By Pope Pius XII
An Address to the Directors of the Associations for Large Families of Rome and of Italy
January 20, 1958
Beloved sons and daughters, Officers and Representatives of the
Associations for Large Families of Rome and of Italy, this visit of
yours has to be listed among those that bring deepest pleasure to Our
heart. You are well aware of the lively interest We have in family life,
of how We never miss an opportunity to point out its many-sided
dignity, to reassert its rights and defend them, to inculcate the duties
it involves — in a word, We make it a key-point of Our pastoral
teaching.
It is this same anxious interest in families that makes Us agree so
readily to spend at least a few moments with family groups that come to
Our home (whenever the duties of Our office do not make this
impossible), and this is why, on occasion, We consent to be photographed
in the midst of them, so as to leave some kind of lasting record of Our
joy and theirs.
Father of the human family
The Pope in the midst of a family! Isn’t that right where he belongs?
Isn’t he (in the loftiest spiritual sense of the word) the Father of
the whole human family that has been reborn in Christ and in the Church?
Is it not through him, the Vicar of Christ on earth, that the wonderful
plan of creative Wisdom is put into effect — a plan that has conferred
on all human fatherhood the destiny of preparing a chosen family for
heaven, where the love of the One and Triune God will enfold them in a
single eternal embrace and give them Himself as the inheritance that
will make them perfectly happy?
A triple testimony
But you do not represent just any families at all; you are and
represent large families, those most blessed by God and specially loved
and prized by the Church as its most precious treasures. For these
families offer particularly clear testimony to three things that serve
to assure the world of the truth of the Church’s doctrine and the
soundness of its practice, and that redound, through good example, to
the great benefit of all other families and of civil society itself.
Wherever you find large families in great numbers, they point to: the
physical and moral health of a Christian people; a living faith in God
and trust in His Providence; the fruitful and joyful holiness of
Catholic marriage.
We would like to say a few words about each of these points.
Surely, one of the most harmful aberrations that has appeared in
modern society with its pagan tendencies is the opinion of those who are
eager to classify fruitfulness in marriage as a “social malady,” and
who maintain that any nation that finds itself thus afflicted must exert
every effort and use every means to cure the disease. This is the basis
for the propaganda that goes under the name of “planned parenthood”;
at times it is promoted by persons and organizations who command respect
because of their positions in other fields, but who, unfortunately,
have taken a stand in this matter which must be condemned.
Birth control
Sad as it is to realize how widespread doctrines and practices of
this kind have become, even among the traditionally healthy classes, it
is comforting to see indications and proofs of a healthy reaction in
your country, both in the legal and in the medical fields. As you know,
article 31 of the current Constitution of the Italian Republic, to cite
just one source, pays “special attention to large families,” and the
prevailing teaching among Italian doctors is along a line of opposition
ever more strongly against birth-control practices.
This does not mean that the danger has passed and that we have
destroyed the prejudices which tend to make marriage and its wise norms
submit to the aims of reprehensible pride and selfishness on the part of
society or of individuals. We particularly deplore that section of the
press that every so often takes up the question once again with the
obvious intention of confusing good people and drawing them into error
with misleading evidence, questionable polls, and even falsified
statements from some cleric or other.
Obedience to nature’s laws
On the part of Catholics, We must urge the wide dissemination of the
principle, firmly founded on truth, that the only way to protect the
physical and moral health of the family and of society is through
whole-hearted obedience to the laws of nature, or rather of the Creator,
and most of all by fostering a sacred, heart-felt respect for them.
In this matter, everything depends on the intention. You can multiply
laws and make the penalties heavier; you can give irrefutable proofs of
the stupidity of birth-control theories and of the harm that comes from
putting them into practice; but as long as there is no sincere
determination to let the Creator carry on His work as He chooses, then
human selfishness will always find new sophistries and excuses to still
the voice of conscience (to the extent it can), and to carry on abuses.
Now the value of the testimony offered by the parents of large
families lies not only in their unequivocal and forceful rejection of
any deliberate compromise between the law of God and human selfishness,
but also in their readiness to accept joyfully and gratefully these
priceless gifts of God — their children — in whatever number it may
please Him to send them.
This kind of attitude frees married couples from oppressive anxieties
and remorse, and, in the opinion of outstanding doctors, creates the
ideal psychological conditions for the healthy development of children
born of the marriage. For, right at the beginning of these new lives, it
eliminates all those worries and disturbances that can so easily leave
physical or psychological scars on the mother or child.
Apart from exceptional cases and We have had occasion to speak of
these before — nature’s law is basically one of harmony, and it leads to
discord and contradictions only in cases where its normal operation is
upset by particular circumstances which are for the most part abnormal,
or by deliberate opposition from a human will. There is no eugenics that
can improve upon nature: it is good as a science only so long as it
aims at gaining a profound knowledge of nature’s laws and respects these
laws — although in some cases it may be wise to dissuade people who
suffer from serious defects from getting married (cfr. Enc. Casti
connubii, Dec. 31, 1930: A.A.S. 22 (1930) p. 565).
