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PASTORAL LETTER 
 
 OP THE 
 
 FATHERS OF THE SIXTH COUNCIL OF QUEBEC 
 
 QUEBEC, 20th MAY 1878 
 
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PASTORAL LETTER 
 
 rvp THE 
 
 FATHERS OP THE SIXTH COUNCIL OF QUEBEC 
 
 We, by the grace of God and of the Apostolic See, 
 Archbishop and Bishops of tlie Ecclesiastical Province 
 of Quebec, 
 
 To the Clergy Secular and Regular, to the Religious 
 Communities and to all the Faithful of the Eccle- 
 siastical Province of Quebec, Greeting and Bene- 
 diction in Our Lord, 
 
 The great Apostle compares the christian life, to a 
 field designed to bring forth fruits for jBternal life, to a 
 temple which each of us is called to build for the 
 glory of God : Dei aqricultura est is, Dei cedificatio estis 
 (I Cor., in. 9.). 
 
 Such is. Our Dearly Beloved Brethren, „he 
 thought which, to-day, at the close of our sixth Provin- 
 cial Council, we lay before you. St Paul, in the same 
 verse, adds that we are God's coadjutors, Dei adjutores 
 sumus, in the cultivation of this spiritual field, in the 
 building of this temple which is to be edified in your 
 hearts by grace; we are also your coadjutors in this 
 mysterious labor on which depends your eternal happi- 
 ness. For this reason do we together address to you 
 
this Pastoral Letter designed to sum up in a few words 
 the fundamental rules of the christian life. 
 
 In several passages of his epistles, the great Apostle 
 says that the just man liveth by faith, Justus exfide'vivit 
 (Rom., I. 17. Heb. X. 38. Gal., III. 11). In effect, 
 by this virtue justification begins, is increased, and con- 
 summated. Faith is the architect, as it were, of this 
 temple, which the just man erects within himself: each 
 thought, each word, each action of his life, made super- 
 natural by the motives of faith, is a stone, as it were, 
 which is added to the edifice, until the day when God 
 shall take possession thereof for eternity : it is a flower 
 from this spiritual garden which the angels shall cull, 
 and offer to the divine majesty. 
 
 In his intimate and personal life, in the family, in 
 civil society of which he is a member, always and every 
 where, \hQJust man liveth by faith, and makes it the 
 supreme rule of his thoughts, of his desires, of his 
 judgments and of his actions. Unable to enter into 
 all the developments of which this vast subject is sus- 
 ceptible, we shall confine ourselves to the most general 
 principles which, being once well known and well un- 
 derstood, shall securely lead you in the way of salvation. 
 
 ENCYCLICAL LETTER OF LEO XIII. (a) 
 
 In thus addressing you, O. D. B. B., we shall faith- 
 fully fulfil the wish expressed by Our Holy Father 
 
 (o) The text of the encyclical must be read imuiediately after this first 
 article. 
 
 Ab this Pastoral Letter is long, it should not be read through at once, but 
 one article at a time, with the necessary explanations, that the whole and 
 the details thereof may be better understood. Each iniml)er niiiy fiirnish the 
 matter of a special instruction. 
 
5 
 
 in 
 
 l\)|)e Leo XIII, whose udniiruble encyclical reached 
 Us at tlie very moment w}ien our council was about to 
 open. This first address of the successor of the im- 
 mortal Pius IX was looked for with religious impa- 
 tience ; it shall be read in all the churches of this Pro- 
 vince, that the voice of the common father of the 
 fiiithful may be heard by all his children. All have 
 shared in the grief and sorrows of our mother, the 
 Holy Church, when she was deprived of her first pas- 
 tor ; all have rejoiced at the glad tidings of the prompt 
 and happy election of our new Pontiff; all will like- 
 wise hear, with respect and obedience, the first words 
 of a pontiff according to God's own heart, a pontiff 
 such as require the wants of our e^nl times : endowed 
 with science, piety, unshaken firmness to continue the 
 traditions of Pius IX. 
 
 This venerable document is dated on the great day 
 of the resurrection of Our Lord, who was delivered up 
 for our sinSf and rose again for our Justification : qui 
 traditus est propter delicta nostra et resurrexit propter 
 justificationem nostram (Rom., IV. 25.). Goa grant 
 that it may presage the end of the evils, which afflict 
 the holy Roman Church and her august head. 
 
 From the heights of his throne, the most elevated in 
 this world, the Sovereign Pontiff at one glance embraces 
 the universe, and his heart is filled with grief at the 
 desolation which weighs upon the earth. All laws, 
 human and divine, are violated; justice and charity 
 are banished, as it were, from this woild. 
 
 The encyclical enumerates the outrages committed 
 against bishops and ministers of religion, religious or- 
 ders, catholic schools, institutions of charity, the sacred 
 and inalienable right of the Holy See to the patrimony 
 of St. Peter. And, as the necessary consequence of 
 
6 
 
 these outrages, there exists no more peace, nor security, 
 nor stability in civil societies, which are agitated and 
 overthrown by continual revolutions. One would think 
 a volcano about to vomit up avenging flames. 
 
 What is the cause of these horrible evils ? The chief 
 and the primary is the contempt of the divine authority 
 of the Church : contempt which redounds to her divine 
 founder himself. Leo XIII, in sublime language, re- 
 counts the numberless benefits of this Church in favor 
 of humanity, civilization, arts and sciences. To her, 
 human dignity and the true liberty of souls owe their 
 existence, for, by joining her, nations acquire these 
 inestimable blessings, while, by separating from her, 
 they lose them forever ; witness the Oriental countries 
 formerly so flourishing ; witness Italy, to-day a prey to 
 misery and to anarchy. 
 
 Having renewed and confirmed the protestations of 
 Pius IX against the violation of the rights of the Holy 
 See, Leo XIII invites all the kings and princes to draw 
 near to the Church, and to become united to her, the 
 guardian of the true notion of authority, without which 
 there can be neither order nor stability. 
 
 He also exhorts all the faithful to beseech the divine 
 mercy to put an end to these evils. 
 
 He conjures all bishops to devote their assiduous 
 cares to scatter afar in the field of the Lord the good 
 seed of heavenly doctrines, and to cause the salutary 
 principles of the catholic faith to penetrate into the 
 souls of the faithful, and, above all, into the souls of 
 youth. 
 
 This we shall endeavor to do by pointing out to you 
 faith as the mainspring of your whole lite, during the 
 days of your pilgrimage on earth. 
 
 « 
 
 i( 
 
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 5. 
 
 II 
 
7 
 II 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN SHOULD LIVE BY FAITH IN HIS 
 INTIMAT"^ AND PERSONAL LIFE. 
 
 God was seen upon earth, says a prophet, and He 
 conversed with men : in terrii visus est et cum homini- 
 hm conversaius est (Bar. Ill, 38.), that, as St. Bernard 
 expresses it, " seeing what He has become through love 
 " for us, we may be moved to imitate His human life, 
 " and thus retrace in ourselves the image of His divine 
 " life, according to this expression of the apostle : that 
 " the life of Jesus may be made manifest in our bodies ; 
 ^^ ut et vita Jesu manifestetur in came nostra mortali 
 (II Cor., IV, 11)." 
 
 (( 
 
 Let us therefore enter, O. D. B. B., into the divine 
 heart of our model, there to learn how the just man 
 liveth by faith. 
 
 1. " The intention, says St. Augustine, directs the 
 " work to its end, as the helm directs the ship to the 
 " harbor." The offering of a mite, the gift of a glass 
 of water, acquires from the supernatural intention ins- 
 pired by faith so great a value, that God rewards it by 
 an eternity of glory. Accordingly does our Lord, 
 coming into this world, consecrate to His Father all the 
 moments of his mortal life : behold, said He, I come to 
 do thy will, God; ingrediens mundum dicit...Ecce 
 venio...ut faciam, Deus, i luntatem tuam (Heb. X, 
 5. 7.). After such an exam ^le, O. D. B. B., our first 
 thought, each day, ought to ue an act of generous of- 
 fering to fulfil the will of God, who grants it to us as a 
 means of gaining eternal life. 
 
