Liberal Catholicism
Encyclopedia
Liberal Catholicism was a current of thought that was influential, especially in France
, in the 19th century and the first half of the 20th.
Being predominantly political in nature, Liberal Catholicism was distinct from the contemporary theological movement of Modernism
, and is distinct also both from the attitude of Catholics who, especially since the Second Vatican Council
are described as theologically "progressive" or "liberal
" and from the attitude of groups such as the Liberal Catholic Church
.
".
, Charles Forbes René de Montalembert
and Olympe-Philippe Gerbet
, Bishop of Perpignan
, while a parallel movement arose in Belgium, led by François Antoine Marie Constantin de Méan et de Beaurieux
, Archbishop of Mechelen, and his vicar general Engelbert Sterckx
.
Lamennais founded the newspaper , the first issue of which appeared on 16 October 1830, with the motto "God and Liberty". The paper was aggressively democratic, demanding rights of local administration, an enlarged suffrage, separation of church and state
, universal freedom of conscience
, freedom of education, freedom of assembly
, and freedom of the press
. Styles of worship were to be criticized, improved or abolished in absolute submission to the spiritual, not to the temporal authority.
On 7 December 1830, the editors articulated their demands as follows:
With the help of Montalembert, Lammenais founded the , which became a far-reaching organization with agents throughout France who monitored violations of religious freedom. As a result, the periodical's career was stormy and its circulation opposed by conservative bishops. In response, Lamennais, Montalembert and Lacordaire suspended their work and in November 1831 set out to Rome to obtain the approval of Pope Gregory XVI
. They were received in audience, but after they had left Rome, the 1832 encyclical Mirari vos
condemned religious pluralism in general and certain of Lamennais's ideas advanced in L'Avenir without mentioning his name. After this, Lamennais and his two lieutenants declared that out of deference to the pope they would not resume the publication of L'Avenir and dissolved the Agence générale as well. Lamennais soon distanced himself from the Catholic Church, which was a blow to the credibility of the Liberal Catholic movement, and the other two moderated their tone, but still campaigned for liberty of religious education and liberty of association.
The National Congress of Belgium
, an alliance between Catholics and secular liberals on the basis of mutually recognized rights and freedoms, adopted in 1831 a constitution
that enshrined several of the freedoms for which Liberal Catholicism campaigned. The Congress Column
in Brussels
, erected in honour of the Congress has at its base four bronze statues that represent the four basic freedoms enshrined in the constitution: freedom of religion
, freedom of association
, education
and freedom of the press
. These four freedoms are also reflected in the names of the four streets that lead to the Place de la Liberté/Vrijheidsplein (Freedom Square) of Brussels: the Rue des Cultes/Eredienststraat (Religion Street), the Rue de l'Association/Verenigingsstraat (Association Street), the Rue de l'Enseignement/Onderrichtstraat (Education Street) and the Rue de la Presse/Drukpersstraat (Press Street). The constitution adopted almost all of Lamennais's proposals for the separation of church and state, granting the Catholic Church independence in church appointments and public activities, and almost complete supervision of Catholic education.
In 19th-century Italy, the Liberal Catholic movement had a lasting impact in that it ended the association of the ideal of national independence with that of anti-clerical revolution.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, in the 19th century and the first half of the 20th.
Being predominantly political in nature, Liberal Catholicism was distinct from the contemporary theological movement of Modernism
Modernism (Roman Catholicism)
Modernism refers to theological opinions expressed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but with influence reaching into the 21st century, which are characterized by a break with the past. Catholic modernists form an amorphous group. The term "modernist" appears in Pope Pius X's 1907...
, and is distinct also both from the attitude of Catholics who, especially since the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
are described as theologically "progressive" or "liberal
Liberal Christianity
Liberal Christianity, sometimes called liberal theology, is an umbrella term covering diverse, philosophically and biblically informed religious movements and ideas within Christianity from the late 18th century and onward...
