The Socialism of to-day

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Monograph

Identifikator:: 835096955

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-28834

Document type:: Monograph

Author:: Laveleye, Émile de

Title:: The Socialism of to-day

Place of publication:: London

Publisher:: Field & Tuer

Year of publication:: 1884

Scope:: 1 Online-Ressource (XLIV, 331 S.)

Collection:: Economics Books

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118 THE SOCIALISM OF TO-DAY. Already in 1863, at the Munich Congress of Catholic savants, the illustrious theologian Dœllinger maintained that Catholic associations should grapple with the social question. Soon afterwards, an eminent prelate, the Bishop of Mayence, Monseigneur Ketteier, published a book upon the same subject, which made a great stir, and which was entitled Die Arbeiter frage und das Kristenthum (“ The Labour Question and Christianity”). He showed that, upon certain points. Social ism and Christianity were in accord. In reality the idea was not altogether new. In the Middle Ages, the Jacquerie in France, and the revolted peasantry of the sixteenth century in Germany, invoked the Gospel. The men of the French Revo lution, who dreamed of something more than the establishment of liberty and civil equality, did the same ; and, in his cynical language, Camille Desmoulins called Jesus the first of the sans-culottes. After 1848 French Socialists frequently cited the Christian Fathers in support of their doctrines; and a Communist, Villegardelle, who was not wanting in intelligence, compiled a whole volume of extracts from their writings to prove that private property should be unhesitatingly abolished.* In 1852, twelve years before the Bishop of Mayence, François Huet, a Catholic philosopher of rare merit, issued a volume. Le Règne Social du Christianisme, where may be found explained, with greater clearness, method, and science, those ideas which are to-day promulgated by the Catholic Socialists. It is beyond question the best book upon the subject which has yet appeared. When the Gospel is appealed to in favour of Communism or Socialism, this is at once right and wrong. If it be intended that Christianity enjoins any particular social or political or ganization, this is a mistake. What Christ preached was a change of heart, internal reformation. He did not dream of modifying surrounding institutions ; they were about to disa])- pear in a cosmical revolution of which the Evangelists have left us a terrible picture. It was “ in another world and under * Histoire des idées sociales avant la Revolution, bv F. Villegardelle. See also, for the same period and style of thought, VEvangile devant le siècle, by Simon Granger.

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