Catholic Church in the 20th century

The Roman Catholic Church in the 20th century responded to the challenge of increasing secularization of Western society and persecution resulting from great social unrest and revolutions in several countries. It instituted reforms, particularly in the 1970s after the Second Vatican Council, to modernize practices and positions. In this period, Catholic missionaries in the Far East worked to improve education and health care, while evangelizing peoples and attracting followers in China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan.

Catholic social teaching, rooted in the 1891 encyclical Rerum novarum by Pope Leo XIII, addresses the dignity and rights of workers against the backdrop of the Industrial Revolution. It advocates for fair labor conditions, living wages, and the right to form trade unions, establishing a framework that balances the rejection of socialism with a critique of unchecked capitalism. Subsequent teachings, like Quadragesimo anno and the works of Pius XII, expand these principles, emphasizing solidarity, subsidiarity, and the moral dimensions of economic life. This body of teaching continues to evolve, addressing modern social, economic, and technological issues while advocating for justice and the dignity of all individuals.