" and from the attitude of groups such as the Liberal Catholic Church
Liberal Catholic Church
The Liberal Catholic Church is a form of Christianity open to theosophical ideas and even reincarnation. It is not connected to the Roman Catholic Church, which considers it heretical and schismatic...
.
Definition
Liberal Catholicism has been defined as "in essence a trend among sincere Catholics to exalt freedom as a primary value and to draw from this consequences in social, political, and religious life, seeking to reconcile the principles on which Christian France was founded with those that derived from the French RevolutionFrench Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
".
History
The movement of Liberal Catholicism was initiated in France by Hugues Felicité Robert de Lamennais with the support of Jean-Baptiste Henri LacordaireJean-Baptiste Henri Lacordaire
Jean-Baptiste Henri-Dominique Lacordaire , often styled Henri-Dominique Lacordaire, was a French ecclesiastic, preacher, journalist and political activist...
, Charles Forbes René de Montalembert
Charles Forbes René de Montalembert
Charles Forbes René de Montalembert was a French publicist and historian.-Family history:He belonged to a family of Angoumois, which could trace its descent back to the 13th century. Charters carry the history of the house two centuries further...
and Olympe-Philippe Gerbet
Olympe-Philippe Gerbet
Olympe-Philippe Gerbet was a French Catholic bishop and writer.He studied at the Académie and the Grand-Séminaire of Besançon, also at St-Sulpice and the Sorbonne. Ordained priest in 1822, he joined Lamennais at "La Chesnaie" after a few years spent with Antoine de Salinis at the Lycée Henri IV...
, Bishop of Perpignan
Roman Catholic Diocese of Perpignan-Elne
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Perpignan-Elne, is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church, in France. The diocese comprises the Department of Pyrénées-Orientales. This see continues the old diocese of Elne, which was renamed and had its see relocated at Perpignan, in 1601 after a...
, while a parallel movement arose in Belgium, led by François Antoine Marie Constantin de Méan et de Beaurieux
François Antoine Marie Constantin de Méan et de Beaurieux
François Antoine Marie Constantin de Méan et de Beaurieux , was Archbishop of Mechelen, Belgium. On 17 September 1785, at the age of 29, he was ordained as a priest in Liège, Belgium...
, Archbishop of Mechelen, and his vicar general Engelbert Sterckx
Engelbert Sterckx
Cardinal Engelbert Sterckx , was Archbishop of Mechelen, Belgium. He was ordained as a priest on 18 February 1815, and he was appointed Archbishop on 24 February 1832....
.
Lamennais founded the newspaper , the first issue of which appeared on 16 October 1830, with the motto "God and Liberty". The paper was aggressively democratic, demanding rights of local administration, an enlarged suffrage, separation of church and state
Separation of church and state
The concept of the separation of church and state refers to the distance in the relationship between organized religion and the nation state....
, universal freedom of conscience
Freedom of thought
Freedom of thought is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints....
, freedom of education, freedom of assembly
Freedom of assembly
Freedom of assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right to come together and collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests...
, and freedom of the press
Freedom of the press
Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the freedom of communication and expression through vehicles including various electronic media and published materials...
. Styles of worship were to be criticized, improved or abolished in absolute submission to the spiritual, not to the temporal authority.
On 7 December 1830, the editors articulated their demands as follows:
- We firstly ask for the freedom of conscience or the freedom of full universal religion, without distinction as without privilege; and by consequence, in what touches us, we Catholics, for the total separation of church and state... this necessary separation, without which there would exist for Catholics no religious freedom, implies, for a part, the suppression of the ecclesiastical budget, and we have fully recognized this; for another part, the absolute independence of the clergy in the spiritual order... Just as there can be nothing religious today in politics there must be nothing political in religion.
- We ask, secondly, for freedom of education, because it is a natural right, and thus to say, the first freedom of the family; because there exists without it neither religious freedom nor freedom of expression.
With the help of Montalembert, Lammenais founded the , which became a far-reaching organization with agents throughout France who monitored violations of religious freedom. As a result, the periodical's career was stormy and its circulation opposed by conservative bishops. In response, Lamennais, Montalembert and Lacordaire suspended their work and in November 1831 set out to Rome to obtain the approval of Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI , born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari, named Mauro as a member of the religious order of the Camaldolese, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1831 to 1846...
