved by the
incomparable works of the Saints.
T )e “new morality,” the Church states, instead of favoring
the law of human liberty and love, and of insisting on it as a
just stimulus to the moral life, relies, on the contrary, almost
exclusively and with excessive rigidity, on the firmness and in­
transigence of the Christian moral laws, emphasizing often the
Thou must’s", "Thou must not’s”, which have too much of the
savor of a vile pedantry.
Now, on the contrary, the Church wishes—and she
emphasizes this expressly when it is a question of forming consciences—the Christian to be introduced to the infinite riches of
faith and grace in a persuasive manner, so that he will be drawn
to penetrate deeply into them.
Nonetheless, the Church cannot refrain from warning the
faithful that these riches can only be acquired and preserved at
the price of precise moral obligations (a).
(The necessity of works.—Purity.—Limits of autonomy.—
The divine order is universal. )
THE CENTER OF FAITH

All. to Belgian professors and students, April 12, 1952.
(The pilgrimage to Rome, witness to their attachment to
the Church.)

Oh! how right you are to put thetreasure of your faith above 1329
even' other good, and how beautiful and important is the work (98,
1328a Ora invece la Chiesa vuole . . . che il Cristiano venga introdotto nelle infinite ricchezze della fede e della grazia, in modo
persuasivo, cost da sentirsi inclinato a penetrale profondamente —
Im Chiesa pero non puô ritrarsi dalTammonire i fedeli che queste
ricchezze non possono essere acquistate e conservate se non a
prezzo di precisi obblighi morali.

684

THE CENTER OF FAITH

161) of Professors of religion! For them it is a question not only of
transmitting divine revelation as Holy Mother Church teaches it
and interprets it, but even more cf making it loved, preferred
above every other science, and borne witness to in action. This is
the whole drama of the Christian life which the famous line ex­
presses so well: “Faith which does not act, is it sincere?” (a)
Now on the invitation of your Professors of religion, all of
you who have come here have wished to make together a great
act of faith, to renew at Rome the ardor and the pride of your
faith.
No place could have been better chosen. You are here at the
center of faith: when you are grouped about the Confession of
Saint Peter in the basilica, raise your eyes to the tops of the pillars
which support that incomparable dome of Michelangelo. There
you will read in a succinct formula the explanation of your faith:
Hinc una fides mundo refulget. From this place, from the tomb
of Saint Peter, one single faith has shone out across the world.
What pagan Rome with its political genius, with its armies, with
its wealth, with its powerful government, was not able to effect,
Christian Rome has realized and realizes more and more: she
effects unity.
1330
Yes, truly, it is here that one must see this marvelous unity
(132, of faith. When We celebrate the Holy Sacrifice at the papal al142) tar on the very tomb of the Prince of the Apostles, the cosmo­
politan assembly of the faithful which surrounds Us has only
one heart and one soul in the same faith; they pray with Us, offer
with Us for the salvation of the entire world the bread and the
wine which will become the body and blood of Jesus Christ; and
when the Sacred Host is lifted up in Our hands from the depths
of every heart there rises the same cry of faith: “My Lord and
my God!” No longer is there any distinction of race or color, of
social or cultural milieu: one faith realizes the most profound
unitv. The Divine Savior, according to the strong words of
St. Paul, has destroyed all separations to establish peace (a).
This union, for which the whole of humanity longs in
anguish, tormented by the fear of seeing erupt, on the contrary,
a horrible fratricidal war, our faith effects in Christ.
( Christ is our peace.—It is from the tomb of Peter that “for
nearly twenty centuries the great appeal for unity has emanated.”)

1329a Racine, Athalie, I, 1, 71.

1330a Cf. Ephes. 2:14.

THE CHURCH OF CHARITY
All. to the members of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul,
April 27, 1952.
(Words of welcome.)
Within the ranks of the human family and of the Church, 1331
the battalions of charity are living sources of strength; living be(3,
cause fruitful and irresistible as the love which inspires them and (19,
as the Church which embraces them, and which can be called in (82.
its highest and deepest sense, the Church of Charity.
127)
And in reality, could any unprejudiced observer of her past
or of her present fail to recognize that character which distin­
guishes her, since she is herself the fruit of the Love which is the
principle of the creation and of the Redemption, as it is the term
of every created spirit in the eternal and blessed communication
of Love itself? This is always a cause of wonder for anyone who
studies the history of the Church, and for the believer it is a
confirmation of her divine origin, this fact of the eagerness of
Christian charity to furnish in every age men and works for the
alleviation of every sort of misery.
(The charitable institutions of the Church.—Recommenda­
tions to the members for their apostolate. )

ROME AND JERUSALEM
All. to the Parish of St. Sabbas, Rome, January 11, 1953.
Although the solicitude of all the Churches (a) keeps Our 1332
attention fixed on the entire world and obliges Us to watch over (26,
every part of the flock of Christ, so that they will not lack nourish- 142,
inent or fall prey to the wolf, We cannot forget that Jesus, the 151)
Supreme Invisible Pastor, has willed to confide to Us in a
particular way the City of Rome. And so Our special care is for
it, and no one can be surprised that Our anxiety for it is very
great.
(Success of parish works—Emulation among parishes of
Rome.-To be an "efficient community.’)
At Jerusalem was gathered together in the Cenacle under 1333
the eyes of Mary the Christian community, the Church, initiated (20by the preaching of the Lord, made perfect on the gibbet of the 20
1332a 2 Cor. 14:28.

686

TUE FOLD OF CHRIST

Cross, manifested in all its unity and universality on the day of
Pentecost. It remains the model, the prototype of every Christian
community, and even of the parish.
(Bring souls to Jesus—Problem of Catholic Action
organization.)
DIPLOMATIC TREATIES
Letter from the Secretariat of State to the Archbishop of
Belgrade, February 16, 1953.
(Convocation of the Yugoslav bishops by Marshal Tito to
study the possibility of a modus vivendi for Church and State.)
1334
After the rupture of diplomatic relations between Yugosla(158) via and the Holy See, the safeguarding of the fundamental rights
of the Church remained, in a particular way, the responsibility’
of the conscience, the zeal, and the loyalty' of the bishops; to them
belonged the duty not only of maintaining the integrity of faith
and morals, but also of protecting the institutions of the Church,
its discipline, its religious, educational, and social establishments.
As you are aware, any treaty between the Church and a
national government is beyond the legitimate competence of the
Ordinaries, and according to canon law, belongs solely to the
power of the Apostolic See.
By reason of these ecclesiastical laws, the bishops of this
country, if they have not received the previous consent and the
indispensable faculties from the Apostolic See, can in no way
undertake engagements, or approve, even verbally, the ideas or
suggestions of the treaty in question.
(Practical dispositions.)
THE FOLD OF CHRIST

All. to the Lenten preachers, Rome, March 27, 1953.
(Pastoral cares—Good wishes for success. )
J335
(8,
26,
7071,
73,
139,
1 11,

You know well that Holy Scripture, when it speaks of the
Church, uses—according to the circumstances—images chosen
from the architectural, social, anthropomorphic fields. Thus, the
Church is an edifice built upon a foundation “stone”, so solid
that the attack of man or demon cannot overthrow it (a); it is a
kingdom whose keys are in the hands of him who received from
Jesus the Eternal King the power of binding and loosing on earth
and in heaven (b); it is a body whose members are the faithful
1335a Cf. Matt. 16:18.

1335b Cf. Matt. 16:18-19.

THE CHURCH DOES NOT GROW OLD

687

and whose action is under the government of the Head who is
Jesus, represented by his Vicar on earth (c).
But there is one image upon which, as is well known, Jesus
seems to insist in a special way, delighting in indicating the
various elements, in explaining their significance, in proposing
their practical application; the Church is a sheepfold which has
one supreme invisible Shepherd, Christ Himself, who has willed,
nevertheless, to be replaced on earth by a visible Shepherd, the
Pope.
(The text “Tu es Pastor ovium", "You are the Shepherd of the
flock,” is the object of the meditation of the Holy Father.)

149,
150,
210,
228)

Today, as a complement to what We then said (a), We 1336
address Ourselves particularly to you, beloved Priests, collabora- (142,
tors-each in his own territory—of the Bishop among the Roman 205)
people, that specially chosen portion of the universal flock of
Christ. This is why We say to each one of you: “Tu es pastor
ovium.” The parish, which Jesus has confided to you, with Us as
his intermediary, is also a sheepfold, and you are its shepherd.
(The protection of the fold—The sheep outside.—The lost
sheep.-The faithful sheep—The future harvest.)

THE CHURCH DOES NOT GROW OLD
All. to the Parisian students of the Centre Richelieu,
April 19, 1953.
(The students have celebrated the Good Friday Liturgy
at Assisi; they are celebrating Easter at Rome.)
We know that two of you received the Sacrament of Bap- 1337
tism during the Easter Vigil. How would it be possible not to (150,
evoke here, at Rome, the time when this profession of faith as- 227)
sumed in the eyes of the official paganism of the Roman Empire
the aspect of a rupture with the ancient world and of an entrance
into a new world, the young Christian Church? Did not the
poet Prudentius describe, about the year 400, the long lines of
catechumens passing before the deserted pagan temples on their
wav to the Lateran to receive the sacred sign of the new reli­
gion? (a) Today, it is in general the false gods who look young,
1335c Cf. Rom. 12:4-6; 1 Cor. 12:12-27; Ephes. 4:4.
1336a To the parishioners of St. Sabbas, above No. 1332.
1337a Contra Symmachum, I, 585 ff.

RELIGIOUS SOCIETY

688

and the Church which seems old. But keep your certainty and
do not let yourselves be deceived! Even if, not counting philo­
sophical systems whose existence is as short-lived as flies, we
grant that certain errors can have a long and profound influence
on the human race,—nonetheless they all follow the law of histo­
ry, which, after growth and apogee, brings decline and fall. The
Church of Christ has received and always
z will receive from her
Divine Founder the strength to withstand this law. Constantly
she renews her youth and outlives all errors.
(Be apostles.—Pray and receive Holy Communion.-No
contradiction between science and faith. )
y

The Church of all men
·. · Practice the love of neighbor and refine your sense of
(69, social justice: but a social justice for every condition of societ}’
84,
and for all classes. Let no one reproach the Church with lack of
131, love for the worker. Some might rather be tempted to say that
133) for some time now, in spite of the most pressing tasks which
concern her, she has placed the question of labor too much in
the foreground of her solicitude. But We cannot admit this re­
proach either. Hold fast to this: the Church is the Church of all
men; she is there for all; she wishes to gather all men into one
family as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Widen your horizon and your heart; extend them to ever}'
country and to all nations. Only the Catholic Church can dis­
pose of such powers of reconciliation, of understanding, of unity,
powers capable of acting on ultimate convictions, the most pro­
found convictions, those which dominate life. It is the task of the
children of the Church to set these forces to work.
(Final exhortation.)

1338

RELIGIOUS SOCIETY

All. to the journalists of the foreign press at Rome, May 12,
1953.
(The 9th Congress of their association.—They represent
more than 30 nations.—Vatican State.)
1339
The Holy See is the supreme authority of the Catholic
(Π, Church, and therefore of a religious society whose end is located
in the supernatural and in the next world. Certainly, the Church
22’ lives in this world. Her sons and daughters, about 400 million
‘ ' » Catholics, belong, each in his or her own person, to a people and

RELIGIOUS SOCIETY

689

a definite nation: it is always one of the essential tasks of the
79,
Holy See to safeguard—throughout the entire world—normal.
94,
and, if possible, friendly relations between Church and State, so 149,
that Catholics can live in peace and tranquility in their faith, 158)
and. at the same time, so that the Church can furnish the State
the solid support which she constitutes in every area where
she can freely deploy her forces.
The Church is not a political power
Consequently, political events have their influence on the 1340
Church and on the Holy See as well, but only indirectly in the (14,
measure in which, often in a sudden and radical way, thev alter
16,
the situation of the Church in a country. A political power, how- 79ever, that is to say, power which pursues political ends by politi- 80.
cal means, the Church does not wish to be, and she is not. She is 93)
a religious and moral power, whose competence is as extensive as
the religious and moral domain, and this domain in its turn em­
braces the free and responsible action of man considered in him­
self or as a member of society ( a ).

The law proper to the Church
Before political powers the Church remains neutral, or, even 1341
better, since this term is too passive and too ambiguous, she re- »'93,
mains impartial and independent. The Holy See never allows 132)
itself to be taken in tow by any power or group of powers, no
matter how often the contrary is asserted. It can sometimes hap1340a Cf. in this same sense the Discourse to the Cardinals, De­
cember 24, 1946: “The Church, commanded by the Divine
Savior to bring all men to eternal salvation, does not intend to
intervene in or take sides in controversies of a purely earthly
order.
"She is a Mother. Do not ask a Mother to pronounce against
one or another of her sons. All alike must find in her and feel
that she has for them that clairvoyant and generous affection,
that profound and inalterable tenderness which give to her faith­
ful children the strength to walk with sure steps in the royal way
of truth and light, and which inspire the lost and the erring with
the desire of putting themselves once more under her maternal
guidance. Never, perhaps, has the Church of Christ, never have
her faithful and her ministers of every rank and of all classes
had so much need of that enlightened love, prompt in sacrifice,
ignorant of earthly barriers and human prejudices, than in the
distress of the present hour, beside which the painful trials of
the past grow pale.”

690

HIE TESTIMONY ΟΓ SAINT BERNARD

pen that the line of the Holy See coincides with the line taken bv
that of a political power. But in what concerns the point of de­
parture and the end of the route, the Church and her Supreme
Pastor follow only their own law, the mission which they have
received from their Divine Founder and which consists in con­
quering for God all men without distinction, and of bringing them
all to Him, whatever be their nationality.
1342
(79,
84,
91,
124,
138,
160)

Assuredly, the mission of the Church gives her, as it gives
to her supreme government, values, norms, common goals, which
the opposition and struggle of the world will neither destroy nor
compromise. It gives her reserves of spiritual and moral strength.
fed by the strong sap of Christian faith, whose vigor and universality of function are recognized if not by all, at least by most
men. These forces are always ready to intervene, in a disinterest­
ed and beneficent way, where the good of humanity requires
such intervention. This is the atmosphere which characterizes
this dwelling and this City.
Do not let yourself be led astray by the human aspect which
you can meet in the Church. The fundamental law, which We
have briefly exposed, determines the action in which the supreme
government of the Church engages. A tradition which is con­
stantly being put to the proof and which is endowed with a rich
experience shows her the way and teaches her how to preserve
before all men her impartiality and her independence, even in
the midst of the most violent agitation of political events.
(Tivo difficulties in the work of the journalist: prompt infor­
mation, true information.—Service of country, service of interna­
tional peace—Blessing. )
THE TESTIMONY OF SAINT BERNARD

Encycl. Doctor Mellifluus, May 24, 1953.
(The Sth centenary of Saint Bernard—His teaching and its
message to our times — The contemplative.—The man of actionThe defender of the integrity of the faith. )
On the sovereign authority of the Pope
1343
In this matter, since he knew well that the authority of the
(149) Roman Pontiff is worth more than the science of the doctors, he
was carefid to have this authority
✓ intervene, because he reco"o
nized that it was sovereign in debated matters and exempt from

THE TESTIMONY OF SAINT BERNARD

691

all error. And he wrote to Our predecessor of happy memory,
Eugenius III, who had in former times been his student, these
words which bear the imprint of his charity and his deepest rev­
erence, together with that liberty of soul which becomes the
Saints: “Love knows no master, it recognizes its son even in pon­
tifical splendor... I advise thee, therefore, not as a master, but as
a mother; plainly, as one that loves you” (a). And then he sum­
mons him with these vehement words: “Who art thou? The high
priest, the Sovereign Pontiff. Thou art the prince of Bishops, thou
art the heir of the Apostles ... Peter in thy power, by the anoint­
ing of Christ. Thou it is to whom the keys are committed, to whom
the sheep are entrusted. There are indeed other porters at the
heavenly gates, and other shepherds; but thou hast inherited a
name the more glorious as it is different from theirs and excels
them. For they each have their own flocks assigned, one to
each; to thee all flocks are entrusted, as a single flock to one
man. And not only of the sheep: thou alone art the Shepherd
of the shepherds” (b). And again: “He would have to leave
the earth, who would wish to find what is not in thy charge” (c).
On his infallibility
Frankly and clearly he recognized the infallible teaching of 1344
the Roman Pontiff when it is a question of faith and morals. (169)
For, noting the errors of Abelard who “when he speaks of the
Trinity, smacks of Arius; when he speaks of grace, Pelagius, of
the person of Christ, Nestorius" (a), “who establishes degrees
in the Trinity, inodes in the majesty, numbers in eternity” (b),
in whom “human ingenuity takes over entirely, keeping nothing
for faith” (c), not only does he dissect Abelard’s subtleties,
illusions, and errors, dissipating and refuting them, but he also
writes on this matter to Our Predecessor of immortal memory,
Innocent II, the following very grave words: “All dangers should
be referred to your apostolic office ... but especially those which
touch upon the faith. For I believe that attacks on the faith
should be repulsed there precisely where the faith cannot be at
fault. And this is the prerogative of this See.. .. This is the
moment, Most Holy Father, for you to acknowledge your
primacy.... You will truly be the Vicar of Peter, whose place
1343a De Consid., Prolog.
1343c Ibid., Ill, c. 1.
1344b De error. Abælardi, Praef.

1343b Ibid., II, c. 8.
1344a Epist. CXCII.
1344c Epist. CL.XX.XX III.

692

THE EXAMPLE OF THE APOSTLES

you bold, if by your admonition you strengthen hearts waver­
ing in the faith, if by your authority you crush those corrupting
the faith" (d).
(Strength and humility.—Love for Jesus and
Mary.—Imitate Saint Bernard.)

1345
(88,
142,
228)

THE EXAMPLE OF THE APOSTLES
All. to the pilgrims of different Christian confessions,
June 28, 1953.
(Words of welcome.)
No type of cruelty can destroy the Church, which received
its life from Christ dying on Golgotha. “Persecution does not
weaken the Church, it strengthens it" (a), wrote Leo, Our holy
Predecessor, that illustrious successor of the Prince of the
Apostles; and the centuries which have passed since Paul was
beheaded outside the walls and Peter crucified not far from the
spot where We are, are witnesses to this, and assure us that the
barque of Peter will still cleave a sure path through the often
stormy waves of this world’s tempests: an invisible divine hand
is at the helm.
Tomorrow the Church, and especially Rome, will commem­
orate these two great beacon lights: Saint Peter and Saint Paul,
who have shed such eternal glory on our city.
It is Our prayer that the light of their teaching and their
example may illumine the path of each one of you!

THE SOCIETY OF THE ELECT
R.M. to the 6th National Eucharistic Congress of Brazil,
August 15, 1953.
*B
(Introduction.—Contemplation of the heavenly Jerusalem,
where the Blessed Virgin reigns. )
1346
An image, a preparation, a prehide to that divine and
(46, eternal vision is the spectacle which you offer today, united at
51, the sacred Table or recollected in profound adoration before the
77, Eucharistic throne; but above all. and in proportion, a much
131) more grandiose spectacle, is the Holy Catholic Church, which.
spread through the entire world, is nevertheless always one in
faith and love of the Divine Eucharist. Let the altars be multi­
plied: it is ever one and the same divine Victim immolating
1344d De error. Ahælardi, Praef.
1345a Sermon LXXX1I, c. VI, In natal. Ap. Petri et Pauli.

TUE SOCIETY Ol TUE ELECT

693

Himself two or three thousand times a day all over the world;
likewise, let the sacred Tables be multiplied: it is always and
ever the same divine manna that all receive, and all of them, be
they millions of souls, it unites in the one Mystical Body of Christ.
That is why the genius of St. Augustine was able to say that the
Sacred Eucharist is, in the last analysis, the society of the elect,
because it symbolizes it, prepares it, and forms it (a).
The Eucharist, unifying principle of the Mystical Body

In fact, the Eucharist, this mystery of mysteries and “greatest 1347
of all miracles” of the infinite love of Christ—you have meditated (51)
on it during the days of your sixth National Congress—the Eu­
charist was instituted by Christ principally .that it might become
as it were the Heart of the Church: the center where converge
and where are formed into one single body and one single soul
all the faithful dispersed in every quarter of the globe, and the
perennial source whence they draw the nutritive sap of the same
divine life. It is He Himself who solemnly affirms with all the
certitude of his infallible and omnipotent word: “My flesh is
meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh
and drinks my blood abideth in me and I in him” (a). And it
was after the first communion, instituted and distributed by his
divine hands, that He formulated his new commandment: “Love
one another as I have loved you”—; and it was then that He
formulated, as Eternal High Priest, the supreme desire of his
love: Holy Father, keep them in thy name whom thou hast
given me, that they may be one, as we are.” And not only those
who are here present, but all those who, in the course of the
centuries, will come to believe in me: that all may be one, as
thou. Father, in me and I in thee, that they also may be one
in us, ...in the most perfect and constant unity (b).
0 mystery of the divine, the infinite mercy! O sign and 1348
efficacious seal of unity! O bond of charity, symbol of peace and (51)
concord! (a) One single and identical Victim to adore on every
altar; one single divine food served from the Sacred Table in
every place; and all, without distinction of origin or nationality,
of condition or social class, all are equally invited to believe, to
1346a In Joann. Evang. Tract. XXVI, Nos. 15-17.
1347a John 5:56-57.
1347b Cf. John 13:24; 17:11. 20-23.
1348a Cf. Augustine, In Joann. Ev. tract. XXVI, 13; Council of
Trent, sess. XIII, 8.

694

THE SOCIETY OF THE ELECT

adore, and to communicate, for all are equally participants in
his body and blood, all are raised to the same sovereign nobility,
divinae naturae consortes, “partakers of the divine nature” (b);
so that all will feel themselves to be more than brothers, mem­
bers of one single Mystical Body of Christ, loving one another
affectively and effectively, as if it were Christ Himself (c).

The model of unity
1349
And if there are obstacles to be overcome, interests in
(38) opposition to one another, antagonisms, passions which engender
disunion, the love of Jesus in the Eucharist and the all-powerful
grace which comes from it “for him who receives it not only
materially, but spiritually and fruitfully,” will be able, in the
end, to surmount, to disentangle, and to vanquish difficulties
and to cement peace and concord.
This is why Jesus, Eucharistic love, does not hesitate to
propose to his own even in this world in maligno positus, “seated
in wickedness,” as ideal of the love of God and man which
should unite them, the unity of the Most Blessed Trinity! He it
is who, in instituting the Divine Eucharist, made of our earth
on which weighs heavily the curse of sin, more than an image of
heaven ... a paradise in anticipation!

1350
The first faithful understood this in an admirable way;
(51) whenever they celebrated the Holy Sacrifice they received the
Eucharist; therefore, they loved and assisted one another mu­
tually, to the point of putting their goods in common, as
members of the same family, and even more as being “one heart
and one mind”, as the inspired writer says (a). That is why
they used to pray in thanksgiving: “As the bread from many
grains of wheat dispersed on the mountain tops, is now united
and made one, so from the ends of the earth, O Lord, let your
Church be gathered together into your Kingdom” (b). Again,
that is why the most certain and most sure sign of Christian
charity was the Eucharist, which they sent to the absent,
and different communities exchanged It with each other (c).
Finally, this is why the Apostle St. Paul found it so strange that
1348b St. John Chrysostom, In Joann. Hom., XLVI, 3; St. Cyril of
Jerusalem, Catech., XXII, 3; Cf. 2 Peter 1:4.
1348c St. John Chrysostom, In I Cor., Hom., XXIV, 2.
1350a Acts 4:32.
1350b Didache IV, 4.
1350c St. Justin, Apol., I, 65; Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. I, 5, c. 24.

■BM

THE ENTRANCE TO THE GA TE OF SALVATION

695

some of the faithful of Corinth had introduced social distinctions
at the Lord’s Table (d).
f

THE ENTRANCE TO THE GATE OF SALVATION
All. to the students of the Gregorianum, October 17, 1953.
(The fourth centenary of the University.—Historic aspect —
Scholastic method—Speculative studies and positive sciences.)

No one of these disciplines or sciences constitutes an en- 1351
trance into the Church; with all the more reason would it be <61,
false to assert that there is only one single door to enter by.
88,
Even the most holy and the most eminent Doctor, the Church
98,
never has accepted, and does not now accept as the principal 102)
source of truth. Certainly, she considers Thomas and Augustine
great Doctors, and she accords them the highest praise; but she
recognizes infallibility only in the inspired authors of the Sacred
Scriptures. By divine mandate the interpreter and guardian of
the Sacred Scriptures, depository of Sacred Tradition living
within her, the Church alone is the entrance to salvation, she
alone, by herself, and under the protection and guidance of the
Holy Spirit, is the source of truth (a).
(Divers schools of orthodox philosophy.—The institute of
social sciences.—The faculties of Canon Law, Ecclesiastical
History, and of Missiology.)
Above all, this principle should be kept in mind—which, in
any case, is required by reverence for the truth: that the Church.
although human faults can be found in her, is always the Church
of Christ, and, as such, true and infallible in preserving and
transmitting the sacred deposit of faith, that is, of truth and
heavenly grace; and she is holy, in fact, the very same "Church
of God, which He purchased with his blood” (a). God is always
great and wonderful in his works, but He is especially to be
considered so where his greatest charity is shown forth, where
his most abundant redemption in our regard is made perfect,
namely in the Catholic Church.
I350d 1 Cor. 11:17-21.
1351a Ecclesia nempe Dei mandato Sacrarum Scripturarum inter­
pres et custos, in se viventis Sacne 1 rad itionis depositaria, ipsa
est ad salutem adipiscendam porta, ipsa, sub tutela duc tuque
Spiritus Sancti, sibi fons est veritatis.
1352a Acts 20:28.

1352
(-4,
96.
99100,
102.
228)

696

DEFENDERS OF I I IE CHURCH

(Eulogy of Père Billot.—Grandeur of the work accomplished
by the University.)

DEFENDERS OF THE CHURCH

All. to the members of the Italian Catholic Action, Novem­
ber 4, 1953.
(Directives have previously been given to the chaplains.)
Today We will confine Ourselves to insisting on the absolute
(125, necessity for you to close your ranks and to be—as it is your
217, desire and your aspiration—a peaceful and valiant army, ready
228) for every sign from the Church, for every sign from the Pope.
This eagerness and this zeal in the execution of the least
desires of the Vicar of Christ has ever been one of the most
splendid jewels in the beautiful golden crown of the young
members of Italian Catholic Action: generously disposed for any
sacrifice whatever, so that this luster will not be clouded, this
glorious tradition never interrupted.
If Catholic youth were ever to hesitate or debate when the
Church and the Pope gave directives or norms, it would not be
worthy of its history and of its glory.
(The struggles of the Church in the course of her history.)

1353

In such periods, those who relied upon appearances would
(226- have believed in a real danger to the existence or at least to
229) the work of the Church among men; but, in fact, with the help
of her Divine Founder and invisible Head, she has found, and
will find until the end of time, that these are so many occasions
of progress: an increased precision in her doctrine, a marvelous
richness of sanctity within, and the extension of her apostolate to
other lands, thanks to her missions. Beside the prevaricators
God raised up Saints, to the heretics He opposed Doctors, the
violence of autocratic Emperors was thwarted by the courage
of the Pontiffs, and even the so-called Protestant reform was
opposed by the great work of the Catholic restoration.
(Today's dangers: technical progress coinciding with moral
decadence.—New hopes of the Church.)

1354

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
All. to the 5th National Assembly of the Union of Italian
Catholic Jurists, December 6, 1953.

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

697

(Sovereign nations and international communities.—Co-ex­
istence of Catholics and non-Catholics.—Toleration of error.—
Criteria for the jurist. )
For what concerns the religious and moral sphere, he will 1355
also ask the judgment of the Church. In the name of the Church, (158)
in such decisive questions which touch upon the international
life, he alone is competent, in the final analysis, to whom Christ
confided the direction of the whole Church, the Roman Pontiff.

Mission of unification
The institution of a Community of peoples, such as today
has been partly realized, but which it is hoped to effect and
strengthen to a higher and more perfect degree, is a movement
from beneath to a higher level, that is to say, of a plurality of
sovereign States towards the highest unity.
The Church of Christ has, in virtue of the mandate of her
Divine Founder, a similar universal mission. She is to gather to
herself and assemble into a religious unity men of every people
and of all times. But here the method is in a certain sense re­
versed; it proceeds from above downwards. In the first case
under consideration, the superior juridical unity of the communitv
of peoples was, or is still, to be created. In the second, the juridi­
cal community with its universal end, its constitution, its powers
and those who are invested with them, is already from the very
beginning established by the will and institution of Christ Him­
self. The function of this universal community is, from the very
beginning, to incorporate as far as possible all men and all
nations (a), and so to gain them entirely to the truth and grace
of Jesus Christ ( b ).

1356
(12,
7778,
131132,
137138)

In the accomplishment of her mission the Church has always 1357
found herself, and finds herself still in large measure, faced with (80,
1356a Cf. Matt. 28:19.
1356b Ma qui la via è in nn certo senso contraria; essa va dall’alto
al basso. In quella prima teste ricordata, l’unità superiore giu ridica
della comunità dei popoli era o è ancora da creare. In questa,
la comunità giuridica col suo fine universale, la sua costituzione,
le sue potestà e coloro che ne sono rivestili, è già fin dal principio
stabilita per la volontà e la istituzione di Cristo stesso. L'ufficio
di questa comunità universale fin dall’inizio è di incorporarsi
possibilmente tutti gli uomini e lutte le genti, e con cio di guadagnarli interamente alla verità e alla grazia di Gesù Cristo.

698

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

83,
the same problems that the “functioning” of a Community of
96,
Sovereign States must surmount; only she feels them even more
100) acutely because she is bound to the object of her mission.

determined by her Founder Himself, an object which penetrates
into the depths of the human mind and heart. In this condition
of things, conflicts are inevitable, and history shows that there
have always been conflicts, and there are still, and, according to
the Lord’s word, there will be until the end of time. Because the
Church, by the very fact of her mission, has found herself, and
finds herself still, before men and peoples of marvelous culture,
before others almost unbelievably lacking in culture, and others
still of all possible intermediate degrees: diversity of race, of
language, of philosophy, of religious confessions, of national
aspirations and peculiarities; free peoples and slave, peoples who
have never belonged to the Church, and people who have de­
tached themselves from her communion. The Church must live
among them and with them; she can never say, face to face with
anyone, that she is “not interested”. The commandment imposed
upon her by her Divine Founder makes it impossible for her to
follow the rule of “laisser faire, laisser passer". She has the duty
to teach and to educate with all the inflexibility of the true and
the good and, with this absolute obligation, she must remain and
work among men and communities who have completely different
manners of thinking (a).
Let Us go back now to the two propositions We mentioned
1358
(99, above: and in the first place to the one concerning unconditional
224) negation of all that is false in religious matters and bad in moral

matters. Regarding this point there never has been and there is
not for the Church any hesitation, any compromise, either in
theory or in practice. Her attitude has not changed in the course
of history, and it cannot change whenever and wherever, under
whatever varied forms, she is placed before the alternative: in­
cense for idols or blood for Christ. The place where you now
stand, Roma Aeterna, bv its relics of a greatness that was and
with the glorious memories of its martyrs, is the most eloquent .
1357a Jl mandato impostole dal suo divino Fondatorc le rende
impossibile di segu ire la norma del "lasciar correre, lasciar fare".
Essa ha Γufficio d'insegnare e di educare con tutta l’inflessibilità
del vero e del buono e con questo obbligo assoluto deve stare e
operare tra uomini e comunità che pensano in modi completamente diversi.

SPOUSE AND VIRGIN

699

testimony to the response of the Church. The incense was not
burned before the idols, and Christian blood bathed the soil now
become sacred. But the temples of the gods in their majestic
mins are only lifeless relics; while around the tombs of the mar­
tyrs the faithful of every nation and every tongue fervently
repeat the Creed of the Apostles.

Tolerance

As for the second proposition, that is to say, tolerance, in 1359
determined circumstances, even in cases in which it is possible (60)
that the next step is repression, the Church—if only out of con­
sideration for those who with a good conscience (even erroneous,
but incorrigible ) are of a different opinion—has been led to act
and has acted according to that toleration, after which under
Constantine the Great and the other Christian Emperors, she
became the Church of the State, but always for more noble and
important motives; so she acts today and will act in the future
if she finds herself faced with the same necessity. In particular
cases the attitude of the Church is determined by her intention
of safeguarding the bonum commune, the common good of the
Church, and of the State in each one of the political communi­
ties, on the one hand, and, on the other, the bonum commune of
the universal Church, of the kingdom of God upon earth. To
appreciate the pros and the cons in the determination of the
‘quoestio facti ’, the Church observes no other norms than those
which We have already indicated for the jurist and for the Cath­
olic statesman, even in what concerns the ultimate and supreme
instance.
(The Concordats—The International Community
and the assurance of peace. )
SPOUSE AND VIRGIN
Encycl. Sacra Virginitas, March 25, 1954.
(Holy virginity and perfect chastity, the precious treasures
of the Church.—Nature of Christian virginity.—Its advantages.—
The virgins are the honor of the Church.)
It pleases Us especially to consider what is the sweetest 1360
fruit of virginity: that virgins make manifest, and, as it were, (63,
public, the perfect virginity of their mother the Church herself 128and the sanctity of her close union with Christ. It is for this 129)
reason that the Bishop makes use of the following words, written
with such wisdom, as he follows the rite of the Consecration of

♦w··

700

PREACHING, THE ACT OF HIE CHURCH

Virgins, humbly praying to God: “that there may be more noble
souls who, renouncing the pleasures of the flesh in marriage will
desire its mystery, and, not imitating what is practiced in human
nuptials, will love what these nuptials symbolize’’ (a).

1361
That virgins are the living image of that perfect integrity
(63, by which the Church is joined to her Divine Spouse, this is
129) beyond doubt their greatest glory; moreover, they present an
admirable sign of the flourishing holiness and the spiritual
fruitfulness in which this society', founded by' Jesus Christ, excels,
and this sign is for that society a very great and intense joy. In
this sense Cyprian writes most happily: “This is the flower
blossoming in the Church, the adornment and ornament of
spiritual grace, the joy of her nature, a perfect and incorruptible
work of praise and honor, the image of God corresponding to
the sanctity of the Lord, the most illustrious portion of the
flock of Christ. The glorious fecundity of the Church our Mother
rejoices in them and flowers forth abundantly in them; the more
the number of virgins increases, so too does her joy grow
greater” (a).

1362
(96,
101102,
108)

PREACHING, THE ACT OF THE CHURCH
Letter from the Secretariat of State to Bishop Duperray of
Montpellier, April 13, 1954.
(The 67th Congress of the "Union of Workers.”—Theme:
the ministry of the Word of God.)
In the Church, it is well known, the office of preaching
belongs properly to the bishop, and no priest can take this
function upon himself: he must have received the lawful mission
to preach, and only the bishop can give it to him. This traditional
teaching, which, perhaps, it is not useless to recall to the clergy
both secular and regular, is not simply disciplinary in its signi­
ficance. For it is by this essential referral to the bishop that
preaching becomes in truth an act of the Church, the act by
which the Spouse of Christ continues to dispense, by the voice
of her priests, the inexhaustible riches of the Gospel teaching.
Therefore, with what a spirit of respect and detachment
should the preacher, witness to and messenger of truth, put him­
self at the service of the Church to manifest the splendor of this
1360a Pont. Rom., De benedictione et consecratione virginum.
1361a St. Cyprian, De habitu virginum, III.

RESTORE ALL THINGS IN CHRIST

701

teaching before the eyes of men! With what supernatural assur­
ance should he not announce a doctrine which is exempt from
the frailty and the mutability of human opinion because it rests
on the rock of divine Revelation of which the Church is the
infallible interpreter.
(Preaching must first of all be concerned with truth in its
purity and integrity.—Exhortation.)
RESTORE ALL THINGS IN CHRIST

All. for the canonization of Blessed Pius X, May 29, 1954.
(An hour of triumph for the Church.—The program of the
Pontificate: "To restore all things in Christ.”)

But what is the road which opens for us the way to Jesus 1363
Christ? he asked himself, as he looked lovingly at the bewildered (61)
and hesitating souls of his time. The answer, valid yesterday,
as it is today and for all time to coine, is the Church! It was,
therefore, his first care, pursued incessantly until his death, to
make the Church ever more concretely ready and open to the
journeying of men to Jesus Christ.

Legislative work
(In harmony with the practical good sense of Pius X, its
ultimate motive must be sought elsewhere.)

The profound source of the legislative work of Pius X is to 1364
be sought above all in his personal sanctity, in his intimate
(4)
persuasion that the reality of God, perceived by him in an
incessant communion of life, is the origin and foundation of all
order, of all justice, of all law in the world. There where God is,
there is order, justice, and law; and, vice versa, all just order
protected by law manifests the presence of God. But what insti­
tution on earth should manifest more eminently than the Church,
the Mystical Body of Christ Himself, this fruitful relation be­
tween God and law? God blessed abundantly the work of the
holy Pontiff, so that the Code of Canon Law will remain forever
the great monument of his Pontificate, and he himself may be
considered the Saint sent by Providence to our times (a).
1364a Iddio benedisse largamente Γopera del beato Pontefice,
cosicchè il Codice di diritto canonico restera nei secoli il grande
monumento del suo Pontificate, cd egli stesso potrà considerarsi,
come il Santo provvidenziale del tempo presente.

702

RESTORE ALL THINGS IN CHRIST

The second enterprise of the Saint: "the interior unity
of the Church in its inner structure: faith"
(Struggle against modernism.)

1365
Solicitous only to keep intact the heritage of God for the flock
(46, confided to him, the great Pontiff knew no weakness in facing
170) anyone, however high the dignity or authority of the person.
no hesitations before seductive, though false doctrines, inside
the Church or out, nor any fear in drawing personal offenses
upon himself and of being, unjustly, misinterpreted in the purity
of his intentions. He had the clear consciousness that he was
struggling for the cause of God and of souls. There was verified
in him to the letter the words of the Lord to the Apostle Peter:
“I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not, and thou...con­
firm thy brethren” (a). The promise and the command of Christ
gave rise once again, in the undying firmness of one of his
Vicars, to the indomitable courage of the athlete. It is just that
the Church, in decreeing to him in this hour the supreme glory
in the very spot where for centuries has shone the undimmed
glory of Peter, and uniting one and the other in a single apotheo­
sis, should sing to Pius X her gratitude and at the same time
invoke his intercession that she may be spared new conflicts of
this nature.
But what was then properly at stake, namely the preserva­
tion of the intimate union of faith and science, is so great a good
for the whole of humanity, that this second great work of the
holy Pontiff is also of such importance that it goes far beyond
the limits of the Catholic world.
(The priestly sanctity of Pius X—Communion for children.)
The Eucharist
1366
In the profound vision which he had of the Church as a
(8,
society, Pius X in the Eucharist recognized the power to nourish
51, its inner life and to raise it high above all other human associaS3) tions. The Eucharist alone, in which Cod gives Himself to man.
can establish a life in society worthy of its members, cemented
by love before being bound together by authority, rich in works
and tending to the perfecting of each man, a life hidden in
Cod with Christ” (a).
1365a Luke 22:32.

1366a Cf. Col. 3:3.

THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MAGISTERIUM

703

Providential example for the world of today, in which
terrestrial society, having become constantly more a kind of
enigma to itself, is looking anxiously for a solution to give itself
back a soul! Let it look at the model of the Church assembled
about its altars. Here, in the Eucharistic mystery, man discovers
and recognizes legitimately his past, his present, and his future,
as a unity in Christ ( b ).
(The Eucharist, principle and end of the sacerdotal aposto­
late-Prayer to St. Pius X. )
THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MAGISTERIUM
All. to the Cardinals and Bishops, May 31, 1954.
(The canonization of St. Pius X.—The Holy Father wishes
to share his pastoral anxieties with the bishops, and to speak to
them of their triple function: teaching, the priesthood, govern­
ment . 1

Christ our Lord entrusted the truth which He had brought
from heaven to the Apostles, and through them to their succes­
sors. He sent his Apostles, as He had been sent by the Father (a),
to teach all nations everything they had heard from Him (b).
The Apostles are, therefore, by divine right the true doctors and
teachers in the Church. Besides the lawful successors of the
Apostles, namely the Roman Pontiff for the universal Church
and Bishops for the faithful entrusted to their care (c), there
are no otier teachers divinely
constituted in the Church of
J
Christ. But both the Bishops and, first of all, the Supreme
Teacher and Vicar of Christ on earth, may associate others with
themselves in their work of teacher, and use their advice; they
delegate to them the faculty to teach, either by special grant,
or by conferring an office to which the faculty is attached (d).
Those who are so called teach not in their own name, nor by
reason of their theological knowledge, but by reason of the
mandate which they have received from the lawful Teaching
Authority. Their faculty always remains subject to that Authority,
nor is it ever exercised in its own right or independently.
Bishops, for their part, by conferring this faculty are not deprived
of the right to teach; they retain the very grave obligation of
1366b Cf. Council of Trent.
1367a John 20:21.
1367c Cf. C.I.C. can. 1326.

1367b Cf. Matt. 28:19 f.
1367d Cf. C.I.C. can. 1328.

1367

165,
197.
198)

704

THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MAGISTERIUM

supervising the doctrine, which others propose, in order to help
them, and of seeing to its integrity and security (e). Therefore,
the legitimate Teaching Authority of the Church is guilty of no
injury or no offense to any of those to whom it has given a
canonical mission, if it desires to ascertain what they, to whom
it has entrusted the mission of teaching, are proposing and de­
fending in their lectures, in books, notes, and reviews intended
for the use of their students, as well as in books and other
publications intended for the general public.

1368
In order to accomplish this, We do not contemplate extend(156, ing the prescriptions of canon law on previous censorship of
165) books to include all these kinds of teaching; for there are many
ways and means at hand for investigating and acquiring accurate
information on what professors are teaching. And this care and
prudence of the legitimate Teaching Authority does not at all
imply distrust or suspicion—( nor does the profession of faith
which the Church requires of professors and many others [a] );—on
the contrary, the fact that the office of teacher has been bestowed
implies confidence, high regard, and honor shown the person to
whom the office has been entrusted. Indeed the Holy See, when­
ever it inquires and wishes to be informed about what is being
taught in various seminaries, colleges, universities, and institu­
tions of higher learning, in those fields which pertain to its
jurisdiction, is led by no other motive than the consciousness
of Christ’s mandate and the obligation by which she is bound
before God to safeguard and preserve without corruption or
adulteration sound doctrine. Moreover the exercise of this vigi­
lance aims also at protecting and upholding your right and office
of feeding with the genuine teaching of Christ and with his
truth the flock entrusted to your pastoral care.
The task of professors

1369
Not without serious reason. Venerable Brothers, have We
(79, wished to recall these things in your presence. For unfortunately
98) it has happened that certain teachers care little for conformity
with the living Teaching Authority of the Church, pay little
heed to her commonly received doctrine clearly proposed in
1367e Episcopi vero, tali facultate data, num quam jure docendi
privantur, neque eximuntur gravissimo officio providendi et invigi­
landi integritati atque securitati doctrinae, quam alii in auxilium
assumpti proponunt.
1388a Cf. C.I.C., can. 1406, Nos. 7 f.

THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MAGISTERIUM

705

various ways; and at the same time they follow their own bent
too much, and regard too highly the intellectual temper of more
recent writers, and the standards of other branches of learning,
which they declare and hold to be the only ones which conform
to sound ideas and standards of scholarship. Of course the Church
is very keen for and fosters the study of human branches of
learning and their progress; she honors with special favor and
regard learned men who spend their lives in the cultivation of
learning. However, matters of religion and morals, because they
completely transcend truths of the senses and the plane of the
material, pertain solely to the office and authority of the
Church (a). In Our encyclical letter, Humani generis (b), We
described the attitude of mind, the spirit, of those whom We have
eferred to above; We also recalled to mind that some of the
iberrations from the truth which We repudiated in that Encycli■al had their direct origin in a neglect of conformity with the
iving Teaching Authority of the Church.
Time and again St. Pius X, in writings whose importance is 1370
nown to all of you, urgently stressed the need for this union with (101)
ie mind and teaching of the Church. His successor in the Suireme Pontificate, Benedict XV, did the same; in his first Encycli•al (a), after solemnly repeating Pius’ condemnation of Modernsm, he thus describes the attitude of mind of followers of that doctrine: He who is influenced by its principles disdainfully spurns
whatever appears old, and eagerly pursues the new: in his manner
of speaking of divine things, in performance of divine worship, in
Catholic usages, even in private devotion.’’ And if there are any
present-day teachers making every effort to produce and develop
new ideas, but not to repeat "that which has been handed down,’’
and if this is their whole aim, they should reflect calmly on those
words which Benedict XV, in the Encyclical just referred to,
proposes for their consideration: "We wish this maxim of our
elders held in reverence: Nihil innovetur nisi quod traditum
est, ‘Let nothing new be introduced but only what has been
handed down’ (b); it must he held as an inviolable law in
1369a Attamen res de religione et moribus, veritates sensibilium
ordinem omnino transcendentes, ad Ecclesiæ officium auctorita­
temque unice pertinent.
1369b Above, Nos. 1272 ff._
1370a Ad Beatissimi Apostolorum Principis; above Nos. 757-767.
13701) Cf. St. Etienne 1er, Epist. ad Cyprianum, ex hujus epist.
LXXIV ad Pompei, Denz. No. 46.

706

THE RESPONSIBILITY Of THE MAGISTERIUM

matters of faith, and should also control those points which allow
of change, though in these latter for the most part the rule
holds: Non nova sed noviter, ‘Not new things but in a new way.’”

1371
(87,
98,
118,
222)

1372
(216,
218)

"Lay Theology”
As for the laity, it is clear that they can be invited by
legitimate teachers and accepted as helpers in the defense oi
the faith. It is enough to call to mind the thousands of men
and women engaged in catechetical work, and other types of
lay apostolate, all of which are highly praiseworthy and can be
strenuously promoted. But all these lay apostles must be, and
remain, under the authority, leadership, and watchfulness of
those who by divine institution are set up as teachers of Christ’s
Church. In matters involving the salvation of souls, there is no
teaching authority in the Church not subject to this authority
and vigilance (a).
Recently what is called “lay theology” has sprung up and
spread to various places, and a new class of “lay theologian” has
emerged, which claims to be sui juris; there are professors of this
theology' occupying established chairs, courses are given, notes
published, seminars held. These professors distinguish their
teaching authority from, and in a certain way set it up against,
the public Teaching Authority of the Church; at times, in order
to justify'' their position, they appeal to the charismatic gifts of
teaching and of interpreting prophecy, which are mentioned
more than once in the New Testament, especially in the Pauline
Epistles (a); they appeal to history, which from the beginning
of the Christian religion down to today presents so many names
of laymen who for the good of souls have taught the truth of
Christ orally' and in writing, though not called to this by the
Bishops and without having asked or received the sacred teach­
ing authority, led on by their own inward impulse and apostolic
zeal. Nevertheless it is necessary to maintain to the contrary that
there never has been, there is not now, and there never will be
in the Church a legitimate teaching authority of the laity' with­
drawn by God from the authority, guidance, and watchfulness
of the sacred Teaching Authority; in fact, the very denial of
submission offers a convincing proof and criterion that laymen
1371a NuUum est enim in Ecclesia, in rebus ad salutem animarum
spectantibus, magisterium quod huic potestati ac vigilant iæ sub­
ductum sit.
1372a Cf. Rom. 12:6f.; 1 Cor. 12:28-30.

THE NEEDS OF THE CHURCH

707

who thus speak and act are not guided by the Spirit of God and
of Christ (b). Furthermore, everyone can see how great a danger
of confusion and error there is in this “lay theology”; a danger
also lest others begin to be taught by men clearly unfitted for
the task, or even by deceitful and fraudulent men, whom
St. Paul described: “The time will come when men ..., always
itching to hear something fresh, will provide themselves with a
continuous succession of new teachers, as the whim takes them,
turning a deaf ear to the truth, bestowing their attention on
fables instead” (c).
Far be it from Us by this admonition to turn away from a
deeper study and dissemination of sacred doctrine those men, of
whatsoever class or group, who are inspired to it by such a
noble zeal.
( Exhortation to the bishops. )
THE NEEDS OF THE CHURCH

All. on the occasion of the recognition of the relics of
St. Gregory VII, July 11, 1954.
{The figure of St. Gregory, defender of justice and of the
Church.)
What appeared sovereignly necessarv at that time, and what 1373
Gregory VII tenaciously willed, was to reestablish the Church (91)
in the independence, in the unity, and in the sanctity with which
her Divine Founder bad endowed her.
It was necessary for the Church to be free. And this is why
Gregory VII accepted the conflicts which were necessary to make
her free, a strong healthy body, loosed from the chains and
from the hindrances imposed upon her by earthly powers,
especially in the liberty of choosing her Pastors. This is the mean­
ing of the Investiture struggle, one of the most bitter and most
important which the Church has had to wage for her independ­
ence, and which strengthened in the Pontiffs of the second mil­
lenium, which was then opening, the consciousness of its supreme
value and the duty of defending it with all their powers.
1372b Verumtamcn hæc contra retinenda sunt: numquam nempe
fuit neque est neque uinquam erit in Ecclesia legitimum laicorum
magisterium, quod a Deo auctoritati, ductui, vigilantia’ sacri Ma­
gisterii fuerit subtractum; immo ipsa subjectionis negatio evincens
exhibet argumentum et judicium: laicos ita loquentes et agentes
non duci Spiritu Dei et Christi.
1372c Cf. 2 Tim. 4:3 f.

708

THE PASTOR

1374
It was necessary, further, for the Church to be united, with
(8)
that organic and living unity proper to a body and to its perfect
development. And this is why Gregory VII became the inde­
fatigable promoter of frequent and intimate relations with the
Bishops and, through them, with the whole of Christendom, The
collection of his letters, in which are to be found the names of all
the nations, whether ancient or recently founded, which were
known at that time, are a marvelous testimony to his solicitude
for the unity of the Church and his intense desire to heal the
schism, then of recent date, between Eastern and Western
Christendom,
1375
Most important of all, it was necessary for the Church to be
(83, holy. In fact, what other end could her organism serve, whose
126) origin and inner constitution reveal the ineffable prodigies of the
wisdom, the holiness, and the charity of God? This is the reason
for the ardent zeal of Gregory VII for the renewal of sacerdotal
virtue and the moral renovation of peoples in Christian manners.
It is thus that from a holy Church, united and free, he expected
an efficacious, beneficent influence on the “earthly city.” No
Pope, perhaps, has understood better than he and pursued with
such ardor the task of the Church in the world and for the world.
(Hope for the future triumph of the Church.)

THE PASTOR
Letter from the Secretariat of State, September 15, 1954,
to Cardinal Lercaro, Archbishop of Bologna.
(“The Parish’', theme of the 5th Week on pastoral problems.
—Recent transformations in society.—Role of the parish
institution. )
1376
Collaborator and participant in the power in virtue of which
(205) the Bishop wields the spiritual government of the Christian peo­
ple within the limits of his diocese, the pastor derives from the
episcopal dignit}· and authority, constituted by Christ for the
government of his Church, the continuing importance of his
pastoral function, and he propagates its teaching, dispenses its
spiritual graces, executes its directives. And just as he is the first
to submit in a filial way and in all loyalty to the Bishop and to
the Supreme Head of the Church, the Pope, so he is the first
to inculcate in the flock under his care the sense of ecclesiastical
unity, to require from it an affectionate discipline, to stimulate

THE THREE "AUTONOMIES''

709

in it the spirit of prayer, the ardor of charity, the vigor of good
works.
(New methods of pastoral action.)

THE THREE "AUTONOMIES”
Encycl. Ad Sinarum gentem, October 7, 1954, to the hier­
archy and faithful of China.
(Catholicism in China—The patriotism of the Catholics.)
The autonomy of government
(The disinterested devotion of the missionaries.)
In the second place: even when the increase of native clergy
among you no longer requires the assistance of foreign Missionaries, the Catholic Church can never be, in your Nation any more
than in any other, an “autonomous regime,” as they say. Even
then, as you know well, it is absolutely necessary that the Christian community in your land, if it wishes to be part of the society
divinely established by Our Redeemer, be subject in all things
to the Soverign Pontiff, the Vicar of Jesus Christ on earth, and
that it be most closely united to him in all that pertains to faith
and morals. In these words—and it is important to note this—We
include the whole life and work of the Church; and by that very
fact, her constitution, her government, and her discipline; which
all, beyond a doubt, depend upon the will of Jesus Christ, the
Church’s Founder. It is certainly by this divine will that the faithful are divided into two classes: the clergy and the laity; and by
the same will is established the double sacred power, i.e., of order
and of jurisdiction. Moreover, and this is also of divine origin,
access is had to the power of orders, which constitutes the Eccle­
siastical Hierarchy composed of Bishops, by the reception of the
sacrament of Holy Orders; as for the power of jurisdiction, which
is conferred directly by the same divine right upon the Supreme
Pontiff, it comes to the Bishops by the same right, but only from
the Successor of Peter, to whom, indeed, not only the faithful, but
also all the Bishops are held to be constantly subject and united in
the homage of obedience and the bond of unity.
Finally, and by that same divine will, it is forbidden for
either the people or the civil power to infringe upon the rights
and constitution of the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy (a).
(Economic autonomy.)
1378a Cf. Cone. Trid., Sess. XXIII, De Ordine, Can. 2-7; Cone.
Vat. Sc.w. IV; C.I.C., Can. 108 et 109.

1377
(2,
12,
44,
57,
95,
135,
137,
145,
147,
154,
172,
177,
151153)

1378
(92,
13S)

710

IHl THREE "AUTONOMIES”

Autonomy of preaching
1379
Finally, there are some among yon who, as We have said,
(101) not only wish to see your Church subject to no authority in

government and economy, but also are attempting to claim for
her “autonomy”, as they call it, in the teaching of Christian
doctrine and in sacred preaching.
We certainly do not deny that methods of teaching and
preaching ought to differ according to place, and that the meth­
ods ought to conform, as far as possible, to the peculiar nature
of the Chinese people, to their particular traditions and ancient
culture; even more, if it is a question of the manner which should
be used, greater fruit will doubtless be realized among you. Butand this would be the most absurd of all—by what right could
men, according to their own judgment, interpret (he Gospel,
divinely revealed by Jesus Christ, in different ways to different
nations?
1380
(97,
99,
101,
165,
171,
197198,
206,
223)

To the Bishops, who are the successors of the Apostles, and
also to priests, who assist them according to their proper office,
has been given the charge of proclaiming and teaching the same
Gospel which Christ Himself and his Apostles first announced
and taught, and which this Apostolic See and all the Bishops.
united to it, have ever, in the course of centuries, kept and transmitted unspotted in its integrity. Sacred Pastors, therefore, are
not inventors and authors, but pnly the authorized custodians
and divinely appointed heralds (a). Therefore, We Ourselves
and the Bishops united with Us can and ought to reiterate the
words of Jesus Christ: “My doctrine is not mine but his that sent
me” (b). And to every one of the Bishops of no matter what peri­
od can be attributed this exhortation of the Apostle Paul: “0 Tim­
othy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding the pro­
fane novelties of words, oppositions of knowledge falsely
1380a Sacrorum Antistitibus, qui Apostolorum successores sunt,
itemque sacerdotibus, qui iisdem adjutricem pro suo cujusque
officio navant operam, munus demandatum est Evangelium illud
annuntiandi ac docendi, quod Christus ipse ejusque Apostoli an­
nuntiavere ac docuere primi, et quod hæc Apostolica Sedes
omnesque Episcopi, eidem adhaerentes, per saeculorum decursum
illibatum inviolatumque servarunt ac tradiderunt. Sacri igitur
Pastores hujus Evangelii non inventores auctoresve sunt, sed
solummodo custodes ex auctoritate, ac pnecones divinitus consti­
tui·
1380b John 7:16.

THE THREE "AUTONOMIES

so-called” (c); and likewise these words of the same Apostle:
Keep the good thing committed to thy trust by the Holy Ghost
who dwelleth in us” (d). We are not, therefore, teachers of a
doctrine drawn from human minds, but, conscious of our charge,
we ought to embrace and follow that which Christ Our Lord
taught and whose teaching, by a solemn commandment, He com­
mitted to his Apostles and their successors (e).
That is why those who are Bishops and priests of the true 1381
Church of Christ should often observe and meditate upon what (99,
the Apostle Paul asserted about his own preaching of the Gospel: 197)
I make known to ;ou, brethren, that the Gospel which was
preached by me, is not according to man, for neither did I re­
ceive it of man, nor did I learn it, but bv the revelation of Jesus
Christ" (a).
And, moreover, since We are very certain that this doctrine, 1382
which, relying upon the assistance of the Holy Spirit, We must (99)
safeguard in all its integrity, is divinely revealed, We repeat the
words of the Apostle of the Nations: “But though we, or an angel
from heaven, preach a gospel to you besides that which we have
preached to you, let him be anathema” (a).

Catholicity and supra-nationality of the Church

You will easily understand then, A'enerable Brothers and 1383
beloved sons, that no one can pretend to glory in the name (112)
Catholic, who professes or teaches, in one manner or another,
otherwise than as We have here briefly explained, as they do
who adhere to the pernicious principles of the “three autonomies,”
or to other principles of the same order.
Those who are promoting this movement seek with the 1384
greatest astuteness and skill either to deceive the simple and (57,
timid, or to turn them aside from the right path; to do so they 131)
falsely assert that they alone truly love their country who adhere
to the Church which they have imagined, namely the one which
enjoys these “autonomies.” But in fact, to come to the point. the\
are striving b\ every means in their power to establish among you
a "national” Church, as they call it; and this Church, if it should
come into being, would no longer be Catholic, since it would be
1380c 1 Tim. 6:20.
1380c Cf. Matt. 28:19-20.
1382a Gal. 1:8.

1380d 2 Tim. 1:14.
1381a Gal. 1:11-12.

712

THE METHOD ΟΓ THEOLOGY

the negation of that universality, or “catholicity”, which makes
the true society founded by Jesus Christ above all Nations, and
able to embrace all and each one (a).

1385
We are pleased to repeat here the words which, on this same
(131) subject, We wrote in that Apostolic Letter We have mentioned:
the Catholic Church “does not call to herself one single people,
or one single nation, but all men of whatever origin, of whatever
race she loves with that heavenly charity of Christ, which must
unite them each and all among themselves as brothers.
1386
“Wherefore, no one can claim that she is at the service of
(58, any particular power; in the same way it would be wrong to re131, quire of her that, breaking the unity with which her Divine
142) Founder willed her to be marked, she allow herself to be
organized in every nation into separated Churches, which, to
their own misfortune, would be detached from the Apostolic
See where Peter, the Vicar of Jesus Christ, lives in his successors
to the end of time. A Christian community which would act thus
would wither as the branch cut off from the vine (a), and could
not produce the fruits of salvation” (b).

THE METHOD OF THEOLOGY
R.M. to the International Congress on Mariology, Octo­
ber 24, 1954.
(Usefulness of the Congress.—Theological foundations of
Mariology. )
1387
(98,
101102,
109,
10")

The work of research, inasmuch as it concerns Mariology,
will proceed all the more safely and with greater fruit the more
constantly there is present to the eyes of all “that immediate and
universal rule of truth" established “for all theologians in matters
of faith and morals” (a), namely the sacred Magisterium of the
Church. For this—as We have already explained in Our Encycli1384a At revera, ut ad summam deveniamus, eo denique pro viri­
bus spectant ut Ecclesia ''nationalist, ut ajunt, apud vos consti­
tuatur, quæ quidem Ecclesia, si fieret, jam catholica non esset,
cum universitatem, seu "catholicitatem" illam negaret, qua fit ut
vera societas, a Jésus Christo condita, supra omnes Nationes sit.
easque singulas universas amplectatur.
1386a John 15:6.
1386b Cf. Above, Nos. 1320-1324.
1387a Enc. Humani generis, above No. 1281.

snanHMBra
THE METHOD OF THEOLOGY

713

cal Letter Humani generis—God gave to his Church “to illuminate
and to develop what was still obscure or, as it were, implicitly
contained in the deposit of faith.” The Divine Redeemer entrusted
solely to the Magisterium of the Church the task of illustrating
and interpreting authentically this deposit; on theologians is
incumbent the grave duty, on the mandate and under the guid­
ance of the Church, of investigating more profoundly, of scru­
tinizing and explaining this same deposit, the nature of the
individual truths, the connection between them, according to the
mles of sacred teaching (b).

The two sources

In the execution of this duty, it is necessary to take into ac­ 1388
count the double source of Catholic teaching, namely, Sacred (102)
Scripture and “Tradition”. Certainly, Sacred Scripture narrates
many wonderful things of the Blessed Virgin, as well in the books
of the Old as in the New Testament; what is more, her most excel­
lent gifts and prerogatives, namely her virginal motherhood, her
spotless sanctity, are expressly stated, and the picture and very
lineaments of the Virgin are described in vivid colors. But it
would be grievously to depart from the truth to feel that the
dignity and nobility of the Most Blessed Virgin could be fully
defined and rightly explained from the Sacred Scriptures alone,
or to think that the Sacred Scriptures themselves could be inter­
acted completely without taking sufficiently into account Cathoic “Tradition” and the sacred Magisterium. Let theologians
everywhere and at all times remember what We have said elsewhere: “What is called positive theology cannot be compared to
a purely historical science” (a).
J

The Magisterium

Nor is it lawful to investigate and explain the documents
1 of “Tradition” and at the same time neglect or minimize the
sacred Magisterium and the life and worship of the Church as
they have manifested themselves in the course of the centuries.
For sometimes the documents of antiquity, seen simply in them­
selves, give little light; but if they are joined with and compared
to the liturgical life of the Church, with the faith, devotion, and
piety of the Christian people-which the same Magisterium sup1387b All. to the Cardinals and Bishops, May 31, 1954; above,
No. 1369.
1388a Humani generis, Ibid.

1389
(32,
88-

96,
100101,
104)

714

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

ports and directs—they furnish splendid testimonies to Catholic
truth. In fact, the Church, in all the ages of her life, is ruled and
guided by the Holy Spirit, not only in defining and teaching the
faith, but also in her worship and in the exercise of the piety and
devotion of the faithfid, and by the same Spirit “is infallibly
directed to the knowledge of revealed truth” (a). Therefore,
those who devote themselves to the study of Mariology, in study­
ing and weighing the evidence and documents whether of past
ages or the present, must ever have present to their minds this
perpetual and ever-efficacious guidance of the Holy Spirit, in
order to evaluate and rightly propound the force and importance
of words and facts (b).
(Errors to be avoided.)

1390
Even if it is true that the Blessed Virgin is also a member
(33) of the Church, even as we are, nonetheless is it true that she is a
quite particular (unique) member of the Mystical Body of Christ.
(Encouragement and good wishes for success.)

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT
All. to the Cardinals and Bishops, November 2, 1954.
(Continuation of the discourse of May 31 (a).
—The Holy Father will now speak of the priesthood and the
function of government—Errors to be corrected—St. Pius X,
Model of Priests. )
The priesthood of the faithful

1391
On the other hand, it should not be denied or called in
(114, question that the faithful have a kind of “priesthood”, and one
212) may not depreciate or minimize it. For the Prince of the Apostles.
in his first Letter, addressing the faithful, uses these words: “You.
however, are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
purchased people” (b); and just before this, he asserts that the
1389a Const. Apost. Munificentissimus, above, No. 1291.
1389b Revera Ecclesia, omnibus vitæ suæ saeculis, non solum in fide
docenda et definienda, sed etiam in suo cultu atque in christifideHum pietatis ac devotionis exercitiis a Spiritu Sancto regitur et
custoditur, e ah eodem Spiritu '‘ad revelatarum veritatum cogni­
tionem infallibiliter dirigitur". Quapropter etiam mariologicu
disciplinae cultores, cum sive superioris sive praesentis aetatis testi­
monia et documenta pervestigant atque perpendunt, perpetuum
illum semperque efficacem Spiritu Sancti ductum ante oculos om­
nino habeant oportet, ut dictorum factorumque vim et momentum
recte expendant atque proponant.
139la Above, No. 1367.

