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The following is a contribution to our EPC "Story Contest". Please visit our "contributor info" (link). "recent stories" (link). and "story index" (link).

We would be thrilled to receive your story (fact or creative fiction) at: story@epcc.ca

The Euthanasia Prevention Coalition is not a religious organization. Naomi submitted her poem and we accepted it for publishing. All formats are welcome.

Fatal Temptation

By Naomi Jane Haw

Many times, at the bleak barricade of depression,

Looking down the endless, echoing tunnel

That seems to be my life.

Many times, if there had been a pill or injection

To remove me from that seemingly senseless suffering,

I would have taken it.

If euthanasia is allowed for the terminally ill,

I could argue that my endlessly repeating battles with depression

Represent a similar depth of pain and suffering that will continue to haunt me.

Many times I have wanted to walk the path

To a peaceful, painless, blameless, endless sleep.

AND YET

I am a Christian and I truly believe God when He declares:

“I know the plans I have for you,

 plans for welfare and not for calamity,

 to give you a hope and a future.”  (Jer. 29:11 NLT)

I can also see the Devil’s deviant, defiant schemes.

And euthanasia is killing humans.

In other words- murder.

And yet, if the path to euthanasia was opened up,

I would be tempted to kill (myself), to be killed;

Anything to escape the torture of untreatable depression.

But it would be wrong.

I could be slipping into an endless torment of separation

From God, my family and friends.

You may think of death (from euthanasia) as a sweet oblivion,

An endless, dreamless sleep.

But you may be wrong!

It may be a trick and a lie from the Devil.

No-one has ever returned to tell us about this unending death.

It could be a terrible, fatal beginning,

More painful and terrifying than the hardest fight against illness.

Medically assisted suicide

Would mean depriving my family of a wife, a mother, a daughter.

And though there are many times

When I have no success in playing the roles assigned to me,

Times when I no longer want to be me…

Still I believe that:

A hopeless, helpless wife is better than no wife for my husband,

A failing mother is better than no mother for my children,

An emotionally distant daughter is better than no daughter for my parents.

And I think they would agree.

God created me, with all my talents and in all my weakness.

And God allows the Devil To hunt me and haunt me with depression.

I don’t understand why.

I may never understand why,

But I choose to believe in the value that God places on my life.

“You keep track of all my sorrows.

 You have collected all my tears in your bottle.

 You have recorded each one in your book”  (Psalm 56:8 NLT)

I choose to believe God when He says:

“I created all the delicate, inner parts of your body

 and knit you together in your mother’s womb” (Psalm 139:13 NLT)

And also when He declares that, in the end:

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,

 and death will not exist anymore -

 or mourning, or crying, or pain,

 for the former things have ceased to exist” (Rev 21:4 NLT)

In essence, what I’m saying

Is that the lure of an endless, dreamless sleep May be a trick and a lie,

May, in fact, be a nightmare of torment,

And could well prove to be

Not just a final extinction

But a fatal temptation.

Written by Naomi Jane Haw

State Department officials reportedly met with British anti-abortion activists over concerns that their rights to free speech were being violated

US officials recently travelled to the UK to meet with local anti-abortion campaigners who Washington believes face retribution for expressing their views, The Telegraph reported on Saturday. The paper described the move as evidence of Washington’s desire to “intervene in domestic British affairs.”

In March, the State Department dispatched a delegation from the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL), to meet with officials from the Foreign Office and communications regulator Ofcom to “affirm the importance of freedom of expression in the UK and across Europe.”

The talks, which also overlapped with separate UK-US trade negotiations, focused on Britain’s new online safety act and its potential consequences for freedom of speech.

However, the five-member US team also quietly met with British activists who had been arrested for protesting outside abortion clinics, the article said. The US officials also reportedly attended an event held at a “nondescript” office block where campaigners were present.

“The visit is the latest sign of the Trump administration’s willingness to intervene in domestic British affairs,” The Telegraph noted.

While the paper did not provide details on whom the US officials met, Washington has sounded the alarm over several controversial cases where the right to free speech in the UK may have been violated.

One of them was that of Livia Tossici-Bolt, a 64-year-old campaigner who was charged in 2023 for holding a sign reading “here to talk if you want” outside an abortion clinic in Bournemouth. She refused to leave when asked by police and faced prosecution under a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) – a legal restriction that creates a 150-meter buffer zone around facilities providing abortion services.

In February, US Vice President J.D. Vance also singled out the case of Adam Smith-Connor, a 51-year-old British army veteran and anti-abortion activist, who was convicted in October 2024 for silently praying near the same Bournemouth clinic. Vance called it a “most concerning case” and said it illustrated the threats to the “basic liberties of religious Britons.”

UK law enforcement has been criticized for so-called “two-tier policing,” a term suggesting that much harsher measures are often taken against right-wing protesters than against left-wing ones. Elon Musk, a close Trump ally, has been particularly vocal on the matter, blasting the UK over its response to what he described as a disproportionate response to anti-immigration demonstrations.

The Feast of the Ascension commemorates the return of Our Lord to his Father in Heaven and begins the closing of the Paschaltide season. We read of the day’s events in the first chapter of Acts. In our home the weekdays before and after Ascension serve as a time of double penance and preparation as we lead up to Pentecost. There are the three Minor Rogation Days like a long vigil for the…

Source

More Evidence that European Politicians Value Open Borders and Mass Immigration More than National Existence

https://www.rt.com/news/618137-europe-destroyed-merkel-migration/ 

Democrats Are Corrupt Beyond Measure

https://x.com/WallStreetApes/status/1926390569615376497 

Is this a "stealth" bear market? Of course, you may be asking yourself what I mean by that.

Historically, bear markets have tended to be pretty evident, as highlighted in the chart below. These bear markets are often more protracted affairs that lead to investors developing profoundly negative sentiment towards markets. This article will use a weekly moving average crossover to identify "corrections" and "bear markets." While our definition may not "jive" with the mainstream narrative, the reasoning will be evident momentarily.

When the short-term moving average crosses below the long-term, a “sell signal” occurs. That trigger suggests that investors should reduce equity risk in portfolios. When that signal reverses, investors should increase equity risk. Since 1995, the weekly indicator has only given three “false” signals. However, those signals were quickly reversed as the bull market continued, doing little harm to investors’ total returns. The signals warned investors of critical downturns to reduce equity exposure and avoid more significant capital destruction.

The only actual "bear market" over this period was the 2000 "Dot.com crash" and the 2008 "Financial Crisis." These were the only two declines that broke the previous bullish price trend. Since then, every highlighted drawdown has been a "correction" within the ongoing bullish price trend. Of course, that was a function of the Federal Reserve's repeated interventions to mitigate any economic and financial instability risk.

In 2000 and 2008, the moving average crossover signal warned investors that a recessionary onset was coming 9 and 12 months ahead of actual recognition. The weekly moving average signals also triggered a sell signal in early 2022 ahead of the ~20% decline, although the NBER did not recognize a recessionary onset. For our purposes, 2022 was a "stealth" bear market. While the major indices did not correct that much, there was a lot of devastation below the surface, hidden by the effects of "passive investing."

Notably, these signals are not always perfect. The drawdown was so swift in 2020 during the pandemic shutdown that the signals to reduce and increase exposure occurred within two months. However, outside of anomalous events, paying attention to these moving average signals over the longer term can provide investors with a valuable roadmap to follow.

But we will add one more piece of analysis to determine whether we are in a "stealth bear market" or just a correction.

Risk Ranges & Signal Confirmations

Understanding that the market tends to lead the economy by six months or more, we can use longer-term market signals to help us navigate the risk of a more significant correction driven by a recessionary downturn.

We have produced a weekly “risk range analysis" in the #BullBearReport for several years. That report contains several measures of analysis, as shown below.

• The table compares the relative performance of each sector and market to the S&P 500 index.
• “MA XVER” (Moving Average Crossover) is determined by the short-term weekly moving average crossing positively or negatively with the long-term weekly moving average.
• The risk range is a function of the month-end closing price and the”“bet”” of the sector or market. (Ranges reset on the 1st of each month)
• The table shows the price deviation above and below the weekly moving averages.

For this analysis, we will focus on the far right column. In the above example, November 2021, every primary market and sector (except for the U.S. dollar) was on a bullish moving average crossover. Given this is weekly data, it is slower to move, which tends to provide better signals for both increasing and reducing portfolio risk.

The "Stealth Bear Market" Of 2022

Of course, in mid-January 2022, the market started to struggle, but the outlook for equities remained very bullish. The investor allocation and sentiment index remained at high levels in "greed" territory.

However, the number of markets and sectors on "bearish" moving average crossovers had increased markedly compared to just two months earlier. While that deterioration was increasing, akin to an undetected virus, the overall market appeared healthy.

However, the "stealth bear market" eroded investor capital as the virus spread. Each subsequent decline turned more markets and sectors into bearish sell signals. However, that erosion within the market also indicates when a stealth bear market is near completion. The report below is from the October 6th, 2022, Bull Bear Report:

“The selling pressure continued this week, taking almost every sector and market into double-digit deviations below long-term weekly moving averages. Such extremes are not sustainable, and when all markets and sectors are this oversold, a reflexive rally becomes highly probable.”

The table below shows that almost every sector and market had bearish moving average sell signals triggered. At the time, however, media headlines were filled with “death of the dollar,” recession warnings, and bear market alerts. However, such negative extremes are often coincident with market bottoms.

Of course, as we now know in hindsight, October 2022 marked the bottom of the market, and the recession predictions have faded into the past. While it was not the "great bear market" many had predicted, and the world did not end, even "stealth" bear markets can be painful.

Such seems to be where we are currently.

2025 Walking A Similar Path

Heading into the end of 2024, the market posted its second annual 20% gain since the 2022 correction. Unsurprisingly, virtually every primary market and sector was on weekly bullish buy signals, confirming the bull market trend was intact. However, as noted above, when virtually everything is a "buy," the question should become, "Who is left to buy?" Such was the point we discussed in early January 2025 in "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

"With slowing economic growth, fiscal policy uncertainties, global challenges, overconfident sentiment, and ambitious earnings expectations, investors have plenty of reasons to approach the markets carefully. There will be a time to raise significant cash levels. A good portfolio management strategy will ensure exposure decreases and cash levels rise when the selling begins."

Furthermore, investor sentiment and allocations are also extremely bullish, suggesting that market risk was increasing.

Of course, that overly bullish sentiment and investor allocation mix gave way in late March and early April as President Trump shocked the world with a more aggressive-than-expected tariff plan. That event caused a very sharp reversal of allocations and sentiment, leading to our conclusion on April 6th that there was "Hope In The Fear" for contrarian investors. To wit:

"The weekly “Risk Range Report” details three critical factors investors should know. The first is that the recent market crash has pushed every major market and sector well below normal monthly tolerances. Only during market crash events do you see such uniformity of extremes across all markets. Secondly, the deviations from longer-term moving averages have reached double digits. Such deep deviations across many sectors and markets are also unusual and historically precede bullish reversions to the mean."

Furthermore, the investor sentiment and allocation measures were at more extreme lows.

"While readings are not as negative as seen during the 2020 correction or 2008 bear market, current readings are at levels that have also previously confirmed near-term market lows and reflexive rallies. When these readings are combined with the technical readings above, investors are provided with a higher degree of confidence versus non-confirmed readings."

Since then, the market has recovered nicely. However, the question is whether the current "stealth bear market" is over, just as in October 2022.

Corrections Tend To Be Opportunities

Just as we saw in 2022, the promoters of "bearish porn" are seizing the headlines with irrational fears of the "loss of reserve currency status," the "deficit doom loop," and the impending "market crash" that will wipe out investors. Such headlines are great for getting clicks and views, but do little to help investors build long-term wealth. Sure, those things can happen, but they won't happen this year, and most likely not in your lifetime. So it is crucial to focus on the time frame and factors within our control.

Once again, most markets and sectors are on "bearish crossovers." Does this mean the "stealth bear market" is set to continue? Or was the April low, with profoundly deep negative sentiment, the end of the correction?

Unfortunately, it is too early to know for sure. However, we are watching the longer-term moving averages closely. When more of these indicators reverse from bearish to bullish, the return of a more bullish market will be indicated.

However, risk remains somewhat elevated for the moment, and investors should consider being more conscious of portfolio risk until things become more certain. The one crucial note is that reversing the current bearish signals to bullish is an opportunity for astute investors for longer-term returns.

Revert To Your Process

Given the uncertainty of what potentially happens next, the recent rally is an excellent opportunity to adjust portfolio risks to navigate the next leg of this market cycle.

Step 1) Clean Up Your Portfolio

1. Tighten up stop-loss levels to current support levels for each position.
2. Hedge portfolios against significant market declines.
3. Take profits in positions that have been big winners.
4. Sell laggards and losers.
5. Raise cash and rebalance portfolios to target weightings.

The next step is to rebalance your portfolio to the allocation that will most likely weather a “cold snap.” In other words, consider what sectors and markets will improve in whatever economic environment you believe we will experience in 2025.

Step 2) Compare Your Portfolio Allocation To The Model Allocation.

1. Determine areas requiring new or increased exposure.
2. Calculate how many shares to purchase to fill allocation requirements.
3. Determine cash requirements to make purchases.
4. Re-examine the portfolio to rebalance and raise sufficient cash for requirements.
5. Determine entry price levels for each new position.
6. Evaluate “stop-loss” levels for each position.
7. Establish “sell/profit taking” levels for each position.

Step 3) Have positions ready to execute accordingly, given the proper market set-up. In this case, we are looking for positions that have either a “value” tilt or have pulled back to support and provide a lower-risk entry opportunity.  

While market conditions remain uncertain, preparing and adjusting strategies can help investors navigate volatility confidently. As technical indicators flash warning signs, a well-structured risk management approach will protect capital and preserve long-term gains.

Understand that this "stealth bear market" will end. When it does, you want to be able to take advantage of it, not just recover with it.

The post The Stealth Bear Market appeared first on RIA.

The Ukrainian leader earlier rebuked the US for its “silence,” which he claimed “encourages” Russia to carry out new strikes

Public remarks by Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky are only making things worse for his country, US President Donald Trump has said. His comments came after the Ukrainian leader accused the US of a lack of support, which he claimed benefits Russia.

Trump took to Truth Social on Sunday to criticize Zelensky for making diplomatic efforts to settle the Ukraine conflict more difficult. The Ukrainian leader, he said, “is doing his country no favors by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems. I don’t like it, and it better stop.”

The US president added that the conflict “would never have started” if he had been in office. “This is Zelensky’s, Putin’s, and Biden’s War, not ‘Trump’s.’ I am only helping to put out the big and ugly fires, that have been started through gross incompetence and hatred,” he said.

Trump’s comments came after Zelensky criticized his Western backers, including the US, for what he described as a lackluster reaction to Russia’s latest large-scale air strike. “America’s silence, the silence of others in the world, only encourages Putin,” Zelensky said, calling for increased pressure and sanctions on Moscow.

The exchange occurred amid an escalation in fighting between Russia and Ukraine, with Moscow accusing Kiev of launching hundreds of drones between Tuesday and Friday alone. According to Russian air defense commander Yury Dashkin, one strike took place during a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Kursk Region, where his helicopter “was at the epicenter” of a Ukrainian drone assault.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has vowed an appropriate response, stating that the Ukrainian strikes are intended to “disrupt direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations” aimed at a lasting settlement.

The Russian Defense Ministry later announced a successful strike on a drone and missile production plant in Kiev as well as a radar surveillance center and a US-made Patriot air defense system. Moscow has repeatedly said its strikes are never aimed at civilians.

Trump, however, voiced disapproval of Russian actions, claiming that Putin had “gone absolutely CRAZY” and alleging that he had targeted Ukraine with recent strikes “for no reason whatsoever.” The US president has on several occasions threatened to impose new sanctions on Russia if he does not see peace efforts making progress.

However, following a call between Trump and Putin last week, Axios reported that the US leader is still refraining from imposing new restrictions on Moscow. Instead, he reportedly told European leaders that he believes “Putin wants a deal” and that diplomacy remains possible.

The tech entrepreneur risks further detention for resisting pressure from French spies, according to Aleksey Zhuravlev

Telegram founder Pavel Durov should leave France as soon as possible following his claims that the country’s foreign intelligence agency (DGSE) pressured him to censor conservative voices on his platform, Russian MP Aleksey Zhuravlev has said.

Earlier in May, Durov accused the DGSE of attempting to interfere in Romania’s elections by pushing for censorship on Telegram, which he allegedly refused. The spy agency denied the allegations, but the tech entrepreneur doubled down, accusing Paris of abusing “terror” and “child porn” investigations as a pretext to pursue a political agenda.

“I would advise him to leave France at the first opportunity – the risk of ending up behind bars again is too high, especially if he continues to resist the demands of the French intelligence services,” Zhuravlev, the first deputy chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee, said in an interview with RIA Novosti on Saturday.

Durov, whose company is based in Dubai, was arrested in France in August 2024 on charges of complicity in crimes allegedly committed by Telegram users, including extremism and child abuse. He was later released on €5 million ($5.46 million) bail. Although he was allowed to travel to the UAE in March, his recent request to visit the US was denied, and he remains under restricted supervision.

“[Durov] himself said that the DGSE, France’s external intelligence agency, demanded that Telegram organize a campaign against right-wing politicians in Romania,” Zhuravlev said, questioning the conditions of Durov’s release and noting that the tech entrepreneur is still restricted from international travel.

“It is more useful to always keep such an influential person in the field of new media within arm’s reach,” he added.

Zhuravlev argued that Durov has likely come to fully grasp the nature of “Western democracy,” where, he claimed, the law can be bent to suit political aims. He suggested, however, that Durov is unable to extricate himself from the situation, possibly due to compromising material being held against him.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also weighed in, accusing French President Emmanuel Macron of using “barbaric” methods to advance his foreign policy agenda.

“It turns out that Macron had Durov arrested not even to address internal issues with the messenger, but to influence the elections in Romania – realizing that the candidate from the liberal dictatorship wouldn’t be able to win under any legal circumstances,” Zakharova wrote on Telegram on Saturday.

