What the 4 Previous Popes Had to Say About Socialism
Sept 29, 2015 14:22:37 GMT -5
Post by schwartzie on Sept 29, 2015 14:22:37 GMT -5
So much for papal infallibility...
Liberal Pope Francis Needs to Read What the 4 Previous Popes Had to Say About Socialism
While Pope Francis seems like a sincere man who is genuinely interested in the welfare of others, his penchant for socialism rightfully scares many of us.
In contrast with his beliefs, the American Enterprise Institute, a center-right think tank out of Washington, D.C., recently highlighted four spot-on warnings about the perils of socialism that were issued by Pope Francis’ predecessors.
Pope John XXIII (1958-1963)
During a radio message to the Katholikentag of Vienna in 1952, Pope John XXIII asserted that “no Catholic could subscribe even to moderate socialism.
“The reason,” he explained,”is that socialism is founded on a doctrine of human society which is bounded by time and takes no account of any objective other than that of material well-being.
“Since, therefore, it proposes a form of social organization which aims solely at production; it places too severe a restraint on human liberty, at the same time flouting the true notion of social authority.”
Pope Paul VI (1963-1978)
In the Apostolic Letter Octogesima Adveniens written in 1971, Pope Paul VI opined, “Too often Christians attracted by socialism tend to idealize it in terms which, apart from anything else, are very general: a will for justice, solidarity and equality.
“They refuse to recognize the limitations of the historical socialist movements, which remain conditioned by the ideologies from which they originated.”
Pope John Paul II (1978-2005)
In the Encyclical Centesimus Annus, published in 1991, Pope John Paul II warned that in socialism, “the individual is completely subordinated to the functioning of the socio-economic mechanism.
“Socialism likewise maintains that the good of the individual can be realized without reference to his free choice, to the unique and exclusive responsibility which he exercises in the face of good or evil,” he explained. “Man is thus reduced to a series of social relationships, and the concept of the person as the autonomous subject of moral decision disappears, the very subject whose decisions build the social order.”
Thus, “deprived of something he can call ‘his own'” — including freedom of expression and ownership of property — man is made “to depend on the social machine and those who control it. This makes it much more difficult for him to recognize his dignity as a person, and hinders progress towards the building up of an authentic human community.”
Pope Benedict XVI (2005 – 2013)
In the Encyclical Letter of Pope Benedict XVI, the pope stated that a socialist nation that provides everything and absorbs everything into itself (much like a black hole) “would ultimately become a mere bureaucracy incapable of guaranteeing the very thing which the suffering person — every person — needs: namely, loving personal concern.
“We do not need a State which regulates and controls everything, but a State which, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, generously acknowledges and supports initiatives arising from the different social forces and combines spontaneity with closeness to those in need,” he explained. “The Church is one of those living forces.”
link
Liberal Pope Francis Needs to Read What the 4 Previous Popes Had to Say About Socialism
While Pope Francis seems like a sincere man who is genuinely interested in the welfare of others, his penchant for socialism rightfully scares many of us.
In contrast with his beliefs, the American Enterprise Institute, a center-right think tank out of Washington, D.C., recently highlighted four spot-on warnings about the perils of socialism that were issued by Pope Francis’ predecessors.
Pope John XXIII (1958-1963)
During a radio message to the Katholikentag of Vienna in 1952, Pope John XXIII asserted that “no Catholic could subscribe even to moderate socialism.
“The reason,” he explained,”is that socialism is founded on a doctrine of human society which is bounded by time and takes no account of any objective other than that of material well-being.
“Since, therefore, it proposes a form of social organization which aims solely at production; it places too severe a restraint on human liberty, at the same time flouting the true notion of social authority.”
Pope Paul VI (1963-1978)
In the Apostolic Letter Octogesima Adveniens written in 1971, Pope Paul VI opined, “Too often Christians attracted by socialism tend to idealize it in terms which, apart from anything else, are very general: a will for justice, solidarity and equality.
“They refuse to recognize the limitations of the historical socialist movements, which remain conditioned by the ideologies from which they originated.”
Pope John Paul II (1978-2005)
In the Encyclical Centesimus Annus, published in 1991, Pope John Paul II warned that in socialism, “the individual is completely subordinated to the functioning of the socio-economic mechanism.
“Socialism likewise maintains that the good of the individual can be realized without reference to his free choice, to the unique and exclusive responsibility which he exercises in the face of good or evil,” he explained. “Man is thus reduced to a series of social relationships, and the concept of the person as the autonomous subject of moral decision disappears, the very subject whose decisions build the social order.”
Thus, “deprived of something he can call ‘his own'” — including freedom of expression and ownership of property — man is made “to depend on the social machine and those who control it. This makes it much more difficult for him to recognize his dignity as a person, and hinders progress towards the building up of an authentic human community.”
Pope Benedict XVI (2005 – 2013)
In the Encyclical Letter of Pope Benedict XVI, the pope stated that a socialist nation that provides everything and absorbs everything into itself (much like a black hole) “would ultimately become a mere bureaucracy incapable of guaranteeing the very thing which the suffering person — every person — needs: namely, loving personal concern.
“We do not need a State which regulates and controls everything, but a State which, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, generously acknowledges and supports initiatives arising from the different social forces and combines spontaneity with closeness to those in need,” he explained. “The Church is one of those living forces.”
link
