“Since the Catholic religion is the only divine one, it is also the only religion that can lead humanity to its final and divine destiny; therefore, by full natural right, and consequently also by full social right, it must be the religion of every state, of every government that knows its truth. But, above all, it must be the state religion of every nation, the majority of which is Catholic…That this protection of the true religion should be the primary aim and principal duty of every government, the Holy Spirit teaches us first through the Apostle St. Paul, and then through the divine authority of the Church.” – Msgr. F.L.M. Maupied>

The Syllabus of Pius IX: An Introduction to Maupied’s Commentary

Continuing our study of the relations between Church and State at The Journal of American Reform, it is only natural to turn to the Syllabus of Pope Pius IX. In fact, this document ought to serve as the lodestar for Catholic thinking on the matter, coupled with the positive doctrine outlined in Pope Leo XIII’s Immortale Dei “On the Christian Constitution of States”.Promulgated in 1864, the Syllabus contains a list of eighty condemned propositions the modern, revolutionary paradigm — ushered in by the American and French revolutions — embraced as shining ideals. It was attached to the Quanta Cura “Condemning Current Errors” of the same Pontiff, in which the right to religious freedom was infallibly condemned.

Originally published in The Journal of American Reform. Read original article