When the Roman Empire fell apart, consumed by dilapidation and vices, and when the Barbarians tore into its provinces, this man who (according to Tertullian) has been called the last of the great Romans, who combined what was Roman with the Gospel, drew from these two sources the help and the strength to powerfully unite the peoples of Europe under the banner and authority of Christ. For legions of Benedictine monks spread from the Baltic to the Mediterranean, from the Atlantic to the plains of Poland, soothing the rebellious and savage nations by means of the cross, books and the plow.
Pray and work. Does not this Benedictine motto contain in its majestic brevity the main law and rule of life of humankind? Praying is a divine precept; working is also one. We must fulfill the one and the other for the glory of God and the perfection of our minds and bodies. Now [very soon after the Second World War], Europe is groaning from calamities and destitution. In the midst of this storm that caused Europe to fall into disaster and misfortune, it is not inappropriate or useless to remember that powerful interior forces, a long and excellent civilization were established in Europe as if built on extremely solid foundations.
-Pius XII, Pope from 1939 to 1958 Homily in Saint-Paul-outside-the-Walls, September 18, 1947.
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