PART IV. CURRENT PROBLEMS

115. Finally, venerable brethren, We deem it Our office to give you a warning about the difficulties proper to our time.

The Spirit of Novelty

116. You are already aware that among priests, especially those less equipped with doctrine and of less strict lives, a certain spirit of novelty is being diffused in an ever graver and more disturbing manner.

117. Novelty is never in itself a criterion of truth and it can be worthy of praise only when it confirms the truth and leads to righteousness and virtue.

118. The age in which we live suffers from serious errors indeed: philosophical systems which are born and die without improving morals in any way; monstrosities of art which even pretend to call themselves Christian; standards of government in many countries which are aimed at the personal interests of individuals rather than at the common prosperity of all; methods of living and economic and social relations which threaten honest men more than the cunning. From this it follows almost naturally that there are not lacking in our times priests, infected in some way by this contagion, who imbibe opinions and follow a mode of life even in dress and the care of their person alien to both their dignity and their mission; priests who allow themselves to be led astray by the mania for novelty whether it be in their preaching to the faithful or in combating the errors of adversaries; priests who compromise not only their consciences but also their good name and the efficacy of their ministry.

Changes Require the Bishop's Approval

119. We earnestly call your attention to all this, venerable brethren, confident that, between widespread passion for the new and exaggerated attachment to the past, you will use a prudence which is circumspect and vigilant even when it tries fresh paths of activity and struggle for the triumph of the truth. We are far from holding that the apostolate must not be in keeping with the reality of modern life and that projects adapted to the needs of our time should not be promoted. But since the whole apostolate carried on by the Church is by its essence under the control of the Hierarchy, new forms must not be introduced save with the Bishop's approval. Ordinaries of one and the same region or one and the same country must strive in this matter to establish an understanding among themselves in order to provide for the needs of their districts and to study the methods best suited to and in keeping with the modern apostolate.

120. In this way, all will be done in an orderly and disciplined manner and the efficacy of priestly action will be assured. Let everyone be persuaded of this: that it is necessary to follow the Will of God and not that of the world, and to regulate the activity of the apostolate according to the directives of the Hierarchy and not according to personal opinions. It is a vain illusion to think oneself able to hide one's own inner poverty and still cooperate effectively in spreading the Kingdom of Christ by novelties in his method of action.