On the occasion of a pilgrimage of members of the Confédération française des travailleurs chrétiens (CFTC) at an audience on 18 September 1938 at Castel Gandolfo.1 A pdf of the original text in French can be found here.
This is an audience unlike any other, dear Sons and Daughters, and although this hall is accustomed to hosting large and magnificent audiences, this one is, in more ways than one, among those that bring Us great consolation.
First of all, you are children of the great family that God has entrusted to Us, and you can imagine how much the heart of a Father—an old Father, such an old Father—must be consoled to see the paternal home filled with children such as yourselves, children so deserving since they come in the name and under the title of the French Confederation of Christian Workers. So much in so few words!
You are, then, children who have come to Us from France, from that beloved France for which—now more than ever—We have prayed, We pray, and We continue to pray that, with tranquility and peace, it may regain the prosperity that awaits only these necessary conditions to flourish in a country that possesses such vast resources of every kind.
Has she not asserted herself in such a beautiful, and above all, comforting way in ceremonies such as those you have just celebrated—and in which We had the joy of being represented by Our legates? This is a consolation We continually give Ourselves, since Our nuncio resides among you—he is here among us only temporarily. What We mean to say is that the Pope’s heart is always with his eldest Daughter, and not only in distant thought, but through his personal representative.
You come to Us under this other banner—so magnificent, so honorable—of work and Christian work; that is to say, not only under the sign of work, which first appeared in the world as the penalty for sin—a fact all too often forgotten—but of Christian work: and when we speak of Christian labor, it is no longer the labor to which humanity was condemned from the very beginning, but labor as Jesus Christ accepted it, incorporating it into the great plan of the Redemption. This is the field where Redemption has been accomplished in the most magnificent way: the field of work, which until now—until yesterday—was the work of atonement, and which, while it still remains the atonement of poor, sinful men, is at the same time the atonement of Divine Justice itself. Christ taught us to work a work that is no longer the work of man, but of man as the object of Redemption, of sanctified man, to the point that the work itself is elevated and sanctified.
It is under this beautiful banner of work—divinized in the person of the divine Worker of Nazareth—that you have come in such great numbers, a number that represents even greater multitudes. We know this because We have just read—or rather, reread—this address, which served as your calling card (though children—and children such as you—have no need of one). We read it with great pleasure, because We were able to see at a glance the path you have traveled since the beginning, and the great things you have accomplished in this very difficult field of trade unionism, Christian labor, and relations between workers and employers.
How many magnificent things you have been able to accomplish under the guidance of Our dear Sons, of Bishop Flaus. We can truly say that We experienced moments of genuine joy for both the mind and the heart while reading this address, because it seemed to Us as though We were reading the most beautiful of poems, composed largely of numbers; and yet it is said that numbers have nothing poetic about them! But here the numbers express such beautiful things, and the large numbers signify the multiplication of units so beautiful that even a single one of them is already magnificent: for what is a single soul animated by the Christian spirit of your Federation? And you are a multitude.
So what could We add to what We have just read—which you know better than We do, for it is the authentic expression of your feelings? It is these feelings that have led you on the path of this holy pilgrimage which you have chosen to undertake, as good children, to a holy Mother, to an elderly but ever-loving Father—to the venerable Roman Church, Mother of all Churches, a Mother to whom the good Lord has bestowed the full outpouring of His charity, which has maintained such a fruitfulness of goodness and holiness throughout the centuries.
You have come to seek a blessing from this venerable Mother, the Roman Church, and from the Father. Receive, then, Our blessing—all the blessings you could possibly desire for yourselves, for your loved ones, and for all those in your thoughts.
But you no doubt wish to take away a few words from the Father as a memento. Well, We will say two or three words to you—no more. We need not impress them upon your memory, for you already regard them as the remembrance of a Father, an elderly Father—and I would add: a Father who speaks to them at a time that is not among the easiest moments that history has recorded for any person or any country—a very hard time, very stormy days.
