Pascendi dominici gregis ("Feeding the Lord's Flock") was a Papal encyclical letter

Encyclical

An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Catholic Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop...

 promulgated by Pope Pius X

Pope Pius X

Pope Saint Pius X , born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 257th Pope of the Catholic Church, serving from 1903 to 1914. He was the first pope since Pope Pius V to be canonized. Pius X rejected modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, promoting traditional devotional practices and orthodox...

 on 8 September 1907.

The pope condemned 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 a whole range of other principles described as "evolutionary

Evolution (term)

The English noun evolution refers to any kind of gradual change.It is used in biology, of biological evolution, in economics, historical linguistics, and many other technical fields where systems develop or change gradually over time, e.g...

", which allowed change to Roman Catholic dogma. Pius X instituted commissions to cleanse the clergy

Clergy

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....

 of theologians promoting Modernism and some of its (liturgical) consequences.

Traditionalist Catholic

Traditionalist Catholic

Traditionalist Catholics are Roman Catholics who believe that there should be a restoration of many or all of the liturgical forms, public and private devotions and presentations of Catholic teachings which prevailed in the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council...

s point to this document as evidence that pre-Vatican II popes were highly concerned about enemies of Christendom infiltrating the human element of the Catholic Church.

The encyclical's ghost writer was Joseph Lemius, procurator general of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

External links

• Pascendi Dominici gregis Latin Text
• Pascendi Dominici gregis English Text