Quanta Cura
Encyclopedia
There is also an earlier encyclical of the same title, issued in 1741 by Pope Benedict XIV
, forbidding traffic in alms.
and the Second French Empire
of Napoleon III, undertaken as a part of the Italian
Risorgimento, under which France
was to withdraw its army from Rome
, which they had previously occupied in order to prevent Italy from capturing the city and completing the unification of Italy
.
Pius closed the encyclical by declaring a Jubilee
year for 1865, with a plenary indulgence
.
These propositions were aimed at anticlerical governments in various European countries, which had been recently and would in the next few years be secularizing education (sometimes by taking over Catholic schools rather than starting their own competing public schools) and suppressing religious orders, confiscating their property. (Hales 1958)
(1874), section 5:
And on the condemnation of absolute freedom of speech, he wrote, after discussing the restrictions on freedom of speech and worship in English law (ibid, section 6):
, which condemns a number of political
propositions involving democracy
, socialism
, and freedom of speech and religion.
. In particular, Gaudium et Spes
approves of the pluralistic culture of modernity
, while Dignitatis Humanae
supports Church-State separation and human rights.
Pope Benedict XIV
Pope Benedict XIV , born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was Pope from 17 August 1740 to 3 May 1758.-Life:...
, forbidding traffic in alms.
Historical context
The encyclical was prompted by the September Convention of 1864, an agreement between the Kingdom of ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and the Second French Empire
Second French Empire
The Second French Empire or French Empire was the Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1870, between the Second Republic and the Third Republic, in France.-Rule of Napoleon III:...
of Napoleon III, undertaken as a part of the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Risorgimento, under which France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
was to withdraw its army from Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, which they had previously occupied in order to prevent Italy from capturing the city and completing the unification of Italy
Italian unification
Italian unification was the political and social movement that agglomerated different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century...
.
Pius closed the encyclical by declaring a Jubilee
Jubilee (Christian)
The concept of the Jubilee is a special year of remission of sins and universal pardon. In the Biblical Book of Leviticus, a Jubilee year is mentioned to occur every fifty years, in which slaves and prisoners would be freed, debts would be forgiven and the mercies of God would be particularly...
year for 1865, with a plenary indulgence
Indulgence
In Catholic theology, an indulgence is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the Catholic Church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution...
.
Opposition to freedom of conscience
Pius IX's 1864 encyclical specifically marks for condemnation that:
"liberty of conscience and worship is each man's personal right, which ought to be legally proclaimed and asserted in every rightly constituted society; and that a right resides in the citizens to an absolute liberty, which should be restrained by no authority whether ecclesiastical or civil, whereby they may be able openly and publicly to manifest and declare any of their ideas whatever, either by word of mouth, by the press, or in any other way." (section 3)
Propositions condemned
Quanta Cura also condemns several other propositions, notably:- That the will of the public is supreme and overrides any other law, human or divine
- That "in the political order accomplished facts, from the very circumstance that they are accomplished, have the force of right."
- That the outlawing of public begging and alsmgiving is sound policy
- That parents have no rights with respect to their children's education, except what the civil law grants them
- That Catholics have no moral obligation to obey the church's laws unless they are ratified by the state
- That the state has a right to take the property of the church and the religious orders
These propositions were aimed at anticlerical governments in various European countries, which had been recently and would in the next few years be secularizing education (sometimes by taking over Catholic schools rather than starting their own competing public schools) and suppressing religious orders, confiscating their property. (Hales 1958)
Subsequent commentary
John Henry Newman comments on this passage in his Letter to the Duke of NorfolkLetter to the Duke of Norfolk
Letter to the Duke of Norfolk is a book written in 1875 by the blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman. Consisting of about 150 pages, it was meant as a response to Protestant-Catholic polemics that had emerged in the era of the First Vatican Council. In the book, Newman comments on the injustice of...
(1874), section 5:
- It is a rule in formal ecclesiastical proceedings, as I shall have occasion to notice lower down, when books or authors are condemned, to use the very words of the book or author, and to condemn the words in that particular sense which they have in their context and their drift, not in the literal, not in the religious sense, such as the Pope might recognize, were they in another book or author. ..... Both Popes [Gregory XVI and Pius IX] certainly scoff at the so-called "liberty of conscience," but there is no scoffing of any Pope, in formal documents addressed to the faithful at large, at that most serious doctrine, the right and the duty of following that Divine Authority, the voice of conscience, on which in truth the Church herself is built.
And on the condemnation of absolute freedom of speech, he wrote, after discussing the restrictions on freedom of speech and worship in English law (ibid, section 6):
- Now, is there any government on earth that could stand the strain of such a doctrine as this? ... It is the liberty of every one to give public utterance, in every possible shape, by every possible channel, without any let or hindrance from God or man, to all his notions whatsoever.
Syllabus of Errors
Quanta Cura is remembered mostly because of its annex, the Syllabus of ErrorsSyllabus of Errors
The Syllabus of Errors was a document issued by Holy See under Pope Pius IX on December 8, 1864, Feast of the Immaculate Conception, on the same day as the Pope's encyclical Quanta Cura.- Format :...
, which condemns a number of political
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
propositions involving democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
, socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
, and freedom of speech and religion.
Legacy
Quanta Curas opposition to religious pluralism was considerably softened by the constitutions of the Second Vatican CouncilSecond Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
. In particular, Gaudium et Spes
Gaudium et Spes
Gaudium et Spes , the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, was one of the four Apostolic Constitutions resulting from the Second Vatican Council...
approves of the pluralistic culture of modernity
Modernity
Modernity typically refers to a post-traditional, post-medieval historical period, one marked by the move from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialization, secularization, rationalization, the nation-state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance...
, while Dignitatis Humanae
Dignitatis Humanae
Dignitatis Humanae is the Second Vatican Council's Declaration on Religious Freedom. In the context of the Council's stated intention “to develop the doctrine of recent popes on the inviolable rights of the human person and the constitutional order of society”, Dignitatis Humanae spells out the...
supports Church-State separation and human rights.
See also
- List of encyclicals of Pope Pius IX
- Papal Documents relating to FreemasonryPapal Documents relating to Freemasonry-Before Pius IX:*Clement XII - In Eminenti Apostolatus - 1738*Benedict XIV - Providas Romanorum - 1751*Pius VII - Ecclesiam a Jesu Christo - 1821*Leo XII - Quo Graviora - 1826*Pius VIII - Traditi Humilitati - 1829...
- Anti-MasonryAnti-MasonryAnti-Masonry is defined as "avowed opposition to Freemasonry". However, there is no homogeneous anti-Masonic movement...
- Christianity and FreemasonryChristianity and FreemasonryChristianity and Freemasonry have had a mixed relationship, with various Christian denominations strongly discouraging or even prohibiting members from becoming Freemasons while others are supportive of Freemasonry and have friendly relations with local Masonic lodges.-Ties to Christianity:While...
- Catholicism and Freemasonry
- Clarification concerning status of Catholics becoming FreemasonsClarification concerning status of Catholics becoming FreemasonsThe Clarification concerning status of Catholics becoming Freemasons was a February 1981 letter from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under Cardinal Seper reiterating the Church's prohibition on Catholics becoming Freemasons....
External links
- Text of Quanta Cura (1741)
- Text of Quanta Cura (1864)