We hope because We must hope: this is one of Our privileges in the mission of a Father; hope is not merely a consolation, but a duty—an essential duty. Hope, as you all know, is one of the theological virtues—among the virtues that form the basis and foundation of the supernatural edifice. We must and We wish to hope. The words We are about to share with you and entrust to you will help you to hope ever more, ever better, and with ever greater consolation.
Our first message concerns an important doctrinal issue. You have included among your guiding principles—as We have observed, and it could not be otherwise for Christian workers—a rejection of the thesis so common today that the collective is everything and the individual nothing. You have done well, because the Church does not speak in this way; such is not the doctrine of the Church. One could summarize this theory with brutal simplicity as follows: everything to the State, nothing to the person. No, the Church does not support such a doctrine. But neither does she support the completely opposite doctrine: everything to the individual, nothing to the State. No, it is the Church’s privilege to walk, as it were, among peoples and continents, in the midst of all the inhabitants of the world (We do not say “races”2), and to maintain, in everything and everywhere, that middle path in which virtue always consists: in medio stat virtus. True virtue is always in the middle, neither in one extreme nor in the other.
The Church professes and teaches a doctrine that defines the proper relationship between the community and the individual. Certainly (this is self-evident), due to the necessities of life, from birth to death, the individual needs the community: to live, to develop his life. But it is not true that the community itself is a person, an independent person speaking in its own name. No, knowledge as well as ignorance, knowledge as well as virtue, are the property of the individual. Thus, when we speak of the “soul” of the community, it is a figure of speech that is well grounded in reality but remains an abstraction. And the community can exercise no personal function except through the individuals of whom it is composed: this is self-evident, but a truth that, in our day, is no longer recognized in many circles. It is said all too often, in one way or another—and we have grown accustomed to hearing it—that everything must belong to the State, nothing to the individual. Oh! Dear Children, what a falsehood lies in this statement: it runs counter to the facts, for while the individual is indeed so dependent on society, society, on the other hand, would be nothing without individuals—nothing but a mere abstraction. But there are very serious ulterior motives, and those who say, “Everything belongs to the collective,” also say that the collective is something divine, and thus, here is the individual deified, but in a new way: it is a kind of social pantheism. There you have it, dear Children, the lesson that the elementary catechism teaches us. It was the enemy of man who said: eritis sicut dii. You know full well what that phrase meant and how it played out in the tragedy of the centuries that have followed one another in the life of poor, sinful humanity.
So they say: everything must belong to the State—and here we have the totalitarian State, as they call it. Nothing without the State; everything to the State. But there is such an obvious falsehood in this that it is astonishing that men—who are otherwise serious and talented—would say it and teach it to the masses. For how could the State truly be totalitarian, giving everything to the individual and demanding everything from him? How could it give everything to the individual for his inner perfection—since we are speaking of Christians—for the sanctification and glorification of souls? Consequently, how many things lie beyond the State’s capabilities in this present life and in view of the future, eternal life!
Therein lies a great usurpation, for if there is a totalitarian regime—totalitarian in fact and in law—it is the regime of the Church, because man is the creature of the good Lord; he is the prize of divine Redemption; he is the servant of God, destined to live for God here on earth and with God in heaven. And the representative of God’s ideas, thoughts, and rights is none other than the Church. Therefore, the Church truly has the right and the duty to claim the entirety of her power over individuals: the whole man, the entire man, belongs to the Church, because, in his entirety, he belongs to God. There is no doubt about this for anyone who does not wish to deny or reject everything. As for Us, We must thank the good Lord for being in such a fine school, in such beautiful and rich splendor of truth.
