Pope Benedict XVI at Westminster Hall

Mr Speaker,

Thank you for your words of welcome on behalf of this distinguished gathering. As I address you, I am conscious of the privilege afforded me to speak to the British people and their representatives in Westminster Hall, a building of unique significance in the civil and political history of the people of these islands. Allow me also to express my esteem for the Parliament which has existed on this site for centuries and which has had such a profound influence on the development of participative government among the nations, especially in the Commonwealth and the English-speaking world at large. Your common law tradition serves as the basis of legal systems in many parts of the world, and your particular vision of the respective rights and duties of the state and the individual, and of the separation of powers, remains an inspiration to many across the globe.

As I speak to you in this historic setting, I think of the countless men and women down the centuries who have played their part in the momentous events that have taken place within these walls and have shaped the lives of many generations of Britons, and others besides. In particular, I recall the figure of Saint Thomas More, the great English scholar and statesman, who is admired by believers and non-believers alike for the integrity with which he followed his conscience, even at the cost of displeasing the sovereign whose ”good servant” he was, because he chose to serve God first. The dilemma which faced More in those difficult times, the perennial question of the relationship between what is owed to Caesar and what is owed to God, allows me the opportunity to reflect with you briefly on the proper place of religious belief within the political process.

This country’s Parliamentary tradition owes much to the national instinct for moderation, to the desire to achieve a genuine balance between the legitimate claims of government and the rights of those subject to it. While decisive steps have been taken at several points in your history to place limits on the exercise of power, the nation’s political institutions have been able to evolve with a remarkable degree of stability. In the process, Britain has emerged as a pluralist democracy which places great value on freedom of speech, freedom of political affiliation and respect for the rule of law, with a strong sense of the individual’s rights and duties, and of the equality of all citizens before the law. While couched in different language, Catholic social teaching has much in common with this approach, in its overriding concern to safeguard the unique dignity of every human person, created in the image and likeness of God, and in its emphasis on the duty of civil authority to foster the common good.

And yet the fundamental questions at stake in Thomas More’s trial continue to present themselves in ever-changing terms as new social conditions emerge. Each generation, as it seeks to advance the common good, must ask anew: what are the requirements that governments may reasonably impose upon citizens, and how far do they extend? By appeal to what authority can moral dilemmas be resolved? These questions take us directly to the ethical foundations of civil discourse. If the moral principles underpinning the democratic process are themselves determined by nothing more solid than social consensus, then the fragility of the process becomes all too evident - herein lies the real challenge for democracy.

The inadequacy of pragmatic, short-term solutions to complex social and ethical problems has been illustrated all too clearly by the recent global financial crisis. There is widespread agreement that the lack of a solid ethical foundation for economic activity has contributed to the grave difficulties now being experienced by millions of people throughout the world. Just as “every economic decision has a moral consequence” (Caritas in Veritate, 37), so too in the political field, the ethical dimension of policy has far-reaching consequences that no government can afford to ignore. A positive illustration of this is found in one of the British Parliament’s particularly notable achievements – the abolition of the slave trade. The campaign that led to this landmark legislation was built upon firm ethical principles, rooted in the natural law, and it has made a contribution to civilization of which this nation may be justly proud.



The central question at issue, then, is this: where is the ethical foundation for political choices to be found? The Catholic tradition maintains that the objective norms governing right action are accessible to reason, prescinding from the content of revelation. According to this understanding, the role of religion in political debate is not so much to supply these norms, as if they could not be known by non-believers – still less to propose concrete political solutions, which would lie altogether outside the competence of religion – but rather to help purify and shed light upon the application of reason to the discovery of objective moral principles. This “corrective” role of religion vis-à-vis reason is not always welcomed, though, partly because distorted forms of religion, such as sectarianism and fundamentalism, can be seen to create serious social problems themselves. And in their turn, these distortions of religion arise when insufficient attention is given to the purifying and structuring role of reason within religion. It is a two-way process. Without the corrective supplied by religion, though, reason too can fall prey to distortions, as when it is manipulated by ideology, or applied in a partial way that fails to take full account of the dignity of the human person. Such misuse of reason, after all, was what gave rise to the slave trade in the first place and to many other social evils, not least the totalitarian ideologies of the twentieth century. This is why I would suggest that the world of reason and the world of faith – the world of secular rationality and the world of religious belief – need one another and should not be afraid to enter into a profound and ongoing dialogue, for the good of our civilization.