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

715

faithful possess “a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices,
acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (c). But whatever is
the full meaning of this honorable title and claim, it must be
firmly held that the “priesthood” common to all the faithful, high
and reserved as it is, differs not only in degree, but in essence
also, from priesthood fully and properly so called, which lies
in the power of offering the sacrifice of Christ Himself, since lie
(the priest) bears the person of Christ, the supreme High
Priest (d).
The office of Pastor
“Being made a pattern to the flock” (a): the words of
St. Peter especially refer to Bishops, as having, and exercising,
the office of shepherd. The special and personal note of the Pontificate of Pius X was indeed this aspect and habit of “Shepherd”.
To put it briefly, after he reached the highest office in the apos­
tolic ministry, it was clear to all that there had been raised to the
Chair of the Prince of the Apostles a priest who had grown up in
the care of souls, who had been from the beginning of his priest­
hood, and who continued to be, a shepherd of souls, until he was
set to feed the whole flock of Christ. The unvarying principle
which he kept in his action, the aim of life which he set himself,
was “salvation of souls.” If he desired to “renew all in Christ,” it
was a desire for the sake of the salvation of souls. To this end and
function he, in some way, subordinated all his actions. He was
the good shepherd in the midst of his flock, anxious about its
needs, troubled by the dangers threatening it, entirely devoted to
the leading and guiding of the flock of Christ in the way of
Christ.
Competence of the Bishops
But it is not Our present purpose, Venerable Brothers, while
We are addressing you, shepherds of your flocks, to sketch again
1391b 1 Peter 2:9.
1391c Ibid. 2:5.
1391d At quæcumque est hujus honorifici tituli et rei vera plenaque
significatio, firmiter tenendum est, commune hoc omnium christ ifidelium, altum utique et arcanum, "sacerdotium" non gradu
tantum, sed etiam essentia différé a sacerdotio proprie vereque dic­
to, quod positum est in potestate perpetrandi, cum persona Summi
Sacerdotis Christi geratur, ipsius Christi sacrificium—Cf. in the
same discourse: Sacerdotis munus proprium et prxeipuum semper
fuit et est "sacrificare", ita at, ubi nulla sit proprie vereque dicenda
potestas sacrificandi, nec inveniatur proprie vereque appellandum
sacerdotium.
1392a 1 Peter 5:3.

1392
(200,
202)

1393
(81)

716

1394
(79,
81,
110,
151,
195)

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

a noble image and perfect pattern from the saintly Pontiff and
shepherd. We wish rather—as We did with the teaching power
and priesthood of Bishops—to mention some points which, es­
pecially in our times, demand the interest, voice, and activity oi a
dedicated shepherd.
And first, there are some noticeable attitudes and tendencies
of mind which presume to check and set limits to the power oi
Bishops (the Roman Pontiff not excepted), as being strictly the
shepherds of the flock entrusted to them. They fix their authority,
office, and watchfulness within certain bounds, which concern
strictly religious matters, the statement of the truths of the faith,
the regulation of devotional practices, administration of the Sac­
raments of the Church, and the carrying out of liturgical ceremo­
nies. They wish to restrain the Church from all undertakings and
business which concern life as it is really conducted—"the reali­
ties of life,” as they say. In short, this way of thinking in the
official statements of some lay Catholics, even those in high
positions, is sometimes shown when they say: "We are perfectly
willing to see, to listen to. and to approach Bishops and priests
in their churches, and regarding matters within their authority;
but in places of official and public business, where matters of this
life are dealt with and decided, we have no wish to sec them or
to listen to what they say. For there, it is we laymen, and not the
clergy—no matter of what rank or qualification—who are the
legitimate judges.”
The whole natural law
We must take an open and firm stand against errors of this
kind. The power of the Church is not bound by the limits of
“matters strictly religious,” as they say, but the whole matter of
the natural law, its foundation, its interpretation, its application.
so far as their moral aspects extend, are within the Church’s
power. For the keeping of the natural law, by God’s appointment.
has reference to the road by which man has to approach his
supernatural end. But, on this road, the Church is man’s guide
and guardian in what concerns his supreme end (a). The
Apostles observed this in times past, and afterwards, from the
earliest centuries, the Church has kept to this manner of acting,
and keeps to it today, not indeed like some private guide or ad1394a Contra erp,o hujusmodi errores aperte firmiterque tenendum
est: Ecclesiæ potestas nequaquam “rerum stricte religiosarun»”,

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

717

viser, but by virtue of the Lord’s command and authority. There­
fore. when it is a question of instructions and propositions which
the properlv constituted shepherds (i.e., the Roman Pontiff for
the whole Church and the Bishops for the faithful entrusted to
them) publish on matters within the natural law, the faithful
must not invoke that saving (which is wont to be employed with
respect to opinions of individuals): “the strength of the authority
is no more than the strength of the arguments.
Hence, even though to someone certain declarations of the
Church may not seem proved by the arguments put forward, his
obligation to obey still remains (b).
This was the mind, and these are the words of St. Pius X in 1395
his encyclical Singulari Quadam of September 24, 1912 (a): (80“Whatever a Christian man may do, even in affairs of this world. 81)
he may not ignore the supernatural, nay, he must direct all to the
highest good as to his last end, in accordance with the dictates of
Christian wisdom; but all his actions, in so far as they are morally
good or evil, that is, agree with, or are in opposition to, divine
and natural law, are subject to the judgment and authority of
the Church.” And he immediately transfers this principle to the
social sphere: “The social question and the controversies
underlying that question ... are not merely of an economic na­
ture, and consequently such as can be settled while the Church’s
authority is ignored. On the contrary, it is most certain
that it (the social question) is primarily a moral and religious
one. and on that account must be settled chiefly in accordance
with the moral law and judgment based on religion” (b).
uti loqui solent, finibus continentur, sed tota quoque legis natu­
ralis materia, institutio, interpretatio, applicatio, quatenus mor­
alis earum ratio attenditur, in ejus sunt potestate. Observatio enim
legis naturæ ex Dei ordinatione spectat ad viam, qua homo ad
finem suum supra naturam tendere debet. Jam vero Ecclesia est
hac in via, ad finem quod attinet supra naturam, hominum dux
et custos.
1394b Quare, cum igitur de præscriptis et sententiis, quas legitimi
Pastores (scilicet Romanus Pontifex pro universa Ecclesia, Epis­
copi vero pro fidelibus suis commissis) in rebus legis naturæ
edunt, fideles non debent provocare ad effatum, (quod in senten­
tiis privatorum abhiberi solet): "'tantum valet auctoritatis, quan­
tum valent rationes'. Hinc, etsi cui argumentis allatis ordinatio
quædam Ecclesiæ non evinci videtur, tamen, permanet obligatio
oboedientiae.
1395a Cf. above No. 749.
1395b Ibid.

718

PRIES 1 HOOD AND GOVERNMENT

In social matters

1396
(81)

Many and serious are the problems in the social field.
Whether they be merely social or socio-political, they pertain to
the moral order, are of concern to conscience and the salvation
of men;1 thus theyJ cannot be declared outside
4 the authority and
care of the Church. Indeed, there are problems outside the so­
cial field, not strictly “religious”, or political problems, of concern
either to individual nations, or to all nations, which belong to
the moral order, weigh on the conscience, and can, and ven,
often do, hinder the attainment of man’s last end. Such are: the
purpose and limits of temporal authority; the relations between
the individual and society; the so-called “totalitarian state,”
whatever be the principle it is based on; the “complete laicization of the state” and of public life: the complete laicization of the
schools; war, its morality, liceity or non-liceity when waged as it
is today, and whether a conscientious person may give or with­
hold his cooperation in it; the moral relationships which bind and
rule the various nations.

Common sense, and truth as well, are contradicted by who(80) ever asserts that these and like problems are outside the field
of morals, and hence are, or at least can be, beyond the influ­
ence of that authority established by God to see to a just order
and to direct the consciences and actions of men along the path
to their true and final destiny. This she is certainly to do not
only “in secret,” within the walls of the Church and sacristy,
but also in the open, crying “from the rooftops” (to use the
Lord’s words) (a), in the front line, in the midst of the struggle
that rages between truth and error, virtue and vice, between the
“world” and the Kingdom of God, between the prince of this
world and Christ its Savior (b).
1397

1397a Matt. 10:27.
1397b Veritati rerum, quin etiam ipsi rectæ rationi contradicit qui
asserit hæc, quæ memoravimus, aliaque permulta ejusdem generis
extra potestatem Auctoritatis a Deo statutæ, ut provideat justo
ordini, ut ducat et dirigat conscientias et actiones hominum recta
via ad eorum finem ultimum; non sane "in abscondito" solum, in­
tra parietes templi et sacrarii, sed etiam, et multo magis, palam,
nuntians "super tecta’ (ut verbis Domini utamur), in ipsa acie,
in media pugna saeviente inter veritatem et errorem, inter virtu­
tem et vitium, inter mundum et regnum Dei, inter principem
hujus mundi Salvatorem Christum.

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

719

Ecclesiastical discipline
We must add a few remarks on ecclesiastical discipline.
Clergy and laity must realize that the Church is fitted and
authorized, as also are the Bishops for the faithful entrusted to
them, in accordance with Canon Law, to promote ecclesiastical
discipline and see to its observance, i.e., to establish an external
norm of action and conduct for matters which concern public
order and which do not have their immediate origin in natural
or divine law. Clerics and laity may not exempt themselves from
this discipline; rather all should be concerned to obey it, so that
by the loyal observance of the Church’s discipline the action of
the shepherd may be easier and more efficacious, and the union
between him and his flock stronger; that within the flock harmo­
ny and cooperation may reign, and each be an example and sup­
port to his fellow.
Adulthood

1398
(49121,
123,
181,
183,
200201,
208,
216)

Yet, those points We have just mentioned in connection 1399
with the jurisdiction of Bishops, who are shepherds of the souls (46)
committed to their care in all those matters which have to do with
religion, moral law, and ecclesiastical discipline, are subjected
to criticism, often not above a whisper, and do not receive the
firm assent they deserve. Hence, some proud, modern spirits
provoke serious and dangerous confusion, traces of which are
more or less clear in various regions. The awareness, daily more
strongly insisted on, of having reached maturity produces in them
an agitated and febrile spirit. Not a few moderns, men and wom­
en, think that the leadership and vigilance of the Church is not
to be suffered by one who is grown up; they not only say it, but
they hold it as a firm conviction. They are unwilling to be, like
children, “under guardians and stewards” (a). They wish to be
treated as adults who are in full possession of their rights, and
can decide for themselves what they must, or must not, do in
any given situation.
Let the Church-they do not hesitate to say-propose her
doctrine, pass her laws as norms of our actions. Still, when there
is question of practical application to each individual s life, the
Church must not interfere; she should let each one of the faith­
ful follow his own conscience and judgment. They declare this
is all the more necessarv because the Church and her ministers
1399a Gal. 4:2.

’ 720

1400
(78,
J20,
124,
126)

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

are unaware of certain sets of circumstances either personal or
extrinsic to individuals; in them each person has been placed,
and must take his own counsel and decide what he must do.
Such people, moreover, are unwilling in their final personal de­
cisions to have any intermediary or intercessor placed between
themselves and God, no matter what his rank or title.
Two years ago, in Our allocutions of March 23 (b) and
April 18, 1952, We spoke about these reprehensible theories and
We examined their arguments.
Concerning the importance given to the attainment of a
person’s majority, this assertion is correct: it is just and right
that adults should not be ruled as children. The Apostle speaking
of himself says: “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt
as a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have become a man,
I have put away the things of a child” (a). That is not a true
art of education which follows any other principle or procedure,
nor is he a true shepherd of souls who pursues any other pur­
pose than to elevate the faithful entrusted to his care “to perfeci
manhood, to the mature measure of the fullness of Christ” (b)
But to be an adult and to have put off the things of childhood
is one thing, and quite another to be an adult and not to be subject
to the guidance and government of legitimate authority. Foi
government is not a kind of nursery for children, but the effec­
tive direction of adults toward the end proposed to the state (c).

Duties of Bishops
1401
Since We are speaking to you, Venerable Brothers, and not
(86, to the faithful, when these ideas begin to appear and to take
204, root in your flocks, remind the faithful: 1) that God placed
208, shepherds of souls in the Church not to put a burden on the
213) flock, but to help and protect it; 2) that the true liberty of the
faithful is safeguarded by the guidance and vigilance of pastors;
that they are protected from the slavery of vice and error, they
are strengthened against the temptations which come from bad
example and from the customs of evil men among whom they
1399b Cf. above, Nos. 1325-1328.
1400a 1 Cor. 13:11.
1400b Ephes. 4:13.
1400c Sed aliud omnino est adultum esse et evacuasse quæ sunt
parvuli; et aliud, esse adultum et ideo non obnoxium legitimæ
auctoritatis ductui et gubernationi. Gubernatio enim non est qua­
si quaedam tutela infantium, sed ductus efficax adultorum in fi­
nem civitatis.
— .

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

721

must live; 3) that therefore they act contrary to the prudence
and charity which they owe themselves if they spurn this pro­
tection of God and his most certain help.
If among clergy and priests you find some infected with
this false zeal and attitude, set before them the grave warnings
which Our Predecessor, Benedict XV, uttered: “There is one
thing which should not be passed over in silence: We want to
warn all priests, who are Our dearly beloved sons, how abso­
lutely necessary it is, not only for their own salvation, but for
the fruitfulness of their sacred ministry, that each be most devot­
ed and obedient to his own Bishop. As We deplored in passing,
not all dispensers of the sacred mysteries are free from that
proud and arrogant spirit which is characteristic of our times;
and it frequently happens that shepherds of the Church are
grieved and opposed, where they might rightly expect comfort
and help” (a).
The office of shepherd
Thus far We have spoken of pastoral care, about the persons for whose benefit it is exercised. It is not right to end Our
discourse without turning Our attention to the pastors themselves. To Us and to you shepherds the holy words of the Eternal
Shepherd are pertinent: “I am the good shepherd. I came that
they may have life, and have it more abundantly” (a). To Peter
the Lord said: “If you love me, feed my lambs, feed my
sheep” (b). With these good shepherds He contrasts the hireling,
who seeks himself and his own interests and is not ready to give
his life for his flock (c). He contrasts them with the Scribes and
Pharisees, who, greedy for power and domination and seeking
their own glory, were seated on the chair of Moses, amassing
heavy and oppressive burdens and imposing them on the shoul­
ders of men (d). Of his own yoke the Lord said: “Take my yoke
upon you! For my yoke is easy and my burden light” (e).

1402
(115,
202,
204)

Un ion among Bishops
Frequent and mutual communication among Bishops is 1403
very helpful for the fruitful and effective exercise of the pas- (193,
toral office. Thus one perfects the other in assaying the lessons 201)
1401a Encycl. Ac/ Beatissimi Apostolorum Principis, above, Nos.
757-767.
1402a John 10:11 and 10.
1402b John 21:15, 17.
1402c Cf. John 10:12-13.
l402d Cf. Matt. 23:1, 4.
1402e Matt. 11:29-30.

722

PRIESTHOOD AND GOVERNMENT

of past experience; government is made more uniform, the won­
der of the faithful is avoided, for often they do not understand
why in one diocese a certain policy is followed, while in another,
which is perhaps adjacent, a different or even a quite contrary
policy is followed. To realize these purposes, general assemblies,
which are now held almost everywhere, are very helpful, and
also the more solemnly convened Provincial and Plenary Coun­
cils, for which the Code of Canon Law provides, and which
are governed by definite laws (a).
Union with the Holy See
1404
(150,
152,
155,
173,
177,
190,
226)

In addition to this union and intercourse among brothers
in the episcopacy there should be added close union and frequent
communication with this Apostolic See. The custom of consulting
the Holy See, not only in doctrinal matters, but also in affairs
of government and discipline, has flourished from the earliest
days of Christianity. Many proofs and examples are to be found
in ancient historical records. When asked for their decision, the
Roman Pontiffs did not answer as private theologians, but in
virtue of their authority and conscious of the power which they
received from Christ to rule over the whole flock and each of
its parts. The same is deduced from the instances in which the
Roman Pontiffs, unasked, settled disputes that had arisen or com­
manded that "doubts” be brought to them to be resolved.
This union, therefore, and harmonious communication with
the Holy See arise not from a kind of desire to centralize and
unify everything, but by divine right and by reason of an essential
element of the constitution of the Church of Christ (a). The
1403a Ad officium pastorale fructuosum ct efficax gerendum mul­
tum confert frequens ac mutua inter Episcopos communicatio.
Ita in assequenda experientia inque usu rerum elium alium perfi­
cit; redditur major regiminis similitudo, vitatur christifidelium
admiratio, qui sæpe non intellegunt cur in alia dioecesi res hoc
modo se habeant, in alia autem, quae fortasse proxima et adjacet,
dissimili modo, quin etiam interdum prorsus contrario. Ad hæc
autem consequenda plurimum possunt communes Cœtus, qui
fere ubique iam in usu sunt, et augustiore celebranda ritu Con­
cilia provincialia et plenaria quae in Codice juris canonici con­
stituta certisque legibus circumscripta sunt.
1404a Hæc ergo coniunctio et congruens rei communicatio cum
Sancta Sede non oritur ex quodam studio omnia in unum cogendi
et conformandi, sed ex jure divino et ex proprio ipsius constitu­
tionis Ecclesiae Christi elemento.

WORK OF RAPPROCHEMENT

723

result of this is not detrimental but advantageous to the Bishops,
to whom is entrusted the governing of individual flocks. For
from communication with the Apostolic See they gain light and
assurance “in doubts,” advice and strength in difficulties, assist­
ance in labors, comfort and solace in distress. On the other hand,
from the “reports” of the Bishops to the Apostolic See, the latter
attains a wider knowledge of the state of the whole flock, learns
more quickly and more accurately what dangers are threatening
and what remedies can be applied to cure the evils.
(Prayer for the Bishops.)

CHRIST THE SUPPORT OF THE CHURCH
R.M. to the world for the Solemnity of Easter, April 10, 1955.
(The Resurrection, pledge of Christ's assistance to his
Church, remains a "tangible reality.”)

Christ is risen! This historical truth shines out undimmed by 1405
even the shadow of a doubt, and its splendor remains, confirmed (12,
46,
by the living testimony of the Church, which would not have
88,
been able to resist the weight of the centuries if Christ had not
90,
risen.
Christ is in the midst of us! The reality of the living action 142)
of Jesus in the Church shines with irresistible light. You your­
selves are its witnesses. This Church, which could not be the
fruit of human design—which even repudiates disordered in­
stincts and for that reason is hated by the world (a)—remains
firm because there lives in her One who renews the freshness
of her life and yyouth. It is the God made man and risen from the
dead who is hidden within her ceaselessly to renew humanity
from within, communicating to those who believe in Him his
truth, his grace, and his peace.
For the Christian, illuminated by the truth of the Resur­
rection, faith is life, life full and essential in communion with
Christ in the Church.
WORK OF RAPPROCHEMENT

Letter, Sie haben, erwiidigen Bruder, June 27, 1955, to the
Bishop of Augsburg.
1405a Cf. John 15:18-19.

FROM THE BAYS OF THE APOSTLES

(The tenth centenary of the victory of Lechfeld over the
invading Hungarians, before the conversion of the latter.—
Opportuneness of this commemoration.)
1406
The Catholic Church is not identified with any Western
(84, culture. She is not identified with any one culture; but she
131) is ready to make an alliance with each culture; she will­
ingly recognizes in each one anything which is not at variance
with the work of the Creator, anything which can be reconciled
with the dignity of men, and with their rights and duties, but
she implants within it the riches of the truth and grace of Jesus
Christ, so that the different cultures, however widely they may
seem to be separated from one another, come nigh to one
another and become like sisters. The history of the mission and
the diffusion of Christianity and of the Church from the time of
the migration of the nations to our own day is a convincing proof
of the blessing which the Catholic Church has imparted to
civilization.
(Characteristics of Western civilization.—Peace of Augs­
burg, 1555, and the rupture of religious unity—The Communist
peril. )
FROM THE DAYS OF THE APOSTLES

1407
(102,
115,
142,
161,

All. to the Belgian metallurgists, July 20, 1955.
(The world of work.)
There are among you, no doubt, many who for the first
time are coming into contact with the center of the Catholic
world. But as you look at so many monuments, both ancient and
modern, surely you are thinking of all that they represent for your
faith: it is here that the holy Apostles Peter and Paul shed their
blood to prove the truth of the message they were preaching; it is
here that since their time so many dauntless martyrs gave the
same witness to Jesus Christ. On the ruins of pagan civilization
there rise today Christian basilicas which bear witness to the fact
that in the course of centuries the same belief has been main­
tained intact, faithfully kept by the successors of Peter, heirs, as
he was, of the divine power. This is what Rome shows you: the
indefectible permanence through the ages of the Church founded
by Christ, depository of revealed truth and the promises of
salvation.
(Role of the world of the worker in civilization.)

TUE CHURCH A HISTORIC FACT

725

You know better now, dear sons, that the teaching of the
Catholic Church goes back to the time of the Apostles. Millions
and millions of Christians have come here before you to kneel
at the tomb of Peter and to recognize in him the unshakable rock
on which Christ founded his work. Like them, you will confess
with enthusiasm that Christ, whose voice is coming to you now
faithfully transmitted by Roman tradition, has the promises of
eternal life, the promises which neither deceive nor pass away.
(Responsibility of the world of the workers.—Wishes and
blessing. )
THE CHURCH A HISTORIC FACT

All. to the 10th International Congress of the Historic Sci­
ences, September 7, 1955.
(Welcome.—The Church is a historic fact.—The errors of his­
toricism.)
Let us speak now of the Church herself as a historic fact.
At the same time that she affirms fully her divine origin and her
supernatural character, the Church realizes that she has entered
into humanity as a fact of history. Her Divine Founder Jesus
Christ is an historic personality. His life, his death, and his res­
urrection are historic facts. It happens sometimes that the very
ones who deny the divinity of Christ admit his resurrection,
because it is, to their way of thinking, too well attested by his­
tory; anyone wishing to deny it would have to erase all ancient
history, for no fact in it rests on firmer foundations than the
resurrection of Christ. The mission and the development of the
Church are facts of history. Here, at Rome, it is only fitting to
mention St. Peter and St. Paul: Paul belongs, even from a merely
historical point of view, among the most remarkable figures of
history. As for the Apostle Peter and his position in Christ’s
Church, although the overwhelming proof of Peter’s residence
at Rome and his death there, has not an essential importance
for the Catholic faith, We have nonetheless had the excavations
beneath the basilica carried out and they are very well known.
The method of these excavations has the approval of historical
critics; their result—the discovery of the tomb of Peter beneath
the cupola, immediately below the present papal altar-has been
admitted by the great majority of them, and even the most severe
sceptics have been impressed by what the excavations have re-

726

THE CHURCH A HISTORIC FACT

vealed. Besides, We have reason to believe that further research
and study will allow us to reach new and precious conclusions.
The origins of Christianity and of the Catholic Church are
historic facts, proved in, and delimited by, time and space. Of
this fact the Church is very conscious.
The end of the Church

1410
(7779,
#4,
123,
224)

She knows also that her mission, although by its nature and
its proper end it belongs to the religious and moral spheres and
is situated in the other world and in eternity, at the same time
penetrates into the very heart of human history. Always and
everywhere, while she adapts herself constantly to the circumstances of time and place, she intends, according to Christ’s
law, to fashion persons, the individual, and, as far as possible,
all individuals, and in so doing she touches upon the very foun­
dations of life in society. The end of the Church is man, naturally
good, penetrated, ennobled, and strengthened by' truth and the
grace of Christ.

1411
The Church wishes to fashion men “founded in their in(78, violable integrity as images of God; men proud of their personal
80,
dignity and of their sane liberty; men properly jealous of their
S3)
equality with their fellows in all that touches the deepest roots
of human dignity; men solidly attached to their land and their
tradition” (a),—this is the Church’s intention as We formulated
it in Our allocution of February 20, 1946 on the occasion of the
creation of the new Cardinals. We added: in the present cen­
tury as in the past, when problems of the family, of society, of
the State, of the social order, have acquired a constantly growing
importance and even a capital importance, the Church has put
all her resources to work for the solution of these questions, and,
We believe, with some success. However, the Church is persuaded
that she cannot work more effectively for this solution than in
continuing to form men in the way which We have described.

The Church a living reality

1412
To attain her end, the Church does not act simply as an
(3,
ideological system. Doubtless she is so defined when the exprès·
6,
sion Catholicism is used, but this is neither habitual nor entirely
1411a Above, Nos. 1177 ff.

THE CHURCH Λ HISTORIC FACT

727

adequate for her. She is much more than an ideological system, 84,
she is a reality as visible nature is, as the people or the State 224,
are. She is an organism which is very much alive, with an end, 226)
a ,principle of life which is peculiar to her. Immutable in her
constitution and structure which her Divine Founder Himself
gave to her, she has accepted and accepts today the elements
which she needs or which she considers useful to her develop­
ment and to her action: men and human institutions, philosoph­
ical and cultural inspiration, political forces and ideas, or social
institutions, principles, and activities. So the Church, spreading
through the whole world, in the course of centuries has under­
gone certain changes, but in her essence she has always remained
identical with herself, because the multitude of elements which
she has received was from the very beginning made subordinate
to the same fundamental faith. The Church could be very lib­
eral; she could also show herself to be inflexibly severe. If we
consider her entire history we see that she has been both of
these things, and that with a sure intuition of what was suitable
to different peoples and to the whole human race. So she has
rejected all movements which were too naturalistic, contaminated
in some way by the breath of moral license; she has also rejected
gnostic tendencies, falsely spiritualistic and puritan. The historv
of Canon Law down to the Code now in force furnishes a good
number of significant proofs of this. Take, for example, eccle­
siastical legislation on marriage, and the recent pontifical state­
ments on the questions of conjugal society and of the family in
all their aspects. You will here find an example, one among
many, of the way in which the Church is thinking and working.
Interventions in public life
In virtue of an analogous principle she has intervened reg- 1413
ularly in the domain of public life to guarantee the just balance (94)
between duty and obligation on one side, law and liberty on
the other. Political authority has never had an advocate more
deserving of confidence than the Catholic Church, for the
Church bases the authority of the State on the will of the Cre­
ator, on the commandment of God. Certainly, because she
attributes a religious value to public authority, the Church has
opposed its arbitrary exercise by the State, as she has opposed
tyranny in all its forms. Our Predecessor Leo XIII, in his en­
cyclical Immortale Dei of November 1, 1885, wrote: "Revera

728

THE CHURCH A HISTORIC FACT

quæ res in civitate plurium ad communem salutem possunt: (piæ
sunt contra licentiam principum populo male consulentium uti­
liter institutae: quae summam rempublicam vetant in municipa­
lem, vel domesticam rem importunius invadere: quae valent ad
decus, ad personam hominis, ad aequabilitatem juris in singulis
civibus conservandam, earum rerum omnium Ecclesiam catholi­
cam vel inventricem, vel auspicem, vel custodem semper fuisse
superiorum aetatum monumenta testantur’ (a).
When Leo XIII wrote these words seventy years ago with
eyes turned to the past, he could not have suspected to what a
test the immediate future would subject them. Today We be­
lieve that We can say that the Church, in these seventy years,
has remained faithful to her past, and even that the affirmations
of Leo XIII have been surpassed in the decades since he wrote
them.
1 he Church and the State:
distinction of powers and collaboration,

1414
So We come to treat two problems which merit Our special
(79, attention: the relations of Church and State, the relations of
91) Church and culture.
In the pre-Christian period public authority, the State, was
competent in the secular as well as in the religious sphere. The
Catholic Church realizes that her Divine Founder has given her
the domain of religion, the religious and moral direction of men
in its entire extent, independent of the power of the State. Since
that time there has come into being a history of the relations
of Church and State, and this history has a lively interest for
scholars.
according to Leo XIII
1415
Leo XIII formulated, so to speak, the proper character of
(15, this relationship, of which he gave a luminous exposition in his
91,
encyclicals Diuturnum illud (1881), Immortale Dei (1885), and
1413a “All that can serve the general good of the State; all that
can usefully contribute to protect the people against the license
of leaders unmindful of the people’s good; all that can impede
the unjust encroachments of the State on the commonwealth or
the family; all that concerns honor, the human person, all that
can safeguard the equal rights of all the citizens, in all things
the Catholic Church has either taken the initiative, or has taken
them under her aegis or protection, as the monuments of past
ages testify” Cf. above Nos. 466, ff.

THE CHURCH A HISTORIC FACT

729

Sapientia? christiarise (1890): the two powers, the Church as
well as the State, are sovereign. Their nature, like the end which
each pursues, determines the limits within which they govern
/ure proprio. Like the State, the Church also possesses a sov­
ereign right to all that she needs to attain her end, even to material
means. Quidquid igitur est in rebus humanis quoquo modo
sacrum, quidquid ad salutem animarum cultumve Dei pertinet,
sice tale illud sit natura sua, sive rursus tale intelligatur propter
causam ad quam refertur, id est omne in potestate arbitrioque
Ecclesiæ (a). The State and the Church are independent
)o\vers, but they cannot, for all that, ignore one another, still
ess oppose one another; it is much more in keeping with their
nature and with the divine will that they collaborate in mutual
understanding, since their action affects the same subject,
namely, the Catholic citizen. Certainly, cases of conflict still
remain possible: when the laws of the State infringe on divine
rights, the Church has the moral obligation to oppose them.

9394)

It would be possible to say that with the exception of a 1416

few centuries—for the whole of the first millenium as for the last
lour centuries—, the formula of Leo XIII reflects the conscious­
ness of the Church; moreover, even during the intermediate
period there were representatives of the teaching of the Church,
perhaps even a majority of them, who shared the same opinion.

(94)

according to Boniface VIII
When Our Predecessor Boniface VIII said on April 30. 1303, 1417
to the envoys of the German King Albert of Hapsburg, .. sicut (93luna nullum lumen habet, nisi quod recipit a sole, sic nec aliqua 94)
terrena potestas aliquid habet, nisi quod recipit ab ecclesiastica
potestate... omnes potestates . .. sunt a Christo et a nobis tam­
ipiam a Vicario Jesu Christi" (a),—we are here dealing with
perhaps the most accentuated form of the so-called medieval idea
1415a ‘‘Therefore, whatever in human affairs is in any way sacred,
whatever touches on the salvation of souls or the worship of God,
whether by reason of its nature or by reason of its end. all of
this is within the power and the competence of the Church’’
(Ibid).
1417a “..· fust as the moon has no other light than what she re­
ceives from the sun, so no earthly power has any other light than
what it receives from the ecclesiastical power . . . all power . . .
comes from Christ and from Us as Vicar of Jesus Christ" (Mon.
Germ, hist., L. L., sect. IV, t. 4, p. I, p. 139).

730

THE CHURCH A HISTORIC FACT

of the relationship of the spiritual and temporal power; from
this idea men like Boniface drew the logical consequences. But
even for them it was, normally, only a question of the trans­
mission of authority as such, not of the designation of the man
to exercise the authority, as Boniface himself declared in the
Consistory of June 24, 1302 (b). This medieval idea was con­
ditioned by the period. Those who know the sources will
probably admit that it would doubtless be even more astonishing
if it had not appeared.

for the good of unity
1418
(56,
5960,
91)

They will concede also perhaps that in taking on struggles
like the Investiture struggles, the Church was defending ideals
of a high spiritual and moral character, and that, from the
times of the Apostles to our own, her efforts to remain independent of the civil power have always had in view safe­
guarding the liberty of religious convictions. Let it not be
objected that the Church herself contemns the personal convic­
tion of those who do not think as she does. The Church held
and still holds that the voluntary abandonment of the true
faith is a sin. When, beginning with about the year 1200, this
defection brought with it penal consequences on the part of
the spiritual as well as the temporal powers, it was to avoid
rending the religious and ecclesiastical unity of the West. To
non-Catholics the Church applies the principle taken up in the
Code of Canon Law: "Ad amplexandam fidem catholicam
nemo invitus cogatur’ (a), and she holds that their convictions
constitute a motive, though not the principle, for tolerance.
We have already treated this subject in Our allocution of Decem­
ber 6, 1953, to the Catholic jurists of Italy (b).
(Collaboration, the normal situation.—The opposite situa­
tion, today more frequent.'—Concordats) (c).

The Church and culture
1419
The Catholic Church has exercised a powerful, and even a
(83- decisive, influence on the cultural development of the last two
1417b Cf. C. E. Bulæus, Hist. Univ. Parisiensis, t. IV, Paris, 1688,
pp. 31-33.
1418a “No one is to be forced against his will to embrace the
Catholic faith” (Can. 1351). 1418b Above Nos. 1357 ff.
1418c For the parts of this document which are here omitted see
CHURCH AND STATE.

ONE SINGLE PRAISE

731

thousand years. But she is convinced that the source of this influence lies in the spiritual element which is her characteristic,
her religious and moral life, to such an extent that if the latter
were to grow weak her potential for culture—for example, the
influence which she exerts for the benefit of order and the peace
of society-would also suffer.
(Errors of historians who consider Christianity to be a recent
end Western phenomenon. )

84)

What is significant for Us is that the Church is conscious of 1420
having received her mission and her work for every age that is to (77,
come and for all men, and consequently she is not bound to anv 131)
specific culture. (Citation from St. Augustine [a].—Medieval
culture is not to he identified with Catholic culture. )

Even the religious unity proper to the Middle Ages is not 1421
specific to it; it was already a typical note of Christian antiquity (131,
in the Roman Empire of the East and of the West, from Con- 133)
stantine the Great to Charlemagne.
The Catholic Church does not identify herself with anv
culture; her essence forbids her to do so. She is ready, neverthe­
less, to maintain relationships with all cultures. She allows to
continue in all of them whatever is not opposed to nature. But
into each of them she introduces the truth and grace of Jesus
Christ and thus confers upon them a profound resemblance;
even more, it is by this fact that she contributes more effica­
ciously to bringing peace to the world.
(Modern science and technology.—The Vatican archives put
at the disposition of historians.)
ONE SINGLE PRAISE

Encycl. Musicæ sacræ, December 25, 1955.
(History of sacred music.—Its aim and its requirements.—
Its characteristics. )
If all these norms are observed, it will come about that the 1422
second characteristic of sacred music is achieved; namely, it will (49)
be a type of true art; and if, in the Catholic churches of the whole
world the Gregorian chant is sung in all its purity and integrity,
it will have also, like the sacred Roman liturgy itself, that other
1420a Transient quæ fecit ipse Deus; quanto citius quod condidit
Romulus (Semi. CV, Audivimus, No. 10.)

732

AN END WHICH IS STRICTLY RELIGIOUS

note of universality, so that, wherever they find themselves, the
faithful will hear music which is familiar to them, and, as it were,
from home, and they will experience with real consolation the
admirable unity of the Church. Here, certainly, is one of the
principal reasons why the Church very much desires that with
the Latin words of the sacred liturgy the singing of the Gregorian
chants of those same words be very closely connected.
(Sacred music and liturgy.—In the dioceses and the missions.
—Practical directives. )

AN END WHICH IS STRICTLY RELIGIOUS
All. to the International Union of Institutes of Archeology
and History, March 9, 1956.
(The 10th anniversary of the union—Its ivork.—The Vatican,
high ground of history—The Church and civilization.)

1423
(40,
61,
78,
79,
83,
102,
115)

And so We come back to the Church. Her Divine Founder
Jesus Christ has given her no mandate, has fixed no end of a
cultural order. The end which Christ assigns to her is of a strictly
religious nature: it is, even, the synthesis of everything comprised
in the idea of religion, the unique, absolutely true religion: the
Church must lead men to God so that they can give themselves
to Him without reserve and thus find in Him perfect interior
peace. This is why Christ has entrusted his Church with all
truth and all grace.
The Church can never lose sight of this strictly religious,
supernatural end. The meaning of all her activity, down to the
last canon of her Code, can be nothing else than to move towards
it, directly or indirectly.
(The crisis of the Renaissance.—Culture and Religion.)

1424
(6,
9,
82,
84,
144)

That the Church by her very presence and by her religious
action has influenced the culture of the human race is ineluctable. In fact, even if one considers that the application of
principles and ideals to reality always and everywhere suffers by
reason of human weakness, the cultural action of the Church
has been recognized as extensive and fruitful, and that under a
double aspect.
First, the Church herself is a living and visible organism,
and the works which she accomplishes to fulfill her proper mis­
sion—thus, for example, the glorification of God, above all bv
the offering of the Holy Sacrifice; the education ol peoples in

THE UNITY ΟΓ HIT HUMAN FAMILY

733

Christian civilization; her charitable and social enterprises—show
themselves at the same time, anil, so to say, spontaneously, as
cultural values of a noble, and often of the first, order.
(The art of Fra Angelico.— The work of Christian scholars.)
And so the Church, from the very earliest times, has per- 1425
meated the human race with definite principles which, little bv (84)
little, in silence and without attracting attention, but in a manner
all the more lasting for that reason, have influenced cultural life
and modified it profoundly from within.
(Some examples: divine paternity, dignity of the human per­
son, esteem for manual labor, condemnation of slavery, etc.—The
Christian State—Christian civilization.)

THE STRENGTH OF THE CHURCH

R.M. to the world, April 1, 1956.
(The triumph of Easter.—The victory of Christ over the
world. )

Founded on the living rock of faith, the sole depository of
its integrity, the Church raises its saving banner in the midst of
the people, so that the true and active workers may labor under
her direction for a common salvation.
The Church fears nothing from the world and in the world,
because at every moment she is living the mystery of Easter,
encouraged by the salutation, as well as by the promise, of the
risen Redeemer: “Pax vobis!" (a). Peace be to you! Through his
omnipotent assistance, the Church, who in the past did not fear
tyrants or the obstacles opposed to her beneficent projects, even
in the field of civil conquests, feels within herself now the same
courage and strength to affront the thorny problems which vex
humanity, such as that of establishing among peoples co-existence
in truth, in justice, and in love.
(Errors of the pessimists—True peace.—Condemnation of
the abuses of technology, especially in the use of nuclear energy. )

THE UNITY OF THE HUMAN FAMILY

R.M. to the Italian Eucharistic Congress, May 6, 1956.
(Invitation to sing a canticle of veneration, gratitude, and
1126a Luke 24:36.

1426
(88,
90,
100,
102,
139,
217)

734

SUFFERING MEMBERS OF TUE MYSTICAL BODY

love to the Blessed Sacrament—The Program of the Congress:
the Eucharist is the sacrament of unity and the bond of charity.)

Faith in the Eucharist, his abiding presence, the mystical
1427
(46, renewal of the sacrifice of Golgotha, physical and spiritual com­
munion with the one Redeemer Christ, recalls men to and stimu­
51,
77) lates fraternal union, but, even more, they realize this union in
the Mystical Body, whose actual members are so numerous and
to which all men are invited to unite themselves. Faith and
Eucharistic communion are truly the link given by God to mento
re-establish the primitive unity of the human family destroyed
by the first sin.
(Remedy for the divisions in the world- of today -Prayer
to the Eucharistic Jesus.)
THE SUFFERING MEMBERS OF THE MYSTICAL BODY

All. to the personnel of the Roman hospitals, May 20, 1956.
(The Church is the inspirer of charitable works.-The
problem of assistance—Professional duties.)
14'28
Why did the Church found hospitals, protecting and support­
(29) ing them by every means? Why does the Church still ask today
not to remain a stranger to any one of these places where men are
suffering? It is because, as the Mystical Body of Jesus, she sees
m the sick her suffering members.
(The spirit in which the sick should be tended.—The re­
ward promised.)
ECCLESIASTICAL LAW
All. to law students from Vienna, lune 3, 1956.
(Words of welcome.)
1429

Ecclesiastical law is not an end in itself. It is always a means
(77, ordered to an end which lies beyond it. Like all that exists in
123) the Church, it is in the service of the “salus animarum,” and hence
ol the ministry to souls. It must assist in the opening of the way
into mens hearts, and the removing of obstructions, before the
truth and grace of Jesus Christ.
1430
Nonetheless, Canon Law must not be considered, with re­
(S,
gard to the nature and the inner structure of the Church, an ad­
junct. oi a pm eh human work. Certainly there are many canons
138) which are only protective measures, destined to safeguard the
realm of faith from subversion, and the life of grace and the sacra-

ecclesiastical law

735

meats from profanation. But there exist, side by side with these,
juridical norms which are inherent in the very structure of the
Church itself, and that because their substance comes immediately
from the Divine Founder of the Church: the forms of the articu­
lation of the Mystical Body of Christ, like the rules of the
constitutional law of the Church, or the definitions touching on
the power of the Pope and Bishops. Christ founded his Church
notin the nature of some unformed spiritual movement, but as a
solidly organized society.
Spiritual life and juridical structure go together
Of course, it is not permitted to Canon Law to invade the 1431
domain of the spiritual and supernatural values in the service of (122which it is placed. It has certainly been reproached with so 124)
doing, and on this score, people have even spoken of an excessive
“legalism” in the Church. Again, the Church has been reproached
with the inflexibility with which she has remained firmly attached
to the indissolubility of a Christian marriage validly contracted
and consummated. But here is not a case of juridical insensibility
and hardness of heart as if the tragedy of these cases were not
understood, but quite simply the fidelity of the Church to main­
tain the rights of marriage as instituted by her Divine Founder,
and which, on her side, she has the right to judge.
We do not need to tell you jurists that the few rare laws
of the time of the Apostles would not suffice today for a world
Church which counts more than 400 million believers. Moreover,
each time that the Church has broadened her geographic scope,
or vivified religious life and put forth new shoots, at the same
time, she has continued almost spontaneously the task of her
juridical development in order to direct and protect the current
of religious life.
Therefore, in the creation of the Codex luris Canonicis,
which is today the law of the Church, We can contemplate the
action of Providence; the new code of Canon Law in any case
corresponded to the widespread expansion and the inner develop­
ment of the Church in the 19th century, and to progress which
had not heretofore reached such proportions. This being so, the
Church has not fallen into an excess of "legalism." You will find
in the world of believers today a religious fervor, a spiritual
strength, and a sacramental life such as have never existed before
to a greater, or even a comparable, degree.

1432
(122)

1433
(17,
122)

736

THE STANDARD UNFURLED ABOVE THE NATIONS

Spiritual life and juridical structure go hand in hand in the
Church. A symbol of this is the holy Pope Pius X. He was the
creator of a new Code of Ecclesiastical Law, and the one who
opened the well-spring and sluices of the sacramental life.
THE STANDARD UNFURLED ABOVE THE NATIONS
R.M. to the 77th “Katholikentag” of Cologne, September 2, 1956.
(Greetings to the Catholics present—Gratitude for the
activity of diverse Catholic movements and for the promoters of
the Katholikentag of 1858.—Joy at the restoration of Cologne
cathedral.—The motto of the Congress: “Signum levatum in
nationes,” “A standard set up unto the nations” [Isa. 11:12].—The
Holy Father limits himself to three points: )

The treasure of Christ
1434
First: the idealogical unrest of the last century has wreaked
(9,
havoc on the non-Catholic religious world. It has also been un99,
leashed against the rock on which Christ built his Church, and it
102) has attempted to penetrate with its destructive activity into the
Church itself. The Church has had to fight bitter conflicts with­
in, and this has put her on the defensive. But she has never
allowed the least taint to reach the treasure of truth and grace
given her by Christ, from belief in the triune God and the di­
vinity of Christ, to belief in the resurrection and in life eternal.
She has even passed over to the counter-attack and in this period
of religious coldness and desolation she has poured out on the
faithful floods of Eucharistic grace more abundant than ever be­
fore in her history.
1435
We believe that we owe this free profession of faith first to
(24, the Church’s Lord; it is only his will and his might which have
60,
led the Church unharmed through all the storms. We believe we
88,
owe it also to those who, without perhaps being aware of it
106, themselves, stand very near to the doors of the Church, and also
124) to all those—and their number is constantly on the increasewhose anguish before the unchained forces of nature, whose fear
of existence, of the future, of themselves, impel and induce them
to seek some solid support. The Church offers it to them; she is
herself this support. He who confides in her loses nothing of the
authentic values which he possesses. Whatever is to be found in
other confessions, even in non-Christian ones, of truth and good­

THE STANDARD UNFURLED ABOVE THE NATIONS

737

ness. is to lx1 found, is at home, has its deepest meaning and its
fulfillment in the Catholic Church. She affords this support with­
out constraining man to insert himself in a totalitarian system,
and with total respect for his nature endowed with spirit and
liberty, and for the dignity and supernatural vocation of his per­
son. As for the freedom of human knowledge and research, she
knows only one limit: that which God Himself has set through
his revelation and his explicit command.

Edification of the social order
Second: from a Church which says of herself that she is a 1436
standard raised above the nations, an account will be demanded (73,
of her contribution to the social order.
83The Catholic Church can without presumption recall all 84,
the considerable services which she has rendered in the course 128)
of her history to the organization and improvement of social
life, and historical research has long since proved it. Moreover,
the Church has in no sense remained blind to the profound so­
cial disorder brought by the era of technology and capitalism.
That she alone is capable of solving the social problem, she has
never pretended. But she can, all the same, point out, with
head held high, the values which she has offered and which she
continues to offer for its solution. One such value is her social
doctrine, whose whole orientation is based, down to the small­
est details, on the natural law and the law of Christ.
(Effectiveness of the social doctrine of the Church.)
The present persecutions
Thirdly: About the fact that the Catholic Church for many 1437
decades, and especially in the last ten years, has been subjected (227to the most bitter, and in any case to the most dangerous perse- 228)
cution she has ever had to undergo, about this fact a demonstra­
tion like your own cannot pass over in silence: the Church is
set up as a standard among the nations, not to be passed by un­
regarded. For Jesus Christ has confided to his Church a task
and a mission to carry out to the end of time, and has put her
also under a sign of persecution. Persecution of the Church is
always, for the Mystical Body of Christ, to have part in his
wounds, and that, between a system which has atheism and god­
lessness as its foundation and the Catholic Church a most bitter
conflict arose, is a fact of which the Church has a right to be
proud.

738

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

1438
This does not mean that she does not suffer profoundly
(60, with all those who have endured and still are undergoing per228) secution for their faith. The Church can even tremble for the
future which awaits her in the wide regions where persecution
now rages, for the foe has access to the coercive measures of the
totalitarian states and refined methods for indoctrinating men’s
minds, especially the younger generation and the children,
and here are means which are unknown to any persecutor of the
past. Finally, the Church warns the faithful in the lands where
she is free, to realize the danger which this adversary represents,
and she puts them on their guard once more against the illusion
of a false coexistence, as if between Catholic belief and Catho­
lic viewpoint and such a system there could ever be a compro­
mise, an inner agreement.
1439
There is a “coexistence in the truth.” We have previously
(59, had the occasion to speak of it, and to what We then said We
91) wall now add this: The Catholic Church obliges no one to be­
long to her. But she claims for herself the liberty to be able to
live in the State according to her constitution and her laws, to
assist her faithful and openly to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus
Christ. This is for her the indisputable foundation for all honor­
able coexistence. In the meantime she pursues the conflict-not
in the field of politics and economics, as she is falsely accused
of doing, but with her own weapons: the constancy of the faith­
ful, prayer, truth, love. She offers the trial of persecution for the
salvation of the persecutor himself, as also for the country' and
the people where she is being persecuted.
. The Church—standard raised above the nations—these words
are a challenge to you all, beloved sons and daughters, for the
Church is judged according to what you are—in religion and in
morals.
(Give God the first place.—Christ is also Lord of the World.)

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION
All. to the 6th National (Italian) Week of New Pastoral
Methods, September 14, 1956.
(History of the movement.—I. Our Lord's preaching, model
of the priest's—The Holy Father’s theme: 1) the mission of the
Church in preaching the Word of God; 2) the carrying out of
this mission in the course of time; 3) the carrying out of this
mission at the present moment.)

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

739

II: PREACHING OF THE CHURCH

1. The mission of the Church in Preaching
the Word of God.

In speaking of the Church, Fundamental Theology and 1440
Dogmatic Theology offer lengthy accounts and a wealth of ar- (75,
gumentation about its teaching authority, pointing up its nature,
96,
origin, direct and indirect objects, prerogatives, and various 100)
types of activity. There is no point in taking up these matters
with you, who are theologians, and therefore already well-ac­
quainted with them. So We would like to set out along another
path, and continue the first part of Our talk by showing how the
mission of the Church in preaching the Word of God is a ear­
ning on of the preaching of Christ, in its content (“Veritas
Christi”), its aims, and in the demands made by Christ in the
matter of human conduct.

What Our Lord announced ...
We would like to single out one point in the classical text 1441
on the power and duty of the Church to teach: “Go and make (86,
disciples of all nations,... teaching them to observe all that I 87,
have commanded you” (a); the Apostles (and, in them, the 89,
Church) have to announce what our Lord announced, and teach
96,
men to observe all that He has commanded them to believe 100,
and do.
119)
The Acts of the Apostles tell Us that before ascending into
heaven Our Lord gave the Apostles one more instruction on
the mission which awaited them and on the equipment He had
given them for carrying it out. “You shall be witnesses for me ...
even to the very ends of the earth” (b). The Apostles were to
be witnesses of Him, of his doctrine, of his life, of his Passion,
of his resurrection. In order to be fitted to give this testimony,
they would be baptized in the Holy Spirit: “You shall be bap­
tized with the Holy Spirit” (c); they would receive the strength
of the Holy Spirit, which would come upon them (d).
These few short indications point up a slightly different as­
pect of the mission of the Church in preaching the Word of
God, which is more profound than the one usually presented in
1441a Matt. 28:20.
1441c Acts 1:5.

1441b Acts 1:8.
1441d Acts 1:8.

740

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

Fundamental Theology; the latter is usually more theoretical,
with less stress on the living reality involved.
The full sense of what We want to say now is to be found
on the lips of the Savior Himself in his farewell discourse; at
that time the Redeemer used a friendly conversation to reveal
His thoughts on the mission He was entrusting to the Apostles
and, through them, to the Church.
The promise uj me Paraclete to the Apostles

Our Lord had come to the end of His life on earth. He still
had much to say to those who were to carry on his mission,
but at this time they were not yet ready to bear it (a). So He
would beg the Father to send another
, to remain
with them forever, the Spirit of truth. Whom the world cannot
receive, because it neither sees nor knows Him (b).
This helper, this Holy Spirit, would teach the Apostles ev­
erything and recall to them all that He had said, all the “veritas
Christi' (c). This would prepare them to go on announcing the
word of Christ in the spirit of Christ. They would be receiving
all that they had to teach from the strength and authority of
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Beloved sons, here you have a key for the understanding and
appreciation of the preaching of the Church—a preaching of the
doctrine of Christ through the Church’s teachers, the Pope and
the Bishops who are in communion with him. It is the one and
triune God who communicates truth, light, and life through the
teaching authority of the Church (d).

1442
(8889,
96,
100,
137)

1443
(96)

These thoughts do not do away with a need for the systeniatic exposition and the clear definitions which scientific Theology
offers Us in this question of the origin and properties of the
teaching authority of the Church. On the contrary, they will help
it to avoid certain false interpretations and arbitrary inferences
which have been proposed by some even quite recently.
1442a John 16:12.
1442b John 14:16-17.
1442c John 14:26.
1442d E in tai guisa voi avete, dilettissimi figli, una chiave pei
la comprensione e I’apprezzamento della predicazione della Chiesa,
predicazione della dot trina di Cristo mediante i maestri della Chie­
sa, il Papa e i Vescovi in comunione con lui. É il Dio uno e trino,
che at traversa il magistero ecclesiastico comunica verità, luce c
vita.
ΤΠ

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

741

But at the same time, they are a real help toward setting a
higher value on the preaching of the Church and giving it greater
attention, and toward a readier acceptance of it, while they bring
a better understanding of what radiates out from it: truth, light,
and life from the depths of God.
2. The execution of this mission in the course of time

We certainly do not intend to give a summary of the history 1444
of the Church under this heading. Our only desire is to take (89,
up this question:
97}
Has the preaching of the Church, which is based on the
truths which the Lord has commanded it to teach, and which is
sustained by the Spirit of God in each succeeding age, been
applied to modern man and his time? To answer this question,
you have to take a look at the past.

All that the Psalmist says of the Spirit of the Creator and that 1445
the Church applies to the Holy Spirit in her prayer can be seen (112,
in action in her own preaching in the course of the centuries: 224)
Emitte Spiritum tuum et creabuntur, et renovabis faciem terra?,
“Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created, and Thou shalt
renew the face of the earth" (a). The Church, which has spread
the truth of Christ in the world through the power of the Holy
Spirit, has renewed the face of the earth, not once, but time
and again.
You can see it in the early ages of Christianity in the midst
of a pagan world and of the worship of false gods; in the time
of the downfall of the Roman Empire and of its civilization; in
the times of the invasions of new races and peoples; in the
Middle Ages, with their flowering of Christianity ; in the time
of the new paganism; in the time of the unfortunate split in the
faith in the West; in the age of Enlightenment—and so forth.
Always and everywhere the preaching of the Church has
had the same aim and the same result: to make a man a Chris­
tian, to infuse into man the truth, the life, and the riches of the
grace of the Lord. In this sense, the preaching of the Church has
shown its adaptability and has actually' adapted itself to all men
all times, all types of civilization (b).
1445a Mass of Pentecost.
...
..
1445b Dappertutto e sempre lo scopo e I esito della predicazione
della Chiesa sono stati·. fare dell uomo .1 cnsliano. infondere nel

742

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

1446
The struggles and persecutions that have surrounded the
(90, preaching of the Church in its progress through the course of the
- centuries are common knowledge; the same is true of the sue228) cession of victory and defeat, rise and fall, heroic professions at
the cost of life and goods, and, in some cases, downfall, betrayal,
abandonment. History gives clear evidence of one thing: “The
gates of hell shall not prevail" (a). But there is some evidence on
the other side, too; the gates of hell have had partial successes.
Surely', when you think of the riches of truth and of grace
with which the Lord has endowed the Church for the fulfillment
of its teaching office, you would expect that its journey through
the ages would be nothing but a continuously salutary' and peace­
ful victory'.
But events have developed in a very different way, just as
the Redeemer Himself had predicted to the Apostles: “No
servant is greater than his master. If they have persecuted me,
they will persecute you also.” “If the world hates you, know that
it has hated me before you” (b).
So there have been efforts and struggles, persecution and
oppression, a Via Crucis instead of a solemn entry' with jubilant
Hosannas, but along the way the Church has conquered the
minds and hearts of countless men through the truth and force
of the Holy Spirit.

3. The carrying out of this mission at the present moment
1447
All that We have said of the past is true of the present as
(88, well. A “Center for Pastoral Orientation" with the aim of “pas106, toral adaptation" is good and in many cases absolutely necessary.
The “priest entrusted with the care of souls" can and must know
what modern science, art, and technology have to say about
man’s goal and his religious and moral life; he must have a clear
idea of what is acceptable, what is unacceptable, and what is in­
different, from a moral and religious point of view.
Now We must say the same thing of the present as We did
of the past: there is as much of a need (and today an even great­
er one) of keeping our pastoral activity up to date on its contact

Γuomo la verità, la vita c la ricchezza della grazia del Signore. In
questo senso la predicazione della Chiesa si è dimostrata adattabile e adattata a tutti gli uomini, i tempi e le civiltà.

1446a Matt. 16:18.

1446b John 15:18-20.

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

743

with the preaching of the Church (the vivum Magisterium eccle­
siasticinn), as there is for keeping it in touch with modem
sciences.
We can go a step further and say that right now there is a
greater need of an “orientation” of modern sciences toward the
teaching authority of the Church (whenever they are dealing
with the religious and moral fields) than there is for an orienta­
tion of the teaching authority of the Church toward modem
sciences. (This involves no desire on Our part to disturb the
autonomy of these sciences whenever they are not dealing
with the religious-moral field either directly or indirectly, and
as long as the direction of human life toward a supernatural final
end does not suffer in any way.)
We are interested now in making people more aware of the
necessity of contact with the Church’s teaching authority, and
in strengthening their personal conviction of the importance of
adopting and maintaining this contact in order to make their
activity well-adapted to current times and people.
The Church has within it the arms given it by Christ: the
truth of Christ and the Holy Spirit. With this equipment, it has
its hand on the pulse of the times, and the faithful must have
theirs on the pulse of the Church if they are to be properly
orientated and able to give a proper diagnosis and prognosis of
the present time in its relationship to eternity (a).
The “new theology”
The Encyclical “Humani generis' of August 12, 1950. “De 1448
nonnullis falsis opinionibus, quæ catholicæ doctrina* fundamenta (224)
1447a Ora dobbiamo anche per il présenté ripetere quanto ahbiamo
detto per il passât o: vi è una simile (e oggi anche maggiore)
nécessita di un “aggiornamento pastorale”—vogliamo dire: adattamento—alla predicazione della Chiesa (il vivum Magisterium
ecclesiasticum), corne alt rest un “aggiornamento pastorale" aile
scienze moderne; anzi dobbiamo dire chc vi è al momento
présente una più grande nécessita dell* “orientamento" delle st esse
scienze moderne (in quanto esse toccano i campi religiosi e
morali) al magisterio della Chiesa, come, d’altra parte, di un
orientamento del magistero della Chiesa allé scienze moderne
(senza pregiudizio dell’autonomia delle scienze medesime, in
quanto esse non toccano, nè direttamente nè indirettamente, il
campo religioso-morale, e in quanto non ne venga a soffrire I’ordinamento della vita umana al fine ultimo soprannaturale). Ora
a Noi importa di rendere più consapevole e di rafforzare il per­
sonale convincimento della nécessité di prendere e mantenere

744

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

subruere minantur" (a), is to a great extent a refutation of a
false “Orientation” and “Modernization” of theology, philosophy,
and exegesis in line with certain modem currents and scientific
tendencies which lack a sufficent basis. It speaks of an unjustified
tendency toward erroneous systems of philosophy and of the
concessions that some seem to be ready to make (evolutionism,
idealism, immanentism, pragmatism, existentialism, historicism)
in the field of theology and exegesis.
The “new theology” claimed to be fitting in with modem
developments and to be making it easier and more natural for
a Catholic scientist to be a Catholic. As a matter of fact, it began
to introduce arbitrary corrections, suppressions, changes, and re­
constructions of all that had gone before, to tone down the
rigidity and immutability of metaphysical principles, to make
precise dogmatic definitions more flexible, to revise the content
and meaning and inner structure of the supernatural, to spirit­
ualize and modernize the theology of the Eucharist, to adopt
a new approach to the doctrine of the Redemption, the nature
and effects of sin, and not a few other points, so as to bring them
into line with modern thought and feelings. The same kind of
movement could be observed in the field of exegesis. Many
wanted to accept the ideas and conclusions of profane sciences,
often without any serious examination or evaluation.
The “new morality”
1449
There are some other current examples that We would like
(81, to mention now, to give you an even clearer view of just how
103) necessary it is at the present time for any ‘Orientation’’ or
“Modernization” to be in contact with the living Magisterium of
the Church.
Any “modern Orientation” will have to adopt a vigilant and
critical attitude toward the “new morality” as well as the “new
theology.” We have explained the mind of the Church on this
subject in two talks on March 23 (a) and April 18, 1952.
questo contatto col magistero della Chiesa per renderlo cosi adattato al tempo e all'uomo contemporaneo. La Chiesa lui in sè
l’armamento che Cristo le ha data: la verita di Cristo e lo Spirito
Santo. Essa cost armata ha la sua mano al polso del tempo, e i
fedeli debbono avere la loro al polso della Chiesa, per essere
rettamente orientait e poter trovare e dare una retta diagnosi e
prognosi su I tempo rispetto alla eternità.
1448a Above, Nos. 1275 ff.
1449a Above, Nos. 1325-1328.

FIDI 1.1 I Y AM) ADAPTA ΓΙΟΝ

745

The Holv See has recently taken a stand on a related matter
in the Instruction of the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the
Holy Office on February 2 of this year (b), on Situation Ethics.’
a system which appeals to many who do not have a clear idea of
its dangerous nature. The “Center for Orientation” is faced with
a serious obligation in this matter, if it is really interested in
providing up-to-date information that has a scientific basis.
The Holv See has spoken and taken a stand on questions of
law and the natural order, on social problems, on secularism in
its various applications—to education and the school problem,
the life of the state, international relations and international law
-and because it has spoken, modern pastoral orientation will do
well to keep these teachings in mind (c).

The role of the theologians
There is another point that We cannot pass over in silence. 1450
Special circumstances in the ecclesiastical history of the last few (97years prompted Us to make mention in Our two allocutions to 98
the Sacred College and to the Hierarchy on May 31 and Novem­
ber 2, 1954 (a), of the “jure divino' basis for the teaching
authority of the Pope and of Bishops. We went on to discuss the
teaching of Theologians, who do not carry on their work through
divine right, but through delegation of the Church, and hence
remain subject to the vigilance and authority of the legitimate
Teaching Authority. When Theologians take an active interest in
Orientation” and bring forth scientific theological arguments,
you may he faced with the problem of whether the word of
Theologians or that of the Teaching Authority of the Church
carries greater weight and offers a greater guarantee of truth

The Enyclical “Humani generis" has already provided an
answer: “Quod quidem depositum (fidei)... necipsis theologis
divinus Redemptor concredidit authentice interpretandum, sed
1449b AAS, 48, 1956, pp. 144-45.
1449c La competenza e i pronunziamenti della Chiesa in questioni
riguardanti la legge e Γordine naturale, i problemi sociali, il
laicismo nei suoi più svariati campi, como l'edticazionc c la seuola,
la vita dello Stato, i rapporti e il diritto internazionali; le questioni
dei diritto bellico e della guerra moderna; su tutto cio la S. Sede
ha pariato, e l’Oricntamcnto pastorale moderno farà bene a tenci
presenti anche questi insegnamenti.
1450a Above, Nos. 1367 ft. and 1391 ff.

746

FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION

soli Ecclesiæ Magisterio... . Quare Decessor Noster imm. inem.
Pius IX, docens nobilissimum theologia? munus illud esse, cjuod
ostendat quomodo ab Ecclesia definita doctrina contineatur in
fontibus, non absque gravi causa illa addidit verba: eo ipso
sensu, quo ab Ecclesia definita est" (b). So the decisive factor
in knowing the truth is not the “Opinio theologorum' but the
"sensus
Ecclesia?" To reverse the matter, would
be makinp
_
·
o
Theologians practically the “magistri Magisterii," which is ob­
viously an error (c).

1451
This does not imply, of course, that Theologians and other
(106) learned men should relax their efforts to put on a scientific basis
a whole series of questions which acutely affect our lives. The
Holy See certainly loves, praises, and promotes the learned
studies and lofty speculation of Theologians who are penetrating
more deeply into revealed truths and who are ever ready to
ponder, explain, and support the declarations of the ecclesiastical
Teaching Authority with scientific seriousness, in the light of
reason as illumined by faith (a), which means, as Pius IX af­
firmed, in “sensu Ecclesiæ."
Marriage and virginity

1452
(98,
209,
224225)

The recent Encyclical, De Sacra Virginitate, of March 25,
1954, has shown you, among other things, the Church’s attitude
toward the endless debates carried on by modern men and
especially by the young about the importance or even-as some
will have it—the indispensable necessity of marriage for the
human person (who, otherwise, in their opinion, remains a kind
1450b “This deposit of faith our Divine Redeemer has given for
authentic interpretation . . . not even to theologians, but only to
the Teaching Authority of the Church . . . Hence Our Predecessor
of immortal memory, Pius IX, teaching that the most noble office
of theology is to show how a doctrine defined by the Church is
contained in the sources of revelation, added these words, and
with very good reason: 'in that sense in which it has been defined
by the Church.’
1450c Se essi come Teologi sono attivamente intéressât i nell' “Orientamento" e adduco no argomenti teologici scientific!, avrebbc
potato presentarsi il quesito, se la parola dei Teologi o quella del
Magistero della Chiesa offre maggiore peso a garanzia di vérité
. . . Decisive dunque per la conoscenza della vérité è non già la
“opinio theologorum”, ma il “sensus Ecclesiæ”. Alt riment i sarebbe
un fare i Teologi quasi “magistri Magisterii”; il che e un évidente
errore.
1451a Cone. Vatic. Sess. Ill, cap. 4.

