List of encyclicals of Pope Pius XII explained
This is a list of encyclicals of Pope Pius XII. Pius XII promulgated 41 papal encyclicals, during his reign as pope for over 19 years, from his election of March 2, 1939, until his death on October 9, 1958. The 41 encyclicals of Pius XII exceed the 32 encyclicals written by all his successors (John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul I, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI) during the fifty years that followed (1958–2008).
The encyclicals of Pius XII
|-|6. ||
Orientalis Ecclesiae || "Of the
Eastern Church" || On
St. Cyril,
Patriarch of Alexandria || April 9, 1944 ||
(English)|-|7. ||
Communium interpretes dolorum || "Interpreter of the universal anguish" || On Ending the
Second World War || April 15, 1945 ||
(English)|-|8. ||
Orientales omnes Ecclesias || "All the
Eastern Churches" || On the 350th Anniversary of Reunion of the
Ruthenian Church with Rome || December 23, 1945 ||
(English)|-|9. ||
Quemadmodum || || On Pleading for Care for the World's Destitute Children || January 6, 1946 ||
(English)|-|10. ||
Deiparae Virginis Mariae || "Of the Blessed Virgin Mary" || Should We Define the
Assumption? || May 1, 1946 ||
(English)|-|11. ||
Fulgens radiatur || "The radiant light" || On the Brilliant Light of
Saint Benedict || March 21, 1947 ||
(English)|-|12. ||
Mediator Dei || "Mediator of God" || On the Sacred
Liturgy || November 20, 1947 ||
(English)|-|13. ||
Optatissima pax || "Longed-for peace" || On Prescribing Public Prayers for Social and
World Peace || December 18, 1947 ||
(English)|-|14. ||
Auspicia quaedam || || Prayers for
World Peace and the Solution Of The
Problems Of Palestine || May 1, 1948 ||
(English)|-|15. ||
In multiplicibus curis || "Among the multiple preoccupations" || On Prayers for Peace in
Palestine || October 24, 1948 ||
(English)|-|16. ||
Redemptoris nostri cruciatus || "
The Passion of Our Redeemer" || On Holy Places in Palestine || April 15, 1949 ||
(English)|-|17. ||
Anni sacri || "On the
Holy Year" || On a Program For Combating
Atheistic Propaganda Throughout The World || March 12, 1950 ||
(English)|-|18. ||
Summi maeroris || "With the deepest sorrow" || On a Call for Public Prayers for Peace || July 19, 1950 ||
(English)|-|19. ||
Humani generis || "On Human Origin" || Concerning Some
False Opinions Threatening to Undermine the Foundations of
Catholic Doctrine || August 12, 1950 ||
(English)|-|20. ||
Mirabile illud || "That admirable" || On a Crusade for Prayers for Peace || December 6, 1950 ||
(English)|-|21. ||
Evangelii praecones || "Toiling missionaries" || On the Promotion of
Catholic Missions || June 2, 1951 ||
(English)|-|22. ||
Sempiternus Rex Christus || "Christ, the Eternal King" || On the
Council of Chalcedon || September 8, 1951 ||
(English)|-|23. ||
Ingruentium malorum || "Approaching evil" || On
Reciting the Rosary || September 15, 1951 ||
(English)|-|24. ||
Orientales Ecclesias || "The Oriental Churches" || On The Persecuted Eastern Church and describing the hopeless situation of the faithful in
Bulgaria || December 15, 1952||
(English)|-|25. ||
Doctor Mellifluus || "Sweet Doctor" || On St.
Bernard of Clairvaux, Last of the
Fathers || May 24, 1953 ||
(English)|-|26. ||
Fulgens corona || "The radiant crown" || Proclaiming a Marian Year to Commemorate the
Centenary of the Definition of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception || September 8, 1953 ||
(English)|-|27. ||
Sacra virginitas || "On Holy Virginity" || On Consecrated Virginity || March 25, 1954 ||
(English)|-|28. ||
Ecclesiae fastos || "History of the Church" || On
Saint Boniface || June 5, 1954 ||
(English)|-|29. ||
Ad Sinarum gentem || "To the Chinese people" || On the
Supranationality of the Church || October 7, 1954 ||
(English)|-|30. ||
Ad Caeli Reginam || "To the Queen of Heaven" || On Proclaiming the Queenship of Mary || October 11, 1954 ||
(English)|-|31. ||
Musicae sacrae || "Of Sacred Music" || On
Sacred Music || December 25, 1955 ||
(English)|-|32. ||
Haurietis aquas || "You shall draw waters" || On Devotion to the
Sacred Heart || May 15, 1956 ||
(English)|-|33. ||
Luctuosissimi eventus || "Sorrowful events" || Urging Public Prayers for
Peace and Freedom for the People of Hungary || October 28, 1956 ||
(English)|-|34. ||
Laetamur admodum || "We are most pleased" || Renewing Exhortation for Prayers for Peace in
Poland,
Hungary, and the
Middle East || November 1, 1956 ||
(English)|-|35. ||
Datis nuperrime || "In the recent encyclical" || Lamenting the
Sorrowful Events in Hungary, and Condemning the Ruthless Use of Force || November 5, 1956 ||
(English)|-|36. ||
Fidei donum || "The gift of faith" || On the Present Condition of the Catholic Missions, especially in
Africa || April 21, 1957 ||
(English)|-|37. ||
Invicti athletae || "Of the unconquered athlete" || On St.
