''Ad Apostolorum principis'' (29 June 1958) is an

encyclical An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin (originally fr ...

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

Communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

and the Church in China. It describes systematic

persecution Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group. The most common forms are religious persecution, racism, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these term ...

s of

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...

and faithful and the attempts of the government to establish a patriotic Catholic Church, independent of Rome.

Background

Pope Pius XII issued in 1952 the encyclical '' Cupimus Imprimis'', in which he accused the persecutors and defended the Church, "a stranger to no people on earth, much less hostile to any" against the accusation of being against the people of China. In 1954, he published another Encyclical Letter, '' Ad Sinarum gentem'', in which he refuted accusations made against Catholics in China, stating that they are loyal and faithful to their country.

Content

Present problems

Since that time, the Church in China underwent even more difficulties. A "patriotic" Catholic movement is forced by every means on all the faithful A movement for patriotism and peace, who can be against that, asks Pius, is in reality just a fraud. This association aims primarily at making Catholics gradually embrace the tenets of atheistic

materialism Materialism is a form of monism, philosophical monism according to which matter is the fundamental Substance theory, substance in nature, and all things, including mind, mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. Acco ...

. All are forced to approve and participate and those bishops, priests, religious men, nuns, and the faithful in considerable numbers, who do not participate, are already in prison; Priests, religious men and women, ecclesiastical students, and faithful of all ages are forced to attend courses and an almost endless series of lectures and discussions, lasting for weeks and months, in order to weaken the strength of mind and will, by a kind of psychic coercion. Under such circumstances, every Christian should cast aside all doubt and calmly and firmly repeat the words with which Peter and the other Apostles answered the first persecutors of the Church: "We must obey God rather than men."

Illegal consecrations

Pius speaks out against those, who elect and appoint bishops of their own political willing, without any consultation with the Holy See. Many such elections have been held contrary to all Church laws. Some priests have rashly dared to receive Episcopal consecration, despite the public and severe warning of the Apostolic See. He declares, that "bishops who have been neither named nor confirmed by the

Apostolic See An apostolic see is an episcopal see whose foundation is attributed to one or more of the apostles of Jesus or to one of their close associates. In Catholicism, the phrase "The Apostolic See" when capitalized refers specifically to the See of ...

but who, on the contrary, have been elected and consecrated in defiance of its express orders, enjoy no powers of teaching or of jurisdiction since

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...

passes to bishops only through the Roman Pontiff" Acts requiring the power of Holy Orders which are performed by ecclesiastics of this kind, though they are valid as long as the consecration conferred on them was valid, are yet gravely illicit, that is, criminal and sacrilegious. Consequently, for illegal

consecration Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

s, an

excommunication Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in Koinonia, communion with other members o ...

reserved specialissimo modo to the Apostolic See has been established which is automatically incurred by the consecrator and by anyone who has received consecration irresponsibly conferred.''Ad Apostolorum principis'' 48

Prayers and hope

In cordial, emotional words, the Pope assures his bishops, priests and faithful of his daily commemoration during his morning mass and comforts them:

References

* ''Acta Apostolicae Sedis'', Roma, Vaticano, 1939, 1951 * ''Ad Apostolorum principis'', ''Acta Apostolicae Sedis'', AAS, 1958, 601

Footnotes

External links

''Ad Apostolorum principis''
full text of English translation on the Vatican website {{Persecution of Christians Anti-Christian sentiment in China Catholic Church in China Encyclicals of Pope Pius XII Persecution of Catholics during the pontificate of Pope Pius XII Religious persecution by communists June 1958 1958 in Christianity