THE LITURGY AX'D THE CHURCH

747

of spiritual monster), and its attitude concerning the supposed
superiority of Christian marriage and the marriage-act over
virginity—which is not a sacrament that produces effects ex
opere operato.
Art
And We do not want to omit mention of a passage of the 1453
Encyclical on “Musica sacra' of December 25, 1955, where there (106,
is express mention of the Church’s attitude toward the hotly 224debated and often erroneously solved problem of the independ- 225)
once of art from all that is not art. You know yourselves how
often this question is discussed even in Catholic groups without
anv dear knowledge of true, basic principles.

The spirit of Christ
Now We have come to the end of Our exhortation, and We 1454
hope that it may be for your Center like the "leaven, which a (224woman took and buried in three measures of flour, until all of 225)
it was leavened” ( a ).
You will really become a leaven of salvation for the whole
modern world to the extent that you are able to attain, under
the guidance of Holy Mother the Church, the inexhaustible vigor
of the eternal Word, who became man to make men sharers in
his divine nature. May every Pastor of souls approach the world
in that same way, with intelligence, knowledge, and love, so that
he may not be dragged down by the world to its own level, but
may see his human words bringing it the liberating truth of
God, the transcendent perfection of the Redeemer. Jesus.
May our Lord grant you an abundant increase of the “spirit
of Christ” and of the “spirit of the Church" of Christ, that you
mav earn' out this duty of yours fruitfully.
THE LITURGY AND THE CHURCH

All. to the Congress of Pastoral Liturgy, September 22, 1956.
[The Pope recalls the preceding pontifical teaching on the
liturgy.-The Holy Father will discuss some important points on:
The Liturgy and the Church; The Liturgy and the Lord.)
As We have said in Our encyclical Mediator Dei, the liturgy 1455
constitutes a vital function of the entire Church, and not simply (271454a Matt. 13:33.

748

I IIE LITURGY AND THE CHURCH

28,
of a group or a limited movement. Sacra Liturgia integrum con­
85stituit publicum Mystici Jesu Christi corporis, capitis nempe
86,
membrorumque ejus (a). The Mystical Body of the Lord lives
99,
on the truth of Christ and on the graces which circulate through
115, the members, animate them, and unite them with each other
117, and with their Head. Such is the idea which St. Paul expresses
136, when he says in his first Epistle to the Corinthians, Omnia vestra
212) sunt, vos autem Christi, Christi autem Dei (b). Everything,

therefore, is directed to God, to his service and to his glory. The
Church, full of the gifts and the life of God, gives herself in a
spontaneous and intimate movement to the adoration and praise
of the infinite God, and, in the liturgy, renders to Him as a
society the worship she owes Him.
To this unique liturgy each one of the members, those
invested with hierarchical power as well as the mass of the faith­
ful, brings all that he has received from God, all the resources
of his mind, of his heart, and of his work. The Hierarchy first,
which controls the despositum fidei and the depositum gratiae.

1456
(117,
212,
215)

How the hierarchy communicates this twofold
deposit by means of the liturgy
If the Hierarchy communicates the truth and grace of Christ
by means of the liturgy, on their side the faithful have the task
of receiving them, of assenting to them with their whole hearts,
and of transforming them into living values. All that is offered
to them, the graces of the Sacrifice of the Altar, of the sacraments
and the sacramentals, they accept, not in a passive manner,
simply allowing them to flow into them, but they collaborate
with their whole will and all their strength, and above all by
participating in the liturgical offices or at least by following their
enactment with fervor. They have contributed and continue to
contribute in large measure by a constant effort to increase the
external splendor of worship, by constructing churches and chap­
els, by adorning them, by enhancing the beauty of the liturgical
ceremonies with all the resources of sacred art.
1455a “The Sacred Liturgy constitutes the integral public cult of
the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, that is to say, of the Head and
his members” (Above No. 1222.)
1455b “All things are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is
Cod’s”; 1 Cor. 3:23.

THE LITURGY AND THE CHURCH

749

Collaboration of the faithful with the hierarchy
in the liturgy
The contribution of the hierarchy and of the faithful to the
liturgy is not something which is added to it like two separate
quantities; these contributions represent the collaboration of the
members of the one organism which acts like a single living
being. Pastors and flock, the Church teaching and the Church
taugit, form only one single and unique body of Christ. So there
is no reason to entertain distrust, rivalry, overt or hidden opposi­
tion, either of thought or of manner of speaking and acting.
Among the members of the same body, there should reign before
all else concord, harmony, collaboration. It is in this unity that
the Church prays, offers, sanctifies herself, and there is every
right to affirm that the liturgy is the work of the entire Church.

But we must add: the liturgy is not, for all that, the whole
Church; it does not exhaust the field of her activities. Already,
side by side with the public cultus, the cultus of the community,
there is a place for private worship, which the individual renders
to God in the secret of his heart or expresses by interior acts, and
which has as many variants as there are Christians, although all
proceed from the same faith and the same grace of Christ. This
form of worship the Church not only tolerates, but she grants it
full recognition and recommends it, without, however, taking
away from the liturgical cultus its pre-eminence.
Beyond the liturgy
But when We say that the liturgy does not exhaust the
Church’s field of activities, We are thinking above all of the tasks
of teaching and the pastoral ministry, of the Pascite qui in vobis
est gregem Dei (a). We have recalled the role of the Magis­
terium, which is the depository of the truth of Christ, as far as
this is exercised in the liturgy; the influence of the power of gov­
ernment on the liturgy is also evident, since it is the function
of the Popes to recognize existing rites, to introduce new ones,
and to regulate the order of worship; and the office of bishops,
to watch carefully over the observance of the canonical rules con­
cerning divine worship (b). But the functions of teaching and
governing extend much farther. To realize this it is sufficient to
1459a “Feed the flock of Christ which is among you”; 1 Peter 5:2.
1459b Above, Nos. 1219 ff.

750

BOLDNESS OF THE CHURCH

see what Canon Law says of the Pope, of the Roman Congrega­
tions, of the Bishops, the Councils, of the Magisterium, and of
ecclesiastical discipline. We reach the same conclusion from
observing the life of the Church, and in Our two Allocutions of
May 31 and November 2, 1954 on the triple function of the Bish­
op, We have insisted expressly on the extent of his duties, which
are not confined to teaching and government, but comprise as
well all human activity in the measure in which religious and
moral interests are at stake (c).
(Hearers are urged to avoid exaggerations in the opposite
sense.—The liturgy and the Lord—The Church's faculty of
adaptation.—Grave reasons for maintaining Latin.—Diverse needs
of the faithful. )

BOLDNESS OF THE CHURCH
All. to the Automobile Club of Rome, March 3, 1957.
(Social services rendered by the Club.—As such, the mem­
bers must serve the State well.—The fact that they belong to the
Church makes it a duty for them to tend towards eternal life.)
1460
The constant concern of the Church is to create here and now
(77) in her children the dispositions which they ought to have when
they will be admitted to see the Lord face to face and to live
eternally with him. Think sometimes of how extraordinary that
is, and of how the greatest human ambitions are far from rivalling
the boldness of the Church who proposes such a goal to you. And
do you never feel a proper pride in belonging to this courageous
phalanx which, through the centuries, has faced up to the most
violent assaults of paganism, ancient and modern, to keep this
ideal intact, to keep it free from all contamination and even'
perversion and to hand on from one age to the next the message
of Christ?
( Be faithful children of God and of the Church in spite of the
evil rampant in the world.)

1461
The Church is at work through the teaching of her pastors,
(48) through the sacraments, through her instruction and all the good
works she inspires in effecting a closer union among her children
and with Christ; she encourages them to pursue an arduous and
long-term enterprise, a constant struggle against error and evil,
a tenacious effort so that there will appear even on this earth a
1459c Cf. above, Nos. 1367 ff. and 1391 ff.

CATHOLICITY

751

rav of that divine charity, of its power for redemption, and its
victory over evil.
(Exhortation to live a Christian life.)
CATHOLICITY

All. to the recently ordained priests of the Spanish College
at Rome, March 21, 1957.
(The grace of sacerdotal ordination.—The learning and
virtue expected from a priest with Roman training.)
In the second place, We would say that the ‘Roman’ char­
acteristic is breadth of view, liberality, universality; as if “Ro­
manness” were a synonym for catholicity.
The whole Church of Christ is a living body, in every member
of which it is easy to see the pulsations of that all-encompassing
breadth which is one of her essential notes. But here, at Rome,
that is to say, at the heart of this great organism, why would it
not be possible to say that this tendency is manifest in greater
strength; that here we feel it, here we touch this living reality,
this catholicity which has room for all, which makes all men
brothers, without distinction of origin or race; this reality which
blends all together in the common union of an ineffable fraternity?
Your people, beloved sons, although situated at the farthest
edge of ancient Europe, are aware of the fact that in today’s
world the trumpets are already blowing which will bring down
the crumbling walls of petty particularisms, to open up a vast
field to universality. You yourselves, coming from Rome, with
your Roman' priesthood, can bring to them in large measure that
generous catholicity which, without depriving them of their own
magnificent characteristics and their rich customs, will help to
incorporate them more and more resolutely into these movements
of mutual cooperation, in which many today see the future and
the salvation of the world, which serves above all to make them
live ever more intensely the meaning of catholic, which, at need,
can go beyond itself the better to reach others, without prejudices
against anyone, and with the firm will not to recoil even before
sacrifice, if this is necessary, for a more universal good.

1462
(5-

132133)

1463
(131133)

The center of the Church
Lastly, it seems evident that the ‘Roman' quality ought to 1464
mean, too, a profound and deeply rooted conviction that at Rome (142,
is to be found the center of the Church, that there is the Vicar 161,
of Christ, whose mission is to guide the whole flock.
175)
H

752

TUE CHURCH SUFFERING

1465
We are not ignorant of Our own limits and Our own weak(208) ness; nonetheless We believe that We can say that We are
continually striving to accomplish Our pastoral dub', making
Our voice heard "fortiter et suaviter" (a), "opportune et impor­
tune" (b), Our heart always desirous of the greatest possible good
for all our children. May We always be able to say with the same
certainty that Our voice has been heard and welcomed, under­
stood and accepted, followed and properly valued! All priests,
but especially Roman priests, should consider it their special
function never to lose that living contact with the center, to be
the faithful interpreters of any word coming from Rome, im­
parting it to the souls confided to their care with the same under­
standing and the same love with which it was spoken.
(The approaching Eucharistic Congresses—Good wishes for
Spain. )
THE CHURCH SUFFERING

Decree of beatification of Venerable Mother Eugénie Smet,
foundress of the Helpers of the Holy Souls, April 21, 1957.
(The divine adoption.—Purgatory the place of purification
for those who still have satisfaction to make. )
1466
According to the teaching of the Angelic Doctor the pain
(7}
suffered by these souls is extremely great: the least of the suf1S, ferings of Purgatory exceeds the greatest suffering of this life,
77) he says (a).
But while divine justice punishes of necessity, the merciful
goodness of God also brings help to his beloved children.
For all the elect, whether still living in this world, or confined in
Purgatory, or alreadv blessed in the heavenly fatherland, make up
the Mystical Body of Christ the divine judge; they are his living
members; therefore, and this is of faith, by the “Communion of
Saints” the souls suffering in Purgatory can be helped by the
suffrages of those living in the world; and these same souls, for
such is the Church’s thought, can intercede before God for those
still “in via” and for their necessities.
(Works which can benefit the souls in Purgatory.—Institutes
founded to succor them—The life of the Beata—Decree oj
Beatification. )
1465a “mightily and sweetly ”; Cf. Wisdom 8:1.
1465b “in season and out of season”; 2 Tim. 4:2.
1466a IV Sent., d. XXI, q. I, a. I, 3.

SOLICITUDE OF ALL THE CHURCHES
Encycl., Fidei donum, April 21, 1957.
(Gratitude to God for the gift of faith.—Grandeur of the mis­
sionary apostolate.—The African missions.—Collaboration of all.)

It is not without reason, Venerable Brothers, that We turn 1467
to you when an hour of such gravity for the greater extension (24,
of the Church draws near. “For if in our mortal body when one 144,
member suffers all the others suffer with it (a), and those that 180,
are healthy come to the assistance of those that are weak: so in 185)
the Church, individual members live not for themselves alone,
but they also help the others, and all perform a helpful function
with regard to the others, for their mutual consolation, as also
for the more perfect building up of the whole Body” (b). Now,
are not the Bishops in very truth “considered to be the most
eminent members of the universal Church, so that they are joined
with a special bond to the Divine Head of the whole Body, and
are by rights called the first of the Lord’s members?” (c). Of
them more than of all the others it must be said that Christ, the
Head of the Mystical Body, “... needs his members: ... and first
because the Sovereign Pontiff holds the place of Jesus Christ,
and if he is not to be crushed by his pastoral charge, he must
call many others to their share in his solicitude” (d).
Therefore, most closely united to Christ and to his Vicar on
earth, you. Venerable Brothers, moved bv the breath of the most
ardent charity, desire to share in that solicitude for all the
Churches which weighs upon Our shoulders (a). You, whom the
charity of Christ presses (b), will feel deeply with Us the urgency of that most grave obligation to spread the Gospel and
found the Church throughout the entire world; and you will
never cease to propagate widely among your clergy and faithful
a spirit of prayer and zeal for mutual assistance, according to the
measure of the charity of Christ. Extend,” says St. Augustine,
“your charity to the' whole world, if you wish to love Christ, for
the members of Christ arc everywhere in the world (c).
1467a Cf. 1 Cor. 12:26.
1467b Encyclical, Mystici Corporis; above. No. 1016.
1467c Ibid.. No. 1042.
1467d Ibid., No. 1044.
1468a Cf. 2 Cor. 11:28.
1468b Ibid. 5:4.
1468c In Epist. Joan, ad Parthos, X, 8.

1468
(134,
132,
^^0,

754

SOLICITUDE OF ALL THE CHURCHES

T/ie missionary charge

1469
(77,
86,
131,
134,
141,
150,
186187,
104,
105)

Doubtless it was to the Apostle Peter alone and to his Sue·
cessors, namely the Roman Pontiffs, that Jesus Christ entrusted
the entire flock: Pasce agnos meos, pasce oves meas, “Feed my
lambs, feed my sheep” (a). But if each Bishop is pastor only over
the portion of the flock entrusted to him, nevertheless the fact
that he is by divine institution and command a legitimate suecessor of the Apostles makes him, together with the other Bishops,
responsible for the apostolic mission of the Church, according
to those words which Christ said to his Apostles: Sicut misit me
Pater, et ego mitto vos, “As the Father has sent me, I also send
you” (b). This mission, which must embrace all nations and all
times (c), did not come to an end with the death of the Apostles;
it lasts to this day in the persons of the Bishops who are in com­
munion with the Vicar of Jesus Christ. For on them, who are
called by the special name of “sent” (“missi”), namely, the Lord’s
Apostles, the fullness of the apostolic dignity rests, a dignit)'
“which is pre-eminent in the Church” as St. Thomas Aquinas
bears witness (d). Therefore, it is from their hearts that this
Apostolic fire, brought by Jesus Christ to this earth, ought to
spread to the hearts of Our sons and kindle there new zeal for
the missionary work of the Church throughout the world.
Catholicity the essential note of the Church

1470
(53,
131,
133134)

Moreover, this perspective on the universal needs of the
Church will show in its true light the catholic nature of the
living Church. “The spirit of missionary endeavor”—so We once
said—“and the catholic spirit are one and the same thing. To be
catholic is an essential note of the Church, so that a Christian
would hardly be attached to the Church and devoted to her,
unless he were likewise attached to and devoted to the universal­
ity of the faithful, and, for that reason very anxious that the
Church should take root and flourish in every nation” (a).
Nothing is so foreign to the Church of Jesus Christ as division;
nothing is such an impediment to her life as for her members to
live in isolation, or to be turned in upon themselves, or. finally,
1469a John 21:16-18.
1469b Ibid. 20:21.
1469c Cf. Matt. 28:19-20.
1469d Expos, in Epist. ad Rom., I, 1.
1470a R.M. of Nov. 24, 1946.

THE PRAYERS OF HER CHILDREN

755

to be uniquely occupied with the private interests of their own
communities. “Mother of all nations and of all peoples, not less
than of all individuals,” the Church, Sancta Mater Ecclesia, “is
foreign to no land; she lives, or at least by her nature she should
live, in every people” ( b ).
Again-and it is necessary to assert this—nothing that touches
the Church Our Mother is foreign to individual Christians, nor
should it be: in the same way that their faith is the faith of the
universal Church, and their supernatural life is proper to the
whole Church, so the anxieties, the difficulties of the Church will
be their anxieties, their difficulties; in the same way the perspectives and designs of the Church, which are universal, will
be the normal perspectives and desires of the Christian life. Then
spontaneously it will happen that the exhortations of the Roman
Pontiffs for the great apostolic tasks to be carried out in the
whole world will resound clearly and truly in the Catholic soul,
as appeals to be freely accepted before all others, and carried
out most eagerly and earnestly.
(A triple duty: prayer for the missions, charity for the
missions, recruitment of missionaries—Exhortation.)

1471
(46,
48,
133134,
217)

THE PRAYERS OF HER CHILDREN

Message to the pilgrims of Bari, May 7, 1957.
(Translation of the relics, the cult of St. Nicholas—The
work of St. Nicholas.—His struggle against heresies.)

Not dissimilar, though on another plane, is the great work of 1472
construction and restoration to health on which the Church of (67,
God is now engaged more urgently than ever before.
83,
It is the combat against hostile forces, it is the pacific strug- 99,
gle of truth against error, of virtue and the good against malice 220)
and iniquity.
If it is a legitimate thing for the poor and the needy to make
pilgrimages to the tombs of the Saints with their personal needs
of body and soul, and to rekindle faith and virtue at the inextin­
guishable flame which emanates from these tombs, it is the
supreme duty of all to approach these centers of grace and
benediction mindful of Holy Church, militant and suffering,
Our Mother, who derives from the prayers of her children, from
1470b R.M., Christmas, 1945; cf. above, No. 1165.

756

THE TEACHING OFFICE

their personal and collective labor, from their immolation, worth­
while contributions to ensure her salutary conquests and her
victories.
(The intercession of St. Nicholas.)

THE TEACHING OFFICE

1473
(40,
87,
9798,
144,
206,
222)

1474
(76,
109110,
203)

R. M. to the Catholic press of the United States, May 17,1957.
(The influence of the press—Catholic journalists must above
all be penetrated with the fundamental principles of Christian
philosophy and theology.)
Secondly, they must reflect in their writings the unity, the
uniqueness of the Church in her faith and in her moral teaching.
It is to the Apostles, and, by them, to their successors, that Christ
Our Lord confided the truth which He came on earth to communicate to men. The function of teaching in his Church, as
everyone knows, belongs to the Bishop of Rome, his vicar on
earth, for the whole body of the faithful, and to the many Bishops
for the groups of members of the Church confided by this Vicar
to their pastoral care. In the accomplishment of their grave duty
of teaching, the Bishops will have recourse to the assistance of
priests and also of laymen, whose authority for teaching, how­
ever, is not the result of a personal superiority of knowledge, but
of the mission which has been entrusted to them by the Bishops.
The press, like all the faithful, will give them loyal submission.
But in what concerns questions on which the divinely appointed teachers have not given a judgment—and the field is vast
and varied, with the exception of matters of faith and morals-.
free discussion is entirely legitimate, and each one can support
and defend his own opinion. But such an opinion should be
presented with the necessary moderation; and no one will con­
demn another simply because he is not in agreement with his
own opinion; still less will he question his loyalty.
This desirable bond of unity, assured and sealed by justice
and charity, will be impossible to break if—and this is the third
requirement imposed on your members—if all are always con­
scious of the unique and sublime end which each and every one
of you must strive to attain: the extension of the kingdom of
truth and salvation of Christ among men.
( The ultimate goal of the Catholic press is to assist men to
work out their salvation.)

A

THE MEANING OF UNIVERSALITY

All. to the 1st National Italian Congress of Diocesan Dele­
gates for Emigration, July 23, 1957.
(Solicitude of the Holy See for the emigrants.—Principles of
apostolic action in their regard.—Virtues required in the missioniin/-Practical directives. )
To the community of the faithful of the place is offered
the occasion of showing what unity and catholicity are in the
common Mother the Church: that they are still today living
and operative “notes”. A courteous tolerance for the emigrants
will not be enough, therefore, nor a feeling of somewhat sterile
compassion and sympathy; there must be an active love, like
that which distinguished the fervent Christian communities of
the first centuries. To many Catholics, priests and laymen.
Providence offers today the opportunity of renewing in their
parishes the ancient and perpetual glory of the Christian name,
and of manifesting to the surrounding world, divided by so
many different nationalities, how profound is the sense of uni­
versality in the Church. She asks no member of the xMystical
Body what his passport is before she resolves to engraft him into
the life of the community and make him a sharer in her spiritual
treasures and her affection.
(Grandeur of the mission of the delegates of the Emigration
Committees. )
THE BASIC CELL
All. to the pilgrims of the parish of St. Medin of Barcelona,
August 20, 1957.
(Congratulations on the great number of pilgrims, all com­
ing from the same parish. )
Above all We wish to express to you the pleasure with which
We see you carrying out what We have stated on other occasions
about all the good We hope to see resulting from a well-directed
and well-organized parish life, so that this “basic cell” of eccle­
siastical life may develop all its fecundity and all its efficacy for
the good of souls (a). A parish is not simply a church, a priest,
a territory, and a specific portion of the Lord’s flock, all expressed
in figures more or less eloquent. A parish is a cell of the body,
which, in this case, is the Mystical Bodv of Christ; it is a living
1476a Cf. Letter to the Social Week of Canada, July IS, 1953.

1475
(52,
67,
131 )

1476
(205)

758

THE SACERDOTAL FUNCTION

being, with its own breath, with its organs and vital activities,
with its natural development, and also with its problems, its
necessities, its joys, and its special sorrows.
(Love the parish—Work to make it a model.)

THE SACERDOTAL FUNCTION
All. to the members of the “Jeunes Séminaristes” Movement,
September 5, 1957.
(The tenth anniversary of the Movement.)

1477
(89,
165,
167,
170,
174175)

1478
(139,
1 11,
175)

1479
fl 13-

When you come to Rome it is a real pilgrimage to the sources
of the priesthood that you are making. In the third century,
in fact, did not St. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, speak to Pope
St. Cornelius of “that chair of Peter and that principal church,
whence the unity of the priesthood has its origin”: ad Petri Cathcdram atque ad ecclesiam principalem unde unitas sacerdotalis
exorta est? (a) This formula, which enshrines one of the most
precious affirmations of pontifical primacy which history pos­
sesses, you will have read in gigantic letters above the tomb of
St. Peter: Hinc sacerdotii unitas exoritur.
From this place, from this humble tomb of a witness to
Christ, torrents of grace have spread through the world. From
this place, from this Chair of Peter, his successors exercise with
the infallible assistance of the Holy Spirit their role of teacher
and guide; they keep the deposit of Tradition, they comment on
Holy Scripture, they govern and sanctify the whole Catholic
Church by the exercise of their powers of order and jurisdiction.
The ancient capital of the Roman Empire whose imposing
ruins you have visited was chosen ground in which the grain
of mustard seed of the Gospel was planted. Peter himself was,
in the image of his Master, the foundation of the Church, for he
carried in himself a unique strength. This rough fisherman of
Galilee is the only man to whom God confided the keys of the
Kingdom, the only one to whom was guaranteed the final victon'
over evil, the only one to receive the charge of leading all human­
ity to the total truth and to eternal life, in the very name and in
the place of Jesus Christ Himself.
It is in the priesthood of Christ that you are hoping to parti­
cipate, in order to render to God the greatest honor and to render
1477a St. Cyprian, Ep. LIX, 14.

H JINKING WITH I HE CHURCH

759

to men your brothers the greatest service that can be imagined. 115)
What is it that men need most, today as always? What indeed,
if not to know and love God, the true God, as He has, historically,
revealed Himself to be. Now, you know that to give God to men
and men to God is a task so noble that it is impossible to approach
it without a special grace. However, Our Lord willed to give
this honor not only to some of his contemporaries, but to all
those who, responding to his will to save all men and to bring
them all to the knowledge of the truth (a), would be accepted
hv the Church for this mission.
J

The Catholic priesthood is, deservedly, one of the purest 1480
glories of the Church and one of the most striking marks of her (128,
sanctity. And so in the course of the centuries she has always 205)
surrounded it with increasingly attentive care. In spite of the
weakness of human nature, she has maintained a very high ideal
of life, and has spared no pains to make of her priests men of God
and men of the Church, really capable of taking charge of a part
of Christ’s flock and of rendering an account of it to God
on the day of judgment. (Work accomplished in France by the
movement.)
THINKING WITH THE CHURCH
All. to the General Congregation of the Society7 of Jesus,
September 10, 1957.
(Wishes for the success of the work of the General Congre­
gation.—The Society, founded to serve the Church and the Pope.)
Moreover, your Founder wanted you to be bound by a 1481
special vow, besides the three vows customary' to Religious, of (181)
obedience to the Sovereign Pontiff (a), and in the well-known
'‘Rules for Thinking with the Church'' added to the Spiritual Exer­
cises, he makes this special recommendation to you: "Suspending
one’s own judgment, the soul must ever be held prompt and ready
to obey the true Spouse of Christ and our Holy Mother, the
orthodox, catholic and hierarchical Church”; and the ancient
version, which was used by your Father Ignatius himself, adds:
‘‘the Roman Church” (b).
1479a Cf. 1 Tim., 2:4.
1481a Formula of the institute of the Society of Jesus, in the Apost.
Let. of Julius 111, Exposcit debitum, (July 21, 1550), and Rules
for Thinking with the Church.
1481b Rules for thinking with the Church, No. 1.

76Q

FIGURE OF HIE CHURCH MILITANT

1482
Among the distinguished deeds of your forebears, in which
(181) you rightly take pride and which you strive to emulate, this stands
out above the rest: that your Society, adhering as closely as
possible to the Chair of Peter, has ever striven to keep intact,
to teach, to defend, to promote the teaching proposed by this
Pontifical See, to which "because of its primordial importance,
the whole Church must rally, that is to say, the faithful of the
entire world" (a); nor has your Society ever tolerated any noveltv
which was dangerous or insufficiently tried (b).
Obedience

1483
Nor is it any less a matter of praise that in matters pertaining
(172) to ecclesiastical discipline you are distinguished by that perfect
obedience of execution, of will, and of judgment towards the
Holy See, which is such a mark of “the... authentic guidance of
the Holy Spirit” (a).
Let no one take from you the glory of that rectitude in doc­
trine and fidelity in obedience due to the Vicar of Christ; among
your ranks let there be no room for that "free examination” more
fitting to the heterodox mentality than to the pride of the Chris­
tian, and according to which no one hesitates to summon before
the tribunal of his own judgment even those things which have
their origin in the Apostolic See.
(Practice of obedience—Duties of superiors—Austerity and
prayer.—Monarchical government of the Society.)
FIGURE OF THE CHURCH MILITANT
All. to Family Associations, September 16, 1957.
(Congress of “international family days’— Subject treated:
fatherless families.—Widows. )
1484
Given that the sacrament of marriage, symbol of the redemp(63- tive love of Christ for his Church, applies to the spouses the
65) reality of this love, transfigures them, makes the husband like
Christ who delivers Himself to save the human race, and the
wife like the ransomed Church who accepts her participation in
the sacrifice of Christ, then, widowhood becomes in a certain
1482a St. Irenæus, Adv. Hær., L. Ill, c. 3.
1482b Coll. Decret. Decret. 102, Epit. Instituti, η. 319.
1483a Julius III, loc. cit.

A SUPERIOR SOLIDARITY

761

sense the crown of this mutual consecration; it is a figure of the
present life of the Church militant, deprived of the vision of her
heavenly Spouse, with whom, nonetheless she remains forever
united, journeying towards Him in faith and hope, living by
means of love which sustains her in her trials, and waiting im­
patiently for the final accomplishment of those first promises.
(Trials of widows—Work for widows.—Grandeur of the state
of widowhood) (a).
A SUPERIOR SOLIDARITY

All. to the Catholic Union of French Trainmen, Sep­
tember IS, 1957.
(Keep the faith.—Union of social and religious duties.—Le­
gitimate pride in their professional body.)
You should be proud also of the glories and conquests of
your Mother, Holy Church, always fruitful in saints, in apostles,
in missionaries, always charitable to the poor, the sick, the afflicted, always constant and firm in her teaching, forever one
down through the centuries and across the world.
You should also feel your responsibility to her, as you feel
your obligation to your association to show yourselves worthy of
its traditions. There exists among the Christians of the entire
world a solidarity far superior to all earthly bonds, for it is
founded on the community of the supernatural life. Each one
bears and nourishes all the others as members of the one body.
He carries his share of the burdens; he is solicitous for the com­
mon good; at need he sacrifices himself for the others. His faith
never remains inert but is constantly flowering into charity. And
so you act in the exercise of your professional and Christian life.
In fact, there is no division in the activities of the Christian: it is
one and the same faith and love of God which lead him to fulfill
his social duties as a worker and his religious duties as a believer.

MEMBERSHIP IN THE CHURCH

All. to the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organizations.
September 29, 1957.
(Triple apostolate of the woman.—Apostolate of truth.—The
woman belongs to God, to Christ.)
1484a For the sections of this discourse herein omitted, cf. THE
WOMAN IN THE MODERN WORLD, Nos. 561 ff.

1485
(39,
4548,
52,
128,
228,
231)

762

1486
(78,
Si,
99,
103)

MEMBERSHIP IN THE CHURCH

By the will of its Divine Founder the Church is the depositary of supernatural Revelation, she is its guardian and its
uniquely authorized interpreter; the teaching authority which
she exercises with regard to this sacred trust supposes the power
to judge all truth, since the eternal destiny of man is single and
unique and nothing in his life lies outside this end. Cultural,
political, social, and moral reality influences the whole orien­
tation of his conduct; charged with leading him to God and
possessing the infallible means of distinguishing true from false,
the Church is capable of appreciating the exact value of intellec­
tual and moral principles as well as the comportment which re­
sponds to the demands of truth in the concrete situations of
individual and social life.

1487
Hence in her personal conduct as in her apostolate the Cath(219) olic woman should make it her concern to remain in close contact
with the living source of light which the Lord has put in his
Church: as long as she remains under her guidance, as she ac­
cepts her teaching and observes her directives, she enjoys a
security which is infinitely precious, which confers on all her
undertakings an authority and a stability derived from the
authority and the stability of the Church herself.
1488
Some have wanted to limit the object of the competence
(80) of the ecclesiastical magisterium to the domain of principles,
and exclude the domain of facts, of concrete life. They pre­
tend that this latter area belongs to the layman, that the lay­
man is here on home ground, and that here he exercises a
competence which the ecclesiastical authority does not possess.
Let it be sufficient for Us to repeat here that such a position is
untenable: in the measure where it is not a question of simply
testifying to the existence of a material fact, but of evaluating
the religious and moral implications of it, the supernatural
destiny of man is at stake, and consequently the responsibility
of the Church comes into play; she can and she must, in virtue
of her divine mission and the guarantees she has received for
it, make precise the measure of truth and error contained in
such and such a line of conduct, in such and such a manner of
acting.
1489
Although the Church refuses to see the field of her
(6,
authority unduly limited, she does not suppress nor does she
31,
diminish bxJ that fact the liberty
1 and initiative of her children.

ΠΙΕ APOSTOLIC MISSION

765

The ecclesiastical hierarchy is not the whole Church, and she 32,
does not exercise her power from without after the manner of 48,
the civil power, for example, which treats its subjects solely on 124,
the juridical plane. You are the members of the Mystical Body 217)
of Christ, grafted on this Body as on an organism animated by
one single Spirit, living by a single identical life. The union
ol the members with the head in no way implies [that they
renounce their autonomy or—] (a) that they abandon the exer­
cise of their functions; quite the contrary, it is from the head
that they ceaselessly receive the movement which permits them
to act with strength and precision, in perfect harmony with
all the other members for the profit of the whole body.
(T/ie apostolate of love. The apostolate of actions) (b).

THE APOSTOLIC MISSION

All. to the 2nd World Congress of the Lay Apostolate. Octo­
ber 5, 1957.
(Memory of the Congress of 1951.—The theme of the present
Congress. )
Hierarchy and apostolate
We will take as Our point of departure for these considerations destined to make precise the nature of the Apostolate
of the Laity: “The laymen charged with teaching religion with
missio canonica, with the ecclesiastical mandate to teach, and
for whom this teaching constitutes perhaps even the sole professional activity, does he not by that very fact pass from the
lay apostolate’ to the hierarchical apostolate’?”
To answer this question We must remember that Christ
confided to the Apostles themselves a double power: first the
sacerdotal power of consecrating which was granted in all its
plenitude to all the Apostles; in the second place, that of teaching and governing, that is to say, of communicating to men,
in God’s name, the infallible truth that binds them and of deter­
mining the norms which regulate Christian life.
These powers of the Apostles passed to the Pope and to
the Bishops. The latter, by sacerdotal ordination, transmit to
1489a This passage between brackets, which is to be found in the
Osservatore Romano, was not printed in the AAS.
1489b For the portions of this discourse here omitted, cf. THE
WOMAN IN THE MODERN WORLD, Nos. 577 ff.

1490
(85,
86,
96,
98,
100,
119,
120,
137,
142,
186,
205)

764

THE APOSTOLIC MISSION

others, in a determined measure, the power to consecrate, while
the power of teaching and governing is proper to the Pope and
the Bishops.
, , ,
A double distinction
1491
When We speak of the “hierarchical apostolate” and of the
(136- “apostolate of the laity”, it is necessary to keep in mind this
137, double distinction: first, between the Pope, the bishops, and the
143) priests on the one hand, and the body of the laity on the other;
then, in the ranks of the clergy themselves, between those who
hold in all its fullness the power to consecrate and govern, and
other clerics. The first (Pope, bishops and priests) belong to the
clergy; if a layman were elected Pope, he could accept the
election only on condition of being qualified to receive ordina­
tion and disposed to let himself be ordained; the power of
teaching and governing, as well as the gift of infallibility, would
be accorded to him at the moment of his acceptance, even
before his ordination.
1492
Now to answer the question which We proposed, it is im(97, portant to consider the two distinctions We have laid down.
112, It is a question, in the present case, not of the power of orders,
205, but of the power of teaching. Of the latter, the possessors of
218, ecclesiastical authority alone are the depositaries. Others, priests
222) or laymen, collaborate with them in the measure in which they
are entrusted with teaching exactly and directing the faithful (a).
Priests (who act Vi muneris sacerdotalis), “in virtue of the office
of the priesthood”, and laymen also, may receive the mandate
to teach, which, depending on the case, may be the same for
both. They are distinguished from one another, however, by
the fact that one is a priest, the other a layman, and, con­
sequently, the apostolate of the former is sacerdotal, the aposto­
late of the latter is lay. As for the value and efficacy of the
apostolate exercised by the teaching of religion, they depend
upon the capacity of each and on his supernatural gifts. Laymen
who teach, nuns, catechists in Mission countries, all those whom
the Church charges with teaching the truths of faith, may apply
to themselves with justice the words of the Lord: “You are the
salt of the earth”; ‘you are the light of the world” (b).

1493
It is clear that anyone of the faithful may propose to him(86, self—and it is highly desirable that he should—to collaborate
1492a Cf. C.I.C., can. 1327, 1328.

1492b Matt. 5:13.

THE APOSTOLIC MISSION

765

in a more organized way with the ecclesiastical authorities, to
help them more effectively in their apostolic labor. He will
then be putting himself more directly under the dependence of
the hierarchy which alone is responsible before God for the
government of the Church. The acceptance by the layman of
a particular mission, of a mandate from the hierarchy, if this
associates him more immediately with the spiritual conquest
of the world, which the Church is carrying on under the direc­
tion of its pastors, is not enough to make the layman a member
of the hierarchy, to give him the powers of orders and jurisdiction
which are closely bound up with the reception of the sacrament
of orders, in its different degrees.

113,
119,
194,
211,
218)

We have not considered up to this point the ordinations 1494
which precede the priesthood and which, in the present practice (205)
of the Church, are conferred only as a preparation for sacerdotal
ordination. The duty' attached to minor orders had, for a long
time, been exercised by laymen. We know that there is presently
under consideration the introduction of the diaconate, conceived
of as an ecclesiastical function independent of the priesthood.
The idea, today at least, is not yet mature. If the day comes
when it is, nothing will change in what We have just said, ex­
cept that the diaconate will take its place among the distinctions
which We have noted.

Responsibility of laymen
It would be to misunderstand the real nature of the Church
and her social character to distinguish in her a purely active
element, the ecclesiastical authorities, and, on the other hand,
a purely passive element, the laity. All the members of the
Church, as We Ourselves have said in the Encyclical Mystici
Corporis Christi, are called to collaborate in the building up
and the perfecting of the Mystical Body of Christ (a). All are
free persons, and must, therefore, be active. People sometimes
abuse the term “emancipation of the laity , when they use it
in a sense which distorts the true character of the relations
existing between the teaching Church and the Church taught,
between priests and laymen. On the subject of these relations,
let Us note simply that today the Church’s tasks are too
great to permit indulging in petty disputes. Io safeguard each
1495a Cf. above No. 1100.

1495
(210,
213219)

766

THE APOSTOLIC MISSION

one’s sphere of action, it is enough for everyone to have sufficient
spirit of faith, disinterestedness, mutual esteem and confidence.
Respect for the dignity of the priest was always one of the
most typical characteristics of the Christian community. On the
other hand, even the layman has his rights, and the priest, for
his part, must recognize them.

1496
The layman has a right to receive from the priest even’
(115, spiritual good, so that he may realize the salvation of his soul
208, and attain Christian perfection ( a ) : when the fundamental rights
213) of the Christian are at stake he may assert his needs (b); it is
the meaning and the very goal of the life of the Church which
is here at stake, as well as the responsibility before God of the
priest no less than of the layman.
1497
Inevitably a certain uneasiness is caused when the social
(17, function is disregarded. This is not an end in itself either in
124, general or in the Church, for the community is by definition
217, at the service of individuals, not the other way round. If history
220, shows that from the very beginnings of the Church laymen
221 ) took part in the activity which the priest exercised in the service
of the Church, it is true that today more than ever they must
ffer this collaboration “for the building up of the Body of
hrist” in every form of the apostolate, in particular when
here is question of permeating the whole of life, domestic,
social, economic, and political, with the Christian spirit.
Relations with authority
1498
There remains a word to be said to finish these considera­
bis, tions of basic principles, a word on the relationship of the lay
222) apostolate with ecclesiastical authority. It is enough to repeat
here what We laid down as far back as 1951 as a general rule:
that the lay apostolate must, in its most varied forms "always
keep within the limits of orthodoxy and not be opposed to the
legitimate prescriptions of competent ecclesiastical authori­
ties” (a). In the meanwhile, We have been obliged to refute
an erroneous opinion on “lay theology”, an opinion which de­
rived from an inaccurate conception of the responsibility of the
layman (b). The term lay theology is void of all meaning. The
norm, which is applied in general to the lay apostolate and
1496a Canon 87, 682.
1498a Above Nos. 1312-1314.

1496b Canon 467, § 1; 892, § 1.
1498b Above Nos. 1367-1372.

TO BE A CHRISTIAN

767

which We have just recalled, is valid naturally and even with
more force, for the “lay theologian”; but if he wishes to publish
his writings on theological matters, he also needs the explicit
approbation of the ecclesiastical magisterium.

The activity of the Catholic laity is particularly timely in 1499
the areas where theological research impinges on the research (222)
activities of profane sciences. Recently, at the instigation of the
Goerres-Gesellschaft, a group of theologians and naturalists
agreed to discuss at regular meetings the common questions
which interest them. We can only congratulate them on this
initiative.
If today this realization has been awakened and if the term 1500
lay apostolate is one of the most frequently employed when (220,
the activity of the Church is spoken of, it is because the col- 222)
laboration of laymen with the hierarchy has never been so
necessary', and never carried on in so sympathetic a fashion.
This collaboration is manifest in a thousand different ways,
from the silent sacrifice offered for the salvation of souls, to
the good word and example which win the esteem even of the
Church’s enemies, to the cooperation in activities proper to the
hierarchy which can be communicated to the simple faithful, and
to generous souls who pay with their lives, but whom only God
knows and who do not appear in any statistics. Perhaps this hid­
den lay apostolate is the most precious and the most fruitful of all.

The lay apostolate has, as has every apostolate, two func- 1501
tions: the function of conservation and that of conquest; both (220)
are urgently imperative in the Church of today. And, to speak
very plainly, the Church of Christ has no intention of abandon­
ing the field to her avowed enemy, atheistic Communism,
without a struggle. This combat will be waged to the end, but
with the weapons of Christ!
(Exhortation to action.) (a)
TO BE A CHRISTIAN

All. to the Irish pilgrims, October 8, 1957.
(The third centenary of Luke Wadding, Irish Franciscan,
deceased at Rome. )
1501a For the parts of this discourse which are here omitted, cf.
DIRECTIVES TO LAY APOSTLES, Nos. 520 ff.

768

1502
(41,
142,
144,
184)

THE IMMEDIATE ROLE OF TRUTH

To be Christian one must be Roman; one must recognize
the oneness of Christ’s Church, that is governed by one successor
of the Prince of the Apostles, who is the Bishop of Rome, Christ’s
Vicar on earth. (The College of St. Isidore, founded at Rome by
Luke Wadding. )

THE IMMEDIATE ROLE OF TRUTH
All. to the Professors and students of the “Angelicum”, Jan­
uary 14, 1958.
(The fiftieth anniversary of the Angelicum.—The teaching
of St. Thomas Aquinas. )

1503
By word and by example he taught not only those who culti­
ve, vate the sacred sciences, but also those who follow the path of ra109) tional philosophy, that they owe to the authority of the Catholic
Church complete submission and the greatest reverence (a).
The fidelity of this submission to the authority of the Church
sprang from his firm persuasion that the living and infallible
magisterium of the Church is the immediate and universal rule
of Catholic truth.
1504
Following the example of St. Thomas Aquinas and the
(63, eminent men of the Dominican Order who have been distin99,
guished by their piety and the sanctity of their lives, as soon as
101, he voice of the Church’s magisterium is heard, either in her
109, extraordinary or her ordinary teaching, receive it with attentive
110) ears and a docile mind, you above all, beloved sons, who, by
a singular gift of God are pursuing your sacred studies in this
august City, near “the Chair of Peter and the principal Church,
whence sacerdotal unity takes its rise’’ (a). Nor is it enough
for you to give your prompt and full adhesion to the rules and
decrees of the sacred magisterium which pertain to the divinely
revealed truths, since the Catholic Church alone, the Spouse
of Christ, is the faithful custodian and infallible interpreter of
this deposit; but with a humble submission of judgment those
documents too must be received which deal with questions of
the natural and human order; for there are, too, for those who
profess the Catholic religion, and it is clear especially for theo­
logians and philosophers, truths for which they must have a
high esteem, at least when these elements of an inferior order
1503a Cf. S. Th., Suppli., q. 29, a. 3, sed contra, 2; and Ila-IIae.
q. 10, a. 12 in c.
1504a St. Cyprian, Epist. LV, c. 14.

THE SUPREME REALITY

769

are proposed as connected with and joined to the truths of the
Christian faith and the supernatural end of man.
(St. Thomas and the Bible.—Thomistic theology and philosophy.-The primacy of charity.—Love of the truth.)

THE QUEST FOR SANCTITY
All. to the Superiors General of Religious, February 11, 1958.
It is with real joy that We salute you in the Lord, all of 1505
you, dearly beloved sons here present, whom the designs of (63,
Providence have placed at the head of societies tending toward 129)
evangelical perfection and who are thus associated with an in­
tegral part of Our apostolic office. As We said, in fact, address­
ing the members of the First Congress a few years ago, about
the states of perfection, an institute of religious life “derives its
existence and its worth from the fact that it is closely united
to the proper end of the Church, namely to lead men to salva­
tion” (a). For the Church, his Spouse, would not fully respond
to the desires of Christ the Lord and men’s eyes would not
turn to her full of hope as to “the standard raised among the
nations” (b), if she did not have men who, by the example
of their lives even more than by their words, reflect with special
clarity the beauty of the Gospel.
The power to rule
We have, therefore, associated with you, beloved sons, that 1506
part of Our office, either directly—delegating to you by the (157,
Code of Canon Law something of Our supreme jurisdiction— 209)
or in establishing the bases, in your rules and constitutions ap­
proved by Us, of that ruling power of yours. So it is particularly
important to Us that you exercise this authority of yours accord­
ing to Our spirit and that of the Church. (The existentialist ten­
dency—Authority and obedience—The world and God.—The
Ride.- The Church and the Pope.—Vocations.) (a)

THE SUPREME REALITY
All. to pilgrims from the Marches, March 23, 1958.
(The province, the fatherland in miniature.—The nation, the
great fatherland—Patriotic duties.)
1505a Cf. above, No. 1297.
1505b Isaias 11:12.
1506a For the parts of the discourse which are here omitted, cf. THE
STATES OF PERFECTION.

770

THE LIGHT OF CHRIST

1507
But love of country can also degenerate and become an ex(133) cessive and harmful nationalism. So that this will not happen, you
must look far beyond your own country; you must look at the
world. But there is only one way to look at the world, while you
continue to love your region and your country: become conscious
of a supreme reality: the Church. You have to become a living
part of it.

1508
It is necessary for each individual to become a living part
(210) of the Church; that everything be subordinated to keeping and
increasing divine grace; ready to surmount all obstacles, to face
even death not to lose the faith, not to lose grace. This is what
was done by one little girl born among you in the Marches:
Maria Goretti.
1509
It is necessary for your families to become a living part of
(210) the Church. In that famous sanctuary, the Holy House of Loretto,
shines the memory of that holiest of all families, the Holy
Family. Take it as your model and imitate it; make Jesus the
center of your homes, the absolute Lord of your thoughts and
of your hearts.
1510
It is necessary for your cities to become a living part of the
(55, Church. In Italy some men are disturbed because they fear that
94, Christianity will take from Caesar what belongs to him. As if
131) to give to Caesar what does belong to him were not a command­
ment of Jesus (a); as if the legitimate and healthy laicism of
the State were not one of the principles of Catholic doctrine;
as if there were no tradition in the Church of a constant effort
to maintain the two Powers distinct, but also, always according
to just principles, united; as if, on the contrary, the confusion
between the sacred and the secular were not all the more veri­
fied in history when a portion of the faithful had separated
themselves from the Church.
(Charity and unity.)

THE LIGHT OF CHRIST
R. M. to the faithful, Easter Sunday, April 6, 1958.
(The Feast of Easter, feast of light—Where the light of
Christ may be found.)
1511
Beloved sons, you know where the light of Christ is to be
(3,
found: the Church founded and assisted by him is the depositary
1510a Cf. Matt. 22:21.

THE LIGHT OF CHRIST

771

of the light of Christ, and therefore, in a true sense, lumen de
9,
hnninc, light of light, a visible and perennial reality, at one and 88,
the same time human and divine, temporal and eternal. To this 102)
“city set upon a hill” (a) Christ has entrusted “the word tried
bv prophets, to which you do well to attend, as to a light shining
in a dark place” ( b ).
Therefore, fix your gaze upon it, with the sincerity and wise 1512
discernment of the children of the light, not with the unhealthy
/,
complacency of the children of darkness, who prefer, to their own 130.
loss, to linger over the inevitable shadows which accompany 228)
every reality which is, in part, human. The shadow of man, far
from extinguishing the light of God, throws it more clearly into
relief.

This light of God shining over the world is the vigilant attention of the Church to doctrine, her assiduity in spreading and
defending the truth, her unhurried prudence with regard to
novelty and revolutions, her impartiality in the struggles between
classes and nations, her inflexibility in the defense of the rights
of each one, her intrepidity in the face of the enemies of God and
of society. Let each of you ask himself; where would the world
be today without such a light? Would it have been able to boast
of the ensemble of material and moral advances which we call
civilization? Again, would there be in consciences that lively
sense, so widespread, of justice, of true liberty, of responsibility,
which animates the majority of peoples and governments?
And what shall We say
* of the consciousness of the unity of
the human family which is growing in so consoling a way in
minds and in concrete expression? Who, if not Christ, can assemhie and unite into a single impulse of fraternity men who are so
different bv reason of their origins, their languages, their customs,
all of you who are listening to Us while We speak to you in his
name and with his authority?
z It is truly
* He who, having triumphed over the shades of death, shines like a serene star over
the whole of humanity.
But, in a very special way Christ radiates over the immense
family of the faithful, over you who glory in the name of Christ,
to the point of making you participants in his divine piciogatixcs.
To the crowds who surrounded Him He said: You aie the light of
1511a Matt. 5:14.

151 lb 2 Peter 1:19.

1513
4,
84,
112,
228)

1514
(42,
84)

1515
(36.
96)

772

HIE DOMAIN OF NATURE

the work!" (a). The mission which Christ confides to his follow­
ers—and which is identical with his own—is not simply a title of
high honor; it imposes the grave responsibility of action. “Let
your light shine before men,” lie adds, “that they may see your
good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (b).
{Duty of working for the establishment of peace.)
THE DOMAIN OF NATURE

Letters, Es bereitete, April 15, 1958, to the Bishop of Basel.
(The rights of parents and of the State in the education and
instruction of children.)
1516
God has confided to the Church herself the direction of
fàZ, humanity on the religious and moral plane. She is the mother and
^9,
mediatrix of supernatural life. However, super-nature supposes
$1) nature, and it is intimately united to it. Therefore, the claims of
the Church extend to the domain of nature in the measure that
the latter influences the attainment of supernatural ends.
(The educational ideal of the Church.—True patriotism.The Catholic teacher.)

MARY WATCHES OVER THE CHURCH
All. to the women of the Marian Congregations of Italy,
April 26, 1958.
(Words of welcome.—Duties of the members of the Congre­
gations.—1st: see in Mary the model of life in the Church.)
1517
In the second place, look upon Mary as a model of action for
(33) the Church.
You must know how much and how intimately Mary partici­
pated from the very beginning in the life of the Church. With
Mary the Mother of Jesus: cum Maria matre Jesu (a), the
Apostles were reunited, persevering unanimously in prayer:
Perseverantes unanimiter in oratione (b), when the Cenacle
was shaken by a violent wind and the tiny community of the
faithful was invested with the Holy Spirit, who filled them all
with his gifts (c). Shortly after this, Mary was able to assistat
the first sowing and the first miraculous Christian harvest. Peter
spoke to the crowd, and, when his discourse was heard by all
in their own tongues, it brought the first increase in the Church.
1515a Matt. 5:14.
1515b Ibid., 5:16.
1517b Ibid.
1517c Cf. Acts 2:1-4.

1517a Acts 1:14.

t

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MARY WATCHES OVER THE CHURCH

. ·

773

Beginning with this day of blessings for the young com­ 1518
munity in Jerusalem, Mary never ceased to watch over the (33)
Church of Christ as a most sweet Mother. No circumstances,
especially no hour of fear or sorrow passed through the Church—
so we can certainly think—without her feeling the maternal as­
sistance of Mary. Each time that night seemed to extend its swayover the world, Mary was seen to rise in the heavens like the Star
of Morning. When, as a result of great fatigue, beads of sweat
stood out on the Church’s brow, when her eyes were bathed in
tears, when her body, like the body of Jesus, was tortured and
even nailed to the Cross, the Church ever had Mary, the Mother
of sorrows, at her side. And just as her devout children owe their
perseverance to her, in the same way it is she who ever encourages
the return of her erring sons and encourages them with infinite
tenderness. By her intervention the Church has never lacked
protection when she has been the object of violent attacks or
insidious conspiracy. And so, the history of the triumphs of the
Church is the history of the triumphs of Mary.
(The action of each is needed.)
The Church's mission today

3: But there is something today, which, because of its im­
portance, should challenge you to act without sparing either
energy or time. The Church, has in fact a special mission in this
tormented epoch of human history. 1Γ it is indeed true that every
truth has its own moment, it is possible to say that this is the hour
of the Church considered as the Mystical Body of Christ. If,
therefore, you should study the Marian Congregations in the
framework of the Church’s mission, endeavor to sound the depths,
as far as possible, of this stupendous truth formulated and de­
veloped with luminous clarity by the Apostle St. Paid.
On the other hand, our century is the witness today of an
ever greater organic development of the idea of one humanity’, of
which each part ought, as far as it is possible to forecast it, to
pass from the conception of alliance to the conception of com­
munity—in its genuine sense—living and operative. There is no
political or social movement which does not place in some way
at the base of every structure this, so to say, “communitarian”
concept of the State and of the world. The individual, on his side,
feels more and more every day a vital part of a unique reality
and is realizing his duties towards the entire social organism. And

1519
(1,

133)

1520
(133)

774

THE LIFE OF SOULS

as this notion is spreading through the world, We have shown on
several occasions, and We wish to repeat it once more to you,
beloved daughters, how men at present tend to listen with a re­
newed interest to the doctrine which considers humanity as a
single body and invites men to be one heart and one soul.
1521
The mission of the Church today is to prove that only the
(46, doctrine of Christ presents itself to men as capable of saving and
210) reanimating the world which is the victim of perpetual agitation
and artificial disturbance. Therefore, make this your mission, for
you too are of the Church, and in it you must live, in it you must
work, without respite or delay.
THE PATERNITY OF THE POPE
All. to the Committees for the assistance of orphans of the
working classes, April 29, 1958.
( Welcome.—The Holy Father is happy to hear the President
state that the members form “one big family.”)

1522
Our presence among you seems all the more opportune be(67, cause it seems to Us that the prerogative of Father, which comes
163) to Us from Our charge as Vicar of Christ, should be extended in a
special manner to the small children prematurely deprived of
their father on earth.
Yes, beloved little boys and girls, you on whose head the
caressing hand of father or mother no longer rests, you will al­
ways be the Popes favorites. In his spiritual power and in the
universality of his affection, he represents on earth, however
unworthily, the “Father who is in heaven”, and he considers him­
self in a special way your Father, in conformity with the tradition
of the Church, which has ever dedicated to orphans her maternal
solicitude. (Conditions to realize by assistance to orphans-The
charity which must animate it.)
THE LIFE OF SOULS

All. to the metallurgists of Bagnoli, May 4, 1958.
(The ILVA plants.—The life of the workers— Their super­
natural life.)
1523
The Pope, you know, represents the Incarnate Word of God
(144, on earth. Ilis thoughts must, therefore, be the thoughts of Jesus;
153, his willed actions those of Jesus; his deeds the deeds of Jesus.

PERSECUTION IN CHINA

775

Now Jesus came down on earth so that souls might have divine 160,
life, and have it in abundance: ut vitam habeant et abundantius 163)
habeant (a). And We, too, dear sons, We must consecrate Our
life to the realization of this end; We must make it Our occupa­
tion; We must make this Our anxiety; sometimes We must raise
Our voices in this cause. We experience this solicitude for the
faithful of every category and every condition: all men are our
beloved sons, because all have been redeemed by the blood of
Christ, all are exposed to the temptations of Satan, the enemy of
Christ and the enemy of men.
(Keep, or recover, the state of grace.—Keep the command­
ments and pray. )
PERSECUTION IN CHINA

Encycl. Ad Apostolorum Principis, June 29, 1958, to the
Bishops, clergy, and faithful of China.
(Catholicism in China—The phases of the present persecution.-The "Patriotic Association’.)
Obey God rather than men

The Church has always impressed on the minds of her 1524
children that declaration of the Divine Redeemer: “Render there- (92)
fore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things
that are God’s’’ (a). We call it a declaration because these words
make certain and incontestable the principle that Christianity
never opposes or obstructs what is truly useful or advantageous
to a country.
However, if Christians are bound in conscience to render
to Caesar (that is, to human authority) what belongs to Caesar,
then Caesar likewise, or those who control the state, cannot exact
obedience when they would be usurping God’s rights or forcing
Christians either to act at variance with their religious duties or
to sever themselves from the unity of the Church and its lawful
hierarchy.
Under such circumstances, every Christian should cast aside
all doubt and calmly and firmly repeat the words with which
Peter and the other Apostles answered the first persecutors of the
Church: “We must obey God rather than men’’ (b).
(Activity of the pseudo-patriotic movement.)
1523a John 10:10.

1524a Matt. 22:21.

1524b Acts 5:29.

776

PERSECUTION IN CHINA

An important matter
1525 Assuming false and unjust premises, they are not afraid to
(77, take a position which would confine within a narrow scope the
<50, supreme teaching authority of the Church, claiming that there
103, are certain questions—such as those which concern social and
765) economic matters—in which Catholics may ignore the teachings
and the directives of this Apostolic See.
This opinion—it seems entirely unnecessary to demonstrate
its existence—is utterly false and fidl of error because, as We
declared a few years ago to a special meeting of Our Venerable
Brethren in the episcopacy:
“The power of the Church is in no sense limited to so-called
‘strictly religious matters’; but the whole matter of the natural
law, its institution, interpretation and application, in so far as
the moral aspect is concerned, are within its power.
“By God’s appointment the observance of the natural law
concerns the way by which man must strive toward his super­
natural end. The Church shows the way and is the guide and
guardian of men with respect to their supernatural end” (a).

1526
This truth had already been wisely explained by Our Prede(80) cessor St. Pius X in his Encyclical Letter Singulari quadam of
September 24, 1912, in which he made this statement: “All actions
of a Christian man so far as they are morally either good or badthat is, so far as they agree with or are contrary to the natural and
divine law—fall under the judgment and jurisdiction of the
Church” (a).
'
1527
Moreover, even when those who arbitrarily set and defend
these narrow limits profess a desire to obey the Roman Pontiff
with regard to truths to be believed, and to observe what they
call ecclesiastical directives, they proceed with such boldness that
they refuse to obey the precise and definite prescriptions of the
Holy See. They protest that these refer to political affairs be­
cause of a hidden meaning by the author, as if these prescriptions
took their origin from secret conspiracy against their own nation.
1528
Here We must mention a symptom of this falling away from
(163) the Church. It is a very serious matter and fills Our heart-the
heart of a Father and universal Pastor of the faithful—with a
grief that defies description. For those who profess themselves
1525a Above No. 1394.

1526a Above No. 749.

PERSECU I ION IN CHINA

777

most interested in the welfare of their country have for some
considerable time been striving to disseminate among the people
the position, devoid of all truth, that Catholics have the power of
directly electing their bishops. To excuse this kind of election
they allege a need to look after the good of souls with all possible
speed and to entrust the administration of dioceses to those
pastors who, because they do not oppose the communist desires
and political methods, are acceptable by the civil power.

We have heard that many such elections have been held 1529
contrary to all right and law and that, in addition, certain eccle­
siastics have rashly dared to receive episcopal consecration, de­
spite the public and severe warning which this Apostolic See gave
those involved.

Principles which govern the Church of Christ
Since, therefore, such serious offenses against the discipline 1530
and unity of the Church are being committed, We must in con- (19)
science warn all that this is completely at variance with the
teachings and principles on which rests the right order of the
society' divinely instituted by Jesus Christ our Lord.
For it has been clearly and expresslv laid down in the canons
that it pertains to the one Apostolic See to judge whether a person
is fit for the dignity and burden of the episcopacy (a), and that
complete freedom in the nomination of bishops is the right of the
Roman Pontiff (b). But if, as happens at times, some persons or
groups are permitted to participate in the selection of an epis­
copal candidate, this is lawful only if the Apostolic See has al­
lowed it in express terms and in each particular case for clearly'
defined persons or groups, the conditions and circumstances being
very plainly determined.
Granted this exception, it follows that bishops who have
been neither named nor confirmed by' the Apostolic See, but who.
on the contrary, have been elected and consecrated in defiance
of its express orders, enjoy no powers of teaching or of jurisdiction
since jurisdiction passes to bishops only through the Roman
Pontiff as We admonished in the Encyclical Letter Mystici Cor­
poris in the following words: “...As far as his own diocese is
concerned each (bishop) feeds the flock entrusted to him as a
1531a Can. 331, 3.

1531b Can. 339, 2.

1531
(92,
154,
203)

1532
(1S9191)

778

PERSECUTION IN CHINA

true shepherd and rules it in the name of Christ. Yet in exercising
this office they are not altogether independent but are subordi­
nate to the lawful authority of the Roman Pontiff, although en­
joying ordinary power of jurisdiction which they receive directly
from the same Supreme Pontiff” (a).
And when We later addressed to you the letter Ad Sinorum
gentem, We again referred to this teaching in these words: “The
power of jurisdiction which is conferred directly by divine right
on the Supreme Pontiff comes to bishops by that same right, but
only through the successor of Peter, to whom not only the faithful
but also all bishops are bound to be constantly subject and to
adhere both by the reverence of obedience and by the bond of
unity (b).
power of orders
1533
Acts requiring the power of Holy Orders which are per(58) formed by ecclesiastics of this kind, though they are valid as long
as the consecration conferred on them was valid, are yet gravely
illicit, that is criminal and sacriligious.
1534
To such conduct the warning words of the Divine Teacher
(56, fittingly apply: He who enters not by the door in the sheepfold,
175- but climbs up another way, is a thief and a robber” (a). The
176, sheep indeed know the true shepherd’s voice. “But a stranger
189) they will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not
know the voice of strangers” (b).

We are aware that those who thus belittle obedience in order
to justify themselves with regard to those functions which they
have unrighteously assumed, defend their position by recalling a
usage which prevailed in ages past. Yet everyone sees that all
ecclesiastical discipline is overthrown if it is in any way lawful
for one to restore arrangements which are no longer valid be­
cause the supreme authority of the Church long ago decreed
otherwise. In no sense do they excuse their way of acting by ap­
pealing to another custom, and they indisputably prove that they
follow this line deliberately in order to escape from the disci­
pline which now prevails and which they ought to be obeying.
We mean that discipline which has been established not only
for China and the regions recently enlightened by the light of the
Gospel, but for the whole Church, a discipline which takes its
1532a Above No. 1042.
1533a John 10:1.

1532b Above No. 1337.
1533b John 10:5.

PERSECUTION IN CHINA

779

sanction from that universal and supreme power of caring for,
ruling, and governing which Our Lord granted to the successors
in the office of St. Peter the Apostle.

Primacy of the Church of Rome
Well known are the terms of the Vatican Council’s solemn 1535
definition: “Relying on the open testimony of the Scriptures and (151)
abiding by the wise and clear decrees both of our predecessors,
the Roman Pontiffs, and the general Councils, We renew the def­
inition of the Ecumenical Council of Florence, by virtue of
which all the faithful must believe that ‘the Holy Apostolic See
and the Roman Pontiff hold primacy over the whole world, and
the Roman Pontiff himself is the Successor of the blessed Peter
and continues to be the true Vicar of Christ and head of the
whole Church, the father and teacher of all Christians, and to
him in the blessed Peter our Lord Jesus Christ committed the
full power of caring for, ruling and governing the Universal
Church...’