 Let us, for a mpment, contemplate our Lord living 
 this life wholly of faith and of obedience, in the humble 
 
abode of Nazareth. Jesus labors in the workshop of a 
 poor carpenter, prayer animates and sanctifies His hum- 
 ble labor ; He experiences fatigue, He blesses therefor 
 the divine justice in the sentence borne against our first 
 father ; He receives orders, He adores the supreme do- 
 minion of the divine majesty which has established, in 
 this visible world, the various stations in life of unequal 
 conditions ; when He is paid the salary of His laoor, 
 He returns thanks to Providence, which feeds the birds 
 of the air, and gives us our daily bread ; He endures 
 scorn and rebuffs, He accepts them to repair the glory 
 of God outraged by the sins of men... And thus, in 
 each action, at every moment of the day, the heart of 
 Jesus, our model, amasses treasures of merits, not by 
 miracles, nor by extraordinary deeds, but by virtue of 
 that right and pure intention, which renc'^rs super- 
 natural and divine that which, in the acts of . 3 human 
 life, is apparently most common, ordinary and indiffe- 
 rent. O blessed is the man who can i?ay with Jesus : 
 He that sent me is with me... and I do always the 
 things that please Him : Qui me misit mecum est... ego 
 quce placita sunt eifacio semper (John, VHI. 29.). 
 
 2. This life of faith which supernaturalizes labor, 
 apparently the least noble, likewise sanctifies suffering. 
 
 Alas ! what son of Adam does not hear within him- 
 self that which the Apostle styles the answer of death ; 
 responsum mortis (II. Cor., I. 9.) ? It is not only be- 
 cause of that formidable sentence borne against every 
 living being in this world, but also because of the trou- 
 bles which are multiplied in our heart (Ps. XXIV. 
 17.). The just man liimself is not exempt therefrom ; 
 many are the afflictions of the justf says the prophet, 
 (Ps. XXXIIl. 20.) : but he is comforted looking on 
 Jesus, the author and finisher of faith (Heb. XII. 2.), 
 and saying to himself : if we suffer with Him, we shall 
 also be glorified with Him ; si compalhnur ut et conglo* 
 
9 
 
 
 a 
 
 rijiccmur (Kom. VIII. 17.). l-'t.'t (lie junt man sillier 
 pains and infirmities in his body ; let his heart be filled 
 with bitterness, fears and grief; let sorrows enter his 
 abode ; let misfortune cast him, like the holy man Job, 
 from the height of honors and of riches into the abyss 
 of the most profound misery, the just man, who li^^eth 
 by faith, knows that sooner or later God \\\n\Be\^ shall 
 wipe away all tea "s from his eyes ; absieryet Dens omiierri 
 lacrymam ab ocvds eorum ; and that death shall be no 
 more, nor mourniny, nor cryiny, nor sorrow (Apoc. 
 XXL 4.). 
 
 3. Sufferings do not alone try the just man in this 
 vale of tears. 
 
 The great Apostle who had borne with joy scourges, 
 chains, the prison, hunger, thirst, nakedness, felt his 
 courar^e to fail him at those inward combats, with which 
 the enemy of salvation assails the heart of man to entice 
 it to evil. In his discouragement, St. Paul, with bit- 
 terness, exclaimed : unhappy man that I am, who shall 
 deliver me from the tody of this death f Quis me libe- 
 rabit de corpore mortis hujus f And an interior voice 
 answered : the yraee of Ood by Jesus Christ our Lord : 
 Gratia Dei per Jesum Christum (Kom. VII. 24, 25.). 
 
 But, O. D. B. B., how is that grace obtained, which 
 is so necessary to repel the fiery darts of the evil spi- 
 rit ? Jesus Christ Himself teaches us : Watch ye and 
 pray, that ye enter not into temptation ; viyilate et orate 
 ut non intretis in tentationem (Matt. XXVI. 41.). 
 
 4. According to the ordinary order of divine provi- 
 dence, grace is obtained by prayer alone. How many 
 blessings we need, each day, to ask of God for oursel- 
 ves, for all dear to us, for the Church and her august 
 head, for our pastors, for oar country, and for all who 
 take part in the government of the State ? To the 
 
 I: 
 
 
10 
 
 christian, prayer is not only a duty ; it is a consolation, 
 it is an honor, it is a happiness thus to be able to ap- 
 proach the throne of the Eternal, our father, our bene- 
 factor, infinite perfection ! . . 
 
 •5. By prayer we communicate with the saints in 
 heaven, who, when we beg their intercession, amid the 
 dangers which surround us, take an interest in our 
 welfare. Like a refreshing dew it also descends upon 
 the sc .Is which were dear to us during life, and which 
 the infinite holiness of God keeps away, for a time, 
 from that happiness, from which the least stain is 
 excluded. 
 
 6. To prayer, Avhich obtains light and strength, the 
 christian, who liveth by faith, joins exact vigilance, 
 for he knows that the devil like a roaring lion goeth 
 about, seeking tvhom he may devour ; tanquam leo ru- 
 giens, circuit, qucerens quem devoret (I. Peter, V. 8.). 
 The apostle St. Peter, who warns us of this danger, 
 immediately teaches us the means to escape it : cui re- 
 sistite fortes in fide ; whom resist ye, strong in faith ; 
 that is, O. D. B. B., considering with the eyes of faith 
 that the most horrible evil is sin, you should, by con- 
 tinual and exact vigilance, keep the enemy at a dis- 
 tance. Far therefore from your heart those thoughts, 
 those desires, those imaginations, which, without yet 
 assuming the hideous form of sin, are the spark, as it 
 were, that may kindle the fire therein. Far from your 
 eyes those romances, those newspapers, those novels 
 which they reprint, those images, those imprudent 
 looks, capable, according to the prophet Jeremiah, of 
 bringing in death by your eyes, which are the windows, 
 as it were, of your souls : ascendit mors per fenestras, 
 ingressa est domos nosti^as (Jeremiah, IX. 21,). Far 
 from you those lascivious dances, those dresses, which 
 natural modesty, as well as the evangelical law, con- 
 demns and reproves. Far from your lips, sanctified by 
 
11 
 
 holy communion, those conversations contrary to cha- 
 rity, to justice, to purity, and which make speech, this 
 noble attribute of man, the too easy instrument of scan- 
 dal and iniquity. Let your modesty ^ says the Apostle, 
 be known to all men^ the Lord is nigh ; modestia vestra 
 nota sit omnibus hominibus, Dominus enim prope est 
 (Philip. IV. 5.). The just man, who liveth by faith, 
 like Moses, perceives the invisible witness of his actions ; 
 invisibilem tanquam videns sustinuit (Heb. XI. 27.) : 
 he knows that God sees all that happens, hears all 
 words, penetrates the inmost recesses of the heart ; and 
 that, having been the witness of all his deeds, the same 
 God shall be the inexorable judge thereof. 
 
 7. The just man never forgets the solemn saying of 
 the Holy Ghost : In all thy ivorks remember thy last 
 end, and thou shalt never sin : in omnibus operibus tuis 
 memorare novissima tua et in ceternum non peccabis 
 (Eccli. VII. 40.). He bears in mind that he must one 
 day bid adieu to his fortune, to his pleasures, to his 
 friends, to his family, to his house, to his very body... 
 He clings not to that which passes away like a shadow ; 
 and God, who passes not away, is, he feels, alone worthy 
 of his love and of his service. 
 
 8. Each day, the christian, who liveth by faith, exa- 
 mines his conscience, and, when he perceives that, in 
 spite of his prayer and of his vigilance, sin has entered 
 into his soul, he bitterly bewails it, humbles himself, 
 and endeavors, without delay, to wash away his iniquity 
 in the salutary waters of penance; for he knows that 
 a contrite and humbled heart God will not despise (Ps. 
 L. 19.). Far from being dejected by this fatal fall, he 
 is induced thereby to pray with more fervor, more assi- 
 duously to frequent iiie sacraments of penance and the 
 eucharist, to watch more carefully ; he is not satisfied 
 with faithfully observing the fasts and abstiaences 
 commanded by the Church, but he knows how to inflict 
 
 I 
 
 f 
 
 I". 
 « 
 
 I 
 
12 
 
 upon himself tlie holy rigors of chriHlian mortilication, 
 which is not only the just penalty of sin, but also the 
 surest means to keep from it in future. And more 
 fully to satisfy the divine justice, he endeavors to gain 
 the numerous indulgences, which the Church applies 
 to her children. Thus, according to St. Paul, all 
 things work together unto good, to them that love God ; 
 diligentibus Deum omnia cooperantur in bonum (Rom. 
 VIII. 28.). 
 