Physical and moral health
Again, good common sense has always and everywhere looked upon large
families as a sign, a proof, and a source of physical health, and
history makes no mistake when it points to violation and abuse of the
laws governing marriage and procreation as the primary cause of the
decay of peoples.
Far from being a “social malady,” large families are a guarantee of
the moral and physical health of a people. Virtues flourish
spontaneously in homes where a baby’s cries always echo from the crib,
and vice is put to flight, as if it has been chased away by the
childhood that is renewed there like the fresh and invigorating breath
of spring.
So let the weak and selfish take their example from you; let the
nation continue to be loving and grateful toward you for all the
sacrifices you have taken upon yourselves to raise and educate its
citizens; just as the Church is pleased with you for enabling her to
offer, along with you, ever healthier and larger groups of souls to the
sanctifying activity of the divine Spirit.
In the modern civil world a large family is usually, with good
reason, looked upon as evidence of the fact that the Christian faith is
being lived up to, for the selfishness that We just pointed out as the
principal obstacle to an increase in the size of a family group cannot
be successfully overcome without recourse to ethical and religious
principles.
In recent times we have seen how so-called “demographic politics”
have failed to achieve any noteworthy results; it is easy to see why,
for the individual interest will almost always win out over the
collective pride and selfishness which this idea so often expresses, and
the aims and methods of this policy debase the dignity of the family
and the person by placing them on the same level as lower species.
The Light of Christianity
Only the divine and eternal light of Christianity gives full life and
meaning to the family and this is so true that right from the beginning
and through the whole course of its history, large families have often
been considered as synonymous with Christian families.
Respect for divine laws has made them abound with life; faith in God
gives parents the strength and vigor they need to face the sacrifice and
self-denial demanded for the raising of their children; Christian
principles guide them and help them in the hard work of education; the
Christian spirit of love watches over their peace and good order, and
seems to draw forth from nature and bestow the deepest family joys that
belong to parents, to children, to brothers and sisters.
Even externally, a large, well-ordered family is a kind of visible
shrine: the sacrament of Baptism is not an exceptional event for them
but something constantly renewing the joy and grace of the Lord. The
series of happy pilgrimages to the Baptismal font is not yet finished
when a new one to Confirmation and first Communion begins, aglow with
the same innocence. The youngest of the children will scarcely have put
away his little white suit among the dearest memories of life, when the
first wedding veil appears to bring parents, children, and new relatives
together at the foot of the altar. More marriages, more Baptisms, more
first Communions follow each other like ever-new springtimes that, in a
sense, make the visits of God and of His grace to the home unending.
Trust in God
But God also visits large families with His Providence, and parents,
especially those who are poor, give clear testimony to this by resting
all their trust in Him when human efforts are not enough. A trust that
has a solid foundation and is not in vain! Providence — to put it in
human words and ideas — is not a sum total of exceptional acts of divine
pity; it is the ordinary result of harmonious activity on the part of
the infinite wisdom, goodness and omnipotence of the Creator. God will
never refuse a means of living to those He calls into being.
The Divine Master has explicitly taught that “life is worth more than
food, and the body more than clothing” (cf. Matt. 6, 25). If single
incidents, whether small or great, seem to contradict this, it is a sign
that man has placed some obstacle in the way of divine order, or else,
in exceptional cases, that God has higher plans for good; but Providence
is something real, something necessary since God is the Creator.
Overpopulation
The so-called problem of overpopulation of the earth is partly real
and partly unreasonably feared as an imminent catastrophe for modern
society; but undoubtedly the rise of this problem and the continued
failure to arrive at a solution of it is not due to some mixup or
inertia on the part of divine Providence, but rather to disorder on
man’s part — especially to his selfishness and avarice.
With the progress that has been made in technology, with the ease of
transportation, and with the new sources of energy that are just
beginning to be tapped, the earth can promise prosperity to all those
who will dwell on it for a long time to come.
As for the future, who can foresee what new and unsuspected resources
may be found on our planet, and what surprises may be uncovered outside
of it by the wonderful scientific achievements that have just barely
begun? And who can be sure that the natural rhythm of procreation will
be the same in the future as it is now? Is it not possible that some law
that will moderate the rhythm of expansion from within may come into
play? Providence has reserved the future destiny of the world to itself.
It is strange to find that the fears of some individuals are able to
change well-founded hopes for prosperity into catastrophic spectre at
the very moment when science is changing what used to be considered the
dreams of wild imaginations into useful realities.
So overpopulation is not a valid reason for spreading illicit birth
control practices. It is simply a pretext used by those who would
justify avarice and selfishness — by those nations, for instance, who
fear that the expansion of others will pose a danger to their own
political position and cause a lowering of the general standard of
living, or by individuals, especially those who are better off, who
prefer the greatest possible enjoyment of earthly goods to the praise
and merit of bringing new lives into existence. The final result is that
they break the fixed and certain laws of the Creator under the pretext
of correcting supposed errors on the part of His Providence.