The Supremacy of God's Rights

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on ‘diversified unity’

• Amid reckless and widespread folly of opinion it is the office of the Church to defend the Truth

But in this same matter, touching Christian faith, there are other duties whose exact and religious observance, necessary at all times in the interests of eternal salvation, become more especially so in these our days. Amid such reckless and widespread folly of opinion, it is, as We have said, the office of the Church to undertake the defense of truth and uproot errors from the mind, and this charge has to be at all times sacredly observed by her, seeing that the honor of God and the salvation of men are confided to her keeping. But, when necessity compels, not those only who are invested with power of rule are bound to safeguard the integrity of faith, but, as St. Thomas maintains: ‘Each one is under obligation to show forth his faith, either to instruct and encourage others of the faithful, or to repel the attacks of unbelievers.’ (Summa theologiae, IIa-IIae, qu. iii, art. 2, ad 2m) To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae christianae, no. 12, January 10, 1890)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on matrimony

• All of the pastors should proclaim the paternal warnings of the Pope against divorce

His Most Reverend Excellency already knows of the Allocution of his Holiness, in the Consistory of the 16th of the present month; an Allocution directed to preserve Italy from the sad consequences of divorce, when it becomes permitted by law. Treating of a topic in intimate connection with the Catholic dogma and ecclesiastical discipline, my colleagues, the Most Emminent General Inquisitor Cardinals, have thought it well to call it to the attention of the sacred Pastors and to exercise their zeal so that there be no diocese in Italy where the teachings and paternal warnings of the Head of the Church have not found a worthy correspondence. And above all, it is appropriate to clearly explain to the people, how Jesus Christ, Son of God, Redeemer of the human race, abolished the costume of repudiation, and once again restored matrimony to how it was established by the Creator from the beginning: that it be one and indivisible. The divine Master alludes to this in teaching: ‘So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate.’ The principle is applied by St. Paul, in writing to the Corinthians, ‘A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whomever she wishes, provided that it be in the Lord.’ (Leo XIII. Letter Alla S. V. to the Bishops of Italy regarding the proposed law of divorce, December 24, 1901)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on union in the Catholic Church

• The true union between Christians consists in a unity of faith and unity of government

The True Union between Christians is that which Jesus Christ, the Author of the Church, instituted and desired, and which consists in a unity of faith and unity of government. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Praeclara gratulationis, no. 8, June 20, 1894)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on if doctrine can be interpreted against the infallible Magisterium

• Christ the Lord appointed an unfailing teaching authority, the Magisterium, to train minds to faith and preserve men by the truth

The only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, who came on earth to bring salvation and the light of divine wisdom to men, conferred a great and wonderful blessing on the world when, about to ascend again into heaven, He commanded the Apostles to go and teach all nations, (Mt 28:19) and left the Church which He had founded to be the common and supreme teacher of the peoples. For men whom the truth had set free were to be preserved by the truth; nor would the fruits of heavenly doctrines by which salvation comes to men have long remained had not the Lord Christ appointed an unfailing teaching authority to train the minds to faith. And the Church built upon the promises of its own divine Author, whose charity it imitated, so faithfully followed out His commands that its constant aim and chief wish was this: to teach religion and contend forever against errors. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Aeterni Patris, August 4, 1879)

• The doctrine of the Church is not to be shaped in accord with the spirit of the age, nor concessions made to new opinions

The underlying principle of these new opinions is that, in order to more easily attract those who differ from her, the Church should shape her teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions. Many think that these concessions should be made not only in regard to ways of living, but even in regard to doctrines which belong to the deposit of the faith. They contend that it would be opportune, in order to gain those who differ from us, to omit certain points of her teaching which are of lesser importance, and to tone down the meaning which the Church has always attached to them. […] Such a policy would tend rather to separate Catholics from the Church than to bring in those who differ. There is nothing closer to our heart than to have those who are separated from the fold of Christ return to it, but in no other way than the way pointed out by Christ. […] History proves clearly that the Apostolic See, to which has been entrusted the mission not only of teaching but of governing the whole Church, has continued “in one and the same doctrine, one and the same sense, and one and the same judgment” (Const. de fide, ch. 4) […] In this matter the Church must be the judge, not private men who are often deceived by the appearance of right. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae to Cardinal James Gibbons, January 22, 1899)

• The Church, by spreading the Gospel throughout the nations, has civilized the human race and trained it to live as befits the dignity of man

Now, who would make bold to deny that the Church, by spreading the Gospel throughout the nations, has brought the light of truth amongst people utterly savage and steeped in foul superstition, and has quickened them alike to recognize the Divine Author of nature and duly to respect themselves? Further, who will deny that the Church has done away with the curse of slavery and restored men to the original dignity of their noble nature; and – by uplifting the standard of redemption in all quarters of the globe, by introducing, or shielding under her protection, the sciences and arts, by founding and taking into her keeping excellent charitable institutions which provide relief for ills of every kind – has throughout the world, in private or in public life, civilized the human race, freed it from degradation, and with all care trained it to a way of living such as befits the dignity and the hopes of man? And if any one of sound mind compare the age in which We live, so hostile to religion and to the Church of Christ, with those happy times when the Church was revered as a mother by the nations, beyond all question he will see that our epoch is rushing wildly along the straight road to destruction; while in those times which most abounded in excellent institutions, peaceful life, wealth, and prosperity the people showed themselves most obedient to the Church’s rule and laws. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, no. 3, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on interpersonal relationships no longer need to seek purity and perfection

• Perfection shone in the Holy Family, which was destined to be a model for all others

Such was the Holy Family of Nazareth, in which was hidden –before he should shine out in the sight of all nations in full splendour – the Sun of Righteousness, Christ, our God and Saviour, with his Virgin Mother, and with Saint Joseph, her most holy spouse, who held to him the place of father. No one can doubt the perfection which, for society and domestic life, was born of the reciprocal fidelity to the duties of charity, the sanctity of customs, and the practice of the virtues, shone with brighter splendor in this Holy Family which was destined to be a model for all others. For that very reason was it established by the merciful designs of Providence, this Family was constituted in such a way so that every Christian, in every walk of life and in any country, might easily, if he would but give heed to it, have before him a motive and an invitation to practice the virtues. In effect, the fathers of families have in Joseph a perfect model of paternal vigilance and care. In the most holy Virgin Mother of God, mothers may find an admirable example of love, modesty, spirit of submission, and perfect faith. In the person of Jesus, who ‘was obedient to them’ (Lk 2:51), the children of the family can admire, venerate and imitate a divine model of obedience. obedience which they can admire, reverence, and imitate. (Leo XIII. Brief Neminem fugit, June 14, 1892)

• The family may not only be constituted in a holy manner, but also be governed by holy laws

No one fails to see that the prosperity of private and public good principally depends upon the constitution of the family. In effect, the more deeply virtue is rooted in the bosom of the home, the greater the solicitude of the parents to inculcate in their children — through doctrine and example — the precepts of religion, so greater will be the fruits born for common good. Wherefore it is of extreme importance that domestic society is not only constituted in a holy manner, but also that it be governed by holy laws; and that the spirit of religion and principles of Christian life develop in it with the same effort and constancy. Evidently, with this intent, merciful God, when he wished to accomplish the work of human reparation, awaited for centuries, disposed his elements in such a way, that from the beginning, the reason and order of this same work, from the beginning, this work presented to the world the august form of a divinely constituted family, in which men could all contemplate a perfect example of domestic society and a model of all virtue and sanctity. (Leo XIII. Brief Neminem fugit, June 14, 1892)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Christian marriage realized in a partial and analogous way by adultery

• Reprobated licentious and free love were condemned by the Church ever since the beginning

Christ, therefore, having renewed marriage to such and so great excellence, commended and entrusted all the discipline bearing upon these matters to His Church. The Church, always and everywhere, has so used her power with reference to the marriages of Christians that men have seen clearly how it belongs to her as of native right; not being made hers by any human grant, but given divinely to her by the will of her Founder. Her constant and watchful care in guarding marriage, by the preservation of its sanctity, is so well understood as to not need proof. That the judgment of the Council of Jerusalem reprobated licentious and free love, (Acts 15:29) we all know. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientiae, no. 13, February 10, 1880)

• Any union among the faithful which is not a sacrament has not the force and nature of a proper marriage

Let special care be taken that the people be well instructed in the precepts of Christian wisdom, so that they may always remember that marriage was not instituted by the will of man, but, from the very beginning, by the authority and command of God; that it does not admit of plurality of wives or husbands; that Christ, the Author of the New Covenant, raised it from a rite of nature to be a sacrament, and gave to His Church legislative and judicial power with regard to the bond of union. On this point the very greatest care must be taken to instruct them, lest their minds should be led into error by the unsound conclusions of adversaries who desire that the Church should be deprived of that power. In like manner, all ought to understand clearly that, if there be any union of a man and a woman among the faithful of Christ which is not a sacrament, such union has not the force and nature of a proper marriage (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientiae, no. 39-40, February 10, 1880)

• Those with corrupt morals endeavor to deprive marriage of all holiness

The chief reason why they act in this way is because very many, imbued with the maxims of a false philosophy and corrupted in morals, judge nothing so unbearable as submission and obedience; and strive with all their might to bring about that not only individual men, but families, also-indeed, human society itself-may in haughty pride despise the sovereignty of God. Now, since the family and human society at large spring from marriage, these men will on no account allow matrimony to be the subject of the jurisdiction of the Church. Nay, they endeavor to deprive it of all holiness, and so bring it within the contracted sphere of those rights which, having been instituted by man, are ruled and administered by the civil jurisprudence of the community. Wherefore it necessarily follows that they attribute all power over marriage to civil rulers, and allow none whatever to the Church; and, when the Church exercises any such power, they think that she acts either by favor of the civil authority or to its injury. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientiae, no. 16-17, February 10, 1880)

• To keep silence when from all sides clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe

Amid such reckless and widespread folly of opinion, it is, as We have said, the office of the Church to undertake the defense of truth and uproot errors from the mind, and this charge has to be at all times sacredly observed by her, seeing that the honor of God and the salvation of men are confided to her keeping. But, when necessity compels, not those only who are invested with power of rule are bound to safeguard the integrity of faith, but, as Saint Thomas maintains: ‘Each one is under obligation to show forth his faith, either to instruct and encourage others of the faithful, or to repel the attacks of unbelievers’ (STh, II-II, q. 3, a. 2, ad 2m). To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good. Moreover, want of vigor on the part of Christians is so much the more blameworthy, as not seldom little would be needed on their part to bring to naught false charges and refute erroneous opinions, and by always exerting themselves more strenuously they might reckon upon being successful. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae christianae, no. 14, January 10, 1890)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Judas being a poor, penitent man

• The last touch of shameless indignity: to attempt to rescue Judas from the execration of ages

During the last months the very person of Our Divine Redeemer has not been spared. Such a depth of shameless indignity has been reached that Jesus Christ Himself has been dragged upon the stage of a theatre often contaminated with corruptions […] And the last touch of shame was added in an attempt to rescue from the execration of ages the guilty name of him who was the very sign of perfidy, the betrayer of Christ. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Iucunda semper expectatione, no. 9, September 8, 1894)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that the Orthodox are no longer schismatics

• There is nothing more grievous than the sacrilege of schism

From this it is easy to see that men can fall away from the unity of the Church by schism, as well as by heresy. ‘We think that this difference exists between heresy and schism’ (writes Saint Jerome): ‘heresy has no perfect dogmatic teaching, whereas schism, through some Episcopal dissent, also separates from the Church’ (In Epist. ad Titum, cap. iii., v. 10-11). In which judgment Saint John Chrysostom concurs: ‘I say and protest (he writes) that it is as wrong to divide the Church as to fall into heresy’ (Hom. xi., in Epist. ad Ephes., n. 5). Wherefore as no heresy can ever be justifiable, so in like manner there can be no justification for schism. ‘There is nothing more grievous than the sacrilege of schism, there can be no just necessity for destroying the unity of the Church’ (S. Augustine, Contra Epistolam Parmeniani, lib. ii., cap. ii., n. 25). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 24, June 29, 1896)

• They can in no wise be counted among the children of God, unless they take the Church as their mother

And with the same yearning Our soul goes out to those whom the foul breath of irreligion has not entirely corrupted, and who at least seek to have the true God, the Creator of Heaven and earth, as their Father. Let such as these take counsel with themselves, and realize that they can in no wise be counted among the children of God, unless they take Christ Jesus as their Brother, and at the same time the Church as their mother. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 16, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on zeal for the liturgy, doctrine and prestige of the Church

• When the venerable authority of the Church is despised and set aside, great evils oppress the human race

For, from the very beginning of Our pontificate, the sad sight has presented itself to Us of the evils by which the human race is oppressed on every side […] Now, the source of these evils lies chiefly, We are convinced, in this, that the holy and venerable authority of the Church, which in God’s name rules mankind, upholding and defending all lawful authority, has been despised and set aside. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, no. 2-3, April 21, 1878)

• Christ entrusted to His Church the continuance of His work in human society

In order that these unparalleled benefits might last as long as men should be found on earth, He [Christ] entrusted to His Church the continuance of His work; and, looking to future times, He commanded her to set in order whatever might have become deranged in human society, and to restore whatever might have fallen into ruin. Although the divine renewal we have spoken of chiefly and directly affected men as constituted in the supernatural order of grace, nevertheless some of its precious and salutary fruits were also bestowed abundantly in the order of nature. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientiae, no. 2-3, February 10, 1880)

• Excellent institutions, the peaceful life and prosperity abounded when there was most obedience to the Church’s rule and laws

Now, who would make bold to deny that the Church, by spreading the Gospel throughout the nations, has brought the light of truth amongst people utterly savage and steeped in foul superstition, and has quickened them alike to recognize the Divine Author of nature and duly to respect themselves? Further, who will deny that the Church has done away with the curse of slavery and restored men to the original dignity of their noble nature; and – by uplifting the standard of redemption in all quarters of the globe, by introducing, or shielding under her protection, the sciences and arts, by founding and taking into her keeping excellent charitable institutions which provide relief for ills of every kind – has throughout the world, in private or in public life, civilized the human race, freed it from degradation, and with all care trained it to a way of Living such as befits the dignity and the hopes of man? And if any one of sound mind compare the age in which We live, so hostile to religion and to the Church of Christ, with those happy times when the Church was revered as a mother by the nations, beyond all question he will see that our epoch is rushing wildly along the straight road to destruction; while in those times which most abounded in excellent institutions, peaceful life, wealth, and prosperity the people showed themselves most obedient to the Church’s rule and laws. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutbili Dei consilio, no. 5, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the role of women in the Church

• The Church is the body of Christ, living and energizing, because He guards and sustains it by the infusion of His power

For this reason the Church is so often called in Holy Writ a body, and even the body of Christ – ‘Now you are the body of Christ’ (1 Cor. 12:27) – and precisely because it is a body is the Church visible: and because it is the body of Christ is it living and energizing, because by the infusion of His power Christ guards and sustains it, just as the vine gives nourishment and renders fruitful the branches united to it. And as in animals the vital principle is unseen and invisible, and is evidenced and manifested by the movements and action of the members, so the principle of supernatural life in the Church is clearly shown in that which is done by it. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 3, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical/apostate idea on conversion of the papacy

• Authority instituted in perpetuity

The nature of this supreme authority, which all Christians are bound to obey, can be ascertained only by finding out what was the evident and positive will of Christ. Certainly Christ is a King for ever; and though invisible, He continues unto the end of time to govern and guard His church from Heaven. But since He willed that His kingdom should be visible He was obliged, when He ascended into Heaven, to designate a vice-gerent on earth. […] Jesus Christ, therefore, appointed Peter to be that head of the Church; and He also determined that the authority instituted in perpetuity for the salvation of all should be inherited by His successors, in whom the same permanent authority of Peter himself should continue. And so He made that remarkable promise to Peter and to no one else: ‘Thou are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church’ (Mt 16:18). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 11, September 29, 1896)

• No one should depart from the infallible teaching authority of the Church

If we are to come to any conclusion from the infallible teaching authority of the Church, it should rather be that no one should wish to depart from it, and moreover that the minds of all being leavened and directed thereby, greater security from private error would be enjoyed by all. And further, those who avail themselves of such a way of reasoning seem to depart seriously from the over-ruling wisdom of the Most High-which wisdom, since it was pleased to set forth by most solemn decision the authority and supreme teaching rights of this Apostolic See-willed that decision precisely in order to safeguard the minds of the Church’s children from the dangers of these present times. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem benevolentiae to Cardinal James Gibbons, January 22, 1899)

• …and unity of government

Indeed no true and perfect human society can be conceived which is not governed by some supreme authority. Christ therefore must have given to His Church a supreme authority to which all Christians must render obedience. For this reason, as the unity of the faith is of necessity required for the unity of the church, inasmuch as it is the body of the faithful, so also for this same unity, inasmuch as the Church is a divinely constituted society, unity of government, which effects and involves unity of communion, is necessary jure divino. ‘The unity of the Church is manifested in the mutual connection or communication of its members, and likewise in the relation of all the members of the Church to one head’ (Saint Thomas Aquinas, STh II-II, q. 39, a. 1). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 10, September 29, 1896)

• The Bishops do not receive plenary, universal or supreme authority

But if the authority of Peter and his successors is plenary and supreme, it is not to be regarded as the sole authority. For He who made Peter the foundation of the Church also ‘chose, twelve, whom He called apostles’ (Lk 6:13); and just as it is necessary that the authority of Peter should be perpetuated in the Roman Pontiff, so, by the fact that the bishops succeed the Apostles, they inherit their ordinary power, and thus the Episcopal order necessarily belongs to the essential constitution of the Church. Although they do not receive plenary, or universal, or supreme authority, they are not to be looked as vicars of the Roman Pontiffs; because they exercise a power really their own, and are most truly called the ordinary pastors of the peoples over whom they rule. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 14, September 29, 1896)

• The need of union between the bishops and the successors of Peter is clear and undeniable, otherwise Christians would be separated and scattered

But since the successor of Peter is one, and those of the Apostles are many, it is necessary to examine into the relations which exist between him and them according to the divine constitution of the Church. Above all things the need of union between the bishops and the successors of Peter is clear and undeniable. This bond once broken, Christians would be separated and scattered, and would in no wise form one body and one flock. ‘The safety of the Church depends on the dignity of the chief priest, to whom if an extraordinary and supreme power is not given, there are as many schisms to be expected in the Church as there are priests’ (S. Jerome, Dialog. contra Luciferianos, no. 9). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 14, September 29, 1896)

• Bishops are deprived of the right and power of ruling if they deliberately secede from Peter and his successors

It is necessary, therefore, to bear this in mind, viz., that nothing was conferred on the apostles apart from Peter, but that several things were conferred upon Peter apart from the Apostles. Saint John Chrysostom in explaining the words of Christ asks: ‘Why, passing over the others, does He speak to Peter about these things?’ And he replies unhesitatingly and at once, ‘Because he was pre-eminent among the Apostles, the mouthpiece of the Disciples, and the head of the college’ (Hom. 88. in Joan., n. I). He alone was designated as the foundation of the Church. To him He gave the power of binding and loosing; to him alone was given the power of feeding. On the other hand, whatever authority and office the Apostles received, they received in conjunction with Peter. ‘If the divine benignity willed anything to be in common between him and the other princes, whatever He did not deny to the others He gave only through him. So that whereas Peter alone received many things, He conferred nothing on any of the rest without Peter participating in it’ (S. Leo the Great. sermo IV., cap. 2). From this it must be clearly understood that Bishops are deprived of the right and power of ruling, if they deliberately secede from Peter and his successors; because, by this secession, they are separated from the foundation on which the whole edifice must rest. They are therefore outside the edifice itself; and for this very reason they are separated from the fold, whose leader is the Chief Pastor; they are exiled from the Kingdom, the keys of which were given by Christ to Peter alone. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 14-15, September 29, 1896)

