As we enter a new era with the election of Pope Leo XIV, it’s impossible not to recall the legacy of his namesake, Pope Leo XIII, who, in 1891, issued the landmark encyclical Rerum Novarum. At the height of the Industrial Revolution, Rerum Novarum offered a prophetic warning: when capitalism is stripped of charity, it invites socialism to fill the void. Pope Leo XIII affirmed the God-given dignity of every worker and reminded both labor and ownership of their sacred responsibilities—calling for an economy not of exploitation or control, but of justice and Christian love.
Today, we face a similar crisis, one driven not by steam and steel, but by algorithms and automation. In an age when human identity is often reduced to data, and digital efficiency can overshadow dignity, Rerum Novarum speaks anew: the economy must serve the human person, not the other way around. Courageous Catholic teaching remains as urgent as ever, rooted in the two-fold dignity of every person: their dignity of existence as children of God, and their dignity of operation, expressed uniquely through their vocation and work.
To mark this historic moment, the Relevant Radio Store is honored to offer a new, beautifully printed canvas portrait of Pope Leo XIV. Let it serve as a daily visual reminder to pray for the Holy Father and for the Church, that she may continue to proclaim truth, protect the vulnerable, and call all people to a life of meaning, mission, and sanctity.
Rerum Novarum: Work, Justice, and the Dignity of Labor
In the late 1800s, Catholic workers across Europe labored in harsh conditions, long hours, meager wages, and little safety. Social unrest was swelling. Socialist ideologies were gaining momentum as the working class cried out for dignity and relief.
Into this storm, Pope Leo XIII issued a prophetic response: Rerum Novarum, the first papal encyclical dedicated entirely to the moral dimensions of labor, justice, and human dignity.
“That the spirit of revolutionary change, which has long been disturbing the nations of the world, should have passed beyond the sphere of politics and made its influence felt in the sphere of practical economics is not surprising. The condition of the working classes is the question of the hour...”
Rerum Novarum, Pope Leo XIII, May 15, 1891
- But Leo XIII didn’t call for political upheaval, he called for conversion.
- Conversion of the employer, to treat workers with justice and respect.
- Conversion of the worker, to fulfill their duties with integrity and purpose.
- Conversion of society, to recognize that human labor is not merely economic, but deeply spiritual.
He taught that the economy must serve the person, not the other way around, and that justice must begin in the heart, the home, and the daily offering of one’s work to God. Each purchase, each task, each act of labor can be sanctified. In this way, our entire economic life becomes Eucharistic, united to the offertory, communion, and final blessing of the Mass.
At the Relevant Radio Store, we strive to live out this vision by promoting goods and partnerships that uphold the Church’s teaching on human dignity, labor, and justice. Our goal is simple yet transformational: to help build a truly Catholic economy, one small, faithful step at a time.
By Brad Fassbender