 9. The whole life of the christian may be summed 
 up in the word of the royal prophet : Declina a malo 
 et fac bonum : decline from evil and do good (Ps. 
 XXXVI. 27.). To fulfil this twofold duty one must 
 know how to distinguish what is good from what is 
 evil ; therefore one must study and meditate the divine 
 law, hear the word of God, read good books, occasion- 
 ally converse on the ti\ ^s to be believed, the virtues 
 to be practised, the ftiults to be avoided, in order to 
 obtain eternal life. And when once his conscience has 
 thus been enlightened, the christian bears thereto an 
 unbounded respect : what it commands, he unhesita- 
 tingly performs ; what it permits, he believes he can 
 safely do ; what it condemns, he carefully avoids ; and 
 when he doubts, he examines and consults, until he is 
 enlightened. Take heed, says Jesus Christ, speaking 
 of conscience, take heed that the light which is in thee, 
 be not darkness ; vide ne lumen quod in te est, tenebrce 
 fiant (Luke, XI. 35.). 
 
 Such are, O. D. B. B., the fundamental principles of 
 the christian life ; although they may, strictly speak- 
 ing, suffice to guide you also in the fulfilment of your 
 duties in the family and as citizens, yet, we deem it 
 advantageous to enter into more particular details. 
 
 p<?CY 
 
13 
 III 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIVING THE LIFE OF FAITH IN 
 
 THE FAMILY. 
 
 The family, as well as the heart of the christian, is a 
 sanctuary which religion consecrates, and sanctifies, in 
 all its parts, by making known to each of its members 
 the duties which God enjoins upon them. 
 
 10. Faith tells the spouses that their indissoluble 
 union is a great sacrament, sacramentum 7nagnum (Eph. 
 V. 32.), because it confers a special grace, the source 
 and Lype of which are found in the ineffable union of 
 Jesus Christ with His Church. Reciprocal love and 
 respect, mutual forbearance, and inviolable fidelity 
 until death, spotless honesty, all these render honorable 
 the christian marriage (Heb. XIII. 4.), and draws 
 down upon the spouses heavenly blessings. 
 
 11. These blessings are especially necessary for the 
 good education of children, which is a long, difficult 
 and important work. It is a sacred work, for its object 
 is to lay in the soul of your children the foundations of 
 a holy life, and to make them upon earth the living 
 temples of the Holy Ghost, that, one day, they may be 
 found worthy to enter into the heavenly Jerusalem. 
 And this is chiefly why the holy catholic Church, es- 
 tablished the guardian of the sacrament and the mother 
 of the children of Christ, detests and reproves those 
 mixed marriages, which are always a danger for the 
 spouses, and so serious an obstacle to the christian edu- 
 cation of the children. 
 
 12. The holy man Tobias taught his son from his 
 infancy to fear Ood^ and to abstain from all sin ; quern 
 ab infantia timere Deum docuit et abstinere ab omni 
 pecrato (Tobias, I. 10.). After this example, at the 
 
14 
 
 first dawn of intelligence in your children, teach them 
 to know God, the infinite perfection, to love, to fear, to 
 serve Him, and to pray to Him. Make them under- 
 stand that God is everywhere, that nothing escapes His 
 all-seeing eye, not even what is hidden in their heart ; 
 that even the darkest night is to Him light as the day : 
 tenebrcB non obscurabuntur ate... sicut tenebrce ejus ita 
 et lumen ejus (Ps. CXXXVIII. 12.). Inspire them 
 with a tender devotion to Mary, a great love and a 
 profound respect for their good angel, the faithful com- 
 panion of their pilgrimage here below and the perpe- 
 tual witness of their deeds. These first impressions of 
 piety, of respect, of confidence, will be profoundly 
 engraven on their young hearts, and will never be 
 effaced. " ' 
 
 13. When your children are old enough to attend 
 catechism, it is your duty to send them regularly, that 
 they may be taught the truths of which no christian 
 can be ignorant, without endangering his salvation. 
 
 14. Give to your children and see that they receive, 
 instruction according to your means, and for this he- 
 sitate not to make pecuniary sacrifices. Take heed 
 especially that the masters and mistresses, to whom you 
 confide your children, be, in every respect, irreproach- 
 able. Our Pr'^vincial Councils, according to the doc- 
 trine of the Holy See, have already cautioned you 
 against protestant schools, and against those others, 
 which are called mixed schools, where the faith and 
 morals of your children would run so great dangers, 
 either because doctrines contrary to the catholic religion 
 are there taught, or because your children would there 
 accustom themselves gradually to look upon religion 
 with indifference. 
 
 15. We have already spoken to you, O. D. B. B., of 
 that exact and continual vigilance, wliicli every true 
 
15 
 
 christian should exercise to persevere in justice. Youth, 
 which needs it more, is unhappily less capable of exer- 
 cising it, because it little apprehends the necessity 
 thereof. This, parents should supply by keeping their 
 children from the dano;er of offending God. 
 
 Watch therefore over the books, newspapers, pictures 
 and other articles of art which enter your houses. Watch 
 over the companies, which your children frequent. Do 
 not allow them to contract habits of luxury, of sensua- 
 lity, of egotism, of prodigality, of false liberty, which 
 would cause their, and your, uuhappiness, by stifling 
 every noble sentiment, and fostering the worst instincts 
 of a degraded nature. Do not permit them those im- 
 modest dresses, those forbidden dances called fast dan- 
 ces, waltzes, and others, those dangerous walks, those 
 solitary rendez-vous, those prolonged evening meetings, 
 which are, as it were, so many poir.oned sources, from 
 which your childTen would largely draw iniquity and 
 death. Do not, to calm your fears, say that your 
 children are sufiiciently old and reasonable, that they 
 are wise and well brought up, and that they run no 
 danger. Fatal delusion ! The more precious the trea- 
 sure, the more also should you watch over its preser- 
 vation ! O ! how many children are lost daily owing 
 to this false security ! And what a terrible account 
 shall their parents, one day, render of their blind con- 
 fidence. , . . .1 
 
 16. There is, in the life of your children, one epoch, 
 on which their happiness depends ; passage bordering 
 upon abyses famous for numerous catastrophes. Comes 
 the time when they think of settling in life, and con- 
 tracting marriage. How many embrace this state, 
 solely actuated by a passion which blindfolds them a 
 moment, but is soon followed by a desj)airing reality ! 
 For years together those young hearts are allowed to 
 nourish a flame, which devours them, which dries up 
 

 IG 
 
 piety iD their heart, darkens their intelligence and too 
 often diags them into lamentable disorders. This pro- 
 tracted coni'pany -keeping f as it is called, is, we say it 
 with grief, one o^ the plagues of our country. The 
 passion once kindled, paternal authority is disregarded, 
 the wise counsels of true friendship despised, the voice 
 
 of conscience stifled God Himself forgotten It is 
 
 foolishly imagined that love supplies all in this world, 
 and that, before the tribunal of infinite holiness, it will 
 justify every thiLg. The day shall come when their 
 eyes will be opened ; when regrets, remorse, a whole 
 life of sorrows, will make them expiate that imprudence 
 and those excesses. 
 
 Watch therefore, O. D. B. B., over your dear child- 
 ren, as the apple of your eye, during that period. Deter 
 them, as much as you can, from those unions between 
 near relatives, which, for grave reasons, the law of the 
 Church prohibits, and which she would never have to 
 allow. Deter them also from those mixed marriages, 
 where the difference of religious belief is so serious an 
 obstacle to the perfect union of hearts, and the good 
 education of families. 
 