• Without subjection to and obedience to Peter, the Episcopal order necessarily becomes a lawless and disorderly crowd

But the Episcopal order is rightly judged to be in communion with Peter, as Christ commanded, if it be subject to and obeys Peter; otherwise it necessarily becomes a lawless and disorderly crowd. It is not sufficient for the due preservation of the unity of the faith that the head should merely have been charged with the office of superintendent, or should have been invested solely with a power of direction. But it is absolutely necessary that he should have received real and sovereign authority which the whole community is bound to obey. What had the Son of God in view when he promised the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven to Peter alone? Biblical usage and the unanimous teaching of the Fathers clearly show that supreme authority is designated in the passage by the word keys. Nor is it lawful to interpret in a different sense what was given to Peter alone, and what was given to the other Apostles conjointly with him. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 15, September 29, 1896)

• The Universal Jurisdiction of St. Peter is a principal element of the constitution of the Church

It was necessary that a government of this kind [the Universal Jurisdiction of St. Peter], since it belongs to the constitution and formation of the Church, as its principal element – that is as the principle of unity and the foundation of lasting stability – should in no wise come to an end with Saint Peter, but should pass to his successors from one to another. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 13, September 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the Church called to dialogue

• The Church should not shape her teachings in accord with the spirit of the age

The underlying principle of these new opinions is that, in order to more easily attract those who differ from her, the Church should shape her teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions. Many think that these concessions should be made not only in regard to ways of living, but even in regard to doctrines which belong to the deposit of the faith. They contend that it would be opportune, in order to gain those who differ from us, to omit certain points of her teaching which are of lesser importance, and to tone down the meaning which the Church has always attached to them. […] Such a policy would tend rather to separate Catholics from the Church than to bring in those who differ. There is nothing closer to our heart than to have those who are separated from the fold of Christ return to it, but in no other way than the way pointed out by Christ. […] History proves clearly that the Apostolic See, to which has been entrusted the mission not only of teaching but of governing the whole Church, has continued ‘in one and the same doctrine, one and the same sense, and one and the same judgment’ (de Fide Catholica, ch. IV). […] In this matter the Church must be the judge, not private men who are often deceived by the appearance of right. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae, January 22, 1899)

• Preachers who only use words of human science proffer feeble and cold discourses – they are foolish and improvident

Hence those preachers are foolish and improvident who, in speaking of religion and proclaiming the things of God, use no words but those of human science and human prudence, trusting to their own reasonings rather than to those of God. Their discourses may be brilliant and fine, but they must be feeble and they must be cold, for they are without the fire of the utterance of God (Jer 23:29) and they must fall far short of that mighty power which the speech of God possesses: ‘for the Word of God is living and effectual, and more piercing than any two-edged sword; and reaching unto the division of the soul and the spirit’ (Heb 4:12). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, no. 4, November 18, 1893)

• Christ appointed an unfailing teaching authority in His Church so that men be preserved in truth

The only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, who came on earth to bring salvation and the light of divine wisdom to men, conferred a great and wonderful blessing on the world when, about to ascend again into heaven, He commanded the Apostles to go and teach all nations, (Mt 28:19) and left the Church which He had founded to be the common and supreme teacher of the peoples. For men whom the truth had set free were to be preserved by the truth; nor would the fruits of heavenly doctrines by which salvation comes to men have long remained had not the Lord Christ appointed an unfailing teaching authority to train the minds to faith. And the Church built upon the promises of its own divine Author, whose charity it imitated, so faithfully followed out His commands that its constant aim and chief wish was this: to teach religion and contend forever against errors. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Aeterni Patris, August 4, 1879)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the Church’s fault for the Anglican schism

• It breaks away from the Apostolic succession

In the rite of conferring and administering any sacrament one rightly distinguishes between the ceremonial part and the essential part, which is customarily called the matter and form. […] Now, the words which until recent times were everywhere held by the Anglicans as the proper form of priestly ordination, namely, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit,’ certainly do not in the least signify definitely the order of priesthood, or its grace and power, which is especially the power ‘of consecrating and of offering the true Body and Blood of the Lord,’ in that sacrifice which is no ‘nude commemoration of the sacrifice offered on the Cross’ [see n. 950]. Such a form was indeed afterwards lengthened by these words, ‘for the office and work of a priest’; but this rather convinces one that the Anglicans themselves saw that this first form was defective, and not appropriate to the matter. But the same addition, if perchance indeed it could have placed legitimate significance on the form, was introduced too late, since a century had elapsed after the adoption of the Edwardine Ordinal; since, moreover, with the extinction of the hierarchy, there was now no power for ordaining. (Denzinger-Hünermann 3315-3316. Leo XIII, Letter Apostolicae curae – On the Nullity of Anglican Orders, September 13, 1896)

• Julius III and Paul VI took special care in their attempts to reconcile the ‘Church of England’

For this reason, in the first place, the principal documents in which our predecessors, at the request of Queen Mary, exercised their special care for the reconciliation of the English Church were considered. Thus Julius III sent Cardinal Reginald Pole, an Englishman, and illustrious in many ways, to be his Legate a latere for the purpose, ‘as his angel of peace and love,’ and gave him extraordinary and unusual mandates or faculties and directions for his guidance. These Paul IV confirmed and explained. (Leo XIII. Apostolic letter Apostolicae curae, no. 7, September 18, 1869)

• The Protestant sects have thus introduced themselves with the objective to pursue their disastrous task, to raise the standard of discord and religious rebellion

It is now well known to everyone, by the evidence of the facts, that the plan conceived by the heretical sects, multiform emanations of Protestantism, is to raise the standard of discord and religious rebellion in the peninsula (of Italy), but mostly in this noble city (of Rome) which God Himself, admirably ordaining the events, established as the center of this fruitful and sublime unity, the object of which was the prayer addressed by our divine Savior to His heavenly Father (Jn 17:11–21), which was carefully guarded by the Popes, even unto the price of their life, despite the oppositions of men and the vicissitudes of time. After having destroyed, in their respective homelands, by opposite and discordant systems, the venerable and ancient beliefs that were part of the sacred deposit of revelation; after having scattered the icy breath of doubt in the souls of their beholder, of division and unbelief […] these sects have thus introduced themselves into the chosen vineyard of the Lord, with the objective of persuing their disastrous task. […] Being made aware of this fact, before anything We suffer the need to confess, as We have done so on other occasions, just how exasperating is the condition imposed upon the head of the Catholic Church, forced to observe the free and progressive unfolding of the heresy in this holy city, from which must shine forth on the world the light of truth and of good example, and which should be the respected See of the Vicar of Jesus Christ. As if this didn’t suffice, to corrupt the mind and heart of the people, from a torrent of unwholesome doctrines and depravations that spring forth with impunity on a daily basis, from professor’s chairs, from theaters, from newspapers, there had to be added to all these causes of perversion the insidious labor of heretical men which, contending among themselves, are but of one accord to attack the Supreme Pontifical Magisterium, the Catholic clergy, and the dogmas of our holy religion, of which they do not know the meaning and much less appreciate its sublime beauty. (Leo XIII. Apostolic letter to Cardinal Pietro Respighi on protestant proselytism in Rome, August 19, 1900 – In: Lettres apostoliques de s.s. Léon XIII : encycliques, brefs etc)

• Every familiarity should be avoided with those who hide under the mask of universal tolerance and respect for all religions

Everyone should avoid familiarity or friendship with anyone suspected of belonging to masonry or to affiliated groups. Know them by their fruits and avoid them. Every familiarity should be avoided, not only with those impious libertines who openly promote the character of the sect, but also with those who hide under the mask of universal tolerance, respect for all religions, and the craving to reconcile the maxims of the Gospel with those of the revolution. These men seek to reconcile Christ and Belial, the Church of God and the state without God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Custodi di quella fede, no. 15, December 8, 1892)

• May the principal concern be to strengthen the character of the Catholic people, preventing carelessness with regard to a criminal purpose to insinuate the reprobate maxims of heresy

For everyone, may the principal concern be to strengthen the character of the Catholic people, inspiring noble and holy intentions, at the same time preventing carelessness in which, under the guise of innocent assemblies for young people, conferences for young girls, foreign-language courses, growth of culture, and subsidies to poor families, lies hidden a criminal purpose to insinuate in the minds and hearts the reprobate maxims of heresy. May all the faithful be thoroughly imbued with this truth that nothing can be more precious to them than this treasure that is their Faith, for which their forefathers confronted without fear, not only miseries and deprivations, but also often violent persecutions and even death. (Leo XIII. Apostolic letter to Cardinal Pietro Respighi on protestant proselytism in Rome, August 19, 1900 – In: Lettres apostoliques de s.s. Léon XIII : encycliques, brefs etc)

• True union between Christians can only come from a unity of Faith

We mean a perfect and complete union, such as could not subsist in any way if nothing else was brought about but a certain kind of agreement in the Tenets of Belief and an intercourse of Fraternal love. The True Union between Christians is that which Jesus Christ, the Author of the Church, instituted and desired, and which consists in a Unity of Faith and Unity of Government. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Praeclara gratulationis, June 20, 1894)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on obtaining spiritual fruits in other religions

• Those who do not recognize Christ Jesus as their Brother do not have God as their father

And with the same yearning Our soul goes out to those whom the foul breath of irreligion has not entirely corrupted, and who at least seek to have the true God, the Creator of Heaven and earth, as their Father. Let such as these take counsel with themselves, and realize that they can in no wise be counted among the children of God, unless they take Christ Jesus as their Brother, and at the same time the Church as their mother. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 16, June 29, 1896)

• Differing modes of divine worship are not equally acceptable to God

To hold, therefore, that there is no difference in matters of religion between forms that are unlike each other, and even contrary to each other, most clearly leads in the end to the rejection of all religion in both theory and practice. And this is the same thing as atheism, however it may differ from it in name. Men who really believe in the existence of God must, in order to be consistent with themselves and to avoid absurd conclusions, understand that differing modes of divine worship involving dissimilarity and conflict even on most important points cannot all be equally probable, equally good, and equally acceptable to God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, no. 14, November 1, 1885)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Ecumenical dialogue

• The concept that all religions are alike brings about the ruin of the Catholic religion

Again, as all who offer themselves are received whatever may be their form of religion, they thereby teach the great error of this age – that a regard for religion should be held as an indifferent matter, and that all religions are alike. This manner of reasoning is calculated to bring about the ruin of all forms of religion, and especially of the Catholic religion, which, as it is the only one that is true, cannot, without great injustice, be regarded as merely equal to other religions. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum genus, no. 6, April 20, 1884)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Catholic Faith and Luteran belief

• True union consists in the Unity of Faith…

We advise the reconciliation and union with the Church of Rome; and We mean a perfect and complete union, such as could not subsist in any way if nothing else was brought about but a certain kind of agreement in the Tenets of Belief and an intercourse of Fraternal love. The True Union between Christians is that which Jesus Christ, the Author of the Church, instituted and desired, and which consists in a Unity of Faith and Unity of Government. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Praeclara gratulationis publicae, June 20, 1894)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on proclaiming the Gospel only with gentleness

• To keep silence when clamors are raised against truth is to insult God and to favor the enemies of the faith

To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Christianae, no 14, January 10, 1890)

• Christ left the Church He founded to be the supreme teacher of the peoples so that men be preserved by the truth

The only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, who came on earth to bring salvation and the light of divine wisdom to men, conferred a great and wonderful blessing on the world when, about to ascend again into heaven, He commanded the Apostles to go and teach all nations (Mt 28:19), and left the Church which He had founded to be the common and supreme teacher of the peoples. For men whom the truth had set free were to be preserved by the truth; nor would the fruits of heavenly doctrines by which salvation comes to men have long remained had not the Lord Christ appointed an unfailing teaching authority to train the minds to faith. And the Church built upon the promises of its own divine Author, whose charity it imitated, so faithfully followed out His commands that its constant aim and chief wish was this: to teach religion and contend forever against errors. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Aeterni Patris, August 4, 1879)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on proclaiming the Gospel

• The false idea that the Church should shape her teachings in accordance with the spirit of the age

The underlying principle of these new opinions is that, in order to more easily attract those who differ from her, the Church should shape her teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions. Many think that these concessions should be made not only in regard to ways of living, but even in regard to doctrines which belong to the deposit of the faith. […] It does not need many words, beloved son, to prove the falsity of these ideas if the nature and origin of the doctrine which the Church proposes are recalled to mind. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem benevolentiae, January 22, 1899)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on new forms of poverty

• The Church has consistently provided aid for the needy

Thus, by degrees, came into existence the patrimony which the Church has guarded with religious care as the inheritance of the poor. Nay, in order to spare them the shame of begging, the Church has provided aid for the needy. The common Mother of rich and poor has aroused everywhere the heroism of charity, and has established congregations of religious and many other useful institutions for help and mercy, so that hardly any kind of suffering could exist which was not afforded relief. […] But no human expedients will ever make up for the devotedness and self sacrifice of Christian charity. Charity, as a virtue, pertains to the Church; for virtue it is not, unless it be drawn from the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ; and whosoever turns his back on the Church cannot be near to Christ. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 30, May 15, 1891)

• The Church dignifies the poor

Now, who would make bold to deny that the Church, by spreading the Gospel throughout the nations, has brought the light of truth amongst people utterly savage and steeped in foul superstition, and has quickened them alike to recognize the Divine Author of nature and duly to respect themselves? Further, who will deny that the Church has done away with the curse of slavery and restored men to the original dignity of their noble nature; and – by uplifting the standard of redemption in all quarters of the globe, by introducing, or shielding under her protection, the sciences and arts, by founding and taking into her keeping excellent charitable institutions which provide relief for ills of every kind – has throughout the world, in private or in public life, civilized the human race, freed it from degradation, and with all care trained it to a way of Living such as befits the dignity and the hopes of man? (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, no. 5, April 21, 1878)

• The Church is preoccupied with the spiritual concerns of her children but does not neglect their temporal and earthly interests

Neither must it be supposed that the solicitude of the Church is so preoccupied with the spiritual concerns of her children as to neglect their temporal and earthly interests. Her desire is that the poor, for example, should rise above poverty and wretchedness, and better their condition in life; and for this she makes a strong endeavor. By the fact that she calls men to virtue and forms them to its practice she promotes this in no slight degree. Christian morality, when adequately and completely practiced, leads of itself to temporal prosperity, for it merits the blessing of that God who is the source of all blessings; (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 28, May 15, 1891)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the ‘Bread of Life’

• One cannot omit certain points of Church teaching in order to ‘bring in those who differ’ – they must come back in no other way than the way pointed out by Christ

The underlying principle of these new opinions is that, in order to more easily attract those who differ from her, the Church should shape her teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions. Many think that these concessions should be made not only in regard to ways of living, but even in regard to doctrines which belong to the deposit of the faith. They contend that it would be opportune, in order to gain those who differ from us, to omit certain points of her teaching which are of lesser importance, and to tone down the meaning which the Church has always attached to them. […] Such a policy would tend rather to separate Catholics from the Church than to bring in those who differ. There is nothing closer to our heart than to have those who are separated from the fold of Christ return to it, but in no other way than the way pointed out by Christ. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem benevolentiae to Cardinal James Gibbons, January 22, 1899)

• No one may interpret the Holy Scripture against the sense of the Church or even against the unanimous agreement of the Fathers

The Synod of the Vatican adopted the teaching of the Fathers, when, as it renewed the decree of Trent on the interpretation of the divine Word, it declared this to be its mind, that in matters of faith and morals, which pertain to the building up of Christian doctrine, that is to be held as the true sense of Holy Scripture which Mother Church has held and holds, whose prerogative it is to judge of the true sense and interpretation of Scripture; and, therefore, it is permitted to no one to interpret the Holy Scripture against this sense, or even against the unanimous agreement of the Fathers (Denzinger-Hünermann 3281. Leo XIII, Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, November 1893)

• Putting aside the doctrine of the Fathers of the Church and of the Councils give rise to dangerous interpretations

The Bible is then, the principal and most accessible source of sacred eloquence. But those who constitute themselves as announcers of novelties, do not nourish the ensemble of their speeches from the font of living water, but rather foolishly and mistakenly approach the faulty cisterns of human wisdom; consequently, putting aside the doctrine inspired by God – or that of the Fathers of the Church and of the Councils – all they do is expose the names and ideas of profane and contemporary writers, still living: these ideas frequently give rise to ambiguous and very dangerous interpretations. (Leo XIII quoted by Pius X. Motu Proprio Sacrorum antitistum, The Oath against modernism, September 1, 1910)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that Jesus is only mercy

• No depraved affection could possibly shake God’s absolute justice

Again, it shows God to excel in the height of all perfections, especially in infinite wisdom before which nothing lies hidden, and in absolute justice which no depraved affection could possibly shake; and that God, therefore, is not only true but truth itself, which can neither deceive nor be deceived. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Aeterni Patris, no. 3, August 4, 1879)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on private property

• The Church insist that the right to private property is maintained intact and inviolate

For when Socialists proclaim the right of property to be a human invention repugnant to the natural equality of man, and, seeking to establish community of goods, think that poverty is by no means to be endured with equanimity; and that the possessions and rights of the rich can be violated with impunity, the Church, much more properly and practically, recognizes inequality among men, who are naturally different in strength of body and of mind; also in the possession of goods, and it orders that right of property and of ownership, which proceeds from nature itself, be for everyone intact and inviolate; for it knows that theft and raping have been forbidden by God, the author and vindicator of every right, in such a way that one may not even look attentively upon (al.: covet) the property of another, and ‘that thieves and robbers, no less than adulterers and idolators are excluded from the kingdom of heaven’ (cf. 1Cor 6:9 f.). (Denzinger-Hünermann 3133. Leo XIII Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, December 28, 1878)

• Private property is a natural right and using this right is not only licit but necessary

The chief and most excellent rule for the right use of money is one the heathen philosophers hinted at, but which the Church has traced out clearly, and has not only made known to men’s minds, but has impressed upon their lives. It rests on the principle that it is one thing to have a right to the possession of money and another to have a right to use money as one wills. Private ownership, as we have seen, is the natural right of man, and to exercise that right, especially as members of society, is not only lawful, but absolutely necessary. ‘It is lawful,’ says Saint Thomas Aquinas, ‘for a man to hold private property; and it is also necessary for the carrying on of human existence.’ But if the question be asked: How must one’s possessions be used? The Church replies without hesitation in the words of the same holy Doctor: ‘Man should not consider his material possessions as his own, but as common to all, so as to share them without hesitation when others are in need. Whence the Apostle with, ‘Command the rich of this world… to offer with no stint, to apportion largely’ (STh II -II, q. 65, art. 2). True, no one is commanded to distribute to others that which is required for his own needs and those of his household; nor even to give away what is reasonably required to keep up becomingly his condition in life, ‘for no one ought to live other than becomingly’ (Saint Thomas Aquinas II-II, q. 33, a.6). But, when what necessity demands has been supplied, and one’s standing fairly taken thought for, it becomes a duty to give to the indigent out of what remains over. ‘Of that which remaineth, give alms’ (Lk 11:41). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 22, May 15, 1891)

