Religion is of primary importance, but in itself it is not enough. Man is a social being, and from his social nature has evolved that institution which we call the State. In all discussions of the Catholic social programme, it is necessary to bear in mind what we hold to be self-evident, namely, that the State is an evolution from the family, and not the family from the State; that the State exists for the good of the individual, and not the individual for the good of the State. Government must be founded on Justice and Truth. It must recognize the fundamental, inalienable rights of the individual and the family, the right to worship God according to the dictates of conscience, the right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and the right to possess property.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.