 17. You should also exercise your vigilance to dis- 
 cover and extirpate the evil inclinations and the faults 
 of your children. In thi^i difficult task avoid the op- 
 posed extremes of excessive severity and culpable in- 
 dulgence. Christian charity, paternal tenderness, en- 
 lightened by faith, will inspire you that happy mixture 
 of meekness and of strength which overcomes all obsta- 
 cles. Never be disheartened ; be instant in season^ out 
 of season ; reprove, entreat, rebuke, in all patience and 
 
 doctrine be vigilant, labor falfil thy mlnisiry ; 
 
 insta opportune, import >me ; argue, obsecra, increpa in 
 
 omni patientia et doctrina vigila, labor a, mi- 
 
 nisteriurn tuum imple ^11 Tim. IV. 2, 5.). By your 
 prayers and good works, strive to merit God's blessing, 
 
17 
 
 and reflect tliiit your reward shall be iu proportion to 
 your good will and to your labor. 
 
 18. Vain shall be your efforts if yourself, you give 
 not to your children the example of all the virtues you 
 wish to implant in their hearts. In your household 
 be, as it were, an open book, wherein your children 
 may easily read the virtues they should practise : Faith, 
 charity, religion, the frequentation of sacraments, res- 
 pect and attention to the word of God, love of truth, 
 respect for an oath, temperance, justice and meekness 
 towards all men. Be such that, like St. Paul, you may 
 say to your children : Be ye followers of we, as I also 
 am of Christ ; imitatores rnei estote, sicut et ego Christi 
 (I Cor. IV. 16.). 
 
 19. If faithful to these practices, you will find, O. D, 
 B. B., in the obedience, virtue, and love of your child- 
 ren, a first reward, which shall be your happiness here 
 below, and a foretaste of that other life, where they 
 shall form your crown and your joy during eternity. 
 You also, children, understand 'well that your security 
 and happiness can be found, but in the obedience and 
 respect shown to your parents. Children obey your 
 parents in the Lord, for this is just, says St. Paul, honor 
 thy father and thy another, which is the first command- 
 ment with a promise : that it may be well with thee^ and 
 thou may est be long lived upon earth (Eph. VI. 1...). 
 
 20. In many families there are also servants, hence 
 several reciprocal duties. 
 
 If thou have a faithful servant, says the Holy Ghost, 
 let him be to thee as thy own soul : treat him as a bro" 
 ther (Eccli. XXXIII. 31.). Masters, adds St. Paul, 
 do to your servants that which is just and equal, know- 
 ing that you also have a master in heaven (Col. IV. 1.). 
 Treat tl.::T» with charity, as your children; with jus- 
 
w 
 
 
 18 
 
 iicBf not exacting excessive labor and paying them their 
 just hire ; with meekness and kindness, as you would, 
 in their place be treated ; with vigilance, lest God, 
 one day, demand back, at your hands, souls lost through 
 your neglect. Meditate occasionally these words of St. 
 Paul : Ijf any man have not care of his own, and espe- 
 cially of those of his house he hath denied the faith, and 
 is toorse than an infidel (I. Tim. V. 8.). 
 
 21. On the other hand, servants owe their masters 
 fidelity, obedience, labor and respect. Servants, says 
 St. Paul, obey in all things your masters according to 
 the flesh, not serving to the eye as pleasing men, hut in 
 simplicity of heart, fearing God. Whatsoever you do, 
 do it from the heart as to the Lord, and not to men : 
 knowing that you shall receive of the Lord the reward 
 
 of inheritance He that doth wrong, shall receive for 
 
 that which he hath done wrongfully (Col. III. ^2 ). 
 
 Blessed the family wherein God is thus honored by 
 all the members thereof ! What peace, what concord, 
 what charily, what subordination among them ! How 
 striking an image of that great family of heaven, of 
 which God is the Father, and of which the angels and 
 the saints are the happy children ! Faith, christian 
 virtue, fidelity to all duties can alone work such a pro- 
 digy. 
 
 IV ' 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIVETH BY FAITH IN HIS SOCIAL 
 
 RELATIONS. 
 
 22. The christian not only lives with himself and 
 with his family ; but necessarily he has frequent inter- 
 course with his fellow-beings. Hence numerous and 
 various duties, which the great apostle sums up in 
 these short words : Render to all men their dues ; 
 
19 
 
 of 
 
 and 
 Iter- 
 land 
 in 
 
 tes : 
 
 redd'Ue omnibus deblla (Rom. XIII. 7.). By willing 
 that min should live in society, God has thereby willed 
 all that is necessary for that order of things : there is 
 no power but from God : non est poiestas nisi a Deo 
 (Rom. XIII. 1.). All obedience, all tribute, all fear, 
 all justice, as well as all rights, are rigorous consequen- 
 ces of this fact established by divine wisdom. 
 
 23. The Holy Ghost in • the book of Wisdom (ch. 
 VI), describes the duties of those who govern the mul- 
 titude : Understand that poiver is given you by the Most 
 High, who will examine your works, and search out 
 your thoughts : because, being ministers of his kingdom, 
 you have not kept the lata of justice, nor walked accord- 
 ing to the will of God. Therefore horribly and speedily 
 will he appear to you : for a most severe judgment shall 
 be for them that bear rule. The christian, far from 
 being puffed up by his authority, finds therein a subject 
 of fear. The holy king David, amid the splendors and 
 occupations of the kingdom, had his soul continually in 
 his hands and forgot not the law of God : anima mea 
 in manibus meis semper et legem tuam non sum oblitus 
 (Ps. CXVIII. 109.) ; he was in constant fear for the 
 salvation of his soul, and took as his guide the law of 
 God. He implored the divine light, saying with confi- 
 dence : Thou art my lamp, Lord; and thou, Lord, 
 wilt enlighten my darkness : tu lu^erna mea, Domine, 
 et tu illuminabis tenebras meas (II Kings, XXII. 29.). 
 
 The holy man Job says : / fear all my works know- 
 ing, God, that thou dost not spare the offender : Ve- 
 rebar omnia opera mea, sciens quia non parceres delin- 
 quenti (Job, IX. 28.). In like manner the christian, 
 invested with great or little authority, fears and res- 
 pects all his acts. He fears, because of the account he 
 must, one day, render : redde rationem (Luke, XVI, 
 2.) ; he respects, for he knows, as St. Paul expresses it, 
 that he is the minister of God, serving imto this pur» 
 
20 
 
 iiiiiii 
 
 pose : minislri Dei sunt, in hoc ipsnm servlenles (Rom. 
 XIII. 6.). He never loses sight of the oath by whicli, 
 in presence of the divine majesty, he has bound himself 
 faithfully to fulfil his duty, and to avoid all injustice 
 and all neglect. 
 
 24. Let every soul, says St. Paul, be subject to higher 
 powers ; omnis anima poiestatibus sublimioribus subdUa 
 sit (Rom. XIII. 1.). The christian, accordingly, who 
 lives by faith, shows to the depositaries of authority the 
 respect and obedience due to them, for he knows that 
 there is no power but from Ood, and that the various 
 degrees of power are ordained of God ; quce autem sunt, 
 a Deo ordinatce sunt. He obeys them not only for 
 wrath, bid also for conscience sake; non solum propter 
 iram, sed etiam propter conscientiam {\h\dem). What 
 the law commands he willingly fulfils ; from what it 
 forbids he refrains : and this obedience he looks upon 
 as an homage rendered to the supreme dominion of the 
 divine majesty, which has thus provided for the order 
 and peace that form the happiness and security of citi- 
 zens. He knows of no limits to this obedience, but the 
 obedience due to God's law, and then, like the apostles 
 and the martyrs, he says : we ought to obey God rather 
 than men : obedire oportet Deo magis quam hominibns 
 (Acts, V. 29.). Obedience, thus enlightened and su- 
 pernaturalized by faith, is neither servile, nor humi- 
 liating ; it partakes of the high and noble motive whicli 
 animates it, and it shall, one day, be rewarded by a 
 crown of justice and of immortal glory. 
 