Religion, in other words, is not a problem for legislators to solve, but a vital contributor to the national conversation. In this light, I cannot but voice my concern at the increasing marginalization of religion, particularly of Christianity, that is taking place in some quarters, even in nations which place a great emphasis on tolerance. There are those who would advocate that the voice of religion be silenced, or at least relegated to the purely private sphere. There are those who argue that the public celebration of festivals such as Christmas should be discouraged, in the questionable belief that it might somehow offend those of other religions or none. And there are those who argue – paradoxically with the intention of eliminating discrimination – that Christians in public roles should be required at times to act against their conscience. These are worrying signs of a failure to appreciate not only the rights of believers to freedom of conscience and freedom of religion, but also the legitimate role of religion in the public square. I would invite all of you, therefore, within your respective spheres of influence, to seek ways of promoting and encouraging dialogue between faith and reason at every level of national life.

Your readiness to do so is already implied in the unprecedented invitation extended to me today. And it finds expression in the fields of concern in which your Government has been engaged with the Holy See. In the area of peace, there have been exchanges regarding the elaboration of an international arms trade treaty; regarding human rights, the Holy See and the United Kingdom have welcomed the spread of democracy, especially in the last sixty-five years; in the field of development, there has been collaboration on debt relief, fair trade and financing for development, particularly through the International Finance Facility, the International Immunization Bond, and the Advanced Market Commitment. The Holy See also looks forward to exploring with the United Kingdom new ways to promote environmental responsibility, to the benefit of all.

I also note that the present Government has committed the United Kingdom to devoting 0.7% of national income to development aid by 2013. In recent years it has been encouraging to witness the positive signs of a worldwide growth in solidarity towards the poor. But to turn this solidarity into effective action calls for fresh thinking that will improve life conditions in many important areas, such as food production, clean water, job creation, education, support to families, especially migrants, and basic healthcare.

Where human lives are concerned, time is always short: yet the world has witnessed the vast resources that governments can draw upon to rescue financial institutions deemed “too big to fail”. Surely the integral human development of the world’s peoples is no less important: here is an enterprise, worthy of the world’s attention, that is truly “too big to fail”.

This overview of recent cooperation between the United Kingdom and the Holy See illustrates well how much progress has been made, in the years that have passed since the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations, in promoting throughout the world the many core values that we share. I hope and pray that this relationship will continue to bear fruit, and that it will be mirrored in a growing acceptance of the need for dialogue and respect at every level of society between the world of reason and the world of faith. I am convinced that, within this country too, there are many areas in which the Church and the public authorities can work together for the good of citizens, in harmony with Britain’s long-standing tradition. For such cooperation to be possible, religious bodies – including institutions linked to the Catholic Church – need to be free to act in accordance with their own principles and specific convictions based upon the faith and the official teaching of the Church. In this way, such basic rights as religious freedom, freedom of conscience and freedom of association are guaranteed. The angels looking down on us from the magnificent ceiling of this ancient Hall remind us of the long tradition from which British Parliamentary democracy has evolved. They remind us that God is constantly watching over us to guide and protect us. And they summon us to acknowledge the vital contribution that religious belief has made and can continue to make to the life of the nation.

Mr Speaker, I thank you once again for this opportunity briefly to address this distinguished audience. Let me assure you and the Lord Speaker of my continued good wishes and prayers for you and for the fruitful work of both Houses of this ancient Parliament. Thank you and God bless you all!

Benedict XVI on John of Salibury's Teachings on Natural Law

IN HIS GENERAL AUDIENCE on December 16, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI had the occasion of discussing John of Salisbury. During the audience made some salutary comments on the natural law. The English version on the Vatican's web page is truncated, so I have translated the fuller, Spanish version.

Pope Benedict XVI

My dear brothers and sisters:

Today we are going to discuss the figure of John of Salibury, a man who belonged the Cathedral Chapter of Chartres in France, one of most important medieval philosophical and theological schools. Like the theologians of whom I have spoken in the last weeks, he also helps us to understand how the faith, in harmony with the right aspirations of the reason, impels thought towards revealed truth, in which is found the man's true good.

