SISTEMA DE GARANTÍA DE CALIDAD DEL TÍTULO

THE Catholic Action in Belgium and its political ex- pression : "Christus Rex". — The testimony of Raymond de Becker, former Rexist: Livre des vivants et des morts.

Education at the Jesuits'. Youth's spiritual crisis between the two world wars. The Catholic Action in conquest of the modern world. Mgr. Picard, Canon Cardijn and their creature Leon Degrelle, apostles of Fascism.

L'Action catholique, corrupter of consciences. Journey to Rome. "You men from the north believe in dogmas.

We make them". — Retreat to the Trappe. Pius XI, Enemy of France. — German aggression: Belgium collapses, undermined by the "fifth column". — Leon Degrelle on the Russian front. The Memoirs of a braggart.

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"In this struggle, we have to be on Germany's side;

That is why the young people must join the SS.

Glory fires the blood and spurs on the soul."

FATHER VERSCHAEVE (Jong Europa, 1942)

"Catholicism is hostile to intellectual liberty and incompatible with the principle and trend of modern civilization; it arouses unwarrantable pretensions to govern, and threatens the rights of the family; it tends to undermine the soul's love of truth;

it alienates cultured minds in whatever country it is professed, and, wherever it reigns, saps the morality and strength of the state."

GLADSTONE.

AFTER Italy and Mussolini's Fascism; Germany and Hitler's Nazism; and Spain and the Falangism of General Franco, a similar situation created by the Vatican in another European country can now be examined. We shall thus add Rexist Belgium to the Papacy's honours list.

"Christus Rex" was a subversive political movement set up by the Catholic Action. The objective of its leaders was not spiritual revival, but to attract to themselves young Catholics who could first be schooled to the fascist ideology boosted by the Papacy, and then launched forth on the attack against democracy. Cardinal Van Rooy, Primate of Belgium, gave his blessing to the new cate- chumens of Fascism, as follows:

"Greetings, young troop of the glorious Catholic Army! I salute and bless you in the name of all Belgian bishops."

Some of the catechumens were disillusioned, but they were not all able to make a timely escape from the yoke of Mgr. Picard and Canon Cardijn.

We have an example in the moving testimony of a former Rexist and seminarist, Raymond de Becker. His book: Livre des vivants et des morts¹ is an autobiographical narrative of great interest. He

1Editions de la Toison d'Or, Brussels 1942, pp. 8, 27, 52, 53, 61 to 63. 64. 65 to 68. 70 to 73.

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describes his activity in the bosom of the Catholic Action and takes us behind the scenes of this movement, run by the Vatican for solely political ends. It is important to note that Raymond de Becker's testimony is particularly valuable since he was tried and convicted of collaboration with the enemy.

"The majority among the bourgeois circles", he writes, "con- sidered it better to put their children to school in Jesuit colleges or episcopal colleges than in the state schools.... At the age of seven, therefore, I was sent to the Institut Sainte-Marie. . . .

"We had constantly before our eyes nothing but figures of the sorrowing Virgin and of Christ crucified; from the outset our consciences were tormented and distorted by visions of blood and horror. . . . Our minds could get no farther than the narrow confines of dogma, and our consciences suffered terrors which had no con- nexion with real life. . . ."

The author goes on to describe his early experiences of the world, which happened to be in a small job in a commercial firm. But he was disheartened by the uninteresting work and the vulgarity of his colleagues :

"Thus, when one of my friends, who had been seduced by the priestly vocation and was several years older than I, tried to convince me, his affection and arguments met with little opposition. ... I therefore accepted Catholicism once again . . . and this is how I came to join the Action Catholique de la Jeunesse (Catholic Youth Movement). . . ."

Raymond de Becker then describes the spiritual crises that Europe was going through after the war, and the rising generation's deep-rooted desire for a bright new world:

"In Belgium and among most Catholic youths of Europe, this need for the absolute and for renewal was thought to have found its expression in the Action Catholique. . . . Everyone, except for a few people who deliberately closed their eyes, was forced to recognize that Catholic Europe now existed only in history books. . . . Con- sequently, Catholic Action began as the expression of a sincere impulse.... The Church found in Pope Pius XI an inspired man who was resolved to free her from her age-old fetters and so enable her to conquer the modern world. His call found a particularly en- thusiastic echo in Belgium. . . .