 The true christian loves his country ; this sentiment, 
 which nature has instilled into his heart, religion ap- 
 proves, and sanctifies. Even did he but give the 
 example of respect for justice and for order, he would 
 render immense service to his country ; but faith goes 
 further still, for it inspires him generous sacrifices, it 
 infuses with his heart unbounded devotion to this great 
 
21 
 
 cause ; the true christian, who lives by faith, will, in an 
 emergency, repeat the noble words of Judas Machabeus : 
 Let us die manjidly for our brethren; Moriamur in 
 vlrtute nostra propter fiatres nostras (I. Mach. IX. 10.). 
 
 25. It now remains for us briefly to lay before you, 
 O. D. B. B., the duties of the christian towards his 
 neighbor. I^^ving enjoined on christians to render to 
 all men their dues, reddite omnibus debita (Rom. 
 XIII, 7), the Apostle adds: All the commandmentSf 
 which relate to the neighbor, are comprised in this 
 word : thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself; si quod 
 est aliud mandatum, in hoc verbo instauratur : Diliges 
 proximum tuum slcut teipsum ( Rom. XIII. 9.). Of 
 this the Apostle immediately gives the obvious reason ; 
 whoever loves his neighbor refrains from doing evil 
 to him, and seeks, on the contrary, to procure 
 him all possible good, for love is the fulfilling of 
 the laiv : plenitudo legis est dilectio ( ibidem 10. ). 
 It is the repetition of the precept given by our Lord 
 Himself in the Gospel ( Matt. VII. 12. ), and by the 
 holy man Tobias, in the admirable instruct/ ')ns which 
 he addressed to his son (Tobias IV. 16.). 
 
 26. We wish our right?, our fortune, ou" reputation 
 and even our touchiness to be respected : let us respect 
 also the rights, the fortune, the reputation, the touchiness 
 of the neighbor. Thus, by an admirable alliance, the 
 charity we owe the neighbor finds, in our own heart, 
 the clear and precise rule of strict justice. 
 
 Far from you therefore, O. D. B. B., those calumnies, 
 those unjust and ruinous law suits, those contracts, 
 wherein equity is violated, that usury, which cries for 
 vengeance before the Ijord, those fraudulent bankrupt- 
 cies, wherein is sought the whole benefit of the law 
 without respecting the conditions thereof. This 
 crying injustice proceeds from pride and sensuality. 
 The pride of life, as St. John (I Ep. II. 16.) styles 
 
i 
 
 22 
 
 it, forming an infernal conspiracy wilh the concupiscence 
 of eyes, drags men into unbridled luxury, into extra- 
 vagant expenses, into that cupidity wbicli, according 
 to St. Paul (I. Tim. VI. 9...), ts the root of all evils, 
 destroys faith, and ensnares its unhappy victims into 
 many unprofitable and hurtful desires, which draw 
 them into destruction and perdition. lie even a'ds 
 that covetousness, or the inordinate desire o^ money, 
 u a serving of idols and that no covetous person hath 
 inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and of God ; 
 idolorum servitus, non habet hercditatem in regno 
 Christi et Dei (Eph., V. 5.). 
 
 Charity, which teaches us to do justice to our neigh- 
 bor, will likewise make us find, in our own heart, alms 
 giving, which relieves our fellow-creatures, patience, 
 which bears their faults, meekness, which wins their 
 affection, and all the social virtues, tho practice of which 
 tends to alleviate the rigors of our exile in this vale of 
 tears: it is the fulfilling of the law, and no duty can 
 possibly be imagined, but finds therein its principle 
 and its rule. 
 
 You shall therefore love, O. D. B. B., yo^i shall love 
 the Lord your God with your whole heart, and with 
 your whole soul, and with your whole mind. 7' his is 
 the greatest and the first commandment. And the 
 second is like to this : you shall love your neighbor as 
 yourself. On these two commandments dependeth the 
 whole law and the prophets : in his duobus mandatis 
 universalez pendet etprophetce (Matt. XXII, 37 ). 
 
 CONCLUSION. ' , 
 
 We read in the Old Testament that, after the capti- 
 vity of Babylon, a certain number of Jews returned to 
 Jerusalem, and set to work to rebuild the temple. The 
 ofiicei'S of Darius having asked them by virtue of what 
 
1 
 
 23 
 
 authority they repaired the walls of their city, and 
 built the temple, the Jews answered : We are the ser- 
 vants of (he God of heaven and earth, and we are build' 
 ing his temple ; nos sumus servi Dei coeli ct terrcBt et 
 CBdificamus temjylum (T. Esd. />. 11.). 
 
 "'.Ve also, O. D. B. B., whom ihe grace of baptism 
 has delivered from the captivity of sin, and made 
 children of the Church, we arc the servants of God, 
 and we have to build, witliin our heart, a sanctuary to 
 the divine majcsly : Dei cedificatlo eslis [I. Cor. III. 9.]. 
 live temple of God is holy : which yoiL are^ says St, 
 Paul ; templum Dei sanctum est, quod estis vos [ibid. 
 17.]. The architect of this temple is Faith, and God, 
 who has called you to this marvellous light [I. Peter, 
 II. 9.], has not granted it to you, to satisfy the curio- 
 sity of your mind, but to direct you in the work of 
 your eternal salvation Having become by faith the 
 children of God, you should also by faith live for God. 
 He that believeth not shall be condemned, says Jesus 
 Christ ; qvi non crediderit, condemnabitur [Mark, 
 XVI 16.J ; but faith without works is dead, says St. 
 James [II. 20.]; fides sine operibus m : utc est; if 
 therefore, O. D. B. J3., you do not act conformably to 
 the teachings of faith, if faith be not the rule of your 
 desires, of your judgments, of your words and of all 
 your actions, your faith is dead, and cannot save you. 
 
 Undoubtedly, O. D. B. B. you must, for this, make 
 some sacrifices ; but be not disheartened^ says St. Paul, 
 for that which is at present momentary and light of 
 our tribulation, ivorketh for us above measure exceedingly 
 an eternal weight of glory. While we look not at the 
 things which are seen, but at the things which are 
 not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal : 
 but ihe thijigs which are not seen are eternal : quae vi- 
 dentur temporalia sunt, quce autem non videntur ceterna 
 sunt (II Cor. IV. 16...). Dearly belovedy says the apos- 
 
 f 
 
^'Ifl!: 
 
 24 
 
 tie S. John, we are now the sons of God; and it hath 
 not yet appeared what we shall be. We know thatj when 
 he shall appear^ we shall be like to hhn, because we 
 shall see him as he is. And every one that hath this 
 hope in him sanctifieth himself y as he also is holy ; om- 
 nis qui habet hanc spem in eo, sanctiflcat se, sicut ct illc 
 sanctus est (I John, III. 2...), 
 
 This faith and this hope sliall liave tlieir consumma- 
 tion in charity, which forms the li^^ :)pincss of the elect 
 in heaven, and then the mercies of the Lord we will 
 sing for ever. ' ■ 
 
 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and charity of 
 God, and the communication of the Holy Ghost be with 
 you all ; gratia Domini Nostri Jesu Christi et charitas 
 Dei et communicatio Sancti Spiritus sit cum omnibus 
 vobis. Amen. (II Cor. XIII. 13.) 
 
 The present Pastoral Letter shall be read and ex- 
 plained at the prone of all parishes and missions of this 
 ecclesiastical province, and, in chapter, in the religious 
 communities, after its reception. 
 
 Given at the Archbishoprick of Quebec, under our 
 signatures, the seal of the Archdiocese and the counter- 
 signature of the secretary of the archdiocese, on the 
 twenty-sixth of May, one tliousand eight hundred and 
 seventy-eight. 
 
 ^ E.-A., ARCH. OF QUEBEC. 
 
 ^ L.-F., BISII. OF THREE-RIVERS. 
 
 ^ JOHN, BISHOP OF ST.-G. OF RIMOUSKI. 
 
 |J( EDWARD-CHS., ni'. of Mo?rrREAL. 
 
 I 1 1 ; .' 
 
T 
 
 W 
 
 25 
 1^ ANTOINE, BISHOP OF shebbkooke. 
 
 ^ J.-THOMAS, BP. of OTTAWA. 
 ' 5^ L.-Z., BP. OF ST. lIYACINTir. 
 
