PUBLIC DOCUMI-: 



703 



authority, and to deny all the rights of this same 

 Church and this See with regard to those tiling 

 which appertain to the secular order. For these 

 persons do not blush to aSrm "that the laws of the 

 Church do not bind the conscience if they are not 

 promulgated by the civil power; that the acts and 

 decrees of the Roman Pontiffs concerning religion 

 and the Church require the sanction and approbation, 

 or at least, the assent of the civil power ; and that 

 the Apostolic Constitutions (Clement XII., Benedict 

 XIV., Pius VII., Leo XII.) condemning secret so- 

 cieties, whether these exact or do not exact an oath 

 of secresy, and branding with anathema their follow- 

 ers and partisans, have no force in those countries 

 of the world where such associations are tolerated by 

 the civil government." It is likewise affirmed " that 

 the excommunications launched by the Council of 

 Trent and the Roman Pontiffs against those who in- 

 vade and usurp the possessions of the Church and 

 its rights, strive, by confounding the spiritual and 

 temporal orders to attain solely a mere earthly end ; 

 that the Church can decide nothing which may bind 

 the consciences of the faithful in the temporal" order 

 of things ; that the right of the Church is not com- 

 petent to restrain with temporal penalties the vio- 

 lators of her laws ; and that it is in accordance with 

 the principles of theology and of public law for the 

 civil Government to appropriate property possessed 

 by the churches, the Religious Orders, and other 

 pious establishments." And they have no shame in 

 avowing openly and publicly the heretical statement 

 and principle from which has emanated so many 

 errors and perverse opinions, "that the ecclesiastical 

 power is not by the law of God made distinct from 

 and independent of civil power, and that no distinc- 

 tion, no independence of this kind can be maintained 

 without the Church invading and usurping the essen- 

 tial rights of the civil power." Neither can We pass 

 over in silence the audacity of those who, not endur- 

 ing sound doctrine, assert that "the judgments and 

 decrees of the Holy See, the object of which is de- 

 clared to concern the general welfare of the Church, 

 its rights, and its discipline ; do not claim acqui- 

 escence and obedience under pain of sin and loss of 

 the Catholic profession, if they do not treat of the 

 dogmas of faith and of morals." 



ilow contrary is this doctrine to the Catholic 

 dogma of the plenary power divinely conferred on 

 the Sovereign Pontiff by Our Lord Jesus Christ, 

 to guide, to supervise, and govern the Universal 

 Church, no one can fail to see and understand clear- 

 ly and evidently. 



Amid so great a perversity of depraved opinions, 

 We, remembering Our Apostolic duty, and solicitous 

 before all things for Our most holy religion, for sound 

 doctrine, for the salvation of the souls confided to 

 Us, aad for the welfare of human society itself, have 

 considered the moment opportune to raise anew Our 

 Apostolic voice. Therefore do We by Our Apostolic 

 authority reprobate, denounce, and condemn gen- 

 erally and particularly all the evil opinions and doc- 

 trine's specially mentioned in this Letter, and We 

 wish that they may be held as reprobated, de- 

 nounced and condemned by all the children of the 

 Catholic Church. 



But you know further, Venerable Brothers, that 

 in our time the haters of all truth and justice and 

 violent enemies of our religion have spread abroad 

 other impious doctrines by means of pestilent books, 

 pamphlets, and journals, which, distributed over the 

 service of the earth, deceive the people and wickedly 

 lie. You are not ignorant that in our day men are 

 found who, animated and excited bv the spirit of 

 Satan, have arrived at that excess of "impiety as not 

 to fear to deny Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, 

 and to attack His Divinity with scandalous persist- 

 ence. And here We cannot abstain from awarding 

 You well-merited praise, Venerable Brothers, for all 

 the care and zeal with which You have raised Your 

 episcopal vohe against so great an impiety. 



