The title on the first page of the manuscript first captured Pope Pius IX’s intense interest.
Before Leo XIII (the successor to Pius IX), there had not been a systematic treatise on the influence of Catholic ethics on economics, as devout believers always felt that the holy God should not be tainted by secular money. Therefore, to accommodate the faith of the believers, Pope Gregory had to expand capital through covert means.
Many times, Pius IX secretly envied those heretics (Protestants) who could openly associate their doctrines with money.
If Catholicism could make up for its own shortcomings, it could once again shine brightly, perhaps even suppress Protestantism firmly.
At this thought, ripples suddenly appeared in Pius IX’s usually calm heart.
Could he perhaps become the greatest pope of this century in his lifetime?
This thought wildly grew like weeds in Pius IX’s mind.
Pius IX carefully read each character of "Catholic Ethics Economics," afraid of missing any important information.
The five-thousand-word French introduction took Pius IX nearly an hour to finish reading.
Upon finishing the initial draft, Pius IX looked at Jerome Bonaparte with an incredulous look, as if staring at a monster.
"Unbelievable!" Pius IX murmured softly.
"Your Majesty, are you satisfied with my gift?" Jerome Bonaparte remarked calmly.
Pius IX scrutinized Jerome Bonaparte once more, still unwilling to believe that this article came from Jerome’s pen.
"Where did you come by this article?" Pius IX asked his doubt.
"Your Majesty, I wrote this article because I felt the Holy See lacked theories in economics, hoping to help the Holy See overcome its disadvantages in this field!" Jerome Bonaparte expressed this earnestly to Pius IX while making a prayer gesture.
Looking at Jerome Bonaparte’s sincere expression, Pius IX couldn’t help but believe what Jerome Bonaparte had previously told him.
Could he really be different from his uncle?
If before Pius IX had to feign cordial relations with Jerome Bonaparte for the sake of the Pope State’s interest, now his heart’s scale was genuinely tilting towards Jerome Bonaparte.
The two kings of the Bourbon Dynasty (Count of Chambord, Louis Philippe) were far less beneficial to the Holy See’s doctrine than Jerome Bonaparte.
Flattering letters had come to him in unknown numbers.
"Prince Jerome, I notice your article seems to cover only the introductory content; where is the remaining content?" Pius IX eagerly sought to know the whereabouts of the remaining content from Jerome Bonaparte.
"Esteemed Your Majesty, the remaining theories are in the minds of myself and my nephew, who holds God in high reverence!" Jerome Bonaparte pointed to his head, saying, "If you are satisfied with my article, I will do my utmost to complete them!"
"Then I shall wait eagerly for your masterpiece at the Vatican Palace!" Pius IX replied to Jerome Bonaparte.
Then, Pius IX and Jerome Bonaparte discussed certain issues and propositions in the introduction.
"Your Highness, you advocate improving social relations based on the duties of workers, employers, and the state to address worker issues... This does not align with the Holy See’s responsibilities!" Pius IX pointed out certain parts of the introduction to Jerome Bonaparte.
Jerome Bonaparte pondered over the content pointed out by Pius IX for a long time and then realized this proposal was part of Pope Leo XIII’s first social encyclical "Rerum Novarum" in 1891. Since the issuance of the "Rerum Novarum" decree, Catholic parties across Europe, especially within the German Empire, grew rapidly like runaway horses, once becoming the second largest party after the Social Democrats.
The power of the decree was evident.
"Your Majesty, may I ask what is the greatest political crisis facing the Pope State now?" Jerome Bonaparte did not directly respond to Pius IX but rather inquired about the current situation, "Of course, if you were to tell me that the Pope State remains a place of song and dance harmony, then this question wouldn’t be worth discussing!"
"The Pope State now..." Pius IX contemplated for a moment, reorganized his words, and tentatively asked, "Lack of liberalization?"
Jerome Bonaparte looked at Pius IX disappointedly. This pope still hadn’t seen the essence of things, "Your Majesty, if it’s truly a matter of liberalization, then why doesn’t the Sardinian Dynasty face a crisis? Ultimately, what is called liberalization is just a political game among high society, and power in the Pope State is in the hands of you and the Cardinal College, with some people wanting a piece of the pie!"
Historically, the Pope State attempted a liberalization reform, but that reform in 1830 was just an empty gesture, and although times changed, those involved in the reform hadn’t changed at all.
"So, should I let that group come in to share the pie? Why should I sit at the same table with those greedy people!" Pope Pius IX said indignantly.
"Your Majesty, this is the significance of my advocacy! Since you don’t want those greedy people to come in, you need to find an ally!" Jerome Bonaparte said to the pope, "The Holy See needs to assist workers in gaining rights, achieving freedom of association, and obtaining ’wages’ sufficient for family needs. As long as you unite them, Your Majesty, you won’t need to concede to those people and may even use workers to pressure them to relinquish some rights!"
"Can this succeed? Will those mobs really accept it?" Pius IX asked Jerome Bonaparte uncertainly.
"Your Majesty!" Jerome Bonaparte struck while the iron was hot, "Please believe the Holy See in the hearts of the people of the Pope State. They have merely been used by others, causing the current situation! If priests in various places can organize them, ensuring those people have no opportunity, then you will not need to make concessions! Win over some to suppress others..."
Jerome Bonaparte then expounded to Pius IX the theory of "encircling the cities from the countryside," organizing associations using grassroots rural strength to counter urban petit bourgeoisie, thereby achieving balance.