• The right to Private property should be considered as inviolate and the laws should favor that the workers obtain this right as a fruit of their work

If a workman’s wages be sufficient to enable him comfortably to support himself, his wife, and his children, he will find it easy, if he be a sensible man, to practice thrift, and he will not fail, by cutting down expenses, to put by some little savings and thus secure a modest source of income. Nature itself would urge him to this. We have seen that this great labor question cannot be solved save by assuming as a principle that private ownership must be held sacred and inviolable. The law, therefore, should favor ownership, and its policy should be to induce as many as possible of the people to become owners. Many excellent results will follow from this; and, first of all, property will certainly become more equitably divided. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 46 – 47, May 15, 1891)

• Private property is nothing other than wages under another form

It is surely undeniable that, when a man engages in remunerative labor, the impelling reason and motive of his work is to obtain property, and thereafter to hold it as his very own. If one man hires out to another his strength or skill, he does so for the purpose of receiving in return what is necessary for the satisfaction of his needs; he therefore expressly intends to acquire a right full and real, not only to the remuneration, but also to the disposal of such remuneration, just as he pleases. Thus, if he lives sparingly, saves money, and, for greater security, invests his savings in land, the land, in such case, is only his wages under another form; and, consequently, a working man’s little estate thus purchased should be as completely at his full disposal as are the wages he receives for his labor. But it is precisely in such power of disposal that ownership obtains, whether the property consist of land or chattels. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 5, May 15, 1891)

• As master of his acts and under the power of God, man may legitimately exercise his dominion over the earth and its fruits

For man, fathoming by his faculty of reason matters without number, linking the future with the present, and being master of his own acts, guides his ways under the eternal law and the power of God, whose providence governs all things. Wherefore, it is in his power to exercise his choice not only as to matters that regard his present welfare, but also about those which he deems may be for his advantage in time yet to come. Hence, man not only should possess the fruits of the earth, but also the very soil, inasmuch as from the produce of the earth he has to lay by provision for the future. Man’s needs do not die out, but forever recur; although satisfied today, they demand fresh supplies for tomorrow. Nature accordingly must have given to man a source that is stable and remaining always with him, from which he might look to draw continual supplies. And this stable condition of things he finds solely in the earth and its fruits. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 7, May 15, 1891)

• The fact that God has given the earth for the use and enjoyment of the whole human race can in no way be a bar to the owning of private property

The fact that God has given the earth for the use and enjoyment of the whole human race can in no way be a bar to the owning of private property. For God has granted the earth to mankind in general, not in the sense that all without distinction can deal with it as they like, but rather that no part of it was assigned to any one in particular, and that the limits of private possession have been left to be fixed by man’s own industry, and by the laws of individual races. Moreover, the earth, even though apportioned among private owners, ceases not thereby to minister to the needs of all, inasmuch as there is not one who does not sustain life from what the land produces. Those who do not possess the soil contribute their labor; hence, it may truly be said that all human subsistence is derived either from labor on one’s own land, or from some toil, some calling, which is paid for either in the produce of the land itself, or in that which is exchanged for what the land brings forth. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 8, May 15, 1891)

• Private property is pre-eminently in conformity with human nature

For the soil which is tilled and cultivated with toil and skill utterly changes its condition; it was wild before, now it is fruitful; was barren, but now brings forth in abundance. That which has thus altered and improved the land becomes so truly part of itself as to be in great measure indistinguishable and inseparable from it. Is it just that the fruit of a man’s own sweat and labor should be possessed and enjoyed by any one else? As effects follow their cause, so is it just and right that the results of labor should belong to those who have bestowed their labor. With reason, then, the common opinion of mankind, little affected by the few dissentients who have contended for the opposite view, has found in the careful study of nature, and in the laws of nature, the foundations of the division of property, and the practice of all ages has consecrated the principle of private ownership, as being pre-eminently in conformity with human nature, and as conducing in the most unmistakable manner to the peace and tranquility of human existence. The same principle is confirmed and enforced by the civil laws – laws which, so long as they are just, derive from the law of nature their binding force. The authority of the divine law adds its sanction, forbidding us in severest terms even to covet that which is another’s: ‘Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife; nor his house, nor his field, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is his’ (Deut 5:21). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 10 – 11, May 15, 1891)

• To alleviate the condition of the masses, the inviolability of private property is necessary

The first and most fundamental principle, therefore, if one would undertake to alleviate the condition of the masses, must be the inviolability of private property. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 15, May 15, 1891)

• The right to possess private property is derived from nature

These three important benefits, however, can be reckoned on only provided that a man’s means be not drained and exhausted by excessive taxation. The right to possess private property is derived from nature, not from man; and the State has the right to control its use in the interests of the public good alone, but by no means to absorb it altogether. The State would therefore be unjust and cruel if under the name of taxation it were to deprive the private owner of more than is fair. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 47, May 15, 1891)

• The abolition of private property to favor collectivism, goal of socialism

It aims at putting all government in the hands of the masses, reducing all ranks to the same level, abolishing all distinction of class, and finally introducing community of goods. Hence, the right to own private property is to be abrogated, and whatever property a man possesses, or whatever means of livelihood he has, is to be common to all. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Graves de communi, no. 5, January 18, 1901)

• By endeavoring to transfer the possessions of individual, Socialists strike every wage-earner depriving him of his liberty to better his condition

Socialists, therefore, by endeavoring to transfer the possessions of individuals to the community at large, strike at the interests of every wage-earner, since they would deprive him of the liberty of disposing of his wages, and thereby of all hope and possibility of increasing his resources and of bettering his condition in life. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 5, May 15, 1891)

• The Socialists, working on the poor man’s envy of the rich, are striving to do away with private property

To remedy these wrongs the socialists, working on the poor man’s envy of the rich, are striving to do away with private property, and contend that individual possessions should become the common property of all, to be administered by the State or by municipal bodies. They hold that by thus transferring property from private individuals to the community, the present mischievous state of things will be set to rights, inasmuch as each citizen will then get his fair share of whatever there is to enjoy. But their contentions are so clearly powerless to end the controversy that were they carried into effect the working man himself would be among the first to suffer. They are, moreover, emphatically unjust, for they would rob the lawful possessor, distort the functions of the State, and create utter confusion in the community. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 5, May 15, 1891)

• The community of goods: main tenet of socialism that must be utterly rejected. It injures those whom it would seem meant to benefit and is directly contrary to the natural rights of mankind

And in addition to injustice, it is only too evident what an upset and disturbance there would be in all classes, and to how intolerable and hateful a slavery citizens would be subjected. The door would be thrown open to envy, to mutual invective, and to discord; the sources of wealth themselves would run dry, for no one would have any interest in exerting his talents or his industry; and that ideal equality about which they entertain pleasant dreams would be in reality the leveling down of all to a like condition of misery and degradation. Hence, it is clear that the main tenet of socialism, community of goods, must be utterly rejected, since it only injures those whom it would seem meant to benefit, is directly contrary to the natural rights of mankind, and would introduce confusion and disorder into the commonweal. The first and most fundamental principle, therefore, if one would undertake to alleviate the condition of the masses, must be the inviolability of private property. This being established, we proceed to show where the remedy sought for must be found. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 5, May 15, 1891)

• Neither justice nor the common good allows any individual to seize upon that which belongs to another or to lay violent hands on other people’s possessions

Here, however, it is expedient to bring under special notice certain matters of moment. First of all, there is the duty of safeguarding private property by legal enactment and protection. Most of all it is essential, where the passion of greed is so strong, to keep the populace within the line of duty; for, if all may justly strive to better their condition, neither justice nor the common good allows any individual to seize upon that which belongs to another, or, under the futile and shallow pretext of equality, to lay violent hands on other people’s possessions. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 38, May 15, 1891)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that spiritual direction is a charism of the laity

• It is the duty of the faithful to follow the teachings of the Pastors

To solely the shepherds was given all power to teach, to judge, to direct; to the faithful is given the obligation of following their teaching, of submitting with meekness to their opinion, and of allowing themselves to be governed, corrected, and led by them in the way of salvation. Therefore, it is an absolute necessity for the simple faithful to surrender in mind and heart to their own pastors; and for these to submit with them to the Supreme Pastor. (Leo XIII. Letter Epistola Tua to Cardinal Guibert, June 17, 1885)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that Christians and Muslims share the same faith

• Reason and natural law indicate the Catholic Church as the only true Church

First, let us examine that liberty in individuals which is so opposed to the virtue of religion, namely, the liberty of worship, as it is called. This is based on the principle that every man is free to profess as he may choose any religion or none. […] And if it be asked which of the many conflicting religions it is necessary to adopt, reason and the natural law unhesitatingly tell us to practice that one which God enjoins, and which men can easily recognize by certain exterior notes, whereby Divine Providence has willed that it should be distinguished, because, in a matter of such moment, the most terrible loss would be the consequence of error. Wherefore, when a liberty such as We have described is offered to man, the power is given him to pervert or abandon with impunity the most sacred of duties, and to exchange the unchangeable good for evil; which, as We have said, is no liberty, but its degradation, and the abject submission of the soul to sin. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Libertas praestantissimum, no. 19, June 20, 1888)

• Regard for religion as an indifferent matter is to bring about the ruin of the Catholic Religion

Again, as all who offer themselves are received whatever may be their form of religion, they thereby teach the great error of this age-that a regard for religion should be held as an indifferent matter, and that all religions are alike. This manner of reasoning is calculated to bring about the ruin of all forms of religion, and especially of the Catholic religion, which, as it is the only one that is true, cannot, without great injustice, be regarded as merely equal to other religions. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum genus, no. 6, April 20, 1884)

• Differing modes of divine worship involving dissimilarity and conflict cannot all be equally acceptable to God

To hold, therefore, that there is no difference in matters of religion between forms that are unlike each other, and even contrary to each other, most clearly leads in the end to the rejection of all religion in both theory and practice. And this is the same thing as atheism, however it may differ from it in name. Men who really believe in the existence of God must, in order to be consistent with themselves and to avoid absurd conclusions, understand that differing modes of divine worship involving dissimilarity and conflict even on most important points cannot all be equally probable, equally good, and equally acceptable to God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, no. 14, November 1, 1885)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on good-will replacing theological investigation

• Some men clearly occupy the foremost place

Some there must be who devote themselves to the work of the commonwealth, who make the laws or administer justice, or whose advice and authority govern the nation in times of peace, and defend it in war. Such men clearly occupy the foremost place in the State, and should be held in highest estimation, for their work concerns most nearly and effectively the general interests of the community. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 25, May 15, 1891)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on family

• Christ cemented the union of man and woman by the bond of divine love

To the apostles as masters are to be referred the accepted matters which our holy Fathers, the Councils, and the Universal Church have always taught, namely, that Christ our Lord raised matrimony to the dignity of a Sacrament, and at the same time brought it about that the spouses strengthened and fortified by heavenly grace which His merits procured, obtain sanctity in the marriage; and that in it, marvelously conformed to the model of the mystical marriage of Himself with the Church, He perfected a love which is befitting to nature, and He cemented the union of man and woman, indivisible by its own nature, more strongly by the bond of divine love. (Denzinger-Hünermann 3142. Leo XIII, Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientia, February 10, 1880)

• Marriage: more binding and holy through Christ

But the Church, on the contrary, teaches that ‘marriage, honorable in all,’ (Heb 13:4) which God himself instituted in the very beginning of the world, and made indissoluble for the propagation and preservation of the human species, has become still more binding and more holy through Christ, who raised it to the dignity of a Sacrament, and chose to use it as the figure of His own union with the Church. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod apostolici muneris, no. 8, December 28, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on sects forming part of the Church

• Jesus Christ did not institute a Church to embrace several distinct communities

But when we consider what was actually done we find that Jesus Christ did not, in point of fact, institute a Church to embrace several communities similar in nature, but in themselves distinct, and lacking those bonds which render the Church unique and indivisible after that manner in which in the symbol of our faith we profess: ‘I believe in one Church.’ (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 4, June 29, 1896)

• No Christian can dare to deny that the true Church of Jesus Christ is one

It is so evident from the clear and frequent testimonies of Holy Writ that the true Church of Jesus Christ is one, that no Christian can dare to deny it. But in judging and determining the nature of this unity many have erred in various ways. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 4, June 29, 1896)

• By the will of its Founder, it is necessary that this Church should be one in all lands and at all times so as to fulfill her mission

This becomes even more evident when the purpose of the Divine Founder is considered. For what did Christ, the Lord, ask? What did He wish in regard to the Church founded, or about to be founded? This: to transmit to it the same mission and the same mandate which He had received from the Father, that they should be perpetuated. […] The Church, therefore, is bound to communicate without stint to all men, and to transmit through all ages, the salvation effected by Jesus Christ, and the blessings flowing there from. Wherefore, by the will of its Founder, it is necessary that this Church should be one in all lands and at all times. to justify the existence of more than one Church it would be necessary to go outside this world, and to create a new and unheard – of race of men. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 4, June 29, 1896)

• The one Church foretold by Isaiah

That the one Church should embrace all men everywhere and at all times was seen and foretold by Isaiah, when looking into the future he saw the appearance of a mountain conspicuous by its all surpassing altitude, which set forth the image of ‘The House of the Lord’ – that is, of the Church, ‘And in the last days the mountain of the House of the Lord shall be prepared on the top of the mountains’ (Is 2:2). But this mountain which towers over all other mountains is one; and the House of the Lord to which all nations shall come to seek the rule of living is also one. ‘And all nations shall flow into it. And many people shall go, and say: Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the House of the God of Jacob, and He will teach us His ways, and we will walk in His paths’ (Ibid., 2:2-3). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 4, June 29, 1896)

• The members cannot possibly live unless united to the head and drawing from it their vital force

And to set forth more clearly the unity of the Church, he makes use of the illustration of a living body, the members of which cannot possibly live unless united to the head and drawing from it their vital force. Separated from the head they must of necessity die. ‘The Church,’ he says, ‘cannot be divided into parts by the separation and cutting asunder of its members. What is cut away from the mother cannot live or breathe apart’. What similarity is there between a dead and a living body? (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 5, June 29, 1896)

• Whosoever is separated from the Church is united to an adulteress

The Church of Christ, therefore, is one and the same forever; those who leave it depart from the will and command of Christ, the Lord – leaving the path of salvation they enter on that of perdition. ‘Whosoever is separated from the Church is united to an adulteress. He has cut himself off from the promises of the Church, and he who leaves the Church of Christ cannot arrive at the rewards of Christ… He who observes not this unity observes not the law of God, holds not the faith of the Father and the Son, clings not to life and salvation’ (S. Cyprianus, De Cath. Eccl. Unitate, n. 6). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 9, June 29, 1896)

• Against false political theories

Strive with all possible care to make men understand and show forth in their lives what the Catholic Church teaches on government and the duty of obedience. Let the people be frequently urged by your authority and teaching to fly from the forbidden sects, to abhor all conspiracy, to have nothing to do with sedition, and let them understand that they who for God’s sake obey their rulers render a reasonable service and a generous obedience. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Diuturnum illud, no. 20, June 29, 1881)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that man is the center of christian life

• The enemies of the Church always zealously declare their love for the poor

Thus, with a fraudulent external appearance, and with a style of simulation which is always the same, the Freemasons, like the Manichees of old, strive, as far as possible, to conceal themselves, and to admit no witnesses but their own members. As a convenient manner of concealment, they assume the character of literary men and scholars associated for purposes of learning. They speak of their zeal for a more cultured refinement, and of their love for the poor; and they declare their one wish to be the amelioration of the condition of the masses, and to share with the largest possible number all the benefits of civil life. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum genus, no. 9, April 20, 1884)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on selling off churches to feed the poor

• Whether we have riches in abundance, or are lacking in them, virtue alone will be followed by the rewards of everlasting happiness

God has not created us for the perishable and transitory things of earth, but for things heavenly and everlasting; He has given us this world as a place of exile, and not as our abiding place. As for riches and the other things which men call good and desirable, whether we have them in abundance, or are lacking in them-so far as eternal happiness is concerned – it makes no difference; the only important thing is to use them aright. […] From contemplation of this divine Model, it is more easy to understand that the true worth and nobility of man lie in his moral qualities, that is, in virtue; that virtue is, moreover, the common inheritance of men, equally within the reach of high and low, rich and poor; and that virtue, and virtue alone, wherever found, will be followed by the rewards of everlasting happiness. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, nos. 21. 24, May 15, 1891)

• Pomp and splendor of ceremonies: is to be solicitous for the salvation of one’s neighbor

The Scriptures teach us that it is the duty of all to be solicitous for the salvation of one’s neighbor, according to the power and position of each. […] those who belong to the clergy should do this by an enlightened fulfillment of their preaching ministry, by the pomp and splendor of ceremonies. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae, January 22, 1899)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on anticlericalism

• The authentic declaration of Masonic writers is to lay clericalism waste in its foundations

To lay Clericalism waste in its foundations and in its very sources of life, namely, in the school and in the family: such is the authentic declaration of Masonic writers. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Dall´alto dell´apostolico seggio, no. 4, October 15, 1890)

…judges Francis’ heretical prayer in the ecumenical and interreligious Meeting in Sarajevo

• They cannot be counted among the children of God, who do not take Christ Jesus as their Brother

And with the same yearning Our soul goes out to those whom the foul breath of irreligion has not entirely corrupted, and who at least seek to have the true God, the Creator of Heaven and earth, as their Father. Let such as these take counsel with themselves, and realize that they can in no wise be counted among the children of God, unless they take Christ Jesus as their Brother, and at the same time the Church as their mother. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 16, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that Christians should always humble themselves

• God made the Church as a perfect society

God indeed even made the Church a society far more perfect than any other. For the end for which the Church exists is as much higher than the end of other societies as divine grace is above nature, as immortal blessings are above the transitory things on the earth. Therefore the Church is a society divine in its origin, supernatural in its end and in means proximately adapted to the attainment of that end; but it is a human community inasmuch as it is composed of men. For this reason we find it called in Holy Writ by names indicating a perfect society. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Statis Cognitum, no. 10, June 29, 1896)

• The source of the evils of society lies chiefly in setting aside the authority of the Church

For, from the very beginning of Our pontificate, the sad sight has presented itself to Us of the evils by which the human race is oppressed on every side. […] Now, the source of these evils lies chiefly, We are convinced, in this, that the holy and venerable authority of the Church, which in God’s name rules mankind, upholding and defending all lawful authority, has been despised and set aside. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, n. 2-3, Abril 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on asking prayers from non-catholics and atheists

• The Communion of Saints is the mutual communication of help among all the faithful

For the Communion of Saints, as everyone knows, is nothing but the mutual communication of help, expiation, prayers, blessings, among all the faithful, who, whether they have already attained to the heavenly country, or are detained in the purgatorial fire, or are yet exiles here on earth, all enjoy the common franchise of that city whereof Christ is the head, and the constitution is charity. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Mirae Caritatis, May 28, 1902)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on capital punishment

