Evening star., 1943-06-14
BY the Associated Press.


Following is the official English
translation of the address yester-
day by Pope Plus XII on "The
Church and Labor:
Your welcome presence-beloved
sons and daughters, who spend your
hours and days in toll to gain a
livelihood for yourselves and fol-
your fanilies-brings before us q
great thought and a great mys-
terry:
The thought, that work was i'm
posed by God on the first man, after
sin, that he might seek his bread
from the earth by the sweat of his
brow; and the mystery, that the
Son Of God. having come down from
heaven to save the world, and hav-
ing become man, submitted to this
law Of work and passed His youth
laboring in Nazareth in the COM
pany Of his foster father, so that
He was considered and called "the
carpenters son" CMatt., 1855; sub
lime mystery that He should begin
to work before He began to teach,
a humble workman before being
the teacher Of all nations (cf Acts,
I'D.
You have come to us as to a
father who has a greater delight
in dealing with his children in pro-
portion as their daily toll Is harder
and more continuous and the want
and worries of their lives are more
arduous and considerable. You have
come to us as to the vicar OF Christ
who feels in himself, perpetuated by
an ineffable sharing of Gods power,
that sense of tenderness and SYM
pathy for the people by which our
Redeemer was moved to cry out one
day. Have compassion on the multi
tude" Mark, 8.2).
You have come to us as to the
Shepherd who fixes His gaze on you
and extends it beyond you to that
vastly greater section of His flock
which the love of God has intrusted
in Him and in your love and de-
votion He sees faithfully repre-
sented the sentiments. the wishes
and the affection OF so many OF His
absent children.
With all our heart we thank you
for the great Joy occasioned us by
the opportunity OF speaking a word
of sincere benevolence and encour-
agement, a word which may serve
to guide, sustain and comfort you
In these days, disturbed by trouble
and mourning.
Wise Social Reforms
Declared Necessary.
The weight Of the present diff
culties is felt by the mass Of workers
who are burdened and afflicted more
by them alone. Every class has to
carry It's own burden, more or less
painful and difficult to bear as it
may be, and it is not only the
social status of the workers, men
and women, which calls for recondi-
tioning and reform. The whole COM
plex structure Of society is in need
of adjustment and improvement,
thoroughly shaken as it is in its
foundations.
But who is there who does not see
that the labor question, because Of
the compleXity and variety of the
problems which 1t entails, and the
vast number Of people it involves,
is of such kind and of such urgent
importance as to merit closer, more
watchful and more far seeing atten-
tiono
1t is question of peculiar deli
cacy-the nerve center, one might
call 1t, of the social body; but 1t
t- u
treacherous ground open to easy
Illusions and unwarranted, chimeri-
cal hopes for one who does not
keep before the eye of his intelli-
gence and the impulse OF his heart
the doctrine of justice, equity,
charity, mutual understanding and
adjustment inculcated by the law
of God and the voice OF the church.
Church Called Guardian
OF Working Class Aims.
You are certainly not unaware,
beloved sons and daughters, of the
fact that the church loves you in
tensely, and that it is not merely
now that she has with maternal
interest and love and a clear sense
of the reality of things paid par
ticular attention to the questions
which regard you especially
Our predecessors and We our
sleeves have not lost any opportunity
Of making all men understand by
our repeated instructions your per-
sonal and family needs, proclaim
ing as fundamental prerequisites of
social concord those claims which
you have so much at heart:
A salary which will cover the liv-
ing expenses Of family and such
as to make it possible for the par
ents to fulfill their natural duty to
rear healthily nourished and
clothed children: dwelling worthy
of human persons; the possibility
of securing for the children suff1-
Cient instruction and a becoming
education of foreseeing and fore
stalling times Of stress, sickness and
old age.
These conditions of social security
should be realized if we want society
not to be shaken at every season by
turbulent ferments and dangerous
uprising but to become tranquil and
go forward in harmony, peace and
mutual love.
Now. however laudable may be
various provisions and concessions
made by public authorities and the
humane and generous sense that
inspires many employers. who could
affirm and maintain with truth that
such ideals have been everywhere
realized?
In any case working men and
women conscious of their great re-
sponsibility for the common good
feel and appreciate their duty not
to aggravate the burden of extraor-
dinary difficulties under which peo-
pies are groaning by representing
their claims in this hour of univer-
sal and imperious needs in noisy
manner and through inconsiderate
action. They continue their work
and persevere in it with discipline
and calm TINS coptrih,,tj,or i,,vo II,