Catholic Conservatives, Population, and the Family in Twentieth Century France

Abstract

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO STUDY the Catholic approach to population problems without locating it in a specific social context. Philosophers and theologians study ideas and beliefs in and of themselves; social historians insist on the inextricable link between ideas and the people who hold them. Ideas exist hic et nunc, and their meaning varies with time and place. From this perspective, it is particularly interesting to look at the case of twentieth century France, since Catholics have played an important part in the adoption of French pronatalist and family policies. This is so despite the fact that in political terms, Catholics constitute a minority in France. Although France is said to be a Catholic country, the political scene during much of the Third Republic (1870-1940) was dominated by anticlerical Republicans. Indeed the very success of the Republic has been perceived as a defeat of Catholic politics. Consequently, in the political sphere at the end of the nineteenth century, the weakness of French Catholics was more evident than their strength. How, then, did Catholics in the twentieth century manage to realize a family policy that embodied most of their aims? We must make some preliminary distinctions before beginning to answer this question. The first point to make is that it is impossible to speak of French Catholics at the turn of the century as a unity. They were profoundly divided not only on political issues, but even on religious matters. Actually, their conflicting political views were the consequence of conflicting conceptions of life and religion. As seen from abroad, or as seen from the point of view of French Republicans or Protestants, French Catholicism might have appeared to be homogeneous. It certainly was not. One faction obstinately opposed the Republic as a form of government and, indeed, as the embodiment of a set of principles, a philosophy, a way of life counter to Catholic values. Another faction opposed Republican anticlerical policies, but progressively accepted the principles of