“We teach,... We declare that the Roman Church by the
Providence of God holds the primacy of ordinary power over all
others, and that this power of jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiff.
which is truly episcopal, is immediate. Toward it, the pastors and
the faithful of whatever rite and dignity, both individually and
collectively, are bound by the duty of hierarchical subordination
and true obedience, not only in matters which pertain to faith
and morals, but also in those which concern the discipline and
government of the Church spread throughout the whole world,
in such a way that once the unity of communion and the profes­
sion of the same Faith has been preserved with the Roman Pon­
tiff, there is one flock of the Church of Christ under one supreme
shepherd. This is the teaching of the Catholic truth from which
no one can depart without loss of faith and salvation (a).
From what We have said, it follows that no authority whatsoever, save that which is proper to the Supreme Pastor, can
render void the canonical appointment granted to any bishop;
that no person or group, whether of priests or of laymen, can
claim the right of nominating bishops; that no one can lawfully
1536a Cone. Vat. Sess. IV, cap. 3; above Nos. 362-363.

1536
(151152)

1537
(57,
92,
189)

PERSECUTION IN CHINA

780

confer episcopal consecration unless he has received the mandate
of the Apostolic See (a).
Consequently, if consecration of this kind is being done con­
trary to all right and law, and by all this crime the unity of the
Church is being seriously attacked, an excommunication most
specially reserved to the Apostolic See has been established which
is automatically incurred by the consecrator and by anyone who
has received consecration irresponsibly conferred (b).

The arrogance of the persecutors of the Church

1538

What then is to be the opinion concerning the excuse added
by members of the association promoting false patriotism, that
they had to act as they alleged because of the need to tend to
the souls in those dioceses which were then without a bishop?
It is obvious that no thought is being taken of the spiritual
good of the faithful if the Church’s laws are being violated, and
further, there is no question of vacant sees, as they wish to argue
in defense, but of episcopal sees whose legitimate rulers have
been driven out or now languish in prison or are being obstructed
in various ways from the free exercise of their power of jurisdic­
tion. It must likewise be added that those clerics have been cast
into prison, exiled, or removed by other means, whom the lawful
ecclesiastical superiors had designated in accordance with canon
law and the special powers received from the Apostolic See to
act in their place in the government of the dioceses.

1539
It is surely a matter for grief that while holy bishops noted
(56) for their zeal for souls are enduring so many trials, advantage is
taken of their difficulties to establish false shepherds in their
place so that the hierarchical order of the Church is overthrown
and the authority of the Roman Pontiff is treacherously resisted.

1540
And some have even become so arrogant that they blame the
(92) Apostolic See for these terrible and tragic events (which have
certainly been deliberate accomplishments of the Church’s perse­
cutors) even though everyone knows that the Church has been
unable, in the past and at present, when such information has
been needed, to obtain requisite data about qualified candidates
for the episcopacy simply because she was prevented from com­
municating freely and safely with the dioceses of China.
( Encouragement to stand fast. )
1537a Can 953.

1537b Decree of the Holy Office, April 9, 1957.

THE TWO ROMES
All. to American teachers, July 3, 1958.
(Ancient Rome.)
But there is another Rome which, We are sure, you have 1541
discovered—a Rome established by the humble fisherman from (84,
the Lake of Galilee on the foundations of a faith given by God, 142,
and which in the course of long centuries not only has lasted, but 162)
has become stronger and extends its rule over more distant lands,
raising the culture of nations and peoples above the level of the
jagan mind and guiding men along the way to peace and
irotherly love.
You have come to the center of this Rome, to the tomb of
this humble fisherman, and We are happy to have been able to
grant your request to be received by Us. May you take away from
your studies in Rome a lasting memory which will vivify and
elevate your minds for many years.

TRUE AND FALSE PASTORS
Encycl. Meminisse juvat, July 14, 1958.
(Intervention of the Pope made necessary by international
discord and new weapons.)
But if we examine with thoughtful minds the causes of so
many dangers present and future, we can easily see that the
decisions, the forces and the institutions of men are inevitably
destined to fall short wherever the authority of God—which en­
lightens minds with His commands and His prohibitions, which
is the beginning and guarantee of justice, source of truth and
foundation of laws—either is neglected or is not given its just
place or even is suppressed. Every house not based on solid and
sure foundation collapses. Every intelligence not enlightened by
the light of God separates itself little by little from the fullness
of truth. Discords arise, increase and grow, if citizens, peoples
and nations are not inspired by fraternal charity.
Now only the Christian religion teaches this full truth, this
perfect justice and this divine charity which eliminates hatreds.
animosity and rivalries. It alone has been entrusted with them by
the Divine Redeemer, the way, the truth and the life (a), and it
1543a Cf. John 14:6.

1542
(231)

1543
(61,
94)

782

ITALIE AND FALSE PASTORS

must insure that they be put into practice with all its strength.
There is no doubt, then, that those who deliberately wish to
disregard the Christian religion and the Catholic Church or who
endeavor to hinder them, to disregard them, to suppress them,
thereby weaken the very bases of society or substitute for them
others which absolutely cannot support the edifice of human
dignity, liberty and well-being.
It is therefore necessary to return to the precepts of
Christianity if one wishes to form a solid, just and equitable
society. It is harmful and imprudent to come into conflict with the
Christian religion, whose eternal duration is guaranteed by God
and proven by history.
1544
(12,
57,
77,
91,
189)

We see with sorrow that sometimes the rights of the Church
are trampled on, rights which include, in the mandate of the Holy
See, the right to choose and consecrate bishops destined to govern
legitimately the Christian flock—and this causes the greatest
harm to the faithful—as if the Catholic Church were an internal
matter of but one nation alone, dependent on the civil authority,
and not a divine institution destined to embrace all peoples.
The courage of confessors

1545
Despite these serious and painful anxieties there is however
(228) something which provides great comfort to Our paternal heart.
We know in fact that the greater part of the faithful of the Latin
and the Oriental Rites remain attached with all their strength
to the inherited Faith, though they are deprived of that spiritual
help which their pastors could administer to them, were they not
prevented.
They continue therefore with courage and place their hope
in Him who knows the weeping and sufferings of those “who
suffer persecution for justice’s sake” (a); He “does not delay
in his promises” (b), but will finally console his sons with the
just reward.
1546
We regard therefore with paternal affection in particular
(6,
those venerable brothers and Our beloved sons who are pressed
144, in every manner, even underhandedly and insidiously, to loose
J6D (he fjrm> solid and constant union with the Church and the most
strict loyalty with the Apostolic See without which such unit)'
1545a Matt. 5:10.

1545b 2 Peter 3:9.

TRUE AND FALSE PASTORS

783

cannot have a sure foundation. No one in fact is unaware that in
some places this unity is plotted against and attacked with de­
ceiving opinions and all the arts. But let all remember that the
Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church, must be “compacted
and fitly joined together, by what every joint supplieth, according
to the operation in the measure of every part” (a), “until we
all meet into the unity of faith, and of the knowledge of the Son
of God. unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the age of the
fullness of Christ” (b), of whom the Roman Pontiff as successor
of Peter is by divine disposition established vicar on earth. Let
them reflect and remember these very wise words of St. Cyprian,
bishop and martyr: “The Lord spoke thus to Peter: T say to
you that thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my
Church’..(c). On him alone He erects the Church . .. We must
firmly hold and defend this unity, particularly we bishops who
govern in the Church .. .”.
The unity of the Church
Also the Church is one and it extends widely over a great 1547
multitude with the unending increase of its fruitfulness; in the (39,
same way as rays of the sun are many, but the light is only one; 41)
and many are the branches of the tree but the trunk is only one,
which goes deep into the ground with strong roots; and when
one spring of water produces several rivulets, though it would
seem that their number divides with the abundance of the over­
flowing water, there is however only one source. You can pluck a
ray of the sun but the unity of the light is not divided. You can
tear a branch from a tree but it can no longer bear fruit. You can
cut off a stream from its source but it will dry up. Thus also the
Church, inundated by the light of God, casts its rays throughout
the whole world, but there is only one light, that which spreads
everywhere, and the unity of the organism is not divided. It
extends its branches over the whole world with luxurious rich­
ness, it pours out abundantly flowing streams everywhere, but
the trunk is one and the spring is one. And he who has not the
Church as a mother, cannot have God as a father.. . Who does
not preserve this unity, does not preserve the law of God, docs
not preserve the faith of the Father and of the Son, and has
not life and salvation” (a).
1546a Enhes. 4:16. 1546b Ibid., 4:13. 1546c Cf. Matt. 16: IS.
1547a St. Cyprian, De Unit. Eccl., IV-VI.

784

TRUE AND FALSE PASTORS

1548
These words of the saintly martyred Bishop will be oi
(131, comfort, of exhortation and of defense, especially for those who,
228) not being able to be in contact with the Holy See, or having it
only with difficulty, find themselves in danger and have to over­
come various obstacles and deceits. However, they must trust
in the help of God and not neglect to invoke Him with fervent
prayer. They must remember that all the persecutors of the
Church—as history teaches—have passed as a shadow, whereas
the sun of divine truth never sets, because “the word of the Lord
endures forever” (a). The society founded by Christ can beattacked but not defeated because it derives its strength not from
men, but from God. Indeed there is no doubt that it must be
martyred throughout the centuries by persecutions, contradic­
tions, slanders, as happened to its Divine Founder, according to
prophecy: “If they have persecuted me, they will persecute you
also” (b). But it is equally certain that at the end, the Church like
Christ Our Redeemer, who triumphed, will have a peaceful
victory over all enemies. Be confident, therefore; be strong and
constant. We exhort you again with words of St. Ignatius, though
We are certain that you need no exhortations: “Be you pleasingto
Him for whom you fight... . May none among you become de­
serters. May your Baptism be as an armament, your faith as a
helmet, charity as a lance, patience as a covering armor. May your
works be your treasures, so that you may deserve due mercy” (c).
1549
Furthermore the most beautiful words of Bishop St. Ambrose
(139, give you a sure hope and unshakable fortitude: “Grasp the helm
229) of Faith so that the stormy tempest of this world will not disturb
you. It is very true that the sea is vast and immense, but fear not;
for ‘He hath founded it upon the seas and hath prepared it upon
the rivers’ (a). Therefore it is not without reason that the Church
of the Lord remains unmoved in the midst of so many waves be­
cause it is founded on the apostolic rock and perseveres on its
foundations, unmoved by the furies of the sea (b). It is battered
by the waves, but it is not shaken. The world may break resound­
ingly about it, it nevertheless has a safe port to welcome wean'
seamen” (c).
1548a
1548c
1549a
1549c

1 Peter 1:25.
1548b John 15:20.
St. Ignatius, Ad Pol., VI, 2.
Ps. 23:2.
1549b Cf. Matt. 16:18.
St. Ambrose, Ep. II.

THE APOSTOLATE OF THE CHURCH

785

Invitation to prayer

Strive therefore, venerable brothers, that by your exhortation 1550
and example the faithful entrusted to you may, on the established (91)
days in as great a number and as prayerfully as possible, come to
thé altar of the Mother of God, who “for the whole human race
has pleaded salvation” ( a ).
With one voice and one heart let them implore that the free­
dom of the Church may be recognized everywhere—that freedom
which serves it not only for the obtaining of the eternal salvation
of men but also for the confirmation of laws with due conscience
and for the consolidation of the foundations of civilized society.
Let them implore in a special way the patronage of the
Blessed Mother that the holy pastors who are kept from their
flocks, or are impeded in the free exercise of their ministry7, may
be reinstated as soon as possible, as is befitting their proper state;
that the faithful disturbed by deceits, errors and discords may
reach complete accord and charity in the full light of truth; that
all those who are in the uncertainty of doubt and weakness may
be strengthened by divine grace so that they may be ready and
willing to suffer anything rather than break away from the
Christian faith and Catholic unity.
(Prayer must be joined with moral reform.)
THE APOSTOLATE OF THE CHURCH
R.M. to Contemplative Religious, August 2, 1958.
(Knowledge of the contemplative life.—Love of the contem­
plative life—Practice of the contemplative life·)
In conclusion, We would wish to evoke an apostolate that 1551
is more vast and even higher, that of the Church, the Spouse of (63,
Christ, in the meaning of the Apostle of the Gentiles (a) and of
75,
St. John (b).
77,
The apostolate of the Church is founded on her mission with 79,
regard to the whole world, that is to say, to the men of all peoples 89,
and of all time, Christian and pagan, believers and unbelievers. 134,
This mission comes from the Father: God so loved the world that 209)
he gave his only-begotten Son, that they who believe in him
should not perish but have life everlasting. For God sent not his
1550a St. Ireneus, Adv. User., III. 22.
1551a 2 Cor. 11:2.
1551b John 20:21-23; 21:16-17; Apoc. 21.

786

THE APOSTOLATE OF THE CHURCH

Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might
be saved by him” (c). This mission is transmitted by Christ: “As
the Father has sent me, so I also send you” (d). “All power is
given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and teach all
nations, baptizing them ... ! I am with you all days even to the
consummation of the world” (e). The mission is carried out in
the Holy Spirit: “You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit
who will descend upon you, and you will be witnesses to me...
to the ends of the earth” (f). This apostolic mission proceeds,
therefore, primordially from the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and
Hob’ Spirit, and it is impossible to conceive of a more noble,
a holier, a more universal mission, in its origin as in its object.

1552
(19,
75,
78,
8889,
102,
113,
116,
119,
227,
229)

1553
(75)

What is in fact the object of this mission, if not to make
known to men the true God, one in the Trinity of persons, the
plan of the Redemption which He accomplished by his Son, and
the Church founded by Christ to continue his work? The Church
has received in its totality the deposit of faith and of grace, all
revealed truth and all the means of salvation left as a heritage
by the Redeemer: baptism (a); the Eucharist and the priesthood:
“Do this in commemoration of me” (b); the communication of
the Holy Spirit by the imposition of the hands of the Apostles (c);
the remission of sins: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost; whose sins you
shall forgive they are forgiven them” (d); the government of the
faithful by the power of jurisdiction, exercised in the name of
Christ and with the abiding assistance of the Holy Spirit (e).
Here, sketched in a few words, are the divine riches with which
God has endowed his Church so that she can accomplish her
apostolic labors among the vicissitudes of her earthly life and
down through the centuries, so that the gates of hell will never
prevail against her (f).
'dl··'
Let this invincible strength, which animates the apostolate of
the Church, possess your mind and your heart! It will fill you
with peace and joy! “Have confidence, I have overcome the
world” (a). As you mount ever higher, ever nearer to God, your
1551c
1551e
1552a
1552c
1552e
1553a

John 3:16-17.
Matt. 28:18-20.
Matt. 28:19.
Acts 8:7.
Cf. John 21:16-17.
John 16:33.

I551d John 20:21.
155If Acts 1:8.
1552b Luke 22:19.
1552d John 20:23.
1552f Matt. 16:18.

HIE APOSTOLATE OF J HE CHURCH

787

horizons widen and are all the more able to orientate you on this
earth. Far from confining you within yourselves behind the walls
of (he monastery, your union with God enlarges your mind and
your heart to the dimensions of the world and the redemptive
work of Christ who is extended in his Church; this is what guides
you, sustains your efforts and makes them fruitful of all good.
( Blessing. )

THE GOOD SHEPHERD

Homily to the bishops and faithful assisting at the ceremo­
nies of Papal Coronation, November 4, 1958.
(The crushing burdens of the Pontificate.)
If, on the one hand, the signs of universal rejoicing which
have greeted Our elevation to the Supreme Pontificate have
brought
o Us no little consolation, on the other hand the multiplicity and gravity of Our duties have filled Our soul with
apprehension and anxiety. These duties are attributed to Us ac­
cording as each individual conceives them, as a result of his per­
sonal aptitude, his own experience, his own way of un­
derstanding individual or social life. There are those who hope
for a Pontiff with special skill in the affairs of state, or experi­
enced in diplomacy, or devoted to learning, or prudent in the
organization of life in common, or even for a Pontiff readv to
embrace every form of modern progress, without any exception.
But, Venerable Brothers and beloved sons, all those who think
thus are far from the line they should follow, because they have
pictured to themselves a type of Sovereign Pontiff which is not
ullvr in conformity
with the true ideal,
*
The door of the Sheepfold
For the new Pope, by the vicissitudes of his life, can be compared to that son of Jacob the Patriarch, who, meeting his
brothers, afflicted with grievous trials, shows himself tender and
compassionate towards them, saying, “I am... Joseph, your
brother” (a). The new Pope, We say, is especially and above
all the one who realizes in himself that magnificent picture of the
Good Shepherd of the Gospel, described by John the Evangelist
in the very words which came from the Savior’s lips. He himself
is the door of the sheepfold: Ego sum ostium ovium, “I am the
door of the sheep” (b).
Into this fold of Jesus Christ, no man may enter unless he be
led bv the Sovereign Pontiff; and only if they be united to him
can men be saved, for the Roman Pontiff is the Vicar of Christ
and his personal representative on earth. How consoling, how
sweet it is to call to mind that picture of the Good Shepherd,
which is described in the Gospel narrative in such exquisite and
touching words!

1555a Genesis 45:4.

1555b John 10:7.

- 791 -

1554
(163)

1555
(150,
163)

1556
(44,
144,
163)

792

'HIE GOOD SHEPHERD

1557
Venerable Brothers and beloved sons, the directives which
(146, in every age the Roman Pontiffs have issued on this matter, and
150) more especially Our Predecessor Pius XII of immortal memory,
these directives We make Our own, and We wish particularly to
insist that what We have above all at heart is to be the Pastor of
the entire flock. Every other quality and adornment of the human
mind—learning, skill, diplomacy, executive ability-can indeed
complete and enrich the pastoral office, but can in no way sub­
stitute for it.

1558
For the most important qualities are the zeal and solicitude
(70, of the Good Shepherd, who must always be ready to undertake
160, the most arduous tasks, and be distinguished by prudence, recti163) tude, constancy, nor may he draw back before the supreme sac­
rifice. “The Good Shepherd lays down his life for his sheep” (a).
How beautiful is the Church of Christ, “the fold of the sheep.”
The Shepherd “goeth before his sheep,” all of whom follow him.
And to defend them he does not fear to engage in combat with
the ravening wolf.
But then the mind is turned to wider considerations: “And
other sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also I must
bring, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock
and one shepherd” (b). In these words you see expressed in all
its extent and its nobility the problem of the missions. Certainly,
this is the first, if it is not the only, care of the Roman Pontiff: for
it is joined to many other anxieties of no less importance.
The face of Christ

1559
But more even than what is done, it is important to know
(146, with what spirit and intention an action is carried on. Every pon163) tificate receives its characteristics and its ‘face’, as it were, from
the Supreme Pontiff who directs it and to which he imparts a
special quality. It is certain that the features of all the Roman
Pontiffs who have succeeded one another in the apostolic charge
in the course of the centuries, have reflected and must reflect the
face of Christ, the Divine Master, who traveled our earthly roads
for this one single end, to sow the seed of his heavenly teaching
and to shed the light of his marvelous example.
Now the very core of the divine teaching, and the precept
which contains all the rest and sums them all up, is to be found
1558a John 10:11.

1558b Ibid., 10:16.

PERSECUTION

793

in these words of the Gospel: “Learn of me that J am meek and
humble of heart” (a). The great law, therefore, is meekness and
humility.
{The Holy Father begs for prayers.—Prayer to St. Charles
Borromeo. )
PERSECUTION
All. to the Consistory, December 15, 1958.
{The Sovereign Pontiff thanks those who have offered him
their congratulations and given proof of their fidelity.)

Nor do We wish to pass over in silence Our brothers and 1560
sons who are separated from this Apostolic See, nor those others, (160,
very many in number, who are not Christians in name and who 162)
nonetheless have given Us proof of their benevolence. All of them
wished to offer the expressions of their esteem, not to Our humble
person, but rather to the Head of the Catholic Church, to the
Roman Pontiff, who, as history shows, has ever been the defend­
er not only of the sanctity of religion, but even of peace and con­
cord among nations.
And this clearly shows—and We note the fact with very great 1561
joy—that from the immense family of the Catholic people, which
(4,
alone in the whole earth can assemble in a single body very many 46,
nations separated from one another by mountains, oceans, 48,
boundaries, and by racial, civil, and cultural differences, and can 72)
unite them in the bonds of the same faith and the same charity,
that from this immense family there emanates a sweet attraction
of light and love which conquers almost all souls.
With such a spectacle before Us, how could We not adore
the majestic power, the goodness^ and the greatness of God, who
has established his Church like a miracle in the sight of all men;
like a vigorous tree, rich in flowers and fruits; like a city seated
upon a mountain, which draws the gaze of all.
(The Church is persecuted in China.)
Is it to be wondered at, therefore, that once the Sacred 1562
Pastors have been persecuted or expelled, the flocks entrusted (204)
to them are subjected in their turn to promises and threats of
every kind, to torture applied to mind and body, to induce them
to deny the Christian faith, to reject the principles and foundation
1559a Matt. 11:29.

-7-. .’>·<'

794

PERSECUTION

of the Catholic religion, and particularly to break the sacred bond
of obedience and charity which unites them to the See of
Blessed Peter?

1563
And there are some, alas, there are some who, fearing the
(58, injunctions of the men of this world more than the sacred judg191) ments of God, have yielded to the demands of the persecutors,
going so far as to receive sacrilegious episcopal consecration, from
which, certainly, no jurisdiction can flow, since it was transacted
without “Apostolic mandate”. By such action, illegitimate in ev­
ery sense, usurping authority over the Christian people, they
have brought trouble, disturbance, and scandal to the flock.
(The Pope recalls the letters of Pius XII.)

Schism
1564
We especially wish Our voice and Our exhortations and
(58, invitations to reach those who, alas, have shown themselves
163) weak, vacillating, and erring; and those above all who have un­
lawfully occupied the place and the see of the sacred Pastors
and have unfortunately opened the way for a dangerous schism.
This word “schism”, when We pronounce it, how it seems
to burn Our lips, how it sears Our soul! When We assumed the
burden of the Supreme Pontificate placed upon Our shoulders,
when We entered upon that immense paternal office of charity
in which We embrace the whole human family with the greatest
love and zeal, We could not but pray Almighty God in his good­
ness to spare the community of Chinese Catholics so terrible a
misfortune.
Exhortation to constancy

1565
(142,
151,
162,
205)

How, indeed, could the Pastor of all Christians remain inactive, saying nothing, doing nothing, when he sees the flock
entrusted to him hesitant, dispersed, and even torn asunder?
How could he not be afflicted with the most grievous sorrow,
when he sees those who, by reason of the priestly office they
received, should lead the sheep to pasture and keep them united
in one fold, lead them rather away from the right path and the
one authority, the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff, which the
Divine Redeemer Himself established as the immovable rock
and the foundation of the entire Church?
(Christians should not be astonished at persecution-The
Pope exhorts them to courage.)

ONE FOLD

R.M. to the world, December 23, 1958.
(The light shed upon the world by the radio-messages of
Pius XII, “Doctor Optimus’-Their content.-Two words sum
them up: Unity and Peace.)
The commemoration of the Nativity of Jesus never ceases 1566
to renew each year the proclamation of the same doctrine, in (23,
the same sense: unity and peace. Unfortunately, human history’ 37)
recorded at its beginnings a bloody incident: the brother slain
by a brother. The law of love, which the Creator implanted in
the heart of man, was violated by the mala voluntas, which
straightway led humanity into the paths of injustice and disor­
der. Unity was destroyed, and there was required nothing less
than the intervention of the Son of God Himself, who accepted,
out of obedience, the task of reforging the sacred links of the
human family so soon broken; and He restored them at the price
of his blood.
This restoration is always in act: Jesus founded a Church, 1567
imprinting on her features the characteristics of unity, ordaining (52,
that she should gather all nations beneath her lofty vault which 133)
extends a mari usque ad mare.
Oh! why could not this unity of the Church—ordered directly and by divine vocation to the spiritual interests of men—be
turned towards the reconciliation of different races and nations.
equally resolved upon the formation of a society distinguished
by the laws of justice and fraternity?
Here is to be found the principle, familiar to believers, that
the true service of God and of his justice is also propitious to
the advantages of the civil community of people and of nations.

1568
(52,
133)
1569
(133)

Unity broken
We have still vividly present to Us the memory of the time, 1570
many years ago, when some representatives of the Orthodox (133)
Churches—as they are called—of the Near East, with the colla­
boration of some governments, were working for the union of
civilized countries and began by an agreement among various
Christian confessions differing in rite and history.
The preponderance of many pressing concrete interests and
of nationalistic ambitions rendered these efforts fruitless, though
they were worthy of respect as tending towards the unity of all

796

THE LE'ITER AND T HE SPIRIT

Christians under one Pastor, the Vicar of Christ. And the agoniz­
ing problem of the broken unity of Christ’s heritage remains
always a great anxiety and an obstacle in the very labor of seeking
a solution through so many weighty difficulties and uncertainties.
Grief at this painful situation does not impede, and will not
impede, We trust God, the effort of Our soul to respond to
the invitation full of love of Our dear separated brethren, who
also bear on their foreheads the name of Christ, who read his
holy and blessed Gospel, who are not deaf to the inspirations ol
religious piety, of that charity which benefits both the giver and
the receiver.
Appeal for unity

1571
Recalling the words of so many of our Predecessors-from
(161) Pope Leo XIII to Pope Pius XII, including St. Pius X, Bene­
dict XV, and Pius XI, all most worthy and glorious Pontiffs
—who from this Chair of Peter have sent forth the invitation to
unity, We permit Ourselves—what are We saying, We permit
Ourselves?—We intend to pursue humbly but fervently Our task,
to which We are impelled by the word and example of Jesus,
the Divine Good Shepherd, who continues to give Us the vision
of the harvests ripening in the vast fields of the missions: Et
illas oportet me adducere,... et fiet unum ovile et unus pastor,
‘'Them also I must bring,... and there shall be one fold and one
shepherd” (a). And in his petition addressed to his Father in that
last hour immediately before his final sacrifice: Pater, ut unum
sint; sicut tu Pater in me, et ego in te; ut et ipsi in nobis unum
sint, et credat mundus (plia tu me misisti, “That they all may be
one, as Thou, Father, in me, and I in Thee; that they also may be
one in us; that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me” (b).
(Vigilance against the action of the powers of darkness“Constructive" Christmas. )
THE LETTER AND THE SPIRIT
All. to the Gregorian University, January 18, 1959.
(The three words engraved on the facade of the University:
“Pontificia Universitas Gregoriana.”)
1572
Pontificia: this first word reveals the significance of today’s
(44) liturgical feast and proclaims its splendor, since today We cele1571a John 10:16.

1571b John 17:21.

·* · I f

TUE PROGRAM OF Λ PONTIFICATE

797

brate the solemnity of the Chair of St. Peter, the Prince of the
Apostles, at Rome, and by this fact is manifested the very great
dignity and authority of the Pontiff. For all of us, the kingdom
of Jesus Christ is in heaven; to enter into it, we need the keys. Now
this ligandi atque solvendi pontificium, this power of binding
and loosing, which we read in the Mass and in the Breviary today,
what does it signify?
What else can it signify but the way to be followed in 1573
studying as well as in correctly explaining sacred doctrine, so that (98)
this teaching may be fully in conformity with the precepts of the
teaching Church, in respect to both the letter and the spirit of
what she proposes? This is indeed an important affirmation; a
protestation, witness, and praise of the sovereign teaching author­
ity all in one. It is this which has won for the Gregorian Univer­
ity its greatest glory, the fact that these words can most fittingly
be applied to it which the author of the Imitation of Christ places
at the end of the final chapter, in adoration of the Most Blessed
Sacrament: Omnis ratio et naturalis investigatio fidem sequi
debet: non præcedere, nec infringere, "Reason and study on
the natural plane must follow faith, not precede it or infringe up­
on it.”
(The universal character of the Gregorian.—Its history. )
THE PROGRAM OF A PONTIFICATE
All. to the Cardinals, January 25, 1959.
(The feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, the occasion of im­
portant communications of the Holy Father to the Cardinals.)
We have in view only the bonum animarum, the good of
souls, and a very clear and definite correspondence of the new
Pontificate with the spiritual exigencies of the present hour.
We know that from many sides with benevolence and fervor,
and from others with ill-will, or uncertainty, men are looking to
the new Pope, in expectation of what can be hoped for from him
that is most characteristic.
It is very natural that in the framework of the daily activity which includes in an ever-growing volume the ordinary manifestations of the pastoral duty, there should be a special moment
to mark the note, if not the principal and unique one, at least one
of the most expressive on the countenance of a new Pontificate,
which comes to take its place with more or less felicity in history.

1574
(160)

1575
(146)

798

THE PROGRAM OF A PONTIFICATE

1576
Well, Venerable Brothers and Beloved Sons, in pondering
(151) the double duty confided to the Successor of St. Peter, there
appears suddenly his double responsibility of Bishop of Rome
and Pastor of the Universal Church. Two expressions of a single
superhuman investiture: two attributions which cannot be sepa­
rated, which must even be brought into harmony with one an­
other, for the encouragement and the edification of the clergy
and the entire Christian people. ( The pastoral problems of Rome.)
The spiritual needs of the entire world
1577
And if the Bishop of Rome extends his gaze to the entire
(145) world, for whose spiritual government he has become responsible
by the mission conferred upon him by his succession to the
supreme apostolate, oh! what a spectacle: joyful, on the one
hand, where the grace of Christ continues to multiply the fruits
and the prodigies of spiritual nobility, of salvation, and of holi­
ness throughout the world, and sorrowful, on the other hand,
where man’s liberty is abused and compromised, where man does
not see the heavens opened, and refuses to believe in Christ the
Son of God, Redeemer of the world and Founder of Holy Church,
and turns wholly to the search of the so-called goods of this
earth under the inspiration of him whom the Gospel calls the
Prince of Darkness, the Prince of this world—as Jesus Himself
calls him in his discourse at the Last Supper—to organize the
contradiction and the struggle against truth and goodness, a
nefarious position which accentuates the division between what
the genius of St. Augustine calls the two cities, keeping ever
active the forces of confusion so as to deceive, if possible, even
the elect, and drag them headlong to ruin.

1578
As the culmination of misfortune for the ranks of the sons
(228) of God and of Holy Mother Church, there is added the tempta­
tion and the attraction of the advantages of the material order
which progress in modern techniques—indifferent in themselvesincreases and heightens.
1579
All this—this progress, We mean—if it turn man from the
(228) search for the higher good, weakens the energies of the soul.
leads to the relaxation of the ensemble of discipline and the good
order of the past, with grave prejudice to what constitutes the
strength of the resistance of the Church and of her children
to the errors, which, in reality, in the course of the history' of

THE BENEFI ES OF UNITY

799

Christendom, have always led to pernicious and fatal divisions,
to spiritual and moral decadence, to the ruin of nations.

Three great decisions
This realization brings to birth in the heart of the humble 1580
priest, whom the manifest indication of divine Providence has (193)
ed, in spite of his unworthiness, to the height of the Sovereign
Pontificate, it gives rise, We say, to a firm resolution to return
to certain ancient forms of doctrinal affirmation and of the wise
ordering of ecclesiastical discipline, which, in the history of the
Church, in a period of renovation, have borne fruits of extra­
ordinary efficacy to clarify thought, to strengthen religious unity,
to rekindle Christian fervor, which We continue to recognize,
even with reference to the goods of this life, as the abundant
riches de rore cœli et de pinguedine terræ, “of the dew of heaven
and of the fatness of the earth” (a).
(The Holy Father announces the Roman Synod, the Coun­
cil, and the revision of Canon Law; he counts on the prayer and
assistance of all to realize these plans.)

THE BENEFITS OF UNITY
All. to the faithful assembled at St. Paul’s outside the Walls,
January 25, 1959.
(The history of the pretended opposition between St. Peter
and St. Paid—Its decline.—The union of the two Apostles at
Rome. )
Blessed Rome, consecrated by the glorious blood of the two
Apostles, ever splendid with an incomparable beauty!
I. This solemn union of the two Apostles, this cult of their
memory, is like an echo answering their voice as it announces the
Gospel: it is the sign of the unity of an authority which is always
refulgent; it is a clear invitation to that perfect adhesion, mente,
corde, et opere, of the Bishops, the Successors of the Apostles, and
of the faithful, to the Successor of Peter, and it is the clearest
indication of harmonious fervor in the ardent profession of faith
of the Christian people. Sons of Rome, and all of you who today
are gathered here in spirit from all the ends of the earth, you are
renewing the world-wide homage of the centuries to the charac­
teristic notes of the Church of Jesus: one, holy, catholic, apostolic.
1580a Genesis 27:28.

1581
(5,

186187,
197)

800

THE ROMAN SYNOD

It is a great consolation to live belonging to the body and to
1582
(36) the mind of Holy Church, with the security of the eternal trans­

formation of our life into the immortal glory of God, Creator and
Redeemer, and of his Saints.
1583

(58,
197)

1584

(52,
84)

1585

(52)

This unity of the Church, which St. Paul, on the day of his
miraculous conversion, put in perfect harmony with the teaching
of Peter, that teaching whose outlines Mark has left in his Gospel,
leads us to consider with sorrow how the attempts and efforts,
unfortunately partly successful through the centuries, to destroy
this catholic unity, are prejudicial to the happiness and well­
being of the world, defined by the words of Jesus Christ as one
fold under the direction of one shepherd.

Think how perfect unity of faith and the practical realization
of the Gospel teaching would bring about peace and joy in the
whole world, in the measure at least in which this is possible on
earth—and not only in the service of the great principles of the
spiritual and supernatural order which touch each man in view
of the eternal goods brought into the world by Christianity, but
they would also be the bases of very secure elements of the civil,
social, and political prosperity of every nation.
The first fruit of this union is, in fact, not only the apprecia­
tion, but the proper use and enjoyment of liberty, that most
precious gift of the Creator and Redeemer of men.
So true this is that every deviation in the history of different
peoples on this point of liberty is revealed to be, in effect, a
contradiction, more or less subtle, often arrogantly proud, of the
principles of the Gospel.
( Fruits of unity —False liberty—II. Suffering behind the iron
curtain.—III. Unity, Liberty, Peace are gifts of God.)
THE ROMAN SYNOD

Letter A voi prediletti, February 2, 1959, to the people of
Rome.
1586

Beloved sons of Our diocese of Rome, We intend to
announce to you directly (as We have already announced to Our
dear Cardinal Vicar, to his immediate collaborators and the
pastors of Rome) the project of convoking the Synod of the
Diocese of Rome.

MAGISTERIUM ANI) PROPHECY

801

We can say in all truth that in this project caritas Christi
urget Nos, “the charity of Christ urges us on,” that is to say, zeal
for your souls, for your eternal salvation.

What is a Synod?

A Synod is the assembly of the Bishop with his priests for the 1587
nirpose of studying the problems of the spiritual life of the faith- (151,
ul. to give or restore strength to ecclesiastical laws for the 207)
suppression of abuses, to promote Christian life, to encourage
divine worship and religious practice. Fundamentally, it is a
question of continuing the work of Jesus Christ our Redeemer
for the salvation of men, for that special portion of his flock
which, aside from the care of all the Churches, is in a special
manner confided to Us.
Some might think the work of a Synod less necessary for the 1588
Eternal City, the center of the Catholic religion, founded on the (142,
tombs of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, the Holy City par ex­ 151cellence, on which depend all the other Churches of the Catholic 152,
world, propter potiorem principalitatem (a). Nonetheless We 166,
must say that Rome, the See of Peter and of his successors, 176)
whence goes out to the whole world the teaching authority and
discipline of the Church, the light of doctrine and the fire of
charity, also has, as a diocese, its own specific problems, and,
consequently, needs concrete norms so that this teaching author­
ity may penetrate consciences, this discipline be realized in
practice. In this sense—so Our venerated Predecessor used to say
-“On the banks of the Tiber there are to be found two ecclesias­
tical ‘Romes’: the universal Rome and the diocesan Rome. The
former is the Rome of Peter as Head of the Catholic Church ...
(the latter is) Rome the diocese, whose Head is also the Sov­
ereign Pontiff’ ( b ).
(The needs of the great City—Invitation to prayer.—Inten­
tion to be given to the recitation of the Angelus. )

MAGISTERIUM AND PROPHECY

R. M. to the world, February 18, 1959.
(The close of the jubilee year of the apparitions at Lourdes.)
1588a St. Irenaeus, Adv. Hæres, III, iii, 2.
1588b Cardinal Pacelli, Discorsi e Panegenci, p. 52.

802

ONE SINGLE CHURCH

1589
Following the Pontiffs who for a century have recommended
(1β5) Catholics to be attentive to the message of Lourdes, We urge you
to listen with simplicity of heart and an upright intention to the
salutary warnings—which are always timely—of the Mother of
God. And let no one be astonished to hear the Roman Pontiffs
insist on the importance of the great spiritual lesson transmitted
by the child of Massabielle. If they have been established the
guardians and interpreters of the Divine Revelation contained in
Holy Scripture and Tradition, they also make it their duty to
recommend to the attention of the faithful—when after mature
reflection they judge it to be to the advantage of the general
good—the supernatural inspiration which God is pleased to dis­
pense freely to certain privileged souls, not to propose new doc­
trines to us, but to guide our conduct: Non ad novam doctrinam
fidei depromendam, sed ad humanorum actum directionem, “Not
for the declaration of any new doctrine of faith, but for the direc­
tion of human acts” (a). This is indeed the case of the apparitions
at Lourdes, on which excellent historical studies have quite re­
cently thrown a decisive light.
(The example given by St. Bernadette.)
ONE SINGLE CHURCH
All. to the faithful of Venice, March 15, 1959.
(Three Popes·. St. Peter, St. Pius X, John XXIII.)

1590
Before all else, beloved sons of Venice, fidelity to the
(5,
Church, one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. Jesus did not found
d0,
several Churches, but one single Church, which is not a Venetian
131) or a Milanese Church, not a Gallican, or a Greek, or a Slavic
Church, according to the names of different nations, but an Aposlolic and Universal Church.
1591
Yes, this is the Church of Rome: the true Mother of all
637, peoples, splendid in the variety of her rites, in the use of the
•39, different languages according to the liturgical development of
d0, different periods and different nations, but always with the
•5-2, unique flame of belief and discipline, of order and sacred organi1-32, zation. The formula is St. Ambrose’s: Ubi Petrus ibi Ecclesia.
dOl, St. Peter Damian with great justice applies to the followers of
163, St. Mark, the disciple and son, I repeat, of St. Peter, the motto:
1589a St. Thomas Aquinas, Sum. Theol., Ila-IIae, q. 174, a. 6, ad 3.

inr-^

THE CHURCH IS LIVING

803

Ubi Marcus, ibi Petrus! Where the household of St. Mark is to be 230)
found, there is the Church. Therefore, no divisions or subdi­
visions. All of us living under heaven, we are all Catholics in the
same way. This is what the Divine Founder intended and willed:
it was his last wish at the hour of his sacrifice. O Father, I beg of
You: ut unum sint. The principle of unity of all the Churches with
each other is the sacred bond which assures the perennial char­
acter, the heritage of Christ through the centuries. Ah together,
united to the first of the Lord’s Apostles, according to the motto
on the episcopal seal of a great bishop of the ancient Church:
Cum Petro pugnare, et cum Petro regnare.
(Memories of Venice.—St. Pius X, Doctor and restorer of dis­
cipline-John XXIII, Priest and Pastor.)
THE CHURCH IS LIVING

R. M. to the world, March 28, 1959.
(The Exsultet and the Alleluia will soon be heard.)
While We wait these sounds, beloved sons, We address Our
words to you. It is the new Pope, this year, who celebrates Easter
with you, called as he is to rule the Church as its visible Head,
the unique, invisible Head being the Divine Master, risen from
the dead. What a marvelous proof of the perennial character of
Holy Church, the Mystical Body of Christ, which continually re­
ceives from the Redeemer the life which makes it immortal! What
a touching confirmation of the truth of the historic fact of the
Resurrection of Jesus, which, occurring twenty centuries ago,
forms the solid support of Christian society, the sure nourishment
of its faith, the motive of its hope, the stimulus of its charity.

1592

(6,
26.
28,
144.
227229)

The Church is living, as her Divine Founder is living! The 1593
Church advances with the very strength of life itself, as Jesus,
after submitting himself to the servitude of mortal nature, passed
victoriously through the barrier of stone which his enemies had
erected to guard his tomb! The Church, too, has had her enemies
in the course of centuries; they have sought to inter her as in a
sepulchre, and they have celebrated again and again her agony
and death. But she, too, because she has within her the invincible
strength of her Founder, with Him she has ever risen again, par­
doning all, and assuring serenity and peace to the humble, to the
poor, to the suffering, to men of good will.

804 CHURCH NOT IDENTIFIED WITH ANY ONE CULTURE

1594
This is the meaning of the approaching Feast of Easter, the
(217) meaning which We love to propose to you above all others, be­
loved sons, so that your loyalty to the Church may not waver, but
rather, rooted and founded in charity, you may know how to par­
ticipate in joy and generosity in the life of your Mother, con­
vinced of her victorious security, ready to fight to defend her, to
spend yourselves for her increase, united in witness to her:
“careful—as St. Paul says—to keep the unity of the spirit in the
bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, as you are called in one
hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God
and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in us
all” (a).
THE CHURCH DOES NOT IDENTIFY HERSELF
WITH ANY ONE CULTURE

All. to African writers and artists, April 1, 1959.
( Welcome. )

1595
The Church appreciates, respects, and encourages a labor
(83) like this of investigation and reflection, having for its object the
signalizing of the original riches of an individual culture, the dis­
covery of its historic foundations, the manifestations of its pro­
found harmonies beneath its variety of expressions, finally the
benefit which will accrue to your respective countries by the
production of new works.
1596
Wherever, in fact, authentic values of art and expression are
(77, susceptible of enriching the family of man, the Church is ready
S3,
to favor this intellectual undertaking. She herself, as you know,
does not identify herself with any one culture, not even with
Western culture, to which, nevertheless, her history is closely
linked. For her special mission is of another order, the order of
the religious salvation of men. But the Church, filled with the
youth which is constantly renewed by the breath of the Spirit, is
always ready to recognize, to welcome, and even to give life to
all that does honor to the human intelligence and heart in other
parts of the world beside this Mediterranean area which was the
providential birthplace of Christianity.
1594a Ephes. 4:3.

TRUE PEACE

805

Therefore, Gentlemen, it is impossible not to follow with
interest your efforts to determine the bases of a cultural com­
munity African in its inspiration, and to hope that they will be
founded on just criteria of truth and action!
See in this the wisdom of the Church in the temporal order. 1597
Her enlightened gaze can discern in the forms of artistic or liter- (106.
ary expression, whether ancient or modern, what must be purified 133)
to become reconciled with the dignity of man, with his natural
rights and duties. The universal nature of her gaze, attentive to
the human resources of all peoples, places her at the service of
true peace in this world. In helping the elite who turn to her to
develop the cultural possibilities of their native land or their race,
the Church invites them to do so in a spirit of harmonious col­
laboration and profound sympathy with the other currents issuing
from authentic civilizations. Is it not only at this price that the
conquests of the spirit will grow in number and there will be
forged the spiritual links of a fraternal human community?

TRUE PEACE
All. to the Congress of Veterans, April 11, 1959.
(The Holy Father's memories of the war.—The sufferings of
the wounded—Appeals for peace at that time. )
It is not the decision of any earthly power that can bring 1598
about the reign of this peace in the world, if care has not first (84.
been taken to establish it in the hearts of men: “Out of the heart.”
95)
Christ told his disciples, “come evil desires” (a).
Indeed, the Church works to regenerate man from within, to
plant true peace in souls, and so influence families, social classes,
and nations. Shorn of material arms, she is, in compensation, the
depositary of the highest spiritual power, to which fact the visit
you pay Us today bears witness.
( Gratitude and blessing. )

THE ESSENCE OF INSTITUTIONS
Exhortation, Quarantacinque anni, April 23, 1959, to the
Clergy of Venice.
(The return of St. Pius X to Venice.—Sacerdotal dignity.—
The unfortunate enterprises of many of the contemporaries of
St. Pius X.—The great accomplishments of his Pontificate.)
1598a Matt. 15:19.

806

THE ESSENCE OF INSTITUTIONS

1599
Beloved priests! The interior structure of the Church is a
(77, strength which comes to her from the conviction that she has
■133, remained faithful to the mission given to her by her Divine
217) Founder, without fear of appearing, or of being judged at times,
severe or too prudent.
This Church, who has no need of anyone, gives herself to all
her sons.
As a divine institution, she represents the surest and the most
certain means that can be imagined for the salvation of man, but
also in the order of human relations and for the solution of prob­
lems which touch upon the day-to-day support of peace in societ}’
and collaboration among peoples.
1600
As We fix our eyes on the most luminous pages of the history
(153, of every century, it is possible to believe that the Ecumenical
192) Council—We have announced it in obedience to an inspiration
whose spontaneity seemed to Us, in the humility of Our soul, like
an unforeseen and unexpected shock—is already in the process of
preparing, in the heart of every bishop and priest, the good res­
olution and the more ardent desire to extend the field of his
charity and to remain at his post with clarity of thought and
greatness of heart.

1601
Let us hope and pray that the Council will renew for all men
(153, the spectacle of the Apostles gathered in Jerusalem after the
192) Ascension of Jesus into Heaven: unanimity of thought and of
prayer with Peter and around Peter, the Shepherd of the lambs
and the sheep: an offering of energies which will be recharged,
which will be renewed by the search for what will best corres­
pond to the exigencies of today’s apostolate.
1602
The figure of St. Pius X, invoked as heavenly protector of the
(205) Ecumenical Council, stands out from the events and the circum­
stances which in his time gave rise to unconsidered and partisan
judgments, and it makes all the more persuasive the exhortation
not to seek out strange ways for the salvation of mankind and for
the defense of man’s rights; not to imagine easy substitutes which
could replace what is deeply rooted in the very essence of the
most solid institutions, and which has the value of being tried by
centuries. That is: in the East, first the rapprochement, then the
resumption of contact, then the perfect reunion of so many
separated brethren with the common Mother of antiquity; and.
in the West, the generous pastoral collaboration of the two

THE SUPPORT OF THE CHURCH

807

clergies, under the supervision and direction of the Bishop who is
the Pastor of all the sheep (a).
(Wisdom, human and Christian.)
THE SUPPORT OF THE CHURCH
Exhortation, Aetate hac nostra, April 27, 1959, to the Bishops
and faithful.
(Mary intercedes for us, the more so as dangers beset the
world. )

Moreover, Mary is most closely bound to the Church, for 1603
it is she who, “persevering in prayer” (a) with the Apostles in (21.
the Cenacle, awaited the descent of the Holy Spirit. On the day 33,
of Pentecost He filled the Church with his own divine strength, 77)
and made it possible for her to gather the multitude of the na­
tions to herself. Indeed, as our Predecessor Pius XII says, “It was
Mary who, by her most powerful intercession, obtained that the
Spirit of the Divine Redeemer, already given upon the Cross,
should, with his wondrous gifts, be conferred on the newborn
Church on the day of Pentecost” (b). Who then can doubt that
the intentions of the Church and the difficulties that beset her
are those of the Mother of God, and are her greatest concern?
Therefore, he who thinks with the Church and is sincerely de­
sirous of her progress should address very frequent and fervent
prayers for her to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
(Invitation to redouble prayer in the course of the month
of May.)
1602a La figura di S. Pio X, invocato anche lui celeste protcttore
del Concilio Ecumenico, si stacca dai fatti e dalle circostanze
che ai suoi tempi originarono giudizi avventati e interessati, e rende
più suadente il richiamo a non cercare vie peregrine per la salvezza
delTuomo e per la difesa dei suoi diritti, e a non immaginare facili
divagazioni che possano surrogare cio che affonda le sue radici nella essenza stessa delle istituzioni più solide, ed ha il valore dell’esperienza secolare. E cioè: in Oriente il riavvicinamento prima, il
riaccostamento poi e la riunione perfetta di tanti fratelli separati
coll’antica Madré comune: e in Occidente la generosa collaborazione pastorale dei due cleri, sotto lo sguardo e la direzione del
Vescovo, che è il Pastore di tutte le pecorelle.
1603a Cf. Acts 1:14.
16031) Encyclical Mystici Corporis·, above No. 1111.

SCHEMA OF A DOGMATIC CONSTITUTION ON THE
CHURCH PREPARED FOR THE EXAMINATION OF
THE FATHERS OF THE VATICAN COUNCIL0

Prologue
The apostolic charge of Supreme Pastor with which the in­
effable Providence of Divine Mercy has invested Us, continually
urges Us to neglect nothing that may open wide to all men the
way that leads to life and to eternal salvation, so that all may
come to the light and knowledge of truth, even those who are
still sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death.
Since God Our Savior has confided to his Church as to a
rich storehouse the ensemble of doctrinal truths and the treasury
of the means of salvation so that she may be for all men
a fountain of life (a), it is important before all else to show those
who are in error what the true Church is and to inspire in the
faithful a greater esteem for her. By this means the latter will
be strengthened to make progress in the way of salvation; the
former will be brought to that way.
It is for this reason that We consider it a duty of Our charge
‘o present the most important points of the true Catholic doctrine
n the nature, the properties, and the power of the Church, and
) respond to the errors opposed to this teaching, by the procimation of the appropriate canons.
’ This Schema was drawn up by order of Pius IX to serve as start­
ing-point for the deliberations of the Council. In itself, it has no
doctrinal authority, but it represents the state of doctrine at that
time. It will be useful to compare in the two redactions. Chap­
ter XI of this Schema and the text of the Constitution Pastor
Aeternus which resulted from the deliberations. Cf. supra. No.
356, ff. Several doctrinal points of the Schema which could not
be discussed in the Council were taken up by Leo XIII and
Pius XII in some of their encyclicals.
(a) St. Irenaeus, Advers. Haeres., HI. 4.

- 809 -

810

APPENDIX

I
The Church is the Mystical Body of Christ

When that fullness of time which had been fixed by the
eternal designs had been realized ( a ), the Only-begotten Son of
God, who enlightens every man coming into the world and who
has never, at any time, refused his help to the wretched children
of Adam, made Himself like to men (b) and became visible by
taking the form of our body, so that carnal and earthly men, put­
ting on the new man who had been created according to God
in justice and holiness of truth (c), might henceforth form a
mystical body of which He Himself would be the head.
In order to realize the union of this mystical body, Christ
Our Lord instituted the sacred bath of regeneration and renova­
tion, thanks to which the children of men, divided among them­
selves on so many matters and above all corrupted bv sin, would
be purified from their sins, would become members of a single
body. United to their divine Head by faith, hope, and charity,
they would all be vivified by his unique Spirit and filled with
the abundance of heavenly graces and blessings. This is the
sublime image of the Church which can never be proposed with
too much insistence, to the minds of the faithful, so that it may
be deeply implanted there.
The head of the Church is Christ (d), and it is by Him
that the whole body, coordinated and united by the bonds of
its members, each one of whom works according to the measure
of his activity, increases and grows perfect in charity (e).

II
The Christian religion can be practiced
only in the Church and by the Church
founded by Christ
Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, has Himself
founded and established this Church which He purchased at the
price of his Blood and which He loved from all eternity as a
uniquely chosen Spouse. He has decreed that, to the end of
la St. Ambrose, De fide ad. B. Hieron.
Ib Philip., 2:7.
Ic Ephes. 4:24.
Id Coloss. 1:18.
le Ephes. 4:16.

SCHEMA ON THE CHURCH

811

time and throughout the entire world, the Apostles should gather
within her walls the entire human race, should teach and govern
the Church, so that she would form but one holy race, “a people
acceptable to Himself, a pursuer of good works” (a).
The law of the Gospel did not, in fact, decree that the true
adorers, each in his own way and outside any social context,
should adore the Father in spirit and in truth: quite the contrary;
Our Redeemer willed that his religion should be so closely bound
to the society founded by Him that it would remain entirelyjoined to, and as it were incorporated with it, so much so that
outside that society there would be no true religion of Christ.

Ill
The Church is a true society, perfect,
spiritual, and supernatural
We teach and declare that to the Church belong all the
properties of a true society. This society has not been left by
Christ unfinished and unformed; but, just as it has its existence
from Him, it is also from his will and by his law that the Church
has received her form and constitution. She is not a member
or a part of any other society; nor can she be confounded with
or enter into partnership with any other society; on the contrary,
she is so perfect in herself that, while being entirely distinct
from all other human societies, she also far surpasses all of them.
In fact, issuing from that inexhaustible source of mercy
which is God the Father, founded by the ministry and the work
of the Incarnate Word, she was established in the Holy Spirit
who, after first being poured out with the greatest munificence
on the Apostles, ceaselessly continues to give Himself to the
sons of adoption so that, enlightened with his light, they may
adhere to God and be united in mind among themselves by the
unity7 of faith; thus, bearing in their hearts the pledge of their in­
heritance, they will reject the carnal desires suggested by the
corrupt concupiscence of the world, and strengthened by a blessed
and common hope, they will aspire to the eternal glory of God
which is promised them, and thus they will ensure by good works
their vocation and election ( a ).

Ila Titus 2:14.
Ula 2 Pet. 1:10.

812

APPENDIX

Since it is thanks to the wealth of these heavenly goods that
men grow in the Church with the help of the Holy Spirit, and
since it is by the bonds of the same Spirit that they are united
with one another, the Church is a wholly spiritual society and
of an absolutely supernatural order.

IV
The Church is a visible society
Let men be on guard not to think that the members of
the Church, united simply by interior and secret bonds, form
merely a hidden and entirely occult society. The eternal effica­
cious Wisdom of God has willed that, to the spiritual and invisi­
ble bonds, thanks to which the faithful by means of the help of
the Holy Spirit adhere to the supreme and invisible Head of the
Church, there should correspond exterior and visible bonds, so
that this spiritual and supernatural society might appear out­
wardly and be manifest in the full light of day.
Thence comes that visible Magisterium through which is
publicly proposed to the faithful the object of their faith, which
must be believed interiorly and professed exteriorly. Thence also
that visible ministry which by a public function regulates and
realizes the visible mysteries of God, by means of which are pro­
cured the interior sanctification of men and the worship which
is due to God. Thence, again, comes that visible government
which orders the communion of the members among themselves,
which disposes and directs all of the exterior and public life of
the faithful within the Church. Finally, thence comes the whole
visible body of the Church, to which belong, not only the just and
the predestined, but even sinners, provided that they remain
joined to her by profession of faith and by communion.
Hence it results that the Church of God is neither invisible
nor hidden here below; on the contrary, she has been put in full
view (a), like a splendid city high on a mountain-top (b), where
she cannot remain hid, like a candle on a candle-stick (c), lit
by the Sun of Justice, enlightening the entire world by the light
of her truth.
I Va St. Augustine, in Psalm. XVIII, Enarr. II, n. 6.
IVb St. Cyril of Alexandria, in Isaiam, Book III, c. 25, n. 4.
IVe Matt. 5:15.

SCHEMA ON THE CHURCH

813

V
Of the visible Unity of the Church
Since such is the Church of Christ, We declare that this visi­
ble and manifest society is this same Church, the object of the
divine mercy and promises, which Christ willed to single out and
to adorn with so many prerogatives and privileges. We proclaim
also that the Church is so perfectly determined in her constitu­
tion that no one of the societies separated from the unity of faith
or the communion of this body can, in any sense, be considered
as a part or a member of it. Neither is the Church scattered and
disseminated throughout the different groups which bear the
name of Christian; she is entirely united in herself and profound­
ly cohesive, she offers in her visible unity the appearance of an
undivided and indivisible body, which is itself the Mystical Body
of Christ. It is this body of which the Apostle speaks when he
says: “One body and one Spirit; as you are called in one hope
of your calling. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. One God and
Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in us all’’ (a).

VI
The Church is a society which is absolutely necessary
to attain salvation

Let all men understand from this that the Church of Christ
is a society necessary for salvation. She is as necessary, certainly,
as attachment to and intimate union with Christ our Head and
his Mystical Body, outside of which He nourishes and cherishes
as his Church no other communion. She alone it is whom He has
loved; it is for her alone that He delivered Himself so as to sanc­
tify her, purifying her with the baptism of water, with the word
of life, so as to present her to Himself a glorious Church without
spot, without wrinkle, or any such thing, but holy and im­
maculate (a).
Wherefore We teach that the Church is not a society which
is left to man’s free choice, as if it were a matter of indifference
to salvation whether men knew her or not, whether they entered
her fold or abandoned her. But We affirm that she is absolutely
Va Ephes. 4:4-6.
Via Ephes. 5:29.

814

APPENDIX

necessary, not merely with a necessity of precept, in virtue of the
order to enter the Church given by the Savior to all men, but
also with a necessity of means, because in the order established
by Providence for men’s salvation, communication of the Holy
Spirit, participation in the truth and in life, can be obtained only
in the Church and through the Church of which Christ is the
Head.

VII

Outside the Church no man can be saved
Moreover, it is a dogma of the faith that no man can be
saved outside the Church. At the same time, those who are in
invincible ignorance on the subject of Christ and his Church
will not be condemned to eternal suffering because of this ig­
norance. In fact, they are not culpable of any sin in the eyes of
the Lord who wills that all men be saved and come to the knowl­
edge of the truth, and who does not refuse, to him who does what
he can, the grace which will permit him to reach justification and
everlasting life. On the contrary, no man will obtain this eternal
life if he does not abandon the state of life which is separated by
his fault from the unity of faith and communion with the Church.
He who is not to be found in this ark will perish in the time of the
deluge.
This is why We reprove and execrate the teaching, as im­
pious as it is contrary to reason itself, which professes indiffer­
ence in religious matters. In the name of such a theory, the
children of our time, suppressing the distinction between truth
and falsehood, affirm that the gate to eternal life is open to all
from whatever religion they come, or they maintain that with
regard to religious truths it is only possible to formulate more or
less probable opinions, without ever arriving at certainty.
We reprove likewise the impiety of those who are shutting
the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven to men, assuring them under
false pretexts that it is not honorable, and is in no sense neces­
sary to salvation, for them to abandon the religion—though false—
in which they were born, in which they were reared and taught;
and who hold it against the Church herself for proclaiming that
she alone is the true religion, for proscribing and condemning all
religions and all sects separated from her communion, as if there
could ever be the possibility of participation between justice and

SCHEMA ON I HI CHURCH

815

iniquity, or of association between light and darkness, or of com­
promise between Christ and Belial.

VIII
On the indefectibility of the Church
We declare, moreover, that the Church, considered in her
existence as in her constitution, is a perpetual and indefectible
society, and that no other economy of salvation, more finished or
more perfect, can be expected in this world since the establish­
ment of the Church. Since in fact it is to Christ that mortal men
pilgrimaging here below owe their salvation, his Church, which
is the only society of salvation, will last to the end of the world,
unchangeable and immutable in her constitution.
Therefore, although the Church shows increase—and please
God she will constantly increase in faith and charity—for the ed­
ification of the body of Christ; although she develops differently
according to the diverse periods of her age and the very cir­
cumstances in the midst of which she continues to live and
struggle; she nonetheless remains identical with herself and in
her constitution, which she received from Christ.
?\nd so the Church of Christ can never be dispossessed of
her properties and of her endowments, of her sacred Magisterium,
of her ministry and of her government, so that Christ, by means
of his visible body, will ever be for men the way, the truth, and
the life.

IX

On the infallibility of the Church
But the Church would have forfeited her immutability and
her dignity, she would cease to be the society' of life and the
necessary means of salvation, if she could turn aside from the salvific truth of faith and moral, and if she could err in preaching
and explaining it. She is the pillar and ground of truth (a), she
* must therefore be free from and guaranteed against every danger
of falsity and error.
With the approbation of the sacred Universal Council, We
teach and declare that the privilege of infallibility, which has

IXa 1 Tim. 3:5.

816

APPENDIX

been revealed as a perpetual prerogative of the Church, but
which must not be confounded with the charism of inspiration,
nor considered as a source of new revelations, was granted to the
Church so that the word of God, transmitted by Scripture or by
Tradition, might remain intact in the universal Churci of Christ,
and be proclaimed and conserved without any danger of altera­
tion, addition, or change, according to the command of the
Apostle: “O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust,
avoiding the profane novelties of words, and oppositions of
knowledge falsely so called. Which some promising, have erred
concerning the faith” (b).
The Apostle insists once more on this thought when he
writes: “Hold the form of sound words, which thou hast heard
of me in faith, and in the love which is in Christ Jesus. Keep the
good thing committed to thy trust by the Holy Ghost, who
dwelleth in us” (c). Consequently, We teach that the object of
infallibility is coextensive with the deposit of faith and with
what is required to conserve this deposit intact. Therefore, this
prerogative of the Church of Christ is great enough to embrace
not only the whole divine revelation, but also the truths which,
without being formally revealed, are, nevertheless of such a na­
ture that, without them, the revealed word could not be preserved
with security, nor be proposed to faith in certain and definite
fashion, nor be explained, affirmed, and defended effectively
against the errors and contradictions of false teaching.
Now this infallibility, whose end is to assure the society of
the faithful of the inviolability of the truth in the teaching of
faith and morals, resides in the magisterium which Christ insti­
tuted in his Church for all time when He said to the Apostles:
“Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching
them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you:
and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of
the world” ( d ).
To these same Apostles Christ promised the Spirit of his
truth, to be with them always, to abide in them, and to teach
them all truth.
IXb 1 Tim. 4:20.
LXc 2 Tim. 1:13-14.
IXd Matt. 28:19-20.

Of the power of the Church
But the Church of Christ is not an egalitarian society in
which the faithful all enjoy the same rights: it is a hierarchical
society, and that not only because of the fact that among the
faithful some are clerics and others, laymen, but above all because
there is in the Church a power divinely instituted, with which
some have been graced to sanctify, teach, and govern, and which
others do not possess. But since this power of the Church is dual,
and is called ‘power of orders’ and ‘power of jurisdiction’, We
declare that where the latter is concerned it extends not only to
the internal and supernatural forum, but also to the external and
public forum, and that it is absolutely complete, that is, legisla­
tive, judicial, and punitive.
The subjects of this power are the Pastors and Doctors given
by Christ, who freely and independently exercise it, without re­
gard to any secular power, so that they govern the Church with
full authority, whether by laws enacted and which also oblige in
conscience, or by judicial sentences, or, finally, by salutary sanc­
tions laid on the culprit even by force, not only in what concerns
faith and morals, worship and sanctification, but even in what
touches the exterior discipline of the Church and its administra­
tion. It is for this reason that the Church of Christ must be held
to be a perfect society. Now this true and blessed Church is none
other than the Roman Church, one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.

XI

Of the Primacy of the Roman Pontiff

The eternal Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, before being
glorified, asked his Father that those who believed in Him might
all be one even as the Father and the Son are one (a). Therefore,
to keep forever in his Church this unity of Catholic faith and
communion, He instituted in the person of the blessed Apostle
Peter the perpetual principle and visible foundation of both these
unities, when, according to the witness of the Gospel He prom­
ised, and immediately and directly conferred on the Apostle
Peter the primacy of jurisdiction over the whole Church of God.
Xia Cf. John 17:1, 21, ff.

It was to Peter alone, in fact, that Christ the Son of the living
God said: “Thon art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my
church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I
will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And what­
soever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in
heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be
loosed also in heaven” (b).
Likewise, it was to Simon Peter alone that Jesus after his
resurrection, committed the jurisdiction of his flock, as Supreme
Shepherd and Ruler, when Pie said: “Feed my lambs, feed my
sheep” (c). Therefore, We condemn and reprove as contrary to
this very manifest teaching of Holy Scripture, as it has always
been understood by the Catholic Church, theories which, destroy­
ing the form of government established by Christ Our Lord in his
Church, deny that Peter was invested, alone of the Apostles taken
singly or together, with a true and proper primacy of jurisdic­
tion; or which affirm that this same primacy was not given
immediately and directly to Blessed Peter himself, but to the
Church which delegates it to him as her minister.
But what the Prince of Pastors and the great Shepherd of
the sheep, Our Lord Jesus Christ, instituted in the person of
Blessed Peter for the eternal salvation and the constant well­
being of the Church (d), He must have made to endure forever
in the Church since, founded upon the rock, she was to remain
forever firm until the very end of the world. What truth disposed
remains, therefore, and Blessed Peter has not abandoned the rud­
der of the Church to which he set his hand (e). In fact, it is he
who forever lives, who presides, who exercises these powers of
judge in his successors, the bishops of the Holy See of Rome, first
founded upon him and then consecrated in his blood. It follows
that whoever succeeds him in this Chair also receives, in virtue
of the institutions of Christ Himself, the primacy of Peter over
the entire Church.
Wherefore, taking up once more and following exactly the
decrees of Our predecessors the Roman Pontiffs, as well as the
clear and evident definitions of preceding Ecumenical Councils,
We teach and declare, as an article of faith to be believed by
all the faithful, that this Apostolic See and the Roman Pontiff,
Xlb Matt. 16:18-19.
XIc John 21:16-17.
Xld 1 Pet. 5:4; Heb. 13:20.
Xie St. Leo the Great, Senn. Ill, n. 3.

