Pope Leo XIII

Pope Leo XIII, born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci on the 2nd of March, 1810, in the tranquil town of Carpineto Romano, Italy, rose from noble yet pious beginnings to become one of the most erudite and influential pontiffs of the modern age. His early education was entrusted to the Jesuits, and his formidable intellect was soon apparent. He entered the Papal Diplomatic Service and was later consecrated Archbishop of Perugia, where he served with distinction for over three decades, shepherding his flock with both tenderness and scholarly zeal.

Elected to the Chair of St. Peter in 1878, following the death of Blessed Pius IX, Pope Leo XIII inherited a Church grappling with the loss of the Papal States and the rising tide of modernism. Undaunted, he embarked upon a pontificate marked by clarity of vision, intellectual brilliance, and pastoral charity. His reign, which would span twenty-five years, was guided by a resolute desire to reconcile the ancient truths of the Faith with the pressing questions of the modern world.

His most celebrated work, the encyclical Rerum Novarum (1891), addressed the rights and duties of capital and labour, laying the foundation for modern Catholic social teaching. With this, he emerged as a voice of reason and justice in an age beset by industrial upheaval and class strife, championing the dignity of the worker and the responsibilities of both employer and state.

A profound lover of learning, Pope Leo XIII promoted Thomistic philosophy and the revival of sacred studies, seeking to strengthen the intellectual life of the Church. He encouraged dialogue with the sciences and upheld the harmony of faith and reason.

Pope Leo XIII entered eternal rest on July 20, 1903. His legacy endures as that of a wise and noble pontiff, one who looked steadfastly to Heaven while guiding the Church through the tempests of the modern age with fatherly wisdom, serene courage, and a heart wholly given to Christ.

Expert from Rerum Novarum

“It is a capital evil with respect to the question We are discussing to take for granted that the one class of society is of itself hostile to the other, as if nature had set rich and poor against each other to fight fiercely in implacable war. This is so abhorrent to reason and truth that the exact opposite is true; for just as in the human body the different members harmonize with one another, whence arises that disposition of parts and proportion in the human figure rightly called symmetry, so likewise nature has commanded in the case of the State that the two classes mentioned should agree harmoniously and should properly form equally balanced counterparts to each other.” (28)

For those interested in reading from Pope Leo XIII's  vast library of encyclicals, there are quite a few free printable booklets available in my collection of Ave Maria Printable Resources.