Pope Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti aka Pius IX
(16.06.1846 – 7.02.1878)
Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti was elected Pope on June 16, 1846.
He took the name “Pius” (Pious) IX, and his coronation took place on June 21, 1846, in Saint Peter’s Basilica.
Undoubtedly he was not a liberal, as some claimed, for he had been created Cardinal by Gregory XVI, who was exceptionally sensitive to every novelty in matters of faith.
As Pope, as soon as he had strengthened his position in the Vatican, he showed that he was far removed from liberalism, all the more because, soon after becoming Pope, he was driven out of Rome by those who brought with them new ideas. This event made him see what the introduction of liberal ideas entailed. He returned to Rome as a steadfast conservative.
Already in his first encyclical, “Qui pluribus”, of November 9, 1846, he clearly and distinctly drew an impassable barrier between the liberty postulated by the liberals and Catholic doctrine.
In this encyclical he condemned false biblical teachings, religious indifferentism, communism, and freedom of the press.
On December 8, 1854, he promulgated the apostolic constitution “Ineffabilis Deus”, in which he defined the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
This dogma was confirmed by the Mother of God herself, appearing at Lourdes in 1858 and declaring: “I am the Immaculate Conception”.
On July 30, 1864, the Pope issued the encyclical “Ubi Urbaniano”, addressed to the bishops in the Kingdom and the Russian Empire.
The Polish clergy were grateful to the Pope for this encyclical, because it was an act of recognition for the persecuted priests and a consolation to the persecuted Polish nation.
His pontificate lasted 31 years, 7 months, 21 days (11559 days) and was the longest after the pontificate of Saint Peter.
Pius IX wrote thus about liberal “Catholics”:
Although the children of this world are more cunning than the children of light, their deceits and violences would undoubtedly meet with less success if, among those who call themselves Catholics, there were not some who extend to them a friendly hand. Yes, unfortunately, there are such as seem to desire to walk in agreement with our enemies and strive to bring about an alliance between light and darkness, an accord between justice and darkness, by means of the doctrines of so-called liberal Catholicism. (…) They are far more dangerous and harmful than declared enemies, (…) because, while keeping within certain limits the opinions already condemned, they assume an appearance of honesty and purity of doctrine, beguiling the unwary advocates of compromise and deceiving upright men who would resist open error.
The First Vatican Council
One of the most important points in the pontificate of Pius IX was the convocation of the First Vatican Council, which began on June 29, 1868.
Nearly 700 clergymen took part in it.
Invitations to the Council, in the form of an exhortation to return to the Catholic Church, were also sent to the Eastern churches and to the Evangelicals, but they were not accepted.
During the Council, on July 18, 1870, the constitution “Pastor aeternus” was passed, containing the dogma of papal infallibility in matters of faith and morals.
It means that the Pope enjoys the gift of rightly understanding and explaining the truths of faith, because he is the successor of Saint Peter:
(…) with the approval of the sacred Council, we teach and define as a dogma divinely revealed that when the Roman Pontiff speaks ex cathedra, that is, when, in the exercise of his office as shepherd and teacher of all Christians, in virtue of his supreme apostolic authority, he defines a doctrine concerning faith or morals to be held by the whole Church, he possesses, by the divine assistance promised to him in blessed Peter, that infallibility with which the divine Redeemer willed that his Church should be endowed in defining doctrine concerning faith or morals. Therefore such definitions of the Roman Pontiff are of themselves, and not by the consent of the Church, irreformable.
An important conciliar constitution was also “Dei Filius”, concerning Revelation and the relations between faith and reason, especially important in the context of the growing development of science at that time.
Encyclical “Quanta cura” – On contemporary errors
… they do not hesitate to derive from it that erroneous opinion, most fatal in its effects on the Catholic Church and the salvation of souls, called by Our predecessor Gregory XVI, of happy memory, an “insanity”, namely: that “liberty of conscience and worship is the personal right of every man” …
Therefore, by Our apostolic authority, we reject and condemn each and every one of the evil opinions and doctrines individually mentioned in this letter, and We will and command that they be held by all the children of the Catholic Church as altogether reprobated, proscribed, and condemned.
Syllabus errorum
A document issued by Pope Pius IX in 1864 as an appendix to the encyclical “Quanta cura”.
In this document there were condemned, among other things, the ideas of religious liberty, the separation of the State from the Church, pantheism, naturalism, rationalism, indifferentism, latitudinarianism, socialism, communism, secret societies, Bible societies, and liberal associations of the clergy.
Encyclical “Qui pluribus” – On rationalism
For although faith is above reason, yet there can never be any real disagreement or conflict between them, since both proceed from one and the same immutable and eternal source of truth, the greatest and best God. Thus they render mutual assistance to one another, for right reason demonstrates, safeguards, and defends the truth of faith, while faith delivers reason from all errors and wonderfully enlightens, strengthens, and perfects it by the knowledge of divine things.
