Page:The Great Encyclical Letters of Pope Leo XIII.djvu/195



CHIEF DUTIES OF CHRISTIANS AS CITIZENS. 189

are thwarted. Christians are, moreover, born for combat, whereof the greater the vehemence, the more assured, God aiding, the triimiph: Have confidence; I have overcome the world} Nor is there any ground for alleging that Jesus Christ, the Guardian and Champion of the Church, needs not in any manner the help of men. Power certainly is not wanting to Him, but in His loving kindness He would assign to us a share in obtaining and applying the fruits of salvation procured through His grace.

The chief elements of this duty consist in professing openly and unflinchingly the Catholic doctrine, and in propagating it to the utmost of our power. For, as is often said, with the greatest truth, there is nothing so hurtful to Christian wisdom as that it should not be knowTi, since it possesses, when loyally received, inherent power to drive away error. So soon as Catholic truth is apprehended by a simple and unprejudiced soul, reason yields assent. Now faith, as a virtue, is a great boon of divine grace and goodness; nevertheless, the objects them- selves to which faith is to be apphed are scarcely known in any other way than through the hearing. How shall they believe Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? Faith then cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ? Since, then, faith is necessary for salvation, it follows that the word of Christ must be preached. The ofhce indeed of preaching, that is, of teaching, lies by divine right in the province of the pastors, namely of the bishops whom the Holy Ghost has placed to rule the Church of God? It belongs above all to the Roman Pontiff, vicar of Jesus Christ, established as head of the universal Church, teacher of all that pertains to morals and faith. No one, however, must entertain the notion that private individuals are prevented from taking some active part in this duty of teaching, especially those on whom God has bestowed gifts of mind with the

Â» John xvi. 33. ^ Rom. x. 14, 17. ^ Acts xx. 28.