DIVINI ILLIUS MAGISTRI. - Encyclical of Pius XI, of 31 Dec. 1929 (AAS, 22 [1930], pp. 49-86), on the Christian education of youth. The subject, of capital importance in the field of pedagogy and at the same time of religion, is masterfully treated in this encyclical, which may be called the "magna charta" of the educator.
The encyclical answers three questions: 1) To whom does education belong? a) It belongs first of all to the Church by positive divine right, inasmuch as she was specifically invested by Jesus Christ with the mission of teaching and of regenerating souls to the supernatural life; as mother and teacher, she has educated peoples, often alone, gathering the best fruits of morality and civilization; b) it belongs likewise to the family by natural right, derived directly from the fact of generation; and this right is inalienable, anterior to every right of the State, and therefore inviolable; c) it belongs also to the State, by virtue of the authority that pertains to it of providing for the temporal common good of the community. Therefore the State must protect the educational right of the Church and of the family, supply for the deficiency of parents, remove public obstacles to a sound education; and it has the right to reserve to itself certain branches proper to instruction, and even to complete the work of the family and of the Church, where these do not reach or do not suffice, with schools and institutions of its own. To safeguard these rights, the coordination of the three societies is naturally required. 2) Who is the subject of education? It is man "in his entirety," body and spirit, fallen through sin, redeemed by Christ. Education therefore cannot be merely natural, but must also be supernatural, not ignoring Grace and the divine law. 3) What is the environment of education? a) The family with its vigilance and its cares; b) the Church with its Sacraments and its institutes; c) the works of vigilance and of preservation, today more especially necessary than in other times. 4) What is the end of education? The formation of man, and not only of man but of the Christian; therefore education must embrace the whole scope of human life, mold upright and complete characters, taking as its model the incomparable examples of Jesus Christ.
Bibliography
Celestino Testore