Centesimus annus pro pontefice

(15, 11.2011) Pope Benedict XVI upheld Saturday the position of the family as the “domestic church”, and inviolable sanctuary where the human person grows to maturity. That family was the cell of society, which was called upon to uphold the dignity of the human person. He spoke these words to the members of the Foundation known as Centesimus Annus-Pro Pontifice led by their President, Dr Domingo Sugranyes Bickel. This meeting also marked the 20th anniversary of Blessed Pope John Paul II’s 1991 encyclical, “Centesimus annus” -100th year, from which the foundation takes its name. That encyclical highlighted the 100th anniversary of the first epoch-making encyclical of Pope Leo XIII, on the social doctrine of the church, called “Rerum Novarum”, issued in the wake of the Industrial Revolution in Europe and the creation of the class of workers in industry. The foundation had just completed two days of study at the Vatican and the occasion marked also the 30th anniversary of the Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris consortio, on the family.