ENCYCLICAL LETTER
POPULORUM PROGRESSIO
OF POPE
PAUL VI
TO THE BISHOPS, PRIESTS, RELIGIOUS
AND FAITHFUL OF THE WHOLE WORLD
AND TO ALL PEOPLE OF GOOD WILL
ON THE NEED TO PROMOTE THE DEVELOPMENT OF PEOPLES

PREAMBLE

Development of the peoples

1. The development of peoples, and especially that of those striving to escape hunger, poverty, endemic diseases, and ignorance; those seeking a broader share in the fruits of civilization and a more active appreciation of their human qualities; and those resolutely striving for full development, is observed with attention by the Church. Barely had the Second Vatican Council concluded when a renewed awareness of the demands of the Gospel message compelled the Church to place itself at the service of humanity, helping people to grasp all the dimensions of this grave problem and convincing them of the urgency of solidarity in this decisive turning point in human history.

Social teachings of the Popes

2. In their great encyclicals—Rerum novarum [1] by Leo XIII;  Quadragesimo anno [2] by Pius XI;  Mater et magistra [3]  and  Pacem in terris [4] by John XXIII—not to mention the messages to the world by Pius XII [5]—our predecessors did not fail in their duty to project the light of the Gospel onto the social issues of their time.

Important fact

3. Today, the most important fact of which everyone must be aware is that the social question has taken on a global dimension. John XXIII states this unequivocally [6], and the Council echoed this statement in its  Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World [7]. This teaching is serious, and its application is urgent. Today, the hungry call out to the wealthy with dramatic urgency. The Church suffers in the face of this crisis of anguish and calls on everyone to respond with love to the plea of ​​her brothers and sisters.

Our trips

4. Before our elevation to the Supreme Pontificate, our two trips to Latin America (1960) and Africa (1962) brought us into immediate contact with the lamentable problems afflicting continents full of life and hope. Clothed in universal fatherhood, we were able, on our journeys to the  Holy Land  and  India, to see with our own eyes and experience firsthand the grave difficulties overwhelming peoples of ancient civilization, struggling with the challenges of development. While the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council was being held in Rome, providential circumstances led us to  address the General Assembly of the United Nations directly. Before this vast forum, we were the advocate for the poor.

Justice and Peace

5. Finally, intending to responding to the Council’s vote and of specifying the Holy See’s contribution to this great cause of developing peoples, we have recently felt it our duty to create, among the central bodies of the Church, a Pontifical Commission charged with “raising awareness among all the People of God of the role that the present times demand of each person to promote the progress of the poorest peoples, to foster social justice among nations, and to offer those who are less developed such assistance as will enable them to provide for their own progress” [8]. Justice and Peace is its name and its program. We believe that this program can and should unite people of good will with our Catholic children and Christian brothers and sisters.

For this reason, today we address this solemn appeal to everyone for concrete action in favor of the integral development of man and the solidarity-based development of humanity.

PART ONE

For the integral development of man

I. THE PROBLEM DATA

Men’s aspirations

6. To be free from poverty, to more securely secure one’s livelihood, health, and stable employment; to participate more fully in social responsibilities, free from all oppression and sheltered from situations that offend one’s dignity as a human being; to be better educated; in short, to do, to know, and to have more to be more: such is the aspiration of people today, while a high number of them are condemned to live in conditions that render this legitimate desire illusory. Moreover, nations that have recently achieved national independence feel the need to add to this political freedom autonomous and dignified growth—social as well as economic—to ensure their citizens’ full human development and to occupy their rightful place in the community of nations.

Colonization and colonialism

7. Given the scope and urgency of the task at hand, we have resources inherited from the past, even though they are insufficient. It must certainly be acknowledged that colonial powers have often pursued their own interests, power, or glory, and that upon withdrawing, they have sometimes left behind a vulnerable economic situation, tied, for example, to monoculture, whose economic yield is subject to abrupt and wide fluctuations. But even while recognizing the errors of a certain type of colonialism and its consequences, it is necessary at the same time to pay tribute to the qualities and achievements of the colonizers, who in so many abandoned regions contributed their science and technology, leaving behind precious fruits of their presence. However incomplete they may be, the structures they established remain and have pushed back ignorance and disease, established beneficial communications, and improved living conditions.

Growing imbalance

8. Having said that, it is certainly true that this preparation is notoriously insufficient to confront the harsh reality of the modern economy. Left to its own devices, its mechanisms lead the world toward an exacerbation, not a mitigation, of the disparity in living standards: rich nations enjoy rapid growth, while poor ones develop slowly. The imbalance grows: some produce excess foodstuffs that others cruelly lack, and the latter see their exports become uncertain.

Greater awareness

9. At the same time, social conflicts have expanded to encompass global dimensions. The profound unrest that has gripped the poor in industrializing countries is now taking hold in those where the economy is almost exclusively agrarian: the peasants, too, are becoming aware of their  undeserved misery [9]. Added to this is the scandal of the painful disparities, not only in the enjoyment of goods, but even more so in the exercise of power. While in some regions an oligarchy enjoys a refined civilization, the rest of the population, poor and dispersed, is “deprived of almost all possibilities of personal initiative and responsibility, and often even lives and works unworthy of the human person” [10].

Clash of civilizations

10. Moreover, the clash between traditional civilizations and the novelties of industrial civilization breaks down structures that fail to adapt to the new conditions. Their often rigid framework was the indispensable support of personal and family life, and the older generations cling to it, while the younger ones shun it as a useless obstacle, eagerly turning to new forms of social life. The generational conflict is thus exacerbated by a tragic dilemma: either to preserve ancestral institutions and beliefs and renounce progress or to embrace the technologies and civilizations that come from elsewhere but reject, along with the traditions of the past, all their human richness. In fact, the moral, spiritual, and religious supports of the past frequently give way, though this does not guarantee integration into the new world.

Conclusion

11. In this development, the temptation becomes so intense that it threatens to drag us toward messianic movements that promise much but ultimately create illusions. Who cannot see the dangers this entails: violent popular reactions, insurrectionary upheavals, and slides toward totalitarian ideologies? These are the facts of the problem, the gravity of which cannot escape anyone.

II. THE CHURCH AND DEVELOPMENT

The work of the missionaries

12. Faithful to the teachings and example of its divine Founder, who gave as the sign of its mission the proclamation of the Good News to the poor (cf. Lk  7:22), the Church has never ceased to promote the human development of the peoples to whom it brought faith in Jesus Christ. Along with churches, its missionaries built hospices and hospitals, schools, and universities. By teaching the indigenous peoples how to make the most of natural resources, they frequently protected them from the greed of foreigners. Undoubtedly, their work, being human, was not perfect, and some may have occasionally mixed certain ways of thinking and living from their homeland with the proclamation of the authentic Gospel message. But they also knew how to cultivate and promote local institutions. In many regions, they positioned themselves among the forerunners of material progress as well as cultural advancement. It suffices to recall the example of Father Charles de Foucauld, who, because of his charity, was deemed worthy of being called the “Universal Brother,” and who compiled a precious dictionary of the Tuareg language. We must pay homage to these often-ignored forerunners, impelled by the charity of Christ, as well as to their emulators and successors, who continue to dedicate themselves, even today, to the generous and selfless service of those they evangelize.