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"Catholic Action had found in Belgium some men exceptionally well suited to develop ideas and propagate them among the people.

The first was Mgr. Picard ... the other was Canon Cardijn, founder of the 'Jocist' movement, an irascible, violent-tempered and visionary individual... . I joined the secretariat of Catholic Action at Louvain, as Secretary General of the J.I.C. (Jeunesse Independante Catho- lique). A certain Father Foucart, a bearded Jesuit, used to come regularly to the secretariat . . . among whom was Victor Mathys, who was later to become Director of the Pays Reel and head of 'Rex' during Leon Degrelle's absence at the eastern front. This little group used to meet at mealtimes and in the chapel, for common prayers. ...

"One day 1 was in Father Desmedt's office, when the door burst open. . . . Father Desmedt shouted almost as loudly as the intruder and they both seemed very pleased with themselves. . . . Father Desmedt turned to me, full of enthusiasm:

'It's Leon Degrelle, a tough guy!'

"Incidentally, Leon Degrelle also was living in the house. . . .

" We all were, even then, agitated by a kind of Fascism. . . . Indeed, it should be noted that the Catholic Action circles in which I moved were most sympathetic towards Italian Fascism. . . . Mgr. Picard proclaimed Mussolini's genius from the housetops and prayed for the coming of a dictator. . . . Moreover, contacts with Italy and Fascism were being encouraged through pilgrimages. On one occasion, when I was returning with three hundred students from a visit to Italy, everyone was giving the Roman salute and singing 'Giovinezza' . . ."

Another writer, Jacques Saint-Germain,² gives the following details on Mgr. Picard's role:

"Mgr. Picard displayed remarkable activity. . . . From 1928 onwards, Leon Degrelle's group was to collaborate regularly with Mgr. Picard. The youngsters learned from him the thousand and one details of methods of modern propaganda ... of the way to spread ideas. . . . Mgr. Picard entrusted Leon Degrelle with a par- ticularly important mission—that of running a new publishing house established within the Catholic Action secretariat. This publishing house was soon to become famous: it was called Rex.

2La Bataille de Rex (Les Oeuvres Francaises, Paris 1937, pp. 60 to 67, 69, 70, 80, 81, 82, 115, 130.

89 et seq.).

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The apostles of Fascism

"On 10 October 1931, the Rex publishers launched the first paper to be directed by Leon Degrelle. ... It was called Soirees . . . from that day a new breeze blew over the Catholic world. ... On 30 September 1932, Leon Degrelle threw himself into the fray and on that day Soirees launched a political supplement called Rex.

"The appeals for a new regime were increasing ... the astonishing results of this propaganda in Germany were noted with much interest. In an article of October 1933, Vlan recalled that the Nazis had numbered only seven in 1919, and that a few years later, Hitler had brought them the sole asset of his gift for publicity. . . . Founded upon similar principles, the Rexist team began its active propaganda within the country. ... On 8 July 1933, the first 'Rex' manifesto was published. It read:

'Rex' is:

1. A youth movement;

2. A movement of Catholic action.

'Rex' will devote itself:

1. To Belgium, to reinvigorate its blood. . . .

2. To Christ, Christus Rex, by devoting to Him every effort of its soldiers and apostles. . . .

" 'The present 'Rex' movement works like a police force', wrote Le Peuple. 'Every Fascist movement has had the same rowdy character in its origins. . . .'

"The whole intellectual standpoint of the young movement was.

indeed, violently opposed to the ideology of 1789. . . ."

Thus, since it worked by undermining, Catholic Action was pre- paring war from inside. It was found to be an efficient corrupter of consciences.

"A book we came across at that time had a great influence upon our generation. It was Un nouveau moyen age, by Nicolas Berdiaeff ....'The time is near!' wrote Berdiaeff, 'for extreme application .... A special type of monastic life will have to be developed in the world, a kind of 'New Order'.' ... I could think of this new totalitarian order only as Catholic. . . ."

Yet a pilgrimage to Rome left Raymond de Becker³ on the whole

3Livre des vivants et des moris, pp. 73, 74. 82. 101 112 to 118, 134 to 139 and 140

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