• Divine and natural Law permit the killing of a human being for public cause

Clearly, divine law, both that which is known by the light of reason and that which is revealed in Sacred Scripture, strictly forbids anyone, outside of public cause, to kill or wound a man unless compelled to do so in self defense. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Pastoralis Officii, to the Archbishops and Bishops of the German Empire and Austria-Hungary, September 12, 1881)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on a horizontal Church

• Nothing was conferred on the Apostles apart from Peter – and many things were received by Peter alone

Nothing was conferred on the apostles apart from Peter, but that several things were conferred upon Peter apart from the Apostles. […] He alone was designated as the foundation of the Church. To him He gave the power of binding and loosing; to him alone was given the power of feeding. On the other hand, whatever authority and office the Apostles received, they received in conjunction with Peter. ‘If the divine benignity willed anything to be in common between him and the other princes, whatever He did not deny to the others He gave only through him. So that whereas Peter alone received many things, He conferred nothing on any of the rest without Peter participating in it’ (S. Leo M. Sermo iv., cap. 2). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 14, June 29, 1896)

• Without obedience to Peter, the Episcopal order would become a lawless and disorderly crowd

But the Episcopal order is rightly judged to be in communion with Peter, as Christ commanded, if it be subject to and obeys Peter; otherwise it necessarily becomes a lawless and disorderly crowd. It is not sufficient for the due preservation of the unity of the faith that the head should merely have been charged with the office of superintendent, or should have been invested solely with a power of direction. But it is absolutely necessary that he should have received real and sovereign authority which the whole community is bound to obey. What had the Son of God in view when he promised the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven to Peter alone? Biblical usage and the unanimous teaching of the Fathers clearly show that supreme authority is designated in the passage by the word keys. Nor is it lawful to interpret in a different sense what was given to Peter alone, and what was given to the other Apostles conjointly with him. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 15, June 29, 1896)

• The unity of the faith corresponds to the unity of government

Indeed no true and perfect human society can be conceived which is not governed by some supreme authority. Christ therefore must have given to His Church a supreme authority to which all Christians must render obedience. For this reason, as the unity of the faith is of necessity required for the unity of the church, inasmuch as it is the body of the faithful, so also for this same unity, inasmuch as the Church is a divinely constituted society, unity of government, […] Jesus Christ, therefore, appointed Peter to be that head of the Church; and He also determined that the authority instituted in perpetuity for the salvation of all should be inherited by His successors, in whom the same permanent authority of Peter himself should continue. And so He made that remarkable promise to Peter and to no one else: ‘Thou are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church’ (Mt 16, 18). ‘To Peter the Lord spoke: to one, therefore, that He might establish unity upon one’ (S. Pacianus, Ep. 3 ad Sempronium, n. 11). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 11, June 29, 1896)

• A primacy of honor could never secure unity or strength

It is consequently the office of St. Peter to support the Church, and to guard it in all its strength and indestructible unity. How could he fulfil this office without the power of commanding, forbidding, and judging, which is properly called jurisdiction? It is only by this power of jurisdiction that nations and commonwealths are held together. A primacy of honour and the shadowy right of giving advice and admonition, which is called direction, could never secure to any society of men unity or strength. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 12, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea comparing Catechesis with Yoga and Zen

• The impulses of the Holy Spirit are for the most part felt through the aid and light of the external teaching authority: the Church

These dangers, viz., the confounding of license with liberty, the passion for discussing and pouring contempt upon any possible subject, the assumed right to hold whatever opinions one pleases upon any subject and to set them forth in print to the world, have so wrapped minds in darkness that there is now a greater need of the Church’s teaching office than ever before, lest people become unmindful both of conscience and of duty. […] First, all external guidance is set aside for those souls who are striving after Christian perfection as being superfluous or indeed, not useful in any sense—the contention being that the Holy Spirit pours richer and more abundant graces than formerly upon the souls of the faithful, so that without human intervention He teaches and guides them by some hidden instinct of His own. Yet it is the sign of no small over-confidence to desire to measure and determine the mode of the Divine communication to mankind, since it wholly depends upon His own good pleasure, and He is a most generous dispenser of his own gifts. […] Moreover, as experience shows, these monitions and impulses of the Holy Spirit are for the most part felt through the medium of the aid and light of an external teaching authority. […] This, indeed, belongs to the ordinary law of God’s loving providence that as He has decreed that men for the most part shall be saved by the ministry also of men, so has He wished that those whom He calls to the higher planes of holiness should be led thereto by men; hence St. Chrysostom declares ‘we are taught of God through the instrumentality of men’ (Homily I in Inscrib. Altar). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae, to Cardinal James Gibbons, January 22, 1899)

• The multitudes must be drawn to diligently learn the precepts of religion

Further, by assiduous teaching and exhortation, the multitude must be drawn to learn diligently the precepts of religion; for which purpose we earnestly advise that by opportune writings and sermons they be taught the elements of those sacred truths in which Christian philosophy is contained. The result of this will be that the minds of men will be made sound by instruction, and will be protected against many forms of error and inducements to wickedness, especially in the present unbounded freedom of writing and insatiable eagerness for learning. […] By uniting the efforts of both clergy and laity, strive, venerable brethren, to make men thoroughly know and love the Church. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum Genus, April 20, 1884)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on divorcees as Godparents

• The Church is ever watchful in guarding the sanctity and indissolubility of Marriage

It must consequently be acknowledged that the Church has deserved exceedingly well of all nations by her ever watchful care in guarding the sanctity and the indissolubility of marriage. Again, no small amount of gratitude is owing to her for having, during the last hundred years, openly denounced the wicked laws which have grievously offended on this particular subject; as well as for her having branded with anathema the baneful heresy obtaining among Protestants touching divorce and separation; also, for having in many ways condemned the habitual dissolution of marriage among the Greeks; for having declared invalid all marriages contracted upon the understanding that they may be at some future time dissolved;(54) and, lastly, for having, from the earliest times, repudiated the imperial laws which disastrously favored divorce. As often, indeed, as the supreme pontiffs have resisted the most powerful among rulers, in their threatening demands that divorces carried out by them should be confirmed by the Church, so often must we account them to have been contending for the safety, not only of religion, but also of the human race. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae sapientiae, no. 33-34, February 10, 1880)

• The wish to declare dissoluble the matrimonial bond is a deadly pest to society

For difficult it is to imagine a more deadly pest to the community than the wish to declare dissoluble a bond which the law of God has made perpetual and inseverable. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Longinqua oceani, no. 14, January 6, 1895)

• Marriage has become still more binding and more holy through Christ

But the Church, on the contrary, teaches that ‘marriage, honorable in all,’ (13) which God himself instituted in the very beginning of the world, and made indissoluble for the propagation and preservation of the human species, has become still more binding and more holy through Christ, who raised it to the dignity of a sacrament, and chose to use it as the figure of His own union with the Church. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, no. 8, December 28, 1878)

• How great are the evils that flow from divorce…

Truly, it is hardly possible to describe how great are the evils that flow from divorce. Matrimonial contracts are by it made variable; mutual kindness is weakened; deplorable inducements to unfaithfulness are supplied; harm is done to the education and training of children; occasion is afforded for the breaking up of homes; the seeds of dissension are sown among families; the dignity of womanhood is lessened and brought low, and women run the risk of being deserted after having ministered to the pleasures of men. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae sapientiae, no. 29, February 10, 1880)

• …opening a way to every kind of evil-doing in public and in private life

Since, then, nothing has such power to lay waste families and destroy the mainstay of kingdoms as the corruption of morals, it is easily seen that divorces are in the highest degree hostile to the prosperity of families and States, springing as they do from the depraved morals of the people, and, as experience shows us, opening out a way to every kind of evil-doing in public and in private life. Further still, if the matter be duly pondered, we shall clearly see these evils to be the more especially dangerous, because, divorce once being tolerated, there will be no restraint powerful enough to keep it within the bounds marked out or presurmised. Great indeed is the force of example, and even greater still the might of passion. With such incitements it must needs follow that the eagerness for divorce, daily spreading by devious ways, will seize upon the minds of many like a virulent contagious disease, or like a flood of water bursting through every barrier. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae sapientiae, no. 29-30, February 10, 1880)

• Divorce leads to the most extreme licentiousness

It is easily understood how nefarious — as much for the home as for public life — are these divorces that proceed from a degradation of customs, and that lead in turn to the most extreme licentiousness. (Leo XIII. Allocution Afferre iucundiora, at the Secret Consistory, no. 1, December 16, 1901)

• The family cannot be restored to its dignity except by those laws under which it was established in the Church

Now, the training of youth most conducive to the defense of true faith and religion and to the preservation of morality must find its beginning from an early stage within the circle of home life; and this family Christian training sadly undermined in these our times, cannot possibly be restored to its due dignity, save by those laws under which it was established in the Church by her Divine Founder Himself. Our Lord Jesus Christ, by raising to the dignity of a sacrament the contract of matrimony, in which He would have His own union with the Church typified, not only made the marriage tie more holy, but, in addition, provided efficacious sources of aid for parents and children alike, so that, by the discharge of their duties one to another, they might with greater ease attain to happiness both in time and in eternity. But when impious laws, setting at naught the sanctity of this great sacrament, put it on the same footing of mere civil contracts, the lamentable result followed, that, outraging the dignity of Christian matrimony, citizens made use of legalized concubinage in place of marriage; husband and wife neglected their bounden duty to each other; […] the bonds of domestic love were loosened; and alas! the worst scandal and of all the most ruinous to public morality, very frequently an unholy passion opened the door to disastrous and fatal separations. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, no. 10, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on offering rosaries

• Pray with perseverance and without intermission – do not for any cause whatsoever cease from the duty of prayer

The subtlety of the human intelligence fails now to grasp the high designs of Providence; but the time will come when, through the goodness of God, causes and effects will be made clear, and the marvelous power and utility of prayer will be shown forth. Then it will be seen how many in the midst of a corrupt age have kept themselves pure and inviolate from all concupiscence of the flesh and the spirit, working out their sanctification in the fear of God ( 2Cor 7:1); how others, when exposed to the danger of temptation, have without delay restrained themselves gaining new strength for virtue from the peril itself; how others, having fallen, have been seized with the ardent desire to be restored to the embraces of a compassionate God. Therefore, with these reflections before them, We beseech all again and again not to yield to the deceits of the old enemy, nor for any cause whatsoever to cease from the duty of prayer. Let their prayers be persevering, let them pray without intermission. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Octobri Mense, no. 10, September 22, 1891)

• The true Christian often has the Rosary in his hands

Therefore the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, combining in a convenient and practical form an unexcelled form of prayer, an instrument well adapted to preserve the faith and an illustrious example of perfect virtue, should be often in the hands of the true Christian and be devoutly recited and meditated upon. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Magna Dei Matris, no. 29, September 8, 1892)

• The need to beseech the Virgin Mother again and again to aid sinners – the daily Rosary: custom that ought to be preserved

For, to be brief, by repeating the same prayers [of the Rosary] we strenuously implore from Our Heavenly Father the Kingdom of His grace and glory; we again and again beseech the Virgin Mother to aid us sinners by her prayers, both during our whole life and especially at that last moment which is the stepping-stone to eternity. The formula of the Rosary, too, is excellently adapted to prayer in common, so that it has been styled, not without reason, ‘The Psalter of Mary’. And that old custom of our forefathers ought to be preserved or else restored, according to which Christian families, whether in town or country, were religiously wont at close of day, when their labours were at an end, to assemble before a figure of Our Lady and alternately recite the Rosary. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Fidentem piumque, September 20, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical words that it was not an offense accepting the Cross in the form of a communist symbol

• Hideous deformity of civil society and its ruin

Hence we have reached the limit of horrors, to wit, communism, socialism, nihilism, hideous deformities of the civil society of men and almost its ruin. And yet too many attempt to enlarge the scope of these evils, and under the pretext of helping the multitude, already have fanned no small flames of misery. The things we thus mention are neither unknown nor very remote from us. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Diuturnum illud, no. 17, June 29, 1881)

• Socialism and communism: lawlessness and overthrow of all things

For, the fear of God and reverence for divine laws being taken away, the authority of rulers despised, sedition permitted and approved, and the popular passions urged on to lawlessness, with no restraint save that of punishment, a change and overthrow of all things will necessarily follow. Yea, this change and overthrow is deliberately planned and put forward by many associations of communists and socialists. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum genus, no. 27, April 20, 1884)

• The pest of Socialism

Finally, all have witnessed with what solemn words and great firmness and constancy of soul our glorious predecessor, Pius IX, of happy memory, both in his allocutions and in his encyclical letters addressed to the bishops of all the world, fought now against the wicked attempts of the sects, now openly by name against the pest of socialism, which was already making headway. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, no. 3, December 28, 2878)

• Socialists labor unceasingly to bring about revolution, to pervert and destroy liberty

The empire of God over man and civil society once repudiated, it follows that religion, as a public institution, can have no claim to exist, and that everything that belongs to religion will be treated with complete indifference. Furthermore, with ambitious designs on sovereignty, tumult and sedition will be common amongst the people; and when duty and conscience cease to appeal to them, there will be nothing to hold them back but force, which of itself alone is powerless to keep their covetousness in check. Of this we have almost daily evidence in the conflict with socialists and members of other seditious societies, who labor unceasingly to bring about revolution. It is for those, then, who are capable of forming a just estimate of things to decide whether such doctrines promote that true liberty which alone is worthy of man, or rather, pervert and destroy it. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Libertas praestantissimum, no. 16, June 20, 1888)

• Socialism: abominable sect. Labor hard that the children of the Catholic Church never favor it

Moreover, labor hard that the children of the Catholic Church neither join nor favor in any way whatsoever this abominable sect; let them show, on the contrary, by noble deeds and right dealing in all things, how well and happily human society would hold together were each member to shine as an example of right doing and of virtue. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, no. 11, December 28, 1878)

• Our duty: warn Catholics regarding the great errors lurking in socialism

At the very beginning of Our pontificate We clearly pointed out what the peril was which confronted society on this head, and We deemed it Our duty to warn Catholics, in unmistakable language, how great the error was which was lurking in the utterances of socialism, and how great the danger was that threatened not only their temporal possessions, but also their morality and religion. That was the purpose of Our encyclical letter Quod Apostolici Muneris which We published on the 28th of December in the year 1878; but, as these dangers day by day threatened still greater disaster, both to individuals and the commonwealth, We strove with all the more energy to avert them. This was the object of Our encyclical Rerum Novarum of the 15th of May, 1891, in which we dwelt at length on the rights and duties which both classes of society – those namely, who control capital, and those who contribute labor – are bound in relation to each other; and at the same time, We made it evident that the remedies which are most useful to protect the cause of religion, and to terminate the contest between the different classes of society, were to be found in the precepts of the Gospel. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Graves de Communi Re, no. 2, January 18, 1901)

• Socialism: evil growth that must be uprooted

But it is to be lamented that those to whom has been committed the guardianship of the public weal, deceived by the wiles of wicked men and terrified by their threats, have looked upon the Church with a suspicious and even hostile eye, not perceiving that the attempts of the sects would be vain if the doctrine of the Catholic Church and the authority of the Roman Pontiffs had always survived, with the honor that belongs to them, among princes and peoples. For, ‘the church of the living God, which is the pillar and ground of truth,’ (1 Tim 3:15) hands down those doctrines and precepts whose special object is the safety and peace of society and the uprooting of the evil growth of socialism. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, no. 4, December 28, 1878)

• Socialists distort the Gospel to suit their own purposes

For, indeed, although the socialists, stealing the very Gospel itself with a view to deceive more easily the unwary, have been accustomed to distort it so as to suit their own purposes, nevertheless so great is the difference between their depraved teachings and the most pure doctrine of Christ that none greater could exist: ‘for what participation bath justice with injustice or what fellowship bath light with darkness?’(2 Cor. 6:14) (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, no. 5, December 28, 1878)

…judges Francis’ pro-communist heretical ideas expressed in the Meetings with Popular Movements

• Communists and socialists urge the popular passions on to lawlessness and sedition

For, the fear of God and reverence for divine laws being taken away, the authority of rulers despised, sedition permitted and approved, and the popular passions urged on to lawlessness, with no restraint save that of punishment, a change and overthrow of all things will necessarily follow. Yea, this change and overthrow is deliberately planned and put forward by many associations of communists and socialists. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum genus, no. 27, April 20, 1884)

• Not only temporal possessions but also morality and religion threatened by the great error of socialism

At the very beginning of Our pontificate We clearly pointed out what the peril was which confronted society on this head, and We deemed it Our duty to warn Catholics, in unmistakable language, how great the error was which was lurking in the utterances of socialism, and how great the danger was that threatened not only their temporal possessions, but also their morality and religion. That was the purpose of Our encyclical letter Quod Apostolici Muneris which We published on the 28th of December in the year 1878. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Graves de communi, January 18, 1901)

• Socialists make foolish promises to the people, so as to advance toward the fulfillment of the most criminal proposals

This lamentable moral consternation was the seed of restlessness within the popular classes, discontent and rebelliousness in spirits; consequently the agitations and frequent disorders, that were the prelude of graver storms. The miserable conditions of such a great part of the population, certainly worthy of redemption and of remedy, consequently served admirably for the intents of the expert agitators, and especially of the socialist factions, who, by means of foolish promises to the people advanced toward the fulfillment of the most criminal proposals. (Leo XIII. Apostolic Letter, Annum ingressi, Acte Sancta Sedis, 34, 1901-1902, p.520)

• Working on the poor man’s envy, socialists vainly contend that individual possessions should become the common property of all

To remedy these wrongs the socialists, working on the poor man’s envy of the rich, are striving to do away with private property, and contend that individual possessions should become the common property of all, to be administered by the State or by municipal bodies. They hold that by thus transferring property from private individuals to the community, the present mischievous state of things will be set to rights, inasmuch as each citizen will then get his fair share of whatever there is to enjoy. But their contentions are so clearly powerless to end the controversy that were they carried into effect the working man himself would be among the first to suffer. They are, moreover, emphatically unjust, for they would rob the lawful possessor, distort the functions of the State, and create utter confusion in the community. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 4, May 15, 1891)

• Many attempt to spread the hideous deformities of communism and socialism, under the pretext of helping the multitude

Hence we have reached the limit of horrors, to wit, communism, socialism, nihilism, hideous deformities of the civil society of men and almost its ruin. And yet too many attempt to enlarge the scope of these evils, and under the pretext of helping the multitude, already have fanned no small flames of misery. The things we thus mention are neither unknown nor very remote from us. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Diuturnum illud, no. 17, June 29, 1881)

