Quiz: Rerum Novarum

10 questions drawn at random. Score 80% for a silver medal.

1. 1. What does Leo say of efforts to make men equal?

   Equality will come in the next century The State should equalise fortunes gradually through taxation It is impossible to reduce human society to a level Equality can be reached by charity alone
2. 2. What example does Leo give to show that there is no shame in seeking one’s bread by labour?

   Christ, a carpenter Himself St Paul, who worked as a tentmaker at Corinth The apostles, who were fishermen The monks of the Middle Ages
3. 3. To what does Leo compare the effect of hard work too early in life on a child?

   A flood washing away a field Rough weather destroying the buds of spring Rust eating iron A frost killing the harvest
4. 4. According to Leo, by whom would the Socialists have common property administered?

   The Church Cooperative societies of producers The State or municipal bodies The workers’ guilds
5. 5. What kind of justice must rulers exercise towards each and every class?

   Commutative justice Legal justice Retributive justice Distributive justice
6. 6. From what source does Leo quote to show man’s natural impulse to call in help from others?

   The rules of the medieval guilds The Roman law Holy Scripture Aristotle’s Politics
7. 7. What do the Church’s critics want to substitute for its charity?

   A system of State-organized relief Higher wages Workers’ mutual-aid societies Private philanthropy by the rich
8. 8. What do the “obsolete opinions” Leo criticises hold?

   That the Church should own all land That private persons may use the soil but not own it That land should be divided equally among families That interest on loans is lawful
9. 9. What does Leo say of land bought by a workman from his savings?

   It is only his wages in another form It belongs in part to the community It may be taxed away for the common good It should be held in trust for his guild
10. 10. What standard does Leo set for wages, as a dictate of nature older than any bargain?

    The wage set by the guild Whatever employer and workman freely agree Enough to keep the wage earner in reasonable and frugal comfort A fixed share of the employer’s profits