Catholic Church

One of Our Lord’s salutary stories was of a man who sowed wheat-seeds in his field. Subsequently an enemy secretly sowed weeds among them. When the wheat developed, so did the weeds. The man’s employees reported this to him and asked whether he wanted the weeds to be pulled up. He replied, ‘No, lest in doing that you pull up also the wheat. Let both grow until harvest-time, and then I will tell the reapers to gather the weeds and … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 11 In the previous article in this series Pope Pius XI addressed the question of the supposed neutral or lay school. He continues by looking again at the nature of a Catholic school. From this we can see … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 10 To fully understand ‘Divini Illius Magistri’, one must understand the primary purpose of our existence. Pope Pius XI’s first concern is the salvation of souls. Back in 1929, he was acutely aware that children were being corrupted … Read More

The contra-Catholic scene is worsening because bad trends are not being even halted but extended. That is especially evident in abortion. Britain and Ireland differ in the lengths of time during which it has had public and statutory approval, but its opponents in both countries face some similar questions. No answers have made a significant difference to the status quo in Britain. ‘How we stand’2019: “… one woman, one baby at a time, we are stopping abortion.” That is true … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 9 We have seen how Pope Pius XI stresses the importance of correct education. In this next part of ‘Divini Illius Magistri’ he outlines some of the dangers that false thinking is wont to introduce into systems of … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 8 Pope Pius XI after teaching on the nature and duties of the role of the Catholic Church, the civil State and the family in education, begins to show how they are related to one another in a … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 7 We are looking at the role of the secular State in the education of youth. In the previous article Pope Pius XI outlined the primary duty of the State as “In general then it is the right … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 6 Pope Pius XI begins his examination of the role of the secular State in education by pointing out that in many cases the State has violated the rights of the family. He also tells us that the … Read More

“The contra-Catholic scene” is a broad-to-the-point-of-vague expression, but its breadth is appropriate for the breadth of subjects on which Catholic principle is manifestly and diametrically defied by law and public policy. Anyone to whose mind examples do not come immediately, effortlessly, and regretfully will not find much interest in this essay, so if you are such a person your time would be better spent on something else. If “the contra-Catholic scene” means something to you, you may have noticed some … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 5 Pope Pius XI began his examination of the three societies of Church, State, and Family by looking firstly at the rights and prerogatives of the Catholic Church with a particular focus on education. He showed how the … Read More

“No-one puts new wine into old wineskins,” said Our Lord,[1] because the old skins are too weak to hold it; new wine needs new skins. So a receiver (the skin) must be ready to receive what is received (the wine); a message must not put too great a strain on people. If, of course, the message is weaker than the minds to which it is expressed, there should not be a problem with its absorption/acceptance. This is a credible metaphor … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 4 As I begin the fourth article in this series on Pope Pius XI’s encyclical letter ‘Divini Illius Magistri’ the Irish government has just published the wording of two referenda to be held on March 8th 2024. Once … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 3 Pope Pius XI has introduced us to the three societies to which man belongs – the family – the Church – and civil society. We have been exploring the nature and authority of the Catholic Church and … Read More

Part 2 A prayer well-known to traditionally-formed Catholics asks the Holy Ghost to “fill the hearts of thy faithful and enkindle in them the fire of thy love,…and thou shalt renew the face of the Earth.” Because what happens in this world matters to God (if it did not, why would He have prescribed rules by which we should live?), the Catholic Church has always striven to carry out the task which He gave it: to teach all nations to … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 2 In the first article in this series Pope Pius XI teaches us that education must serve the final end of man which is to attain eternal salvation in Heaven. This must be the primary purpose of education, … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Divini Illius Magistri – Article 1 On 31st December, 1929, Pope Pius XI issued his encyclical letter ‘Divini Illius Magistri’ – ‘On Christian Education’. It is a great encyclical and contains much valuable information. There is a tendency nowadays within Catholic circles to … Read More

Part 1 According paragraph 9 of a “Doctrinal Note on Some Aspects of Evangelization,” published in 2007 by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, “The growth of the Church in history, which results from missionary activity, is at the service of the presence of God through his Kingdom: one cannot in fact detach the Kingdom from the Church.” It seems to follow from that inseparability that the Kingdom of God arrived on Earth when Our Lord founded the … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Catholic Duties 9 In the last article on Sapientiae Christianae Pope Leo XIII spoke of those who hide their cowardice under the guise of a false prudence. He now points out another equally false position to adopt, that of false zeal. “On the … Read More

The ‘festive season’ will begin soon, illustrating the dominant ‘understanding’ of its significance. Will you be making a cards-list, or is that unnecessary because it is the same every year? Among the most indicative aspects are songs played by radio-stations and through the customer-announcements facilities in shops. Most of them focus on tangential topics such as Santa and snow. On the barometer of gregarious joy, they range from Andy Williams’ “Most Wonderful Time” to Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Paper.” At the … Read More

This article is available for download. You can download it and print it for private use and for private sharing but it cannot be reproduced in any other publication. To download a print copy click here – Catholic Duties 8 Pope Leo XIII, whilst acknowledging the autonomy of the secular State, now begins to turn his gaze upon the duties of the Catholic Church to resist the secular State whenever the State impinges upon the rights and duties of the … Read More