The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-02-17
POPE LEO ON SOCIALISM
FULL TEXT OF EyCYCLICAL CON-
CORNING CHRISTIAN DEMOCRACY.
Warns Catholics Against the Pitfalls
Set for the Poor and Lowry by
Agitators and DemnGogues.
New York Sun.

4
have been received. Following is copy
| Of the authorized translation of the docu-
ment:
! ..To the patriarehs. primates, archbishops,
| bishops and other local ordinances III
| communion with the apostolic see. Health
| and apostolic benediction:
! Venerable Brethren-Grave economical
disputes in more than one country have
/ long been raging: peace and concord are
affected; the violence of the disputants
grows every day. insomuch that the
! thoughts of the wiser part are laden with
doubt and apprehension. These disputes
| arise in the first instance from widespread
/ philosophical and moral error. The scien-
| tific resources belonging to the age, In
creased facilities OF COMMUNICATION and APP
planes of all kinds for economzing labor
and making ii more productive have re-
! suited In keener struggle for existence.
| Through the malefic influence of agitators
| the gulf between rich and poor has been
wIdened, so that frequent diStur Dances arise
and even great calamities seem impending
| such as would bring ruin on a country.
For our part, our pcntihcate had scarce
( ly begun before we seriously commented up
| on the danger TO civil society thus arising
| We thought it our duty TO warn Catholics
| opinions and the utter destruction with
| which they threatened. not temporal pros
perity alone, but morality and religion.
| Such was the theme OF the encyclcal 'Quod
Apostolici Muneris' issued by on Dec.
| Is. 1878. AS the danger grew more serious
! day by day, entailing public and private
4 loss, We SIrOEe with yet more lnSlSleicc
to provide against 1T. Our letter 'Rer1m
/ Novarum,' of May Is, 1891. had similar
| motive, wherein We spoke at length on the
| rights and duties binding together the two
| classes of capitalists and laborers, and at
! the same time pointed out the remedies 10
| be derived from the precepts of the gospel,
/ remedies of especial utility, as we were
| assured. for maintaining the claims OF
! justice and religion and for removing all
OCCASION of strife between classes.
! CHURCH CAREFUL OF ALL CLASSES
"Our assurance under God has not been
| an idle one. Even non-Cathclics, urged by
| the force Of truth, have acknowledged that
| so much must be allowed the church. that
| she shows herself careful Of all classes oil
| The community, and especially of the poor
and miserable. Catholics have derived
| abundant profit from our writings. They
have not only got from them encourage
menI and support in carrying out excellent
| projects, but have obtained the light they
wanted to direct charitable endeavor into
result has been that differences of opinion
| have been partly removed partly their
aGerDty mas 6een fef
many ameliorations have with steady
| purpose been introduced afresh or usefully
| extended e. popular secretariatsS,
they are called. for giving assistance 20 the
| ignorant. country banks for making loans,
! societies for mutual help or relief, asso-
1
| whether associative or operative, of the
| kind.
Thus therefore, under the guidance of the
| church some sort OF concerted action and
institutional provision has been set up
| among Catholics for the protection of the
| lower classes, who are very often as much
! the victims of dangerous Vaccinations and
snares as they are sufferers from hardship
and poverty. The creed of the benefactor
| of the people had originally no name of its
| own: that of Christian socialism and its
derivatives, which some brought in, has
| not undeservedly grown obsolete. After
ward many wanted, very rightly, to name
| IL popular Christianity. In other places
| those who devote themselves to such work
| are called Christian Socialists; elsewhere
| IL Is called Christian Democracy and its
| supporters Christian Democrats, OPP
! posed to the social democracy, which So
| eialists uphold. OF these two appellations
certainly that of Christian Socialists. if not
| to many right-minded people. inasmuch as
they think there Is a perilous ambiguity
| attaching to it They are afraid of the
| name for several reasons. Popular gov
| eminent may be covertly promoted or pre-
ferred to other forms of political eonstitu-
tion' the inhuence OF christianity may
| seem TO be confined to the benefit of the
common people. all other ranks being. as 1t
| were, left out in the cold; beneath the
| specious designation may Turk some design
| or other OF subverting all legitimate au-
thority whatever, being civil and religious.
There is now commonly much dispute
and sometimes overbitter dispute, on this
| end TO the controversy by defining what
Catholics ought to think: moreover. we in
tend to give them some injunctions so as
| TO make their own action larger in scope
and more beneficial to the commonwealth.
TWO KINDS OF DEMOCRACY.
What Social Democracy means, and
what Christian ought to mean does not
surely admit of doubt. The former more or
less extreme, as the case may be, is by
many carried to such extravaganza of
wickedness as to reckon human satisfaction
supreme and acknowledge nothing higher
TO pursue bodily goods and those of the
! natural world, and to make the happiness
of man consist in attaining and enjoying
them. Hence they would have the supreme
| power in state to be in the hands of the
| common people. in such sort that all dis
| tinctions of rank being abolished and every
citizen made equal to every other, all might
| of life; the law of lordship Is TO be abol-
| ished, private fortunes confscated and
| Dor carried out But Christian Democracy.
/ as Christian. ought to have as its foundation
| the principles laid down by divine faith
4 having regard, indeed, to the temporal adj
| vantage of the lower orders, but designing
| Herewith to fit their minds for the enjoy
| ment of things eternal. Accordingly, to
Christian Democracy let there be nothing
| more sacred than law and right; let it bid
the right of having and holding be kept in
violate; let il maintain the diversity of
| ranks. which properly belong to a well-or-
| dered state; in fine. let IL prefer for human
| association that form and character which
| Its divine author has imposed upon it,
Clearly. therefore. Social and Christian De-
| mocracy can have nothing I'm common; the
| dlnerenee between them Is no less than
! that between the sectariansm of Social
| ism and the profession of the Christian
| law.
| Far be II from any one to pervert the
name OF christian democracy to political
| ends. For although democracy by its very
name and by philosophical usage denotes
| popular rule. yet In this application il must
| be employed altogether without political
| signification, so as to denote nothing what
ever besides this beneficial Christian action
/ Upon the people. For natural morality and
the precepts of the gospel, for the very
| reason that they transcend the chances of
| human existence. must necessarily be in
dependent of any particular form of civil
| government and adapt themselves TO all
so long as there Is nothing TO conflict with
| virtue and right They are. therefore and
| remain in themselves, absolutely external
10 all conflict of parties and VIC. ss!tudes If
occurrence, so that, under whatever kim.
/ OF government people may ami ought to
/ abide by these precepts. WHEN l. :hein
| love God above all and their neighc5rs as
| themselves. This has ever beel he moral
| ity of the church: by IL Roman pont.ffs
/ have constantly dealt with states whatever
| might be their executive government And
| this being so. the mind and action of
/ Catholics. when devoted TO oromo6iug tEe
| good OF the lower orders. cannot by any
| possibility aim at embracing and introdrc-
! ing any one form OF government in prefer
WTrNAE