SCHEMA ON THE CHURCH

819

possess the primacy over the whole world; and that the Roman
Pontiff is himself the successor of Blessed Peter, the Prince of
the Apostles, and the true Vicar of Christ, at the same time that
he is the Head of the whole Church, and the father, teacher,
and supreme judge of all Christians; that it is to him, in the
person of Blessed Peter, that was given by Our Lord Jesus
Christ full power to shepherd, rule, and govern the universal
Church; that this power, which is in the proper sense a juris­
diction, is ordinary and immediate, and that in this respect
the pastors as well as the faithful of the individual churches,
each separately and all together, are bound by the duty of
hierarchical subordination and true obedience (f); so that, with
the Roman Pontiff, keeping unity of communion and profession
of the same faith, the Church of Christ may be but one flock
under one sovereign Shepherd. Such is the teaching of Catholic
truth from which none may deviate without loss of faith and
salvation. Therefore, We condemn and reprove the opinions of
those who, abandoning their faith and hearkening to the sug­
gestions of error (g), deny that the power of the primacy
was instituted by Christ Our Lord in the person of Blessed Peter
in such wise that the latter was to have in perpetuity successors
in the primacy conferred upon him; as also those who affirm
that the jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiffs is not immediate
and ordinary, whether over the entirety of pastors and churches
or even each one in particular; or again, those who hold that it is
permitted to appeal from the judgment of the Roman Pontiffs to a
future Ecumenical Council as to an authority superior to that of
the Pontiff.
From this power of supreme jurisdiction, ordinary and imme­
diate, whether over the universal Church or over all and each of
the pastors and the faithful of the individual churches, it fol­
lows necessarily that the Sovereign Pontiff, in the exercise of this
ministry, has the right of free communication with pastors and
flocks of the whole Church, so that all can be taught and guided
by him in the way of salvation. Therefore, We condemn and re­
prove those pernicious theories which propose to forbid commun­
ication of this supreme head with pastors and flocks, or to make it
depend upon (the good-will of) the civil power, so as to hold
that constitutions drawn up by the Holy See or in virtue of its
Xlf Cf. Council of Lyons; of Florence; Pius VI, Super soliditate;
supra No. 20.
Xlg 1 Tim· 4:L

820

APPENDIX

authority, for the government of the Church, have neither force
nor value unless these have obtained the confirmation and ap­
proval of the civil power.
XII

Of the temporal sovereignty of the Holy See
So that the Roman Pontiff can suitably carry out the charge
of his primacy confided to him by God, he needs certain supports
which are fitting under the conditions and the needs of the
times. So it came about that, by a singular disposition of Divine
Providence, side by side with so many and such differing secular
princes, the Roman Church also had a temporal sovereignty.
Thanks to it, the Roman Pontiff, supreme Pastor of the whole
Church, was not subject to any prince, and, with the most entire
liberty, was free to exercise over the whole world the supreme
power and authority received from Christ Himself, to nourish and
to govern the Lords flock. At the same time he could, with in­
creased facility, provide for the constant extension of the divine
religion and more effectively realize projects which, according to
times and circumstances, seemed to him most useful to Christen­
dom.
But since the impious who seek to destroy law on the face of
the earth, took it upon themselves to subvert and destroy by every
means that was insidious or violent, this civil principality of the
Holy Roman Church, ordered to the well-being and utility of
Christendom, whose possession after so many centuries, had been
legitimized by every juridical title: taking up again, with the ap­
probation of the Council, the judgments and decrees of this
Apostolic See and of the preceding Councils, We condemn and
proscribe both the heretical teaching of those who affirm that the
union of civil power with spiritual power in the Roman Pontiff is
contrary to divine law, and the perverse opinion of those who
hold that it does not belong to the Church to pronounce with
authoritative judgment on the bond between this civil power and
the general well-being of Christendom, and that, in consequence,
Catholics are permitted to deviate from the decisions taken on
these points and to think otherwise.
( Succeeding chapters of this schema have to do with the re­
lations of the Church and civil society; they are to be found in the
volume·. CHURCH AND STATE.)

CANONS ON TUE CHURCH
CANON Ι-H anyone say that the religion of Christ lacks stability
and has no expression in any particular society founded by Christ,
but that it can be authentically observed and practised by each
one after his own fashion, without taking into account whether
there be a society which is the true Church of Christ, let him be
anathema.

CANON II—If anyone say that the Church has not received from
Christ Our Lord any form of definite and immutable constitution,
but that, equally with other human societies she has been or may
be subject, according to the period, to vicissitudes and trans­
formations, let him be anathema.
CANON III—If anyone say that the Church, the object of the
divine promises, is not an exterior and visible society, but is an
entirely interior and invisible one, let him be anathema.

CANON IV—If anyone say that the true Church is not a body
one in itself, but that it is composed of societies, Christian in
name, but distinct and separate from one another, and that ( the
Church) is diffused through all of them, or that the different
societies separated among themselves by their professions of faith
and without any bond of communion, constitute, after the fashion
of members or parts, the Church of Christ which is one and uni­
versal, let him be anathema.
CANON V—If anyone say that the Church of Christ is not a soci­
ety absolutely necessary for eternal salvation, or that man can be
saved by the practice of any religion no matter which, let him be
anathema.

CANON VI—If anyone say that this intolerance, by which the
Catholic Church proscribes and condemns all the religious sects
separated from her communion, is not a prescription of the di­
vine law, or that it is not possible to possess certitude and at
the most only opinions are to be had about the truth of religion,
and that, consequently, all religious sects should be tolerated by
the Church, let him be anathema.

CANON VII—If anyone say that the Church of Christ can be
hidden by darkness or corrupted by evil which would make her
depart from the salutary truth of faith and morals, and deviate

822

APPENDIX

from her first institution, or finally fall into depravity and cor­
ruption, let him be anathema.

CANON VIII—If anyone say that the present Church of Christ
is not the final and definitive economy of salvation, hut that
another is to be expected, the result of a new and more abundant
outpouring of the Holy Spirit, let him be anathema.
CANON IX—If anyone say that the infallibility of the Church is
restricted to revealed truth alone, and that it does not extend
equally to other truths which are necessary to the integral safe­
guarding of the revealed deposit, let him be anathema.
CANON X—If anyone say that the Church is not a perfect society,
but that it is a simple association, or that it is included
within civil society or the national State in such a way that it is
subject to the secular power, let him be anathema.
CANON XI—If anyone say that by divine institution the Church
is a society of equals, that the bishops possess, doubtless, an of­
fice and a ministry, but not a proper power to govern which be­
longs to them by divine right and is to be freely exercised by
them, let him be anathema.

CANON XII—If anyone say that Christ Our Lord and Savior has
conferred on the Church only the power of direction by counsels
and suggestions, but not the power to prescribe by law, and to
constrain and oblige the guilty and the contumacious by public
judgments and salutary penalties, let him be anathema.

CANON XIII—If anyone say that the true Church of Christ, out­
side of which no man can be saved, is other than the Church of
Rome, one, holy, catholic, and apostolic, let him be anathema.
CANON XIV—If anyone say that the Blessed Apostle Peter was
not constituted by Christ Our Lord the Prince of all the Apostles
and the visible Head of the entire Church militant, or that he
did not receive a true and proper primacy of jurisdiction, but
only one of honor, let him be anathema.

CANON XV—If anyone say that it is not in virtue of the institu­
tion of Christ that the Blessed Peter ever has successors in the
primacy over the Universal Church, or that the Roman Pontiff
is not the successor of Peter in that same primacy, let him be
anathema.

CANONS ON THE CHURCH

823

CANON XVI—If anyone say that the Roman Pontiff has only
an office of inspection or direction, but not full and supreme
power of jurisdiction over the whole Church, or that this power
is not immediate and ordinary with respect to each and every
one of the Churches, let him be anathema.
CANON XVII—If anyone say that independent
power, which the Church claims as received from
compatible with the full sovereignty of the civil
the least compromises the rights of both, let him be

ecclesiastical
Christ, is in­
power, or at
anathema.

CANON XVIII—If anyone say that the power required for the
government of civil society does not come from God, or that
obedience is not due to it in virtue of the law of God, or that this
obedience is counter to the natural liberty of man, let him be
anathema.
CANON XIX—If anyone say that all the rights of man derive
from the political society, or that there is not authority which
is not granted by it, let him be anathema.

CANON XX—If anyone say that political law or public opinion
is, with respect to public and social acts, the supreme norm of
conscience, or that the judgment of the Church whereby she
pronounces on the licitness of these acts does not extend to this
sphere, or again, that civil law can render licit what is illicit ac­
cording to divine or ecclesiastical law, let him be anathema.

CANON XXI—If anyone say that the laws of the Church can
oblige only in the measure in which they have been confirmed
by the sanction of civil authority, or that it belongs to this same
civil power, in virtue of its sovereign authority, to pass judgment
on and to decide in cases concerning religion, let him be an­
athema.

INDEXES

ABBREVIATIONS
References
AA.
AAS.

A.C.D.C.

A.C.
A.L
A.P. IX.

A.P. X.
A.P.C.
A.R.
A.R.N.S.
Arch. Sol.
ASS.
Bl.

BP.

Civ. Catt.
Coll. Lac.

Coll. P.V.

C.J.C.
C.O.C.

S.S.D.N. Leonis Papæ XIII .. . Acta praecipua. Brugis et
Insulis, MDCCCLxxxvn ss.
Acta Apost olicæ Sedis, Romæ, Tvpographia Vaticana,
1908-1953.
André, Cours alphabétique et pratique de Droit canonique,
Paris, 1853.
Acta Gregorii Papæ XVI, Romæ, ex Typographia polyglotta
S.C. de Propaganda Fide, 1900-1904.
Leonis XI11 Pontificis Maxirni Acta, Romæ, Typographia
Vaticana, 1881-1905.
Pii IX Pontificis Maxirni Acta, Romæ, ex Typographia
Bonarum Artium.
Pii X Pontificis Maximi Acta, Romæ, ex Typographia Vati­
cana, 1905-1914.
Annales de philosophie chrétienne.
Arni de la Religion.
Ami de la Religion, nouvelle série.
Archives of the monastery of Saint-Pierre de Solesmes.
Acta Sanctae Sedis, Romæ, 1865-1908.
Bullarii Romani, Continuatio.
Summorum, Pontificum Benedicti XIV . . ., Pii VIII,
Prati, 1845-1854.
Editions de la “Bonne Presse”, 5, rue Bayard, Paris. Textes
et traductions.
Années 1800-1878—Lettres Apostoliques de Pie IX,
Grégoire XVI, Pie VIL
1878-1903—Lettres Apostoliques de Léon XIII.
1903-1914—Actes de S. Pie X.
1914-1922—Actes de Benoît XV.
1922-1939—Actes de Pie XL
1939—Actes de Pie XII.
Civiltà Cattolica.
Acta et decreta S. Conciliorum recentiorum, Collectio lacensis, Friburgi Brisgoviæ 1890.
Collection des Procès-verbaux des Assemblées générales du
Clergé de France, Paris, 1767-1778.
Codex Juris canonici.
Correspondance Officielle de la Cour de Rome avec les
agens de Buonaparte, Lyon, Bohaire, 1814.
- 827 -

D.C.

D.C.D.
Denz.

Documentation catholique. Maison de la “Bonne Presse”, 5,
rue Bayard, Paris.
Dogmatic Canons and Decrees, (1912), Devin-Adair
23 E. 26th St., N.Y. 10, N.Y.
Enchiridion Symbolorum, A. Denzinger, Friburgi B.,
MCMXXI.

Discorsi e Radiomessaggi di Sua Santit à Pio XII, Milano,
“Vita e Pensiero”, 1939-1946—Romæ, Typographia
polyglotta Vaticana, 1946-1953.
Eng.
Original text is in English.
Ft.
Codicis Juris Canonici Fontes, Romæ, 1923-1939.
G.E.L.
Great Encyclical Letters of Pope Leo XIII, (New York:
Benziger Brothers), 1903.
Cl.
Collection générale des Brefs et Instructions de N.T.S.P. le
Pape Pie VI, relatifs à la Révolution Française.
New translation by M.N.S. Guillon, Paris, 1798.
J.C.
Annales Ecclésiastiques de 1849 à 1860, par J. Chantrel,
Paris, 1861.
Kt.
Documents pontificaux de la Société Pie XII, collected
and presented by R. Kothen, Editions S. Augustin,
Saint-Maurice ( Switzerland ).
L. N.R.
Les Nouvelles Religieuses, Paris 1918 à 1928, (bi­
monthly).
Msi.
Mansi, Sacrorum Conciliorum, Nova et amplissima col­
lectio.
M. T.C.
Migne, Theologiæ cursus completus, Paris, 1839-1845.
N. C.W.C. National Catholic Welfare Conference, Washington.
OR.
Osservatore Romano.
ORf.
Osservatore Romano, weekly edition in French.
P.F.
Discours de N. S. P. le Pape Pie IX, recueillis par la P.
Pasquale de Franciscis, trad, française, Paris 1875.
P.L.
Migne, Patrologie Latine.
P.G.
Migne, Patrologie Graeca.
QA.
Les Questions Actuelles, Paris, Maison de la “Bonne
Presse”, 5, rue Bayard, 1887-1893.
R.C.
D. Chamard, Annales ecclésiastiques, Paris, 1893.
RCF.
Revue du clergé français.
R. H.E.
Revue d’Histoire Ecclésiastique, Louvain.
R S.
Recueil des Allocutions consistoriales, Encycliques...
citées dans l’Encyclique et le Syllabus du 8 Décembre
1864, Paris, 1865.
Sch. Kir.
Schweizerische Kirchenzeitung (Luzem).
S. W.
Social Wellsprings, translated, adapted and annotated by
Joseph Husslein, S.J., Ph. D. (Milwaukee: Bruce Pub­
lishing Co.) 1940.
Transi.
Translation.
Univ.
L’Univers (daily) Paris.

DR.

Nature of Documents
All. = Allocution.
Apost. Const. = Apostolic Constitution.
Apost. Letter = Apostolic Letter.
Can. = Canon
Encycl. = Encyclical.
R.M. = Radio Message.

Numbering of the text

In the innrgin or in footnotes:
The numbers in heavy print refer to paragraphs of the papal
pronouncements.
The numbers in italics, given in parentheses, refer to the divisions
of the analytical index, which in turn indicates the parallel texts.
In the indexes:
See the explanation at the head of each index.

ALPHABETICAL INDEX
The numbers in parentheses refer to the division of the Analytical
Index; the numbers in heavy black print refer to the paragraphs of the
papal pronouncements.

Arians: 567, 786.
Arius: 831, 1344.
Armenians: 156, 218, 307,
331, 354, 392.
Arts: (106).
Assent required by the ma­
gisterium: (173).
Assistance, divine: (229).
of Christ to the Church:
(88) ff.
of Christ to the hierarchv:

Acace, schism of: 256.
Action common to Christ and
His members: (29).
Active life: 1018.
Adam: 618, 899, 1013, 1026,
1111.
Ad limina, pilgrimages—:

(156).
Adaptation: (224)-(226).
Adrian I: 94.
Adrian II: 610.
Agathon, St.: 598.
Alexander VII: 76.
Ambrose, St.: 83, 1130. See
table of authors cited.
America: 531.
Americanism: 627.
Anagni: 1255.
Anatole, Patriarch: 400, 1308.
Angels: (33), 1045.
Anglicanism: 252-253, 257.
Antioch: 30, 400, 1118.
Apocrisiaries: 664.
Apostasy: (55), 1216.
Apostles, depositaries of the
mission: (85).
Apostles’ Creed: 990.
Apostolate of the Laity: cf.

(86), (89).
of Christ to the Pope:

(145).
Athanasius, St: 199, 1130.
See table of authors cited.
Atheism: 387, 855, 1437.
Augustine, St.: 43, 146, 567,
776, 799, 897, 1079, 1130,
1176, 1237, 1351. See
table of authors cited.
Authoritarianism: 1151.
Authority of the Pope, ex­
tent 'of-: (151), (152),
(153) ff.
Authority, sovereign: (157).

Baden, synod of: 175, 178179.
Baltimore: (50), (52), (116).
Basil, St.: 570. See table of
authors cited.
Benedict XV: 946, 1370.
Beneficence, works of: (82).
See: Mercy, Works of.
Bernard, St.: 607, 1343. See
table of authors cited.
Bible: 144, 340, 527 ff., 825,
1388, 1448.

Laity.
of the hierarchy: (194).
missionary: (134). See Mis­
sion of the Church.
Apostolicity of the Church:
, (223) ff.
(5)
Appeal from the judgment
of the Popes: (172).
right of appeal: (157).
Arbitration of the Sovereign
Pontiff: (162).

- 831

832

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

Biblical Societies: 142.
Binding and loosing, power
of: (141).
Bishoprics, creation or sup­
pression of: (92).
Bishops, duties of: (202).
powers of: (185) ff.
rights of: (155) ff.
obedience due to: (203) ff.
native: (135).
nomination of: (92).
meetings of: (193).
responsible for missions:
fl 34).
heads of churches: (195).
successors of the Apostles:

(185)-(186).
Bonds of unity: (10), (42) ff.
Boniface II: 403.
Boniface VIII: 1417.
Books, censorship of: (167).
Boston: 1256.
Calvary: 536, 1287, 1333,
1518.
Calvin: 81, 86, 402.
Canonization: 451.
Caprara, Cardinal: 138.
Cardinals: (180).
Catechism: 1206.
Catechists: 1492.
Catechumens: 1337.
Catholic Action: (217)-(222).
Catholicity, note of the
Church: (5), (131) ff.
Celestine I: 925.
Celibacy, law of ecclesiasti­
cal: (208).
Centralization: (226).
Chalcedon, council of: 35,
79, 398, 400, 610, 1307.
Chaldea: 431, 433.
Chant, Gregorian: see Music,
sacred.
Charisms: 1018, 1066.
Charity, Church of the: (17).
among Christians: (82),

(133).

bond of unity: (48).
manifestation of sanctity:

.
(127)

primacy of: (163).
Charlemagne: 94, 1421.
Charles Borromeo, St.: 723,
730.
Children: 1095-1096, 1101,
1201.
China: 848, 1320, 1377.
Christianity: 1125-1126.
Christ, assistance of, to the
Church: (88) ff.
author of the sanctity of
the Church: (126).
divine Pilot of the Church:
645.
foundation of the Church:

(139).
founder of the Church:
(19) ff.
head of the Church: (24).
Savior of the Church:

(22) ff.
Support of the Church:
(31) ff.
the whole Christ: (34)435).

Church, the: abode of the
living God: (71).
a citadel: (72).
the divine Internationale:
832, 834.
a divine reality: (3).
a family of the children of
God: (69).
a holy temple: (71).
a human reality: (3).
a juridical Society: (12),

,
(17)
(129).

a kingdom: (73).
a mother: (67)-(68).
mystical body of Christ:
(6) ff., (39) ff., 336.
one body: (39)-(40).
a perfect society: (13).
a sign of credibility: (4).
a society of divine law:

,
(14)
(75), (136) ff.
the spouse of Christ: (63).
a standard raised above
the nations: (73).
a supernatural reality: (3).
a true society: (12).

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

Church, the: Christ the head
of: (23) ff
Christs divine assistance
to: (33) ff.
Christ, author of her holi­
ness: (126).
founder of: (19) ff.
savior of: (22) ff.
support of: (31).
Peter visible head of: (140).
Pope the visible head of:
(139) ff., (144).
Church, the: militant: 970,
, (64).
(7)
suffering: (7), (64).
taught: (136).
teaching: (136).
triumphant: (7), (64).
Church, the: apostolicitv of:
(5), (223) ff.
benefits of, to society:

(83) -(84), (133).
catholicity of: (5), (131) ff.
civilizing mission of: (83)-

(84) .
constitution of: (136).
contribution of, to peace:

(84).
cradle of: (70).
defense of: (160).
definitions of: (74).
dogmatic: (107).
solemn: (168).
depositarv of revelation:

.
(102)
duties toward: (231).
educational mission of:

(105).
end of: (76), (78), (123),

(166).
enemies of: 666.
the Eucharist, “heart” and
“soul” of: (51 ).
extension of: (160).
faith in: (2).
foundation of: (139).
founder of: (19) ff.
founded at Pentecost: (21).
founded on the Cross: (21).
government of: (137),

.
(124)

833

growth of: 996.
historical fact of: (3), (20).
holiness of: (5), (126) ff.
immortality of: (227).
immutability of: (224).
independence of:
(91)-

(92), (132).
indivisibility of: (41).
integrity of: (17).
jurisdiction of: (123)-(124).
language of: (49)
liberty of: (14), (91), (125).
love of Christ for: (66).
magisterium of: (96) ff.
solemn: (107), (109).
ordinary7: (108)-(109).
members of: (8), (136) ff.
mission of: (75) ff.
mystery of: (1), (3) ff.
notes of: (4) ff.
obedience to: (49), (125).
power of: (138).
proper domain of: (79).
propertv of: administration
of: (92).
competence of bishops
with regard to: (201).
possession of: (13).
separation from: (54)-(55).
soul of: (32).
sovereignty of: (15)-(16).
study of: (1).
unity of: (5), (37) ff.
universality of mission of:

(77).
visibility of: (9).
youthfulness of: (227).
Church, the, and State: (93)-

.
(94)
Churches, national: (56).
Cirta, Council of: 158.
Civilization, mission of the
Church with regard to:

(83)-(84).
mission of the Pope with
regard to: (162).
Class war: 1098.
Clement XI: 394
Clergy: (136), (205) ff.
regular and secular: (205).
Code of Canon Law: 1364.

834

College,

(188).

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

episcopal:

(187)-

Cologne: 54-56, 91, 183,
1434.
Community of peoples: 13561357.
Communication, free, with
Rome: (92).
Communion of Saints: (45),
1288.
and unity: (44).
unity of: (45), (161).
Competence
of
bishops:

(201).
Councils: (192). See table of
authors cited.
ecumenical: (193).
national: (193).
provincial: (193).
Concordat, French, of 1516:
81.
French, of 1801: 135.
Italian: 907.
Confessors: (128).
Confirmation: (116), 743.
Congregations, of the curia:
947; see Curia.
Congregations, Roman
authority of: (175).
Congresses, Eucharistic: 710,
978.
Conscience: 373, 678, 703,
709, 914, 936, 1136, 1160,
1325, 1328, 1396, 1416,
1418.
Counsels, evangelical: (129).
Consistorv:
* 1289.
Constance, Council of: 40.
Constantine: 134, 480, 753,
1359, 1421.
Constantinople: 76, 156, 192,
307, 330, 394-396, 400,
403, 610, 782.
Councils of: 36, 744, 1309.
Constituent Assembly: 65 ff.
Constitution, Civil (of the
Clergv): 65, 98, 100, 386,
410.
Constitution, of the Church:
.
(136)
Constraint: (59).

power of: (120).
Contemplative life: 1018.
Contemplative Orders: (209),
1301.
Cornelius, St.: 255, 596,
1477.
Credibility, the Church a
sign of: (4).
Credo: 971.
Creed, Apostles’: 990.
Criticism: 717.
Cross, the Church founded
on: (21).
Crusades: 478, 849.
Cult of God: (114), (121).
Culture, diversity in: (131)-

(1.32).
Curia, Roman: (180), 1114,
1138.
Cyprian, St.: 129.
Cyril of Alexandria, St.:
1117 ff., 1309; see table of
authors cited.
of Jerusalem, St.: 776. See
table of authors cited.
Damasus, St.: 32, 148, 229,
596, 610, 786.
Darboy, (Msgr.): 292.
Deacons: (205).
Defense of the Church, con­
fided to the Pope: (160).
Definitions of the Church:
(74).
dogmatic: (107).
solemn: (168).
Delegates, Apostolic: 664.
Democracy: 704, 1145, 11481150.
Democratic conscience: (138).
Demon(s): 233, 617, 712.
See Satan.
Deposit of faith, bishops the
guardians of: (197).
the Pope the guardian of:
(165).
protection of: (98).
Discipline, ecclesiastical:

-(122).
(121)
adaptation of: (122).
competence in the matter

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

of: (121)-(122).
competence of bishops in:
immutability of in matters
of divine law: (122).
the Pope the guardian of:

(176).
Discord, interior: (53).
Dissident Churches: 1269,
1345.
Diversity of members of the
Church: (8), (136) ff.
Divine, the Church a divine
reality: (3).
Docility: (181).
to the magisterium: (110)-

.
(112)
Dogma, development of:

(101).

Dogmatic facts: (104).
Dominis, Mark Antonio de:
48-49, 79, 81.
Donatists: 551, 604, 617,
895, 899.
Dupanloup (Msgr.): 291.

Economic life: 1201, 1224.
Economy, social: 1185.
Edessa: '794-795.
Education: 806, 846, 885,
1019, 1253.
the care of the bishops:

(198).
Educational mission of the
Church: (105).
Election of bishops: (203).
of the Pope: 328.
Empire, Roman: 225, 883,
921, 1242.
Holy Roman—of the Ger­
man Nation: 56, 59-61, 74.
Encyclical letters: (156).
Enemies of the Church: 666.
England: 141, 143, 252.
Ephesus, council of: 82, 403,
920, 1121, 1309.
conciliabulum of: 610.
Ephrem, St.: 793-794.
Epiphanius, St.: 567.
Episcopal order: (185) ff.
power: (199).

835

power of the Pope: (174).
See: College.
Episcopate, the Pope the
support of: (155).
Eucharist, sacrament of unitv:
651).
“soul” and “heart” of the
Church: (51).
Eugene I: 1008, 1122.
Eugene III: 34, 607, 1343.

Eulogy: 400, 666.
Europe: 478, 956, 1169,
1173, 1463.
Eutyches: 1309.
Eutychians: 567.
Eve, the new: (63), (67).
Evolution: 696-697, 708-709,
738.
Example: (220).
Excommunication: (54)-(55).
Exemption of religious: (157).
“Exequatur”: 214, 281, 304.
Extension of the Church,
charge of the Pope: (160).
Extreme Unction: (116).
Evbel: 22 ff.
Faith, competence of bishops
in: (201).
in the Church: (2).
liberty of: (59).
unity of: (46), (161).
Family, the Church, family
of the children of God:

(69).
the Holv Family; 503,
1509.
Fascism: 913.
Fatherland: 849, 851-852,
1507. See: Native Country.
Fathers of the Church: 3.
Febronius: 294, 296.
Fesch, Cardinal: 139.
Flavian: 1309.
Flock: (70), (136).
Florence, Council of: 38,
309, 368, 376.
Foundation of the Church,
historical fact: (20).
through preaching: (20).

836

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

through conferring of
power: (20).
on the Cross: (21).
at Pentecost: (21).
Foundation of the Church:

(139).
Free thought: 932.
Functions, hierarchical, of
bishops: (196) ff.
spiritual, of bishops:
(95) ff.
spiritual of the Pope:
(164) ff.
Gasparri, Cardinal: 840, 883.
Gelasius: 47.
Gibbons, Cardinal: 627.
Glory of God, end of the
Church: (76).
Gnosticism: 1412.
Good Shepherd: 17.
Government, of the Church:

.
(137)
character proper to: (124).
mission of: (119) ff.
concept of: (120).
of bishops: (200).
supreme government of the
Pope: (175).
Grace: (28), (115), (127).
Greek Church: 38, 186, 253,
257, 368, 743, 1022.
Gregory the Great, St.: 7273, 665, 947. See table of
authors cited.
Gregory VII, St.: 1373.
Gregory of Nazianzen, St.:
570. See table of authors
cited.
Gregor}' of Tours, St. 93.
Growth of the Church: 996.
Guarantees, Law of : 377, 381.

Hecker, Rev. Thomas: 627.
Hell: 15, 33, 125, 236, 299,
356-357, 370, 384, 388,
421, 437, 493, 560, 585,
604, 608, 679, 711, 725,
862, 875, 892, 896, 1324,
1446, 1552.
Heresy: (55)-(56), 228.
sin of: 1200.
Hierarchy,
instituted bv
Christ: (137)-(138).
divinely assisted: (88)-(89).
independence of: (91) ff.
only depositary of the mag­
isterium: (97).
only depositary of the
mission: (85)-(86).
principle of unity: (56).
succeeds the Apostles: (86).
Historic fact of the Church: 3.
Holiness of the Church: (5),
(126) ff.
Holy Ghost, soul of the
Church: (32).
assistance of: (88)-(89).
gifts of: (127).
indwelling in souls: (32).
Sanctifier of souls: (126).
Holv Office: 1200, 1256,
1268.
Holv Scripture, teaching of:

(102).
interpretation of: (111).
the Pope, the interpreter of:

(167).
Holy Year: see: Jubilee.
Honor due to bishops: (203).
Honoratus, St.: 893.
Hope, bond of unity: (47).
Hormisdas: 46, 73, 598.
Human reality of the Church:

(3).
Head of the Church, Christ:
(23) ff.
Christ and His vicar, one
single head: (26).
Pope, visible head: (139) ff.
“ministerial”: (146).
Heaven: 560, 843, 1019,
1021, 1030, 1045, 1050,
1109.

Humanism: 1169.
Huss, John: 40.

Ignatius, St.: 812, 1481.
Ignatius of Constantinople:
36.
Images, cult of: 94.
Immortality of the Church:

(227).

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

837

Immunity: 274.
Immutability of the Church:
224.
Imperialism: 1181, 1185.
Indefectibility: (161), (228).
Independence of the Church:

Julian the Apostate: 387.
Julius I: 199.
Julius II: 329.
Juridical, the Church a jurid­
ical Society: (12), (17),

(91)-(92), (132).
of the Pope: (177)-(179).

Jurisdiction, powers of: (137).
of the Pope: (148) ff.
of the Pope, character of:

Index: 692, 706.
Indifferentism: 869,
937,
1216, 1268.
Indivisibility of the Church:

(118).
Indwelling of the Holy Spirit:
See Holy Ghost.
Infallibility of the magister­
ium: (96), (107)-(109).
of the Pope: (169) ff.
Innocent I: 78-79, 793.
Innocent II: 1344.
Innocent III: 142, 159.
Innocent X: 743.
Inquisition: 8.
Institution of bishops: (189)-

(191).

Integrity of the Church: (17).
of faith: 1, 11-13, 762,
787, 874.
Investiture struggle: 1373.
Irenaeus, St.: 199, 626. See
table of authors cited.
Isenbiehl, Jean Laurent: 18.

Jandun, Jean de: 86, 92.
Jerome, St.: 85, 786 ff. See
table of authors cited.
Jerusalem: 134, 551, 974,
1092, 1333, 1518.
Council of: 991.
John Chrysostom, St.: 72-73,
199, 598, 776, 793, 1130.
See table of authors cited.
Josaphat, St.: 824.
Joseph, St: (33).
Jubilee: 14, 147, 529, 830835, 838.
Judge, the Pope, Judge of
doctrine: (165).
Judgment, Solemn: (168).
Judgment, powers of: (120).
Judges, the bishops as: (200).

(129).

(148) -(150).
of the Pope, extent of:

(149) -(154).
Justice: 982-983, 1106.
Justinian: 598.
Keys, power of: (141).
Kingdom, the Church
kingdom: (73).
Kings: 1106.

the

Laicism: 1169, 1396.
Laity: (98), (136), (210) ff.
apostolate of: (217)-(222).
emancipation of: (216).
power of: (203).
responsibilities of: (213)-

(216).
Lamennais: 188.
Latin,
language of
the
Church: (49).
Lateran, Councils of: 81, 329,
1337.
Treaty of: 880, 882, 1172.
Law: 949.
Canon: 770 ff., 982-984,
1157, 1423, 1429. See ta­
ble of authors cited.
Civil: 659.
of nations: 817.
divine (the Church the
society of): (14), (75),
(136) ff.
divine (power of the Pope
with regard to:) (176).
natural (the Pope the
guardian of): (165).
positive: 1215.
private: 1273.
Law of Guarantees: 377, 381.
Law, natural: 1325, 1394.
Laws, power to make: (120).
unity of: (49).

838

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

Lay theology: (222).
Legates, apostolic: (156).
Legislators, the bishops as:

(200).
Leo I: 35, 200, 398, 610, 880,
1307, 1345. See table of
authors cited.
Leo X: 81, 93.
Leo XIII: 1415. See table of
authors cited.
Letters Apostolic: 272, 284,
293.
Liberalism: 230, 286, 290,
932, 1169.
Liberius: 792.
Liberty, of conscience: 60,
(216), 1201-1203, 1328.
in the Church: (138).
of the Church: (14), (91),

.
(125)
of discussion among Catho­
lics: (HO)-(lll).
Life, active and contempla­
tive: 1018.
Liturgy: (104), (117), (121).
Luciferians: 601.
Luther: 67, 81, 97-98, 116117, 120, 402.
Lvons, Councils of: 38, 368,
599.
Magisterium: aim of: (96).
origin of: (97).
subjects of: (97)-(98).
factors of: (99)-(101).
object of: (102)-(106).
exercise of: (107)-(112).
principle of the unity of
faith: (44).
Magisterium of Christ: (27).
Magisterium of the Church:
(96) ff.
solemn: (107), (109).
ordinary: (108)-(109).
proximate rule of the unity
of faith: (109).
living: (96).
Magisterium, of the Pope:
(165) ff.
ordinary: (168), (173).
solemn: (168) ff.

Magisterium of bishops:
(197) ff.
Mandate confided to the lai­
ty: (222).
Marcion: 400, 1308.
Marriage: (65), (116), (209),
1204, 1216, 1412, 1431.
dispensations: 54-56.
Marsilius of Padua: 67. 86,
92.
Martin V: 40.
Martyrs: (128).
Mary, member of the Mysti­
cal Body: (33/
Materialism: 387, 815.
Maurice, Emperor: 592.
Maury, Cardinal: 138.
Melchiades, St.: 523.
Members of the Church: (8),
(136) ff.
Mercy: 631.
Works of: (206). See Benef­

icence.
Mersy (F.L.): 169.
Metropolitans: (188).
Michael, Emperor: 54, 599,
610, 790.
Patriarch: 782.
Militant, the Church: 970,

(7), (64).
Mindszenty, Cardinal: 1250.
Miracles: (20), (128).
Mission of the Church: (75) ff.
(origin of): (75).
(end of): (76)-(78).
(nature of): (79).
(extent of): (79)-(84).
(depositaries of): (85) ff.
(content of): (95) ff.
—of the Pope: (159) ff.
—in pagan lands: (134)·

(135).
—to teach: see Magisterium.
Missionaries: 1323.
Missionary spirit: 1469.
Monasticism: 826-828.
Modernism: 687-709, 736742, 762-763, 869, 883,
1365. 1370, 1448.
Monophysitism: 543.
Montanists: 567.

nHMMgEMHSKgHHKHMnHMjfi

ALPHABETICAL INDEX
Moral, teaching of: (103).
the Pope, guardian of:
(165).
competence of bishops in
matters of: (201).
the “new moral”: 1326.
Mortification: 937.
Music, sacred: (49), 1442,
1453.
Mystery of the Church: (1),

(3). ff.
Mystical Body (the Church,
mystical Body of Christ):
(6) ff., (39) ff., 336.
Mystical personality: (34).
Mystical union, of Christ and
His members: (36). See:

Mystical Body.
Mysticism, false: 1010, 1087.
Napoleon: 134-137.
Nation: 1178.
National Churches: (56).
National rights: 409.
Nationalism: 434, 1475,
1507.
Nationality: 1377, 1386.
Native clergy: (135).
Native country: 849, 851852,1507. See: Fatherland.
Natural domain: (80)-(81).
Natural law: (103).
Naturalism: 855, 1010, 1127.
Nero: 387, 1246.
Nestorianism: 1118.
Nestorius: 543, 922, 1309,
1344.
Neutrality, political: 1315.
Nicea, councils of: 198, 786,
792, 830-838, 1118, 1309.
Nicholas I: 54, 62.
Nobis nominavit: 670.
Nomination of bishops:

(154).
Non licet: 963.
Non-Catholics : 311, 315316, 319, 323-324, 857872, 1103-1104, 1354,
1418.
Notes of the Church: (4) ff.
Novatians: 567.

839

Nuncios: (156). See: Legates.
Nuytz (J. P.): 214.

Oak, Council of the: 199.
Obedience to the Church:

(49), (125).
to the bishops: (203), (208).
to the Pope: (44), (181),

(190), (208).
—Vow of obedience: 1300,
1481. See: Religious Or­

ders.
Occident: 598, 1219.
Old Catholics: 374, 423,
430.
Opinion, freedom of: 1474.
public: 1145.
Opportunism: 1185.
Optatus, St., of Miletus: 2324.
Orders, religious: (129).
Orders, sacrament of: (113).
bishops’ powers of: (137),

(199);
Pope’s powers of: (174).
priests powers of: (205).
Orient: 480, 536, 1219.
Oriental, Congregation of the
Oriental Church: 831.
Oriental Churches: (57).
Origen: 776.
Osius: 68.
Paganism: 932, 1004, 1358,
1460.
Pagans: 843, 845, 1022, 1032,
1111, 1132.
Panchristian: 857, 867.
Parents, rights of: 1253.
Parish: (205).
Pastor: (205).
Pastor, Christ the supreme
Pastor of the Church: (26).
Pastoral action: 1447.
Pastors, unauthorized: 102.
Pastors, in the Church: (136).
Paternity of the Pope: (163).
Patriarchates: 308.
Patriarchs: (153), (188).
Patriotism: (132)-(133).
Paul III: 329.

840

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

Pauline Privilege: 984.
Peace, Catholicity a factor
in: (133).
contribution of the Church
to: (84).
Pope’s mission of: (162).
Pelagianism: 897-898, 922,
1344.
Penance, sacrament of: (116).
virtue of: (29).
Pentecost, the Church
founded at: (21).
Perfect Society, the Church:
(13).
Permanence, vital: 703.
Persecutions: (227)-(228).
Peter, St.: foundation of the
Church: (139).
vicar of Christ: (140).
visible Head of the Church:

(140).
sovereign pastor: (141).
powers of: (141).
Peter of Osma: 117.
’Petite Eglise”, schism of:
148, 523.
Philanthropic associations:
807.
Philosophy: (106), (167).
Photius: 257, 873.
Photinus: 543.
Pistoia: 103, 178, 212, 631.
Pius IV: 329.
Pius VI: 410, 631.
Pius VII: 202, 523.
Pius VIII: 190.
Pius X, St.: 946, 997, 1363,
1370, 1392 ff., 1433.
Pleroma: (34).
Political questions: (79), (81),

,
(93)
(165).

Polycarp, St.: 82, 198, 796.
Pontificate of the Pope: (174).
Power: of binding and loos­
ing: (141).
of the Church, origin of:

.
(138)
of the Pope as Vicar of
Christ: (176).
temporal power of the
Popes: 209, 225, 227, 269,

288-289, 475 ff.
ordinary, of the bishops:
(195) ff.
to make laws: (120).
confirmation of the civil
power: (176).
interference of the secular
power: (92).
Prayer: (117).
liturgical: (117).
apostolate of: (220).
Preaching: (100)
responsibilities of the
bishops: (198).
of the priest: (206).
Priesthood: (113).
of the faithful: (212)
Priests: (205) ff.
offerers of the sacrifice:

(114).

duties of: (207) ff.
representatives of Christ,
not delegates of the com­
munity: (207).
Primacy of Peter: (140).
of the Pope: (144) ff.
dogma of: (147).
nature of: (148) ff.
extent of: (151) ff.
consequences of: (155) ff.
exercise of: (159) ff.
foundation of unitv: (161).
Progress: (225)-(226), 230,
249, 290.
Property (of the Church),
administration of: (92).
competence of the bishops
with respect to: (201).
possession of: (13).
Protestantism: 263, 313, 880,
1354. See: Luther, Calvin.
Purgatory: 650, 970, 1102.
Quartodecimans: 567.
Quietism: 1088.

Races, diversity of: (131)-

.
(132)
Rationalism: 1010, 1127.
Reason: 903, 912, 949.
Reform: true and false:

(230).

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

Protestant: 1269, 1354.
Reformation (Protestant):
1269, 1354.
Reign of Christ, and of the
Church: (76).
Religion, primitive: 864.
Religious: (129), (205),

;
(209)
see Exemption.
Religious Orders: (129).
Reserve, right of: (157).
Resemblance of Christ and
His members: (30).
Restoration, social: (83)-(84).
Return of separated
brethren: (59) ff.
Revelation, the Church the
depositary of: (102).
Rimini: 610.
Rites, diversity of: (49).
oriental: 1120.
Roman Empire: See: Empire.
Rome, center of Catholicism:
(132).
center of unity: (161).
apostolic See: (142)-(143).
Rosary: 503, 536.
Rota:'953-954, 982 ff.
Ruthenians: 184, 186.

Sacramentals: 1094, 1223.
Sacraments, administration
of: (58), (206).
instruments of
sanctification: (115)-(116).
bonds of unity: (50).
Sacrifice, Eucharistic: (51),
apostolate of: (220).
Saints: (128).
Salvation of men, aim of the
Church: (77), (123), (166).
outside the Church, no
salvation: (61) ff.
Sanctification of men, aim of
the Church: (78).
of the priesthood: (115).
Sanctity of the Church: (5),
(126) ff.
Satan: 98, 124, 384, 421,
939, 966, 990, 1094, 1145,
1335, 1397. See: Demon

(s).

841

Schism: (55).
Schismatic Churches: (57).
Schools: 251, 840.
Sciences: (106).
Scripture, Holv, the teaching
of: (102).
interpretation of: (111).
the Pope, the interpreter
of: (167).
Seamless robe: 899.
Sects: See: Non-Catholics.
Separated Churches: (57) ff.
See: Return of separated
brethren.
attitude of Catholics
towards: (59).
Separation from the Church:
(54)
(55).
causes of: (56).
effects of: (58).
Shepherd, the Good Shep­
herd: 17.
Silverius, Pope: 793.
Simon: 583.
Sin, in the Church’s
members: (130).
effects of grave sin with
respect to unity: (53).
original sin: 1013, 1111.
Sion: 551.
Sixtus V: 946.
Slaverv: 441.
Slave:'809, 848. 1022, 1045,
1132, 1168.
Social Questions: (80)-(81 ),

(84), (103).
Society, benefits of the
Church to: (83)-(84),

.
(133)
the Church, a true
Society: (12).
Soter, St.: 812.
Sovereignty of the Church:
temporal sovereignty of
the Pope: (179).
See: Power, temporal.
Spouse, the Church, Spouse
of Christ: (63).
State (Church and): (93).
(94)

842

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

States (treaties between
Church and): (158).
—of perfection: (209).
Study of the Church,
usefulness of: (1 ).
Successors of the Apostles:

(137).
Suffering: 1107-1108, 1046,
1111, 1144, 1210.
Suffering, the Church
suffering: (7), (64).
Superiors, religious: (209).
Supernatural (the), the
Church’s proper domain:

(79).
Supernatural, the Church a
supernatural reality: (3).
Supra-nationalitv: (84),

(131), (133).'
Syllabus: 258 ff.
Sylvester Pope: 832.
Synagogue: 470, 789, 1029.
Synods: (207). See:

Councils.
Tallyrand: 98, 99.
Taught, the Church—: (136).
Teaching: 251, 424, 754, 806,
840, 915, 1445, 1473.
of faith: (100).
Secondary: 1263, 1295.
Teaching, the Church—:

(136).
Temple, the Church a holy
temple: (71).
Temporal domain: (83)-(84),

(93).
Temporal power of the
Popes: 209, 225, 227, 269,
288-289, 475 ff.
Testimony: (220).
Theodoret: 567.
Theologians: (98), 1311, 1387.
Theological virtues: 10711075.
Thomas Aquinas, St.: 1282,
1351, 1503. See table of
authors cited.
Thomas of Canterbury, St.:
98.
Tiara: 947.

Tolerance: 146, 874, 12011202, 1216, 1359, 1418;
(60).
Totalitarianism: 907, 943,
1151, 1160, 1251, 1272.
Tradition: (102).
Trent, Council of: 7, 118119, 329, 336, 376, 621,
1161, 1163. See table of
authors cited.
Triumphant, the Church
triumphant: (7), (64).

Ultramontanes: 332, 418.
Union, of Churches: 252.
of bishops and the Holy
See: (190).
Unitv of the Church: (5),
(37) ff.
a note of the Church: (52).
article of faith: (52).
nature of: (37) ff.
false conceptions of: (37).
of head: (44).
of the Apostolic college:

(187).
of the Episcopate: (155).
rupture of: (53) ff.
of the human race: (133).
Universal character, of the
papal magisterium: (166).

See: Magisterium.
of the Church’s mission:
(77). See: Mission.
of the Pope’s mission: (159).
Universities: 174, 231-232,
912, 1351.
Ursace: 31.
Utrecht: 84.

Valens: 31.
Vatican, basilica and palace
of: 666, 1248, 1329.
citv of: 880, 932, 1271,
1339.
Council of the: 311, 325,
373, 382, 398, 431, 436,
513, 611, 633, 744, 870,
1130. See table of authors
cited.

-a,.,

.

ALPHABETICAL INDEX

Vicar Apostolic: 296.
Vicar of Christ: (140)-(144).
Vicar of Christ, Pope’s power
as: (176).
Vigil (Fr. de P.G.): 212.
\igilance: 786.
Virginity: 1046, 1360.
Virgins: (128).
Virtues (theological): 10711075.
Visibility of the Church: (9).
Visit, apostolic: 664.
Vows of religion: 837. See:

Religious.

843

Vulgate (Bible): 144.
War; 816-817, 835, 949-950.
994, 1005-1007, 1098,
1109-1110, 1120, 11311132, 1139, 1271, 1330.
between classes: 1098.
Witness: (220).
Wycliffe: 40, 86.
Youth, of the Church: (227).
Zeno, Emperor: 133.
Zosimus, Pope: 898, 922.

ANALYTICAL INDEX
PLAN OF THE ANALYTICAL INDEX

Introduction: Usefulness and sources of the study of the Church·
-(2).
(l)
3
*u‘·
Part One

THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH
The Church is a mystery: (3).
The Church is manifested by her notes: (5).

Chapter I: The Mystical Body of Christ.
Origin of the term: (6)-(7).
§ I. The Church is a body: (8)-(I7).
§ IL She is the Body of Christ: (18X33).
§ III. She is a mystical body: (34)-(36).
Chapter II: The Unity of the Mystical Body.
Nature of the Church’s unity: (37)-(41).
Bonds of unity: (42)-(52).
Violation of unity: (53)-(60).
Corollary: Outside the Church there is no salvation: (61)-(62).
Chapter III. The Church, Spouse and Mother.
The Church is a Spouse: (63)-(66).
The Church is the Mother of the Faithful: (67)-(68)
Other names of the Church: (69)-(74).

Part Two

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
Origin of the Mission: (75).
Chapter I: Object of the Mission.
The essential mission: (76)-(80).
The cultural mission: (83)~(84).
Chapter II; The Recipients of the Mission.
The Hierarchy: (85)-(87),
divinely assisted: (88)-(90),
and independent of every human power: (91)-(94).

- 844 -

PLAN OF THE ANALYTICAL INDEX

Chapter HI: The Functions of the Hierarchy.
SI. The Teaching Office: (96)-(112).
'
The mission to teach: (96)-(98).
The functions of the teaching office: (99)-(101).
The object of the teaching office: (102)-(106).
The exercise of the teaching office: (107)-(112).
\ II. The Power to Sanctify: (113)-(118).
§ HI. The Power to Govern: (119)-(125).
Corollary: The Church is holy and catholic.
Holiness of the Church: (126)-(130).
Catholicity of the Church: (131)-(133).
The Missionary Apostolate: (134)-(135).

Part three

THE CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH
Hierarchical structure of the Church: (136)-(138).

Chapter I: The Vicar of Christ.
The foundation of the Church: (139).
§ I. The Apostolic See: (140)-(147).
§11. Nature of the Primacy: (148)~(158).
§ III. Exercise of the Primacy: (159)-(184).
Double Mission: (159)^(163).
Spiritual Functions: (164)-(176).
Conditions of Exercise: (177)-(184).
Chapter II: The Successors of the Apostles.
The Apostolic Mission: (185)-(186).
The College of Bishops: (187)-(194).
Ordinaries of Dioceses: (195)-(204).
Chapter III: The Clergy: (205)-(208).
Chapter IV: The Religious: (209).

Chapter V: The Laity: (210)-(222).
§ I. Place of the laity in the Church: (210)-(212).
§11. Responsibilities of the laity: (213)-(216).
§ III. Apostolate of the laity: (217)-(222).
Corollary: The Church is apostolic: (223).
Her essential immutability: (224).
True and false progress: (225)-(226).
Immortality: (227).
Indefectibility: (228)-(230).

Epilogue: Our duties to the Church.

845

ANALYTICAL INDEX
Numbers in italics and in parentheses indicate divisions of the
present Index or refer to these divisions.
Numbers in bold face refer to paragraphs of this volume.
Numbers which are underlined refer to particularly important
passages of the text.
Numbers followed by an asterisk, e.g., IV0, refer to a section
of the Appendix at the end of the book.
Titles in bold type, e.g., WOMAN IN THE MODERN WORLD,
indicate a subject treated in several pontifical documents either pub­
lished or to be published in another volume of this Papal Teachings
Series.

Introduction

SOURCES AND UTILITY OF THE STUDY
OF THE CHURCH

(1) — Far from being dangerous, the study of the mystery of
the Church is a very profitable one: 1011, 1519.
It brings to light the beauty of the Church: 1004, 1012,
animates our love for her: 537,
and prompts us to good works: 1002.
It is the means of binding the faithful more closely to
Christ: 1002,
to the Pope and the bishops: 614;
of rescuing lapsed Catholics: 537,
by refuting their errors: 634, 860, 1006;
of attracting non-Catholics: 343, 1006.
False notions of the Church: 860, 1010.
(2) — The nature and constitution of the Church are the result
of a free determination of Christ: 473, 546;
the Church is an object of faith: 1377,
and to know her we must have recourse to the teaching
of Christ Himself: 473, 546, 1002, 1115,
of Scripture and the Fathers: 527, 547, 860, 1014,
of the Church: 212, 266,
and particularly to the teaching of the Sovereign Pon­
tiff: 1269,
which no one is permitted to neglect: 1269, 1278.
- 846 -

Part One

THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH
The Church is a mystery
(3) - The Church is a mystery: 1114;
she is a reality of history: 1409, 1412,
at once human and divine: 468, 541, 543, 579, 640,
1062-1064, 1174, 1409, 1511,
temporal and eternal: 992, 1511;
human by reason of her members: 579,
supernatural and divine: 169, 543, 885, 1217, 1409, IIIe,
because of her origin: 579, 1137, 1331,
her end: 468, 541, 579,
her means: 468, 579.
The Church is manifested by her notes
(4) - The Church, by reason of her very nature, possesses characteristics which manifest her divine origin: ^34, 342, 529,
820, 861, 1149, 1352, 1364, 1561,
which distinguish her from every other society: 342, 725,
861, cf. (15),
'
and make of her a credible sign: 13, 342-343, 527, 893,
1178, 1512-1513, 1561.
65) - The Church, and the Church alone: 314, 322, 11°,
is one: 222, 230, 255, 342, 686, 832, 1014, 1093, 1581,
1590, X°, cf. (37) ff.,
holy: 134, 222, 230, 255, 342, 686, 832, 1014, 1093, 1581,
1590, Xe, cf. (126) ff.,
catholic: 134, 222, 230, 255, 342, 686, 832, 1014, 1093,
1581, 1590, X°, cf. (131) ff.,
apostolic: 134, 222, 230, 255, 342, 686, 832, 1014, 1093,
1581, 1590, X°, cf. (223) ff.,
Roman: 1014, 1093.
Each of these notes is so indissolubly bound to the others
that they cannot be separated: 255.

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Chapter I

THE MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST
(6) — The holiest name given to the Church is THE MYSTICAL
BODY OF CHRIST: 1014.
To show more effectively the unity of the Church: 661,
God presents it, in Scripture and the Fathers: 1015,
as a living body: 553, 1412, 1489,
as a living and active organism: 542, 579, 1327, 1412,
1424, 1462, 1489,
the Mystical Body of Christ: 314, 529, 542-543, 552,
579, 682, 872, 890, 1002, 1165, 1187, 1255, 1274, 1316,
1519, 1546, 1592.

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848

ANALYTICAL INDEX

(7) — The Church exists in a three-fold state:
militant'. 970, 1000, 1091, 1466,
suffering: 970, 1000, 1466,
glorious·. 970, 1000, 1091, 1466;
the blessed, the souls in Purgatory, and the faithful on
earth form a single kingdom of which Christ is the Head:
650, 1466.
and they can communicate spiritual goods to each other:
1466.
The Church is a body:

(8) — By the will of her Founder: (137),
the Church is a body: 1335, 1374,
composed of different members: 672, 1016, cf. (136) ff..
organically united to one another: 579, 672, 872, 10161017, 1069, 1186-1187, 1374, 1430,
and possessing a common end: 1069, 1457, cf. (76) ff.
(.9) — Because the Church is a body: 542, 1015,
she is visible: 542-544, 582, 716, 872, 1063, 1070, 1115,
1273, 1424, 1511, IVe, c. IIIe,
made up of visible men: 435, 468, 541, 658, 755. 986,
1152, 1272,
not only of charismatics: 1018,
and of those in the state of grace: 115, 1023,
but of good men and evil men: 11, 992, 1434, IVe,
(10) — united by visible bonds: 986, 1115:
government: 541, 652, 991, 1063, 1115,
profession of faith: 541, 1115,
sacraments: 541, 991, 1115,
cf. Bonds of unity (42) ff.
(11) — with the obligation to act upon human society: 1255,
inseparable from it: 1255,
and living in the midst of the world: 948, 1174-1175,
1339.
A juridical society
(12) — The Church is not a creation of the natural law: 1154,
nor of the free will of man: 632, 1405.
nor the result of collective consciousness: 514, 703,
But she exists by reason of the institution of Christ: 632,
1356, 1405, IIIe,
and hence by reason of positive divine late: 225, 239,
251, 255, 264, 514, 547, 632, 1034, 1265, 1273, 1356,
1377, 1409, 1544,
a true society: 578, 1069, 1225, 1430, 111°,
a juridical society: 239, 264, 468, 476, 926, 952, 1062,
1265, 1273, 1356, 1430,
the most excellent of all societies: 578, 1366.
A perfect society
(13) - The Church is a perfect society: 225, 228, 239, 264, 425,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

849

468, 470, 473, 491-492, 507, 530, 579, 652, 658, 770, 836,
861, 885, 888, 993, 1062, 1064, 1137, 1151, 1154, 1160,
1187, 1199, 1203, 1212, IIIe, Xe, c. Xe,
provided, by her institution: 530,
with a government: 425, 491, 580, 682, 986, 1225,
laws: 425, 491,
and every means to exist and to act: 468, 473, 514, 520,
530, 647, 885, 993, 1019,
so as to accomplish her mission: (75),
among others: the right to hold property: 412, 755.
An autonomous society
(14) - The Church is, by divine right: 410, 486,
distinct from all earthly powers: 410, 425, 448, 470, 472,
486, 515, 1154, 1160, 1211-1214, 1315, 1340, IIIe,
free and independent: 264, 486, 520, Xe, cf. (91) ff.
Cf. The distinctive marks of the Church: (3).
(15) - She is superior to them: 67, 507, IIIe,
and sovereign in everv sense: 176, 471, 486, 652, 711,
817, 926, 1415.
(16) — Her titles to sovereignty:
her nature: a spiritual and religious society: 466, 541,
652, 753, 1217, 1339-1340, cf. (3);
her dignity as spouse: 711, cf. (63) ff.;
her end: 516, 578, 753, 885, cf. (76) ff.;
the good she effects: 486, 542, 578, 1062, cf. (95) ff.;
the divine Spirit which animates her: 1062, cf. (32), (88).
(17) — The integrity of the Church, the result of the vivifying of
her juridical and visible functions by her supernatural gifts:
543, 1010, 1031, 1062-1064, 1135,' 1178, cf. (88) ff.,
the juridical Church is not to be distinguished from the
Church of charity: 952, 1064, 1433,
the juridical elements which compose it being ordained to
her supernatural end: 1062, 1135, 1497, cf. (123).

The Church is the Body of Christ
(18) — The Church bears Christ’s name; she is the Body of Christ:
1025, 1316, 1466, Ie,
because
Christ is her Founder: (19) ff.,
her Savior: (22) ff., 1058,
her Head: (24) ff.,
her support: (31) ff.,
as the Church is the extension, or the pleroma, of Christ:
(34) ff., cf. Appendix, § I.
Christ is the Founder of the Church
(19) - Christ founded the Church: 15, 73, 233, 342, 488, 492,
520, 545, 647, 1025, 1033, 1154, 1265, 1273, 1331, 1530,
1552, IIe.

850

ANALYTICAL INDEX

From all eternity He united the members of the Mystical
Body in knowledge and love of Him: 1076-1077.
(20) — He realized this foundation as a matter of historic fact:
1409,
effected by sensible signs: 541,
and confirmed by miracles: 892;
initiated by the preaching of the Gospel: 1126, 1333,
and the conferring of their powers on Peter: 977, 1246,
cf. (139) ff.,
and the Apostles: (185) ff.;
(21) — the foundation of the Church was accomplished on the
Cross: 384, 486, 618, 938, 1026, 1028, 1029, 1333,
where the Church, issuing from the Savior’s side: 1028,
was consecrated by the blood of the Word of God: 1063;
and at Pentecost: 618, 938, 977, 1025, 1333,
when she was promulgated and made manifest: 618, 977,
1025, 1333,
and enriched with the gifts of the Holy Spirit: 853, 1033,
1603, cf. (88).
Any church not founded by Christ cannot be the tnie
Church: 549.
Christ is the Savior of the Church
(22) — Christ is the Savior of all men: 1058,
whom He has reconciled to God: 1030, 1032,
and, by incorporating them into Himself: 1030,
restores the unity destroyed by the first sin: 1032, 1098.
(23) — In a special sense Christ is the Savior of the Church: 1058,
redeemed at the price of his blood: 135, 233, 1003, 10301031, 1566,
and in whose favor He has merited the sharing of his
life: 1000,
of his Spirit: 1031,
with the divine gifts of the Spirit: 377, 1003, 1030,
1031, 1044.
He is, therefore, the Head of the Church, in every sense
of the word: 1031, cf. (24).
Christ is the Head of the Church
(24) — Christ is, by reason of the Incarnation and the Redemption:
1030,
the Head: 1034, 1068, 1°,
or the Ruler, of the Church: 205, 486, 492, 529, 543,
552, 822, 1030, 1091, 1138, 1435, 1467,
according to his divine nature and his human nature:
1091.
(25) — Christ is Head of the Mystical Body by reason of his
pre-eminence as Son of God: 1036, 1091,
and by reason of his fullness of grace, from which his
members receive their supernatural being: 1047, 1054,
1079, 1138.

ANALYTICAL INDEX

851

(26) - He is also the Head because He alone is the Supreme
Pastor, though invisible, of the Church: 53, 359
359, 982,
1037, 1322, 1335, 1592,
which He rules from heaven: 896, 1335,
mysteriously and invisibly as He sees fit: 582, 1037,
1039-1040,
and by his Spirit: 1070, cf. (32)·,
visibly by his Vicar: 1040, 1335,
who forms one single head with Him: (144),
and by the other pastors: (185).
(27) — Christ is the Head of the Mystical Body by reason of his
influence: 507, 1034,
of light: 667, 1048-1049, 1057, 1455,
by his unique teaching authority: which He exercises
by Himself teaching the teaching Church: 896, 1049,
1057, 1095, cf. (88),
and by giving faith in Himself to believers: 1049;
(28) and of grace: 542 728, 1048, 1057, 1138, 1221, 1235,
1455, 1592,
being the Sanctifier of his members: 582, 1050,
1057, 1139,
in the measure determined by Himself: 507, 1050.
6297 — To unite them to Himself in a common action: 542, 942,
Christ expects the cooperation of his members: 1044,
1088,
particularly by their participation in his Passion: 878.
980, 1003, 1107, 1210,
through their own suffering: 878, 1044, 1094-1096,
1077-1108, 1428,
(30) —
to assist Him in his redemptive work: 1044,
and accomplish in them, by the similarity of virtue and
glory: 1045,
the resemblance of nature between Head and members:
1045-1046, 1064.
Christ is the Support of the Church
(31) — Christ is the Head of the Mystical Body
because He is its support: 1051-1054, 1057, 1095,
present in her and by means of her: 1095, 1220, 1489,
living and acting in her; by Himself: 993, 1052, 1057,
1174,
in a special way in the liturgy: 1083, 1221,
and in the Eucharist: 1054, 1221, cf. (51);
and by his ministers, in virtue of the mission of the
hierarchy: 1053, 1222, cf. (75).
(32) — Christ is the Head of the Mystical Body
because He animates it through his Spirit: 14, 535, 618620, 727, 1031, 1055, 1064, 1070, 1078-1079, 1489,
always present in the Church: 14, 865, 1056,
the principle of her life and holiness: 14, 223, 305, 488,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

852

938, 1055-1057, 1088, 1293, 1389, IIIe,
and of her conformity to Christ: 1055.
The Holy Spirit is “the soul of the Church”: 537, 620
1056,
or “the heart": 535.
Indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the souls of the just·
1080-1081.
(33) — Christ assists the Church through the mediation of the
Blessed Virgin·. 1039, 1112, 1517-1518, 1603,
who, like Peter, 969,
is a member with a special mission for the Mystical
Body: 969, 1390.
Mary is the Mother not alone of the Head, but also of all
the members of the Church: 503, 536, 661-662, 1112.
She is Queen: 769, 969,
and Mediatrix: 536, 969, 1111, 1603.
The Holy Angels: 1039,
and St. Joseph, protectors of the Church: 503.
The Church, “Mystical” Body of Christ
(34) — The “mystical personality” of Christ comprises, after the
analogy of His physical body: 552,
Christ and His members: 1068, 1079,
who are his pleroma: 1079,
and with Him form but one mystical person: 1068,
“the whole Christ": 1068, 1079,
whom the Fathers call “Christ": 1052-1053.
(35) — In calling the Church, “Christ", care must be taken not to
attribute hypostatic union to the Church: 1053,
nor should the Church be confounded with Christ in a
single physical person: 1059, 1087,
since union witn Christ does not destroy the individual
personality of the members of the Church: 1060.
(36) — This union is nonetheless much more intimate than the
merely moral union of a social organization: 1059, 1061,
1165.
It is called mystical: 1059, 1301,
to signify its mysterious and divine nature: 239, 1068.
1165, 1515.
which makes the members of Christ participate in the
divine nature: 1067, 1515, 1582.
Cf. The Unity of the Church: (37) ff.
Chapter II

THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH

Nature of this Unity
(3<) — the unity of the Church is the unity willed by Christ: 547,
747, 863, 1566,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

853

anil not the unity posited by schismatics: 197, 257,
or by pan-Christians: 253, 856, 1015,
consisting simply in an invisible bond linking communities
of differing faiths: 863, Ve, c. IV°.
Other false concepts of unity: 252, 257, 315, 1015, 1591.
(38) - It is the reflection of the unitv of God: 197, 747, 1068,
1349,
and of the union of Christ with his Father: 556;
the unity of the Church is founded on the personal unity
of the two natures in Christ: 509, 529, 552, 554, 924,
1178,
and on the analogy of a physical body: (41).
(.39) — It consists in the union of all the members: 579, 994, 1187,
in spite of their natural diversity: 550, 626, 1152, 1187,
1319, 1339, 1485, 1547,
in one single community or Bodv: 507, 556, 712, 872,
1022, 1187, 1224, 1306', 1591; '
(40) - unique: 14, 53, 159, 198, 212, 219, 222, 233, 266, 529, 549,
551, 556, 652, 672, 860, 864-865, 872, 906, 943, 1104,
1117, 1270, 1423, 1473, 1590,
of which Peter is the Head: 255, 416, 550, 932,1000,
1246, 1282;
(41) - one: 149, 255, 305, 363, 415-416, 529, 549, 832, 934, 1015,
1152, 1194, 1502, 1547, Ve,
and indivisible: 149, 548, 556, 934, 1015, 1165-1166,
1170, Ve,
because it is the Body of one Head: 554, 1015, 1166,
and is inseparable from it: 529, 615, 789, 1166.
The Bonds of Unity
(42) — The unity of the Church depends upon: the union of all the
members with the one Head, Christ: 507, 553, 579, 768,
927, 1032, 1068-1069, 1073, 1075, 1078, 1514,
------(43) —
and the interior bond of a single Spirit: 233, 822, 990,
994, 1032, 1061, 1069,
the uncreated Principle: 1061, 1069,
of this union of the members with the Head: 1056,
and of their union with one another: 990, 1056, 1085,
as also of created charity: 990, 1088, 1119.
(44) — The authority of a single visible Head: 73, 156, 176, 578,
745, 863, 896, 924, 940, 986, 994, 1117, 1377, 1556, XIe.
and communion with him: 100, 134, 167, 196-197, 360,
392, 423, 484, 528, 580, 605, 639, 924, 1572, cf. (161).
and with the hierarchy: 148, 167, 453, 484, 497, 776,
963, 1457,
and the furtherance of a single mission: 550,
particularly that of the magisterium: 626, 639, 790,
830,869,986,1072,
the principle of the unitv of faith: 196, 510, 568, 716,
790, 830, 869, 1072, 11Ï7, 1377.

