George Matulaitis Journal

134 April 9 Yesterday and today I have been attentively reading this year’s and last year’s Acta Apostolicae Sedis, 1 and taking note of whatever might be interesting and useful to us. In the evening I spoke to the brothers about what I thought would be of interest to them. God has given me a special grace. I have come to understand that from no other source than the Holy Father’s various writings, addresses, letters, and activities approved by him can we come to know what the needs of the Church are, what maladies afflict mankind, which remedies are prescribed, what errors and unwholesome opinions are to be avoided, and also which truths should be especially emphasized—and presented to the people. Before, I would read only the encyclicals and rarely glance at the ordinary letters of the Holy Father. How fortunate we are to have an infallible Teacher! The Holy Father’s pronouncements and writings against the modernists 2 and Simonists 3 I have found most enlightening. Almost unconsciously a person can inhale, so to speak, certain theories which are not entirely tenable, even though they may be propagated under seemingly Catholic auspices. In such cases, since one may not be sufficiently informed about the issue, it is easy to be caught off guard. What a good thing it is that the Holy Father warns and instructs us, shows us where the danger lies. Thank you, Lord, that our Church is organized in this way. What a great grace is this gift of infallibility! I am now determined to read not only the encyclicals, but also the Holy Father’s addresses and letters, since they are such a good source of information about what we lack, what to avoid, and also which course to follow and what to pay attention to. It would be a good idea for one or two members of our Congregation to read the documents of the Holy See thoroughly and take note of where the Holy Father is directing his people and what he wants to guard us against. Then they could report on these things to the whole community for general 1 Acts of the Apostolic See : the official periodical of the Holy See and of Vatican City published in Latin. Founded by Pope Pius X in 1908. 2 In his encyclical Pascendi, made public Sept. 7, 1907, Pius X described modernism as a synthesis of all heresies. This was a general term used for certain rationalistic and agnostic attitudes toward religion char- acteristic of modern thought. 3 The followers of Claude Henri de Rouvroy, the Comte Saint-Simon (1760-1825). He had originated a theory and system of social reform that greatly influenced the development of French socialism. His Nouveau Christianisme (New Christianity), a religion for the industrial age, was censured by the Catholic Church.