…judges Francis’ heretical ideas on faith being revolutionary

• Faith must preserve and nourish the moral life

This justice, in order to be advantageous to salvation, is nourished by Christian faith. ‘The just man liveth by faith’ (Gal 3:2). ‘Without faith it is impossible to please God’ (Heb 10:6). Consequently Jesus Christ, the creator and preserver of faith, also preserves and nourishes our moral life. This He does chiefly by the ministry of His Church. To Her, in His wise and merciful counsel, He has entrusted certain agencies which engender the supernatural life, protect it, and revive it if it should fail. This generative and conservative power of the virtues that make for salvation is therefore lost, whenever morality is dissociated from divine faith. A system of morality based exclusively on human reason robs man of his highest dignity and lowers him from the supernatural to the merely natural life. Not but that man is able by the right use of reason to know and to obey certain principles of the natural law. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Tametsi Futura Prospicientibus, no. 11, November 1, 1900)

…judges Francis’ heretical ideas on the Church closed and ailing

• The Church should not shape her teachings in accord with the spirit of the age

The underlying principle of these new opinions is that, in order to more easily attract those who differ from her, the Church should shape her teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions. Many think that these concessions should be made not only in regard to ways of living, but even in regard to doctrines which belong to the deposit of the faith. They contend that it would be opportune, in order to gain those who differ from us, to omit certain points of her teaching which are of lesser importance, and to tone down the meaning which the Church has always attached to them. […] Such a policy would tend rather to separate Catholics from the Church than to bring in those who differ. There is nothing closer to our heart than to have those who are separated from the fold of Christ return to it, but in no other way than the way pointed out by Christ. […] History proves clearly that the Apostolic See, to which has been entrusted the mission not only of teaching but of governing the whole Church, has continued ‘in one and the same doctrine, one and the same sense, and one and the same judgment,’ (Const. de fide Catholica, Ch. 4) In this matter the Church must be the judge, not private men who are often deceived by the appearance of right. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem Benevolentiae, to James Cardinal Gibbons, January 22, 1899)

…judges Francis’ heretical ideas on the norms of the Church

• One who embraces the Christian faith is by that very fact a subject of the Church

Considering that forthwith upon salvation being brought out for mankind, Jesus Christ laid upon His Apostles the injunction to ‘preach the Gospel to every creature’, He imposed, it is evident, upon all men the duty of learning thoroughly and believing what they were taught. This duty is intimately bound up with the gaining of eternal salvation: ‘He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not, shall be condemned’ (Mk 16:16). But the man who has embraced the Christian faith, as in duty bound, is by that very fact a subject of the Church as one of the children born of her, and becomes a member of that greatest and holiest body, which it is the special charge of the Roman Pontiff to rule with supreme power, under its invisible head, Jesus Christ. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Christianae, no. 4, January 10, 1890)

• Hallowed in the minds of Christians is the very idea of authority – A just and due reverence to the laws abides in them from a consciousness of duty

Hence, they who blame, and call by the name of sedition, this steadfastness of attitude in the choice of duty have not rightly apprehended the force and nature of true law. We are speaking of matters widely known, and which We have before now more than once fully explained. Law is of its very essence a mandate of right reason, proclaimed by a properly constituted authority, for the common good. But true and legitimate authority is void of sanction, unless it proceed from God, the supreme Ruler and Lord of all. The Almighty alone can commit power to a man over his fellow men; nor may that be accounted as right reason which is in disaccord with truth and with divine reason; nor that held to be true good which is repugnant to the supreme and unchangeable good, or that wrests aside and draws away the wills of men from the charity of God. Hallowed, therefore, in the minds of Christians is the very idea of public authority, in which they recognize some likeness and symbol as it were of the Divine Majesty, even when it is exercised by one unworthy. A just and due reverence to the laws abides in them, not from force and threats, but from a consciousness of duty; ‘for God hath not given us the spirit of fear’ (2 Tim 1:7). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Christianae, no. 8, January 10, 1890)

• The civilization which conflicts with the laws of the Church is worthless

That kind of civilization which conflicts with the doctrines and laws of holy Church is nothing but a worthless imitation and meaningless name. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili dei consiliio, no. 6, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical/apostate idea that the Pope should not judge

• The Supreme Pastor has all power to judge

By certain indications that have been observed, it is not difficult to perceive that among Catholics, perhaps due to the evils of our times, there are those who, not content with being among the subjects – the position befitting them within the Church – wish to have some part in the governing of the same; or at least think that they have the right to examine and judge, in their own manner, the acts of the authority. This would be, if it prevailed, of grave harm to the Church of God, in which, through the manifest will of its divine Founder, can be distinguished in two parts, in an absolute way; the teachers and those taught, the flock and the shepherds, and among the Shepherds there is one who is the Head and the Supreme Pastor. Only to the Pastors was all power given to teach, to judge, to conduct, and to the faithful the duty to follow their teachings was imposed, to submit with docility to their judgment, to let themselves be governed, corrected and conducted toward salvation. (Leo XIII. Letter to the Archbishop of Paris, June 17, 1885)

• Peter has the power of commanding, forbidding, and judging…

From this text it is clear that by the will and command of God the Church rests upon Saint Peter, just as a building rests on its foundation. Now the proper nature of a foundation is to be a principle of cohesion for the various parts of the building. It must be the necessary condition of stability and strength. Remove it and the whole building falls. It is consequently the office of Saint Peter to support the Church, and to guard it in all its strength and indestructible unity. How could he fulfil this office without the power of commanding, forbidding, and judging, which is properly called jurisdiction? It is only by this power of jurisdiction that nations and commonwealths are held together. […] Therefore God confided His Church to Peter so that he might safely guard it with his unconquerable power. He invested him, therefore, with the needful authority; since the right to rule is absolutely required by him who has to guard human society really and effectively. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no.12, June 29, 1896)

• … binding and loosing, making laws and punishing

In this same sense He says: ‘Whatsoever thou shall bind upon earth it shall be bound also in Heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth it shall be loosed also in Heaven.’ This metaphorical expression of binding and loosing indicates the power of making laws, of judging and of punishing; and the power is said to be of such amplitude and force that God will ratify whatever is decreed by it. Thus it is supreme and absolutely independent, so that, having no other power on earth as its superior, it embraces the whole Church and all things committed to the Church. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 12, June 29, 1896)

• The jurisdiction of the Roman pontiffs extends to the whole Christian world

Moreover, he who is set over the whole flock must have authority, not only over the sheep dispersed throughout the Church, but also when they are assembled together. Do the sheep when they are all assembled together rule and guide the shepherd? Do the successors of the Apostles assembled together constitute the foundation on which the successor of Saint Peter rests in order to derive therefrom strength and stability? Surely jurisdicton and authority belong to him in whose power have been placed the keys of the Kingdom taken collectively. And as the Bishops, each in his own district, command with real power not only individuals but the whole community, so the Roman pontiffs, whose jurisdiction extends to the whole Christian commonwealth, must have all its parts, even taken collectively, subject and obedient to their authority. Christ the Lord, as we have quite sufficiently shown, made Peter and his successors His vicars, to exercise forever in the Church the power which He exercised during His mortal life. Can the Apostolic College be said to have been above its master in authority? This power over the Episcopal College to which we refer, and which is clearly set forth in Holy Writ, has ever been acknowledged and attested by the Church, as is clear from the teaching of General Councils. ‘We read that the Roman Pontiff has pronounced judgments on the prelates of all the churches; we do not read that anybody has pronounced sentence on him’ (Hadrianus ii., in Allocutione iii., ad Synodum Romanum an. 869). The reason for which is stated thus: ‘there is no authority greater than that of the Apostolic See’ (Nicholaus in Epist. lxxxvi. ad Michael. Imperat). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 15, June 29, 1896)

… judges Francis’ heretical ideas on the evangelization of the Americas

• Hundreds of thousands were reborn to eternal life, since Columbus willed intensely to propagate the Gospel to new lands

From the midst of the unexplored ocean, thanks to him [Christopher Columbus], arose a new world: hundreds of thousands of creatures, who were forgotten and in darkness have been reintroduced into the human family, from barbarism they were led to meekness and civilization: and, what is more important, from lost that thery were, they have been reborn to eternal life through the communication of the benefits that Jesus Christ brought forth. […] In effect, it is clear that he understood and willed this intensely: to open the way of the Gospel to new lands and new seas. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quarto Abeunte Saeculo, June 16, 1892)

• The principles of the Catholic religion were carried by the ships of Columbus

Keeping this thought constantly in view, his first solicitude, wherever he disembarked, was to plant upon the shore the sacred emblem of the cross. Wherefore, like as the Ark of Noah, surmounting the overflowing waters, bore the seed of Israel together with the remnants of the human race, even thus did the barks launched by Columbus upon the ocean carry into regions beyond the seas as well the germs of mighty States as the principles of the Catholic religion. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Longinqua Oceani, On Catholicism in the United States, January 6, 1895)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the Church reduced to a minority

• The mission of Christ is to save all without distinction of time or place

For what did Christ, the Lord, ask? What did He wish in regard to the Church founded, or about to be founded? This: to transmit to it the same mission and the same mandate which He had received from the Father, that they should be perpetuated. This He clearly resolved to do: this He actually did. ‘As the Father bath sent me, I also send you’ (Jn 20:21). ‘And thou hast sent Me into the world I also have sent them into the world’ (Jn 17:18). But the mission of Christ is to save that which had perished: that is to say, not some nations or peoples, but the whole human race, without distinction of time or place. ‘The Son of Man came that the world might be saved by Him’ (Jn 3:17). ‘For there is no other name under Heaven given to men whereby we must be saved’ (Acts 4:12). The Church, therefore, is bound to communicate without stint to all men, and to transmit through all ages, the salvation effected by Jesus Christ, and the blessings flowing there from. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 7, June 29, 1896)

• The most Holy Name of Jesus should rapidly pervade and fill every land

Pressed on to Our intent by Charity, that hastens fastest there where the need is greatest, We direct Our first thoughts to those most unfortunate of all nations who have never received the light of the Gospel, or who, after having possessed it, have lost it through neglect or the vicissitudes of time: Hence do they ignore God, and live in the depths of error. Now, as all salvation comes from Jesus Christ—for there is no other Name under Heaven given to men whereby we must be saved–Our ardent desire is that the most Holy Name of Jesus should rapidly pervade and fill every land. And here, indeed, is a duty which the Church, faithful to the Divine Mission entrusted to her, has never neglected. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Praeclara gratulationis, no. 3, June 20, 1894)

• To keep silence when clamors are raised against truth is base and insulting to God

But in this same matter, touching Christian faith, there are other duties whose exact and religious observance, necessary at all times in the interests of eternal salvation, become more especially so in these our days. Amid such reckless and widespread folly of opinion, it is, as We’ve said, the office of the Church to undertake the defense of truth and uproot errors from the mind, and this charge has to be at all times sacredly observed by her, seeing that the honor of God and the salvation of men are confided to her keeping. But, when necessity compels, not those only who are invested with power of rule are bound to safeguard the integrity of faith, but, as St. Thomas maintains: ‘Each one is under obligation to show forth his faith, either to instruct and encourage others of the faithful, or to repel the attacks of unbelievers.’ To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae christianae, no. 14, January 10, 1890)

• Jesus Christ bade all men to follow Him

Wherefore Jesus Christ bade all men, present and future, follow Him as their leader and Saviour; and this, not merely as individuals, but as forming a society, organized and united in mind. In this way a duly constituted society should exist, formed out of the divided multitude of peoples, one in faith, one in end, one in the participation of the means adapted to the attainment of the end, and one as subject to one and the same authority. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis congnitum, no. 23, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Communism

• Communism: a deadly plague that seeks to overthrow both human and divine laws

At the very beginning of Our pontificate, as the nature of Our apostolic office demanded, we hastened to point out in an encyclical letter addressed to you, venerable brethren, the deadly plague that is creeping into the very fibres of human society and leading it on to the verge of destruction; […] You understand, venerable brethren, that We speak of that sect of men who, under various and almost barbarous names, are called socialists, communists, or nihilists, and who, spread over all the world, and bound together by the closest ties in a wicked confederacy, no longer seek the shelter of secret meetings, but, openly and boldly marching forth in the light of day, strive to bring to a head what they have long been planning – the overthrow of all civil society whatsoever. […] They leave nothing untouched or whole which by both human and divine laws has been wisely decreed for the health and beauty of life. […] They debase the natural union of man and woman, which is held sacred even among barbarous peoples; and its bond, by which the family is chiefly held together […] Lured, in fine, by the greed of present goods, which is ‘the root of all evils, which some coveting have erred from the faith’ (1Tim 6:10) they assail the right of property sanctioned by natural law; and by a scheme of horrible wickedness, while they seem desirous of caring for the needs and satisfying the desires of all men, they strive to seize and hold in common whatever has been acquired either by title of lawful inheritance, or by labor of brain and hands, or by thrift in one’s mode of life. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici Muneris, December 28, 1878)

• The fear of God and reverence for divine laws are taken away leading to the greatest dangers and the overthrow of all things

Now, from the disturbing errors which We have described the greatest dangers to States are to be feared. For, the fear of God and reverence for divine laws being taken away, the authority of rulers despised, sedition permitted and approved, and the popular passions urged on to lawlessness, with no restraint save that of punishment, a change and overthrow of all things will necessarily follow. Yea, this change and overthrow is deliberately planned and put forward by many associations of communists and socialists. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum Genus, April 20, 1884)

• Socialists distort the Gospel to suit their own purposes

For, indeed, although the socialists, stealing the very Gospel itself with a view to deceive more easily the unwary, have been accustomed to distort it so as to suit their own purposes, nevertheless so great is the difference between their depraved teachings and the most pure doctrine of Christ that none greater could exist. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod apostolici muneris, no. 5, December 28,1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on equality as the source of justice and happiness

• Inequality of rights and power emanates from the God, the Author of nature

From the records of the Gospels the equality of men consists in this, that all have received the same nature, and are called to the same highest dignity of the sons of God; and at the same time that, since the same end is established for all, each is to be judged individually according to the same law, to obtain punishments or rewards according to merit. An inequality of right and power, however, emanates from the very author of nature, ‘from whom all paternity in heaven and earth is named’ (Eph 3:15). But the souls of princes and subjects, according to Catholic doctrine and precepts, are so bound by mutual duties and rights that both the passion for ruling is tempered and the way of obedience is made easy, steadfast, and most noble. (Denzinger-Hünermann 3130-3131. Leo XIII, Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, December 28, 1878)

• Socialists proclaim total equality of man; the Church recognizes inequalities

But also, Catholic wisdom most skillfully provides for public and domestic tranquility, supported by the precepts of divine law, through what it holds and teaches concerning the right of ownership and the distribution of goods which have been obtained for the necessities and uses of life. For when Socialists proclaim the right of property to be a human invention repugnant to the natural equality of man, and, seeking to establish community of goods, think that poverty is by no means to be endured with equanimity; and that the possessions and rights of the rich can be violated with impunity, the Church, much more properly and practically, recognizes inequality among men, who are naturally different in strength of body and of mind; also in the possession of goods, and it orders that right of property and of ownership, which proceeds from nature itself, be for everyone intact and inviolate; for it knows that theft and raping have been forbidden by God, the author and vindicator of every right, in such a way that one may not even look attentively upon (al.: covet) the property of another, and ‘that thieves and robbers, no less than adulterers and idolators are excluded from the kingdom of heaven’ (cf. 1Cor 6:9 f). (Denzinger-Hünermann 3130-3131. Leo XIII, Encyclical Quod Apostolici muneris, December 28, 1878)

• Most repugnant to reason: to endeavor to confine all within the same measure, to attempt complete equality

In like manner, no one doubts that all men are equal one to another, so far as regards their common origin and nature, or the last end which each one has to attain, or the rights and duties which are thence derived. But, as the abilities of all are not equal, as one differs from another in the powers of mind or body, and as there are very many dissimilarities of manner, disposition, and character, it is most repugnant to reason to endeavor to confine all within the same measure, and to extend complete equality to the institutions of civic life. Just as a perfect condition of the body results from the conjunction and composition of its various members, which, though differing in form and purpose, make, by their union and the distribution of each one to its proper place, a combination beautiful to behold, firm in strength, and necessary for use; so, in the commonwealth, there is an almost infinite dissimilarity of men, as parts of the whole. If they are to be all equal, and each is to follow his own will, the State will appear most deformed; but if, with a distinction of degrees of dignity, of pursuits and employments, all aptly conspire for the common good, they will present the image of a State both well constituted and conformable to nature. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum genus, no. 26, April 29, 1884)

• Society cannot exist or be conceived of without differences and inequalities of condition

But although all citizens, without exception, can and ought to contribute to that common good in which individuals share so advantageously to themselves, yet it should not be supposed that all can contribute in the like way and to the same extent. No matter what changes may occur in forms of government, there will ever be differences and inequalities of condition in the State. Society cannot exist or be conceived of without them. Some there must be who devote themselves to the work of the commonwealth, who make the laws or administer justice, or whose advice and authority govern the nation in times of peace, and defend it in war. Such men clearly occupy the foremost place in the State, and should be held in highest estimation, for their work concerns most nearly and effectively the general interests of the community. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum novarum, no. 25, May 15, 1891)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the immortality of the soul

• Since the same end is established for all, each is to be judged individually according to the same law

From the records of the Gospels the equality of men consists in this, that all have received the same nature, and are called to the same highest dignity of the sons of God; and at the same time that, since the same end is established for all, each is to be judged individually according to the same law, to obtain punishments or rewards according to merit. (Denzinger-Hünermann 3130. Leo XIII, Encylical Quod Apostolici muneris, December 28, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the role of non-christian religions

• To have God as Father, one must accept Christ Jesus as Brother

And with the same yearning Our soul goes out to those whom the foul breath of irreligion has not entirely corrupted, and who at least seek to have the true God, the Creator of Heaven and earth, as their Father. Let such as these take counsel with themselves, and realize that they can in no wise be counted among the children of God, unless they take Christ Jesus as their Brother, and at the same time the Church as their mother. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, June 29, 1896)

• Differing modes of divine worship cannot all be equally acceptable to God

To hold, therefore, that there is no difference in matters of religion between forms that are unlike each other, and even contrary to each other, most clearly leads in the end to the rejection of all religion in both theory and practice. And this is the same thing as atheism, however it may differ from it in name. Men who really believe in the existence of God must, in order to be consistent with themselves and to avoid absurd conclusions, understand that differing modes of divine worship involving dissimilarity and conflict even on most important points cannot all be equally probable, equally good, and equally acceptable to God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, no. 33, November 1, 1885)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the laicity of the State

• Justice and reason itself forbids the State to be godless or to treat various religions alike

Wherefore, civil society must acknowledge God as its Founder and Parent, and must obey and reverence His power and authority. Justice therefore forbids, and reason itself forbids, the State to be godless; or to adopt a line of action which would end in godlessness-namely, to treat the various religions (as they call them) alike, and to bestow upon them promiscuously equal rights and privileges. Since, then, the profession of one religion is necessary in the State, that religion must be professed which alone is true, and which can be recognized without difficulty, especially in Catholic States, because the marks of truth are, as it were, engravers upon it. This religion, therefore, the rulers of the State must preserve and protect, if they would provide – as they should do – with prudence and usefulness for the good of the community. For public authority exists for the welfare of those whom it governs; and, although its proximate end is to lead men to the prosperity found in this life, yet, in so doing, it ought not to diminish, but rather to increase, man’s capability of attaining to the supreme good in which his everlasting happiness consists: which never can be attained if religion be disregarded. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Libertas Praestantissimum, no. 21, June 20, 1888)