John was born in England, in Salisbury, between 1100 and 1120. Reading his works, and especially his rich correspondence, we can learn about the most important events of is life. During twelve years, from 1136 to 1148, he dedicated himself to study, attending the most qualified schools of the time, at which he audited the lessons of famous teachers. He later went to Paris and to Chartres, and it is these places that most marked his formation, and at which he experienced a great cultural growth, one engendered by an interest over speculative problems and the appreciation of Literature. As often happened in that time, the most brilliant students were retained by prelates and sovereigns to help collaborate in their rule. This also happened to John of Salisbury, who was introduced by a great friend his, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, to Theobald, archbishop of Canterbury--the preeminent see of England, at which he was welcomed into its clergy.

During eleven years, between 1150 to 1161, John was secretary and chaplain of the elderly archbishop. With untiring fervor, while he continued dedicating himself to his studies, he carried out intense diplomatic activity, traveling on ten occasions to Italy, with the specific objective to attending to the relations of the Kingdom and the Church of England with the Roman Pontiff. Additionally, in those years the Pope was Adrian IV, an Englishman who maintained intimate friendship with John of Salisbury. In the years following Pope Adrian's death in 1159, a situation arose that created serious tension between the Church and the English Kingdom. King Henry II tried to establish his authority over the internal life of the Church, limiting its freedom. The King's taking of this position provoked the reactions of John of Salisbury, and above all the brave resistance of Theobald's successor to the episcopal chair of Canterbury, St. Thomas Becket who, for that reason, was exiled to France. John of Salisbury accompanied the exiled Thomas and remained at his service, always working toward reconciliation. In 1170, by which time both John and St. Thomas Becket had returned to England, the latter was attacked and assassinated within his cathedral. Becket died a martyr and the public immediately venerated him as one. John remained at hand, faithfully serving also the successor of St. Thomas, until he was chosen bishop of Chartres, at which position he remained from 1176 to 1180, the year of his death.

Of the works of John of Salisbury, I want to focus on two that are considered his masterpieces, elegantly designated by their Greek titles of Metalogicon (In defense of logic) and the Polycraticus (the man of Government). In the first work he--with the fine irony that characterizes many cultured men--rejects the position of those who advanced a restrictive conception of culture, considering it like empty eloquence, useless words. In distinction, John praises culture, the authentic philosophy, that is to say, the encounter between forceful thought and communication, the effective use of words. He writes: “In fact, in the same way that eloquence that is not illumined by reason is not only temerarious, but also blind, therefore wisdom that does not use the words not only is weak, but also in a certain sense infertile perhaps, because although wisdom without words can benefit one when relating with his own conscience, it rarely and only little benefits society” (Metalogicon 1, 1: PL 199, 327). A very true teaching. Today, that which John calls “eloquence”, that is to say, the possibility of communicating with instruments more and more elaborate and diverse, has multiplied itself enormously. So much more urgent, however, does the necessity continue of communicating messages equipped with “wisdom”, that is to say, inspired by the truth, goodness, and beauty. This is a great responsibility, one which affects in a special way those persons who work in the multiform and complex ambit of culture, communication, and in the mass media. And this is a space in which the Gospel can be announced with missionary vigor.

In the Metalogicon, John confronts the problems of logic, in his time object of great interest, and considers a fundamental question : What can human reason know? To what extent does it correspond with the aspiration that there is in all men, that is to say, to the search for truth? John of Salisbury assumes a balanced position, based upon the teachings contained in treatises of Aristotle and Cicero. According to him, human reason ordinarily achieves knowledge that is not unquestionable, but only probable and debatable. Human knowledge--this is his conclusion--is imperfect because it is subject to finiteness, to the limit of the man. Nevertheless, knowledge grows and is perfected thanks to experience, to the elaboration of right and coherent reason, and is able to establish relations between concepts and reality, as a result of discussion, of confrontation; and so knowledge becomes richer generation upon generation. Only in God there is a perfect science, which is communicated to man, at least partially, by means of Revelation accepted by faith, by which the science of faith, theology, unfolds the potentialities of reason and, in humility, makes progress in the knowledge of the mysteries of God.

The believer and the theologian, who deepen the treasure of the faith, also open themselves to a practical knowledge that guides daily action in the moral law and the exercise of virtue. John of Salisbury writes: “The mercy of God has granted his law to us which establishes what things are useful for us to know, and indicates how much it is allowed us to know of God and how much it is just for us to investigate . . . . In fact, in this law is made explicit and manifest the will of God, in order that each of us knows what it is necessary for us to do.” (Metalogicon, 4, 41: PL 199, 944-945).