Church and world

13. But henceforth, local and individual initiatives are no longer sufficient. The present world situation demands collective action that takes as its starting point a clear vision of all economic, social, cultural, and spiritual aspects. With its experience of humanity, the Church, without in any way intending to interfere in the politics of states, “desires only one thing: to continue, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the very work of Christ, who came into the world to bear witness to the truth, to save and not to judge, to serve and not to be served” [11]. Founded to establish the kingdom of heaven on earth now and not to conquer earthly power, it clearly affirms that the two spheres are distinct, just as the two powers, ecclesiastical and civil, are sovereign, each in its own domain [12]. But, living in history, it must “scrutinize the signs of the times and interpret them in the light of the Gospel” [13]. Taking part in the best aspirations of men and suffering when they are not satisfied, she wishes to help them achieve their full development, and this is precisely because she proposes to them what she possesses as her own: a global vision of man and humanity.

Christian vision of development

14. Development is not simply economic growth. To be authentic, it must be integral; that is, it must promote all people and the whole person. An eminent expert has very accurately emphasized, “We do not accept the separation of the economy from the human, from the development of the civilizations in which it is embedded. What matters to us is the human person, every person, every group of people, up to and including all of humanity” [14].

Vocation to development

15. In God’s plan, each person is called to foster their own progress, because every person’s life is a vocation given by God for a specific mission. From birth, everyone has been given, as if in seed, a set of aptitudes and qualities to cultivate; their blossoming, the fruit of the education received in their own environment and of personal effort, will allow each person to orient themselves toward the destiny proposed by the Creator. Endowed with intelligence and freedom, each person is responsible for their growth, as well as for their salvation. Helped, and sometimes hindered, by those who educate and surround them, each person always remains, whatever influences are exerted upon them, the principal architect of their success or failure: through the effort of their intelligence and will alone, each person can grow in humanity, become more valuable, and be more.

Personal duty

16. Moreover, this growth is not optional. Just as all of creation is ordered toward its Creator, the spiritual creature is obliged to spontaneously orient its life toward God, the first truth and sovereign good. Thus, human growth constitutes a kind of summary of our duties. Furthermore, this harmony of nature, enriched by personal and responsible effort, is called to surpass itself. Through its incorporation into the living Christ, humanity has the path open to a new progress, to a transcendental humanism that gives it its greatest fulfillment; such is the supreme purpose of personal development.

Community duty

17. But every person is a member of society, belongs to all of humanity. And it is not only this person or that person, but all people are called to this full development. Civilizations are born, grow, and die. But just as the waves of the sea, in the ebb and flow of the tide, advance, each one a little further, on the sandy beach, so too does humanity advance along the path of history. Heirs of past generations and beneficiaries of the work of our contemporaries, we are indebted to all and cannot be indifferent to those who will come to further enlarge the circle of the human family. Universal solidarity, which is a fact and a benefit for all, is also a duty.

Scale of values

18. This personal and communal growth would be compromised if the true scale of values ​​were altered. The desire for necessities is legitimate, and working to obtain them is a duty: “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” ( 2 Thessalonians  3:10). But the acquisition of temporal goods can lead to greed, to the desire to have more and more, and to the temptation to increase one’s own power. Avarice in individuals, families, and nations can seize hold of the most destitute as well as the richest, and give rise to a suffocating materialism in both.

Growing ambivalence

19. Thus, having more, whether for nations or individuals, is not the ultimate goal. All growth is ambivalent. Necessary to enable humanity to become more fully human, it imprisons us as if in a jail from the moment it becomes the supreme good, preventing us from looking beyond it. Then hearts harden and spirits close; people no longer unite through friendship but through self-interest, which soon turns them against one another and causes them to separate. The exclusive pursuit of possession becomes an obstacle to the growth of being and opposes true greatness; for nations as well as for individuals, greed is the most evident form of moral underdevelopment.

Towards a more humane condition

20. If development requires technicians in ever-increasing numbers, this same development demands even more profound thinkers who seek a new humanism, one that allows modern man to find himself by embracing the higher values ​​of love, friendship, prayer, and contemplation [15] . In this way, he can fully realize true development, which is the transition, for each and for all, from less human to more human conditions of life.

Ideal to strive for

21. Less humane: the material deprivations of those deprived of the bare necessities and the moral deficiencies of those crippled by selfishness. Less humane: oppressive structures, stemming from the abuse of wealth or power, the exploitation of workers, or the injustice of transactions. More humane: the rise from misery to the possession of necessities, the triumph over social calamities, the expansion of knowledge, the acquisition of culture. More humane also: the increased respect for the dignity of others, the embrace of the spirit of poverty (cf.  Mt  5:3), cooperation for the common good, and the will for peace. Even more humane still: humanity’s recognition of supreme values ​​and of God, who is their source and end. More human, finally and especially: faith, a gift from God received by the good will of men, and unity in the charity of Christ, which calls us all to participate, as children, in the life of the living God, Father of all men.

III. ACTION TO BE TAKEN

22.  Fill the earth and subdue it  (Gen  1:28). The Bible, from its very first pages, teaches us that all creation is for humankind, who must apply their intelligent effort to enhance it and, through their work, perfect it, so to speak, putting it at their service. If the earth is made to provide each person with the means of subsistence and the tools for their progress, every person has the right to find in it what they need. The recent Council recalled this: “God destined the earth and all that is in it for the use of all people and all nations, so that created goods should reach everyone justly, according to the rule of justice, inseparable from charity.” [16]  All other rights, whatever they may be, including those of property and free trade, are subordinate to this: they should not hinder, but rather facilitate, its realization, and it is a grave and urgent social duty to return them to their primary purpose.

The property

23. “If anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how can the love of God abide in him?” ( 1 John  3:17). It is well known how firmly the Fathers of the Church have specified what the attitude of those who possess should be toward those in need: “What you give to the poor is not part of your possessions,” says St. Ambrose, “but is his. For what has been given for the use of all, you appropriate for yourself. The earth has been given for everyone and not only for the rich” [17]. That is to say, private property does not constitute an unconditional and absolute right for anyone. There is no reason to reserve for exclusive use what exceeds one’s own needs when others lack what is necessary. In short: “The right of ownership must never be exercised harming the common good, according to the traditional doctrine of the Fathers of the Church and the great theologians.” If a conflict arises “between acquired private rights and fundamental community demands”, it is up to the public authorities “to seek a solution with the active participation of individuals and social groups” [18].

