‘Rerum Novarum’ by Pope Leo XIII Essay

Introduction

All the people tend to have different perceptions regarding social issues. The matter is that each person views social issues from a personal perspective and his/her attitude often depends on his/her financial welfare, religious views, and, most of all, social rank the gradation of which is vital for any society¹. As far as religion and the role of the church in society’s welfare are concerned, people’s perceptions of this issue have differed throughout the centuries.

People’s attitudes towards the church differed depending on whether it did or did not meet their needs.

Those who were satisfied with the fulfillment of its functions kept to an idea that church, the Catholic Church, in particular, has always been championing the rights of the poor and oppressed, while these poor and oppressed who suffered from unfair treatment on the part of the government and on the part of the church suggested an idea that the Catholic Church supported the status quo and, in most of the cases, used to take the side of people with wealth, power and privilege. Both the parties of this argument significantly oversimplified the matters because, in reality, the situation was far more complicated. It involved a long succession of events each of which has contributed greatly to the role of the Catholic Church in society.

These events were primarily connected with the “social question” that arose in the 19^th century and Pope Leo XIII’s response to it. Through his Rerum Novarum, Pope Leo XIII expressed his response to the “social question” thus making a significant contribution to the Catholic social teaching of the 19^th century; besides the ideas presented in this encyclical of his managed to address the claims made by conservatives, liberals, and socialists in Europe during the 19^th century.

Discussion

Before discussing Pope Leo’s encyclical, it is worth paying some attention to the “social question” under consideration. At the end of the 19^th century, the wake of industrialization gradually plunged the country into social instability and social injustice, as well as serious labor conflict. All this has soon resulted in the rise of socialism and, as a consequence, inconsistence in the actual roles of the State and the Catholic Church.

According to Catholic social teaching, the role of the state consisted in the promotion of social justice and protection of people’s rights, as well as in the promotion of the idea that “the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments.”² The role of the Church, at this, was also to educate the population regarding the social issues and to ensure class harmony.

However, taking into account the economic situation, the population could not agree that the State coped with its role, while the Church continued teaching that fighting with social injustice remained the primary objective of the government. In this way, social question incorporated the labor question, the social injustice question, and the social instability question each of which had to be addressed; to do this, the proper role of the government had to be established, socialism had to be fought with, as well as responsibilities and rights of the labor and capital had to be defined.

All these objectives were successfully reached by Pope Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum, his response to the “social question” of the 19^th century. His encyclical was aimed, first of all, at the protection of the rights of the poor and those who belonged to the working class. The document begins with bridging the gap between the rich and the poor. When the wave of Industrialization reached Europe, the working class was the first to suffer from it.

The rich have remained the rich, while the poor have only become poorer. This fact is admitted in Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical, as well as the envy of the poor towards the rich.³ At this, however, Pope Leo XIII calls to end the fight between the working class and bourgeoisie, as well as between the rich and the poor for it is only through uniting with each other that it is possible to deal with social instability: “Each needs the other: capital cannot do without labor, nor labor without capital.

Mutual agreement results in the beauty of good order, while perpetual conflict necessarily produces confusion and savage barbarity.”⁴ This is where Pope Leo XIII emphasizes the role of the Church as an intermediary between opponent social classes because it “tries to bind class to class in friendliness and good feeling”.⁵ Thus, uniting different social classes is the first solution proposed by Pope Leo XII in his Rerum Novarum.

Another solution proposed in this document concerns the workers’ rights. Pope Leo XIII turns attention to the fact that socialism has taken away the dignity of work. The work is perceived as a means of making one’s living, rather than something which makes a person a worthy citizen. The workers do not get any satisfaction from their working because the fruit of their labor is not used by them, while, in terms of social justice, “the results of labor should belong to those who have bestowed their labor.”⁶ This is why there is a need to improve working conditions by reducing working hours and increasing wages. It is namely these issues that make the workers organize strikes that interrupt the working process and injure the interests of the public.

The final solution suggested is giving the workers the right to private property. Such property is natural for a person to have, especially for a family man. Rerum Novarum states that land ownership as a type of private property is the most important because it extends human freedom; besides, the land is a natural good and a human has a natural right to possess it. It is namely this right that distinguishes people from animals.⁷ Private property may serve as an incentive for the workers, the incentive that contributes to their better performance and, therefore, productivity. The workers will have what to work for and will satisfy their own, not only their employees’, needs through working. This is how the problem of social injustice will be solved.

Apart from serving as an appropriate response to “social problem”, Pope Leo XII’s Rerum Novarum also addressed the claims made by conservatives, liberals, and socialists in the 19^th century. Firstly, the conservatives’ claim regarding the preservation of privileges was addressed by turning attention to the gap between the rich and the poor and their ability to stand for themselves: “The richer class have many ways of shielding themselves, and stand less in need of help from the State; whereas the mass of the poor have no resources of their own to fall back upon.”⁸

Thus, the conservatives’ privileges remain untouched; it is only that the needy are given the protection of the government. Secondly, liberals’ claim that “private ownership of capital necessarily involves the exploitation of labor”⁹ was also addressed. Pope Leo XIII emphasized in his encyclical that this problem can be dealt with through mutual help and harmony between two opponent social classes.

Lastly, the socialists’ claim that “the concentration in productive industry is not being accomplished”¹⁰ was also addressed by showing how the production rates can be increased (better wages, reduced working hours, rights for private property, etc). In this way, Rerum Novarum paid attention not only to the needs of the working class, but to the interests of conservatives, liberals, and socialists as well.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that Pope Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum is deservedly regarded as one of the most influential among the Encyclicals. This document was a great response to the “social question” for it proposed effective ways to solve the then existing problems of social instability and injustice, as well as it addressed the claims of conservatives, socialists, and liberals at this. The encyclical’s paying attention to the problems of the poor and the claims of conservatives, liberals, and socialists reflects the complexity of the Church’s roles and functions and proves that the Church did not directly support any of these parties trying to stay a medium between them.

Reference List

Bernstein, Edouard. (1997). Evolutionary Socialism. Web.

Blease, W. L. The New Liberalism (1913). Web.

Declaration of the Rights of Man. (1789). Web.

Marx, Karl and Engels, Friedrich. (1848). The Communist Manifesto. Web.

Pop Leo III. (1891). Rerum Novarum. Web.

Footnotes

1. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist Manifesto (1848). Web.
2. Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789). Web.
3. Pop Leo III, Rerum Novarum (1891). Web.
4. Rerum Novarum.
5. Rerum Novarum.
6. Rerum Novarum.
7. Rerum Novarum.
8. Rerum Novarum.
9. W. L. Blease, The New Liberalism (1913). Web.
10. Edouard Bernstein, Evolutionary Socialism (1997). Web.