 By Their Lor(lsbip.s' commaiul, 
 
 C.-A. Collet, Pat.. 
 
 Secretary. 
 
 m 
 
ri 
 m 
 
 2G 
 ENCYCLICAL LETTER 
 
 OP Ills 
 
 HOLLNESS POPE LEO XIIL 
 
 To the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, and Bishops of the 
 Catholic ivorld. 
 
 To Our Venerable Breihren, all the Patriarchs, Primates, Arch- 
 bisliops and Bishops of the Catholic icorld, in the p;race and 
 commvnion of the Apostolic Sec. 
 
 LEO rr. XIII. 
 
 -*■■ 
 
 Venera})le Bretliven, health and Apostolic Benediction. 
 
 Having, by the inscrutable designs of God,been raised , 
 although unworthy, to the Apostolic dignity, "We have 
 immediately felt impelled by our present desire, and, as 
 it were, a necessity, to address you, not only to express the 
 affection which AVe cherish in your regard, but also that 
 We may by means of the grace Divinely bestowed upon 
 Us, impart to you, who are called to bear a portion of Our 
 cares, strength to sustain you in the conflict of the age in 
 defence of the Church of Ood and the salvation of souls. 
 
 For, from the very commencement of Our Pontificate, 
 the sad spectacle presents itself to Us of the evil by which 
 the human race is everywhere oppressed ; the widespread 
 subversion of those primary truths, upon which, as upon 
 foundations, the whole structure of society is supported ; 
 the perverseness of mind which revolts against all legiti- 
 mate authority ; the unceasing source of discords, whence 
 arise intestine conflicts and cruel and bloody wars ; the 
 contempt of the laws which regulate morals and protect 
 justice ; the insatiable desire of temporal possessions, and 
 forgetfulness of those that are everlasting, carried to such 
 a pitch of insanity that miserable men are found who do 
 not fear to lay violent hands upon themselves ; the mal- 
 administration, the extravagance, the confusion of public 
 afiairs, the shanieloss aiulacity of those who, when 1 hem- 
 
 sell 
 tr^ 
 
 WJ 
 
 wil 
 an| 
 
27 
 
 le 
 
 selves most at fault, assume to be the champions of coun- 
 try, of liberty, and of right ; finally, that deadly poison 
 which courses through the veins of humain society, allo- 
 wing it no rest, and threatening it with fresh convulsions 
 and disastrous issues. 
 
 We are persuaded that the principal cause of these evils 
 is to be found in the contempt and rejection of that holy 
 and venerable authority of the Church which, in the Di- 
 vine name, presides over the human race, and is the sanc- 
 tion and safeguard of all legitimate authoi*ity. The ene- 
 mies of public order, well aware of this, could conceive 
 no means more calculated to destroy the foundations of 
 society than persistently to attack the Church of G-od, 
 endeavouring by wicked calumnies to bring odium upon 
 it, as if it were the enemy of true humanity ; to break its 
 power and its authority by daily wounds to overthrow 
 the supreme power of the Roman Pontift* the champion 
 and the^^custodian upon earth of the immutable laws of 
 eternal right. Hence were enacted those laws attacking 
 the constitution of the Church which, to our sorrow, pre- 
 vail in so many countries ; hence emanated the contempt 
 for Episcopal authority, the obstacles thrown in the way 
 of ecclesiastical ministrations, the dispersion of religiovis 
 orders, the secularisation of the property devoted to the 
 service of the Church and the support of the poor ; hence 
 public institutions, consecrated to charity and benevo- 
 lence, were withdrawn from the salutary government of 
 the Church ; hence arose the unbridled licence of teaching 
 and publishing pernicious doctrines, while, on the other 
 hand, the right of the Church to control the training and 
 education of youth is in every way violated and suppres- 
 sed. This, too, is the meaning of the seizure of the C ivil 
 Powejj which Divine Providence conferred lipon^Tie' 
 Roman Pontiff so many centuries ago, that he might ex- 
 ercise the power bestowed upon him by Christ, freely 
 and without hindrance, for the eternal salvation of men. 
 
 "VVe have recited this sad catalogue of evils, Venerable 
 Brothers, not for the purpose of adding to the sorrow 
 which this unhappy state of affairs is calculated to ins- 
 pire, but because We know that the contemplation of it 
 
 / 
 
28 
 
 will impress upon you the extreme gravity of the situa- 
 tion, which calls for your zealous ministration, and with 
 what earnestness We must labour to defend and vindi- 
 cate with all Our strength the Church of Christ and the 
 dignity of the Apostolic See, outraged by so many calum- 
 nies in this impious age. 
 
 It clearly appears. Venerable Brothers, that human civi- 
 lisation would not rest upon any solid foundation unless 
 it were supported by the eternal principles of truth and 
 the immutable laws of right and justice, and unless sin- 
 cere charity united the minds of men and softened their 
 mutual relations. "Who will deny that it was the Church 
 which, having spread the tidings of the Gospel through 
 the nations, brought the light of truth to peoples barba- 
 rous and immersed in base superstitions, and led them 
 to the knowledge of the Divine Creator and to respect for 
 themselves; which rescued men from the degradation of 
 slavery and recalled them to the pristine dignity of a no- 
 ble nature ; which, raising the sign of redemption in 
 every region of the earth, introduced or preserved science 
 and art; founded and protected the most admirable insti- 
 tutions of charity, in which all human sufferings were 
 alleviated ; civilised man in his public and his private 
 relations, rescued him from misery, and,with infinite 
 pains, moulded him in the refinements of life and in the 
 consciousness of human dignity and hope, and if any 
 reasonable man were to compare the age in which we live, 
 hostile as it is to religion and the Church, with those happy 
 times in which the Church was venerated as a mother by 
 tlie nations, he would certainly conclude that this age of 
 ouiC so full of ommotions and of disasters, is rushing 
 rapidly to desti action ; whereas those times adA'anced in 
 the perfection of their institutions, in the tranquillity of 
 , life, in wealth and in prosperity, in the same degree in 
 which the people showed themselves devoted to the laws 
 and discipline of the Church. And if the many benefits 
 to which we have referred — conferred through the aid and 
 ministry of the Church — are true works and ornaments 
 of civilisation, so far from the Church of Christ condem- 
 ning or repudiating it, she may rather claim the honour 
 of being its nurse, mistress, and mother. 
 
^ 
 
 Isitua- 
 with 
 'indi- 
 the 
 
 lalum- 
 
 29 
 
 lint that kind of human civilisation, which is ivpugnant 
 to tho sacred doctrines and laws of the Church, is to be 
 regarded but as an empty name and figure. And of this 
 an example is afforded by those nations upon whom the 
 light of the Gospel has not shone, in whose life, indeed, 
 some spark of human culture can be seen, bu^- its true 
 and real benefits are not possessed. That, ce ainly, is 
 not to be considered a truly civilised state, in wnich every 
 legitimate authority is despised ; nor is that to be esteemed 
 liberty which, to the shame and the misery of all, runs 
 riot in the unchecked propagation of error, the free indul- 
 gence of depraved desires, the impunity of outrages and 
 crimes, and the oppression of good citizens of every class ; 
 for these, being vain and wicked things, cannot form the 
 human family and guide it to happiness, for sin makes the 
 people wretched ; but it must needs be that, destroying 
 alike soul and body, they drag them down by their own 
 weight to ruin, confound all right order, and thus, sooner 
 or later, bring the prosperity and peace of 'the IState to 
 Jinal destruction. 
 
 m 
 
 And if we look at all that has been achieved by the 
 Itoman tSee, is it not monstrous to deny the great and dis- 
 tinguished serA^ces which the Bishops of Rome have ren- 
 dered to the cause of society ? Our predecessors never 
 hesitated to undertake, for the good of their people, all 
 manner of contests, of difficulties, and of labours ; and, 
 with eyes uplifted to heaven, they never quailed before 
 the threats of the wicked, nor suffered themselves to be 
 led astray from their duty by base assent to flatteries or 
 promises. It was the Holy See which gathered and pre- 
 served the fragments of ancient society ; she was the torch 
 that shed a friendly ray upon the civilisation of Christian 
 times ; she w^as the anchor of safety in the fierce tempests 
 by which the human race was tossed ; she was the sacred 
 bond of concord uniting together nations separated by 
 distance and diversity of manners ; she, finally, was the 
 common centre where all men came to seek as well che 
 doctrines of faith and religion as peace and counsel in 
 their difficulties. It is the glory of the Sovereign Pontifl's 
 that they have been a wall and ])ulwark against the re- 
 
Illll 
 
 'lur 
 
 I' 
 
 i.iiiifii ■ 
 
 ':"■(/ 
 
 ■';' 1 
 
 30 
 
 lapHo oi' human wxicty into supcrNlition and iho l)arl)ariNni 
 ui'anticfuity. 
 
