Quo graviora (1826)
Quo graviora is a March 13, 1826 by Pope Leo XII. published " Papal Bull " in which he writes about the secret societies .
Defense duty
In the greeting he underlines his duty, which has been assigned to him in the Holy See and which obliges him to uphold the position of the Church . Already at this point he threatens the secret societies to unmask them in order to enforce his authority , this duty of defense is especially assigned to him as the successor to the chair of Peter . He calls the Pope Clement XII. published Bull In eminenti apostolatus specula in memory and praises him as a wise man who has foresightedly recognized and fought these evil machinations of the Freemasons . Furthermore, his predecessor Benedict XIV with his bull Providas romanorum uncovered the sectarian infiltration and spread the ban over them.
The secret societies
In one breath he describes Freemasonry and the secret society of the Carbonari as joint secret societies that would have tried to fight the Catholic religion with conspiratorial assemblies and to fight against legal authority . His predecessor Pope Pius VII also took action against these associations with his condemnation letter Ecclesiam a Jesu Christo . It is deplorable that these secret societies are now also being established in universities and holding secret meetings. Nor should it be forgotten that these torches of turmoil would endanger peace in Europe and introduce a new disturbance into society .
Attacks on the Church
The opponents of the church would try to attack the principles of belief, authority and peace in the church with the aim of destroying them. Here the hatred of sovereignty is in the foreground, and their attacks on the deity of Jesus Christ would substantiate the ideas of subversion emanating from the secret societies.
Call against the secret societies
With this letter he stated his duty to condemn the secret societies again so that no one could claim that their machinations were not combated by this highest authority. It is a legitimate task to defend the future of the Church and he calls on all cardinals of the Roman Church to act together. It is now in the power of holy obedience that all priests , lay people and Catholic Christians must stand up for a just society in order to defend it against all the evils of these covenants. He, the Pope, therefore orders everyone and everyone, under threat of ban and failure of absolution , to keep their distance from these secret societies and never to take the ungodly oath of this conspiracy.
See also
literature
- Frajo Terhart: Freemason . Heinrich Hugendubel Verlag, Kreuzlingen / Munich, 2004, ISBN 3-7205-2488-4
- Jürgen Holtorf: The Masonic lodges, influence - power - secrecy . Nikol Verlagsgemeinschaft, Hamburg, undated, and Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, Munich, ISBN 3-930656-58-2