According to John of Salisbury, an objective and immutable truth also exists, whose origin is God, accessible to human reason and which concerns practical and social action. There is a natural law (derecho natural), by which human laws and political and religious authorities must be inspired, so that they can promote the common good. This natural law (ley natural) is characterized by a property that John calls “equity”, that is to say, the giving of each person his due. From this law are derived rules that are legitimate for all peoples, and that in no case can be abolished. This is the central thesis of the Polycraticus, the treatise of philosophy and political theology, in which John of Salisbury reflects on the conditions that make just and permissible the action of those in government.

While other matters addressed in this work are tied to the historical circumstances in which it was composed, the subject of the relation between natural law and the positive-juridical order, mediated through the principle of equity, continues to be of great importance. In our time, especially in some countries, we perceive a worrisome separation between reason (which has the task of discovering the ethical values united with the dignity of the human person) and freedom (which has the responsibility of welcoming them and promoting them). Perhaps John of Salisbury would remind us today that the only laws that are in agreement with the concept of equity are those that promote the sacredness of human life and reject the licitness of the abortion, euthanasia, and irresponsible genetic experimentation; are those that respect the dignity of marriage between a man and a woman; are those inspired by a correct notion of the secular State--a secularism that always entails safeguards of religious freedom, and which promotes subsidiarity and solidarity at national and international levels. Anything to the contrary would result in ushering in what John of Salisbury defines as “tyranny of the prince” or, as we would say, “the dictatorship of relativism”: a relativism that, as I mentioned some years ago, “does not recognize anything as definitive and which proposes as its last rule only the self and its own desire.” (Homily in the misa “pro eligendo Roman Pontiff”: Roman L'Osservatore, edition in Spanish language, 22 of April of 2005, P. 3).

In my more recent encyclical, Caritas in veritate, directing myself to men of good will who work so that the social and political action never moves away of the objective truth on man and his dignity, I wrote: “The truth, and the love that it awakens, cannot be produced, but can only be welcomed. Its last source is not, nor can be, man, but God, that is, He Who is Truth and Love. This principle is very important for society and its development, inasmuch as neither truth nor love can be only human products; the very vocation to the development of people and nations is not based on a simple human deliberation, but is enrolled in a plan that precedes us, and which for all of us it is a duty to freely welcome." (No. 52). This plan which precedes us--this truth of being--we must search for and welcome, so that justice may be born; but we can find it and only welcome it with a heart, a will, a reason purified in the light of God.

Martyrdom of St. Thomas Becket

Pope Benedict XVI on the Natural Moral Law

ON DECEMBER 5, 2008, POPE BENEDICT XVI met with members of the International Theological Commission following the end of its 5-year working program. The Commission, of no more than thirty members, works under the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Its purpose is to support the Congregation in examing issues of importance relating to Faith and Morals. Archbishop Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer, SI, Secretary General of the Commission presented the Commission's final study.

In his talk to the members, Pope Benedict XVI reaffirmed "the necessity and the urgent need in the current situation of culture and of civil and political society to create the conditions to raise awareness of the indispensable value of natural moral law (legge morale naturale)." The Pope praised the the International Theological Commission's study entitled The Search for Universal Ethics: A New Look at Natural Law. In his address to the Commission, the Pope stated that "the results are clear that natural law is the authentic guarantee that everyone has to live free, and to be respected in their dignity as human beings." The Natural Law provides the resource to persons to defend themselves from "any form of ideological manipulation and from all abuses perpetrated on the basis of the law of the strongest (la legge del più forte)."

On June 12, 2009, the document was published on the Holy See's Web page in Italian and in French.

An excerpt of the Pope's talk can be seen below:


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Pope Benedict XVI to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences

On May 4, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI addressed the participants in the fifteenth Plenary Session of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences is charged with the mission of advancing the Church's social doctrine in the areas of the economy, politics, law, and other social sciences. The focus of the session was human rights, what the Pope called a "a point of encounter between the doctrine of the Church and contemporary society."