It would be more reasonable and useful if modern society would make a
more determined, universal effort to correct its own conduct, by
removing the causes of hunger in the overpopulated or “depressed areas,”
through a more active use of modern discoveries for peaceful aims, a
more open political policy of collaboration and exchange, a more
far-seeing and less nationalistic economy; above all, by reacting to all
suggestions of selfishness with charity, to those of avarice with a
more concrete application of justice.
God is not going to ask men for an accounting of the general destiny
of mankind; that is His business; but He will demand an accounting of
the single acts that they have deliberately performed in accordance with
or against the dictates of conscience.
As for you, parents and children of large families, keep on giving a
serene and firm testimony of your trust in divine Providence, and be
assured that He will not fail to repay you with the testimony of His
daily help and, whenever necessary, with those extraordinary helps that
many of you have been happy to experience already.
And now a few words on your third testimony — words that may give new
strength to those who are fearful and bring you a little comfort.
Large families are the most splendid flower-beds in the garden of the
Church; happiness flowers in them and sanctity ripens in favorable
soil. Every family group, even the smallest, was meant by God to be an
oasis of spiritual peace. But there is a tremendous difference: where
the number of children is not much more than one, that serene intimacy
that gives value to life has a touch of melancholy or of pallor about
it; it does not last as long, it may be more uncertain, it is often
clouded by secret fears and remorse.
Happiness in a Large Family
It is very different from the serenity of spirit to be found in
parents who are surrounded by a rich abundance of young lives. The joy
that comes from the plentiful blessings of God breaks out in a thousand
different ways and there is no fear that it will end. The brows of these
fathers and mothers may be burdened with cares, but there is never a
trace of that inner shadow that betrays anxiety of conscience or fear of
an irreparable return to loneliness, Their youth never seems to fade
away, as long as the sweet fragrance of a crib remains in the home, as
long as the walls of the house echo to the silvery voices of children
and grandchildren.
Their heavy labors multiplied many times over, their redoubled
sacrifices and their renunciation of costly amusements are generously
rewarded even here below by the inexhaustible treasury of affection and
tender hopes that dwell in their hearts without ever tiring them or
bothering them.
The hopes soon become a reality when the eldest daughter begins to
help her mother take care of the baby and on the day the oldest son
comes home with his face beaming with the first salary he has earned
himself. That day will be a particularly happy one for parents, for it
will make the spectre of an old age spent in misery disappear, and they
will feel assured of a reward for their sacrifices.
When there are many children, the youngsters are spared the boredom
of loneliness and the discomfort of having to live in the midst of
adults all the time. It is true that they may sometimes become so lively
as to get on your nerves, and their disagreements may seem like small
riots; but even their arguments play an effective role in the formation
of character, as long as they are brief and superficial. Children in
large families learn almost automatically to be careful of what they do
and to assume responsibility for it, to have a respect for each other
and help each other, to be open-hearted and generous. For them, the
family is a little proving ground, before they move into the world
outside, which will be harder on them and more demanding.
Vocations
All of these precious benefits will be more solid and permanent, more
intense and more fruitful if the large family takes the supernatural
spirit of the Gospel, which spiritualizes everything and makes it
eternal, as its own particular guiding rule and basis. Experience shows
that in these cases, God often goes beyond the ordinary gifts of
Providence, such as joy and peace, to bestow on it a special call — a
vocation to the priesthood, to the religious life, to the highest
sanctity.
With good reason, it has often been pointed out that large families
have been in the forefront as the cradles of saints. We might cite,
among others, the family of St. Louis, the King of France, made up of
ten children, that of St. Catherine of Siena who came from a family of
twenty-five, St. Robert Bellarmine from a family of twelve, and St. Pius
X from a family of ten.
Every vocation is a secret of Providence; but these cases prove that a
large number of children does not prevent parents from giving them an
outstanding and perfect upbringing; and they show that the number does
not work out to the disadvantage of their quality, with regard to either
physical or spiritual values.
Vigilance and Action
One last word to you, Directors and Representatives of the Associations for Large Families of Rome and of Italy.
Be careful to imprint the seal of an ever more vigilant and fruitful
dynamism on the action that you intend to carry out in behalf of the
dignity of large families and for their economic protection.
With regard to the first of these aims, keep in line with the
directives of the Church; with regard to the second, you have to shake
out of its lethargy that part of society that is not yet aware of its
social responsibilities. Providence is a divine truth and reality, but
it chooses to make use of human cooperators. Ordinarily it moves into
action and comes to our aid when it has been summoned and practically
led by the hand by man; it loves to lie hidden behind human activity.
While it is only right to acknowledge that Italian legislation can
legitimately boast of being most advanced in this area of affording
protection to families and especially to large families, We should not
close our eyes to the fact that there are still a considerable number of
them who are tossed back and forth between discomfort and real
privation, through no fault of their own. Your action must aim at
bringing these people the protection of the laws, and in more urgent
cases the help of charity. Every positive achievement in this field is
like a solid stone set into the structure of the nation and of the
church; it is the very best thing you can do as Catholics and as
citizens.
Calling down the divine protection upon your families and those of
all Italy, placing them once again under the heavenly protection of the
Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, We impart to you with all Our
heart Our paternal Apostolic Blessing.