Andrew Bobola || May 16, 1957 ||
(English)|-|38. ||
Le pèlerinage de Lourdes || "Of the pilgrimage to
Lourdes" || Warning Against
Materialism on the
Centenary of the
Apparitions at Lourdes || July 2, 1957 ||
(English)|-|39. ||
Miranda prorsus || || On the Communications Fields:
Motion Pictures,
Radio,
Television || September 8, 1957 ||
(English)|-|40. ||
Ad Apostolorum principis || "At the
Prince of the Apostles" || On
Communism and the
Church in China || June 29, 1958 ||
(English)|-|41. ||
Meminisse iuvat || "It is helpful to recall" || On Prayers for the Persecuted Church || July 14, 1958||
(English)|}
Background
An encyclical (from Latin encyclia, from the Greek "en kyklo, Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ἐν κύκλῳ", meaning "general" or "encircling") was a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Christian church. For the modern Roman Catholic Church, a Papal Encyclical, in the strictest sense, is a letter sent by the pope which is explicitly addressed to Roman Catholic bishops of a particular area or to the world, usually treating some aspect of Catholic doctrine. A Papal Encyclical is generally used for significant issues, and is second in importance only to the highest-ranking document now issued by popes, an Apostolic Constitution.
The title of a Papal Encyclical is usually taken from its first few words.
View of Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII held that papal encyclicals, even when they are not ex cathedra, can nonetheless be sufficiently authoritative to end theological debate on a particular question. He wrote in Humani generis:
The use of encyclicals by Pius XII
Encyclicals indicate high Papal priority for an issue at a given time. Only pontiffs define when, and under which circumstances encyclicals should be issued. They may choose to issue an apostolic constitution, bull, encyclical, apostolic letter or give a papal speech. Pontiffs differ on the use of encyclicals. On the issue of birth control and contraception, for example, Pope Pius XI issued the encyclical Casti connubii, while Pope Pius XII spoke to midwives and the medical profession when he clarified his position on the issue.[1] Pope Paul VI published an encyclical Humanae vitae on the same topic. On matters of war and peace, Pope Pius XII issued ten encyclicals, most of them after 1945, three of them (Datis nuperrime, Sertum laetitiae, and Luctuosissimi eventus) protesting the Soviet invasion and crackdown of the Hungarian revolution in 1956. Pope Paul VI spoke about the war in Vietnam and Pope John Paul II, issued his protest against the war in Iraq in speeches. On social issues, Pope Leo XIII promulgated Rerum novarum, followed by Quadragesimo anno by Pius XI, and Centesimus annus by John Paul II. Pius XII spoke on the same topic to a consistory of cardinals in his Christmas messages and to numerous academic and professional associations.[2] The magisterium of Pius XII is therefore significantly larger than the below listed 41 encyclicals. Most of the detailed teachings are in his papal speeches on specific topics such as:
- Conscience, guilt and fair punishment,[3]
- Ethics of psychological research,[4]
- Farmers,[5]
- Fashion Industry,[6]
- Formation of conscience,[7]
- Genetic research,[8]
- Human dignity,[9]
- Medical doctors and the use of weapons,[10]
- Military medical research,[11]
External links
Notes and References
- Acta Apostolicae Sedis, (AAS) 1951, 835, AAS 1958, 90, AAS 1941, 40, AAS 1952, 258
- Allocution to the Cardinals AAS 1946, 141, and, AAS 1952, 5, AAS 1955, 15;
- AAS, 1955, 60,
- AAS 1958, 268,
- AAS 1950, 251
- AAS 1957
- AA", 1952, 270
- AAS 1953, 666
- AAS 1951, 215
- AAS 1954, 587
- AAS 1953, 744
