Mater si, magistra no

Last updated

Mater si, magistra no (literally "Mother yes, teacher no") is a macaronic phrase that means Catholics need not follow all the teachings of the Catholic Church, particularly in regard to economic justice or the rights of workers. It was originally in direct response to the papal encyclical Mater et Magistra of 1961, as a reference to the then-current anti-Castro slogan, "Cuba sí, Castro no." [1]

Contents

History

The original use was focused on the Church's 1960s teachings on social policy, as expressed by the encyclical Mater et magistra , but Roman Catholic publications such as the New Oxford Review and the National Catholic Reporter have described it as a slogan for "'pick-and-choose Catholicism" [2] or for those who have a "deep love for the faith and tradition, coupled with skepticism about ecclesiastical authority and its claims to special wisdom." [3]

The phrase is often attributed to William F. Buckley, Jr; although it was first published in Buckley's National Review , [4] the phrase was actually coined by Garry Wills during a telephone conversation with Buckley. [1]

Russell Shaw says the phrase "helped set the stage for the self-righteous dismissals that greeted the 1968 publication of Pope Paul VI's encyclical Humanae Vitae ", and later Pope Francis's Laudato si' on the environment. [5] It became the expression of a knee-jerk antipathy to church teaching [which] spread to other areas where dissenters happened not to like what was taught. [5]

Cultural impact

Related Research Articles

<i>Humanae vitae</i> 1968 encyclical by Pope Paul VI

Humanae vitae is an encyclical written by Pope Paul VI and dated 25 July 1968. The text was issued at a Vatican press conference on 29 July. Subtitled On the Regulation of Birth, it re-affirmed the teaching of the Catholic Church regarding married love, responsible parenthood, and the rejection of artificial contraception. In formulating his teaching he explained why he did not accept the conclusions of the Pontifical Commission on Birth Control established by his predecessor, Pope John XXIII, a commission he himself had expanded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Syllabus of Errors</span> 1864 document issued by the Holy See

The Syllabus of Errors is the name given to a document issued by the Holy See under Pope Pius IX on 8 December 1864, as an appendix to his encyclical letter Quanta cura. It condemns a total of 80 propositions that the pope considered as errors or heresies.

<i>Rerum novarum</i> Encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII (1891)

Rerum novarum, or Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor, is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on 15 May 1891. It is an open letter, passed to all Catholic patriarchs, primates, archbishops and bishops, that addressed the condition of the working classes.

An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin encyclios. The term has been used by Catholics, Anglicans and the Eastern Orthodox Church. Catholic social teaching has advanced 19 encyclicals.

Modernism in the Catholic Church describes attempts to reconcile Catholicism with modern culture, specifically an understanding of the Bible and Catholic tradition in light of the historical-critical method and new philosophical and political developments of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mother church</span> Concept in Christianity

Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metropolitan church. For a particular individual, one's mother church is the church in which one received the sacrament of baptism. The term has specific meanings within different Christian traditions. Catholics refer to the Catholic Church as "Holy Mother Church".

Catholic social teaching (CST) is an area of Catholic doctrine which is concerned with human dignity and the common good in society. It addresses oppression, the role of the state, subsidiarity, social organization, social justice, and wealth distribution. CST's foundations are considered to have been laid by Pope Leo XIII's 1891 encyclical, Rerum novarum, which advocated distributism. Its roots can be traced to Catholic theologians such as Thomas Aquinas and Augustine of Hippo. CST is also derived from the Bible and cultures of the ancient Near East.

Evangelium vitae translated in English as 'The Gospel of Life', is a papal encyclical published on 25 March 1995 by Pope John Paul II. It is a comprehensive document setting out the teaching of the Catholic Church on the sanctity of human life and related issues including murder, abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment, reaffirming the Church's stances on these issues in a way generally considered consistent with previous church teachings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teachings of Pope John Paul II</span>

The teachings of Pope John Paul II are contained in a number of documents. It has been said that these teachings will have a long-lasting influence on the Church.

Pacem in terris is a papal encyclical issued by Pope John XXIII on 11 April 1963, on the rights and obligations of people and their states, as well as proper interstate relations. It emphasizes human dignity and human equality in endorsing women's rights, nuclear nonproliferation and the United Nations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garry Wills</span> American author, political philosopher and historian (born 1934)

Garry Wills is an American author, journalist, political philosopher, and historian, specializing in American history, politics, and religion, especially the history of the Catholic Church. He won a Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1993.

Mystici Corporis Christi(The Mystical Body of Christ) is an encyclical issued by Pope Pius XII on 29 June 1943 during World War II. Its main topic is the Catholic Church as the Mystical Body of Christ.

Mater et magistra is the encyclical written by Pope John XXIII on the topic of "Christianity and Social Progress". It was promulgated on 15 May 1961. The title means "mother and teacher", referring to the role of the church. It describes a necessity to work towards authentic community in order to promote human dignity. It taught that the state must sometimes intervene in matters of health care, education, and housing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mariology of the popes</span> Papal influence on Marian theology and devotion

The Mariology of the popes is the theological study of the influence that the popes have had on the development, formulation and transformation of the Roman Catholic Church's doctrines and devotions relating to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mariological papal documents</span> Papal decrees and doctrines concerning the Virgin Mary

Mariological papal documents have been a major force that has shaped Roman Catholic Mariology over the centuries. Mariology is developed by theologians on the basis not only of Scripture and Tradition but also of the sensus fidei of the faithful as a whole, "from the bishops to the last of the faithful", and papal documents have recorded those developments, defining Marian dogmas, spreading doctrines and encouraging devotions within the Catholic Church.

Social teachings of the papacy encompass papal views described in social encyclicals and other papal communications, beginning with Rerum novarum, Pope Leo XIII's encyclical of 1891.

Pope John XXIII held conservative views on the issues of moral theology and was highly critical of abortion, contraception, artificial insemination, divorce and the ordination of homosexual seminarians.

Triumph was a monthly American magazine published by L. Brent Bozell, Jr. from 1966 to 1976. It published commentary on religious, philosophical, and cultural issues from the traditionalist Catholic perspective.

Laudato si' is the second encyclical of Pope Francis. The encyclical has the subtitle "on care for our common home". In it, the pope critiques consumerism and irresponsible development, laments environmental degradation and global warming, and calls all people of the world to take "swift and unified global action."

References

  1. 1 2 Garry Wills (2003). Why I Am a Catholic. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 48. ISBN   0-618-38048-5.
  2. ↑ "Another Outbreak of Mater, Si; Magistra, No". New Oxford Review. May 4, 2006. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
  3. ↑ "'Poped out' Wills seeks broader horizons". National Catholic Reporter. November 21, 2008. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
  4. ↑ "Going the rounds in conservative circles: 'Mater si, Magistra no.'". National Review . August 12, 1961. p. 77.
  5. 1 2 Shaw, Russel (22 May 2015). "Give the pope's encyclical a chance". The Arlington Catholic Herald .
  6. ↑ "Caveat Lector". The Catholic Labor Network. July 31, 2000. Archived from the original on May 11, 2008. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
  7. ↑ "Living It Up In Important Ways", National Review , October 6, 2005, retrieved 2015-11-19, I had belated second thoughts about the wisdom of republishing a quip of Garry Wills's in my For the Record column. It was the phrase: 'Mater si, Magistra no,' in response to a papal encyclical that got us into lots and lots of trouble with the liberal Catholic press over lots and lots of years.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.