The use of income

24. The common good, therefore, sometimes requires expropriation if, due to their extent, their deficient or nonexistent exploitation, the resulting misery of the population, or the considerable damage caused to the interests of the country, some possessions serve as an obstacle to collective prosperity.

Stating it plainly [19], the Council has also recalled, no less clearly, that disposable income is not something to be left to the whims of men and that selfish speculation must be eliminated. Certainly, it could not be admitted that citizens with abundant incomes, derived from national resources and activity, should transfer a considerable part of them abroad for purely personal gain, without regard for the obvious harm they would thereby inflict on their own country [20].

Industrialization

25. Necessary for economic growth and human progress, industrialization is both a sign and a factor of development. Through the tenacious application of intelligence and labor, humankind gradually wrests nature’s secrets from it and makes better use of its resources. As it disciplines its habits, it develops a taste for research and invention, an acceptance of calculated risk, boldness in undertakings, generous initiative, and a sense of responsibility.

Liberal capitalism

26. But, unfortunately, upon these new societal conditions, a system has been built that considers profit as the essential engine of economic progress, competition as the supreme law of economics, and the private prosperity of the means of production as an absolute right, without limits or corresponding social obligations. This unbridled liberalism, which leads to dictatorship, was rightly denounced by Pius XI as the generator of “international financial imperialism” [21]. There is no better way to condemn such abuse than by solemnly recalling once again that the economy is at the service of humanity [22]. But while it is true that a certain form of capitalism has been the cause of much suffering, injustice, and fratricidal struggles, the effects of which still linger, it would be unjust to attribute to industrialization itself the evils that are due to the nefarious system that accompanies it. On the contrary, it is correct to acknowledge the irreplaceable contribution of the organization of labor and industrial progress to the work of development.

The work

27. Similarly, although work can sometimes be approached with an exaggerated mystique, it is no less true that work has been willed and blessed by God. Created in his image, “man must cooperate with the Creator in the perfection of creation and, in turn, mark the earth with the spiritual character he himself has received” [23]. God, who has endowed man with intelligence, has also given him the means to complete his work in some way; whether artist or craftsman, employer, laborer, or peasant, every worker is a creator. By applying himself to a material that resists him, the worker imprints his mark upon it while acquiring tenacity, ingenuity, and a spirit of invention. Moreover, by living together, sharing the same hope, suffering, ambition, and joy, work unites wills, brings minds closer, and blends hearts; in carrying it out, people discover that they are brothers and sisters [24].

His ambivalence

28. Work, undoubtedly ambivalent because it promises money, joy, and power, invites some to selfishness and others to revolt; it also develops professional awareness, a sense of duty, and charity toward one’s neighbor. More scientific and better organized, it carries the danger of dehumanizing those who perform it, turning them into its servants, because work is not human if it does not remain intelligent and free. John XXIII recalled the urgency of restoring workers’ dignity by making them truly participate in the common endeavor: “The aim should be for the company to become a community of persons in the relationships, functions, and situation of all personnel” [25]. But the work of humankind, especially for Christians, still has the mission of collaborating in the creation of the supernatural world [26], which is not finished until we all together become that perfect human being of whom Saint Paul speaks, “who has attained the fullness of Christ” (Eph  4:13).

Urgency of the work that needs to be done

29. We must act quickly. Many people are suffering, and the gap between the progress of some and the stagnation, or even regression, of others is widening. However, the work that needs to be done must progress harmoniously, lest the essential balance be disrupted. An improvised agrarian reform could thwart its purpose. Abrupt industrialization could dislocate the structures that are still necessary and engender social misery, which would be a setback for humanity.

Temptation of violence

30. It is true that there are situations whose injustice cries out to heaven. When entire populations, lacking necessities, live in such dependency that it prevents them from taking any initiative or taking any responsibility, as well as from any possibility of cultural advancement and participation in social and political life, the temptation to reject such grave injustices against human dignity with violence is great.

Revolution

31. However, as is well known, revolutionary insurrection—except in cases of evident and prolonged tyranny that gravely violates fundamental human rights and dangerously harms the common good of the country—breeds new injustices, introduces new imbalances, and causes new ruin. One cannot combat a real evil at the price of a greater evil.

Reform

32. Let us be clear: the present situation must be faced courageously, and the injustices it brings must be fought and overcome. Development demands bold, profoundly innovative transformations. Urgent reforms must be undertaken without further delay. Everyone must generously accept their role, especially those who, by virtue of their education, position, and power, have great opportunities for action. Let them, setting an example, begin with their own resources, as many of our brothers in the episcopate have already done [27]. In this way, they will respond to the expectations of humanity and be faithful to the Spirit of God, for it is “the leaven of the Gospel that has stirred and continues to stir in the human heart an irrepressible yearning for dignity” [28].

Programs and planning

33. Individual initiative alone and the simple game of competition would not be enough to ensure the success of development. We must not risk further increasing the wealth of the rich and the power of the strong, thereby confirming the misery of the poor and adding to the servitude of the oppressed. Programs are necessary to “encourage, stimulate, coordinate, supplement, and integrate” [29]  the actions of individuals and intermediary bodies. It is up to the public authorities to choose and determine how to impose the objectives to be set, the goals to be established, and the means to achieve them, while at the same time stimulating all the forces united in this common action. But they must be careful to involve private initiatives and intermediary bodies in this endeavor. In this way, they will avoid the risk of complete collectivization or arbitrary planning, which, by denying freedom, would exclude the exercise of fundamental human rights.

At the service of man

34. Because every program designed to increase production, in the end, has no other purpose than to serve humanity. If it exists, it is to reduce inequalities, combat discrimination, free people from slavery, and empower them to be responsible agents of their own material improvement, moral progress, and spiritual development. To speak of development is, in effect, to be concerned with both social progress and economic growth. It is not enough to increase common wealth for it to be distributed equitably. It is not enough to promote technology for the earth to be more humanely habitable. The mistakes of those who have gone before should warn those currently developing of the dangers to be avoided in this area. The technocracy of tomorrow can engender evils no less fearsome than those of yesterday’s liberalism. Economics and technology are meaningless except for humanity, whom they must serve. Man is not truly man except to the extent that, master of his actions and judge of their importance, he makes himself the author of his progress, according to the nature given to him by his Creator, and of which he freely assumes the possibilities and demands.