 Won ,(1 that this sahitary authority had nevor ))(3on nc- 
 «^lcctod or repudiated ! Then would not the civil ])ow('r 
 have lest that auE^UHt and tsacri'd honour which relijL^ion 
 impreK jed upon it, and which alone mad(} th(^ condition 
 ofobec.ience dignified and noble; nor would so many 
 weditions and wars have been kindled, which have sad- 
 dened the world with calamities add slaughter ; nor would 
 once Nourishing kingdoms, cast down from th(; summit 
 of prosperity, be crushed under the weight of woes of 
 every description. The Oriental nations who, having 
 broken the sweet })onds which joined them to this Apo- 
 stolic See, have lost the splendour of their fornu'r greatn(^ss, 
 the glory of the arts and sciences, and the fam<^ of their 
 Emp .re, alibrd an example of what "We have said. 
 
 This land of Italy experienced in a special manner thosi^ 
 great benelits which th(^ famous monuments of all times 
 pro^^e to have been conferred by the Apostolic; See in every 
 ]>ar . of th(i world ; and from the proximity of her position 
 she reaped more abundant fruits. Italy owes to the So- 
 vereign Pontilfs th(; glory and the greatness which dis- 
 tinguished hin* among other nations. Their authority and 
 pjiternal car(» prot^M-tcd h<M- more than omie from the 
 assault of her enemies, and such a hclj) to her that there 
 v/as no time in which the Catholic faith was not preserved 
 intact in the hearts of th(i Italians. 
 
 Services such as these, rendered by Our jn-edecessors, to 
 pass over other instances, are recorded especially in th(i 
 history of times of St Leo the Great, of Alexander III., 
 Innocent III., St Pius V., Leo X., and of other Pontiffs by 
 whose labours and protection Italy w^as saved from the 
 utter ruin threatened by the barbarians, retained uncor- 
 rupted the ancient faith, an<^, nmidst the gloom and wret- 
 chedness of a bar})arous age, nourished and k(^pt alive thi; 
 light of science and the splendour of the arts. This fair 
 city, the See of the Supreme Pontiffs, attests those benelits 
 of which it received so large a share, bei'oming not only 
 the impregnable citadel of the faith, but the refuge of the 
 
 I 
 
 : ! ■ 
 
 
31 
 
 art,K and Ukj home oriearninff, and aLiraclino- io ilHolf ilio 
 aitontioii and the wonder ot the whole w^orld. In pre- 
 8on<;<i of the proofs of these ^reat fa<!ts, afl'orded fur ever 
 ])y the monuments of history, we can easily understand 
 that nothing? but extreme malice and unworthy calumny, 
 intended to deccuve mankind, could ev er have; caused it 
 to be said or written that this Apostolic See was an obs- 
 tacle to the cidture and the happiness of Italy. 
 
 If, then, all the hopes of Italy and of th(^ entire world 
 are based on a fon^e so favourable^ to the well-bein*jf and 
 usefulness of all under the authority of th(^ Apostolic Se(«, 
 . and iinder the fast bond which unites all thti faithful to 
 the Itoman rontilf, We are awar<! that W<i ou«>ht to have 
 nothinj? so muc^h at heart as to maintain :' tact and in its 
 integrity the dignity of the Chair of Peter, and to draw 
 more closely together the mem))ers and the head — the sons 
 and the father. 
 
 Therefore it is that in order to maintain above all, and 
 to the ])est of Our power, the rights and fre(?dom of the 
 Holy Hee, We shall nev(^r c(>ase to use every (effort to 
 l)reserve the obedience dne to Our authority ; to remove 
 the obstacles which interfere with th(^ frtni exen^ise of 
 Our ministry and Our power, and to ol)tain th(i reinsta- 
 tion of that position of allairs in which the dictates of 
 
 . Divine wisdom had formerly placed the Roman rontilf's. 
 
 I And it is neither by a passion for ambition nor a desire 
 for domination, Venerable Brethren, that We seek this 
 restitution, but solely on ac(;ount of the duties of Our 
 charge, and by the terms of the oath which binds Us. In 
 addition. We are actuated not only by the consid«;ration 
 that the Temporal Power is necessary to Us, in order to 
 di^fend and protect the full freedom of thes Spiritual 
 Power, but also becaiise it is clearly shown that in the 
 Sovereign Temi)orality ot the Holy See is involved the 
 imblic well-being and the safety of human society. Con- 
 sesquently, in virtue of the duties of Our mission, which 
 obliges Us to defend the privileges of the Holy Church, 
 when the Temporal Power of the Apostolic; See is in 
 question, We cannot avoid r(>newing and confirming in 
 these letters all the protestations and di^clarations that 
 
 \\ 
 
 ~\ 
 
I I 
 
 32 
 
 m 
 
 ml 
 
 Our predecessor, Pius IX., of holy memory, has on many 
 occasions made and reiterated, as much against the occu- 
 pation of the Temporal Power as against the violation of 
 the rights of the Catholic Church. But, at the same time, 
 We address Ourselves to the Princes and supreme heads 
 of the nations, and ask them urgently, by the august 
 name of the Almighty God, not to leject the aid which 
 the Church offers them at a time when it is so needful 
 for them to receive it. We ask them to draw near in an 
 amicable spirit of concord and peace to the source of au- 
 thority and safety, and to become united more and more 
 with the Holy see in the bonds of a deep love and respect. 
 May it please God that they shall recognise the truth of 
 what We have said, and be persuaded that the doctrine 
 of Jesus Christ, as St Augustine says, " if it be observed, 
 is the great safety of the country itself," and that the pu- 
 blic peace and safety as well as their own are involved 
 in the security of the Church and the obedience given to 
 it ! May they devote their thoughts and their cares to the 
 relief of the evils with which the Church and its visible 
 head are afflicted, and may it be finally brought about 
 that the people over whom they rule, having entered on 
 the ways of peace and justice, may enjoy a happy era of 
 prosperity and tranquility ! 
 
 Besides this, wishing that the concord of the entire Ca- 
 tholic flock, with the Supreme Pastor, should be streng- 
 thened day by day, We address to you here an especially 
 affectionate appeal,Venerable Brethren, and warmly exhort 
 you, by your sacerdotal zeal and pastoral vigilance, to in- 
 flame the love of religion in the hearts of those entrusted 
 to your care, so that they may be attached more closely 
 and intimately to this seat of trnth and justice ; that they 
 may receive all its doctrines with the deepest submission 
 of spirit and will, and absolutely reject all the opinions, 
 even the most widespread, which may be opposed to the 
 teaching of the Church. Remembering the words of 
 Saint Paul — " Beware lest any man cheat you by philo- 
 sophy and vain deceit, according to the tradition of men, 
 according to the elements of the world, and not according 
 to Christ," Roman Pontiffs, Our predecessors, and in 
 particular Pius IX., of holy memory, in the Council of 
 
 i' 
 
83 
 
 the Vatican, haAc never omitted, when ii waK nocossary, 
 to reprovi' the eurn nt errors, and condemn them with 
 Apostolic censure. F(»lh)M'inG,' in the I'oolsteps ol' Our 
 l)redecessors, we conlinu and renew all those condemna- 
 tions from Our Apostolic See oi' truth, and, at the same 
 time, we fervently pray to the Fathi'r of Light to grant 
 that all the faithful, fully united in the same feelings and 
 sentiments, may think and speak in accord with Us. It 
 is your duty, Veneral)le lirethren, to devote your as,<>!iduous 
 cares to scatter afar in the lield ot the Ixnd the seed of 
 your heavenly doctrines, and to cause the principles of 
 the Catholic faith to penetrate early into the souls of the 
 faithful, so that they may i>ush their roots deeper and ])e 
 preserved in that shi'lter from the contagion of errors. 
 The greater the ellbrts of the enemies of religion to pre- 
 sent to inexperienced ])ersons, and espcHually to youth, 
 teachings which may obscure their minds and corrupt 
 their hearts, the more must you lahour zealously for the 
 success, not alone of a good and solid method of educa- 
 tion, but especially to make the teaching itself confor- 
 ma])le in science and discipline to the Catholic faith, ]iar- 
 ticularly in philosophy, on which depends in a great 
 manner the just direction of other sciences, and which, 
 far from tending to destroy the IJivine revelation, is likely 
 rather to smooth the way for it and to defend it against 
 its enemies, as has been taught Us in the example and 
 writings of the great Augustine and other doctors of 
 Christian science. 
 