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854

ANALYTICAL INDEX

/j5) — The coininunitv of the name spiritual goods·. 636, 838, 877,

942, 992, 1016, 1071, 1090, 1224-1225, 1306, 1485,
or the communion of saints: 363, 603, 650, 970, 992,
1090, 1306,
particularly community of the same faith: 134, 156, 196,
(46) 205, 233, 255, 356, 363, 490, 509, 529, 556-558, 568, 575,
578, 603, 649, 661, 745, 753, 821, 830, 863, 867, 869,
985, 994, 1022, 1064, 1070-1072, 1117, 1177, 1349,
1365, 1405, 1427, 1471, 1521, 1561;
of the same hope: 205, 649, 985, 1073,
(47) "
in the common pursuit of the same goods: 578, 1069,
1073, 1225, 1485,
cf. the end of the Church: (76);
of the same charity: 134, 205, 233, 255, 306, 356, 490,
(48) 529, 649, 747, 753, 791, 985, 1071, 1116-1117, 1177,
1471, 1485, 1489, 1561,
uniting all the members with their head: 518, 990, 1074,
1119, 1461,
and among themselves: 9, 306, 990, 1016, 1075, 1098,
1119, 1173, 1457, 1461, cf. (43);
obedience to the same laws: 578, 983, 1070, 1398, 1591,
(49) among others, to the liturgical laws: 233, 1230, 1591,
whose unity is not compromised by a variety of rites:
184, 331, 355, 490, 782-783, 1042; 1120, 1591,
and is manifested bv a unity of language and chant:
94, 811, 825, 1232,'1422;
participation in the same sacraments: 134, 233, 578,
(50) in the same baptism: 156, 768, 1022, Ie,
which distinguishes Christians from those who are not
members of the Church: 885, 1027, 1228, 1257;
in the one Eucharist: 994, 1082, 1238,
(51) the unique sacrifice of the Church: 1083, 1427,
and the sacrament of unity: 205, 649, 710, 978-979,
1070, 1237, 1346, 1427, '
of which it is at once the sign: 205, 648, 1070, 1084,
1346-1347, 1350,
and the cause: 648, 710, 997, 1019, 1238, 1310,
1346-1348, 1366, 1427,
imparting the same life to all the members of the
Church: 650-651, 7 1 0, 997, 1085, 1192, 1347-1348,
1365-1366, 1427.
The Eucharist, heart and soul of the Church: 651, 1347.
Unity. « note of the Church
(52) - The unity of the Church is an article of faith: 197,
and one of the notes of the Church: 135, 197, 465, 537,
768, 820, 1040, 1322, 1475, cf. (4),
a visible sign of her divine origin: 196, 255, 537, 1070,
and the principle of her strength: 134, 537, 549, 712,
(

ANALYTICAL INDEX

855

Il is ordered to spiritual interests and salvation: 1568, 1584,
to catholicity: 1567, cf. (131),
to indefectibility: 1591, cf. (228),
and is a source of peace to the world: 1584-1585, cf. (84).

The Rupture of Unity
(53) — In spite of discord and divergencies within the Church: 222,
559, 1470,
and which are harmful to her: 418-419, 759, 802, 1470,
Catholic should not be distinguished from Catholic: 761.
Grievous sin, while it deprives the sinner of his rights to
Eucharistic Communion: 937, 1023,
does not separate him from the Church: 1023, 1065,
of which he remains an infirm member: 1023-1024.
(54) — To belong to the Church it is not enough to have become
a member by baptism: (50),
it is necessary not to have been excluded from it: 401,
1032,
nor to have left it: 939, 1032.
A separated member cannot belong to the Head: 553,
872, cf. (41),
nor a body remain one after it has been cut into
parts: 553;
therefore, any division is outside the Church bv that fact:
149, 939, V°.
(55) — A member is excluded from the Church bv excommunica­
tion: 120, 394, 1203,
which is binding not only on earth: 120, 394,
but also in heaven: 120.
A member separates himself from the Church bv schism:
73, 393, 581, 1023, 1510,
by heresy: 581, 1023, 1203,
for which it is enough to persist in the obstinate rejec­
tion of a single revealed truth: 513, 567, 572-573,
by apostasy: 1023.
Causes of separation:
(56) — A virtuous motive can never be alleged as cause for
separating oneself from the Church: 524-525, 824, 864,
1538,
and to abandon the true faith is a sin: 768, 1418.
A member excludes himself from the Church by separating
himself from the Pope: 8, 125-126, 148, 167, 177, 222, 236,
256, 392, 396, 416, 423, 484-485, 603, 873, 1103,
and from the bishops in communion with the Pope: 102,
149, 396, 465, 525.
It is a dangerous error to think it possible to remain at­
tached to Christ without being united to his Vicar: 1041,
1534.
(57) — Religious societies separated from the Church and from its
Head are neither members nor parts of the Church, because

856

ANALYTICAL INDEX

they are visibly detached from unity: 263, 315, 416, 865
872, 1322.
This is the case of the schismatic churches of the Orient197, 796,
in contradiction to their ancestors who once were part
of the Church: 197, 318, 324, 785, 796,
and whose separation cannot be imputed to the arbitrary
conduct of the Sovereign Pontiffs: 214, 280.
This is also the case of the national churches: 172, 229,
416, 839, 940, 1253, 1322, 1377, 1384, 1544,
whose bishops have not received canonical appointment:
140, 1537,
and of countries which have passed decrees contrary to
unity: 64, 182.
The fruits of dissidence:
(58) — Separation from the Roman Church harms only the dissi­
dents: 316, 608, 796, 998,
it renders their action sterile: 310, 921, 940, 1123, 1126,
1322, 1386, 1563,
divides them among themselves: 315-316, 323, 15631564,
deprives them of the fruits of the sacraments, even where
these are valid: 526, 1000, 1386, 1533,
and of the legal right to administer them: 526.
It separates them from God, from Christ, and from the
Holy Spirit: 236, 555, 1022, 1056, 1564, 1583,
and jeopardizes their eternal salvation: 426, 555, 1556.
Attitude of Catholics toward separated brethren
(59) — Under penalty of cooperating with separatist tendencies:
102,
Catholics must avoid minimizing the differences which
separate them from heretics and schismatics: 184, sub­
mitting to their guidance: 807,
communicating with them in the sacraments: 102.
But they must include them in their fraternal charity: 244,
1098, 1'104, 1119,
pray for their return: 254, 1103, 1105,
which is awaited by the Pope: 319, 616-617, 768,
and by the Church: 1104.
They must work for this return: 244,
without, however, using constraint: 1105, 1202, 1418,
1439.
Return to unity
(60) — Return to the Roman Church is the only possible way to
return to unity: 787, 872, 874, 1104, 1130, 1257, 1270,
Since unity cannot exist except in obedience to the
Church: 660, 874,
and in the total acceptance of her teaching: 630, 746,
868, 874, 1105, 1118, 1145, 1244, 1268.

ANALYTICAL INDEX

857

The Church, therefore, does not expect any perfecting of
herself from this return: 1269-1270,
which does not require of those who come back to her
the sacrifice of any real value: 1270.
Hence, those movements which, under some pretext of
charity would sacrifice (at least in part) the teaching of
the Church, must be held suspect: 254, 857, 865, 967,
1188, 1438.
N. B. Raison dfêtre and limits of tolerance: 1202, 1359,
1418, VII0, c. VIe.
Outside the Church No Salvation
(61) — The Church being, by divine institution: 647, 653, 907908, cf. (12),
the sole depositary' of the means of salvation: 157, 196.
222, 261-262, 486, 576, 647, 653, 907-908, 1104, 1543.
c. Ve, cf. (75) ff.,
and the onlv means of access to Cod and to Christ: 158,
518, 570, 654, 923, 1363, 1423, VIe,
there can be no salvation outside the Church: 158-159.
164, 186, 193, 222, 242-243, 254, 354, 555, 668, 1257.
1282, 1351, c. XIII0.
This is an article of faith: 160, 1256, 1282, VIII°.
to which is opposed indifferentism: 212, 257, 260, 854855, 1260.
(62) — This dogma, founded, not on absolute necessity, but on the
positive will of God: 1258,
implies that no man can be saved who, knowing the
divine origin of the Church, refuses to enter it: 1257.
1262, VII °.
It does not exclude from salvation those who, by' reason of
invincible ignorance are outside the Church: 242, 1259,
VII0,
but are ordered to it at least bv implicit desire: 1004.
1258-1260,
including supernatural faith and charity: 1261.
However, such persons remain deprived:
of the assurance of salvation: 318, 1104, 1260,
and of the ordinary' means to attain it: 576, 1104, 1260.
Chapter III

THE CHURCH, SPOUSE AND MOTHER

Spouse of Christ
(63) — St. Paul, while he teaches that the Church is united to
Christ as the body is to the head, distinguishes them as the
bridegroom and the bride: 1068, 1087.
The Church is the Spouse of Christ: 452, 711, 789, 890,
948, 971, 992, 1033, 1098, 1206, 1360-1361, 1484. 15041505, 1551, 11°,

858

ANALYTICAL INDEX

the new Eve: 1028,
redeemed with his blood: 537, 1206, 1484.
(64) — Indissolubly bound to Christ: 667, 953, 1161, 1484,
the Church remains his Spouse in each of her three
states: 953,
militant: 974,
suffering: 953, 1484,
glorious and triumphant: 974, 1484.
(65) — The Union of Christ and the Church is signified by the
sacrament of matrimony: 151, 447, 902, 953, 973, 1484,
and even more in widowhood: 1484;
it is realized also in the soul of each of the faithful:
974, 1090.
(66) — The love of Christ for his Spouse: 1039, 1097, 1161,
is addressed to the entire human race: 1098.
It leads Him to reproduce his image in the Church: 1210,
to hear her prayer: 1090, 1223,
and to share with her the work of the sanctification of
souls: 1044.
Mother of All the Living
(67) — Like Eve, the Church is also a Mother: 723, 770, 890, 971,
992, 1019, 1028, 1192, 1516.
She is the Mother, not alone of Christians: 17, 723, 948, 992,
1472, 1475, 1522,
but also of all men: 641, 934, 1306,
and she is animated with a maternal love for them: 530,
631, 685, 963, 965, 992, 1019, 1066, 1143-1144, 1522.
No man can be a child of God without acknowledging the
Church as his Mother: 615-617.
(68) — The maternity of the Church, the fruit of her spiritual
power: (96) ff.,
draws its fecundity from the blood of Christ: 973, (23),
and from the Holy Spirit: (32). ,
It is exercised by the magisterium: 887, 973, cf. (9Q),
the administration of the sacraments: 887, 973, 992,
1192, cf. (113),
the power to govern: cf. (119),
and communicates to her children the life of faith and
holiness: 973, 992, 1206.
Other Names of the Church
(69) — The Church is also compared to a family: 820, 952, 1338,
in which are united the Father and his children;
503, 952.
the brothers of Christ: 503, 1338.
(70) to a sheepfold: 233, 537, 579, 861, 1335, 1558,
enfolding a single flock: 53, 861, 937,
under the direction of a single Shepherd: 537, 579,
1335, (159). ff.
1

ANALYTICAL INDEX

859

/7]) _

to an edifice: 861, 1335, 1176,
in which dwells the living God: 233, 356, 1008,
built on an unshakable Rock: 1335, cf. (139),
of living stones: 1008,
and forming the Holy Temple: 223, 1008,
where the Divine Majesty is worshipped in spirit and
in truth: 1221, cf. (113), ff.;
(72) to a City: 451, 965, 1142, 1561,
the true spiritual Sion: 134, 551;
(73) to a Kingdom: 233, 424, 579, 861, 986, 1064, 1335,
of Christ: 424, 1064,
whose keys have been trusted to Peter: 1335;
to a Standard: 1178, 1436,
raised among the nations to call the unbelievers and
to strengthen the faithful: 1178.
(74) — Some definitions of the Church: 397, 753, 1190-1191.
PART TWO

THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
Chapter I

OBJECT OF THE MISSION
(75) — God, who has no need of men: 539, 1258,
has nonetheless willed their cooperation in his work of
salvation: 539, 582, 638, 1013.
The Mission of the Church has its origin in the Holy Trin­
ity: 1551.
It comes from the Father: 1551,
was transmitted by the Son: 356, 1551,
in a positive institution: 1130, 1258, 1321,
and as a continuation of his own mission: 356, 445, 466,
550, 647, 652, 665, 959, 1013, 1064, 1140, 1148, 1206,
1552-1553,
it is exercised in the Holy Spirit: 1031, 1553, III0.

Essential Mission of the Church
(76) — Like the mission of Christ: 550, 1135,
the mission of the Church has as its end to procure the
glory of God: 505, 851, 860, 1000-1001, 1060, 1069,
and the reign of Christ: 646, 679-680, 841, 960, 1069,
1474;
(77) —
for the salvation and the eternal happiness: 225, 311,
451-452, 466, 473, 505, 507, 517, 530, 540, 550, 564,
576, 578, 641, 654, 851, 860-861, 872, 885, 910, 914,
990, 1021, 1066, 1135, 1211, 1321, 1339, 1346, 1410,
1429, 1460, 1466, 1525, 1596, 1599,

860

ANALYTICAL INDEX

of all men-. 228, 338, 550, 564, 578, 841, 861, 872, 889
891, 915, 1155-1156, 1325, 1356, 1420, 1427, 1551’
1593, 1603,------------without distinction of place: 228, 314, 322, 469, 550, 841
861, 1206, 1274, 1356, 1469, 1544, 1551, 1603,
or of time: 550, 861, 1155, 1325, 1356, 1420, 1469,
1551, IIe,
(78) —
to guide them, or to bring them back to God: 338, 679680, 794, 981, 1114, 1220, 1273, 1312, 1423, 1486,
1552,
and to sanctify them: 5 1 4, 540, 576, 578, 819, 1069,
1114, 1155, 1178, 1188, 1221, 1233, 1297, 1312, 1320.
1322, 1400, 1410-1411,
by incorporating them into itself: 1221, 1356.
Supernatural domain
(79) — The Mission of the Church has reference above all to the
spiritual and the supernatural: 468, 471-472, 486, 514, 541,
1130, 1266, 1273, 1319-1320, 1339-1340, 1342, 1394,
1423, 1551,
and subordinates to this sphere all her activities: 1136,
1265, 1423, cf. (17) and (89).
Her competence is exclusive in the religious and moral
domain: 153, 469, 1198-1199, 1204-1205, 1340, 1369,
1410, 1414, 1423, 1516,
which belongs to her in its entirety: 472, 909, 1340,
cf. (102).
(80) — The Church is not confined within her sanctuary: 1189,
1417, 1525,
nor is she indifferent to human affairs: 1318, 1357;
she embraces all of man’s activity: 1178, 1340, 1357,
1395, 1397, 1417, 1459, 1488,
in his private life: 317, 441, 1224,
his family life: 1224, 1267,
his public and social life: 3 1 7, 441, 816, 1224, 1340.
1397, cf. (103),
in all that concerns the attainment of his last end: 678,
909, 1160, 1266, 1340, 1488.
Natural domain
(81) — Her authority extends to the whole of the domain of the
natural law. '676, 817, 1393-1395, 1449, 1486, 1516,
cf. (103),
not excluding social and political questions: 239, 909,
1318-1319, 1396, 1449,
in the measure in which these are connected with the
supernatural: 578, 1394, 1396, 1449, 1486, 1516.
(82) — She considers the sphere of good works to be her proper
domain: 441, 504, 518, 812, 981, 1099, 1274, 1306, 1320,
1331, 1485,
bound to her special mission: 1424.

ANALYTICAL INDEX

861

Civilizing Mission of the Church
(S3) — Representative of God upon earth, the Church cannot re­
main indifferent to human problems: 1318-1319, 1357,
and, secondarily, she has a mission of social restoration:
251, 441, 443, 445, 641, 726, 772, 1375, 1411, 1436,
1472,
a mission to civilize: 678, 680, 1274, 1419,
which she cannot perform alone: 1436, 1595,
since she does not have a direct mandate of a cultural
nature: 676, 1423, 1596,
although she alone has the secret of true culture: 440441, 443, 641, 906, 960, 1366.
(84) — Bv reason of the social doctrine which she proposes: 1412,
1436,
which places man at the center of the social order: 441,
1185;
and by the exercise of her sanctifying mission: 441, 494,
667, 819, 1181, 1196, 1266-1267, 1322, 1342, 1419, 14241425, 1598,
-------------which recalls men to their duties: 416, 641, 1436,
and moulds morality in conformity with the Gospel: 772,
819, 949, 1181, 1183, 1322, 1410, 1419, 1424,
she establishes the solid bases of society: 441, 678, 771,
1182-1183, 1322, 1406, 1424, 1513, 1541, 1584, cf. So­
cial Problems.
By the bonds of grace which she establishes among men:
1167, 1338, 1406, 1584,
and by her supra-national character: 1174-1175, 14051406, '
she makes a powerful contribution to peace among na­
tions: 961, 994, 1000-1001, 1167, 1274, 1406, 1598.
Chapter II

GUARDIANS OF THE MISSION

The Apostolic Hierarchy
(85) — The Mission of the Church is exercised bv authority: 85,
1155-1156.
Christ did not confide this mission to the community of the
faithful: 1155.
but to a college of Apostles chosen by himself: 127, 484,
540, 561, 577, 776, 785, 820, 1038, '1155-1156, 1367,
1455, 1490,
and to them alone: 460, 577, 821, 1156; Xe, cf. (185) ff.
(86) — Since the Church’s mission was not to end with the death
of the Apostles but was to endure to the end of time: 311,
356, 564, 861, 1469, IIe, cf. (77) and (227),
the mission of the Apostles passes to the Hierarchy: 694,
975, 1038, 1155, 1401, 1441, 1469, 1490,

862

ANALYTICAL INDEX

which alone is the depositary of the pledge of assistance:
682, cf. (88) ff.,
of the divine powers: 1455, 1493,
and is independent of every earthly power: (91).
(87) — It is from the Mission of which the Hierarchy is the sole
depositary: (85)-(86), (136) ff.,
that the entire apostolate exercised by the Church de­
rives: 1314, 1371, 1441, 1473.

Is Divinely Assisted
(88) — The assistance and the divine gifts promised to the Church:
169, 388, 865, 873, 977, 1010, 1079, 1143, 1244, 1327,
1345, 1552,
especially the assistance of Christ: 336, 492, 535, 853,
1049, 1058, 1115, 1161-1162, 1210, 1324, 1405, 1426,
1435, 1511,
and of the Holy Spirit: 122, 173, 334, 619, 723, 727, 875,
891, 990, 1031, 1039, 1064, 1233, 1351, 1389, 1442,
1444, 1447, 1552,
are not granted in uniform measure: 1050, 1239,
but are bestowed on each according to his function: 990,
1049-1050, 1055-1056, 1079, 1442,
and pass from the higher ranks to the lower: 1056.
(89) — This assistance and these gifts are joined to the mission of
the hierarchy: 369, 561, 620, 637-638, 814, 940, 1031,
1039, 1130, 1138, 1217, 1441-1442, 1551,
to assure its efficacy: 122, 637-638, 983, 1031, 1218,
1552,
and preserve it from error: 3 1 6, 369, 568, 571, 727, 865,
1031, 1291, 1293, 1318, 1327, 1389, 1442, 1477.
Therefore, there can never be lack of agreement between
the juridical mission of the hierarchy and the action of the
Holy Spirit: 1031, 1064.
(90) — The divine assistance given to the Church is not only a
consequence of her nature: 891,
but a fact proved by history: 640, 1405, 1426, 1446,
and the best witness to her divinity: 542, 563, 620, 893,
1043.
Independent of Every Earthly Power
(91) — The Church possesses by divine and human law: 274, 377,
416, 492, 712, 888, 915,
the liberty to exercise her mission: 22, 225, 228, 239,
264, 416, 469, 486-487, 492, 530, 712, 753, 767, 915, 959,
1122, 1321, 1324, 1439, 1544, 1550,
which cannot become dependent on any human power:
67-69, 153, 155, 176, 239, 265, 425, 473, 486, 502, 520,
803-804, 836, 888, 1137, 1157-1158, 1212, 1373, 14141415, 1418, c. XVIIe.
-----(92) — The secular power has no right to interfere in ecclesiastical

ANALYTICAL INDEX

863

affairs: 65, 70, 85, 99, 133, 153, 202, 239, 281-282, 377,
409-410, 425, 469, 473, 840, 1158, 1524, c. XXIe,
and the rights of the Hierarchy: 85, 239, 264, 282, 836,
1378, 1524;
in particular, to impede freedom of commuunication with
the Pope: 239, 283, 959, 1540,
to erect, or to suppress, episcopal sees or parishes: 79,
91, 93, 99, 1253,
to nominate or to depose bishops: 66, 84, 99, 139, 213214, 284-285, 411. 426, 670, 1253, 1531, 1537,
-----to administer the property of the Church: 92, 214, 785.
Laws enacted by the secular power which are contrary to
the Constitution of the Church are by that very fact null
and void: 99, 202, 426.
The meaning of concessions sometimes accorded relative to
the choice of bishops: (203).
(93) — On her side, the Church, without competence in purely
temporal matters: 910, 1315-1317, 1320,
does not intervene in the domain of the State: 487, 516,
578, 848, 1250, 1274, 1315-1317, 1415,
unless it be in a ‘mixed matter’: 448, 910, 992,
and in virtue of her indirect power: 251, 1415, 1417,
nor does she engage in political strife: 950, 1316-1318,
1341,
which does not directly touch upon her life: 1140, 1340.
(94) — She does her best to maintain good relations with the
State: 448, 472, 487, 852, 1212-1213, 1250, 1339, 14141417, 1510,
whose best support she is: 411, 440-441, 448, 487, 678,
815, 1173, 1190, 1339, 1413, 1543,
and who afford her exterior assistance: 448, 519, 1106,
1339.
Condemnation of the separation of Church and State: 286,
cf. CHURCH AND STATE.
Chapter III

HIERARCHICAL FUNCTIONS

(95) — The juridical mission of the Church is exercised by the tri­
ple power which she received from Christ: 424, 473, 654,
1031, 1038, 1046, 1138, 1156, 1377, 1526, 1598,
and exercises in common with Him: 1138, 1220,
the power to teach: 175, 513, 517, 1031; cf. (96) ff.,
(165) ff., (197) ff.,
the power to sanctify: 517, 731, 1031; cf. (113) ff.,
(174), (199),
the power to govern: 175, 513, 517, 731, 1031; cf.
(119) ff., (175) ff., (200) ff.
These three powers constitute the fundamental law of the
Church: 1038.

864

ANALYTICAL INDEX

THE MAGISTERIUM
The Teaching Mission

(96) — To perpetuate her teaching mission: 251, 317, 484, 716,
819, 888, 1440, 1442-1443, 1515,
to maintain unity of faith: 127, 342, 560, 634, 934, 1389,
and the integrity of the revealed deposit: 10, 622, 625,
652, 1352, 1440,
insufficiently ensured by Scripture: 560, 622, 1275,
and the interpretation of men: 429, 557, 622, 866,
Christ, as Holy Scripture shows us: 527,
instituted in his Church a teaching authority'. 338-339,
429, 444, 561, 571-572, 817, 912, 914, 916, 1118, 1148,
1357, 1389, 1441, 1444, 1459, 14<Ηξ
invested with his own authority: 571, 1442-1443,
living'. 191, 315, 561, 564, 571, 623, 716, 1118, 1275,
1503,
perpetual: 444, 561, 571,
infallible: 165, 191, 249, 321, 424, 493, 572, 622, 716,
736, 866, 886, 888, 912, 928, 1118, 1291, 1352, 1362,
1503, IX°.
(97) _ The Magisterium is not the result of the collective con­
sciousness: 705,
nor the product of the collaboration of the teaching
Church and the Church taught: 690,
but the issue of a Mission confided by Christ to those
who alone possess the hierarchical powers: 245, 345, 484,
502, 561, 760, 836, 930, 1256, 1327, 1367, 1380, 1450,
1473, 1490, 1492,
The Pope, for the universal Church: 1473, cf. (165) ff.,
the bismops for their dioceses: 1473, cf. (200) ff.
(98) — Therefore, priests and laymen are not endowed by divine
right with the mission to teach: 1450, 1490,
and theologians themselves, in the exercise of this func­
tion, do so only in virtue of a delegated power, always
revocable, which they' have received from the hierarchy:
1367, 1371, 1387, 1450, 1473, 1490,
and must exercise this function in union with the hier­
archy: 1278, 1329, 1369,
and in dependence upon it: 246, 794, 1367, 1387, 1450,
1573.
The role of the theologians: 344, 375, 1080-1081, 1281,
1450, 1452, 1573.
Without binding herself to any philosophical or theological
svstem, the Church demands fidelity to the scholastic syn­
thesis: 1278, 1351, 1450.
Functions of the Magisterium
(99) — The power of the magisterium implies the mission to pre­
serve intact: 15, 188, 247, 251, 314, 322, 339, 345, 347,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

865

369, 374, 444, 487, 505, 567, 576, 628, 714, 737, 871, 961,
965-966, 990, 1275, 1278, 1291, 1302, 1327, 1352, 1358,
1380-1381, 1455, 1486, 1504,
and to defend the deposit of faith: 15, 386-387, 389, 444,
505, 714, 929, 965, 1000-1001, 1198, 1206, 1278, 1284,
1434, 1472;
(100) to transmit it and to spread it: 318, 487, 576, 746, 966,
1322, 1352, 1426,
to explain it and to teach it: 13, 175, 251, 339, 347, 444,
498, 517, 540, 737, 754, 770, 861, 866, 871, 886, 1146,
1150, 1206, 1251, 1320, 1357, 1389, 1490,
especially by preaching: 819, 861, 1155, 1440-1442;
(101) - to interpret it: 191, 374, 487, 628, 1275, 1362, 1387,
1486, 1504,
to explicate it: 347, 352, 718, 763, 869, 1278, 1281,
1370,
-----to define it: 175, 191, 321, 510, 1389, cf. (107).
N.B.—Conditions of the development of dogma: 321, 347,
352, 700, 702, 763, 869, 1080, 1370, 1379-1380.
Object of the Magisterium
(102) — The Mission of the Magisterium has as its object the totality
of revealed truth: 2, 191-192, 223, 247, 314, 322, 342, 353,
369, 374, 493, 540, 626, 629, 665, 711, 912, 916, 928,
1197, 1203, 1275, 1278, 1291, 1352, 1362, 1387, 1423,
1434, 1511, 1552,
of which the Church alone is the depositary: 188, 347,
647, 727, 814, 1203, 1242, 1325, 1351, 1407,' 1426, 1486.
It includes the preservation and interpretation of Scripture:
144, 175, 206, 339-340. 527, 622, 687-688, 693, 701, 741,
892, 1113, 1278, 1284, 1511,
and of Tradition: 192, 195, 248, 339-340, 374-375, 719,
763, 1278, 1389,
which contain Revelation: 369, 574, 622. 626, 746, 1118,
1276-1277, 1289-1290, 1351, 1388.
(103) — The Church’s duty to guard and infalliblv teach moral: 104,
191, 239, 522, 702, 755, 846, 888, 90Ϊ, 903, 990, 1197,
1325-1328, 1525,
extends to the safeguarding and interpretation of the
natural law: 814, 941, 1325-1327, 1449, 1486, 1525,
including social teaching: 1197, 1449.
(104) — The authority of the Magisterium extends to the facts of
dogma: 640,
to the domain of liturgy which is closely connected with
dogma: 1229, 1389,
and to the devotions of the Christian people: 1389.
(105) — Therefore, the Church has an educational mission: 711, 846,
886-887, 914, 917, 1263-1264,
which belongs to her essence: 846, 890,
anti includes, not only religious instruction: 275,

366

ANALYTICAL INDEX

which belongs to her by right of her nature: 275,
but the complete formation of man: 1190.
/106) — The sciences themselves: 239, 345-346, 348, 888, 912, 1447,
in particular philosophy: 239, 258, 287, 659, 1293,
as well as the arts: 346, 1453, 1596,
come under the authority of the Church, who, while she
respects their autonomy in their own spheres: 346, 689,
1311, 1435,
and far from putting any obstacle to their progress: 247,
259, 352, 494, 659, 700', 702, 1278, 1311,
encourages them: 346, 441, 912, 1451, 1596,
and illumines them with a new light: 346, 348, 494, 634,
659, 912, 1447, 1451, 1597.
Exercise of the Magisterium
(107) — The Magisterium of the Church is exercised by sensible
signs: 541, 811.
It uses either the extraordinary means of dogmatic defini­
tion: 212, 871,
which adds nothing new to the deposit: 871, 1289-1290,
but explicates it: 871, 1281,
and creates a new obligation to believe: 375, 871;
N.B.—Elaboration of a definition: 1289-1290:
(108) —
or the ordinary means of daily teaching: 249, 1281,
1291-1292,
by the Pope: (168),
and the Bishops in communion with him: 871, (198).
This ordinary magisterium is also of divine authority: 1281,
and infallible: 51, 205.
(109) - The Magisterium of the Church is the proximate rule of
faith for the faithful: 341, 345, 395, 409, 509, 511-512,
623, 716, 1118, 1278-1279, 1289, 1387, 1503,
who have the obligation of believing all that is proposed
to them as revealed: 341, 409, 437, 512, 560-562, 566,
571-574, 629, 736, 1474,
not alone by the solemn teaching authority: 249, 341,
375, 438, 574, 629, 1256, 1504,
but also bv the ordinary teaching authority: 341, 513,
574, 629, 692, 739, 905, 1256, 1280, 1292, 1504.
The harmony of their faith with this magisterium is a
criterion of revelation: 1292.
No distinction is to be made between:
essential and non-essential dogmas: 870,
ancient and modern: 744, 1118,
the dogmatic aspect and the historic: 883.
(110) — Docility before the teaching authority of the Church: 249,
761, 788, 903, 1203, 1279-1280, 1504,
must include interior assent: 345, 691;
it is not limited to truths properly revealed: 267, '513,
904, 1504,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

867

but it extends also to other truths which fall under the
competence of the Magisterium: 513, 904, 1279-1280,
1283, 1394, 1504. cf. (103)-(106).
It does not prohibit among Catholics free discussion on
questions not yet pronounced on bv the Holy See: 335,
761, 1280, 1474,
provided opponents are not condemned: 332, 761.
IU) _ If, in certain matters in which the faith is not concerned,
there is room for liberty of opinion: 12, 231-232, 1311,
1272, 1280,
the Church does not need to engage herself therein:
13, 1251.
This opinion must always be expressed respectfully: 1272,
not be opposed to the teaching of the Church: 345, 370,
485,
nor forestall her decisions: 231-232. 337, 347, 501, 708,
809.
It is not fitting to deny the information of the Magisterium:
865, 905,
or the grounds of her decisions: 334, 370, 437.
It is forbidden to interpret Scripture or dogma in a sense
different from that given them by the Church: 337. 340,
347-349, 375, 628, 717, 738, 1256, 1281,
and the common understanding of the faithful: 13, 340.
(112) — To reject the Magisterium is to separate oneself from the
teaching of Christ: 923, 956, 1032,
the salt of the earth and the light of the world: 1000,
1492, 1513,
which, far from restricting thought and action: 633,
opens the way to sacerdotal activity: 1224,
gives us access to the Lord: 1224,
and renews the face of the earth: 1445.

Function of Worship and Sanctification
(113) — Christ has given his Church participation in his own priesthood: 424, 1219, 1227-1228, 1240, 1552.
The sacerdotal power has not been transmitted by human
generation or by the delegation of the people: 577, 1226,
but reserved to men chosen: 577, 1055, 1156, 1226-1227,
1479, 1493,
on whom it is conferred by the sacrament of Orders:
1055, 1156, 1226-1228, 1240, 1493.
It is indelible: 1227,
and its efficacy is independent of the human value of the
one who possesses it: 899, 1226.
(114) _ The priesthood is ordained to the worship of God: 424, 487,
1226-1227, 1479,
- - abovë~âll to the offering of the eucharistie sacrifice: 424,
651, 927, 1020, 1219, 1391, 1424,
where, by the hands of the priest: 1020, 1083, 1226,

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868

(115) —

(116) —

(117) —

(118) —

ANALYTICAL INDEX
who alone have the power to consecrate: 1083, 1391,
the entire mystical body is offered up: 1083, 1237.
In the same wav it is ordained to the sanctification of men:
424, 576, 731-732, 810, 812, 1031, 1195, 1227-1228, 1235,
1402, 1479, 1496,
by the administration of the sacraments: 424, 576, 754,
861, 899, 1020, 1094, 1195, 1219, 1235,
which are the instruments of grace: 318, 646, 899,
1019, 1050, 1148, 1206, 1235, 1316,
of which the Church is the sole depositary: 318, 665,
1242, 1407, 1423, 1455, 1552.
The Sacraments support the members of the Mystical Body
from birth to death: 517, 1030, 1019.
Baptism incorporates them into the Church: 314, 1019,
1027 1030 1257
and makes them children of God: 971, 990, 1109.
Confirmation gives them the strength to profess their faith
and to defend the Church: 205, 972, 1019.
The Eucharist communicates to them the Author of all
grace: 992, 1027, 1082.
Penance restores the fallen member: 1019, 1552.
Matrimony is ordered to the generation and the education
of children: 901 if., 1020,
and gives to the Church living stones: 975.
Furthermore, the Church continues the priesthood of Christ
by prayer'. 665, 1219, 1455,
above all by the prayer of the liturgy: 1094, 1219,
which is the work of the entire Mvstical Body: 925,
1219, 145.5> J457,
united to the Head: 1222, 1234,
through which are communicated to us the treasures of
faith: 1456,
and of grace: 1456.
Superior to private prayer: 1223, 1458,
liturgical prayer should not suppress private prayer: 1089,
1091, 1458.
The Church cannot be confined to the liturgy alone: 1251,
which does not exhaust her action: 1458.
The Church is the storehouse of indulgences: 116-117, 147,
whose distribution belongs to the Sovereign Pontiff: 6,
147.
Cf. LITURGY
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE CHURCH

(119) — The Church is a perfect society: (13);
she alone is responsible for the salvation of souls: 646,
(77),
and has received the office of governing them: 251, 498,
530, 754, 770, 816, 1327, 1441, 1459, 1490, 1552.
This function is exercised through her power of jurisdic­
tion: 1493, 1552, c. XIIe,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

869

reserved to the Pope and to the Bishops: 577, 655, 1156,
1159, 1230, 1234, 1490,
and is bound up with the reception of the sacrament of
Orders: 1493.
(120) — Government, the direction of men to their proper end by
appropriate means: 175, 440, 1037, 1400, 1490,
is exercised through a triple power:
of law-making: 67, 108, 175, 424, 469, 771, Xe,
of judgment: 108, 424, 469, 517, 770-771, 982, 1151,
1218,
even in matters of faith (the Holy Office): 1200-1201,
of coercion: 67, 108, 214, 269, 424, 469.
The government of the Church extends to all that concerns
divine or ecclesiastical laws: 133, 175, 540, 909.
(121) — Every act of the Christian falls under her authority: 508,
749,'888;
therefore, the Church, exclusive of civil authority: 61,
74, 163, 410, 516, 836,
alone is competent to govern souls: 153, 175, 516,
in ecclesiastical discipline: 74, 76, 77, 107, 410, 414,
576, 1398, Xe,
which is intimately connected with dogma: 76, 397,
and which determines the exterior manner of acting:
in worship: 175, 223, 879, 1229-1230,
in conduct: 163,
in the rights of the Church and her ministers: 163,
175.
To the Church alone belongs the right of administering her
own property: 412, cf. (201).
(122) — Incapable of innovating in discipline in all things which
are of divine law: 168-169, 631, 743, 783, 1240, 1431,
the Church can adapt herself to the needs of the hour
in certain matters which are of ecclesiastical institution:
77, 141-142, 165, 170, 631, 748, 1241, 1432-1433.
Legitimate authority alone is qualified to judge of the op­
portuneness of this adaptation: 141, 170, 631, 748, cf. (176).
(123) — The government of the Church is animated by the super­
natural principle which directs her: 136, 983, 1137, 1214,
1217, 1318,
and is ordered to her proper end: 947, 1203, 1214-1217,
1320,
and the good of souls: 133, 173, 176, 251, 732, 947,
1398,
and their salvation: 576, 1265, 1410, 1429, 1431, cf.
(77).
(124) — The ordination to this end gives to the government of the
Church its proper character: 514, 984, 1137, 1151, 1328,
1342,
conformable to the charity of Christ: 1218, 1328,
alien to all excessive moralism or juridicism: 1137,

870

ANALYTICAL INDEX

1214, 1328, 1431,
as also to all oppression and arbitrariness: 310, 1160,
1181, 1320.
This government is at the service of individuals: 1160, 1181,
1199, 1497,
and treats them according to the exigencies of their free
spiritual nature: 517, 943, 1328, 1400, 1435, 1489.
Its difficulties come from the diversity of peoples: 515,
cf. (39), (131),
and the subjugation of the faithful to civil authorities:
515.
o.5) — No man is permitted to withdraw himself from the authority
of the Church: 760, 847, 1353,
or to oppose it: 163, 175,
since all are totally subject to her law: 517, 943, 1160,
in the interior forum as well as in the exterior: 1136.
The Church cannot renounce the free exercise of her mis­
sion, and she has the duty to oppose any intrusion in her
domain: 520, 754, 756, 960, 1149, 1251.'

Fruits of the Mission
HOLINESS AND CATHOLICITY OF THE CHURCH

Holiness
(l^G) — Holiness, a distinctive note of the Church: 306, 435, 452,
521, 833, 837, 900, 1018, 1194, 1375, cf. (5),
has for its principle God: 521, 1375,
Christ: 435, 819, 1050, 1206,
the Holy Spirit: 723, 990,
at work within her: 1375.
(127) — The Church is holy in her doctrine and in her faith: 435,
1066,
pure in her sacraments: 900, 1066,
immaculate in the grace and gifts of the Holv Spirit: 504,
1018, 1066, 1167.
The holiness of the Church is manifested in the exercise
of charity: 504, 1331, cf. (82).
(128) — The Church is holv in the holiness of the lives of her saints:
435, 451, 835, 1066, 1436, 1485,
martyrs: 240-241, 385, 1066,
confessors: 1480, 1485,
virgins: 1066, 1360,
whom she proposes as examples to her faithful: 819, 1039.
Her holiness is demonstrated by their miracles: 196, 238.
(129) — The holiness of the Church is manifested by the practice
of the evangelical counsels: 755, 826, 1046, 1303, 1360-1361,
and their public profession in her religious orders: 96,
826, 837, 1046, 1207, 1296, 1301, 1505, cf. (209),
which derive their raison d’etre from their close con-

ANALYTICAL INDEX

871

nection with the end of the Church which is the
acquisition of sanctity: 1297, 1303, 1505.

cf. States of perfection.

(130) — Blemishes made on the sanctity of the Church by the sins
of her members·. 435, 640, 1024, 1065-1066, 1512, cf. (9),
which come from their tendency to evil: 1065,
and the persecutions which she constantly suffers; 383,
385, 1004,
are her trials: 1065-1066,
permitted by God: 724,
the better to show her divinitv and her constancy: 385,
640, 724, 1065, 1512.
Catholicity of the Church
(131) — The Church is a universal society: 757, 832, 883, 895, 950,
1165, 1187, 1294, 1356, 1385-1386, 1463, 1475,
destined to unite in one family: 578, 753, 820, 934, 983,
1470, cf. (37) ff.,
all the nations of the earth: 196, 228, 233, 540, 820,
1166, 1187, 1257, 1346, 1548,
without distinction, of nation: 409, 466, 784, 809, 811,
817, 848, 934, 951, 983, 990, 1031, 1042, 1131, 1134,
1165, 1168, 1173, 1174, 1178, 1294, 1320, 1322, 13851386, 1463, 1469-1470, 1475, 1510, 1590,
of race: 1031, 1338, 1462, 1470,
of culture: 1338, 1406, 1420-1421, 1591, 1596.
Catholicity is a distinctive note of the Church: 820, 895,
1132, 1165, 1323, 1384, 1470, 1475, cf. (4),
bound to the note of unity: cf. (4), (52).
(132) — Catholicity, founded on the mission received from Christ:
1171, 1341, 1356, cf. (77),
on his sacrifice: 1192-1193,
and on the independence of the Church with respect to
the civil power: 228,
is especially visible at Rome: 811, 1165, 1339, 1462-1463.
It does not destroy diversity: 490, 631, 785a, 1042, 1175,
and does not harm patriotism: 1180, 1322.
It may suffer some dimming in the mind of the faithful as
the result of external influences: 1132.
(133) — The catholicity of the Church, uniting all men in fraternal
love: 950, 961, H15, 1125. 1274, 1322, 1338, 1462-1463,
and giving them a consciousness of the unity of the
human race: 1167, 1171-1172, 1174, 1179, 1191, 1421,
1463, 1470-1471, ISH? TW-1520, 1567, 1597,
perfects the foundation of human societv: 1125, 1174,
1191,
favors universal peace: 320, 814, 949, 981, 1191, 1274,
1317, 1338, 1463, 1568, 1597, 1599, cf. (52),
and is the best antidote to exaggerated patriotism:
1507.

872

ANALYTICAL INDEX

The Church being supra-national in her essence: 817, 1165,
1174, 1194, 1507,
—
no unity of the human race can be realized without her
or in opposition to her: 1169, 1569-1570.
The Missions
(134) — The most striking manifestation of the catholicity of the
Church is to be found in the Missions: 850, 1133-1134,
1323,
born of the consciousness of the God-given mission of
the Church: 849, 1324, 1470, 1551,
to cover the whole world: 441, 679, 885, 1178, 1469,
cf. (77), (132).
The Missionary Apostolate, the duty of which is incumbent
upon Pope and Bishops in the first place: 1206, 1468-1469.
cf. (160), (194),
but whose spirit must animate every Christian: 14701471,
surpasses all other ministries: 489.
(135) — The end of the missions being to establish the Church in a
permanent manner: 845, 1275, 1305,
the missions must have in view the establishment of
native hierarchy and clergy: 784, 809, 845, 850, 1274,
1305,
at the time of which the Church remains the sole judge:
809, 1337.
Cf. THE MISSIONS.
Part Three

CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH
Hierarchical Structure of the Church
(136) — Since the Church is a body, the Mvstical Body of Christ:
(8) ff.,
all the members participate in the same goods and tend
to the same ends: 1225, 1457,
but do not possess the same functions: 579, 603, 682.
1225,
or the same powers: 1225.
The Church is composed of two classes: 175, 459, 1297.
clergy and laity: 1207, 1297, 1377, 1455, 1491,
shepherd and flock: 459, 498, 682, 1457,
the Church teaching and the Church taught: 459, 1457.
(137) — These distinctions are founded on the divine law: 54, 136,
146, 172, 187, 233, 440, 1062, 1135, 1207, 1298, 1314,
1377,
on the institution of the hierarchy by Christ: 198, 233,
236, 307, 467, 527, 568, 697, 706, 737, 770, 821, 1154.
1225, 1246, 1297, c. XIe,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

873

the image of the celestial hierarchy: 1225,
and composed, according to the power of orders, of bish­
ops, priests, and deacons: 1298, 1377, 1491, Xe, cf.
(113) ff.,
and according to the power of jurisdiction by the
successors of the Apostles: 1142, Xe, cf. (119) ff.,
equal according to the power of orders: 176, 307, 1490,
not equal in jurisdiction: 26, 176, 307, 403;
and forming, under the rule of a single head: 26, 156,
403, 467, 580, 861, 986, 994, 1240, 1246,
the unique government of the Church: 603, 743, 824,
1240.
(138) — Founded on the juridical institution of the hierarchy by
Christ: 82, 414, 1430,
and the Mission handed down to its ministers: 82, 11561158, 1356,
the powers of the Church are not derived from the com­
munity of the faithful (as if) they had been directly re­
mitted to them to establish a hierarchy: 105, 166, 708,
1154-1155, 1158-1159, 1356, 1378,
in which, as in a republic, inferior clerics would have had
a right to vote: 26, 166, 214, 335, 1157.
These powers are independent of the merit of their possessor:
936, 1065, 1342.
The Constitution of the Church is, therefore, essentially dif­
ferent from that of civil society: 1153-1155,
and is not susceptible of change according to the exigencies
of the consciousness of democracy: 155, 168, 182, 333,
405, 414-415, 455, 520, 632, 636,'704, 797.
Chapter I

THE VICAR OF CHRIST

The Foundation of the Church
(139) — Christ, the invisible foundation of the Church: 420, 590,
1008, 1478,
a Church destined to last to the end of time: 198, cf. (77),
(227),
built her on a visible foundation: 356, 497, 1040,
which is unique: 134-135, 583, 602,
and impregnable: 145, 198, 207, 217, 234, 236, 328,
384, 1206, 1335, 1408, 1478,
the rock of Peter: 14, 20, 125, 148, 171, 186, 193, 196,
198, 207, 217, 222, 234, 236, 311, 314, 322, 359-360, 417,
420-421, 497, 583-584, 589-590,. 666, 737, 818, 940, 954,
1206, 1335, 1408, 1426, 1478, cf. (142) ff.
and of his successors: 497, 737, 874, 991, 1121, 1549,
cf. (142) ff.
The authority of the Pope being the principal element in the
constitution of the Church: 416, 593,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

874

to suppress the visible Head is to render the Mystical
Body unrecognizable: 391, 417, 1041.

THE APOSTOLIC SEE
The Vocation of Peter

(140) — To allow him to fulfill his role of foundation: 584-585, 1040,
Christ made of Peter his Vicar upon earth: 20, 25, 189,
473, 584-585, 609, 1040, 1322, 1478,
the Prince of the Apostles: 3, 20, 25, 198, 358, 360, 737,
743, c. XIV0,
having the primacy over them: 307, 309, 356-358, 476,
823, 1040, 1124, 1128, 1246,
the visible head: 192, 358, 590-591, 1040,
and the supreme head of the Church: 20, 189, 583.
(141) — Christ made him his Vicar by giving to him directly: 357358,
and independently of the other Apostles: 357, 602, 605,
1469,
all power of binding and loosing: 24, 202, 487,
symbolized by the keys: 24, 605, 969, 1156, 1478, 585588
thcFcIuty to feed the entire flock: 129-131, 198, 218, 307,
403, 417, 588, 602, 605, 669, 790, 1122-1123, 1469, 1478,
and to confirm his brethren: 177, 198.
On the other hand, every' power which the Apostles received
they received only conjointly with Peter: 44, 145, 399-400,
602, 605, 610.
The Roman Pontiff
(142) — That the Church which was to last to the end of time: 235,
cf. (227),
might not be without foundation: 198, 483, 497, 593,
Peter, with all his power and his prerogatives: 24, 43,
177, 192, 198, 235, 311, 583, 593, 823, 967, 1246, 1407,
1490, XIe,
■
lives and rules in his successor: 53, 73, 103, 207, 221,
359-360. 403, 476, 583, 593, 823, 966-967, 1123, 1246,
1346, 1502, c, XVe,
the Bishop of Rome: 3, 25, 43, 106, 198, 218, 360, 362,
595, 598, 669, 968, 991, 1234, 1295, 1332, 1336, 1345,
1405, 1464, 1502, 1565, 1588,
where, according to the testimony of the Fathers and of
the Councils; 236, 595-597, 1309' 1330,
the Apostolic Succession remains uninterrupted down to
our own time: 192-193, 236, 306, 360, 529, 576, 595,
896, 1206, 1309, 1407, 1409, 1541.
(143) — By reason of the providential character of the choice of
Rome as the See of Peter: 480, 639, 699, 966, 1246,
the succession of the Prince of the Apostles cannot be
transferred to any other see: 214, 277,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

/144) _

(145) —

(146) —

(147) —

875

but it remains independent of the permanence of the
Home of history: 1248.
The Pope is, therefore, like Peter: (140) ff.,
Vicar of Christ: 3, 14, 25, 53, 207, 237, 362, 413, 582,
609, 660, 823, 932, 952, 955, 968, 1040, 1263, 1295,
1473, 1502, 1546, 1556,
his representative on earth: 1070, 1295, 1335, 1467,
1523, 1556,
invested with his titles and powers: 420-421, 473, 590,
609, 968, 1263,
and with Him making but one single head of the
Church: 1040, 1128-1129.
He is the visible head of this Church: 14, 20, 25, 53, 176,
207, 415, 491, 658, 750, 823, 932, 968, 994, 1070, 1246,
1335, 1592,
heir of the Primacy: 62, 73, 177, 185, 192, 236-237, 322,
360-362, 444, 476, 480, 576, 791, 966, 1040, 1124, 1270.
The powers of the Pope
do not come to him from his inferiors: 26, 30, 34, 39, 53,
357, 609,
they are of divine right: 25, 43, 137, 162, 207, 210-211,
239, 361, 377, 403, 483, 491, 494, 884, 1158, 1377,
coming to him from Christ Himself: 39, 53, 103, 106, 192,
378, 399, 476, 587, 968, 1124, 1129, 1156, 1247,
who has promised him his aid: 124, 311, 389, 905, 1049,
1129, 1252.
These powers belong to the Pope by the very fact that he is
the legitimate successor of Peter: 106, 377, 399, 1157, 1577,
and that he accepts his See: 43, 1157, 1247, 1491.
Therefore, the Pope is not the ‘ministerial head' of the
Church: 106, 357,
nor its ‘organ’ or ‘representative’: 884,
and his authority is independent of his personal sanctitv
and merit: 145, 207, 645, 1158, 1252.
The human qualities of the Pope: 1559, 1575,
may complement his divine authority, not replace it:
1557.
The pontifical Primacy is not an ‘invention’ of the Middle
Ages: 53, 276,
it is a fact recognized by history: 43, 527,
and a truth of faith: 20, 177, 365, 401, 598, 1377,
taught by the Popes and the Councils: 25, 28, 44, 309,
362, 403, 594, 598, 611, 743,
as a dogma supported by Scripture: 20, 417, 527, 698,
and the constant Tradition of the Church: 20, 27-44,
45-50, 200, 309, 357, 598-599, 606-607, 792-795, 893,
1129, 1307-1308.

876

ANALYTICAL INDEX

NATURE OF THE PRIMACY
True jurisdiction . . .
(148) — In order to fulfill his mission as foundation of the Church:
584-585,
of her unity and solidity: 26, 584, 605,
the Pope has not received merely a simple pre-eminence:
26, 864,
or primacy of honor: 25, 177, 309, 358, 584, 605,
and of simple direction and deputyship: 26, 41, 367,
584, 605,
or merely the principal share in the supreme power: 367,
(149) — but is plenitude: 189, 234, 367, 600,
the plenitude of a true jurisdiction: 210, 309, 311, 358,
367, 476, 483, 584, 605, c. XVI0,
with its own authority: 584,
sovereign to it: 20, 25, 185, 207, 210, 311, 330, 367,
378, 381, 421, 440, 474, 580, 587, 594, 600, 605, 612,
1070, 1335, 1339, 1343, XI°.
(150) — This plenitude of jurisdiction is included in the unique
powers conferred by Christ on Peter and on his suc­
cessors: 177, 585-586, 1555,
the power to feed the entire flock: 101, 103, 177, 1404,
1469, 1557,
the power of the kevs: 77, 1156, 1335-1337, cf. (141)(142\
Over the Whole Church
(151) — In virtue of these powers:
the Pope is the universal bishop: 72, 363, 592, 669,
with immediate power: 292, 363, 532, 1300, 1536, XI,
and ordinary' power: 39, 292, 295, 363, 592, 1050, XI0.
not only over Rome: 669, 1576, 1587,
but over the whole Church: 3, 39, 43, 177, 198, 210,
292, 362-363, 367, 378, 403, 474, 532, 587-588, 592,
605, 609, 612, 669, 913, 1162, 1300, 1332, 1394, 15351536, 1565, 1576, 1588, c. XVIe.
These two episcopal functions of the Pope are not to be op­
posed to one another, but to be harmonized: 1576, 15871588.
(152) — The power of the Pope extends to all the churches: 10, 18,
26, 203, 215, 236, 279, 292, 295, 299, 330, 362, 367, 403,
415, 423, 433-434, 609, 699, 999, 1300, 1404, 1468, 1536,
1588, c. XVIe.
even to all the churches united: 203, 367, 532, 609, 897.
Over All Pastors
(153) — This power embraces not only each and everv one of the
faithful: 145, 150, 210, 295, 307, 367, 415, 498, 532, 592,
1234, 1300, 1523, 1600-1601,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

877

but also each and every one of the pastors: 10, 132, 145,
150, 177, 194, 210-211, 307, 357, 367, 426, 459, 498,
532, 592, 605, 663, 792, 991, 1234, 1600-1601,
even when these are assembled in one body: 357, 608609, 610.
Authority of the Popes over the Councils: 2, 199-201,
over the Patriarchs: 433-434.
(154) — The authority of the Pope over the flocks of other shepherds: 14, (195),
does not diminish the authority of the latter, nor does it
generate confusion: 298, 364, 428, 612, (195),
for the authority of the individual shepherds is not of the
same degree: 463, 612,
since bishops depend upon the Pope: 612,
and receive from him, not only their nomination: 18, 44,
101, 167, 210, 381, 399, 403, 411, 523, 670, 1531, cf.
(92), (189),
but also their mission and their powers: 10, 24, 44, 63,
73, 194, 210, 381, 403, 423, 991, 1377. cf. (189).
Consequences of the Primacy
(155) — The Primacy of the Sovereign Pontiff is, with unity of faith.
the sole principle of the visible unity of the episcopate: 211,
356, 624. 821, 834, 991. 999, 1177.
It is the foundation: 393, 1129, 1177,
and the support of the episcopal office: 44, 124, 221, 299,
364, 373, 428, 444, 533, 589, 613, 793, 1162, 1243, 1404,
and of the rights of the bishops of which the Pope has
been made the defender: 302, 308, 378, 408, 497, 613,
1043.
(156) — The universal and immediate jurisdiction of the Sovereign
Pontiff implies a duty of surveillance over the other
churches: 4, 663-664, 991, 1285, 1368.
This office is fulfilled by the ad limina visits: 664, 1141,
1404,
by the intermediarv of Nuncios and Legates: 60-61,
449, 532-534, 664, '
whose authority none may dispute: 59-61, 354, 534,
and bv the dispatch of encyclicals to the bishops: 7,
124.
(157) — The Primacy of jurisdiction is the foundation of the rights
of reserve and of appeal to the Sovereign Pontiff: 10, 26,
56, 118, 195, 297, 394, 430-431, 498, 1158, 1404,
of the rights of exemption (for religious): 179, 303, 1300,
and of liberty of communication of the Holv Father with
all the faithful: 57-58, 153,.182, 365, 1158, XI°.
By the approbation of religious rules, this primacy of juris­
diction is the source of religious superiors right to com­
mand: 96, 1300, 1506, cf. (209).
(158) — As a consequence of the Primacy, the Holy See alone has

878

ANALYTICAL INDEX

the competence to draw up treaties with nation-states: 884,
1334, 1355.
with respect to which the Holy See is not a ‘foreign nower’: 413, 416,
and with which it strives to maintain good relations: 658,
1339.
Exercise of the Primacy

Double Mission of the Sovereign Pontiff
(159) — In virtue of his charge to feed all Christ’s sheep: (141),
1146,
and to preach and to baptize all nations: 409, 669, 791,
841,
the Pope’s mission embraces all men: 127, 137, 319, 409,
583, 657, 669, 841, 952, 962.
(160) — Ordered, in the first instance, to their salvation: 483, 583,
657, 952, 966, 999, 1342, 1523, 1574, cf. (77),
this mission includes the duty of conserving: 4, 126, 585,
613, 645, 810, 841, 1130,
of defending: 103, 221, 523, 613, 1254, 1560,
of extending the Church: 4-5, 126, 204, 221, 477, 656,
669, 841, 975, 1147, 1206, 1558,
cf. Missions: (134)-(135),
and of bringing back the erring: 117, 794, 1147.
(161) — The Primacy assures the exercise of this mission bv estab­
lishing unity: 21, 53, 101, 161, 192, 229, 234, 255, 257,
356, 583-584, 593, 821, 961, 985, 998, 1070, 1177, 1206,
1252, 1546, 1571, 1591, XI0,
of faith: 1, 176, 234, 367, 442, 603, 923, 961, 1121,
1329,
by the magisterium: 192,
of discipline: 307, 422,
of conduct: 367,
of communion: 23, 148, 161, 176-177, 219, 392, 422,
580, 597, 603, 605, 791, 1121,
by governing: 176
bv establishing indefectibility: 217, 236, 356, 593, 1124,
1246;
and bv making Rome the visible center of Catholic unitv:
149, 167, 194, 215, 220, 442, 474, 482, 603, 833, 913,
954, 991. 1147. 1165, 1329, 1407, 1462, 1464.
(162) — The mission of the Pope includes, secondarily, the duh' of
assuring the peace of Christendom: 1, 442, 926, 959, 985,
1007, 1541, 1560,
of which he is the natural arbiter: 379, 950, 1317,
and of restoring civilization: 442, 656, 794.
Authority of the Pope over nations and their heads: 379
413, 801.
Cf. INTERNATIONAL PEACE
(163) — The paternity of the Sovereign Pontiff is the reflection of
the paternity of God: 750, 778-779, 976, 1264, 1522, 1559,
and derives from his office as Vicar of Christ: 1264, 1522.

ANALYTICAL INDEX

879

It embraces not only all Christians: 3, 207, 362, 415, 813,
932 976 1523
"but also all men: 660, 779, 813, 969, 985, 1007, 1528,
1554-1555, 1564, 1591,
who are called by their divine vocation to union with the
flock of Peter: 813, 1523, 1555.
This paternity becomes a Primacy of Charity: 17, 660, 778779, 791, 812-813, 944, 994, 1007, 1252, 1555, 1559,
carried, it necessary, to the sacrifice of life itself: 1558.
Spiritual Functions
(164) — The Primacy of the Pope extends to all the spiritual func­
tions: 39:
Magisterium: (165)-(173),
Sanctification: (174),
Government: (175)-(176).
The supreme Magisterium
(165) — The Primacy includes the power to teach: 52, 207, 368,
370, 966-967, 1243,
which is the first function of the Pope: 673, 955, 987,
1263,
who is, with respect to the universal Church: 1367,
the one teacher: 101, 237, 458, 467, 474, 506, 510, 624,
631, 786, 790-791, 944, 956, 1007, 1252, 1367, 1380,
and supreme judge of doctrine: 162, 363, 368, 427, 512;
the guardian, and not the innovator, 353, 1380, 1589,
of the deposit of faith: 1, 11, 174, 220, 250, 589,
750, 956, 991, 1049, 1129, 1368, 1380, 1477, 1589,
cf. (99)-(102),
and of moral: 363, 657-658, 750, 910, 991, 1007,
1252, cf. (103);
the guardian and interpreter of the natural law: 377, 440,
659,
political and social questions not excepted: 658-659,
910, 1525.
The Pope and private revelations: 1589.
(166) — The supreme magisterium implies the charge of teaching:
not the Church alone: 3, 220,
pastors and faithful: 3, 19, 362, 444, 988-989. 1243,
but also all nations: 53, 377, 427, 669, 791, 841, 966,
1588,
(167) —
the charge of defending the truth: 368, 658-659, 999,
1007, 1049, 1146, 1311,
by the interpretation of Scripture: 1477,
by the direction of teaching: 174, 624, 1009,
by supervising doctrine: 11, 250,
by condemning rash opinion and errors: 12-13, 131,
230, 290, 308, 955, 991, 1009, 1252,
even philosophical: 659,
by forbidding dangerous books: 18, 212.

880

ANALYTICAL INDEX

Forms of teaching
(168) — The Sovereign Pontiff exercises his teaching authority:
either in an ordinary mode by teaching: 871,
or by decrees and judgments: 746, 1280, of which the
highest form is the solemn definition: 1295.
Infallibility
(169) — In matters of faith and morals the teaching of the Pope is
infallible: 198, 207, 370, 381, 513, 790, 966, 1247, 1344.
The infallibility of the Pope in ex cathedra definitions is a
truth of defined faith: 371-372.
Conditions requisite for an ex cathedra definition: 371-372,
513.
The definition of infallibility, made necessary by circum­
stances: 437,
changes nothing in the Church’s discipline and is without
prejudice to the civil power: 379-382.
(170) — Infallibility rests on Christ’s promise: 192, 589, 1365,
and on the assistance of the Holy Spirit: 967, 1477, cf.
(68).
It is acquired by the Sovereign Pontiff at the very moment
he accepts his election: 1247.
Therefore, the definitions of the Pope are irreformable: 208,
308,
and their authority is independent of their ‘acceptance’ bv
the Church: 308, .371-372, 436.
(171) — Infallibility, given to the Pope in order to shepherd Christ’s
flock: 370
and to keep it in truth and unity: 370, 437, 589,
has alwavs been recognized by the Church: 369, 800-801,
922.
It has been revealed in facts, since the Sovereign Pontiffs
have always kept Christ’s teaching pure of error: 18, 75,
198, 208, 268, 368-369, 793, 1380, 1407-1408.
Honoring the magisterium
(172) — Therefore, the teaching and the decisions of the Apostolic
See are binding on all men: 94, 190, 369, 502, 529, 1377,
and are not subject to scrutiny; 1483,
nor are they the object of an appeal: 2, 394, 462.
(173) — When we hear the voice of the Pope, we hear the very voice
of Christ Himself: 53, 130, 991, 1280,
even in the ‘ordinary’ teaching authority: 1280.
This ‘ordinary’ teaching, e.g., such as it is to be found in the
encyclicals: 1280,
requires, therefore, assent: 858, 1280,
which is not limited to points of doctrine already of the
record: 1281,
and to matters of faith: 1269,
but it must be given also to the instructions of the Holy
Sec: 190,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

881

and to its judgments on theological positions: 232, 351,
1281, 1404.
Authority of the Decrees of the Congregations·. 7, 190, 249,
1201.

