Pius XII on Woman and the Home
By: "The Thinking Housewife"
IN light of the feminist poison that continues to come from the Vatican II Church, it’s worth recalling Pope Pius XII’s beautiful words in 1942 on the role of women in the home. The Holy Father speaks of ideals that many of us fall short of, but that deserve our deepest admiration:
The mother is the sun of the family. She
is its sun by her spirit of generosity and sacrifice, by her constant
readiness, vigilance, delicacy and tact in all that touches the
happiness of her husband and her children; she radiates light and
warmth. …
The wife is the sun of the family by the
light of her smile and the warmth of her word: a smile and words that
inspire, mold and soften the soul, raise it above the tumult of passion,
and bring to the husband the enjoyment of good and of family life at
the end of a long day of continual and perhaps difficult work in his
profession, either in the fields or in the taxing affairs of commerce
and industry. One glance from her eyes throws a light with manifold
reflections; one sound from her lips contains a thousand words of
affection. Such light and sound spring from a mother’s heart, create and
enliven the paradise of childhood, radiate goodness and gentleness
everywhere even when they upbraid and reprove, so that young souls which
feel more deeply, may understand more thoroughly and profoundly the
laws of love.
The wife is the sun of the family by her
natural frankness, by her straightforward dignity, by her irreproachable
Christian behavior. She is its sun in the recollection and rectitude of
spirit, in the subtle harmony of her bearing and dress, in her elegance
and in her deportment – at once both reserved and affectionate.
Delicacy of sentiment, charm of countenance, ingenuous silences and
smiles, a compliant nod … all give to her the grace of an exquisite,
unspoiled flower, which opens its petals to receive and reflect the
colors of the sun. If you only knew with what profound sentiments of
love and appreciation such a picture of wife and mother fills and
impresses the heart of husband and children! …
What happens when the family is deprived
of that sun? When the wife continuously – even in the most intimate
circumstances – does not hesitate to make known what great sacrifices
she makes for married life? What happens to her lovable sweetness when
because of an excessively severe upbringing, unbridled irritability, and
an angry coldness of countenance and speech suffocate in the children
the hope of finding happiness and joyful solace in their mother? What
happens when she sadly does nought else but disturb and embitter the
loyal unity of the family circle with sharp tones, complaints and
reprovals?
What happens to the generous tact and
tender love when instead of forming with natural and exquisite
simplicity an atmosphere of pleasant peace in the home, she takes the
attitude of a dissatisfied, nervous and demanding lady, according to the
fashion? Is this to diffuse the warmth and life of the sun? Is it not
rather to freeze with the chill wind of eventide the garden which is the
family?
Can anyone wonder that in such
circumstances, the husband does not find at the fireside anything to
attract, hold and comfort him? That the husband will escape from it as
much as he can, thus provoking a similar desertion on the part of the
wife – if indeed it is not her absence which provokes his? Both thus go
to seek elsewhere – with grave danger to their souls and to the great
harm of the family unity – the peace, rest, and pleasure denied them in
their own home. In this state of affairs, the unfortunates who suffer
most are undoubtedly the children.
Blessed Virgin Mary: The Woman Clothed with the Sun |
You see, o wifes, to what an extent you
are responsible for the harmony and happiness of the home. Just as it is
the duty of your husband to work to provide the necessities for the
home, it is your duty by your wisdom to ensure its proper well-being and
to procure the undisturbed serenity of your common life. This is not
only an office given you by nature, but a duty of Christian virtue, by
the acts and merits of which you grow in the love and grace of God.
(Pius XII, Allocution to newly-weds of March 11, 1942
in The Woman in the Modern World, arranged by The Monks of Solesmes,
Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1958, pp. 83-85
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