Literacy

35. It can also be said that economic growth depends, first and foremost, on social progress; this is why basic education is the primary objective of any development plan. Indeed, the hunger for education is no less depressing than the hunger for food: an illiterate person is an undernourished spirit. To be able to read and write to acquire vocational training is to regain self-confidence and to discover that one can progress at the same time as others. As we stated in our  message to the 1965 UNESCO Congress in Tehran, literacy is for humankind “a primary factor of social integration, no less than of personal enrichment; for society, a privileged instrument of economic progress and development” [30]. This is why we welcome the great work carried out in this area by private initiatives, public authorities, and international organizations: they are the primary architects of development, by empowering people to achieve it for themselves.

Family

36. But man does not attain his full potential except within the society to which he belongs, and in which the family has a primary function, which may have been excessive, depending on the times and places in which it has been exercised, harming fundamental personal freedoms. The old social structures of developing countries, although too rigid and poorly organized, must nevertheless be preserved for some time, gradually loosening their excessive control. But the natural, monogamous, and stable family, as divine design intended it (cf. Mt  19:6) and as Christianity has sanctified it, must remain as “the point where different generations meet and help each other to achieve a more complete wisdom and to harmonize the rights of individuals with the other demands of social life” [31].

Demography

37. It is true that rapid population growth often adds its own difficulties to the problems of development; the population grows faster than available resources, and we find ourselves, seemingly, trapped in a dead end. The temptation, therefore, to curb population growth with radical measures is great. It is true that public authorities, within the limits of their competence, can intervene by providing appropriate information and adopting suitable measures, provided that these are in accordance with the demands of the moral law and respect the just freedom of spouses. Without the inalienable right to marriage and procreation, there is no human dignity. Ultimately, it is the parents who must decide, with full knowledge of the facts, the number of their children, accepting their responsibilities before God, before the children they have already brought into the world, and before the community to which they belong, following the dictates of their conscience, instructed by God’s law authentically interpreted and sustained by trust in Him. [32]

Professional organizations

38. In the work of development, humankind, which finds its primary means of subsistence in the family, is frequently assisted by professional organizations. If their reason is to promote the interests of their members, they bear a great responsibility for the educational function they can and, at the same time, must fulfill. Through the information they provide and the training they offer, they can do much to instill in everyone a sense of the common good and the obligations it entails for each individual.

Legitimate pluralism

39. All social action implies a doctrine. Christians cannot accept one that presupposes a materialistic and atheistic philosophy, which respects neither the orientation of life toward its ultimate end nor human freedom and dignity. But provided these values ​​are safeguarded, a pluralism of professional and trade union organizations is acceptable; from a certain point of view, it is even useful if it protects freedom and fosters emulation. For this reason, we pay heartfelt tribute to all those who work in the selfless service of their brothers and sisters.

Cultural promotion

40. In addition to professional organizations, the activity of cultural institutions is noteworthy. Their role is crucial for successful development: “The future of the world is in danger,” the Council gravely affirms, “if men are not formed who are more learned in this wisdom.” And it adds, “Many nations that are economically poor but richer in wisdom can be of extraordinary benefit to others” [33]. Rich or poor, every country possesses a civilization, inherited from its ancestors: institutions required by earthly life and higher manifestations—artistic, intellectual, and religious—of the life of the spirit. As long as these contain true human values, it would be a grave error to sacrifice them to the former. A people who allowed this would thereby lose the best of itself and sacrifice, to live, its very reasons for living. Christ’s teaching also applies to nations: “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” (Mt  16:26).

Materialistic temptation

41. Poor nations can never be sufficiently guarded against this temptation posed by wealthy nations. The latter too often present, through the example of their successes in a technological and cultural civilization, the model of an activity primarily focused on the pursuit of material prosperity. This is not to imply that the latter in itself closes the way to spiritual pursuits. On the contrary, being “less enslaved to things, one can more easily rise to the worship and contemplation of the Creator” [34]. But, despite this, “modern civilization itself, not certainly in itself, but because it is excessively focused on earthly realities, can often make access to God more difficult” [35]. Therefore, in all that is proposed to them, developing nations must learn to choose, discern, and eliminate false goods, which would lead to a decline in the human ideal, accepting sound and beneficial values ​​and developing them alongside their own, according to their own character.

Conclusion

42. It is a complete humanism that must be promoted [36]. What does this mean but the integral development of every human being and of all people? A closed humanism, impenetrable to the values ​​of the spirit and to God, who is their source, might seemingly triumph. Certainly, humanity can organize the earth without God, but “in the end, without God, it cannot help but organize it against humanity. Exclusive humanism is an inhuman humanism” [37]. There is, therefore, only one true humanism, which opens itself to the Absolute in the recognition of a vocation that gives the true idea of ​​human life. Far from being the ultimate norm of values, humanity does not realize itself except by surpassing itself. In Pascal’s apt expression, “humanity infinitely surpasses humanity” [38].

SECOND

The solidarity-based development of humanity

Introduction

43. The integral development of man cannot take place without the solidarity and development of humanity. We  said this in Bombay. “Man must find man, nations must find each other as brothers and sisters, as children of God. In this mutual understanding and friendship, in this sacred communion, we must also begin to act together to build the common future of humanity” [39].

We also suggested the search for concrete and practical means of organization and cooperation to pool available resources and thus achieve a true communion among all nations.

Brotherhood of peoples

44. This duty concerns the most favored first and foremost.

Their obligations are rooted in human and supernatural fraternity and manifest themselves in three aspects: the duty of solidarity, in the aid that wealthy nations must provide to developing countries; the duty of social justice, by rectifying flawed trade relations between strong and weak nations; and the duty of universal charity, by promoting a more humane world for all, where everyone has something to give and receive, without the progress of some hindering the development of others. The matter is grave, as the future of world civilization depends on it.

I. ASSISTANCE TO THE WEAK

Fight against hunger

45. “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed,” says James, “lacking daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?” (James  2:15-16). Today, no one can ignore it: on entire continents, countless men and women are tormented by hunger, countless children are malnourished to such an extent that a good number of them die in infancy, the physical growth and mental development of many others are compromised, and entire regions are thus condemned to the most profound despair.

Today

46. ​​Urgent appeals have already been made. John XXIII’s appeal was warmly received [40]. We reiterated it in our  Christmas message of 1963  [41] again on behalf of India in 1966 [42]. The campaign against hunger undertaken by the International Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and encouraged by the Holy See has been generously supported. Our  Caritas International  is active everywhere, and numerous Catholics, under the impetus of our brothers in the episcopate, give and dedicate themselves wholeheartedly to helping those in need, progressively expanding the circle of their neighbors.