The Sovereign Pontificate
(174) — The successor of Peter is at the summit of the Christian
priesthood: 669,
and is the principle of its unity: 236, 1477.
He sanctifies the entire Church: 236, 1129,
by the exercise of his power of Orders: 1477,
which he possesses equally with the bishops: 176, cf.
(137).
The supreme Government
(175) — The Vicar of Christ has received not only the supreme teach­
ing authority: (165) ff.,
but also the supreme and universal government of the
Church: 3, 25, 126, 156, 162, 211, 218, 345, 362-363,
584, 631, 967, 1070, 1129, 1464, 1477-1478, 1534,
with power:
to make laws: 133, 189, 308, 377, 387,
to judge: 189, 366, 379, 387, 394, 584,
to penalize: 189, 387, cf. (119) ff.,
in the last resort: 366, 898.
(176) — This power makes of the Pope the guardian and the sole
judge of universal discipline: 170, 190, 203, 331, 355^367,
414, 422, 1534, 1588,
including worship: 331, 783, 785, 1230, 1459,
as well as any changes to be adopted: 76, 163, 170, 178,
190, 1534.
The Pope does not exceed his rights in regulating the dis­
cipline of individual churches: 203, 398, 414.
Exercise of the power of Vicar in matters of divine law: 5455, 97, 984.

Conditions for the exercise of the Primacy

Independence
(177) — The Pope, holding his office from God alone: 491, 587,
1377, cf. (145),
has to render an account of his deeds onlv to Him: 214,
281, 840, 1158.
He is the sole judge of the policy to adopt in his govern­
ment: 458, 463,
in particular, of the opportuneness of definitions: 437,
of teaching: 760, 918,
of directives: 439,
of intervention which has not been solicited: 1404.
He does not need to be urged, or to be called to order, by
his subordinates: 418, 523.

882

ANALYTICAL INDEX

(178) — In his exercise of the Primacy, the Pope must be indepen­
dent of every human authority; 136, 218, 304, 378, 427,
516, 587, 612, 767, 882, 1137.
The acts of the Holy See possess their obligatory character
independently of anv confirmation or verification by the
civil power:'143, 2 1 4, 2 18, 273, 281, 293-294, 304, 365,
670.
This liberty is necessary to the Church: 137, 225-226, 378,
427, 840, 881,
and is the best guarantee of the rule of faith: 437.
(179) — This independence requires, as a visible guarantee, temporal
sovereignty: 136-137, 204, 209, 225-226, 289, 440, 470,
475, 482, 767, 880-882, XII°,
which remains a right of the Sovereign Pontiff: 239, 288,
and is today exercised over Vatican City: 881, 1271.
The Collaborators of the Pope
(180) — So as not to be crushed under the weight of so heavy a bur­
den: 298, 1467,
the Pope must have recourse to the assistance of tfae\
Cardinals: 221, 326,
who are his Councillors and Electors: 326,
and to the Roman Curia: 945-947, 1467,
the necessary administrative body of the Church: 986,
and to all the members of the Church: 463, 1044,
Bishops: (185) ff.,
priests: (205)-(208),
religious: (209),
laity: (210)-(222).

Obedience to the Pope
(181) — The office of Sovereign Pontiff is rendered lighter: 1398,
and more effective: 73, 208, 460, 464,
by the obedience: 73, 217, 219, 237, 1398, 1481-1482,
and the docility: 129, 218, 464,
which are a duty for all: 25, 73, 130, 185, 217, 218-219,
360, 392, 460, 638, 1377, 1481-1482.
(182) — Obedience to the Pope, the representative of Christ: 952,
must make no distinction between the Pope of the past
and the Pope of the present moment: 462,
but must have the quality of sons in relation to their
father: 751-752, 952.
This obedience is the true wisdom of the sons of the
Church: 419,
the expression of their love: 751, 952,
the guarantee of unity: 73, 240, 419, 1246.
(183) — It is of obligation not merely in matters of doctrine:
(172) ff.,
but also in matters of government and discipline: 330,
363, 1377, 1398.
I

ANALYTICAL INDEX

883

(184) - Obedience to the Holy See, binding on every Catholic: 177,
215, 219, 360, 392, 639, 713-714, 1257, 1483,
no man can contemn the Primacy: 44, 51, 300, 354-355,
without destroying the Constitution of the Church: 65,
416,
and compromising his eternal salvation: 484, 653, 1262.
Chapter II

THE SUCCESSORS OF THE APOSTLES

The Apostolic Mission
(185) — The power of the Pope is not exclusive: 600.
The episcopal order constitutes, bv divine right: 183, 456.
683, 765, S18*_919,
part of the Constitution of the Church: 397, 600, 683,
of which the bishops are the principal members: 14, 818,
1018, 1042, 1467,
and the first foundation: 683,
which itself rests on the unique substructure: 1467, cf.
.
(139)
(186) — He who made Peter the foundation of the Church: (139),
also chose twelve Apostles: 600,
whose perpetual mission, (perpetual as the Church’s
own): (77),
was not to terminate with them: 564.
As Christ was sent by the Father, and the Apostles by
Christ, the bishops were sent by the Apostles: 565,
and are, therefore, by divine right, their successors: 364,
565, 600, 774, 919, 1042, 1469, 1581,
and the heirs of their ordinary mission: 454, 484, 565,
600, 1469, 1490, cf. (85)-(87).
The Episcopal College
(187) — Although numerous: 601,
the successors of the Apostles form a single college: 821,
united bv the interior bond of faith and charity: 14, 821,
1581,
and by the exterior bond:
of obedience to the Pope: 605, 821, 1581, cf. (155).
Their dignity is the first dignity of the Church and its basis:
497, 1469.
(188) — Peter alone, having received his powers directly and inde­
pendently of the Apostles: (141),
and the Apostles having received theirs only as a group
and conjointly with Peter: (141),
Bishops do not possess a power equal to that of the Pope:
26, 166,
nor fullv independent of his: 19, 54, 111, 180, 473,
612, 1042, 1234.

884

ANALYTICAL INDEX

Authority of patriarchs and metropolitans: 307-308, 406-407,
431.
(189) — It is from the Pope that bishops receive their institution·,
_43,
10,
81, 138, 141, 1534, 1544, 1537,
and their authority is conferred on them bv his ministry:
10, 24, 63, 183, 991, 1042, 1157, 1532, cf. (154).
Even though it were to come directly from God: 19,
it would remain limited by the Pope’s authority: 19, 40,
54, 109-110, 119, 164, 303.
(190) — Union of the bishops with the Holy See is an essential
element in the Constitution of the Church: 23, 162, 215,
360, 533, 601, 1042, 1404, 1468, 1532.
It is a duty for the bishop: 187, 210,
a principle of strength for him and for his diocese: 161,
310, 328-329, 408, 533, 608, 663, 1404.
Bishops must obey the Pope: 19, 54, 139, 187, 190, 210,
363, 433-434, 460, 605, 608, 721, 931, 1532,
and render to him an account of their government: 302,
663, 721, 1404,
of their teaching: 777,
and of outrages committed against the Church: 152.
They must defer to the Holy See in matters of doctrine: 18,
defend its rights: 161, 181, 210,
and keep united to this See the faithful of their own
flocks: 161, 193, 211, 217, 432a, 454.
(191) — The Mission of the bishop may be sullied by human fail­
ings: 935.
The bishop who knowingly separates himself from the Pope:
84, 310, 423, 602, 604,
or whose election has not been confirmed by him, is de­
prived of his jurisdiction: 64, 71, 73, 84, 101, 138, 140,
1532, 1563;
but the bishop who remains faithful to the Holy See,
even if he be unfaithful to his mission, loses nothing of
his power: 498.
Collective Mission
Councils
(192) — The union of the bishops with the visible Head of the
Church is increased in the Council: 327, 336,
where the bishops are united with the Pope: 327, 16001601,
in solicitude for the universal Church: 312, 1600-1601,
as teachers: 327, 444,
and as judges of the faith: 327, 339.
Non-Catholics cannot be summoned to sit in the Council:
324.
(193) — Ecumenical Councils, which have not ceased to exist even
since the Greek Schism: 268, 744,
are assembled on grave occasions: 312, 328,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

885

to defend and to define the faith: 312-313, 336, 437, 746,
1163-1164, 1580,
to strengthen unity: 1580,
and to reinedv the ills of Catholicism: 312-313, 336, 621,
1162-1164, 1580.
In virtue of the divine assistance promised to them: 327,
334, 339, 376, 436, 1049,
Ecumenical Councils are infallible: 39, 213, 268, 334,
376, 436, 746,
and their decisions are binding on all: 336, 436, 502.
Authority of National Councils'. 123, 214, 278.
Usefulness of Provincial Councils: 621,
and of Bishops’ Meetings: 715, 1403.
Cf. THE COUNCIL

I Inioersal Apostolate
(194) — Brothers of the Pope in the Apostolate: 919, 1469,
the bishops are charged with, as he is: 1468-1469,
the apostolic mission of the Church: 399, 672, 818, 844,
963, 1468-1469,
and its propagation: 1155, 1469, 1493, cf. (135).

Ordinaries of the Dioceses

(195) — As the Pope is the Head of the Church Universal: 454,
Bishops are the heads of their dioceses: 43, 218, 327,
364, 399-400, 454, 600, 609, 798, 1042, 1394, 1404,
which have been assigned to them bv the Pope: 43,
399-400, 919,
and they possess in their regard, and for them alone:
139, 612, 1469,
proper and ordinary power: 148, 364, 399, 473, 600,
605, 844, 1042,
which is not compromised by the immediate jurisdic­
tion of the Sovereign Pontiff: 26, 296, 600, cf. (151)·
(154).
(196) — The power of the bishops, ordered to the building up of
the Body of Christ: 454,
consists in a triple function: 805:
of teaching: 805, (197) ff.; cf. (96)-(112),
of priesthood: 805, (199)·, cf. (113)-(U8),
of governing: 805, (200)-(201); cf. (119)- (125).
Teaching
(197) — Bishops are, by divine right: 458, 497, 1367,
and tinder the dependence of the Holv See: 458, 1581,
1583,
of which they are the lawful interpreters: 291, 432,
the teachers of the Church: 395, 458, 497, 963, 1367,
1387, cf. (85)-(S6).
Thev have the duty of conserving the revealed deposit: 127,
161-162, 245, 1281, 1380-1382, 1387,

886

ANALYTICAL INDEX

of defending the faith of their people: 181, 193,
and of forewarning them against error: 85, 128, 152, 154.
(198) — Preaching is the proper duty of the bishop: 506, 517, 671,
684, 774, 1362, 1380,
who alone can delegate it: 684, 1362,
without thereby diminishing his responsibility for the of­
fice: 777, 1362, 1367.
He has the duty of educating the young: 806,
and of supporting his collaborators: 216.
Priesthood
(199) — The bishops are the brothers of the Sovereign Pontiff: 919,
and his equals, in the episcopate: (137),
in the fullness of the priesthood: 844, 1459,
received immediately from God: 63;
cf. Sanctifying Mission: (113).

Government
(200) — The bishops, under the guidance of the Pope: 1234,
have, and they alone have: 114, 1234,
by divine right: 85, 450, 121&_J234,
the charge of government: 162, 425, 450, 497, 588, 1234,
1392
as legislators and judges: 85, 450, 1218, 1398.
(201) — The competence of bishops extends not only to the domain
of faith: (197),
but also to that of moral and of discipline: 1398, 1403,
cf. (103),
especially that of the clergy: 89, 127, 473.
They must safeguard the observance of the general laws of
the Church: 181, 193, 1230, 1459.
Theirs is the concern, not only of matters religions in the
strict sense: 454, 805,
but all that is concerned with the Church’s good: 410,
805,
e.g., the administration of ecclesiastical property: 90, 412
805,
and relations with non-Catholics: 807.
(202) — Bishops will have to render an account to God of the salva­
tion of souls: 425, 497.
They must pray: 1044,
celebrate Mass for them: 1044,
give good example: 450, 1392,
and be ready, if need be, to sacrifice life itself: 1402.
(203) — Christ Himself, living and teaching in the person of the
bishop: 485, 806, 808,
the faithful must pay them honor: 461, 495-499, 642-643,
720, 803-804, 1042,
must obey them as thev do God: 2 1 8, 395, 397, 429, 455,
457, 460, 497, 780, 798, 803-804, 1474.

ANALYTICAL INDEX

887

The authority and the election of the bishops come from
God alone and from the Pope: 80, 83, 101, 364, 395, 411,
426, 498, 670, 802,
and not from the secular power: 66, 78, 80, 183, 218,
272, 425-426, 432, 523, 919, 1158,
nor from the clergy, nor from the people: 87-88, 310, 402,
1158.
Sense in which is to be understood the concession granted
to secular powers in respect to the nomination of bishops:
63, 402, 405, 670, 1158, 1531.
(204) — Fruits of the action and of the ministry of the bishops: 404.
1401-1402, 1562.
CF. THE BISHOP AND THE DIOCESE
Chapter III

THE CLERGY
(205) — It is an error to think that the organic structure of the
Church is limited to the hierarchy: 1018.
Priests are also ministers of the Church: 1018, 1114, 1155,
1195,
as are also deacons: 1494.
The bishop confers on the priest, bv the power of orders:
1228,
participation in his own power of consecrating: 844, 1490,
and confides to him a part of his flock: 1114, 1336, 1480,
1490, 1492, 1565.
The pastor and the parish: 1314, 1333, 1376, 1476.
The ministry of the clergy transcends the distinction be­
tween secular clergy and regular clergy: 1298-1299, 1602.
(206) — The priest, minister of Christ, has the duty' of offering the
Holy Sacrifice: (114),
of administering the sacraments: 927, 971, 1287-1288;
he is the organ of the Church’s prayer: 1286.
He participates, in particular bv his preaching: 186, 775,
928, 1380,
in the teaching function of the bishop: 484-485. 517, 928,
1287-1288, 1473.
He has the charge of charitable works: 1287-1288,
and the administration of ecclesiastical affairs: 410.
He participates in the apostolate of Christ and in missionary
expansion: 844, 1380, cf. (134)-(135).
(207) — The priest is not delegated by the community: 1336,
nor subject to the decrees of the laity: 68.
Before representing his people before God, he is the envoy
of the Head of the Mystical Body: 1226.
He is not the equal of the bishop: 86;
he does not share with him the charge of administering
the diocese: 86-88, 172,

888

ANALYTICAL INDEX

nor that of judge in matters of faith: 113,
or discipline: 122;
He cannot exercise any ministry except with the permission
of the bishop and under his direction: 162, 785, 1299.
The power and the function of synods: 112, 782, 1587.
(208) — The priest must place in the first rank of his duties that of
obedience to the Pope: 186,
and to his Bishop: 162, 456, 643-644, 765, 789, 798, 931,
1398, 1401.
He must be the faithful interpreter of every word coming
from Rome: 186, 1465.
He must keep himself for his ministry which is properly
sacerdotal·. 269-271, 1312, 1496,
having himself replaced, in other matters, by laymen:
1312,
and avoiding compromising himself in temporal affairs:
269-271.
Law of ecclesiastical celibacy. 780, 785.
Cf. THE PRIESTHOOD
Chapter IV

RELIGIOUS
(209) — The service of the Church also comprises religious: 16,
1018,
including contemplatives: 98, 827-828, 1018, 1301, 1551,
who are among the most effective auxiliaries in the work
of the Church: 95-96, 390, 837, 1301.
Their state in life, superior to that of marriage: 1452,
is situated between that of the clergy and the laity: 1207,
1297,
who can, each of them also, be religious: 1207, 1298,
(205);
this state is founded on its particular relation with the
sanctifying mission of the Church: 1207, (129).
Religious superiors are associated with the apostolic charge
of the Pope: 1506, (157).
Legislation of the Church on the public state of perfection:
1208.
Nullitv of civil laws which oppose this state: (92).
Cf. STATES OF PERFECTION
Chapter V

THE LAITY
Place of the laity in the Church
(210) — The faithful arc all members, not only of a civil society, hut
also of the Church, the Body of Christ: 1313, 1335, 1457,
where they possess even the rights of citizenship: 996,
1489, 1495,
and of which they are the living stones: 1008, 1508-1509.

ANALYTICAL INDEX

889

They must be proud, not only of belonging to the Church:
1093,
but also of being ‘the Church’: 1191, 1521.
(211) — They arc not members of the hierarchy: 1493.
and consequently, the mandate which they may receive
from the hierarchy, cf. (218),
does not confer upon them either the power of orders or
of jurisdiction: 68, 85, 432, 631, 1218, 1493.
Therefore, it is not their place to usurp a role in the govern­
ment of the Church: 169, 187, 498, 811,
or in the teaching office: 506, 761,
or to meddle in tne domain confided to their pastors: 432,
631, 1230.
The laity and the progress of the Church: 708.
(212) — 'fhe royal priesthood of the faithful: 876, 942, 1391,
participation in the priesthood of Christ: 876, 1391,
differs essentially from the priesthood properly so-called,
conferred by the sacrament of Orders: 1236, 1391.
The priesthood of the faithful is exercised especially by par­
ticipation in the liturgy: 1455-1456,
above all at Holy Mass, where they offer Christ by the
hands of the priest: 1083.
Responsibility of the laity
(213) — The Church does not absorb her members by transferring
to the communitv what they can do bv themselves: 1184,
1273.
The layman remains responsible for his salvation: 819, 1496,
to which he must subordinate all his other activity: 727,
749, 1273, 1297.
He has the right to receive from the hierarchy the means of
obtaining his salvation: 914, 957, 1401, 1495-1496,
and, if need be, to claim them: 1090, 1495.
(214) — To the mission which the bishops have received, cf. (200),
of governing the Christian people, corresponds the peo­
ple’s duty of obedience: 218, 245, 304, 577,
and of letting themselves be guided in the wav of salva­
tion: 460, 561, 682, 903-905, 1398,
bv legitimate shepherds: 304, 425, 432, 450, 498, 716, 802,
the Pope: 304, 528, 561.
the Bishops: 528, 561,
the Clergy: 1495.
'fhe Catholic is to be recognized by the perfection of his
obedience: 511.
/0/5) — To give a solid support to his faith: 794, 1249,
to keep himself from error: 904, 1447,
and to be able to judge his own time: 1447,
the layman has the duty of heeding the teaching of the
Church: 145, 245. 458,'460, 493, 673, 716, 761-762.
1447, 1456, of submitting his judgment to it: 1284,

890

ANALYTICAL INDEX

and of conforming his conduct to it: 458, 673.
Extent of the submission required: cf. (110).
(216) — The layman may not remove himself from the direction of
the hierarchy: 1398,
under pretext of ‘liberty of conscience’: 332, 706, 709,
914 1201, 1216,
of ‘emancipation’: 1495,
or of reaching adult status’: 1399-1400;
nor may he prefer his own judgment to the authority of
the magisterium: 762, 1372.
Open revolt is not necessary for a failure in submission; it is
sufficient to contravene authority in an oblique fashion: 500.
The Apostolate of the laity
(217) — For her ministry the Church has recourse not only to the
hierarchy and the clergy but also to the laity: 958, 1018,
1599,
who, by their activity: 1191, 1426, 1489, 1495,
can: 914,
and must: assist their pastors: 218, 432, 450, 673, 1100,
1353,
supplement their efforts: 1312,
and collaborate with them: 456, 506, 655, 907-908, 1018,
1058, 1100, 1191, 1495, 1594,
in all that, directly or indirectly, belongs to the Church’s
mission: 674, 842-843, 1058, 1368, 1426, 1471, 1495.
(218) — The apostolate of the laity is not on a different line from
that of the hierarchy: 1314,
nor founded on charisms: 1372.
It is exercised as a participation in the hierarchical aposto­
late: 908, 914, 1493,
to which it must remain subordinate and with which it
must be co-ordinated: 655, 847, 908, 933, 1304, 1314,
1371-1372, 1498,
under penalty of being pure loss: 764, 847,
and with which a mandate can associate the laity more
closely: 1492-1493,
without, however, ever making this apostolate a sacerdotal
apostolate: 1492.
Catholic Action is a more organized: 1493,
and special (accidental) form of this apostolate: 1304.
(219) — This collaboration not only demands fidelity to orthodoxy:
350, 1487, 1498,
and to obedience: (218),
it also requires a total disinterestedness and devotedness:
735, 1495,
to enter into the mind of the Church: 958,
and to avoid all division: 1495.
Forms of the Apostolate of the Laity
(220) — The lay apostle collaborates with the priest in all the forms
of the apostolate: 1497,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

891

in its double function, of conservation: 505-506, 1501,
and of conquest: 505-506, 1472, 1501.
It is exercised primarily bv prayer and sacrifice: 519, 829,
1313, 1472, 1500,
By witnessing to the faith; 505-506, 764,
and by example: 506, 675, 764, 1313.
(221) — The lay apostolate has as its more specific task to leaven
social life with a Christian mentality: 1191, 1224, 1497.
It includes, at least in the broad sense: 13137
Christian parents: 1101,
and laymen who devote themselves to education and the
works of mercy: 675, 735, 1018.
(222) — The layman can also be the recipient of a mandate to teach:
216, 675, 1371, 1473, 1492, 1500.
His activity is particularly useful in those areas where theol­
ogy comes into contact with the profane sciences: 1499,
but ‘lay theology’ has no title to autonomy: 1498.
Role of Catholic intellectuals and writers: 216, 718.
Cf. THE LAITY; DIRECTIVES TO WORKERS

APOSTOLICITY OF THE CHURCH
(223) — The true Church of Christ possesses uninterrupted succes­
sion of Apostolic authority: 121, 125, 196, 306, 315, 834,
and teaches the doctrine of the Apostles: 196, 306, 738,
742, 1255, 1380, 1408.
Apostolicity is bound to the Roman succession: 125, cf.
(142)-(143).
Essential immutability of the Church
(224) — The Church is, and has been from her origin, one and the
same mystical person: 834, 862, 1242, 1255.
Founded on the divine positive law: 405, 414, 1265,
she is immutable in her essential principles and institu­
tions: 165, 314, 405, 414-415, 455, 508, 696, 1255, 1358,
1412, 1448, VIIIe, c. VIII°,
in her doctrine: 190, 196, 306, 316, 352-353, 681, 726,
740, 742, 783, 865, 996, 1243, 1302, 1327.
in her sacraments: 726,
in her constitution: 508, 696, 726, 983, 996, 1124,
1245, 1265, 1412, c. II”.
But, as a living organism, she is not immobile: 1231. 1255,
she lives and grows: 1231,
and, thanks to the Holv Spirit living within her: 1327,
1447,
she can, in order the better to penetrate the world and
fashion souls according to the law of Christ: 1185, 1255,
1410, 1447,
adapt herself, in accidental matters, to periods and cir­
cumstances: 170, 190, 681, 773, 996. 1185, 1242-1243,
1255, 1302-1303, 1327, 1410, 1412, 1445, 1447, 14521454,

892

ANALYTICAL INDEX

and without enslaving herself to any earthly power: 1185,
1412, 1445.

True and false progress
(225) — It is false to believe that Christianity can perfect itself con­
tinually: 168, 709, 738,
and must make adaptations in faith as well as in disci­
pline: 168, 430, 627-628, 709, 738, 742, 1251,
to the exigencies of modern life, soi-disant more favored
by the gifts of the Spirit: 636, 707,
and to those of an atheistic civilization: 668,
by a progress which would be a compromise between two
forces, the one a conserving force, the other a progressivist: 707-709, 1452-1454.
(226) — The Church, accepting the elements which she judges use­
ful to her development: 353, 783, 1412,
experiences a progress in the sense of a growth in the pre­
cision of doctrine: 353, 996, 1354,
a renewal in holiness and faith: 224, 996, 1354,
a development of liturgy: 783, 996,
an extension of her apostolate: 1354,
a greater penetration of the Christian spirit: 353, 728,
996.
More perfect in her visible form: 996, 1245,
she cannot return to the forms of the first Christian eras:
996,
and her extension requires a growing centralization: 1245,
1404.
Immortality of the Church
(227) — Like Christ, the Church, founded on Him: 555, 1592-1593,
is immortal: 555, 579, 667, 830, 1245, 1250, 1592-1593,
and, in spite of persecutions, which she has constantly to
undergo: 383, 1210, 1337, 1446,
she must last to the end of the world: 177, 198, 235, 359,
383, 566, 619, 695, 811, 1031, 1206, 1210, 1437, 1552.
She remains ever young: 785, 995, 1115, 1139, 1209-1210,
1596,
and cannot grow old: 545, 794, 995.
Indefectibility
(228) — Taken as a whole, the Church is indefectible: 130, 169, 198,
227, 240, 327, 439, 608. 652. 679, 783, 849, 911, 929, 11141115, 1124, 1140, 1142, 1161, 1167, 1176, 1206, 1210,
1242, 1321, 1335, 1345, 1548,
in spite of the partial successes of the powers of darkness:
667, 1438, 1446.
She is not shaken: 872, 894, 963, 1114-1115, 1142, 1247,
1352, 1407, 1446, 1485
by persecution: 439, 679, 685, 688, 724, 891, 964, 1046,
1140, 1247, 1345, 1353, 1548,

ANALYTICAL INDEX

893

which she neither desires nor fears: 685, 1046, 1437-1438,
nor by heresies: 386, 439, 891, 964, 1290,
or the sins of her members: 439, 726, 891, 1142, 1352.
She derives from them a new strength: 724, 853, 964, 1140,
1354, 1545, 1548,
and a new splendor of truth: 435, 724, 1512-1513, 1592.
(229) — The indefectible fidelity of the Church to her mission:
(228),
is not simply a fact: 920-921, cf. (228),
it is founded on law: 920-921,
on Christ: 134, 384, 544-545, 872, 964,
and on his visible representative: 125, 585, 1124,
1549, 1592, cf. (162),
from whom the Church is inseparable: 608.
on the promise: 1124, 1209,
and on the divine assistance: 238, 619, 724, 861-862,
938, 990, 1115. 1354, 1552,
which is all the more certain as the assaults
against her are the more violent: 724, 1354.
Therefore, indefectibility is a mystery and a divine sign:
376, 725-726, 1114-1115.
(230) — Since she is indefectible, the Church needs no one to
reform her: 163,
for she possesses the means to do so herself: 717, 1591.
All true reform has its beginning in sanctity: 730, 732-734,
938,
and begins in the hierarchy: 730, 734.
The false reform of the modernists: 717, 938.

OUR DUTIES TO THE CHURCH
Epilogue

(231) — Whoever has the Spirit of God has spontaneously the right
attitude towards the Church: 938.
Such a one does not criticise her: 937,
even in her human aspect: 937, 1094,
and he does not act against her: 218, 508.
He must be proud of the Church: 1485,
must pray for her: 1102,
venerate her authority: 614, 709, 1094,
love her: 614, 789, 1092, 1094, 1097, 1100, 1102,
1110,
obey her: 647, 937, 1094,
not as a stranger, but as the Spouse of Christ and as
Christ Himself: 647, 1094-1095,
labor to return to her: 538, 615,
and prefer before all things fidelity to the Church: 939.
Disastrous consequences of contempt of her authority: 317,
440, 1168, 1542.

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS
The numbers in heavy black print refer to the paragraphs of the
papal pronouncments.

SACRED SCRIPTURE

Old Testament:
Genesis 3, 20: 1028.
4, 10: 1096.
8, 21: 727.
II, 4: 733.
27, 28: 1580.
45, 4: 1555.
Exodus 4, 25: 1210.
17, 8-16: 827.
1 Samuel 2, 3: 912.
16, 7: 815.
1 Kings 21, 1-4: 136-137.
1 Parai. 16, 22: 1042.
1 Mach. 5, 57, 67: 733.
Job 13, 7: 640.
31, 12: 763.
Psalm 11, 2: 1145.
23, 2: 1549.
29, 10: 842.
44, 10: 388, 785.
44, 14-15: 785.
75, 12: 96.
83, 12: 1088.
104, 15: 1042.
III, 7: 722.
118, 89, 160: 1265.
136, 5-6: 939, 1092.
Proverbs 10, 7: 722.
21, 1: 764, 1039.
Ecclesiastes 5, 3: 96.
Canticle 4, 12: 452.
6, 3: 133, 712.
6, 9: 133, 507, 712.
Wisdom 6, 4-10: 1106.
6, 23: 1106.
8, 1: 875, 1465.
Ecclesiasticus: 17, 2: 1306.
17, 12: 655.
Isaias 2, 2-3: 551.

9, 6: 959.
11, 12: 343, 1178, 1242,
1434, 1437, 1505.
16, 3: 328.
28, 16: 835.
32, 17: 1106.
40, 3: 949.
42, 2: 733.
53, 12: 660.
54, 12-13: 493.
59, 21: 338.
Jeremias 1, 9: 1295.
3, 15: 671.
17, 5: 734.
23, 21: 777.
49, 16: 1140.
Ezechiel 3, 17-18: 132.
Osec 10, 13: 1146.
Joel 2, 28-29: 618.
Malachias, 1, 2: 1083, 1193,
1219.

New Testament:
St. Matthew 3, 3: 949.
3, 9: 938.
4, 10: 939.
4, 16: 841.
5, 10: 1545.
5, 13: 818, 937, 1492.
5, 14: 233, 818, 991, 1511,
1515.
5, 15: Αβ, XI.
5, 19: 818.
5, 44-48: 1098.
5, 48: 819.
6, 33: 516, 1000.
7, 3-5: 935.
7, 16, 20: 418.
7, 25: 125.

- 894 -

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

7, 26-27: 964.
8, 26: 1161.
9, 21: 1023.
9, 38: 1102.
10, 27: 1397.
11,29: 733, 1402, 1559.
11, 30: 538, 1402.
12, 19: 733.
12, 30: 419.
13, 1 ff: 861.
13, 24: 233.
13, 31-32: 928.
13, 33: 937, 1454.
13, 47-48: 992.
13, 52: 353.
15, 15: 848.
15, 19: 1598.
15, 24: 1029.
16, 13-20: 8.
16, 16-17: 420.
16, 16-19: 357.
16, 16-20: 1266.
16, 18: 20, 125, 207, 222,
388, 583, 725, 790, 794,
823, 861, 862, 940, 964,
1324, 1446, 1546, 1549,
1552.
16, 18-19: 198, 682, 968,
1027, 1335, A’, XI.
16, 19: 20, 207, 421, 467.
18, 17: 243, 395, 469, 497,
934, 1022.
18, 18: 861, 1156.
18, 20: 926, 1221.
20, 19: 980.
21, 19: 1156.
22, 9: 1251.
22, 21: 472, 1510, 1524.
23, 8: 806, 848, 1295.
23, 9: 848.
23, 14: 1402.
24, 35: 227, 667.
25, 34: 34 ff.
26, 28: 1029.
28, 18-20: 228, 469, 561,
629,821, 880, 1156, 1515.
28, 19: 409, 444, 669, 842,
861,889, 912,987, 1251,
1263, 1356, 1552.
28. 19-20: 682, 730, 745,
915, 928, 1256, 1367,

895

1380, 1469, A’, IX.
28. 20: 466, 716, 725, 861,
920, 1162, 1233, 1290.
1324, 1441.
28, 21: 629.
Mark 1, 10: 1033.
2, 16: 1024.
16. 15: 466, 484, 623, 669,
844, 861, 1134, 1181.
16, 15-16: 1226.
16, 16: 243, 561, 866.
16, 20: 563.
Luke 1, 71: 724.
1, 79: 841.
2, 11: 661.
2, 19: 536.
2, 34: 925.
3, 8: 939.
3, 22: 1033.
4, 8: 939.
5, 32: 1144.
6, 13: 600.
6, 27-35: 1098.
6, 48: 125.
10, 2: 1102.
10, 16: 145, 243, 485, 497,
562,647, 806, 934, 1064,
1226, 1280.
10. 33-37: 1098.
11. 23: 164, 177, 185, 243,
430, 508, 566, 639.
12. 9: 939.
12. 32: 1040.
15, 2: 1023.
19, 40: 834.
22. 19: 1156, 1552.
22. 31-32: 124.
22. 32: 20, 198, 207, 221,
369, 467, 589, 624, 790,
861, 967, 1102, 1127,
1162, 1243, 1365.
24, 36: 1426.
John 1. 9: 928.
1. 12: 973, 1013.
1, 13: 973.
1, 14-16: 1047.
1, 18: 629, 1049.
1. 42: 357.
2. 11: 1111.
3. 2: 1049.
3, 5: 861, 1027.

896

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

8: 636, 938.
16: 1013, 1551.
3, 17: 550, 1551.
3, IS:
18: 243.
3, 34: 1055.
4, 14: 734.
937.
4, 24: 842.
4, 42: 1058.
6, 1-2: 968.
6, 45: 493.
6, 48-59: 861.
6, 56-57: 1347.
6, 63: 1038.
6, 68: 1049.
7, 4: 733.
7, 13: 733.
7, 16: 718, 1380.
7, 17: 718.
7, 18: 719.
8, 32: 494.
8, 44: 1178.
10, 1: 1037, 1583.
10, 1-18: 1037.
10, 5: 416.
10, 7: 1555.
10, 10: 466, 731, 907, 917,
1402, 1519.
10, 11: 591, 1402, 1558.
10, 12-13: 1402.
10, 16: 233, 615, 757, 861,
863, 1558, 1571.
10, 27: 614.
10, 37: 560.
10, 38: 560.
11, 1: 968.
11, 10: 991.
12, 32: 1036.
13, 1: 1107.
13, 24: 1347.
13, 34: 1347.
13, 35: 843, 856, 979.
14, 6: 731, 799, 1290.
14, 14: 1091.
14, 16: 561, 619, 725, 990,
1070.
14, 17: 561, 619, 725, 990.
14, 23: 751, 1074.
14, 26; 725, 990, 1070,
1291, 1442.
14, 59: 725.
r

i/t/j

xiytZX·

15, 1-5: 1068.
15, 5: 940, 1044, 1050.
15, 6: 1322, 1385.
15, 7f: 725.
15, 9-10: 1074.
15, 12: 843.
15, 15: 1027.
15, 16: 849.
15, 18-20: 1405, 1446.
15, 20: 1548.
15, 24: 560.
15, 26-27: 561.
16, 7-13: 561.
16, 12: 561, 618, 1442.
16, 13: 561, 618, 716.
16, 16-17: 1442.
16, 33: 1161, 1553.
17. 2: 1047.
17, 3: 1072.
17, 8: 1027.
17, 9ff: 1102.
17, 11: 135, 197, 747,821.
1347.
17, 14: 1027, 1102.
17, 18: 550, 1027, 1053,
1102.
17, 19: 1102.
17, 20-21: 229, 747.
17, 20-23: 197, 556, 1102,
1347.
17, 21: 135, 745, 856,863,
1103, A0, XI.
17, 21-23: 821, 1068.
17, 22-26: 135.
17, 23: 747, 877, 1571.
17. 30: 356.
18, 37: 955, 1049.
20, 15: 663.
20, 21: 356, 466, 550, 562,
1053, 1064, 1156, 1226,
1367, 1469, 1551.
20, 22: 620, 861, 1055,
1064, 1156, 1551.
20. 23: 620, 1156, 1551,
1552.
20, 31: 754.
21, 15: 150, 198, 602.
21, 15-17: 58, 198, 295,
311, 357, 588, 721, 757,
802,813, 861,968, 1122,
1156, 1162, 1234, 1285,

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

1402.
21, 16-17: 426, 467, 1469,
1551, 1552, A®, XI.
21, 17: 20, 129, 150, 1469.
21, 18: 1469.
Acts 1, 5: 1441.
1, 7: 746.
1, 8: 669, 1441, 1551.
1, 9: 1441.
1, 14: 1517, 1603.
2, 1-4: 1033, 1517.
2, 17: 618.
2, 42: 649.
4, 12: 550, 907.
4

IQ. 1^4

4, ’ 32:' 649’ 747, 1116,
1350.
5, 29: 470, 756, 1524.
6, 2: 774.
6, 4: 928, 987.
8, 17: 1552.
8, 26: 1039.
9, 1-5: 878.
9, 1-19: 1039.
9, 4: 1052.
9, 15: 776, 849.
10, 1-7: 1039.
10, 41: 866.
12, 3-10: 1039.
13, 2: 776.
15, 7: 409, 991.
17, 28: 892.
17, 30: 892.
20, 26: 818.
20, 28: 86, 135, 222, 312,
364, 426, 506, 533, 620,
655, 765, 847, 1003.
1058, 1107, 1218, 1234,
1291, 1352.
22, 7: 1052.
26, 14: 1052.
Romans 1.4: 987.
1, 5: 563.
1, 8: 786.
2, 15: 1160.
5, 5: 727, 821.
5, 20: 1013.
6, 5: 1107.
6, 6: 727.
8, 9: 1055, 1078.
8, 10: 1078.
8, 11: 723.

897

8, 14-17: 1055.
8, 17: 848, 1055.
8, 28: 723.
8, 29: 1045.
8, 35: 1085.
10, 10: 541.
10, 15: 775.
10, 17: 541, 716, 987.
12, 2: 727.
12, 3: 13, 188.
12, 4: 1017, 1335.
12, 5: 661, 942, 1015,
1075, 1098, 1335.
12, 6: 1335, 1572.
12, 7: 1372.
12, 18: 1250.
12, 21: 726.
I Cor. 1, 10: 512, 557, 714.
1, 17: 671, 774.
I, 9-20: 126.
3, 6: 538.
3. 22: 1135.
3, 23: 1060, 1316.
3, 25: 1455.
4, 1: 577, 818, 927, 1287.
4, 16: 723.
9, 22: 631.
9, 27: 937.
10, 17: 649, 978, 1238.
II, 17-21: 1350.
11, 25: 1029.
12, 4-7: 488.
12, 12: 553, 872, 1052,
1335.
12. 12-27: 1335.
12, 13: 1022.
12, 21: 1044.
12, 22-23: 1096.
12, 25: 1075, 1098.
12, 26: 878, 1098, 1274,
1306, 1467.
12, 27: 542, 878, 1327.
12. 28: 488, 1372.
12, 28-30: 1372.
13, 3: 525.
13, 11: 1400.
13, 12: 824.
14, 33: 745.
15, 10: 1088.
2 Cor. 2, 14: 1146.
2, 15: 1313.
2, 20: 808.

898

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

3, 3: 618.
3, 6: 1030.
3, 17: 1055.
3, 18: 1055.
4, 13: 509, 1072.
5, 4: 1468.
5, 14: 657.
5, 18: 660, 818.
5, 19: 660.
5, 20: 818.
6, 4: 810.
6, 6: 395.
8, 23: 919.
10, 5: 573, 1094.
10, 6: 469, 682.
11.2: 1551.
11, 14: 1094.
11, 28: 1468.
12, 10: 682.
13, 10: 469.
13, 11: 962.
14, 28: 1332.
Galatians 1, 8: 720, 745,
1382.
1, 11-12: 1381.
9

IQ· 19Q^

2’ 20: 1057, 1072, 1088,
1235.
4, 2: 1399.
4, 6-7: 1055.
Ephesians 1, 8: 1055.
1, 9: 728.
1, 10: 680, 728, 960.
1. 22-23: 552.
2, 3: 1013.
2, 14: 1032, 1330.
2, 15: 1029, 1032.
2, 16: 1032.
2, 19-22: 1220.
2, 20: 720, 964, 1092,
1220.
2, 21: 590, 1008.
2, 22: 1008.
3. 10: 535.
3, 15: 778, 1264.
3, 17: 1072.
3, 18: 1098.
3, 20; 134.
4, 3: 135, 254, 568, 824,
874, 1594.
4, 4: 233, 556, 568, 822,

1073, 1335, A’, V.
4, 5: 164, 253, 509, 557,
568, 768, 822, 1022,
1072.
4, 7: 636, 1050, 1055.
4, 11: 127, 682.
4, 12-16: 942.
4, 12: 127, 673, 732, 942.
4, 13: 127, 1400, 1546.
4, 14: 1,732, 942,1184.
4, 15: 872, 942, 944, 955.
4, 15-16: 553, 728, 818,
822, 877, 942.
4, 16: 409, 672, 924, 942,
1034, 1044, 1050, 1068,
1546, A0, I.
4, 23: 727.
5, 24: A’, I.
5, 21-32: 151.
5. 22-23: 1068, 1087.
5, 23: 1058, 1068, 1087.
5, 25: 537, 524.
5, 26: 724, 973, 1206.
5, 27: 1206.
5, 29: 553, A°, VI.
5, 30: 553, 662, 872, 1237.
5, 32: 902.
6, 10: 972.
Philippians 1, 29: 1321.
2, 6-7: 539, Αβ, I.
2, 8: 1064.
2, 21: 733, 849.
3, 13-14: 727.
4, 1: 723.
4, 7: 1039.
4 13: 734.
Colossian.s 1, 10: 244, 675.
1, 13: 1064.
1, 15: 1036.
1, 18: 662, 1015, 1034,
1036, 1068, A°, I.
1, 19: 1045.
1, 24: 507, 1002, 1107,
1111.
1, 27: 1073.
2, 3: 1047.
2, 8: 345.
9

14- lOOQ

2, ’ 19: 455, 1034, 1044,
1050.
3, 3: 1366.

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

3, 10: 1045.
3, 11: 409, 809, 815, 848,
1133.
3, 14: 732.
1 Thess. 2, 20: 723.
4, 3: 819.
2 Thess. 2, 16: 591.
1 Timothy 1, 5: 395.
2, 1-4:'948.
2, 2: 1106.
2, 4: 842, 874, 1479.
2, 5: 868, 1036, 1091.
3 5: A° IX.
3, ’ 15: 145, 188, 233, 311,
716, 726, 874, 934,
1130.
4, 1: A0, XI.
4, 10: 1058.
5, 20: 154.
6, 20: 11, 732, 761, 1043,
1380, A”, IX.
2 Timothy 1, 14: 11, 1380.
2, 1-2: 565.
2, 3: 735.
2, 11: 1107.
3, 1: 11.
3, 5: 526.
3, 17: 981.
4, 2: 1465.
4, 2-5: 154.
4, 3-4: 154, 762, 1372.
Titus 1, 9: 484.
2, 13: 1073.
2, 15: 682.
3, 11: 243.
Hebrews 1, 1-2: 859.
2, 16-17: 1045.
4, 12: 987.
5, 4: 876.
5, 7: 821.
11, 4: 722.
11, 6: 157, 184, 1105,
1261.
12, 1-2: 735.

12. 2: 615, 1049, 1072.
13, 8: 352, 520.
13, 14: 1073.
13, 17: 497, 766, 802,
1095.
13, 20: XIe.
James 1, 17: 538.
2, 10: 573.
1 Peter 1, 25: 1548.
2, 4: 1092.
2. 5: 1008, 1092.
2, 6: 134.
2, 9: 876, 942, 1391.
2, 25: 776, 1039, 1249.
4, 10: 535.
4, 13: 1003.
5, 1-5: 1037.
5, 2: 1285, 1459.
5, 3: 818, 1043, 1392.
5, 4: IX”.
5, 8-9: 966.
2 Peter 1, 4: 1013, 1045,
1348.
1, 10; IIIe.
1, 19: 1511.
2, 1: 243, 966, 967.
3, 9: 1545.
3, 16: 626.
3, 17: 966, 967.
1 John 3, 2: 1045.
3, 18: 751.
4, 1: 127.
4, 8: 395.
4, 9: 662.
4, 14: 867.
4, 15: 1072.
4, 16: 1074.
4, 20-21: 1075.
2 John 10: 867.
Apocalypse 1, 5: 1036.
3. 7: 591.
5, 12: 1069.
5, 13: 1069, 1091.
21, 2: 134, 974, 1551.

899

900

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

SOVEREIGN PONTIFFS
Adrian II; All. in Syn. Rom., an. 869; P.L. 129, 110: 610.
Adrian VI: Mansi 32, 1064: 98.
Agathon (St.): Epist. ad Imp.; P.L. 87, 1163: 161.
Benedict XIV: C.A. Auget pastoralem, 24-1-1741; Bui. I, c. 11: 84.
C.A. Etsi pastoralis, 26-5-1742: 743.
C.A. Nuper ad Nos, 16-3-1743: 951.
L.A. Ad assiduas, Bui. IV, 225: 108.
Inst. Eccle., 29, n. 30: 98.
De Syn., iv, 5: 297.
xiii, c. I, n. 2: 86.
xiii, c. 2, n. 6: 87.
xiii, c. 14, n. 12: 90.
Benedict XV: Ad Beatissimi, 1-11-1914; AAS. 6-565: 1401.
Spiritus Paraclitus, 15-9-1920; AAS. 12-385: 1281.
Boniface I: Decree III; P.L. 20-789. n. 3: 92.
Epist. XIV ad ep. Thes.; P.L. 20-777: 423.
Boniface VIII: Unam Sanctam, 18-11-1302; Denz. 468: 1040.
Al. Consist. 24-6-1302: 1417.
Al. of April 30, 1303 to the envoys of the King of Germany; Monum.
Germ, histor., L. l., sect, iv, t. 1, p. 139: 1417.
Celestine (St.): Ep. 5 ad Episc. Apul. et Cal., n. 3; P.L. 50-437: 395.
Clement of Rome (St.) Epist. I ad Cor., cc. 42 et 44; P.G. I, 291, 298:
565.
Clement XI: C.A. Unigenitus, 8-9-1713; Ft. 270: 394.
Clement XIII: L.A. Christianæ reipuhlicæ, 25-11-1766: 129.
Damasus (St.): Epist. la; P.L. 13-348: 84.
Stephen I (St.): Epist. ad Cypr.; P.L. 3-1128: 763.
Felix II: Epist. ad Athan. et episc. Aegypt.; P.L. 13, n ff. : 792.
Felix III: Epist. IX ad Zen. Imp.; P.L. 58-935: 133.
Gelasius 1 (St.): Epist. 4, seu com. ad Faustum; P.L. 59-28: 47.
Epist. ad episc. Lucaniæ, c. 1; P.L. 59-48: 143, 163, 170.
Epist. VII ad episc. Dardaniae; P.L. 59-66: 297, 394.
Epist. XIII; P.L. 59-67: 610.
Epist. XIV; P.L. 59-89: 1104.
Epist. I ad Euphem; P.L. 59-18: 395.
Gregory the Great (St.): Moral, in Job., XIV, 5; P.L. 75-1043: 158.
Moral, in Job., XIV, 35; P.L. 75-1062: 1042.
Epist. lib. V, epist. 20; P.L. 77-745: 592.
Epist. lib. V, epist. 21; P.L. 77-749: 72.
Epist. lib. VII, epist. 26; P.L. 77-881: 98.
Epist. lib. VII, epist. 40; P.L. 77-899: 400.
Reg. VII, 40, ad Eulog.; P.L. 77-899: 666.
Reg. VIII, 24, epist. ad Sabin.; P. L. 77, 926: 668.
Epist. ad Eulog. Alex. VIII, epist. 30; P. L. 77-933: 364, 533, 613,
1043.
Epist. lib. XI, epist. 4; P. L. 77-1122: 83.
Gregory IX: Epist. 198, lib. XIII: 454.
Gregory XIII: Sanctissimus, Ft. 146; 159.

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

901

Hormisdas: Lib. prof, fidei, 2-4-517; P. L. 63-460: 256, 598.
Form, dogm.; P. L. 63-393: 368.
Innocent I (St.): Epist. ad Alex. Antioch.; P. L. 20-548: 30, 78.
Epist. ad Decent. Eugub.; P. L. 20, 252: 30.
Epist. 182, 2, inter Augustin.; P. L. 33, 784: 897.
Epist. ad Joan. Const.; P. G. 52. 529-538: 199.
Innocent III: Reg. lib. I, epist. 50; P. L. 214, 45: 80.
John XXII: C. A. Licet juxta doctrinam, 23-10-1327; Ft. 38: 92.
Julius III: L. A. Exposcit debitum, 21-7-1550: 1481, 1483.
Leo I (St.): Epist. X ad episc. Prov. Vienn.; P. L. 54, 629: 176-177.
Epist. XIV ad Anastasium; P. L. 54, 676: 176, 307.
Epist. 98; P. L. 54, 953: 185.
Epist. CIV ad Marcianum; P. L. 54, 995: 163.
Epist. CLXVll ad Rust. Narb.; P. L. 54. 1202: 142.
De nat. ejusdem serm. II; P. L. 54, 144: 145.
De nat. ejusdem, serm. Ill; P. L. 54, 146: 360, 311, 593, 207, 991.
De nat. ejusdem, serm. IV; P. L. 54, 150: 44, 145, 356, 399, 420,
423, 590, 592, 602.
Serm. Ill; P. L. 54-146: XI°.
Serm. XXI; P. L. 54-192-193: 1067.
Serm. LXIII; P. L. 54-357: 1109.
Serm. LXVI; P. L. 54-366: 1109.
Serm. LXVIII; P. L. 54-374: 1029.
Serm. LXXXII; P.L. 54-423: 966, 999, 240.
Leo IX (St.): Epist. ad Micha. Patr. Const.; P. L. 143-764: 782.
Leo X: C. A. Pastor æternus, 19-12-1516; Denz. 740: 610.
Leo XIII: Cum multa sint, 8-12-1882: 499.
Divinum iUud, 9-5-1897; A. L. 17, 125: 1026, 1056, 1081.
Diuturnum, 29-6-1881; A. L. 2-269: 1415.
Epistola tua, 17-6-1885; A. L. 5-68: 499.
Immortale Dei, 1-11-1885; A. L. 5-118:632, 1105, 1212, 1413, 1415.
In mezzo, 4-11-1884; A. A. 2-103: 499.
Libertas, 20-6-1888; A. L. 8-212: 888. .
Nobilissima Gallorum, 2-2-1884; Ft. 590: 499.
Orientalium, 30-11-1894; Ft. 627: 783.
Providentissimus, 18-11-1893; A. L. 13-326: 1113, 1281.
Rerum novarum, 16-5-1891; A. L. 11. 97: 910.
Sapientiæ christianæ, 10-1-1890; Ft. 605: 1054, 1062, 1415.
Satis cognitum, 29-6-1896; Ft. 630: 1040, 1054, 1062, 1063.
Nicholas I: Epist. 86 ad Mich, imp.; P. L. 119-948: 54, 366, 610.
Paul III: C. A. Initio nostri, 22-5-1542: 1162.
Pelagius II: Epist. 3 ad episc. Istriæ; P. L. 72. 707: 236.
Pius IV; C. A. Benedictus Deus, 26-1-1564: 1163.
C. A. Injunctum nobis, 13-11-1564; Ft. 108: 159.
Let. to the Prince Electors, Rainaldi, Cont. des Ann. de Baronins,
(Cologne, 1726), t. 21, p. 2, an. 1563, n. 44: 54.
Pius VI: Auctorem fidei, 28-8-1794; Ft. 475: 169, 172, 178, 410, 631.
Quod aliquantum, 10-3-1791; Gl. 1-104: 396.
Resp super Nunt. Apost., Romæ 1789, c. VIII, sect. 2 n. 24: 449.
Super soliditate, 28-11-1786; Ft. 473: 366, 399, XI°.

902

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

Pius IX: Ineffabilis Deus, 8-12-1864; A. P. 1-597: 1291.
Inter gravissimas, 28-10-1870; Ft. 558: 1281.
Jam vos omnes, 13-9-1868; A. P. 4-433: 1104.
Romani Pontifices, 6-1-1862; Ft. 531: 782.
Mirabilis illa, 2-3-1875; A. P. 7-29: 428, 429.
Reversurus, 12-7-1867; Ft. 546; 396.
Singularum quadam, 9-12-1854; Ft. 518: 1260.
Quum non sine, 14-7-1864; Ft. 539: 886.
AL Consist. 3-11-1855; A. P. 2-447: 502.
Pius X (St.): Ad diem ilium. 2-2-1904; A. P. X 1. 147: 1112.
Arduumsane, 17-3-1904; A. P. X. 1-219: 772.
Lamentabili, 3-7-1907; Ft. 1283: 739.
Pascendi, 8-9-1907; Ft. 680: 739, 763.
Singulari quadam, 24-9-1912; AAS. 4. 657: 888, 1526.
Pius XI: Ad catholici sacerdotii, 20-12-1936; AAS. 28. 5: 936.
Divini Redemptoris, 19-3-1937; AAS. 29-65: 1060.
Mortalium animos, 6-1-1928; AAS-20-5: 924.
Quadragesimo anno, 15-3-1931; AAS-23-177: 1184.
Al. of 14-12-1925: 840.
Pius XXII: Ad Sinarum gentem, 7-10-1954; AAS. 47, 5: 1532.
Divino afflante, 30-9-1943; AAS. 35-207: 1281.
Humani generis, 12-8-1950; AAS-42-561: 1272, 1302, 1311, 1387,
1388, 1448, 1450.
Munificentissimus, 1-11-1950; AAS. 42-743: 1389.
Musicæ sacræ, 25-12-1955; AAS. 48-5: 1453.
Mystici Corporis, 29-6-1943; AAS. 35-193: 1259, 1260, 1282, 1467,
1495, 1532, 1603.
Perlibenti quidem, 9-8-1950; AAS. 42-725: 1306.
Sacra virginitas, 25-3-1954; AAS. 46-161: 1452.
Summi pontificatus, 20-10-1939; AAS. 31-413: 1104.
Al. to the Academy of Sciences, 30-11-1941; AAS. 33-504: 1284.
Al. to the Cardinals 24-12-1945; AAS. 38-15: 1173, 1470.
R.M. of 24-11-1946; D. R. 8-325: 1470.
Al to the Cardinals 24-12-1946; AAS. 39-7: 1340.
Al. the Congress of the States of Perfection, 8-12-50; AAS. 43-28:
Al. the Congress of Lav Apostles, 14-10-1951; AAS. 43, 784: 1498.
Al. of 23-3-1952; AAS.' 44-270: 1399, 1449.
Al. of 18-4-1952; AAS. 44-420: 1399, 1449.
Al. of 12-1-1953; D. R. 14-447: 1336.
Al. of 31-5-1954; AAS. 46-313: 1389, 1450, 1459, 1498.
Al. of 2-11-1954; AAS. 46-666: 1450, 1459.
Since (St.): Epist. I ad Himerium Tarrac; P.L. 13-1132: 103.
Stephen I (St.): Epist. ad Cypr.; P. L. 3-1128: 763.
Zosime: Epist IV; P. L. 20-662: 133.

DECREES
Holy Office: Decree of 24-1-1647: 743.
Decree of 2-12-1940: 1096.
Decree of 9-4-1957: 1537.

INDEX ΟΓ QUOTATIONS

903

Secretariat of State: Let. to the Sem. soc. of Canada, 18-7-1953; 1476.
Cong, of the Propaganda: Instruction of 3-7-1830: 783.

COUNCILS
Aquil.; Mansi, 3-622: 360, 423.
Basel, Sess. V.; Mansi, 29-245: 42.
Chalcedon, Act. 11; Mansi, 6-971 ff.: 192, 200, 237, 598, 1309.
Act. Ill; Mansi, 6-1047: 1307.
Act. IV; Mansi, 7-10: 410, 1309.
Epist. ad Leon.; Mansi, 6-147-149: 185-1307.
in Epist. 98, S. Leon.; Mansi, 6-972: 35.
can. 28: 610.
Constantinople (Hie) : Act. XVIII; Mansi, 11-666: 598.
(IVe): Libellus fidei; Mansi, 16-27-28 et 47: 36, 368.
(IVe): Act. VIL. 610.
(Ville): Mansi, 16-28 et 47: 36.
Ephesus: Act. II; Mansi, 4-1290: 925.
Act. Ill; Mansi, 4-1296: 192, 207, 237, 360, 403, 598.
Act. IV; Mansi, 4-1312: 215, 219, 236.
Florence: Decret, union.; Mansi, 31-1031: 38, 162, 207, 237, 309, 368,
594, XI.
Dec. pro Jacob.; Mansi, 31-1738: 1030.
Lateran (IVe): c. Firmiter; Mansi, 22-981: 159, 594.
c. 5; Mansi, 22-989-990: 37, 295, 873.
can. 50; Mansi, 22-1035: 142.
(Ve): Ses. 3; Mansi, 32-842: 344.
Ses. IV; Mansi, 32-967: 610.
Lyons (2nd): Mansi, 24-70-71-88: 38, 366, 368, 599, ΧΓ.
Nicea (2nd): Mansi, 12-1081: 236.
Orange: Act. II, can. 7; Mansi, 8-712: 637.
Orleans: Mansi, 9-12: 46.
Sardic: Mansi, 3-7: 792.
Sens: Mansi, 32-1157: 67, 97.
Trent: Bulla, indie.: 1162.
Sess. IV; Mansi, 33-22: 144.
Sess. VI; Mansi, 33-33 ff.: 1258, 1261.
Sess. VII; Mansi, 33-53: 192, 236, 783, 1240.
Sess. XIII; Mansi, 33-80: 76, 163, 205, 649, 1348.
Sess. XIV; Mansi, 33-96: 39.
Sess. XXII; Mansi, 33-128: 76, 783, 1192, 1219.
Sess. XXIII; Mansi, 33-147: 89, 1236, 1378.
Sess. XXIV; Mansi, 33-149: 76, 774.
Sess. XXV; Mansi, 33-172: 95.
Professio fidei; Mansi, 33-220: 159.
Bulla confirm., 26-1-1564: 1163.
Vatican: C.A. Dei Filius; Mansi, 51-430: 510, 527, 547, 573, 628, 629,
631, 725, 903, 904, 912, 1011, 1014, 1064, 1066, 1081, 1105,
1178, 1256, 1278, 1291, 1292, 1451.

904

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

C.A. Pastor Aeternus; Mansi, 52-1330: 436, 532, 1013, 1042, 1064,
1177, 1378, 1535, 1536.

LAW AND LITURGY
Corpus juris can.: Extrav. Comm. I: 532, 1040.
Codex juris canonici: can. 87: 1496;
can. 107: 1207, 1297;
can. 108: 1207, 1378;
can. 109: 1157, 1378;
can. 329: 1042;
can. 331: 1531;
can. 339: 1531;
can. 467: 1496;
can. 488: 1208;
can. 545: 1299;
can. 626: 1299;
can. 631: 1299;
can. 682: 1496;
can. 892: 1496;
can. 953: 1537;
can. 1257: 1230;
can. 1261: 1230;
can. 1324: 904, 1278;
can. 1327: 1492;
can. 1328: 1492;
can. 1351: 1105, 1418.
Breviarium romanum: Off. SS. Cordis: 1111.
Missale romanum: 110, 1138, 1249, 1445.
Pontifcale romanum: De ordin. preshyt.: 931, 1228.
De cons, virgin.: 1360.

FATHERS AND OTHER AUTHORS
Ambrose (St.): Hexaem., vi, 55; P. L. 14-265: 1037.
in Psalm, xl, 30; P. L. 14-1082: 33, 148, 192, 639.
in Psalm, cxvm, serm. XX, 2; P. L. 14-710: 1058.
in Psalm, cxvm, serm. xxn, 30; P. L. 15-1521: 1109.
de Elia et jejun., x, 36-37; P. L. 14-1483: 1058.
in Luc., ii, 87; P. L. 15-1585: 1028.
in Luc., iv, 49; P. L. 15-1626: 1088.
in Luc., x, 175-176; P. L. 15-1848: 588.
de Pænitent., i, 7; P. L. 16-476: 148.
de Eide, iv, 56; P. L. 16-628: 589.
Epist. ii; P. L. 16-917: 1549.
Epist. xi; P. L. 16-946: 23, 219, 236, 360, 392.
Epist. xx; P. L. 16-999: 425.
Epist. xxi; P. L. 16-1012: 136.
Anotolius (Patriarch): Epist. ad Leonem, inter epistolas S. Leonis,

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

905

cvxxxn, n. 4; P. L. 54-1084; 400, 1308.
Argentre (C. d’): Coll. Judic., 11, Paris, 1728, n. 291: 75.
Athanasius (St.): Epist. in epist. S. Felicis II; P.L. 13-11 ff., et P. G.
28-1473 ff.: 792.
Hist. Arian, ad monachos; P. G. 25-747 et 756: 68, 410.
Symbole Quicumque: 164, 193, 761.
Auctor: Tract, de Fide orthod. contra Arianos, parmi les œuvres de
Phœbade d’Agen; P. L. 20-34: 576.
Augustine (St.): De moribus Eccl. Cathol., 1, 30; P. L. 32-1336 ff.:
815, 890.
Epist, XLIII; P. L. 33-163: 43, 192, 215, 236, 596.
Epist. liv, 5, ad Jan.; P. L. 33-203: 75.
Epist. lxi; P. L. 33-228: 318.
Epist. cv; P. L. 33-403: 23, 215.
Epist. cxli, 5; P. L. 33-579: 158.
Epist. cxc, ad Optatum; P. L. 33-865: 898, 922.
Epist. cxxxvui, ad Marcell.; P. L. 33-533: 965.
Epist. clvii, c; P. L. 33-685: 1024.
De Cons. Evang. i, 35, 54; P. L. 34-1070: 1049.
In Joann. Evang. Tract, v, 15; P. L. 35-1422: 899.
In Joann. Evang. Tract, xvn, 5; P. L. 35-1536: 559.
In Joann. Evang. Tract, xxvn, 2; P. L. 35-1607: 1105.
In Joann. Evang. Tract, xxvi, 13-17; P. L. 35-1613-1614: 648, 978,
1346, 1348.
In Joann. Evang. Tract, li, 13; P. L. 35-1768: 958.
In Epist. Joann., Tract, i, 13; P. L. 35-1988: 551.
In Epist. Joann., Tract, x, 8; P. L. 35-2060: 1468.
Enarr. in Ps. xvm, 51; P. L. 36-154: 1068, IVe.
Enarr. in Ps. liv, 19; P. L. 36-641: 573.
Enarr. in Ps. lxxi, 8; P. L. 36-906: 545.
Enarr. in Ps. lxxxv; P. L. 37-1085-1092: 1058, 1194.
Enarr. in Ps. lxxxvi; P. L. 37-1104 ff.: 878.
Enarr. in Ps. lxxxviii, 11, 14: P. L. 37-1140: 617.
Enarr. in Ps. xc, 1-2; P. L. 37-1159: 1068.
Enarr. in Ps. cm, 11, 5; P. L. 37-1353: 545.
Serm. lxxi, in Matth., xn, 32; P. L. 38-462: 526.
Serm. cv, Audivimus, 10; P. L. 38-623: 1420.
Serm. cxxxi, x, 10; P. L. 38-734: 898.
Serm. cxxxvn, 1; P. L. 38-754: 1024.
Serm. ccx, in Quadrag.; P. L. 38-1053: 712.
Serm. cclxvii, de Temp.; P. L. 38-1231: 554, 620.
Serm. cclxxii; P. L. 38-1247: 1237.
Serm. ccxli, 1; P. L. 39-1493: 1166.
Serm. ccliv, 1; P. L. 39-1563: 1052.
De Agon. Christi, χχ, 22; P. L. 40-301: 1037.
De S. Virginitate, vi; P. L. 40-399: 662.
De Symbol, ad Catech., Tract, iv, 13; P. L. 40-668: 145, 887.
De Civitate Dei, x, 6; P. L. 41-284: 1237.
De Civitate Dei, χιχ, 17; P. L. 41-646: 1175.
De Hæresib., 88; P.L. 42-50: 567.