• It is a sin for the State not to have care for religion as something beyond its scope, or as of no practical benefit

As a consequence, the State, constituted as it is, is clearly bound to act up to the manifold and weighty duties linking it to God, by the public profession of religion. Nature and reason, which command every individual devoutly to worship God in holiness, because we belong to Him and must return to Him, since from Him we came, bind also the civil community by a like law. For, men living together in society are under the power of God no less than individuals are, and society, no less than individuals, owes gratitude to God who gave it being and maintains it and whose ever-bounteous goodness enriches it with countless blessings. Since, then, no one is allowed to be remiss in the service due to God, […] So, too, is it a sin for the State not to have care for religion as a something beyond its scope, or as of no practical benefit; or out of many forms of religion to adopt that one which chimes in with the fancy; for we are bound absolutely to worship God in that way which He has shown to be His will. All who rule, therefore, would hold in honour the holy name of God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, no. 6, November 1, 1885)

• Conflict between Church and State puts virtue to proof

Moreover, if we would judge aright, the supernatural love for the Church and the natural love of our own country proceed from the same eternal principle, since God Himself is their Author and originating Cause. Consequently, it follows that between the duties they respectively enjoin, neither can come into collision with the other. We can, certainly, and should love ourselves, bear ourselves kindly toward our fellow men, nourish affection for the State and the governing powers; but at the same time we can and must cherish toward the Church a feeling of filial piety, and love God with the deepest love of which we are capable. The order of precedence of these duties is, however, at times, either under stress of public calamities, or through the perverse will of men, inverted. For, instances occur where the State seems to require from men as subjects one thing, and religion, from men as Christians, quite another; and this in reality without any other ground, than that the rulers of the State either hold the sacred power of the Church of no account, or endeavor to subject it to their own will. Hence arises a conflict, and an occasion, through such conflict, of virtue being put to the proof. The two powers are confronted and urge their behests in a contrary sense; to obey both is wholly impossible. No man can serve two masters (Mt 6:24), for to please the one amounts to contemning the other. As to which should be preferred no one ought to balance for an instant. It is a high crime indeed to withdraw allegiance from God in order to please men, an act of consummate wickedness to break the laws of Jesus Christ, in order to yield obedience to earthly rulers, or, under pretext of keeping the civil law, to ignore the rights of the Church; ‘we ought to obey God rather than men’ (Acts 5:29). This answer, which of old Peter and the other Apostles were used to give the civil authorities who enjoined unrighteous things, we must, in like circumstances, give always and without hesitation. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Christianae, January 10, 1890)

• The attempts of the sects would be vain if the doctrine of the Catholic Church had always survived among princes and peoples

But it is to be lamented that those to whom has been committed the guardianship of the public weal, deceived by the wiles of wicked men and terrified by their threats, have looked upon the Church with a suspicious and even hostile eye, not perceiving that the attempts of the sects would be vain if the doctrine of the Catholic Church and the authority of the Roman Pontiffs had always survived, with the honor that belongs to them, among princes and peoples. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Quod Apostolici Muneris, December 28, 1878)

• Christ commanded His Church to restore whatever might have fallen into ruin in human society

In order that these unparalleled benefits might last as long as men should be found on earth, He entrusted to His Church the continuance of His work; and, looking to future times, He commanded her to set in order whatever might have become deranged in human society, and to restore whatever might have fallen into ruin. Although the divine renewal we have spoken of chiefly and directly affected men as constituted in the supernatural order of grace, nevertheless some of its precious and salutary fruits were also bestowed abundantly in the order of nature. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientiae, On Christian marriage, no. 2-3, February 10, 1880)

• The divine power of the Christian religion has given birth to order for the State

These perils to commonwealth, which are before Our eyes, fill Us with grave anxiety, when We behold the security of rulers and the tranquility of empires, together with the safety of nations, put in peril almost from hour to hour. Nevertheless, the divine power of the Christian religion has given birth to excellent principles of stability and order for the State, while at the same time it has penetrated into the customs and institutions of States. And of this power not the least nor last fruit is a just and wise proportion of mutual rights and duties in both princes and peoples. For in the precepts and example of Christ our Lord there is a wonderful force for restraining in their duty as much those who obey as those who rule […] (Leo XIII. Encyclical Diuturnum illud, On the origin of civil power, no. 3, June 29, 1881)

• No better mode has been devised for the building up and ruling the State than following the teachings of the Gospel

And, indeed, wherever the Church has set her foot she has straightway changed the face of things, and has attempered the moral tone of the people with a new civilization and with virtues before unknown. All nations which have yielded to her sway have become eminent by their gentleness, their sense of justice, and the glory of their high deeds. And yet a hackneyed reproach of old date is levelled against her, that the Church is opposed to the rightful aims of the civil government, and is wholly unable to afford help in spreading that welfare and progress which justly and naturally are sought after by every well-regulated State. From the very beginning Christians were harassed by slanderous accusations of this nature, and on that account were held up to hatred and execration, for being (so they were called) enemies of the Empire. […] This odious calumny, with most valid reason, nerved the genius and sharpened the pen of Saint Augustine, who, notably in his treatise, The City of God, set forth in so bright a light the worth of Christian wisdom in its relation to the public wealth that he seems not merely to have pleaded the cause of the Christians of his day, but to have refuted for all future times impeachments so grossly contrary to truth. The wicked proneness, however, to levy like charges and accusations has not been lulled to rest. Many, indeed, are they who have tried to work out a plan of civil society based on doctrines other than those approved by the Catholic Church. Nay, in these latter days a novel conception of law has begun here and there to gain increase and influence, the outcome, as it is maintained, of an age arrived at full stature, and the result of progressive liberty. But, though endeavours of various kinds have been ventured on, it is clear that no better mode has been devised for the building up and ruling the State than that which is the necessary growth of the teachings of the Gospel. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, no. 1, On the Christian Constitution of States, November 11, 1885)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on religious liberty

• ‘Liberty of worship’: opposed to the virtue of religion and a degradation of liberty

First, let us examine that liberty in individuals which is so opposed to the virtue of religion, namely, the liberty of worship, as it is called. This is based on the principle that every man is free to profess as he may choose any religion or none. (…) And if it be asked which of the many conflicting religions it is necessary to adopt, reason and the natural law unhesitatingly tell us to practice that one which God enjoins, and which men can easily recognize by certain exterior notes, whereby Divine Providence has willed that it should be distinguished, because, in a matter of such moment, the most terrible loss would be the consequence of error. Wherefore, when a liberty such as We have described is offered to man, the power is given him to pervert or abandon with impunity the most sacred of duties, and to exchange the unchangeable good for evil; which, as We have said, is no liberty, but its degradation, and the abject submission of the soul to sin. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Libertas Praestantissimum, June 20, 1888)

• To think that all religions are alike is to ruin the Catholic religion

As all who offer themselves are received whatever may be their form of religion, they thereby teach the great error of this age-that a regard for religion should be held as an indifferent matter, and that all religions are alike. This manner of reasoning is calculated to bring about the ruin of all forms of religion, and especially of the Catholic religion, which, as it is the only one that is true, cannot, without great injustice, be regarded as merely equal to other religions. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Humanum Genus, April 20, 1884)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the multiplication of the loaves

• Christ proves His own divinity and the divine origin of His mission by miracles

Christ proves His own divinity and the divine origin of His mission by miracles; He teaches the multitudes heavenly doctrine by word of mouth; and He absolutely commands that the assent of faith should be given to His teaching, promising eternal rewards to those who believe and eternal punishment to those who do not. […] Whatsoever He commands, He commands by the same authority. He requires the assent of the mind to all truths without exception. It was thus the duty of all who heard Jesus Christ, if they wished for eternal salvation, not merely to accept His doctrine as a whole, but to assent with their entire mind to all and every point of it, since it is unlawful to withhold faith from God even in regard to one single point. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 8, June 29, 1896)

• Illicitude of interpreting Holy Scripture contrary to the true sense which the Church has always held

The Synod of the Vatican adopted the teaching of the Fathers, when, as it renewed the decree of Trent on the interpretation of the divine Word, it declared this to be its mind, that in matters of faith and morals, which pertain to the building up of Christian doctrine, that is to be held as the true sense of Holy Scripture which Mother Church has held and holds, whose prerogative it is to judge of the true sense and interpretation of Scripture; and, therefore, it is permitted to no one to interpret the Holy Scripture against this sense, or even against the unanimous agreement of the Fathers. (Denzinger-Hünermann 3281. Leo XIII, Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, November 18, 1893)

• Interpretations which oppose the teaching of the Church are senseless and false

Wherefore, it is clear that that interpretation must be rejected as senseless and false, which either makes inspired authors in some manner quarrel among themselves, or opposes the teaching of the Church. . . . (Denzinger-Hünermann 3283. Leo XIII, Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, November 18, 1893)

• The announcers of novelties approach the faulty cisterns of human wisdom

The Bible is then, the principal and most accessible source of sacred eloquence. But those who constitute themselves as announcers of novelties, do not nourish the ensemble of their speeches from the font of living water, but rather foolishly and mistakenly approach the faulty cisterns of human wisdom; consequently, putting aside the doctrine inspired by God – or that of the Fathers of the Church and of the Councils – all they do is expose the names and ideas of profane and contemporary writers, still living: these ideas frequently give rise to ambiguous and very dangerous interpretations. (Leo XIII cited by St. Pius X. Moto Proprio, Sacrorum Antistitum, The Oath against Modernism, September 1, 1910)

• Detestable errors of those who consider that the miracles are not what they are said to be, but the effects of natural law, or tricks and myths

They deny that there is any such thing as revelation or inspiration, or Holy Scripture at all; they see, instead, only the forgeries and the falsehoods of men; they set down the Scripture narratives as stupid fables and lying stories: the prophecies and the oracles of God are to them either predictions made up after the event or forecasts formed by the light of nature; the miracles and the wonders of God’s power are not what they are said to be, but the startling effects of natural law, or else mere tricks and myths; and the Apostolic Gospels and writings are not the work of the Apostles at all. These detestable errors, whereby they think they destroy the truth of the divine Books, are obtruded on the world as the peremptory pronouncements of a certain newly-invented ‘free science;’ a science, however, which is so far from final that they are perpetually modifying and supplementing it. And there are some of them who, notwithstanding their impious opinions and utterances about God, and Christ, the Gospels and the rest of Holy Scripture, would be considered both theologians and Christians and men of the Gospel, and who attempt to disguise by such honourable names their rashness and their pride. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, no. 10, November 18, 1893)

…judges Francis’ heretical/apostate idea on our sins drawing us close to Jesus

• The difference between truth and error

It is contrary to reason that error and truth should have equal rights. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Liberates Praestantissimum, no. 34)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on knowing God’s will from the people

• Christ appointed an unfailing teaching authority to preserve men in truth, His Church

The only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, who came on earth to bring salvation and the light of divine wisdom to men, conferred a great and wonderful blessing on the world when, about to ascend again into heaven, He commanded the Apostles to go and teach all nations (Mt 28:19), and left the Church which He had founded to be the common and supreme teacher of the peoples. For men whom the truth had set free were to be preserved by the truth; nor would the fruits of heavenly doctrines by which salvation comes to men have long remained had not the Lord Christ appointed an unfailing teaching authority to train the minds to faith. And the Church built upon the promises of its own divine Author, whose charity it imitated, so faithfully followed out His commands that its constant aim and chief wish was this: to teach religion and contend forever against errors. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Aeterni Patris, August 4, 1879)

• Christ commanded the Church to set in order whatever is deranged in human society

 For He healed the wounds which the sin of our first father had inflicted on the human race; He brought all men, by nature children of wrath, into favor with God; He led to the light of truth men wearied out by longstanding errors; He renewed to every virtue those who were weakened by lawlessness of every kind; and, giving them again an inheritance of never-ending bliss, He added a sure hope that their mortal and perishable bodies should one day be partakers of immortality and of the glory of heaven. In order that these unparalleled benefits might last as long as men should be found on earth, He entrusted to His Church the continuance of His work; and, looking to future times, He commanded her to set in order whatever might have become deranged in human society, and to restore whatever might have fallen into ruin. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae Sapientiae, no. 1, February 10, 1880)

• By evangelizing the nations, the Church restored humans to their original dignity

Now, who would make bold to deny that the Church, by spreading the Gospel throughout the nations, has brought the light of truth amongst people utterly savage and steeped in foul superstition, and has quickened them alike to recognize the Divine Author of nature and duly to respect themselves? Further, who will deny that the Church has done away with the curse of slavery and restored men to the original dignity of their noble nature; and – by uplifting the standard of redemption in all quarters of the globe, by introducing, or shielding under her protection, the sciences and arts, by founding and taking into her keeping excellent charitable institutions which provide relief for ills of every kind – has throughout the world, in private or in public life, civilized the human race, freed it from degradation, and with all care trained it to a way of Living such as befits the dignity and the hopes of man? And if any one of sound mind compare the age in which We live, so hostile to religion and to the Church of Christ, with those happy times when the Church was revered as a mother by the nations, beyond all question he will see that our epoch is rushing wildly along the straight road to destruction; while in those times which most abounded in excellent institutions, peaceful life, wealth, and prosperity the people showed themselves most obedient to the Church’s rule and laws. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei Consilio, no. 5, April 21, 1878)

• Preachers who use merely human words fall far short of the power which the speech of God possesses

Hence those preachers are foolish and improvident who, in speaking of religion and proclaiming the things of God, use no words but those of human science and human prudence, trusting to their own reasonings rather than to those of God. Their discourses may be brilliant and fine, but they must be feeble and they must be cold, for they are without the fire of the utterance of God (Jer 23:29), and they must fall far short of that mighty power which the speech of God possesses: ‘for the Word of God is living and effectual, and more piercing than any two-edged sword; and reaching unto the division of the soul and the spirit’ (Heb 4:12). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, no. 6, November 18, 1893)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the flesh of Christ and poverty as a theological category

• Virtue: common inheritance of men, within the reach of the rich and poor

The true worth and nobility of man lie in his moral qualities, that is, in virtue; that virtue is, moreover, the common inheritance of men, equally within the reach of high and low, rich and poor; and that virtue, and virtue alone, wherever found, will be followed by the rewards of everlasting happiness. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum Novarum, no. 24, May 15, 1891)

• The two classes should dwell in harmony. A great mistake: that one class is naturally hostile to another

The great mistake made in regard to the matter now under consideration is to take up with the notion that class is naturally hostile to class, and that the wealthy and the working men are intended by nature to live in mutual conflict. So irrational and so false is this view that the direct contrary is the truth. Just as the symmetry of the human frame is the result of the suitable arrangement of the different parts of the body, so in a State is it ordained by nature that these two classes should dwell in harmony and agreement, so as to maintain the balance of the body politic. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum Novum, no. 19, May 15, 1891)

• At His baptism Christ was pleased to prefigure His Church

At this time, then (that is, at His baptism), He was pleased to prefigure His Church, in which those especially who are baptized receive the Holy Ghost (S. Aug. De. Trin. I, 15, c. 26). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Divinum Illud Munus, May 9, 1897)

• The Church: common Mother of rich and poor, whose patrimony is guarded as inheritance of the poor

Thus, by degrees, came into existence the patrimony which the Church has guarded with religious care as the inheritance of the poor. Nay, in order to spare them the shame of begging, the Church has provided aid for the needy. The common Mother of rich and poor has aroused everywhere the heroism of charity, and has established congregations of religious and many other useful institutions for help and mercy, so that hardly any kind of suffering could exist which was not afforded relief. […] But no human expedients will ever make up for the devotedness and self sacrifice of Christian charity. Charity, as a virtue, pertains to the Church; for virtue it is not, unless it be drawn from the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ; and whosoever turns his back on the Church cannot be near to Christ. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Rerum Novarum, no. 30, May 15, 1891)

• He who silences before clamors against truth is either devoid of character or doubts the truth – he insults God and profits the enemies of the faith

To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Christianae, no. 14, January 10, 1890)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that the Virgin Mary was capable to rebel against God

• Due to her association with Him in man’s salvation, Mary has power with her Son greater than any human or angelic creature

And truly the Immaculate Virgin, chosen to be the Mother of God and thereby associated with Him in the work of man’s salvation, has a favour and power with her Son greater than any human or angelic creature has ever obtained, or ever can gain. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Supremi apostolatus, no. 2, September 1883)

• Mary took part in the laborious expiation made by her Son

…when, at the foot of the altar, she offered up her whole self with her Child Jesus — then and thereafter she took her part in the laborious expiation made by her Son for the sins of the world. It is certain, therefore, that she suffered in the very depths of her soul with His most bitter sufferings and with His torments. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Iucunda Semper, no. 3, September 8, 1894)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the origin of the Psalms

• To understand and explain the Psalms: the Holy Spirit’s presence is required

‘Take heed to thyself and to doctrine; be earnest in them. For in doing this thou shah both save thyself and them that hear thee’ (1Tim 4:16). For the saving and for the perfection of ourselves and of others there is at hand the very best of help in the Holy Scriptures, as the Book of Psalms, among others, so constantly insists; but those only will find it who bring to this divine reading not only docility and attention, but also piety and an innocent life. For the Sacred Scripture is not like other books. Dictated by the Holy Ghost, it contains things of the deepest importance, which in many instances are most difficult and obscure. To understand and explain such things there is always required the ‘coming’(S. Jer. in Mic. I, 10.) of the same Holy Spirit; that is to say, His light and His grace; and these, as the Royal Psalmist so frequently insists, are to be sought by humble prayer and guarded by holiness of life. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Providentissimus Deus, no. 5, November 18, 1893)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on evil in our times

• To reject the supreme authority of God is the greatest perversion of liberty

For, to reject the supreme authority to God, and to cast off all obedience to Him in public matters, or even in private and domestic affairs, is the greatest perversion of liberty and the worst kind of liberalism; and what We have said must be understood to apply to this alone in its fullest sense. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Libertas Praestantissimum, no. 37, June 20, 1888)

…judges the act of seeking blessings from heretics and schismatics

• Ordinations enacted according to the Anglican rite are invalid and entirely void

And so, assenting entirely to the decrees of all the Pontiffs, our predecessors, in this case, and confirming them most fully and, as it were, renewing them by Our authority, of Our own initiative and certain knowledge We pronounce and declare that ordinations enacted according to the Anglican rite have hitherto been and are invalid and entirely void. (Denzinger-Hünermann 3319. Leo XIII, Apostolic Letter Curae et Caritatis, September 13, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the incapacity of the Church to resolve the crisis of the family

• The family cannot be restored by those laws established in the Church by her Divine Founder

