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“Pilgrim’s Progress in the Nineteenth Century"
No caption.
In
this cartoon, artist Thomas Nast harshly condemns the anticipated
doctrine of papal infallibility soon to be proclaimed by the Ecumenical
Council (1869-1870), later known as Vatican I, which was called into
session by Pope Pius IX (papacy, 1846-1878).
The image is inspired primarily by a passage from John Bunyan’s
Pilgrim’s Progress (1678), an allegorical tale in which
Christian, the Protestant main character, fights against the temptations
and evils of the world. Here, Pope Pius is portrayed sitting before the dark cave of
the Ecumenical Council, marked “No Discussion Allowed,” and along
the side of which is inscribed, “I am infallible,” “I am …
master over all Christians,” and “I am sole supreme judge of what is
right and wrong.” Looking demented, the pope bites his fingernails, while
surrounded by the skeletons of martyrs who defied the Roman Catholic
Church, including John Huss (1369?-1415) and Savonarola (1452-1498).
The
secondary image in the cartoon reflects a quote out of a daily newspaper
(click the illustration to read the enlarged text), in which the governments of Europe are expected to reject the
doctrine. The Ecumenical
Council met as the Vatican was losing its temporal authority over what
were called the Papal States. Since
756, the papacy had exerted political control over several states in
central Italy, but the reunification of Italy led to the final loss of
the Papal States in 1870. The
papacy’s relationship to the Italian Republic remained in dispute
until the Vatican was recognized as an independent city-state in 1929.
In
the right-foreground, a Christian knight and a solemn assembly of world
leaders, looking on in dismay and defiance, are symbolically separated
from the pope by a deep chasm. The
leaders include: King Victor Emmanuel of Italy (in the front point position); to
the right of the king, Giuseppe
Garibaldi, the leader of Italian
independence; behind Garibaldi, Emperor Napoleon III of France; and,
linked arm in arm, President Ulysses S. Grant and Queen Victoria of
Great Britain. The progress
and enlightenment they represent is overcast by the dark, grim, stormy
(note the lightning), and morbid atmosphere conjured up by the doctrine
of papal infallibility. Nast
was baptized a Roman Catholic in his native Germany, but came to
consider the Catholic Church as a reactionary relic at odds with the
modern world of liberal democracies and church-state separation.
The
doctrine of papal infallibility means that the pope cannot err in the
articulation of church teachings concerning issues of faith and morality
when he speaks ex cathedra—“from the chair”—in his role as
pastor and teacher of all Christians.
That does not mean, however, that either the man who presides as
pope is or that all of his pronouncements, even concerning Church
doctrine, are without fault. Infallibility
deals with the correct statement of truths that have already been
divinely revealed, but is not itself divine revelation.
In
fact, papal infallibility has only been invoked twice: Pope Pius IX’s declaration in 1854 of the Immaculate
Conception of the Virgin Mary (that she was born without the taint of
original sin), and Pope Pius XII’s proclamation in 1950 of the
Assumption of the Virgin Mary (that she entered Heaven without dying on
earth). According to the
Roman Catholic Church, the reasoning behind papal infallibility is based
on New Testament scriptures and previous Church teachings and
traditions. Eastern
Orthodox and Protestant Christians do not accept the doctrine.
In
December 1864, Pope Pius IX proposed to call a general council, and in
March 1865 appointed a committee of cardinals to draft a list of
preliminary issues for discussion, and solicited the confidential
suggestions from several dozen bishops serving all over the world.
The committee met numerous times during the next few years, and
subcommittees were formed, which included theologians and canon lawyers.
The
Vatican invited to the Ecumenical Council the Roman Catholic cardinals,
bishops, and heads of religious orders, in addition to granting
admission (without formal invitation) to Catholic political heads of
state or their representatives. 774
of the eligible 1050 Roman Catholic clerics participated, and Russia was
the only country that forbade its Catholic bishops from attending.
Many in the Catholic Church warmly received the news that an
Ecumenical Council was to be convened.
Yet, fears that a doctrine of papal infallibility would be
announced aroused vocal opposition, particularly in France, Germany, and
England. In Germany, the
anti-infallibility movement was led by Ignaz Dollinger, a priest and
professor of church history. Because
of the controversy, German bishops unsuccessfully petitioned that the
discussion of papal infallibility be postponed.
On December 2, 1869, Pope Pius
presided at a meeting of 500 bishops in the Sistine Chapel, at which
time the officers and procedures of the Ecumenical Council were
announced. The Council met
in four public sessions and 89 general congregations between December 8,
1869, and September 1, 1870. The
first motion to define the doctrine of papal infallibility was made on
Christmas 1869 by Archbishop Dechamps of Belgian, and received the
support of a large majority. On
January 21, 1870, a draft decree was circulated called (in English)
“The Roman Pontiff cannot err in defining matters of faith and
morals.” As expected,
several European governments formally protested, including Austria,
Bavaria, France, Great Britain, Spain, and Portugal.
From early June through
mid-July 1870, the issue of papal infallibility was the main subject for
discussion at the Ecumenical Council.
On July 13, a vote on the council’s draft document, which
included the claim of papal infallibility, was 451 in favor, 62
conditionally affirmative, and 88 against.
A final vote was taken on July 18, 433 bishops in favor and only
2 bishops opposed, and the pope promulgated the dogma of papal
infallibility. The two
dissenting bishops (one from Italy and one from Little Rock, Arkansas)
formally accepted the doctrine in front of the pope.
Those who were absent at the time expressed their acceptance in
writing. In Germany, Father
Dollinger’s followers formed the Old Catholic Church, although he did
not associate himself with it, while in Switzerland, opponents of papal
infallibility formed the Christian Catholic Church.
Robert C. Kennedy
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