Tomorrow

47. But all this, like the private and public investments already made and the aid and loans granted, is not enough. It is not simply a matter of overcoming hunger, nor even of reducing poverty. The fight against destitution, urgent and necessary as it is, is insufficient. It is a matter of building a world where every person, without exception of race, religion, or nationality, can live a fully human life, freed from the constraints imposed by other people and by an insufficiently mastered nature; a world where freedom is not an empty word and where the poor Lazarus can sit at the same table as the rich man (cf. Lk  16:19-31). This demands great generosity from the latter, countless sacrifices, and tireless effort. It is up to each of us to examine our conscience, which has a new voice for our time. Are we willing to support with our money the works and enterprises organized for the poorest? To pay more taxes so that public authorities can intensify their efforts for development? Should we buy imported products at higher prices to pay producers more fairly? Should we emigrate, if we are young, to help these young nations grow?

Duty of solidarity

48. The duty of solidarity of individuals is also that of nations. “Developed nations have a serious obligation to help developing countries” [43]. This conciliar teaching must be put into practice. While it is normal for a population to be the primary beneficiary of the gifts bestowed by Providence as the fruit of its labor, no nation can, however, claim to reserve its wealth for its own exclusive use. Every nation must produce more and better, both to provide its citizens with a truly human standard of living and to contribute to the solidarity-based development of humanity. Faced with the growing poverty of underdeveloped countries, it should be considered normal for a developed country to dedicate a portion of its production to meeting their needs and equally normal for it to train educators, engineers, technicians, and scholars who place their knowledge and expertise at their service.

The superfluous

49. It must be said once again: the surplus of rich countries must serve poor countries. The rule that once applied to those closest to us must now be applied to all the needs of the world. The rich, moreover, will be the first to benefit from this. Otherwise, their prolonged avarice will only provoke God’s judgment and the anger of the poor, with unforeseeable consequences. Withdrawn into their selfishness, the currently flourishing civilizations would betray their highest values, sacrificing the will to be more to the desire to possess in greater abundance. And the parable of the rich man, whose land had produced a bountiful harvest and who did not know where to store it, would apply to them: “God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you’” (Lk 12:20).

Programs

50. These efforts, to achieve their full effectiveness, should not remain scattered or isolated, and even less so opposed for reasons of prestige or power: the situation demands concerted programs. Indeed, a program is more and better than occasional aid left to the goodwill of each individual. It presupposes, as we have already stated, in-depth studies, setting objectives, determining the means, and uniting efforts to respond to present needs and foreseeable demands. Moreover, it transcends the prospects of economic growth and social progress: it gives meaning and value to the work that must be done. By setting the world right, it increasingly strengthens and dignifies humanity.

Global Fund

51. It will be necessary to go even further. In Bombay, we called for the establishment of a large  World Fund  , financed by a portion of military expenditures, to help the most destitute [44]. This, which is valid for the immediate fight against poverty, is equally valid on the scale of development. Only global cooperation, of which a common fund would be both symbol and instrument, would allow us to overcome sterile rivalries and foster a peaceful and fruitful dialogue among all peoples.

Its advantages

52. Undoubtedly, bilateral or multilateral agreements can continue to exist; they allow for the replacement of the dependency and bitterness that arose in the colonial era with happy relations of friendship, developed on a footing of legal and political equality. But incorporated into a program of global cooperation, they would be free from all suspicion. The mistrust of the beneficiaries would lessen. They would fear less certain manifestations disguised as financial aid or technical assistance of what has been called neocolonialism, in the form of political pressure and economic domination aimed at defending or conquering a dominant hegemony.

Your urgency

53. Who can fail to see that such a fund would facilitate the reduction of certain wasteful practices born of fear or pride? When so many people go hungry, when so many homes suffer poverty, when so many live in ignorance, when so many schools, hospitals, and decent housing still need to be built, every instance of public or private extravagance, every display of national or personal ostentation, every arms race becomes an intolerable scandal. We are compelled to denounce it. May those responsible listen to us before it is too late.

Dialogue that must begin

54. This means that it is essential for all parties to engage in dialogue, which we advocated in our first encyclical,  Ecclesiam suam.  This dialogue between those who provide the means and those who benefit from them will allow contributions to be measured not only according to the generosity and resources of the former, but also according to the real needs and employment opportunities of the latter. In this way, developing countries will no longer risk being overwhelmed by doubts, the resolution of which absorbs most of their benefits. Interest rates and loan terms should be arranged in a way that is manageable for both parties, balancing free aid, interest-free or minimal-interest loans, and repayment periods. Those who provide the financial means may be given guarantees regarding the use of the money, according to the agreed plan and with reasonable efficiency, since the aim is not to favor the lazy and the parasitic. And the beneficiaries will be able to demand that there be no interference in their politics and that their social structure not be disrupted. As sovereign states, it is their right to manage their own affairs, determine their policies, and freely choose the form of society they have selected. It is therefore a matter of establishing voluntary collaboration, effective participation among all, on a level playing field, to build a civil society truly worthy of humankind.

Your need

55. The task might seem impossible in regions where the struggle for daily survival consumes the entire lives of families incapable of envisioning work that would prepare them for a less miserable future. And yet, it is precisely these men and women whom we must help, whom we must convince to pursue their own development and gradually acquire the means to do so. This common endeavor will not succeed, of course, without a concentrated, constant, and spirited effort. But let everyone be deeply convinced: at stake are the lives of the poor, the civil peace of developing countries, and the peace of the world.

II. SOCIAL JUSTICE IN COMMERCIAL RELATIONS

56. The truly considerable efforts made to provide financial and technical assistance to developing countries would be illusory if their results were partially nullified by the dynamics of trade relations between rich and poor nations. The confidence of the latter would be shattered if they felt that one hand was taking away what the other was giving.

Increasing separation

57. Highly industrialized nations primarily export manufactured goods, while underdeveloped economies have little more than agricultural products and raw materials to sell. Thanks to technological progress, the former rapidly increase in value and find ample markets. Conversely, primary products from underdeveloped countries experience wide and abrupt price fluctuations, far removed from this progressive increase in value. This leads to significant difficulties for underindustrialized nations when they must rely on exports to balance their economies and implement their development plans. The poor remain poor, and the rich become ever richer.

Beyond liberalism

58. In other words, the rule of free trade can no longer govern international relations on its own. Its advantages are certainly evident when the parties are not in excessively unequal positions of economic power: it stimulates progress and rewards effort. This is why industrially developed countries see it as a law of justice. But the situation is no longer the same when conditions are too unequal from country to country: prices that are formed “freely” in the market can lead to inequitable results. It is, therefore, the fundamental principle of liberalism, as a rule of trade, that is at stake here.

Contract justice at the village level

59. Leo XIII’s teaching in  Rerum Novarum  remains valid: the consent of the parties, if they are in excessively unequal positions, is not enough to guarantee the justice of the contract, and the rule of free consent is subordinated to the demands of natural law [45]. What was true concerning a just individual wage is also true regarding international contracts: an exchange economy cannot continue to rest solely on the law of free competition, which too often gives rise to an economic dictatorship. Free exchange is only equitable if it is subject to the demands of social justice.

