The Pope Speaks

Just before noon on the day before Christmas, all cardinals living in Rome passed into the Vatican's Hall of Consistory. They took their proper seats. Talk; whispers; a signal. Silence. His Holiness Pius XI entered, their fellow in the priesthood, their lord in the theocracy. The cardinals saluted the Pope. He saluted them. Then from his throne he read didactically for 40 minutes his Christmas Message to the Cardinals, and through them to the world.

This was the Message which he feared that Cardinal Pacelli's promised pre-Christmas message to the U. S. might obscure (TIME, Dec. 29). Some of his points: Nationalism. "It is difficult, if not impossible, for peace to become permanent so long as selfish and hard nationalism prevails in place of true and genuine love of country, so long as we find hatred and jealousy in place of good will, suspicion in place of brotherly confidence, ambitions of hegemony and domination in place of respect for the rights of the weak and small. . . ." War. "We do not believe in the war menace, because we cannot imagine the existence of a murderous and suicidal state desiring to let loose a new war while the world is still feeling the consequences of the World War." ("Should we unfortunately become certain that such a state exists," the Pope added, "we should repeat the prayer of the Scriptures, Dissipa gentes quae bella volunt."*) Regenerators. "[Pray] for all who suffer for the profession and defense of the faith as in Mexico, Russia and Siberia, preparing by their sufferings the regeneration of those countries." He wished prayers for Roman Catholic missionaries and special prayers for those missionaries in China, where some have been martyred. Depression. The world-wide economic Depression and Unemployment "make us feel more vividly the need of a better social and international adjustment, inspired by greater justice and by Christian charity--an adjustment which, without upsetting the order established by Divine Providence, would make fraternal collaboration possible and effective among the classes and the peoples." Let such adjustment replace "unbridled competition, which is dangerous to financial and eco-nomic conditions." Protestants in Rome. Last summer the Pope inveighed against Protestant proselyting in Rome. Methodists and Baptists were the "guilty" ones (TIME, July 14). Last week he again expressed his vexation against "even more intense, vast and impudent Protestant propaganda, sometimes open and reasoned, sometimes subtle and deceitful. . . . Advantage is being taken of ignorance and simplicity, coupled with misery and hunger." Proselyting by non-Catholics is illegal in Italy, whose State religion is Roman Catholicism. Prime Minister Benito Mussolini, once a vigorous now a discreet disbeliever, last week said he would soon reply to this invective. Mixed Marriage.

Mixed marriage is the subject of an encyclical letter which His Holiness has almost ready. The Roman Catholic Church in general opposes mixed marriages and is "intransigeant about the conditions and precautions prescribed by" Roman Catholic Church law. Pius XI has been considering such an encyclical on mixed marriages for some time. What prompted its preparation now was the recent "scandalous" remarriage of Bulgarian (Eastern) Orthodox Tsar Boris of Bulgaria and Roman Catholic Princess Giovanna of Italy. They contracted, in Italy, to rear all their children as Catholics, despite Bulgarian law which requires that the King be Orthodox, and went through a Catholic marriage ceremony at Assisi, Italy. It poured that day. In thunder, lightning and rain they left Italy for Sofia. Storms lashed their ship all the way. At Sofia they went through another marriage ceremony according to Orthodox rite--with great pomp and publicity (TIME, Nov. 10 et ante).

The Orthodox Sofia ceremony vexed His Holiness. Last week he said: It "was with manifest offense to God, who Himself was thus dishonored in the sacrament which He Himself had instituted."

*"Scatter thou the people that delight in war."--Psalms 68:30.

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