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''Quadragesimo anno'' () (Latin for "In the 40th Year") 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 ...
issued by Pope Pius XI on 15 May 1931, 40 years after Leo XIII's encyclical '' Rerum novarum'', further developing
Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching (CST) is an area of Catholic doctrine which is concerned with human dignity and the common good in society. It addresses oppression, the role of the state, subsidiarity, social organization, social justice, and w ...
. Unlike Leo XIII, who addressed the condition of workers, Pius XI discusses the ethical implications of the social and economic order. He describes the major dangers for human freedom and dignity arising from unrestrained
capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...
, from
socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
, and from
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 ...
as practised in
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. He also calls for the reconstruction of the social order based on the principles of
solidarity Solidarity or solidarism is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. True solidarity means moving beyond individual identities and single issue politics ...
and subsidiarity. Essential contributors to the formulation of the encyclical were the German
Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
,
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...
s and
social philosophers Social philosophy is the study and interpretation of society and social institutions in terms of ethical values rather than empirical relations. Social philosophers emphasize understanding the social contexts for political, legal, moral and cultur ...
Gustav Gundlach and the '' Königswinter Circle'' through one of its main authors Oswald von Nell-Breuning.


Changes since ''Rerum novarum''

Pope Pius XI issued his encyclical exactly forty years after ''Rerum novarum''. In the interim there were other papal statements from Leo XIII, and also the encyclical ''Singulari quadam'' of Pius X. Pius XI subtitled his encyclical ''Reconstruction of the Social Order''. In the first part he reviews and applauds the encyclical of his predecessor. The
Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
can be credited with participating in the progress made and contributing to it. It developed a new social conscience.


Private property

The Church has a vital role in discussing social and economic issues, not in their technical, but their moral and ethical aspects. This includes the nature of
private property Private property is a legal designation for the ownership of property by non-governmental Capacity (law), legal entities. Private property is distinguishable from public property, which is owned by a state entity, and from Collective ownership ...
, concerning which several conflicting views had developed within the Catholic Church. Pius XI proclaims private property to be essential for the development and
freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...
of the individual, which are Christian values not to be denied. But, says Pius, private property has a social function as well, and it loses its moral value if it is not subordinated to the
common good In philosophy, Common good (economics), economics, and political science, the common good (also commonwealth, common weal, general welfare, or public benefit) is either what is shared and beneficial for all or most members of a given community, o ...
. Therefore, governments have a right to pursue redistribution policies, and in extreme cases to expropriate private property.


Capital and labour

A related issue, says Pius, is the relation between capital and labour and the determination of fair wages.''Quadragesimo anno'', 63–75 The Church considers it perverse in industrial society to have fiercely opposed social classes based on income. He welcomes all attempts to alleviate this strife and ameliorate its causes. Three elements determine a fair wage: The needs of the worker and his family, the economic condition of the enterprise, and the economy as a whole. The family has an innate right to development, but this is only possible within the framework of a functioning economy and sound enterprises. For this, Pius XI concludes that what is needed is not class conflict between worker and employer but solidarity, given the mutual interdependence of the parties involved.


Social order

Industrialization Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...
, says Pius XI, resulted in less freedom at the individual and communal level, because numerous free social entities were absorbed by larger ones. A society of individuals became a mass and class society. Today people are much less interdependent than in ancient times, and become egoistic or class-conscious in order to recover some freedom for themselves. The pope demands more solidarity, especially between employers and employees through new forms of cooperation and communication. Pius draws a negative view of capitalism, especially of the anonymous international finance markets. He deplores that small and medium-size enterprises with insufficient access to capital markets are often squeezed or destroyed by big business. He warns that capital interests can endanger states, potentially reducing them to "chained slaves of individual interests". The encyclical has been an important inspiration to modern distributist thought on seeking greater solidarity and subsidiarity than present capitalism. Pius mostly reaffirms the importance of traditional gender roles, emphasizing the importance of a family wage for fathers:


Communism and socialism

Regarding communism and socialism, Pius XI notes increasing differences. He condemns communism but also the social conditions which nourish it. He wants moderate socialism to distance itself from totalitarian communism as a practical matter and also on principle, in light of the dignity of the human person.''Quadragesimo anno'', 115–118 Dignity and human freedom are ethical considerations which cannot be ensured by hostile class confrontation.
Ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...
are based on religion and this is the realm where the Church meets industrial society. 117 "Whether considered as a doctrine, or an historical fact, or a movement, Socialism, if it remains truly Socialism, even after it has yielded to truth and justice on the points which we have mentioned, cannot be reconciled with the teachings of the Catholic Church because its concept of society itself is utterly foreign to Christian truth." 118 "For, according to Christian teaching, man, endowed with a social nature, is placed on this earth so that by leading a life in society and under an authority ordained of God he may fully cultivate and develop all his faculties unto the praise and glory of his Creator; and that by faithfully fulfilling the duties of his craft or other calling he may obtain for himself temporal and at the same time eternal happiness. Socialism, on the other hand, wholly ignoring and indifferent to this sublime end of both man and society, affirms that human association has been instituted for the sake of material advantage alone."


Reception

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...
, the head of the British affiliate of the Socialist International, inquired of Cardinal Bourne, Archbishop of Westminster, on how the encyclical's statements on socialism applied to Catholics voting for or participating in socialist parties. The Cardinal stated "There is nothing in the encyclical which should deter Catholics from becoming members of the British Labour Party."
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
had high praise for the encyclical and quoted it extensively on the evils of concentrated economic power. The encyclical was well received by both
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
under the Estado Novo regime and
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
under the regime of the Fatherland Front, which both attempted to implement elements of the encyclical in their own countries.


Notes

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Further reading

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External links


Notable Quotations from ''Quadragesimo anno''
{{Authority control Documents of the Catholic Social Teaching tradition Encyclicals of Pope Pius XI 1931 documents 1931 in Christianity May 1931 Distributism