Measures that need to be taken

60. Moreover, this has been understood by the developed countries themselves, which strive, through appropriate measures, to restore within their own economies a balance that competition, left unchecked, tends to undermine. Thus, they often sustain their agriculture at the expense of sacrifices imposed on the more prosperous economic sectors. Similarly, to maintain the trade relations that develop among them, particularly within a common market, their financial, fiscal, and social policies strive to provide similar opportunities to competing industries of unequal prosperity.

International conventions

61. It would be wrong to use double standards here. What holds true in national economics, what is acceptable among developed countries, also holds true in trade relations between rich and poor countries. Without abolishing the competitive market, it must be kept within the limits that make it fair, moral, and therefore humane. In trade between developed and underdeveloped economies, the situations are too disparate, and real freedoms too unequal. Social justice demands that international trade, to be humane and moral, re-establish at least a certain degree of equality of opportunity between the parties. This is a long-term goal. But to achieve it, it is necessary to create real equality in discussions and negotiations from now on. Here, too, international conventions of sufficiently broad scope would be useful: they would establish general rules with a view to regulating certain prices, guaranteeing certain production levels, and supporting certain nascent industries. Who can deny that such a common effort towards greater fairness in trade relations between nations would provide developing countries with positive assistance, the effects of which would be immediate and lasting?

Obstacles to overcome: nationalism

62. Other obstacles also hinder the formation of a more just and structured world within a framework of universal solidarity: we are referring to nationalism and racism. It is natural for communities that have recently attained political independence to be protective of their still fragile national unity and to strive to safeguard it. It is also normal for nations with ancient cultures to be proud of the heritage bequeathed to them by history. But these legitimate sentiments must be elevated by universal charity, which embraces all members of the human family. Nationalism isolates peoples, contrary to their true good. It would be particularly harmful where the weakness of national economies, on the contrary, demands the pooling of efforts, knowledge, and financial resources to implement development programs and increase trade and cultural exchange.

Racism

63. Racism is not the exclusive domain of young nations, where it sometimes disguises itself as clan and political party rivalries, greatly undermining justice and endangering civil peace. During the colonial era, it often erected a wall of separation between colonizers and indigenous peoples, hindering fruitful mutual understanding and provoking much resentment because of genuine injustices. It is also an obstacle to cooperation among less fortunate nations and a breeding ground for division and hatred within states themselves when, in disregard of the inalienable rights of the human person, individuals and families are unjustly subjected to exceptional circumstances because of their race or color.

Towards a world of solidarity

64. Such a situation, so fraught with threats to the future, deeply distresses us. Nevertheless, we cherish the hope that a more profound need for cooperation and a keener sense of solidarity will ultimately prevail over misunderstandings and selfishness. We expect that the less developed countries will know how to take advantage of their proximity to organize joint development zones among themselves, covering extensive territorial areas: establishing common programs, coordinating investments, sharing production opportunities, and organizing trade. We also hope that multilateral and international organizations will find, through necessary reorganization, the paths that will allow still underdeveloped peoples to extricate themselves from the impasses in which they seem trapped and discover for themselves, while remaining true to their own unique character, the means for their social and human progress.

People who are the architects of their own destiny

65. Because that is the goal we must reach. Global solidarity, ever more effective, must enable all peoples to become the architects of their own destiny. The past has too often been marked by power relations between nations; may the day come when international relations bear the stamp of mutual respect and friendship, of interdependence through collaboration, and of common advancement under the responsibility of each nation. Younger or weaker nations demand to play an active part in building a better world, one more respectful of the rights and vocations of each individual. This cry is legitimate; it is the responsibility of each nation to listen to it and respond to it.

III. UNIVERSAL CHARITY

66. The world is sick. Its ill lies less in the sterilization of resources and their hoarding by some than in the lack of fraternity among men and among nations.

The duty of hospitality

67. We can never overemphasize the duty of hospitality—a duty of human solidarity and Christian charity—which falls to both families and cultural organizations in countries that welcome foreigners. It is essential to increase the number of residences and homes that welcome, above all, young people. This is primarily to protect them from loneliness, feelings of abandonment, and anxiety, which destroy all moral strength. It is also to defend them against the unhealthy situation in which they find themselves, forced to compare the extreme poverty of their homeland with the luxury and extravagance that often surrounds them. And likewise, it is to shield them from subversive doctrines and aggressive temptations that assail them at the memory of so much “undeserved misery” [46]. Finally, above all, it is to offer them, with the warmth of a fraternal welcome, the example of a healthy life, the esteem of authentic and effective Christian charity, and the appreciation of spiritual values.

The drama of the young students

68. It is painful to think about: many young people who come to more advanced countries to receive science, skills, and culture, which will make them more fit to serve their country, certainly acquire a more qualified education, but too often they lose sight of the spiritual values ​​that are often found, as a precious heritage, in those civilizations that have seen them grow up.

Migrant workers

69. The same welcome should be offered to migrant workers, who often live in inhuman conditions, saving from their wages to support their families, who are in misery in their native land.

Social awareness

70. Our second recommendation is directed to those whose business calls them to countries recently opened to industrialization: industrialists, merchants, managers, or representatives of large corporations. It often happens that they are not devoid of social conscience in their own countries; why regress again to the inhumane principles of individualism when working in less developed nations? The superiority of their position should, on the contrary, make them the initiators of social progress and human development wherever their business takes them. Their very sense of organization should suggest to them the means of valuing local labor, training skilled workers, preparing engineers and middle managers, making room for their initiatives, and gradually introducing them to the highest positions, thus preparing them to share the responsibilities of management with them in the near future. Let justice, at the very least, always govern the relations between superiors and subordinates. Let well-established contracts govern reciprocal obligations. In short, let there be nothing, whatever their situation, that leaves them unfairly subjected to arbitrariness.

Development missions

71. We are pleased that the number of technicians sent on development missions by international or bilateral institutions or private organizations is increasing; “they must not behave as dominators, but as assistants and collaborators” [47]. A people immediately perceives whether those who come to their aid do so with or without affection, to apply techniques or to give humanity its full value. Their message risks not being received if it is not accompanied by fraternal love.

Qualities of the technicians

72. To the necessary technical competence, therefore, they must add the genuine signs of selfless love. Free from all nationalistic pride, as well as any appearance of racism, the technicians must learn to work closely with everyone. They know that their competence does not confer superiority in all areas. The civilization that has shaped them certainly contains elements of universal humanism, but it is neither unique nor exclusive and cannot be imported without adaptation. The agents of these missions will sincerely strive to discover, along with their own history, the cultural components and riches of the host country. In doing so, a contact will be established that will enrich both civilizations.