906

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

Contra Epist. Manich. quam vocant Fundamenti, ιν, 5; P.L. 42-175:
896.
Contra Faust. Manich., lib. xvn, 3; P.L. 42-342: 573.
Contra Faust. Manich., lib. xxi, 8; P. L. 42-392: 1068.
De utilitate credendi, χνι, 34; P. L. 42-90: 892.
De utilitate credendi, xvn, 35; P. L. 42-90 ff.: 575, 893.
Psalm, contra part. Donati; P. L. 43-30: 33, 164, 236.
Contra Epist. Parmeniani; P. L. 43-69 et 107:’581, 895.
De Baptismo, 11, 1; P. L. 43-127: 33.
Contra litt. Petiliani, n, 51; P. L. 43-300: 33.
Contra Donatist. Epist. de Unitate Eccl., iv, 7; P. L. 43-395: 615.
De Gratia Christi, xix; P. L. 44-370: 638.
De pecc. origin., xxv, 29; P. L. 44-400: 1031.
Avitus of Vienne (St.): Epist lxxxvii, ad Honnisdam PP.: P. L. 59290: 46.
Basil (St.): Epist., 1, 11, n. 69; P. G. 32-432: 792.
Hom. de Pcenit., 4 (in Append.); P. G. 31-1483: 590.
Bellarmine (St. Robert): De Concit., n, 19: 1052.
De Missa, n, 8: 1237.
De Rom. Pont., i, 9: 1052.
Bernard (St.): De Consideratione, Prolog.; P. L. 182-727-728: 1343.
De Consideratione, 1. u, c. 8; P. L. 182-751: 34, 607, 1343.
De Consideratione, 1. m, c. 1; P. L. 182-757: 1343.
De Error. Abelardi, Præf., P. L. 182-1053-1054: 1344.
De Error. Abelardi, 1, i, c. 2; P. L. 182-1056: 1344.
'Epist. 188; P. L. 182-353: 1344.
Epist. 190; P. L. 182-1053: 369.
Epist. 192; P. L. 182-358-359: 1344.
Bossuet: Sermon sur l’unité de l’Eglise: 967.
Brunonis (St.): Comment, in Joan., 1. in, c. xxi, n. 55; P. L. 165-600:
605.
Bulæus: Hist. Univ. Parisiensis, iv, 1688, p. 31-33; 1417.
Gan. Apostl., xxxvm; Mansi, 1, 38: 162.
Caesarius of Arles (St.): Libellus . . . Symmacho PP. oblatus; P. L. 6253: 46.
Charlemagne: Capitulaires, ann. 789, cap. xv: P. L. 97-146: 90.
Capital, de Imaginibus; P. L. 98-999: 94.
Cicero: De Oratore, 1. n, c. 9, n. 36: 1163.
Clement of Alexandria: Stromates, vu, 2; P. G. 9-413: 1058.
Stromates, vu, 17; P. G. 9-551: 549.
Cyprian (St.): Contra Novat., epist. lu, 24; P. L. 3-790: 423.
De habitu virginum, ni; P. L. 4-4443: 1361.
De Unitate Ecclesiæ, iv; P. L. 4-498 ff.: 236, 392, 553, 555, 603,
872, 1547.
Epist. xxvii, i, ad laicos; P. L. 4-298: 683.
Epist. xl, 5; P. L. 4-336: 28, 236.
Epist. xlv; P. L. 3-710: 215, 236, 255, 595, 596, 874.
Epist. lii, 24, ad Anast.; P. L. 3-790: 155, 163, 182, 416.
Epist. lv, 5, ad Corn.; P.L. 3-802-818: 28, 192, 215, 236, 595, 603,
999, 1477, 1504.

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

907

Epist. lxix, 8, ad Flor. Pup.; P. L. 4-406: 148, 397, 455, 776.
Epist. lxxvi, i, ad Magn.; P. L. 3-1138: 566, 648.
Cyril of Alexandria (St): Comment, in Luc, xxii, 32; P. G. 72-916:
790.
In Joann., 1. i, c. iv; P. G. 73-69: 1036.
In Joann., 1. n, in c. 1, V. 42; P. G. 73-219-220: 236, 583.
In isaiam, in 25; P. G. 70, 562: IV0.
de Trinitate, dial, iv; P. G. 75-859: 790.
Epist. 55; P. G. 77-292-293: 1049, 1118.
Epist. 61; P. G. 77-325: 1118.
Cyril of Jerusalem (St.): Catéch. 17, n. 15; P. G. 33-988: 618.
Catéch. 22, n. 3; P. G. 33-1109: 1348.
Dante: Conv. n, 9: 799.
Epist. vin : 800.
Mon. in, 3: 799.
Mon. in, 16: 801.
Paradis, xxxm, 13-15: 969.
Didache, ix, 4: 1084, 1350.
Ephrem (St.): Encom. in Petr, et Paul., cf. Hymni et Sermones, ed.
Lamy, t. iv, p. 682 ff.: 795.
Hymn, de Virginitate, ed. Lamy, iv, p. 534: 795.
Epiphanius (St.): Hæres., lxviii, 9; P. G. 42-197: 31.
Stephen of Larissa: In Libell. oblat., P. L. 65-39: 403.
Eusebius: Hist. Eccl., 1. in, c. 4; P. G. 20-220-221: 82.
Hist. Eccl., 1. v, c. 24; P. G. 20-505-508: 1350.
Gregorj' of Nyssa (St.): De Vita Moysis; P. G. 44-385: 1052.
Gregory of Tours (St.): Hist. Franc., 1. x, c. 31, n. 16: P. L. 71-570: 93.
Hilary (St.): Comment, in Matth., xm, i; P. L. 9-993: 570.
de Trinitate, vu, 4; P. L. 10-202: 227, 853.
Hincmar: Mansi, 16, 621 in P. L. 126-608: 47.
Ignatius of Antioch (St.): Epist. ad Ephesios, n. 3; P. G. 5-647: 765.
Epist. ad Ephesios, n. 4; P. G. 5-648: 473.
Epist ad Ephesios, n. 20; P. G. 5-661-662: 525, 1238.
Epist. ad Philadel., in; P.G. 5-699-700: 158, 525, 780.
Epist. ad Polycarp., vi, n. 2; P. G. 5-723-726: 1548.
Epist. ad Rom., Préambule; P. G. 5-685: 791.
Ignatius of Loyola (St.): Régies pour penser avec l’Eglise: 1481.
Irenaeus (St.): Adv. Hærescs, 1, in, c. in, n. 2; P.G. 7-849: 23, 155,
182, 185, 192, 195, 198, 215, 219, 220, 225, 256, 360, 392, 594,
796, 1482, 1588.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. in, c. in, n. 3; P. G. 7-851: 23, 125.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. m, c. iv: 1°.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. in, c. xn, n. 12; P. G. 7-906; 559.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. in, c. xxii; P. G. 7-959: 1550.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. ni, c. xxiv, n. i; P. G. 7-966: 626.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. iv, c. xxvi, n. 5; P. G. 7-1056: 626, 742.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. iv, c. xxvn; P. G. 7-1061: 742.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. iv, c. xxxm, n. 7; P. G. 7-1076: 1104.
Adv. Hæreses, 1. iv, c. xxxm, n. 8; P. G. 7-1077: 569.

908

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

John Chrysostom (St.): De sacerdotio, π; P.G. 48-632: 588.
Hom. ante exil., 1 et 2; P. G. 52-427: 423.
Hom. de capto Eutropio, 6; P. G. 52-402: 545, 654.
Hom. I in Inscr. altar.; P. G. 51-71: 638.
Lit. syn. ad Hormisd. pont.; P. L. 63-444: 192, 217, 236.
Epist. ad Innocent. I; P. G. 52-529 et 536: 161, 792.
Hom. I in Matth., 1; P. G. 57-15: 618.
Hom. LIV in Matth., 2; P. G. 58-534: 586.
Hom. XLVI in Joann., 3; P. G. 69-261: 1348.
Hom. LXXXVHI in Joann., 1; P. G. 59-478: 591, 602.
Hom. HI in Act. Apost.; P. G. 60-35: 29.
Hom. XXIV in Epist. I ad Cor., 2; P. G. 61-200: 978, 1348.
Hom. in cap. I Epist. ad Gal., 6; P. G. 61-622: 68.
Hom. XI in Epist. ad Ephes., 5; P. G. 62-87: 581.
John Damascene (St.): Orat. II de Sacris Imaginibus, η. 16; P. G. 941301: 410.
Jerome (St.): Epist. xv, ad Damasum; P. L. 22-355 et 358: 32, 148,
177, 185, 192, 229, 596, 639, 786.
Epist. xvi, ad Damasum; P. L. 22-359: 164, 596, 786.
Epist. lu, 7, ad Nepot.; P. L. 22-533: 162.
Epist. cxii, 14; P. L. 22-924: 1030.
Epist. cxvi, 16; P. L. 22-943: 1030.
Dialog, contra Luciferianos, ix; P. L. 23-165: 601.
Ado. Jovin., i, 34, P. L. 23-258: 84.
Adv. Vigil., vi; P. L. 23-345: 786.
Dialog, contra Pelag., Prol., 2; P. L. 23-397: 787.
Contra Ruf., m, 43; P. L. 23-489: 787.
De Viris illust., xvii; P. L. 23-635: 82.
In Isai., lih. vi, cap. xvi, 1-5; P. L. 24-234-236: 787.
In Dan., m, 37; P. L. 25-510: 786.
In Mich., 1, 10 ff.; P. L. 25-1163: 787.
In Mich., iv, 1 ff.; P. L. 25-1186: 789.
In Agg., π, 1 ff.; P. L. 25-1402: 789.
In Matth., Prol.; P. L. 26-17: 789.
In Matth., lib. iv, cap. xxvm, 20; P. L. 26-218: 564.
Comm, in Epist. ad Titum, m, 10-11; P. L. 26-598: 581.
Justin (St.): Apol., i, 65; P. G. 6-428: 1350.
Lactantius: Divin. Institut., 1. iv, c. xxx, n. 11-12; P. L. 6-542 ff.: 873.
Lothair: Capitulaires, Tit. iv, c. 1; P. L. 97-649: 90.
Mabillon: Vetera Analecta, p. 259 (ed. 1723): 93.
Macaulay: Critical and Hist. Essays, von Ranke, vol. II, 128-131: 1115.
Marca (Peter de): De Concord. Sacerd. et Imp., 1. n, c. 7, n. 8: 74.
De Concord. Sacerd. et Imp., 1. n, c. 9, n. 4 et 7: 79.
Marcian (the emperor): Epist. ad S. Leonem, inter epist. S. Leonis, cap.
in, epist. 100; P. L. 54-974: 400.
Martène (Dom): De antiquis Ecclesiæ Ritibus, éd. 1736, t. n, c. 8, art.
11, ordines 8 et 10: 73.
Maximus the Confessor (St.): Defloratio ex Epist. ad Petrum illustrem;
P. G. 91-144: 597.

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

909

Maxime of Turin, serin. 29; P. L. 57-594: 1076.
serm, 94; P. L. 57-722: 311.
Newman: Apologia: 895.
Optatus of Mila (St.): De schismate Donatist., 1. n, n. 2; P. L. 11-947:
23, 236, 392, 603.
De schismate Donatlist., 1. n, n. 4-5; P. L. 11-955 ff. 604.
De schismate Donatist., 1. in, n. 2; P. L. 11-996: 551.
De schismate Donatist., 1. vn, n. 3; P. L. 11-1087: 24.
Origen: Comment, in Matth., xn, 11; P. G. 13-1667: 569, 585.
Pacelli (Card.) Discorsi, p. 52: 1588.
Pacien (St.): Epist. 1, 4; P. L. 13-1055: 761.
Epist. ni, ad Sympronium, n. 11; P. L. 13-1071: 423, 583.
Paul the Deacon: De ordine episcop.; P. L. 95-709: 93.
Peter Chrysologus (St.): Epist. ad Eutychen, epist. 25 inter S. Leonis
epistolas; P. L. 54-743: 192, 207, 237, 423.
Prudentius: Contra Symmachum, 1, 585; P. L. 60-169: 1337.
Racine: Athalie, act. 1, sc. i, 1. 71: 1329.
Richard of St. Victor: De Trinitate, p. 1, c. 2; P. L. 196-891: 572.
Rousseau (O.): La vraie valeur de l épiscopat dans ΓEglise, in ‘Trenikon”, xxix, 121: 428.
Rufinus: Hist. Eccl., n, 9; P. L. 21-518: 570.
Sozomenius: Hist. Eccl., m, 8; P. G. 67-1052: 199, 236.
Tertullian: Apolo., c. 50; P. L. 1-535: 385.
De prescriptione, 21; P. L. 2-33: 570.
De prescriptione, 36; P. L. 2-49: 236.
Scorpiace, 10; P. L. 2-142: 24.
Theodore Stud. (St.): Epist. 2 ad Michaelem imp.; P. G. 99-1331: 790.
Theodoret: Hist. Eccl., 1, 34; P. G. 82-1261 ff.: 793.
Thomas Aquinas (St.): In IV Sent., d xvn, a iv, q. 4, ad 3m: 612.
In IV Sent., d xxi, q. 1, ad 1, 3: 1466.
Ia, q. xx, art. 4, ad lm: 1036.
Ia, q. xxii, art. 1-4: 1037.
Ia, q. xliii, art. 3: 1081.
Ia Ilae, q. xcn, art. 2: 1186.
Ia Hae, q. xcvn, art. 2: 75.
Ia Ilae, q. cm, art. 3, ad 2m: 1029-1030.
Ia Ilae, q. cm, art. 4, ad lm: 1030.
Ila Hae, q. i, art. 10: 512.
Ila Hae, q. m, art. 1: 1264.
Ha Ilae, q. m, art. 2, ad 2m: 505.
Ila Hae, q. v, art. 3: 512.
Ila Ilae, q. x, art. 12: 1503.
Ila Ilae, q. xxxix, art. 1: 580.
Ha Ilae, q. lxxxhi, art. 5 et 6: 1090.
Ila Ilae, q. lxxxvhi, art. 12, ad 3m: 96.
Ha Illae, q. clxxiv, art. 6, ad 3m: 1589.
Illa, q. vin, art. 1, ad 3m: 535.
Illa, q. xxx, art. 1: 1111.
Illa, q. xlii, art. 1: 1030.
Hia, q. lxiv, art. 3: 1050.

910

INDEX OF QUOTATIONS

Illa, q. lxxix, art. 1: 648.
Illa, Suppl., q. χχνι, art. 3: 297.
Illa, Suppl., q. xxix, ad 3, sed contra 2: 1503.
Expos, in Epist. ad Rom., 1, i: 1469.
Comm, in Epist. ad Ephes., I, 8: 1045, 1079.
Comm, in Epist. ad Ephes., II, 5: 1078.
De veritate, q. xxix, art. 4: 1061, 1091.
De veritate, q. xxix, art. 4, ad 3m: 1063.
Op. contra errores Græc., η. 11, cap. 36: 484.
Contra Gent., IV, 76: 582.
Vincent of Lerins: Commonit., 23; P. L. 50-668: 996.
Commonit., 28; P. L. 50-675: 347.
Virgil: Eglogue IV, 5-6: 1001.
Yves of Chartres: Epist. 8 ad Richard Senon.; P. L. 162-18: 47.

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS
AND SOURCES
ALPHABETICAL INDEX OF

WRITTEN DOCUMENTS
The numbers in bold type refer to the paragraphs of this volume.
The abbreviations in the last column (see key to Abbreviations,
p. 827), refer to the sources of the documents.

Ab ipsis
Acerbo nimis
Ad Apostolicæ
Ad Apostolorum Principis
Ad beatissimi
Ad catholici
Ad diem illum
Ad plurimas
Ad salutem
Ad Sinarum gentem
AEtemi Patris
AEterni Patris
Adjutricem populi
Amantissimus
Anno jam ineunte
Annum ingressi sumus
A quo die Nobis
Arcanum
Auctorem fidei
Au milieu des sollicitudes
A voi prediletti
Caritas illa
Caritas quæ
Caritate Christi
Caritate Christi
Caritatis studium
Casti connubii
Ci si è domandato
Commissum divinitus
Compertum plane
Cum Catholica
Cum in catholicae
Cum in Ecclesia
Cum in superiore
Cum memoranda
Cum multa sint

June 15, 1926
April 15, 1905
August 22, 1851
June 29, 1958
Nov. 1, 1914
Dec. 20, 1935
Feb. 2, 1904
Dec. 19, 1861
April 20, 1930
Oct. 7, 1954
June 29, 1868
August 4, 1879
Oct. 5, 1895
April 8, 1862
March 7, 1917
March 19, 1902
Sept. 13, 1758
Feb. 10, 1880
August 28, 1794
Feb. 16, 1892
Feb. 2, 1959
June 16, 1777
April 13, 1791
Dec. 25, 1825
May 3, 1932
Julv 25, 1898
Dec. 31, 1930
May 30, 1929
May 17, 1835
August 19, 1897
March 26, 1860
Ian. 29, 1920
Sept. 17, 1833
April 4, 1925
June 10. 1809
Dec. 8, 1882
911

848 AAS. 18, 303
671
Ft. 666
214 Ft. 511
1524 AAS. 50, 601
757
Ft. 702
927
AAS. 28, 5
661
AP. 1, 147
231
APC. 64, 183
891
AAS. 22, 201
1377 AAS. 47, 5
311
Ft. 551
443
Ft. 577
536
AL. 15, 300
233
Ft. 533
769
AAS. 9, 171
652
AL. 22, 52
8
BI. 1, 9
444
Ft. 580
103
Ft. 475
520
AL. 12, 19
1586 OR. 21, 2, 59
17
Bl. 1, 136
99
Ft. 474
147
Bl. 1,114
925
AAS. 24, 177
622
Ft. 637
901
AAS. 22, 539
883
AAS. 21, 257
175
Ft. 490
621
AL. 17, 262
225
Ft. 528
785
AAS. 12, 57
165
Ft. 487
831
AAS. 17, 187
136
ACDC. 3, 80
453
Ft. 587

912

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

Cum Romanis
Cum semper
Cum summi Apostolatus
Cupimus in primis
Da grave sventura
Deessemus Nos
Dei Filius
Depuis le jour
Deus scientiarum
Didicimus non sine
Diu satis
Divina Christi Domini
Divini cultus
Divini illius
Divino afflante
Divinum Domini
Divinum illud
Dobbiamo
Doctor Mellifluus
Dolendum profecto

Dec. 4, 1869
Feb. 10, 1921
Dec. 12, 1768
Jan. 18, 1952
August 27, 1878
Sept. 16, 1788
April 24, 1870
Sept. 8, 1899
May 24, 1931
Jan. 21, 1878
May 15, 1800
Sept. 20, 1779
Dec. 20, 1928
Dec. 31, 1929
Sept. 30, 1943
Jan. 22, 1888
May 9, 1897
April 26, 1931
June 24, 1953
March 12, 1870

325
798
14
1320
440
63
336
640
912
439
124
18
879
885
1113
488
618
967
1343
332

Dominus ac Redemptor
Dudum Nos
Ecclesia Christi
Ecclesiam Dei
Editæ sæpe
Epistola tua
Es bereitete

July 21, 1773
August 22, 1841
August 15, 1801
Nov. 12, 1923
May 26, 1910
June 17, 1885
April 15, 1958

16
187
134
820
722
459
1516

E solemnibus
Est sane molestum
E Supremi Apostolatus
Etsi multa
Etsi pastoralis
Evangelii praecones
Ex epistola
Eximia Nos laetitia
Exortae
Ex quo nono
Fidei donum
Firmissimam
Fulgens radiatur
Grave admodum
Gravissimum
Graviter sane
Has ad te litteras
Hortus conclusus
Humani generis
Humani generis
II divisamento
11 fermo proposito

August 28, 1908
Dec. 17, 1888
Oct. 4, 1903
Nov. 21, 1873
May 26, 1742
June 2, 1951
Oct. 26, 1865
July 19, 1893
April 29, 1876
Dec. 26, 1910
April 21, 1957
March 28, 1937
March 21, 1947
Sept. 30, 1833
Sept. 8, 1745
Sept. 28, 1844
May 23, 1840
Dec. 15, 1881
June 15, 1917
August 12, 1950
Feb. 8, 1893
June 11, 1905

710
495
654
323
3
1305
292
523
432
743
1467
942
1209
167
4
189
184
452
774
1275
522
672

Ft. 554
AAS. 13, 127
Bl. 21
AAS. 44, 153
Ft. 575
MTC. 25, 694
Ft. 10
AL. 19, 157
AAS. 23, 241
AP. 7, 471
Bl. 1, 5
Bl. 1, 230
AAS. 21, 33
AAS. 22, 49
AAS. 35, 297
AL. 8, 45
AL. 17, 25
AAS. 23, 145
AAS. 45, 329
Col. Lac., 7,
1537
Bl. 261
Ft. 498
Ft. 476
AAS. 15, 573
Ft. 687
AL. 5, 68
Sch. Kir.
1, 5, 58
AP. 5, 292
Ft. 601
Ft. 653
Ft. 566
Ft. 328
AAS. 43, 497
ASS. 11, 210
AL. 13, 221
Ft. 571
Ft. 691
AAS. 49, 225
AAS. 29, 189
AAS. 39, 137
AG. 1, 270
Bl. 1, 140
AG. 3, 299
AG. 3, 19
AL. 2, 474
Ft. 713
AAS. 42, 561
Ft. 617
AP. 2, 112

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

Illa fiducia
Immortale Dei
In Apostolicum
In Dominico agro
Ineffabilis
Iniquis afflictisque
In mezzo
In praeclara
In Suprema Petri
Inter gravissimas
Inter gravissimas
Inter multiplices
Intimo gaudio
Ita venerabilis

Jam fere sextus annus
Jampridem
Jam vos omnes
Jucunda sane
Lætanti admodum
Lamentabili
Le insolite
Libenter quidem
Libertas
Litterae tuae
Longinqua Oceani
Lux veritatis
Magno et acerbo
Majori certo
Maximum illud
Mediator Dei
Meminisse juvat
Menti nostrae
Minime ignoramus
Mirae caritatis
Mirari vos
Miserentissimus
Mit brennender Sorge
Mortalium animos
Multiplices inter
Multiplice quidem
Munificentissimus
Musicae sacrae
Mystici Corporis
Nobilissima GalTorum gens
Non abbiamo bisogno
Non abs re
Non mediocri
Non semel
Non sine gravi

July 10, 1790
Nov. 1, 1885
March 25, 1904
June 14, 1761
Dec. 8, 1854
Nov. 18, 1926
Nov. 4, 1884
April 30, 1921
Jan. 6, 1848
Feb. 3, 1832
Oct. 28, 1870
March 21, 1853
June 29, 1941
Feb. 4, 1865

64
466
669
11
220
853
458
799
197
156
374
215
981
291

1756
Jan. 6, 1886
Sept. 13, 1868
March 12, 1904
Nov. 12, 1950
Julv 3, 1907
Oct. 8, 1895
Oct. 15, 1921
June 20, 1888
Nov. 5, 1810
Jan. 6, 1895
Dec. 25, 1931
Sept. 3, 1816
Dec. 13, 1833
Nov. 30, 1919
Nov. 20, 1947
July 14, 1958
Sept. 25, 1950
April 16, 1791
May 28, 1902
August 15, 1832
May 8, 1928
March 14, 1937
fan. 6, 1928
June 10, 1851
March 12, 1929
Nov. 1, 1950
Dec. 25, 1955
June 29, 1943
Feb. 2, 1854
Feb. 8, 1884
June 29, 1931
Oct. 12, 1899
March 18, 1848
April 29, 1848
May 23, 1846

7
473
313
665
1296
687
479a
702
492
138
532
920
144
174
784
1219
1542
1285
101
648
161
875
935
854
212
780
1291
1422
1002
218
456
913
642
202
204
190

913
Cl. 1, 35
Ft. 592
AP. 1, 225
Bl. 1, 229
AP. 1, 597
AAS. 18, 465
AA. 2, 103
AAS. 13, 209
AP. 1, 78
Ft. 483
Ft. 558
AP. 1, 439
AAS. 34, 224
R.H.E. 1956,
p. 913
Bl. Préf.
Ft. 593
AP. 4, 433
AP. 1, 189
AAS. 43, 24
Ft. 1283
AL. 15, 369
AAS. 14, 7
Ft. 600
C.O.C. 324
Ft. 628
AAS. 23, 493
ASS. 9, 582
Ft. 488
AAS. 11, 440
AAS. 739, 529
AAS. 50, 449
AAS. 42, 657
Gl. 2, 11
AL. 22, 115
Ft. 485
AAS. 20, 185
AAS. 29, 145
AAS. 20, 5
Ft. 510
AAS. 11, 122
AAS. 42, 769
AAS. 48, 5
AAS. 35, 193
Ft. 516
Ft. 590
AAS. 23, 285
AL. 19, 207
APC. 36, 240
AP. 1, 32
Ft. 503

914

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

Non sine gravissimo
Nostis et Nobiscum
Obsequentissimæ
Octobri mense
Officiorum omnium
Officio sanctissimo
Orientalis Ecclesiæ
Orientalium
Pascendi
Pastoris AEtemi
Pastoralis Romani
Pontificis
Pastoris Aeterni
Patema sane
Per ephemerides
Perlatum ad Nos
Perlibenti quidem
Per tristissima
Pia Mater
Pieni 1’animo
Post factum tibi
Praeclara gratulationis
Principi Apostolorum
Provida Mater
Ecclesia
Provida matris
Providentissima
Mater Ecclesia
Providentissimus Deus
Quadragesimo anno
Quæ in patriarchatu
Quanquam pluries
Quanto conficiamur
Quantunque Le siano
Quartum exactum
Quartus supra
Quas primas
Qui Ecclesiæ suæ
Qui pluribus
Quo graviora
Quo impensiore
Quod aliquantum
Quod numquam
Quoties animum
Quum non sine
Redditae sunt
Rerum Ecclesiæ
Rerum novarum
Rerum omnium
Responsum ad te
Reversurus

Feb. 24, 1870
Dec. 8, 1849
March 19, 1881
Sept. 22, 1891
August 1, 1922
Dec. 22, 1887
April 9, 1944
Nov. 30, 1894
Sept. 8, 1907
Julv 18, 1870
March 30, 1741

330
205
450
519
810
484
1119
783a
703
356
1

Ft. 555
Ft. 508
AL. 2, 214
AL. 11, 299
AAS. 14, 449
Ft. 596
AAS. 36, 129
Ft. 627
Ft. 680
Ft. 10
Bl. 1, 14

lulv 2, 1826
Feb. 2, 1926
Sept. 4, 1869
July 17, 1841
August 9, 1950
March 6, 1873
April 5, 1747
July 28, 1906
Feb. 2, 1782
June 20, 1894
Oct. 5, 1920
Feb. 2, 1947

148
839
321
186
1274
418
6
684
19
529
790
1207

Bl. 1, 152
AAS. 18, 175
AP. 5, 48
AG. 3, 106
AAS. 42, 725
AP. 6, 162
Ft. 380
Ft. 676
MTC. 25, 694
Ft. 625
AAS. 12, 457
AAS. 39, 114

Mav 5, 1895
Mav 27, 1917

535
770

AL. 15, 184
AAS. 9 (2) 5

Nov. 18, 1893
May 15, 1931
Sept. 1, 1876
August 15, 1889
August 10, 1863
June 15, 1887
Nov. 21, 1945
Jan. 6, 1873
Dec. 11, 1925
Dec. 19, 1892
Nov. 9, 1846
Oct. 4, 1833
May 20, 1870
March 10, 1791
Feb. 5, 1875
Feb. 2, 1911
July 14, 1864
Jan. 6, 1851
Feb. 28, 1926
May 16, 1891
Jan. 26, 1923
Sept. 15, 1875
July 12, 1867

527
910
433
503
240
475
1161
392
835
521
191
168
354
65
426
747
251
210
840
517
819
431
307

Ft. 621
AAS. 23, 177
ASS. 10, 3
AL. 9, 175
Ft. 536
AL. 7, 134
AAS. 37, 309
AP. 6, 97
AAS. 17, 593
AL. 12, 351
Ft. 504
AG. 1, 273
Ft. 556
Gl. 1, 104
Ft. 568
AAS. 3, 59
Ft. 539
AP. 1, 276
AAS. 18, 65
Ft. 611
AAS. 15, 49
AP. 7, 86
Ft. 546

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES
Romanorum Pontificum
Romanus Pontifex
Sacramentum ordinis
Sacra Virginitas
Sacrorum Antistitum
Sapientiae christianæ
Satis cognitum
Sedis hujus Apostolicæ
Sempiternus rex
Sicut acceptum
Si è annunciato
Sie haben erwürdigen
Bruder
Singulare illud
Singulari Nos
Singulari quadam
Singulari quidem
Spiritus Paraclitus
Summi Pontificatus
Summo jugiter
Super soliditate
Supremi disciplinae
Tametsi
Testem benevolentiae
Traditi humilitati
Tuæ Litteræ
Tuas libenter
Ubi arcano
Ubi Nos
Ubi primum
Umbratilem
Une fois encore
Unigenitus Dei
Vehementer nos
Vix dum a Nobis

Feb. 25, 1916
August 28, 1873
Nov. 30, 1947
March 25, 1954
Sept. 1, 1910
Jan. 10, 1890
June 29, 1896
May 14, 1919
Sept. 8, 1951
April 29, 1889
Feb. 18, 1926
June 27, 1955
June 13, 1926
June 25, 1844
Sept. 24, 1912
March 17, 1856
Sept. 15, 1920
Oct. 20, 1939
May 27, 1832
Nov. 28, 1786
Julv 2, 1911
Nov. 1, 1900
Jan. 22, 1899
Mav 24, 1829
Dec. 1, 1875
Dec. 21, 1863
Dec. 23, 1922
May 15, 1871
May 5, 1824
July 8, 1924
Jan. 6, 1907
March 19, 1924
Feb. 11, 1906
March 7, 1874

768
422
1240
1360
736
505
537
781
1307
502
840
1406
846
188
749
222
786
955
157
20
748
646
627
150
432a
245
814
377
145
826
685
825
682
424

915
AAS. 9, 61
Ft. 565
AAS. 40, 5
AAS. 46, 161
AAS. 2, 655
Ft. 605
Ft. 630
AAS. 12, 317
AAS. 43, 625
Ft. 603
AAS. 18, 84
AAS. 47, 596
AAS 18, 258
AG. 3, 284
AAS. 4, 657
Ft. 521
AAS. 12, 185
AAS. 31, 413
Ft. 484
Ft. 473
Ft. 693
AL. 20, 294
Ft. 640
BI. 17
Ft. 570
Ft. 538
AAS. 14, 673
Ft. 560
BI. 1, 30
AAS. 16, 385
Ft. 677
.AAS. 16, 133
Ft. 671
Ft. 567

CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX OF

WHITTEN AND ORAL DOCUMENTS

The numbers in bold type rcfei to the paragraphs of this volume.
I'he abbreviations in the last column (see Key to Abbreviations,
p. 827), refer to the Sources of the documents: the first line indicates
the source of the text in the original language from which the transla(ions for this volume were made; the second line, when it occurs, gives
the source of an English text used with the kind permission of the
publisher.
March 30, 1741
May 26, 1742
Sept. 8, 1745

April 5, 1747
1756
Sept. 13, 1758
June 14, 1761
Dec. 12, 1768
July 21, 1773
June 16, 1777
Sept. 20, 1779
Feb. 2, 1782

Oct. 28, 1786
Jan. 20, 1787
Sept. 16, 1788
July 10, 1790
March 10, 1791

April 13, 1791
April 16, 1791

Sept. 26, 1791
August 28, 1794
May 15, 1800
Sept. 18, 1801
June 10, 1809
Nov. 5, 1810
Feb. 1, 1816

Sept. 3, 1816
May 5, 1824
Dec. 25, 1825
July 2, 1826

To the faithful
To the faithful
To the Bishops
of the Kingdom
of Naples
To the faithful
To the University
of Bologna
To the Bishops
To the Bishops
To the Bishops
To the faithful
To the faithful
To the faithful
To the Arch­
bishop of Trier
To the faithful
To the Archbish­
op of Cologne
To the Bishop
of Motuhi
To the Archbish­
op of Bordeaux
To Card, de la
Rochefoucauld
To France
To the faithful
of Strasburg
To the Bishops
of France
To the faithful
To the Bishops
To the faithful
To the faithful
To Card. Maury
To the Bishops
of Ireland
To the Archbish­
op of Mohilev
To the Bishops
To the Bishops
To the French
Anti-Concordat
Party

1-2
3
4-5

Bl. 1. 14
Ft. 328
Bl. 1, 140

6
7

Ft. 380
Bl. Preface

8-10
11-13
14-15
16
17
18
19

BL 1, 9
BL. 1, 220
Bl. 21
Bl. 261
BL 1, 136
BL 1, 230
MCT. 25, 694

20-53
54-62

Ft. 473
(a) ACDC. 4, 148

63

MCT. 694, 25

64

GL 1, 35

65-98

Col. Lac.

99-100
101

Ft. 474
GL 2, II

102

GL 1, 121

103-123
124-133
134-135
136-137
138-140
141-143

Ft. 475
BL 1, 5
Ft. 476
(a) ACDC. 3, 80
AR. NS. 4, 483
(a) AR. 17, 177

144

ASS. 9, 582

145-146
147
148-149

BL 1, 30
BL I, 114
BL 1, 152

(a) Our research was unable to locate the original texts of docu­
ments marked thus: (a)

*
I\l)l X oi DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

May 24, 1829
June 30, 1830
Feb 3, 1832

Muy 27, 1832

August 15, 1832
Sept. 17, 1833

Sept. 30, 1833
Oct. 4. 1833
Dec. 13, 1833
Muy 17, 1835

Sept. 13, 1838
July 5, 1839
May 23, 1840

July 17, 1841
August 22, 1841
June 15, 1844
Sept. 28. 1844

May 23, 1840
Nov. 9, 1840
Dec. 17, 1847
Jan. 6, 1848
March 18. 1848

April 29. 1848
Dec. 8, 1849

May 20, 1850
Jan. 6, 1851
June 10, 1851
August 22, 1851
March 21, 1853

Feb. 2, 1854

Dec. 8, 1854
Dec. 9. 1854
March 17, 1856

Munch 26. 1860
July 13, I860

150-151
To the Bishops
To the Bishops
152-155
of Prussia
To the Armenian 156
Patriarch of
Constantinople
157-160
To the Bishops
of Bavaria
To the Bishops
161-164
165-166
To the faithful
of Germany
To the Consistory 167
To the Bishops of 168-173
the Rhineland
To the Bishops
174
of Belgium
To the Swiss
175-181
clergy
To the Consistory 182
To the Cardinals 183
To the Bishop
184-185
of Chclm
To the Archbish- 186
op of Lwow
To the Vicar
187
Apostolic of
Gibraltar
188
To Fr. de laimrncnais
To the Archbish­ 189
op of Milan
190
To the Bishop
of Fribourg
To the Bishops
191-194
To the Consistory 195
To Eastern Cath­ 197-201
olics
To the Nuncio 202-203
in Paris
To the Consistory 204
205-208
To the Bishops
of Italy
To the Cardinals 209
To the Archbish­ 210-211
op of Palmira
212-213
Apost. Let.
Apost. Let.
214
To the Bishops
215-217
of France
To the Armenian 218-219
patriarch
220
To the faithful
To the Consistory 221
To the Bishops
222-224
of Austria
Apost. Let.
225-226
To the Consistory 227

917

Bl 17
(a) AR. 66, 33

Ft. 483
Ft. 484
Ft. 485
Ft. 487

AG. 1, 270
AG. 1, 273

Ft. 488
Ft. 490
AG. 2, 277
Ft. 492
AG. 3, 19

AG. 3, 106
Ft. 498
AG. 3, 284
AG. 3. 299

Ft. 503
Ft. 504
Ft. 506
AP. 1, 78

A PC. 36. 240
AP. 1, 92
Ft. 508

AP. 1, 227
AP. 1. 276

Ft. 510
Ft 511
AP. 1, 439
Ft. 516

AP. 1, 597
Fl. 518
Ft. 521
Ft. 528
AP 3, 165

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

918

Dec. 17, 1860
March 16, 1861
Dec. 19, 1861
April 8, 1862

June 8, 1862

June 9, 1862
August 10, 1863

Dec. 21, 1863

July 14, 1864
Sept. 16, 1864
Dec. 8, 1864
Feb. 4, 1865

Oct. 26,
June 26,
June 30,
July 12,

1865
1867
1867
1867

June 29, 1868
Sept. 13, 1868
Sept. 4, 1869

Dec. 4, 1869
Dec. 8, 1869
Feb. 24, 1870
March 12, 1870

April 24, 1870
May 16, 1870
May 20, 1870

July 18, 1870
July 18, 1870

Oct.
May
July
Oct.

28,
15,
20,
27,

1870
1871
1871
1871

To the Consistory
To the Consistory
To the Bishops
of Belgium
To the Bishops
of the Eastern
churches
Homily at the
Canon, of the
26 Japanese
martyrs
To the Consistory
To the Bishops
of Italy
To the Archbish­
op of Munich
To the Archbish­
op of Fribourg
To the Bishops
of England
To the Bishops

228-229
230
231-232

Ft. 529
Ft. 530
APC. 64, 183

233-237

Ft. 533

238

AP. 3, 445

239
240-244

Ft. 534
Ft. 536

245-250

Ft. 538

251

Ft. 539

252-257

ASS. 2, 657

258-290

Ft. 543
DCD
R.H.E. 1956, p. 913

291
To Bishop Dupanloup
To Bishop Darboy 292-304
To the Consistory 305
306
To the Bishops
To the Armenian 307-310
Patriarch
311-312
To the Bishops
To non-Catholics 313-320
To the Archbish­ 321-324
op of West­
minster
To the faithful
325-326
327-329
To the Council
Fathers
330-331
To the Apost.
Delegate of
Constantinople
To Dom Guéran- 332-335
ger
To the Faithful 336-351
To the Religious 352-353
Art Exposition
354-355
To American
Catholics
356-372
To the faithful
373
To the Council
Fathers
374-376
To the Bishops
of Germany
To the Bishops 377-378
To the Academy of 379-380
Catholic Religion
To the Consistory 381-382

ASS. 11, 210
AP. 4, 103
AP. 4, 292
Ft. 546
Ft. 551
AP. 4, 433
AP. 5, 48

Ft. 554
Coll. Lac. VII.
Ft. 555
Coll. Lac. 7, 1537

Ft. 10
CC. 70, X, 613

rr. οου
Ft. 10
CC. 1870, 3, 366

Ft. 558
Ft. 560
CC. 71, 111

Ft. 561

INDEX OF DOC UMENTS AND SOURCES

April 21, 1878

To various pil383-389
grims
To Religious
390-391
Superiors
To the Armenians 392-417
To the St. Am- 418-419
brose Circle
of Milan
To an international 420-421
Catholic
deputation
To the faithful
422
To the Bishops
423
To the Bishops 424-425
of Austria
To the Bishops of 426
Prussia
To the Consistory 427-428
To German pil- 429-430
grims
To the Chaldean 431
Patriarchs
To the Bishop of 432a
Ghent
To the Bishops of 432
Brazil
To the Chaldeans 433-434
To pilgrims from 435
Savoy
To a German
436-438
Bishop
To the President 439
of the It. Cath.
Youth Council
To the Bishops 440-442

August 27, 1878
August 4, 1879
Feb. 10, 1880

To Card. Nina
To the Bishops
To the Bishops

August 20, 1880
March 19, 1881

To the Consistory 449
To the Spanish 450
“Catholic Union”
To the pilgrims 451
To pilgrims
452
To the Bishop of 453-455
Spain
To the Bishops 456-457
of France
To the Nuncio in 458
Paris
To Card. Guibert 459-465
To the Bishops 466-472

Nov. 27, 1871
June 24, 1872

Jan. 6, 1873
March 6, 1873
March 7, 1873

August 28, 1873
Nov. 21, 1873
March 7, 1874

Feb. 5, 1875
March 15, 1875
May 13, 1875

Sept. 15, 1875
Dec. 1, 1875
April 29, 1876

Sept. 1, 1876
Sept. 15, 1876
Nov. 6, 1876

Jan. 21, 1878

Dec. 8, 1881
Dec. 15, 1881
Dec. 8, 1882
Feb. 8, 1884

Nov. 4, 1884
June 17, 1885
Nov. 1, 1885
Jan. 6, 1886

440-442
443-444
445-448

To the Bishops of 473-474
Prussia

919

PF. 1, 266
PF. 1, 456

AP. 6, 97
AP. 6, 162

CC. 73, X, 85
Ft. 565
Ft. 566
Ft. 567
Ft. 568

Ft. 569
CC. 75, VI, 604

AP. 7, 86
Ft. 570
Ft. 571

ASS. 10, 3
Univ. 23. 9, 76
(a) RC. 2, 512

AP. 7, 471
AL. 1, 44
sw
Ft. 575
Ft. 577
Ft. 580
SW
Ft. 581
AL. 2, 214
AL. 2, 220
AL. 2, 474
Ft. 587

Ft. 590
AA. 2, 103

AL. 5, 68
Ft. 592
SW
Ft. 593

920

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

June 15, 1887

Nov. 30, 1887

Dec. 22, 1887
Jan. 22, 1888
April 21, 1888
June 1, 1888
June 20, 1888
Dec. 17, 1888
April 29, 1889

August 15, 1889
Dec. 30, 1889
Jan. 10, 1890
May 16, 1891
Sept. 22, 1891
Feb. 16, 1892
Dec. 19, 1892
Feb. 8, 1893

July 19, 1893
Nov. 18, 1893
Jan. 28, 1894

June 30, 1894

Nov. 30, 1894
Jan. 6, 1895

May 5, 1895
Oct. 5, 1895
Oct. 8, 1895
June 22, 1896
June 29, 1896
May 9, 1897
August 19, 1897

July 25, 1898
Jan. 22, 1899
Sept. 8, 1899
Sept. 25, 1899

Oct. 12, 1899
March 20, 1900

To Card.
Rampolla
To Hungarian
pilgrims
To the Bishops
of Bavaria
To the faithful
To the Poles
To the Consistory
To the Bishops

475-482

AL. 7, 134

483

AL. 7, 268

484-487

Ft. 596

488-489
490
491
492-494

AL. 8, 45
AA. 3, 61
Ft. 599

To the Archbishop 495-501
of Tours
To the Archbishop 502
of Munich
To the Bishops
503
To the Consistory 504
To the Bishops
505-516

To the Bishops 517-518
To the Bishops
519
To the Bishops of 520
France
To the faithful 521
To the Bishops 522
of Italy
To the Bishop of 523-526
Poiters
To the Bishops
527
To the people of 528
Rome
To the whole
529-530
world
To Eastern
783a
Catholics
To the Bishops of 531-534
the U.S.A.
To the faithful 535
To the Bishops 536
To Card. Rampolla 479a
To the Consistory 537a
To the Bishops 537-617
To the Bishops 618-620
To the Archbishop 621
of Burgos
To the Bishops
622-626
To Card. Gibbons 627-639

To the Bishops
of France
To French working-men
To the Bishops of
Piedmont
To the Cardinals

sw

511

Ft. 601
Ft. 603

AL. 9, 175
AL. 9, 284
Ft. 605
SW
Ft. 611
AL. 11, 299
AL. 12, 19

AL. 12, 351
Ft. 617
AL. 13, 221

Ft. 621
AL. 14, 423
Ft. 625
Ft. 627

Ft. 628
GEL
AL. 15,
AL. 15,
AL. 15,
AL. 16,
Ft. 630
GEL
AL. 17,
AL. 17,

184
300
369
153

25
262

640

Ft. 637
Ft. 640
GEL
Ft. 642

641

AL. 19, 273

642-644

AL. 19, 207

645

AL. 20, 365

INDEX 0F DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

Jan. 6, 1907
Jan. 1907
July 3, 1907

To the Bishops 646-647
To the Bishops 648-651
To the Bishops 652
To the Roman 653
people
To the Bishops 654-655
To the Consistory 656-660
To the Bishops 661-662
To the Bishops of 663-664
Italy
To the Bishops 665-668
To the Society of 669
the Prop, of
the Faith
To the Cardinals 670
To the Bishops
671
To the Bishops of 672-681
Italy
To the Bishops of 682-683
France
To the Bishops of 684
Italy
To France
685
To the Capranica 686
Decree
687-702

Sept. 8, 1907

To the Bishops

Nov. 1, 1900
May 28, 1902
March 19, 1902
Feb. 20, 1903

Oct. 4, 1903
Nov. 9, 1903
Feb. 2, 1904
March 7, 1904
March 12, 1904
March 25, 1904

Nov. 14, 1904
April 15, 1905
June 11, 1905
Feb. 11, 1906

July 28, 1906

Nov. 18, 1907
August 28, 1908
Dec. 13, 1908
April 20, 1909

May 10, 1909
Dec. 31, 1909
May 26, 1910
Sept. 1, 1910
Dec. 26, 1910
Feb. 2, 1911
July 2, 1911
Sept 24, 1912

Nov. 18, 1912
April 3, 1913

Nov. 1, 1914
Feb. 25, 1916
March 7, 1917
May 27, 1917

703-709

Motu Proprio
709a
To Card. Vanutelli 710
To French pilgrims 711
To the Bishops of 712-715
France
716-720
To students
Decree of the S. 721
Cong, of the
Consistory
To the Bishops 722-735
736-742
Motu Proprio
743-746
To the Apost.
Delegates of
the Orient
747
Apost. Letter
748
Motu Proprio
To the Bishops 749
of Germany
750-752
To the Apost.
Union
To Pilgrims from 753-756
Milan
To the Bishops
757-767
To the Society of 768
the Atonement
To the Superior of 769
the Marianists
To the faithful
770-773

J

AL.
AL.
AL.
AL.

92 J

20, 294
22, 115
22, 52
22, 370

Ft. 653
AA. 1, 54
AP. 1, 147
AA. 1, 182

AP. 1, 189
AP. 1, 225
Ft. 626
Ft. 666
AP. 2, 112

Ft. 671
Ft. 676

Ft. 677
(a) BP. 2, 206
Ft. 1283
NCWC
Ft. 680
NCWC
AP. 4, 233
AP. 5, 292
AA. 4, 309
AAS. 1, 411
AAS. 1, 461
AAS. 2, 13

Ft. 687
AAS. 2, 655
Ft. 687
AAS. 3, 59
Ft. 693
AAS. 4, 657

AAS. 4, 693

AAS. 5, 147
Ft. 702
AAS. 9, 61

AAS. 9, 171
AAS. 9, (2), 5

*

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

922

June 15, 1917
Dec. 23, 1918
March 12, 1919
May 14, 1919
Nov. 30, 1919
Jan. 29, 1920

Sept. 15, 1920
Oct. 5, 1920
Dec. 16, 1920
Feb. 10, 1921
April 30, 1921
Oct. 15, 1921

August 1, 1922
Dec. 11, 1922
Dec. 23, 1922
Jan. 26, 1923
Nov. 12, 1923
March 19, 1924

July 8, 1924
March 30, 1925
April 4, 1925
Sept. 19, 1925
Dec. 11, 1925
Dec. 14, 1925
Feb. 2, 1926
Feb. 18, 1926
Feb. 28, 1926
June 13, 1926

June 15, 1926
Nov. 18, 1926

Jan. 6, 1928
May 8, 1928
Dec. 20, 1928
Feb. 11, 1929

Feb. 11, 1929
Feb. 13, 1929

May 30,
Dec. 31,
April 20,
Dec. 31,
April 26,
May 15,
May 24,
June 29,

1929
1929
1930
1930
1931
1931
1931
1931

To the Bishops 774-777
To the Cardinals 778-779
To the Primate of 780
Hungary
To the faithful 781-783
To the Bishops 784
To the Archbishop 785
of Prague
To the Bishops 786-789
To the Bishops
790-796
To the Consistory 797
To the Bishops of 798
Belgium
To Students
799-801
To the Apost.
802-809
Delegate of the
East Indies
To Card. Bisleti 810-811
To the Consistory 812-813
To the Bishops 814-818
To the Bishops 819
To the Bishops 820-824
To Religious
825
Orders
Apost. Const.
826-829
To the Consistory 830
To Card. Tacci 831
To Catholic youth 832-834
To the Bishops 835-837
To the
838
Consistory
et 804a
To the Bishops
839
of Mexico
To Card. Gasparri 840
To the Bishops 841-845
To the Superior 846-847
General of the
Jesuits
To the Vicars
848-852
Apost. of China
To tne Bishops 853
of Mexico
To the Bishops
854-874
To the Bishops 875-878
To the faithful
879
880a
To the Italian
Nation
To the Lenten
880-881
preachers
To the University 882
of Milan
To Card. Gasparri 883-884
To the Bishops
885-890
To the Bishops 891-900
To the Bishops
901-906
To Card. Schuster 907-909
To the Bishops
910-911
To the faithful
912
To the Bishops
913-919

Ft. 713
CC. 1919, 1, 63.
AAS. 11, 122
AAS. 12, 317
AAS. 11, 440
AAS. 12, 57
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.

12,
12,
12,
13,

385
457
585
127

AAS. 13, 209
AAS. 14, 7
AAS. 14, 449
BP. 1, 129
AAS. 14, 673
AAS. 15, 49
AAS. 15, 573
AAS. 16, 133
AAS. 16, 385
BP. 3, 19
AAS. 17, 187
DC. 14, 707
AAS. 17, 593
AAS. 17, 633

AAS. 18, 175
AAS. 18, 84
AAS. 18, 65
AAS. 18, 258

AAS. 18, 303

AAS. 18, 465
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.

20,
20,
21,
21,

5
185
33
209

BP. 5, 74

AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.

21, 257
22, 49
22, 201
22, 539
23, 145
23, 177
23, 241
23, 285

INDEX °F DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES
Dec. 25, 1931
May 3, 1932
Nov. 17, 1934
Dec. 20, 1935
May 12, 1936

May 31, 1936
March 14, 1937
March 28, 1937
Sept. 18, 1938
March 12, 1939
April 8, 1939

June 9, 1939
June 24, 1939
Oct. 2, 1939

Oct. 20, 1939
Jan. 17, 1940
April 17, 1940
April 21, 1940
Nov. 6, 1940
Nov. 10, 1940

Jan. 15, 1941
March 19, 1941
June 1, 1941
June 26, 1941
June 29, 1941

Oct. 3, 1941
Oct. 24, 1941
Jan. 21, 1942
Feb. 17, 1942

May 13, 1942
Sept. 20, 1942
June 29, 1943
Sept. 30, 1943
Dec. 4, 1943

Dec. 24, 1943
April 9, 1944

920-924
To the Bishops
925
To the Bishops
To the Inter. Con­ 926
gress of Jurists
To the Bisnops
927-931
To the Catholic 932
Press
933
To Catholic
Action delegates
To the Bishops 935-941
of Germany
To the Bishops
942
of Mexico
To the C.F.T.C. 943
To the Cardinals 944
945-947
To the Roman
Curia
To the Cardinals 948-950
To seminarians
951-952
To the members 953-954
of the
Sacred Rota
To the Bishops 955-965
966-967
To newly-weas
968
To newly-weds
To pilgrims from 969
Genoa
970
To newly-weds
971-972
To the youth of
Italian Catholic
Action
973-975
To newly-weds
976
To newly-weds
To the Cardinals 977
To the Eucharistic 978-980
Congress of
St. Paul
To the Bishops 981
of Spain
982-984
To the Sacred
Rota
To the Cardinals 985
986-989
To newly-weds
990-994
To the Lenten
preachers
995-999
To the faithful
of the world
1000-1001
To the men of
Italian Catholic
Action
1002-1112
To the Bishops
1113
To the Bishops
1114-1115
To the Roman
Curia
To the Cardinals 1116
1117-1121
To the Bishops

923

AAS. 23, 493
AAS. 24, 177
BP. 12, 234
AAS. 28, 5
AAS. 29, 139

BP. 14, 44

AAS. 29, 145

AAS. 29, 189
BP. 17, 156
DR. 1, 9
DR. 1, 25
DR. 1, 149
AAS. 31, 245
DR. 1, 331

AAS. 31, 413
DR. 1, 487
DR. 2, 73
DR. 2, 81
DR. 2, 297
DR. 2, 305
DR. 2, 375
DR. 3, 17
AAS. 33, 191
AAS. 33, 351
AAS. 34, 222
AAS. 33, 420

AAS. 34, 5
DR. 3, 351
AAS. 34. 137
DR. 4, 69

AAS. 34, 282
AAS. 35, 193
AAS. 35, 297
DR. 5. 131
AAS. 36, 5
AAS. 36, 129

924

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

June 2, 1944
June 24, 1944

Oct. 2, 1944

Dec. 9, 1944
Dec. 24, 1944
Dec. 24, 1944
Oct. 2, 1945
Nov. 21, 1945
Dec. 24, 1945
Feb. 20, 1946
Feb. 25, 1946
March 16, 1946

Oct. 6, 1946
Oct. 26, 1946
Dec. 24, 1946
Feb. 2, 1947
March 21, 1947
Sept. 7, 1947
Oct. 29, 1947
Nov. 20, 1947
Nov. 30, 1947
Sept. 12, 1948

Dec. 24, 1948
Jan. 30, 1949
Feb. 20, 1949
April 29, 1949
August 8, 1949

Sept. 4, 1949
Nov. 13, 1949
Dec. 9, 1949
Dec. 20, 1949

To the Cardinals
To Missionary
Workers
To the Tribunal
of the Sacred
Rota
To the Roman
Curia
To the Cardinals
To the world
To the Tribunal
of the Sacred
Rota
To the Archbish­
op of Trent
To the Cardinals
To the Cardinals
To the Diploma­
tic Corps
To the Lenten
preachers
To the Tribunal
of the Sacred
Rota
To the Catecheti­
cal Congress
To the Cardinals
To the faithful
To the Bishops
To the Men of
Italian Catholic
Action
To the Tribunal
of the Sacred
Rota
To the Bishops
To the faithful
To the youth of
Catholic Action
To the world
To Roman
students
To the Roman
people
To the seminari­
ans of Anagni
To the Archbish­
op of Boston
To Christian
teachers
To the Tribunal
of the Sacred
Rota
To the faithful
of Haiti
To the Bishops

1122-1130
1131-1134

AAS. 36, 166
AAS. 36, 207

1135-1137

AAS. 36, 281

1138-1140

DR. 6, 215

1141-1147
1148-1150
1151-1160

AAS. 37, 5
AAS. 37, 10
AAS. 37, 256

1161-1164

AAS. 37, 309

1165-1176
1177-1194
1178e

AAS. 38, 15
AAS. 38, 141
AAS. 38, 152

1195-1198

AAS. 38, 182

1199-1205

AAS. 38, 391

1206

DR. 8, 283

1340a
1207-1208
1209
1210

AAS.
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.

1211-1218

AAS. 39, 493

1219-1239
1240-1241
1242

AAS. 39, 521
AAS. 40, 5
AAS. 40, 409

1243-1244
1245-1249

AAS. 41, 5
DR. 10, 353

1250-1254

AAS. 41, 74

1255

DR. 11, 47

1256-1262

1263-1264

Latin orig.
Eng.
DR. 11, 193

1265

AAS. 41, 604

1266-1267

DR. 11, 303

1268-1270

AAS. 42, 142

39,
39,
39,
39,

7
114
137
425

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

Dec. 28, 1949

Feb. 17, 1950
July 15, 1950

August 9, 1950
August 12, 1950
Sept. 25, 1950
Oct. 30, 1950
Nov. 1, 1950
Nov. 2, 1950
Nov. 4, 1950
Nov. 12, 1950
Dec. 8, 1950

May 3, 1951
June 2, 1951
Sept. 8, 1951
Sept. 9, 1951
Sept. 23, 1951
Oct. 14, 1951

Dec. 24, 1951
Jan. 18, 1952
March 23, 1952
April 12, 1952

April 27, 1952

Jan. 12, 1953
Feb. 16, 1952
March 27, 1953

April 10, 1953

May 12, 1953
June 24, 1953
June 28, 1953
August 15, 1953
Oct. 17, 1953
Nov. 4, 1953

Dec. 6, 1953

To the Diploma­ 1271
tic Corps
To the Congress 1272
of the Press
To the Congress 1273
of Civil Law
To Card. Fuma- 1274
soni-Bondi
To the Bishops
1275-1284

To the clergy
1285-1288
To the Consistory 1289-1290
To the faithful
1291-1293
To the Bishops
1294
To Professors
1295
and students
To Card. Micara 1296
To the Congress 1297-1303
of Religious
To members of
1304
Catholic Action
1305-1306
To the Bishops
1307-1309
To the Bishops
To the Eucharistic 1310
Congress of
Assisi
1311
To Carmelites
To the Lay Apos- 1312-1314
tolate Congress
1315-1319
To the world
To the Catholics 1320-1324
of China
To Italian families 1325-1328
To Belgian
1329-1330
students
To the St. Vincent 1331
de Paul Society
To the Parish of 1332-1333
St. Sabbas
To the Archbish­ 1334
op of Belgrade
1335-1336
To the Lenten
preachers
1337-1338
To Parisian
students
1339-1342
To journalists
1343-1344
To the Bishops
1345
To pilgrims
To tne Eucharis­ 1346-1350
tic Congress of
Brazil
To the Gregorian 1351-1353
University
To the youth of 1353-1354
Catholic Action
To Italian jurists 1355-1359

925

DR. 11, 345

AAS. 42, 251
DR. 12, 151

AAS. 42, 725
AAS. 42, .561
NCWC
AAS. 42, 657
AAS. 42, 774
AAS. 42, 769
AAS. 42, 784
DR. 12, 295
AAS. 43, 24
AAS. 43, 26
AAS. 43, 375

AAS. 43, 497
AAS. 43, 625
AAS. 43, 673
DR. 13, 255
AAS. 43, 784
AAS. 44, 5
AAS. 44, 153

AAS. 44, 270
DR. 14, 57
AAS. 44. 468
DR. 14, 447
ORf. 23
AAS. 45. 238

AAS. 45. 275
AAS. 45, 399
AAS. 45, 369
DR.
AAS. 45, 551

AAS. 45, 682
AAS. 45, 790
AAS. 45. 794

926

INDEX OF DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

March 25. 1954
April 13, 1954

May 29, 1954
May 31, 1954
July 11. 1954
Sept. 15. 1954
Oct. 7, 1954

Oct. 24, 1954

Nov. 2, 1954
April 10. 1955
June 27, 1955
July 20, 1955

Sept. 7, 1955

To the Bishops
1360-1361
To the Congress
1362
of “Union of
Workers”
To pilgrims
1363-1366
To the Bishops
1367-1372
To the faithful
1373-1375
of Salerno
To Card. Lcrcaro 1376
To the Bishops
1377-1386
and faithful
of China
To the Inter. Cong. 1387-1390
on Mariology
To the Bishops
1391-1404
To the World
1405
To the Bishop
1406
of Augsburg
To Belgian
1407-1408
metallurgists
To the Congress
1409-1421
of Historical Sciences
To the Bishops
1422
3'o the Institutes 1423-1425
of Archeology
and Historv
To the World
1426
To the It. Euch. 1427
Congress
To the personnel 1428
of Roman
Hospitals
To Law Students 1429-1433
from Vienna
To Pilgrims
1271a
from
Liechtenstein
To German
1434-1439
Catholics
To the Nat. It.
1440-1454
Week of New
Pastoral
Methods
To the Congress 1455-1459
of Pastoral
Liturgy
To the Auto­
1460-1461
mobile Club
of Rome
To Spanish priests 1462-1465
Decree of
1466
Beatification
To the Bishops
1467-1471
To pilgrims
1472
from Bari
To the American 1473-1474
Cath. Press
To the It. Congress 1475
for Emigration
To Spanish
1476
pilgrims
To French
1477-1480
seminarians

AAS. 46, 161
DC. 51. 655
AAS. 46. 307
AAS. 46, 313
AAS. 46, 407

OR. 16, 9, 54
AAS. 47, 5
AAS. 46, 677

AAS. 46, 666
AAS. 47, 282
AAS. 47, 596

OR. 17, 181
AAS. 47, 672

I

Dec. 25. 1955
Mar. 9. 1956
April 1, 1956
May 6. 1956

May 20, 1956
June 3, 1956

July 27. 1956
Sept. 2, 1956
Sept. 14, 1956

Sept. 22, 1956

March 3, 1957
March 21, 1957
April 21, 1957

April 21. 1957
May 7, 1957
May 27. 1957
July 23, 1957

August 20, 1957
Sept. 5, 1957

AAS. 48, 5
AAS. 48, 210

AAS. 48, 184
AAS. 48, 475
DR. 18, 227

AAS. 48, 498

DR. 18, 363
AAS. 48, 622
AAS. 48, 699

AAS. 48, 711
DR. 19, 3

DR. 19, 47
AAS. 49, 374
AAS. 49. 225
AAS. 49, 368

DR. 19, 195
AAS. 49, 730
DR. 19, 343

AAS. 48, 845

lNpEX of DOCUMENTS AND SOURCES

Sept. 10, 1957

Sept. 16, 1957
Sept. 17, 1957
Sept. 29, 1957

Oct. 5, 1957

Oct. 8, 1957
Jan. 14, 1958

Feb. 11, 1958
March 23, 1958
April 6, 1958
April 24, 1958

April 26, 1958
April 29, 1958
May 4, 1958
June 29, 1958
July 3, 1958

July 14, 1958
August 2, 1958
Nov. 4, 1958

Dee. 15, 1958
Dec. 23, 1958
Jan. 18, 1959

Jan. 25, 1959
Jan. 25, 1959
Feb. 2, 1959

Feb. 18, 1959
March 15, 1959
March 28, 1959
April 1, 1959
April 11. 1959

April 23, 1959
April 27, 1959

To the Gen. Con- 1481-1483
gregation of Jesuits
To Family
1484
Associations
To the Catholic
1485
Union of French
Trainmen
To the Catholic
1486-1489
Women’s Organi­
zations
To the 2nd
1490-1501
World Congress
of the Lay
Apostolate
To Irish pilgrims 1502

To the
1503-1504
"Angelicum”
To Religious
1505-1506
Superiors
To pilgrims
1507-1510
from the
Marches
To the world
1511-1515
To the Bishop
1516
of Basel and
Lugano
To the Marian 1517-1521
Congregations
of Italy
To the Com­
1522
mittees for Orphans
To the metal­
1523
lurgists of
Bagnoli
To the Bishops
1524-1540
To American
1541
teachers
To the Bishops
1542-1550
To Cloistered
1551-1553
Nuns
Homily at Papal 1554-1559
Coronation
To the Cardinals 1560-1565
To the World
1566-1571
To the Gregorian 1572-1573
University
To the Cardinals 1574-1580
1581-1585
To pilgrims
To the Roman
1586-1588
people
To the world
1589
To the faithful
1590-1591
of Venice
To the world
1592-1594
To African writers 1595-1597
and artists
To the Congress 1598
of Veterans
To the clergy
1599-1602
of Venice
To the world
1603
Scheme proposed Appendix
for the First
Vatican Council

AAS 49, 806
AAS. 49, 898
DR. 19, 407

AAS. 49, 906
AAS. 49, 92

AAS. 49, 959
Eng.
DR. 19, 719

DR. 19, 747
OR. 24, 3, 58
AAS.
AAS.
AAS.

OR. 4. 5, 58

OR. 7, 5. 58
AAS. 50, 601
OR. 5. 7, 58
Eng.
AAS. 50, 449
OR. 2. 8, 58

OR. 5. 11. 58
OR. 15, 12, 58
AAS. 51, 5
AAS. 51, 74
AAS. 51, 65
AAS. 51, 70
OR. 21, 2. 59
AAS. 51, 144
OR 16, 3, 59

AAS. 51, 241
AAS. 51, 259

OR. 12, 4, 59
OR. 24. 4, 59
OR. 29, 4. 59
Coll, lac VII, 567

927