The world’s great religions and philosophies have illuminated some aspects of these human rights, which are concisely expressed in “the golden rule” found in the Gospel: “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Lk 6:31; cf. Mt 7:12). The Church has always affirmed that fundamental rights, above and beyond the different ways in which they are formulated and the different degrees of importance they may have in various cultural contexts, are to be upheld and accorded universal recognition because they are inherent in the very nature of man, who is created in the image and likeness of God. If all human beings are created in the image and likeness of God, then they share a common nature that binds them together and calls for universal respect. The Church, assimilating the teaching of Christ, considers the person as “the worthiest of nature” (St. Thomas Aquinas, De potentia, 9, 3) and has taught that the ethical and political order that governs relationships between persons finds its origin in the very structure of man’s being. The discovery of America and the ensuing anthropological debate in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Europe led to a heightened awareness of human rights as such and of their universality (ius gentium). The modern period helped shape the idea that the message of Christ – because it proclaims that God loves every man and woman and that every human being is called to love God freely – demonstrates that everyone, independently of his or her social and cultural condition, by nature deserves freedom. At the same time, we must always remember that “freedom itself needs to be set free. It is Christ who sets it free” (Veritatis Splendor, 86).

The Pope observed that the tragic suffering called by the world wars and the crimes against humanity spurred the formation of a new system of international law based upon the notion of human rights.

Human rights became the reference point of a shared universal ethos – at least at the level of aspiration – for most of humankind. These rights have been ratified by almost every State in the world. The Second Vatican Council, in the Declaration Dignitatis Humanae, as well as my predecessors Paul VI and John Paul II, forcefully referred to the right to life and the right to freedom of conscience and religion as being at the centre of those rights that spring from human nature itself.

These human rights are predicated on reason, on the natural law which participates in the eternal law. Though based upon reason, and so accessible by reason alone, revelation both confirms and enlightens our knowledge of the natural law.

Strictly speaking, these human rights are not truths of faith, even though they are discoverable – and indeed come to full light – in the message of Christ who “reveals man to man himself” (Gaudium et Spes, 22). They receive further confirmation from faith. Yet it stands to reason that, living and acting in the physical world as spiritual beings, men and women ascertain the pervading presence of a logos which enables them to distinguish not only between true and false, but also good and evil, better and worse, and justice and injustice. This ability to discern – this radical agency – renders every person capable of grasping the “natural law”, which is nothing other than a participation in the eternal law: “unde…lex naturalis nihil aliud est quam participatio legis aeternae in rationali creatura” (St. Thomas Aquinas, ST I-II, 91, 2). The natural law is a universal guide recognizable to everyone, on the basis of which all people can reciprocally understand and love each other. Human rights, therefore, are ultimately rooted in a participation of God, who has created each human person with intelligence and freedom. If this solid ethical and political basis is ignored, human rights remain fragile since they are deprived of their sound foundation.

The Church’s action in promoting human rights is therefore supported by rational reflection, in such a way that these rights can be presented to all people of good will, independently of any religious affiliation they may have. Nevertheless, as I have observed in my Encyclicals, on the one hand, human reason must undergo constant purification by faith, insofar as it is always in danger of a certain ethical blindness caused by disordered passions and sin; and, on the other hand, insofar as human rights need to be re-appropriated by every generation and by each individual, and insofar as human freedom – which proceeds by a succession of free choices – is always fragile, the human person needs the unconditional hope and love that can only be found in God and that lead to participation in the justice and generosity of God towards others (cf. Deus Caritas Est, 18, and Spe Salvi, 24).

The Pope pointed to the "flagrant contrast" between the "attribution of rights and the unequal access to the means of attaining those rights." He urged leaders to collaborate in reducing the gap between the theory of human rights and their practice. Recently returned from Africa, the Pope expressed solicitude to that one-fifth of humanity that tragically "still goes hungry."

For Christians who regularly ask God to “give us this day our daily bread”, it is a shameful tragedy that one-fifth of humanity still goes hungry. Assuring an adequate food supply, like the protection of vital resources such as water and energy, requires all international leaders to collaborate in showing a readiness to work in good faith, respecting the natural law and promoting solidarity and subsidiarity with the weakest regions and peoples of the planet as the most effective strategy for eliminating social inequalities between countries and societies and for increasing global security.

He exhorted the participants to continue their efforts, and to be "credible and consistent witnesses to the defense and promotion of these non-negotiable human rights which are founded in divine law."


For a copy of the Pope's address, click here.