Dialogue of civilizations

73. Among civilizations, as among individuals, sincere dialogue truly fosters fraternity. The enterprise of development will bring peoples closer together in the achievements pursued by their common efforts if everyone, from rulers and their representatives to the humblest technician, is animated by fraternal love and moved by the sincere desire to build a civilization of global solidarity. A dialogue centered on humankind, and not on products or technologies, will then begin. It will be fruitful if it provides the people who benefit from it with the means to elevate and spiritualize them, if technicians become educators, and if the teachings imparted are marked by such high spiritual and moral qualities that they guarantee not only economic but also human development. Beyond technical assistance, the relationships thus established will endure. Who cannot see the importance they will then have for world peace?

A call to young people

74. Many young people have already responded with fervor and dedication to Pius XII’s call for a missionary laity [48]. Many have also spontaneously made themselves available to official or private organizations that collaborate with developing nations. We are deeply pleased to learn that in certain countries “military service” can be transformed, in part, into “social service,” a simple service. We bless these initiatives and the goodwill of those who support them. May all who profess to belong to Christ hear his call: “I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me” (Mt 25:35-36). No one can remain indifferent to the plight of their brothers and sisters who still lie in misery, trapped by ignorance, victims of insecurity. Like the heart of Christ, the heart of the Christian must feel compassion for so much misery: “I have compassion for this crowd” (Mk 8:2).

Prayer and action

75. The prayer of all must rise fervently to the Almighty, so that humanity, aware of such great calamities, may apply itself intelligently and firmly to abolishing them. To this prayer must correspond the complete dedication of each person, to the extent of their strength and abilities, to the struggle against underdevelopment. Let individuals, social groups, and nations join hands fraternally, the strong helping the weak to rise, putting into it all their competence, enthusiasm, and selfless love. More than anyone else, those animated by true charity are resourceful in discovering the causes of misery, in finding the means to combat it, and in boldly overcoming it. A friend of peace, they “will continue on their way, radiating joy and pouring light and grace into the hearts of men throughout the world, making them discover, beyond all borders, the face of their brothers, the face of their friends” [49].

Development is the new name for peace

76. Excessive economic, social, and cultural differences between peoples cause tensions and discord and endanger peace. As we told the Council Fathers upon our return from our peace journey to the UN, “The condition of developing peoples must be the object of our consideration, or, better still, our charity toward the poor of the world—and these are countless legions—must be more attentive, more active, more generous” [50]. Combating poverty and fighting injustice means promoting, along with greater well-being, the human and spiritual progress of all, and consequently, the common good of humanity. Peace is not simply the absence of war, the result of the always precarious balance of power. Peace is built day by day in the establishment of an order willed by God, which entails a more perfect justice among humankind  [51].

Breaking out of isolation

77. As architects of their own development, people are primarily responsible for it. But they will not achieve it in isolation. Regional agreements among weaker nations to support one another, broader agreements to come to their aid, and more ambitious conventions among them to establish concerted programs are the milestones on this path of development that leads to peace.

Towards an effective world authority

78. This international cooperation with a global vocation requires institutions to prepare, coordinate, and govern it, ultimately building a universally recognized legal order. We wholeheartedly encourage the organizations that have undertaken this cooperation for development and wish for their authority to grow. “Your vocation,” we said to the representatives of the United Nations in New York, “is to foster fraternity not only among some peoples, but among all peoples… Who does not see the need to thus gradually establish a world authority that can act effectively in the legal and political spheres?” [52]

Hope founded on a better world

79. Some will consider such hopes utopian. It is possible that the realistic sense of those who think this way is flawed, because they do not perceive the accelerated pace of this age, in which people want to live more fraternally and, despite their ignorance, their errors, their sins, their relapses into barbarism, and their straying from the path of salvation, are slowly drawing closer, even without realizing it, to their Creator. This path toward a greater and better sense of humanity demands effort and sacrifice, but suffering itself, accepted out of love for our brothers and sisters, brings progress to the whole human family. Christians know that union with the sacrifice of the Savior contributes to the building up of the Body of Christ in its fullness: the people of God gathered. [53]

All in solidarity

80. In this march, we are all united. We have wished to remind everyone of the magnitude of the tragedy and the urgency of the work that must be done. The hour for action has struck; the survival of so many innocent children, access to a human condition for so many unfortunate families, world peace, and the future of civilization are at stake. All men and all peoples must assume their responsibilities.

FINAL APPEAL

Catholics

81. We first and foremost call upon all our children. In developing countries, no less than in others, the laity must take as their own task the renewal of the temporal order. If the role of the hierarchy is to teach and authentically interpret the moral principles to be followed in this area, it is the responsibility of the laity, with their own free initiative and without passively awaiting orders and directives, to permeate with the Christian spirit the mentality and customs, the laws and structures of the community in which they live. [54] Changes are necessary; profound reforms are indispensable: they must be resolutely employed to infuse them with the spirit of the Gospel. To our Catholic children in the more favored countries, we ask that they contribute their competence and active participation in official or private, civil or religious organizations dedicated to overcoming the difficulties of developing countries. We are confident that they will do everything in their power to be at the forefront among those working to bring an international morality of justice and fairness into reality.

Christians and believers

82. All Christians, our brothers and sisters, we are certain, will want to broaden their common and concerted efforts to help the world triumph over selfishness, pride, and rivalries; to overcome ambition and injustice; and to open for all the paths to a more humane life in which each person is loved and helped as their neighbor and brother or sister. Still moved by our unforgettable meeting in Bombay with Our non-Christian brothers and sisters, we again invite them to collaborate with all their heart and all their intellect so that all the children of humankind may lead a life worthy of being children of God.

Men of goodwill

83. Finally, we address ourselves to all people of goodwill who are aware that the path to peace lies through development. Delegates in international institutions, statesmen, journalists, educators—all of you, each in your own sphere, are the leaders of a new world. We beseech Almighty God to enlighten your minds and give you new strength and encouragement to awaken public opinion and inspire enthusiasm among the people. Educators, it is your responsibility to awaken, even from childhood, a love for those living in poverty. Journalists, it is your responsibility to bring to our attention the efforts made to promote mutual aid among nations, as well as the spectacle of the miseries that people tend to forget to soothe their consciences; let the rich at least know that the poor are at their doorstep, waiting for the crumbs from their banquets.

Statesmen

84. Statesmen, it is your responsibility to mobilize your communities in a more effective global solidarity, and above all, to make them accept the necessary reductions in their luxuries and expenditures to promote development and safeguard peace. Delegates of international organizations, it is up to you to ensure that the dangerous and sterile confrontation of forces gives way to friendly, peaceful, and selfless collaboration to achieve a shared progress for humanity in which all people can thrive.