And therefore in tl.U p-esent letter, We speak to 

 You with all affection ; to You who, called to partake 

 Our cares, are Our greatest support in the 01: 

 Our very great griel, Our joy_ and Our convolution, 

 by reason of the excellent piety of which You give 

 proof in maintaining religion, and the marvellous 

 love, faith, and discipline with which, united by the 

 strongest and most affectionate ties to Us and' this 

 AposFolic See, You strive valiantly and accurately 

 to fulfil Your most weighty episcopal ministry. We 

 do then expect from Your excellent pastoral zeal 

 that, taking the sword of the Spirit, which is the 

 Word of God, and strengthened by the grace of Our 

 Lord Jesus Christ, You will watch with redoubled 

 care, that the faithful committed to Your charge 

 "abstain from evil pa?turage, which Jesus Christ 

 doth not till, because His Father hath not planted it." 

 ..nac. M. ad Philadclph. St. Leo, Epist. 15>5, al. 

 125.) Never cease, then, to inculcate on the faithful 

 that all true happiness for mankind proceeds from 

 our august religion, from its doctrines and practice, 

 and that that people is happy who have the Lord for 

 their God (Psalm 143). Teach them " that kingdoms 

 rest upon the foundation of the Catholic faifh (St. 

 Celest. Epist. 22, ad Syn. Eph.), and that nothing is 

 so deadly, nothing so certain to engender every ill, 

 nothing so exposed to danger as for men to believe 

 that they stand in need of nothing else than the free 

 will which we received at birth, if we ask nothing 

 further from the Lord that is to say, if forgetting 

 our Author, we abjure His power to show that we 

 are free.'" And do not omit to teach "that the Royal 

 power has been established not only to exercise the 

 government of the world, but, above all, for the pro- 

 tection of the Church (St. Leo, Epist., 156 al 

 and that there is nothing more profitable and more 

 glorious for the Sovereigns of States and Kings than 

 to leave the Catholic Church to exercise its laws, and 

 not to permit any to curtail its liberty ; " as Our most 

 wise and courageous Predecessor, St. Felix, wrote to 

 the Emperor Zeno. "It is certain that it is advan- 

 tageous for Sovereigns, when the cause of God is in 

 question, to submit their Royal will according to His 

 ordinance, to the Priests of Jesus Christ, and not to 

 prefer it before them." (Pius VII. Epist., Encycl., 

 >?i.*, 15th May, 1SOO.) 



And if always, so, especially at present, is it Our 

 duty, Venerable Brothers, in"the midst of the nu- 

 merous calamities of the Church and of civil society 

 in view of the terrible conspiracy of our adversaries 

 against the Catholic Church and* this Apostolic See, 

 and the great accumulation of errors, it is before all 

 things necessary to go with faith to the Throne of 

 Grace to obtain mercy and find grace in timely aid. 

 We have therefore judged it right to excite the piety 

 of all the faithful in order that, with Us and with 

 You all, they may pray without ceasing to the Father 

 of lights and of' mercies, supplicating and beseech- 

 ing Him fervently and humbly, in order also in the 

 plenitude of their faith they may seek refuge in Our 

 Lord Jesus Christ who has redeemed us to God 

 with His blood, that by their earnest and continual 

 prayers, they may obtain from that most dear Heart, 

 victim of burning charitv for us, that it would draw 

 all by the bonds of His love, and that all men being 

 inflamed by His holy love may live according to His 

 heart, pleasing God' in all things, and being fruitful 

 in all good works. 



But, as there is no doubt that the prayers most 

 agreeable to God are those of the men who approach 

 Him with a heart pure from all stain, A\ e have 

 thought it good to open to Christians, with Apos- 

 tolic liberality, the Heavenly treasures of the Church 

 confided to Onr dispensation, so that the faithful, 

 more strongly drawn towards true piety and purified 

 from the stain of their sins by the Sacrament o f Pen- 

 ance, may more confidently offer up their prayers to 

 God and "obtain His mercy and grace. 



l>y these Letters emanating from Our Apostolic 

 authority, We grant to all and cact of the faithful 



