Longinqua

Longinqua is an encyclical of Pope Leo XIII. It is dated January 6, 1895 and is subtitled On Catholics in the United States . In it he condemns " Americanism ".

Immigrants to the USA

Already in the encyclical Quam aerumnosa of 1888, the Pope referred to the problem of Italian immigrants in America. The main problem for him was maintaining the mother tongue in the Catholic churches . In addition to other immigrants, it was above all Catholics of German origin: They demanded the use of their native language in worship and the establishment of parish schools and thus opposed the majority of Irish Catholics. Their main liberal representatives put the indicative word in their opponents' mouths: "They learn English or go to hell" ("They should learn English or go to hell").

Americanism and Liberalism

Initially, Leo XIII praised. the great American nation, which had set out its good goals with its declaration of independence . It is thanks to Christianity , and here he mentions Christopher Columbus , who discovered America , that this great country could be civilized. It was the Catholic Church that had established a great university for this nation in Washington , where young people were trained in the true faith (compare also the encyclical Magni nobis Gaudi , March 7, 1889, on the Catholic University of America ). He highlights special events in which the Catholic Church successfully participated.

Americanism appeared to the Pope as a North American variant of liberalism , which he condemns in this encyclical. For him, Americanism was the danger of imposing a liberal character on the Catholic faith and thus depriving it of obedience to Rome. He not only worried about the disregard of the " evangelical counsels ", he worried about the watering down of the Catholic teaching and described the development in the USA as hypocrisy.

marriage and family

He defends the indissolubility of marriage, since the bond of security serves not only the family but also society. It is an important sacrament that should not fall victim to liberalism. He refers to his encyclical Arcanum divinae sapientia (1880) on Christian marriage and criticizes the many divorces, the reason for which is the establishment of marriage contracts . These marriage contracts lead to infidelity, they reduce mutual affection and are harmful to the upbringing of children.

Social Security

The Pope again underlines his demands from the encyclical Rerum novarum , in which he not only demands the right to work, but also the social security of work. He appeals to employers to exercise their social responsibility and not just think about profit and expansion.

Web links

Text of the encyclical in English