Wise men

85. And if it is true that the world finds itself in a lamentable void of ideas, we appeal to thinkers and wise people, Catholics, Christians, worshippers of God, yearning for the absolute, for justice, and for truth: all people of good will. Following the example of Christ, we dare to implore you earnestly: “Seek and you will find” (Lk 11:9); embark on the paths that lead, through collaboration, deepening of knowledge, and openness of heart, to a more fraternal life in a truly universal human community.

Everyone to work

86. All of you who have heard the call of suffering peoples, you who work to give them an answer, you are the apostles of authentic and true development, which does not consist in selfish wealth desired for its own sake, but in an economy at the service of man, daily bread distributed to all as a source of fraternity and a sign of Providence.

Blessing

87. With all our hearts, we bless you and call upon all people to join you in brotherly solidarity. For if development is the new name for peace, who would not want to work with all their strength to achieve it? Yes, we invite you all to respond to our cry of anguish, in the name of the Lord.

Given at Rome, near St. Peter’s, on March 26, the feast of the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the fourth year of our pontificate.

Paul VI

GRADES

[1]  Cf.  Acta Leonis XIII, t.  II (1892). p. 97-148.

[2]  Cf. AAS 23 (1931), 177-228.

[3]  Cf. AAS 53 (1961), 401-464.

[4]  Cf. AAS 55 (1963), 257-304.

[5]  Cf. in particular  Radio Message of 1 June 1941 on the 50th anniversary of  Rerum novarum: AAS 33 (1941) 195-205;  Christmas Radio Message of 1942: AAS 35 (1943), 9-24; Address to a group of workers on the anniversary of  Rerum novarum,  14 May 1953: AAS 45 (1953), 402-408.

[6]   Cf. Enc.  Mater et magistra ,  May 15, 1961: AAS 53 (1961), 440.

[7]  Gaudium et spes  n. 63-72: AAS 58 (1966), 1084-1094.

[8]  Motu proprio  Catholicam Christi Ecclesiam, January 6, 1967: AAS 59 (1967), 27.

[9]  Enc.  Rerum novarum,  lc, 98.

[10]  Gaudium et spes  n. 63: AAS 58 (1966), 1026.

[11]  Gaudium et spes  n. 3, lc 1026.

[12]  Cf. Enc.  Immortale Dei, Nov. 1 of 1885,  Acta Leonis XIII,  t.5 (1885), 127.

[13]  Gaudium et spes  n. 4, lc, 1027.

[14]  LJ Lebret. OP,  Dynamique concrète du développement  (Paris, Economie et Humanisme, Les Editions Ouvrières, 1961), p. 28.

[15] Cf., for example, J. Maritain, Les conditions spirituelles du progrès et de la paix, in Rencontre de cultures à l’UNESCO sous le signe du Concile oecuménique Vatican II, Paris, Mame, 1966, 66.

[16]  Gaudium et spes  n. 69, lc 1090.

[17] From Nabuthe c.12, n. 53: PL 14, 747. Cf. JR Palanque, Saint Ambroise et l’empire romain, Paris, De Boccard, 1933, p. 336 ff.

[18] Letter to the Brest Social Week, in L’homme et la révolution urbaine, Lyon, Social Chronicle, 1965, p. 8-9.

[19] Gaudium et spes  n. 71, lc 1093.

[20] cf. Ibid. . n. 65, lc 1086.

[21] Enc. Quadragesimo anno  lc 212.

[22] Cf., eg, Colin Clark,  The conditions of economic progress,  3a. ed., London, Macmillan &Co., New York, St. Martin’s Press, 1960, p. 3-6.

[23] Letter to the Lyon Social Week, in Le travail et les travailleurs dans la société contemporaine,   Lyon, Crónica Social, 1965. p. 6.

[24] Cf., pe, MD Chenu, OP, Pour une théologie du travail. Paris, Edit. du Seuil, 1955.

[25] Mater et magistra  lc 423.

[26] Cf. eg, eg, O. von Nell-Breuning, SJ,  Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, t. I, Grundfragen,  Freiburg, Herder, 1956, p. 183–184.

[27] Cf., e.g., Monsignor M. Larraín Errázuriz, Bishop of Talca (Chile), President of CELAM,  Pastoral Letter. Development: Success or Failure in latino-américain  (1965).

[28]  Gaudium et spes n. 26, lc 1046.

[29] Mater et magistra lc 414.

[30] L’Osservatore Romano September 11, 1965. Documentation catholique, t. 62 (Paris, 1965), col. 1674-1675.

[31]  Gaudium et spes n. 52, lc 1073.

[32]  Cf.  Ibid. . n. 50-51 (and note 14), lc 1070-1073; and n. 87, lc 1110.

[33]  Ibid. . n. 15, lc 1036.

[34]  Gaudium et spes  n. 57, lc 1078.

[35]  Ibid. . n. 19, lc 1039.

[36]  Cf., eg, J. Maritain,  L’humanisme intégral, Paris, Aubier, 1936.

[37]  H. de Lubac, SI,  Le drame de l’humanisme athée, 3a. ed., Paris, Spes, 1945, 10.

[38]  Pensees, ed. Brunschvieg, no. 434. Cf. M. Zundel, L’homme passe l’homme, Le Caire, Editions du Lien, 1944.

[39]  Address to the representatives of non-Christian religions, Dec. 3, 1964. AAS 57 (1965), 132.

[40] Cf.  Mater et magistra,  lc 440 ff.

[41] Cf.  Christmas Radio Message of 1963 , AAS 56 (1964), 57-58.

[42]  Cf.  L’Osservatore Romano  February 10, 1966;  Enc. e Disc. di Paolo VI, vol. 9. Rome, Ed. Paoline, 1966, 132-136; «Ecclesia», February 19, 1966 (n. 1279), p. 9 (269).

[43]  Gaudium et spes  n. 86, lc 1109.

[44]  Message to the world delivered to journalists on December 4, 1964. Cf. AAS 57 (1965), 135.

[45]  Cf. Acta Leonis XIII  t. II (1892) 131.

[46]  Cf.  ibid. 98.

[47]  Gaudium et spes  n. 85, lc 1108.

[48]  ​​Cf. Enc.  Fidei Donum, lc 246.

[49]  Cf. Address by John XXIII at the presentation of the Balzan Prize, May 10, 1963: AAS 55 (1963), 455.

[50]  AAS 57 (1965), 896.

[51]  Cf. Enc.  Pacem in terris  lc 301.

[52]  AAS 57 (1965), 880.

[53]  Cf. Eph 4, 12;  Lumen gentium,  no. 13 AAS 57 (1965), 17.

[54]  Cf. Apostolica actuositatem,   n. 7, 13 and 24.