This family Christian training sadly undermined in these our times, cannot possibly be restored to its due dignity, save by those laws under which it was established in the Church by her Divine Founder Himself. Our Lord Jesus Christ, by raising to the dignity of a sacrament the contract of matrimony, in which He would have His own union with the Church typified, not only made the marriage tie more holy, but, in addition, provided efficacious sources of aid for parents and children alike, so that, by the discharge of their duties one to another, they might with greater ease attain to happiness both in time and in eternity. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, no. 10, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the harmony among good and evil

• True union between Christians consists in a unity of Faith and of government

We mean a perfect and complete union, such as could not subsist in any way if nothing else was brought about but a certain kind of agreement in the Tenets of Belief and an intercourse of Fraternal love. The True Union between Christians is that which Jesus Christ, the Author of the Church, instituted and desired, and which consists in a Unity of Faith and Unity of Government. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Praeclara gratulationis publicae, June 20, 1894)

• To suppress any doctrine handed down from the Apostles is to separate Catholics from the Church rather than to bring in those who differ

The underlying principle of these new opinions is that, in order to more easily attract those who differ from her, the Church should shape her teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions. Many think that these concessions should be made not only in regard to ways of living, but even in regard to doctrines which belong to the deposit of the faith. […] It does not need many words, beloved son, to prove the falsity of these ideas if the nature and origin of the doctrine which the Church proposes are recalled to mind. […] Let it be far from anyone’s mind to suppress for any reason any doctrine that has been handed down. Such a policy would tend rather to separate Catholics from the Church than to bring in those who differ. […] History proves clearly that the Apostolic See, to which has been entrusted the mission not only of teaching but of governing the whole Church, has continued ‘in one and the same doctrine, one and the same sense, and one and the same judgment’ (Const. De fide, Chapter iv). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Testem Benvolentiae Nostrae, January 22, 1899)

…judges Francis’heretical idea on ‘culture of encounter’

• Human society abundantly benefits from the mission of the Church

In order that these unparalleled benefits might last as long as men should be found on earth, He [Christ] entrusted to His Church the continuance of His work; and, looking to future times, He commanded her to set in order whatever might have become deranged in human society, and to restore whatever might have fallen into ruin. Although the divine renewal we have spoken of chiefly and directly affected men as constituted in the supernatural order of grace, nevertheless some of its precious and salutary fruits were also bestowed abundantly in the order of nature. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum divinae sapeintiae, nos. 1-2, February 10, 1880)

• The divine power of religion has given birth to order for the State

These perils to commonwealth, which are before Our eyes, fill Us with grave anxiety, when We behold the security of rulers and the tranquility of empires, together with the safety of nations, put in peril almost from hour to hour. Nevertheless, the divine power of the Christian religion has given birth to excellent principles of stability and order for the State, while at the same time it has penetrated into the customs and institutions of States. And of this power not the least nor last fruit is a just and wise proportion of mutual rights and duties in both princes and peoples. For in the precepts and example of Christ our Lord there is a wonderful force for restraining in their duty as much those who obey as those who rule; […] (Leo XIII. Encyclical Diuturnum illud, no. 3, June 29, 1881)

• No better mode has been devised for the building up and ruling the State than that of the Gospel

And, indeed, wherever the Church has set her foot she has straightway changed the face of things, and has attempered the moral tone of the people with a new civilization and with virtues before unknown. All nations which have yielded to her sway have become eminent by their gentleness, their sense of justice, and the glory of their high deeds. And yet a hackneyed reproach of old date is leveled against her, that the Church is opposed to the rightful aims of the civil government, and is wholly unable to afford help in spreading that welfare and progress which justly and naturally are sought after by every well-regulated State. From the very beginning Christians were harassed by slanderous accusations of this nature, and on that account were held up to hatred and execration, for being (so they were called) enemies of the Empire. […] This odious calumny, with most valid reason, nerved the genius and sharpened the pen of Saint Augustine, who, notably in his treatise, The City of God, set forth in so bright a light the worth of Christian wisdom in its relation to the public wealth that he seems not merely to have pleaded the cause of the Christians of his day, but to have refuted for all future times impeachments so grossly contrary to truth. The wicked proneness, however, to levy like charges and accusations has not been lulled to rest. Many, indeed, are they who have tried to work out a plan of civil society based on doctrines other than those approved by the Catholic Church. Nay, in these latter days a novel conception of law has begun here and there to gain increase and influence, the outcome, as it is maintained, of an age arrived at full stature, and the result of progressive liberty. But, though endeavours of various kinds have been ventured on, it is clear that no better mode has been devised for the building up and ruling the State than that which is the necessary growth of the teachings of the Gospel. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, nos. 1, 2, November 1, 1885)

• Observation of the Church’s laws brings peaceful life, wealth, and prosperity

Now, who would make bold to deny that the Church, by spreading the Gospel throughout the nations, has brought the light of truth amongst people utterly savage and steeped in foul superstition, and has quickened them alike to recognize the Divine Author of nature and duly to respect themselves? Further, who will deny that the Church has done away with the curse of slavery and restored men to the original dignity of their noble nature; and – by uplifting the standard of redemption in all quarters of the globe, by introducing, or shielding under her protection, the sciences and arts, by founding and taking into her keeping excellent charitable institutions which provide relief for ills of every kind – has throughout the world, in private or in public life, civilized the human race, freed it from degradation, and with all care trained it to a way of Living such as befits the dignity and the hopes of man? And if any one of sound mind compare the age in which We live, so hostile to religion and to the Church of Christ, with those happy times when the Church was revered as a mother by the nations, beyond all question he will see that our epoch is rushing wildly along the straight road to destruction; while in those times which most abounded in excellent institutions, peaceful life, wealth, and prosperity the people showed themselves most obedient to the Church’s rule and laws. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilii, no. 3, April 21, 1878)

• Every familiarity should be avoided with those who hide under the mask of universal tolerance – they seek to reconcile Christ and Belial

Everyone should avoid familiarity or friendship with anyone suspected of belonging to masonry or to affiliated groups. Know them by their fruits and avoid them. Every familiarity should be avoided, not only with those impious libertines who openly promote the character of the sect, but also with those who hide under the mask of universal tolerance, respect for all religions, and the craving to reconcile the maxims of the Gospel with those of the revolution. These men seek to reconcile Christ and Belial, the Church of God and the state without God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Custodi di Quella Fede, no.15 , December 8, 1892)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the evils in our times

• The source of evils lies chiefly in despising and setting aside the authority of the Church

Now, the source of these evils lies chiefly, We are convinced, in this, that the holy and venerable authority of the Church, which in God’s name rules mankind, upholding and defending all lawful authority, has been despised and set aside. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei Consilio, no. 2, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on new customs among today’s youth

• The Church, always and everywhere, used her power to preserve the sanctity of marriage

Christ, therefore, having renewed marriage to such and so great excellence, commended and entrusted all the discipline bearing upon these matters to His Church. The Church, always and everywhere, has so used her power with reference to the marriages of Christians that men have seen clearly how it belongs to her as of native right; not being made hers by any human grant, but given divinely to her by the will of her Founder. Her constant and watchful care in guarding marriage, by the preservation of its sanctity, is so well understood as to not need proof. That the judgment of the Council of Jerusalem reprobated licentious and free love (cf. Acts 15:29). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae Sapeintia, no. 13, February 10, 1880)

• Marriage was instituted by the authority and command of God – Christ gave to His Church legislative and judicial power with regard to the bond of union
  

  Let special care be taken that the people be well instructed in the precepts of Christian wisdom, so that they may always remember that marriage was not instituted by the will of man, but, from the very beginning, by the authority and command of God; that it does not admit of plurality of wives or husbands; that Christ, the Author of the New Covenant, raised it from a rite of nature to be a sacrament, and gave to His Church legislative and judicial power with regard to the bond of union. On this point the very greatest care must be taken to instruct them, lest their minds should be led into error by the unsound conclusions of adversaries who desire that the Church should be deprived of that power. In like manner, all ought to understand clearly that, if there be any union of a man and a woman among the faithful of Christ which is not a sacrament, such union has not the force and nature of a proper marriage. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae Sapeintia, nos. 39-40, February 10, 1880)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on First Holy Communion

• The members separated from the Mystical Body cannot be united to the Head, Christ

Scattered and separated members cannot possibly cohere with the head so as to make one body. But Saint Paul says: ‘All members of the body, whereas they are many, yet are one body, so also is Christ’ (1 Cor. 12:12). Wherefore this mystical body, he declares, is ‘compacted and fitly jointed together. The head, Christ: from whom the whole body, being compacted and fitly jointed together, by what every joint supplieth according to the operation in the measure of every part’ (Eph.4:15-16). And so dispersed members, separated one from the other, cannot be united with one and the same head. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 9, June 26, 1896)

• The Church always expelled from the ranks of her children those whose beliefs differed from hers on any point

The Church, founded on these principles and mindful of her office, has done nothing with greater zeal and endeavour than she has displayed in guarding the integrity of the faith. Hence she regarded as rebels and expelled from the ranks of her children all who held beliefs on any point of doctrine different from her own. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis cognitum, no. 9, June 26, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on clarity and doctrinal security

• Homage to the doctrine of Saint Tomas Aquinas: clearness and soundness of principles

Among the Scholastic Doctors, the chief and master of all towers Thomas Aquinas […] in such a manner that in him there is wanting neither a full array of questions, nor an apt disposal of the various parts, nor the best method of proceeding, nor soundness of principles or strength of argument, nor clearness and elegance of style, nor a facility for explaining what is abstruse. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Aeterni Patris, August 4, 1879)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on responsible parenthood

• The noble mission of the family: to bring forth children for the Church

It is for these reasons that marriage is ‘a great sacrament’; (Eph 5:32) ‘honorable in all,’ (Heb 13:4) holy, pure, and to be reverenced as a type and symbol of most high mysteries. Furthermore, the Christian perfection and completeness of marriage are not comprised in those points only which have been mentioned. For, first, there has been vouchsafed to the marriage union a higher and nobler purpose than was ever previously given to it. By the command of Christ, it not only looks to the propagation of the human race, but to the bringing forth of children for the Church, ‘fellow citizens with the saints, and the domestics of God’ (Eph 2:19); so that ‘a people might be born and brought up for the worship and religion of the true God and our Saviour Jesus Christ’ (Catechism of Trent, Chapter 8). (Leo XIII. Encyclical Arcanum Divinae Sapientiae, nos. 9-10, February 10, 1880)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the obedience of a Religious

• Obey rulers as God himself

Whence it will behoove citizens to submit themselves and to be obedient to rulers, as to God, not so much through fear of punishment as through respect for their majesty; nor for the sake of pleasing, but through conscience, as doing their duty. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Diuturnum Illud, no. 13, June 29, 1881)

• Disregard for the authority of the Church, principle cause of the evils of our days

Now, the source of these evils lies chiefly, We are convinced, in this, that the holy and venerable authority of the Church, which in God’s name rules mankind, upholding and defending all lawful authority, has been despised and set aside. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei Consilii, no.3, April 21, 1878)

• Consequences of despising legitimate power

Undoubtedly, that cannot by any means be accounted the perfection of civilized life which sets all legitimate authority boldly at defiance; […] Such principles, as a matter of course, must hurry nations, corrupted in mind and heart, into every kind of infamy, weaken all right order, and thus, sooner or later, bring the standing and peace of the State to the very brink of ruin. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei Consilii, no.6, April 21, 1878)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on the teaching of moral issues

• Our silence profits only the enemies of the Church

Amid such reckless and widespread folly of opinion, it is, as We have said, the office of the Church to undertake the defense of truth and uproot errors from the mind, and this charge has to be at all times sacredly observed by her, seeing that the honor of God and the salvation of men are confided to her keeping. But, when necessity compels, not those only who are invested with power of rule are bound to safeguard the integrity of faith, but, as St. Thomas maintains: ‘Each one is under obligation to show forth his faith, either to instruct and encourage others of the faithful, or to repel the attacks of unbelievers’ (STh II-II q.3, a.2, ad 2). To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Christianae, no. 14, January 10, 1890)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Catholic Education to the Youth

• The education of youth should begin from an early stage

Now, the training of youth most conducive to the defense of true faith and religion and to the preservation of morality must find its beginning from an early stage within the circle of home life. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Inscrutabili Dei consilio, no. 14, April 21, 1878)

• A grave and fatal error: to exclude the Church from the education of youth

To exclude the Church, founded by God Himself, from life, from laws, from the education of youth, from domestic society is a grave and fatal error. A State from which religion is banished can never be well regulated. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Immortale Dei, no. 15, November 1, 1885)

• Religion should give shape and direction to all branches of knowledge

It is necessary to teach religion to children, but not only at specified times. All their teaching should occur in an atmosphere of Christian piety. If it is otherwise, if this sacred inspiration does not penetrate the spirits of the teachers and of the students, the instruction will produce only little fruit and will often even have seriously harmful consequences. […] The knowledge of many subjects should always go hand in hand with the care of the spirit. Religion should give shape and direction to all branches of knowledge. (Leo XII. Encyclical Militantis Ecclesiae, no. 18, August 1, 1897)

• Necessity of forming young people in the fear of God

Young people, unaccustomed to the fear of God, will not endure the restraint of an upright life, they will not venture even to deny anything to their passions, and will easily be seduced into troubling the State. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Nobilissima Gallorum gens, February 8, 1884)

…judges Francis’ heretical/apostate idea on the Pope

• The role of Peter, supreme head to whom all owe submission and obedience

Indeed no true and perfect human society can be conceived which is not governed by some supreme authority. Christ therefore must have given to His Church a supreme authority to which all Christians must render obedience. […] Certainly Christ is a King for ever; and though invisible, He continues unto the end of time to govern and guard His church from Heaven. But since He willed that His kingdom should be visible He was obliged, when He ascended into Heaven, to designate a vice-gerent on earth. […] It is clear that by the will and command of God the Church rests upon St. Peter, just as a building rests on its foundation. Now the proper nature of a foundation is to be a principle of cohesion for the various parts of the building. It must be the necessary condition of stability and strength. Remove it and the whole building falls. It is consequently the office of St. Peter to support the Church, and to guard it in all its strength and indestructible unity. How could he fulfil this office without the power of commanding, forbidding, and judging, which is properly called jurisdiction? (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, nos. 11-12, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea that the Church should not be a Point of Reference

• The Church manifests Jesus Christ in all Her acts

For this reason the Church is so often called in Holy Writ a body, and even the body of Christ – ‘Now you are the body of Christ’ (1Cor 12:27) – and precisely because it is a body is the Church visible: and because it is the body of Christ is it living and energizing, because by the infusion of His power Christ guards and sustains it, just as the vine gives nourishment and renders fruitful the branches united to it. And as in animals the vital principle is unseen and invisible, and is evidenced and manifested by the movements and action of the members, so the principle of supernatural life in the Church is clearly shown in that which is done by it. From this it follows that those who arbitrarily conjure up and picture to themselves a hidden and invisible Church are in grievous and pernicious error: as also are those who regard the Church as a human institution which claims a certain obedience in discipline and external duties, but which is without the perennial communication of the gifts of divine grace, and without all that which testifies by constant and undoubted signs to the existence of that life which is drawn from God. (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 3, June 29, 1896)

• To conserve the unity of the faith it is necessary to cast out the rebels

The Church, founded on these principles and mindful of her office, has done nothing with greater zeal and endeavour than she has displayed in guarding the integrity of the faith. Hence she regarded as rebels and expelled from the ranks of her children all who held beliefs on any point of doctrine different from her own. […] The practice of the Church has always been the same, as is shown by the unanimous teaching of the Fathers, who were wont to hold as outside Catholic communion, and alien to the Church, whoever would recede in the least degree from any point of doctrine proposed by her authoritative Magisterium. […] The need of this divinely instituted means for the preservation of unity, about which we speak is urged by St. Paul in his epistle to the Ephesians. In this he first admonishes them to preserve with every care concord of minds: “Solicitous to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace’ (Eph. 4:3). And as souls cannot be perfectly united in charity unless minds agree in faith, he wishes all to hold the same faith: ‘One Lord, one faith.’ (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 9, June 29, 1896)

• Divisions arise from disobedience to the Pontiff

Hence the teaching of Cyprian, that heresy and schism arise and are begotten from the fact that due obedience is refused to the supreme authority. ‘Heresies and schisms have no other origin than that obedience is refused to the priest of God, and that men lose sight of the fact that [in the Church] there is only one priest and only one judge, in the place of Christ.’ (Leo XIII. Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 15, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on Ascetism and silence in the Spiritual Exercises

•  Those who seek the easy life do not understand the meaning of faith

Having joy set before Him, He endured the Cross, and He bade us deny ourselves. The very dignity of human nature depends upon this disposition of mind. For, as even the ancient Pagan philosophy perceived, to be master of oneself and to make the lower part of the soul, obey the superior part, is so far from being a weakness of will that it is really a noble power, in consonance with right reason and most worthy of a man.[…] We would remind those persons of this truth who desire a kind of Christianity such as they themselves have devised, whose precepts should be very mild, much more indulgent towards human nature, and requiring little if any hardships to be borne. They do not properly understand the meaning of faith and Christian precepts. (Leo XIII, Encyclical Tametsi Futura, nos. 6,10,  November 1,  1900)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on proselytism

• One who seeks to satisfy a heretic, grows closer to him

Therefore if a man does not want to be, or to be called, a heretic let him not strive to please this or that man…but let him hasten before all things to be in communion with the Roman See. If he be in communion with it, he should be acknowledged by all and everywhere as faithful and orthodox. He speaks in vain who tries to persuade me of the orthodoxy of those who, like himself, refuse obedience to his Holiness the Pope of the most holy Church of Rome: that is to the Apostolic See. (Leo XIII, Encyclical Satis Cognitum, no. 13, June 29, 1896)

…judges Francis’ heretical idea on fraternal love

• The salt must be defended, so the savor may not be lost

Salt must certainly be mingled with the mass which it is to preserve from corruption, but it must at the same time defend itself against the mass under pain of losing all savor and becoming of no use except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. (Mt 5:13) (Leo XIII. Encyclical Depuis le Jour, no. 38, September 8, 1899)

 …judges Francis’ heretical ideas on Peace…

• Keeping Silence is Proper to the Coward and Those who Doubt the Truth, and it is Injurious to God

But, when necessity compels, not those only who are invested with power of rule are bound to safeguard the integrity of faith, but, as Saint Thomas maintains: “Each one is under obligation to show forth his faith, either to instruct and encourage others of the faithful, or to repel the attacks of unbelievers.”(12) To recoil before an enemy, or to keep silence when from all sides such clamors are raised against truth, is the part of a man either devoid of character or who entertains doubt as to the truth of what he professes to believe. In both cases such mode of behaving is base and is insulting to God, and both are incompatible with the salvation of mankind. This kind of conduct is profitable only to the enemies of the faith, for nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good.   (Leo XIII. Encyclical Sapientiae Cristianae, no.14, January 10, 1890)