. They were received in audience, but after they had left Rome, the 1832 encyclical Mirari vos
Mirari Vos
Mirari Vos - On Liberalism and Religious Indifferentism is the first encyclical of Pope Gregory XVI and was issued in 1832. Addressed "To All Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, and Bishops of the Catholic World", it is general in scope....
condemned religious pluralism in general and certain of Lamennais's ideas advanced in L'Avenir without mentioning his name. After this, Lamennais and his two lieutenants declared that out of deference to the pope they would not resume the publication of L'Avenir and dissolved the Agence générale as well. Lamennais soon distanced himself from the Catholic Church, which was a blow to the credibility of the Liberal Catholic movement, and the other two moderated their tone, but still campaigned for liberty of religious education and liberty of association.
The National Congress of Belgium
National Congress of Belgium
The Belgian National Congress was a temporary legislative assembly in 1830, established shortly after the Provisional Government of Belgium had proclaimed Belgian independence on October 4 of that year...
, an alliance between Catholics and secular liberals on the basis of mutually recognized rights and freedoms, adopted in 1831 a constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
that enshrined several of the freedoms for which Liberal Catholicism campaigned. The Congress Column
Congress Column
The Congress Column is a monument situated on the Place du Congrès / Congresplein in Brussels. It commemorates the formation of the Belgian state and constitution by the National Congress in 1830-1831. It was erected on the initiative of Charles Rogier after a design by Joseph Poelaert between...
in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, erected in honour of the Congress has at its base four bronze statues that represent the four basic freedoms enshrined in the constitution: freedom of religion
Freedom of religion
Freedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or not to follow any...
, freedom of association
Freedom of association
Freedom of association is the individual right to come together with other individuals and collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests....
, education
Freedom of education
Freedom of education is a constitutional concept that has been included in the European Convention on Human Rights, Protocol 1, Article 2 and several national constitutions, e.g. the , the Belgian constitution and the Dutch constitution...
and freedom of the press
Freedom of the press
Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the freedom of communication and expression through vehicles including various electronic media and published materials...
. These four freedoms are also reflected in the names of the four streets that lead to the Place de la Liberté/Vrijheidsplein (Freedom Square) of Brussels: the Rue des Cultes/Eredienststraat (Religion Street), the Rue de l'Association/Verenigingsstraat (Association Street), the Rue de l'Enseignement/Onderrichtstraat (Education Street) and the Rue de la Presse/Drukpersstraat (Press Street). The constitution adopted almost all of Lamennais's proposals for the separation of church and state, granting the Catholic Church independence in church appointments and public activities, and almost complete supervision of Catholic education.
In 19th-century Italy, the Liberal Catholic movement had a lasting impact in that it ended the association of the ideal of national independence with that of anti-clerical revolution.
See also
- Catholic social teachingCatholic social teachingCatholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state...
- Christian democracyChristian DemocracyChristian democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Christian principles to public policy. It emerged in nineteenth-century Europe under the influence of conservatism and Catholic social teaching...
- Christianity and politicsChristianity and politicsThe relationship between Christianity and politics is a historically complex subject and a frequent source of disagreement throughout Church history, and in modern politics between the Christian right and Christian left.-Foundations:...
- Political CatholicismPolitical CatholicismPolitical catholicism is a political and cultural conception which promotes the ideas and social teaching of the Catholic Church in public life...
- Rerum novarumRerum NovarumRerum Novarum is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on May 15, 1891. It was an open letter, passed to all Catholic bishops, that addressed the condition of the working classes. The encyclical is entitled: “Rights and Duties of Capital and Labour”...
- Social justiceSocial justiceSocial justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
- SubsidiaritySubsidiarity (Catholicism)Subsidiarity is an organizing principle that matters ought to be handled by the smallest, lowest or least centralized competent authority. Political decisions should be taken at a local level if possible, rather than by a central authority...