Society And its Purpose
Book 3 - Determining the End of Civil Societies
CHAPTER 18
How Christianity assisted humanity’s temporal interests by detaching humanity from them
487. The influence exercised by Christianity on human societies is a subject requiring the most profound meditation by the philosopher. This is why I should now like to add some further reflections on this historical event, so profound and mysterious in its nature. Montesquieu, for example, exclaims in wonder that Christianity, which seems intent only on obtaining happiness for human beings in the other life, makes them happy in the present life as well. We have already explained this fact. More surprising than the explanation itself, however, is that Christianity (whose sole aim is to form future happiness for humanity) not only forms our happiness in the present life, but does so precisely because it is intent solely on obtaining mankind’s eternal happiness.
488. This is so true that Christianity would never have succeeded in its aim in any way if it had set out directly to gain temporal benefits for human creatures. Humanity had already set its mind of its own accord on the acquisition of temporal good. As we saw, this resulted in disillusionment about such good; people came to rest only in what seemed their one real good, that is, in the enjoyment of sensual voluptuousness, in which they lost the use of their intelligence. Human good ceased to be a spring maintaining the intellect in motion; its final effect was to extinguish intellectual movement. If Christianity, therefore, had set out to obtain temporal good directly, it would never have been able to raise mankind from the state of temporal misery in which the human race lay prostrate. On the other hand, by the very fact of prompting and stimulating human beings to acquire an absolute, spiritual good, containing infinite nourishment for the intelligence, Christianity rehabilitated both human will and reason. It made moral virtue possible, and provided mankind with a dignity that savoured of the divine. Certainly, in doing this it detached human beings from temporal good. Such detachment was necessary, however, if people were to become capable of making proper use of such good.
Temporal good, when it forms the end of human beings, serves only to brutalise them and, as it were, annihilate the human race. Individuals who act as though temporal advantage were their end, do not truly enjoy it but use it to their own pain and destruction. The detachment from temporal good imposed upon human beings by Christianity consists in making people see that such good cannot be considered as an end, but only as a simple means to their end. This enables Christianity to put right order into people’s affections and actions. As long as individuals claim to find their end in earthly good, they cannot find in it what they seek because it is not there to be found. The sole result of their vain, despairing effort is exhaustion and depression.
On the other hand, when people simply see in temporal good means given them by a sublime Providence for the sake of an absolute, eternal end, they are immediately capable of enjoying temporal good without finding in it bitter poison to torment and destroy them. In this sense the use and enjoyment of temporal good is similar to the act by which we see: if an object is too near the eye, the eye cannot perceive it. In teaching the world that earthly good is not an end but a means, Christianity places human beings at the proper distance from this good; they are able to make reasonable, moderate use of it only with benefit to themselves.
489. We should not be surprised if in Christian nations, where people have been strengthened in virtue and furnished with upright ideas about the value of temporal things, these things have ceased to be dangerous and harmful. This explains why fewer precautions are taken by Christians in the care of their women than by non-Christian nations. Christianity freed woman from prison and slavery by making of her a being full of dignity, in no way inferior to the stronger sex; Christianity took her from the Oriental seraglio and harem and made her the beloved centre of the Christian family, the kind and sometimes holy adornment of decent conversation, even the teacher, example and stimulus of all the virtues.
490. Such considerations show the overwhelming stupidity of the teaching proffered by unbelief and recently brought to light from the depths of many hearts by the formulations of the Sansimonians who accused Christianity of seeking temporal benefits only indirectly. They proclaimed a new school and new religion which, because it aimed directly at human temporal benefits, seemed much better than Christianity. We need not spend too much time confuting such outrageous falsity!
491. First, the formulations presuppose that Christianity is not divine, although both Christianity and its effects have no other basis and reason than the faith that people have in its divinity. Saint-Simonism, starting not from faith but from unbelief, undertakes to destroy all Christian good at its root. It is impossible to suppose, however, that Saint-Simonism is so insane as to think itself divine, or hope that human beings will believe in the divinity or inspiration of people who are so laughably incredulous in everything they say when they have no other aim than the direct procurement of temporal benefits for others. These are prophets who have painted themselves into a corner. Surrounded by temporal things, they cannot go to God; still less can they come from God.
492. Second, they are not doing anything new; they continue what others have done and do in the absence of Christianity. In other words, they take temporal good as an end rather than means. The experience has been repeated too many times: temporal good taken as an end brings nations to self-destruction, and mankind to bestiality. That is the one, sure conclusion of Saint-Simonian civilisation.
The reason why Saint-Simonism has not yet succeeded in bringing human beings to the opposite term from that to which it has promised and intends to lead them — in other words, it has not reduced them to total savagery — is that its teachings have neither penetrated the masses, nor possess the power to make themselves acceptable to mankind. It is certain however that this school, which claims to know only temporal happiness, is the most suitable of all, thanks to the extraordinary but nonetheless true opposition between appearance and reality, to drag mankind down to ultimate temporal misery.
493. This error has unfortunately spread to many minds, and exercises great influence in society! It is sad that many, even though engaged in public affairs or in writing books on political theory, do not penetrate the profound nature of Christianity or its secret way of achieving present benefit for mankind! It is an error, as common as it is fatal, to consider religion either solely or principally as a political means for assisting the material advantage of human society. If we think of the Christian faith from this point of view, it ceases to be divine and becomes human. From that moment, its beneficent action has fled the hands of legislators and government, although they claim to use it for the well-being of those they govern. Christian religion can enhance human temporal circumstances only on condition it is professed sincerely, as an altogether supernatural institution which is not concerned with the instantaneous, limited things of this world, but aims at what is eternal and infinite. Its divine Founder preached and taught this from the beginning: `Seek first the kingdom of God and his justice and all these things will be added unto to you.’(231) Temporal things, therefore, are adjuncts to the promise, which depends upon a prior search for the kingdom of God and his justice.
Notes
(231) Mt 6: [33 Douai].