Our second message is to recall Christian charity, and as such it is essentially practical and well suited to the conditions of our time—a time when charity is so sorely lacking, even simply human charity, to the point of bringing to mind the phrase: homo homini lupus. And what remains where there is no longer that charity that enables us to see in all people brothers and sisters by virtue of creation and the Redemption intended for all, pro multis effundetur? The divine blood was shed for all. All that remains are the goods of this poor world, which cannot suffice for everyone—especially when some never have enough, even as others lack them. With this unequal distribution of the earth’s goods, there will always be—without God’s charity—some who have too much and others who have too little: and then there is misery, hatred, mutual hostility, and struggle—not only between classes, but of all against all. Even in Christian society, it is true, things have not always been as they ought to be. There are always shortcomings and very great failings, even where the Christian faith is known and taught, even where people claim they wish to observe it. But, as one of our great writers—the greatest after Dante, Manzoni, whom Paris, too, recently celebrated—would so aptly say: it is true, there have been and there are miseries in the Church, in the life of the Christian. But let us be serious: give me a society where God’s law is truly the law governing individual and social life, a society where the doctrine and examples of Our Lord are truly the rule of life for those who call themselves Christians—would it then be possible for there to be a multitude that does nothing but enjoy the goods of the earth and a much larger multitude that does nothing but toil, suffering from the hardships of labor and deprivation? Charity is the essential practice in which the application of all laws and all doctrines is found.
We had promised to share with you perhaps a third message: it will be relevant to the entire world; We know this from the reports We receive from all over. It is a recommendation that you undoubtedly do not need—as your doctrine and your program have proven—but one that will invite you to coordinate your activity as Christian workers, in all its ramifications, ever more effectively with Catholic Action, which, as everyone knows, It is so dear to Us, all the more so because, in some parts of the world, it is viewed with suspicion, hindered, and mistreated. Well then, dear Children, what is Catholic Action? It is precisely the life of the Church, the Catholic life. There is no action where there is no life; but what would life be without action? What would the Catholic Church be without Catholic Action? For we must not forget that when Our Lord was asked why He had come to earth and why He was going to die, His answer was: so that souls might have life and have it in abundance: ut vitam habeant et abundantius habeant. The very reason for the Church’s existence is to give to souls, to nourish, and to make the supernatural life of grace grow and abound within them. That is why We say—and We are certain We are not exaggerating—that there is no real distinction, no separation, between the Catholic Church and Catholic Action. Without Catholic Action, the Church could only live a life without action—and thus a dormant life—and that is not living. And that is why We say again that we must strive to live this life ever more abundantly, to bring it into souls, as you do, especially in the world of work, that gathering place for such a large part of humanity, that gathering place for so many souls who are all the more in need of the supernatural life, of the interior life, since they lack almost all external joys.
Catholic Action does not seek to replace or absorb anything: no work should cease because of Catholic Action; on the contrary, all good works are, by their very nature, within the sphere and domain of Catholic Action, because this is the life that Our Lord wished to bring to the world. Therefore, all organizations such as yours are a precious contribution to Catholic Action, which is—as We stated for the first time in Our first Encyclical—the participation of the laity in the hierarchical apostolate.3 The hierarchical apostolate is that of the first apostles, perpetuated in their successors, the bishops. To cooperate in this apostolate is to cooperate in the work indicated by the Savior when He said: “Go, teach all nations.” It is a great mission entrusted to us all, and it is a great glory and a great joy to contribute to such a work—so good, so truly divine.
Next came the proclamation of the Apostolic Blessing, which the Pope delivered in a strong voice; after which he called His Excellency Bishop Valeri and Bishop Flaus one after the other to his throne, thereby bestowing upon France, through them, a final token of affection.
- Source: Actes de S.S. Pie XI, vol. 17 (Paris: Maison de la Bonne Presse, 1945), 156-161. Cf. La Croix, 22 September 1938. — Present at this pontifical audience were Bishop Valerio Valeri, nuncio to Paris; Bishop Flaus, general procurator of French Catholic Action; Mr. Gaston Tessier, general secretary of the CFTC; the vice-presidents and other members of the Confederation’s Executive Committee, delegates and representatives of the major trade federations, several priests, and approximately 600 pilgrims. ↩︎
- This speech followed shortly after various anti-racist remarks including those of 6 September, when the Holy Father noted, “spiritually, we are all Semites.” ↩︎
- Cf. Ubi arcano Dei consilio (23 December 1922), 58. ↩︎