 It is, however, necessary that this excellent education 
 of youth, in order to ensure the true faith and religion, 
 and be a real safeguard to morals, should commence with 
 the earliest years and in the very interior of the family. 
 Now, that family, so deplorably disturbed in Our time, 
 can be re-established in its dignity by no other means 
 than by the laws according to which the Divine Maker 
 established it in the Church. Jesus Clirist, in elevating" 
 into the dignity of a sacrament the ceremony of marriage, 
 which He wished to use as a symbol of His union with 
 the Church, has not only rendered more holy the conju- 
 gal union, but has prepared for the parents as well as for 
 the children the most efficacious aids by which they may 
 
84 
 
 ill! 
 
 more readily arrive, l»y a((oin|)lishiim' llieir mutual du- 
 ties, at the possession ol'teiiiporal aud eternal t'elicity. Hut 
 when impious laws, havinii" no re«:;ard to the respt'ct due 
 to this great sacrament, have placed it in the same cate- 
 j^ory as purely civil contracts, the result is the deplorable 
 consequences that, the di<i'nity ol' CMuislian marriai>'e 
 l)eini>' violated, some citizens have substitute(l ley-al con- . 
 cul)ina*>'e for the lej>imate union ; the nnirried couple 
 have ueo-locted their mutual duties oi' iidelity, the chil- 
 dren have not ol)serv(»d the respect and obedience which 
 they owed to their i)arents, the ties of domesti<' affection 
 have been relaxed, and, what is a most detesta))le exam- 
 ple, the o-ravest i)rejudice to public morals, pernicious 
 and ret>'rettal)le separations have very often suc<-eeded to 
 an insensate love. It is imjjossible, Venerable Brethren, 
 that the si«"ht of these lamentalde calamities .should not 
 awaken Our zeal, and should not incite you to recommend 
 seriously and constantly to the laithful confided to your 
 A'igilanco, to lend a docile ear to the doctrines Avhi<'h 
 treat of the sanctity of Christian ]narriai»v, and to obey 
 the laws by which the Church regulates the duties of 
 parents and children. 
 
 It is thus you will bring about a desirable reform in 
 the morals and manner of living of each man in particu- 
 lar ; for as an unsound tree produces rotten branches and 
 miserable fruit, the sad blot which depraves families is 
 contagious, and becomes a cause of vice and sin in each 
 individual member. On the contrary, if the family is 
 governed by the rules of Christian life, each member of 
 it will gradually become accustomed to cherish religion 
 and l^iety, to reject with horror false and pernicious doc- 
 trines, to practise virtue, to render obedience to the au- 
 thorities, and to repress the insatiable egotism which so 
 miich lowers and enfeebles human nature. With this 
 object it would certainly be very useful to direct and 
 encourage those associations which have principally been 
 established of late years to the great advantage of Catho- 
 lic interests. Those matters which are embraced in Our 
 hopes and wishes are immense, Venerable Brethren, and 
 above human strength ; but as Grod has founded His 
 Church for the salvation of the people, promising to aid 
 

 35 
 
 h(M* oven uiito the ( on.sunnnatioii ol' tlic world, \V*> art' 
 liriu ill the coiilidcjicc tliat the hunutii race, strickcii by 
 so nmiiy woes and <alaniiti«'s, will cud, thanks to your 
 cH'orts, l>y s(M»kin<>" salVty and i)ros]H»rity in submission to 
 the Churcli and in tho inlallihlc ministry oi' this Apo- 
 stolic Chair. And now. Venerable brethren, beibrc closinu" 
 this Letter, We t'ecl the necessity of communicating to 
 you Our joy at seeini>' the admira])le union and concord 
 which reijjn amongst you and unite; you so thoroughly to 
 this Apostolic See, and We are really ])ersuaded that this 
 l)erlect unity is not alone an impregnable bulwark against 
 the assaults oi" our enemies, but also a happy presage ol' 
 better times tor the Church. It u'ives Us a great encou- 
 ragement in our weakness, and raises our spirits in a 
 wonderl'ul degree, by assisting Us to sustain with ardour 
 the dilhcult mission which We have received, and all the 
 latiffues and labours on })ehalf of the Church of God. 
 Neither can We separate from these reasons for joy and 
 hope that W^e have manifested to you the declarations of 
 love and obedience which, in the commencement oi Our 
 Pontiiieate, you, Venera})le Brethren, have offered to Our 
 hum})le person, in common w^ith so many priests and 
 faithful, proving this by the letters sent to Us, by the 
 offerings made, the pilgrimages accomplished, and so many 
 other marks of piety that that devotion and charity which 
 you had never ct^ased to show towards Our most worthy 
 predecessor still remain constant, stable, and firm, and 
 have not been enfeebled by the coming of a successor 
 who so little merits this heritage. At the sight of such 
 splendid testimonies of the Catholic faith We must humbly 
 i'onfess that the Lord is good and merciful, and to you, 
 Venerable Brethren, and all Our dearly-beloved ; hildren, 
 from whom AVe have received them, We express the deep 
 feelings of gratitude which flood Our heart, full of the 
 confidence that in the distress and difficulties of the pre- 
 sent time your zeal and affection, as \vell as those of the 
 faithful, will never be w^anting to Us. We have no doubt 
 that these remarkable examples of filial piety and Chris- 
 tian virtue will powerfully touch the heart of the All- 
 merciful God, and will cause Him to cast- a merciful eye 
 on His flock, and grant peace and victory to the Church. ' 
 
^^ 
 
 30 
 
 Ihitas Wo are coiiviiuod that that peatt* and vii t(»iv will 
 h»Mnore ri'adily and i'asily accovdod to us il'thc Inithrul 
 coiiMtaiitly addrt'ss thi'ir prayorH to (Jod to ask Iliiu lor it. 
 We exhort you ardently, Ven«'ra1)le JJrethven, toexcite the 
 zeal and I'ervour ol the iaithlul by recjuestin^- them to 
 seek the mediation at the Throne oltlod ol' tlie 1mm «u- 
 late Queen of Heaven, and as intercessors, St Joseph, llie 
 celestial ])atron ol" theChurch ; the holy apostles, Peter 
 and Paul, to whose ]K>\vcrrul patroiuiiie AVe recommend 
 Our humhle person, all the Orders ol the ecclesiastical 
 hierarchy and all the Hock of the Lord. In addition. 
 We desire that those days when We celebrate the solemn 
 auniver.sary ol the resurrection of .I«'sus Christ may he 
 blessed and full of holy joy for you and for all the Jlock 
 of the Ijord, and We pray God, vvlio is so u;ood, to blot 
 out the sins which we have committed, and to mercifully 
 remit the punishm«»nts we have deserved, by the virtue 
 of the blood of the Immaculate Lamb, who has ellaced 
 the stain of our coiuhMnnation. — Bcmdivtio T)ei, ^-c. 
 
 Criven at St.-Peter's, Rome, Easter Sunday, 21st .\]nil. 
 1878, the hrst year of Our Pontilicate. 
 
 LEO PP. XIII. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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