Frédéric Ozanam’s Lay Vision of Reform: The Transformation of His Church and His World

Ahead of his time, Frédéric Ozanam believed that the laity should play an essential role in what he termed the regeneration of the Church, which would lead to the regeneration of society. This would “occur only if Catholic laypersons understood that they had an obligation to transform themselves and then to use their talents to better their Church and their world.” Transformation was to touch all the religious, social, economic, and political aspects of life. In this spirit, he founded the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul: “the transformation of the individual members, and thereby the transformation of the society in which they lived, was the express intention of this network of charity and justice.” An advocate for what would be termed inclusion today, he thought the Church must champion the rights of the common people, especially workers, including the right to participate in politics. His economic and political views were complex. He did not support socialism. He believed in the separation of Church and state, but he also wanted “a democracy responsive to the Christian principles of the dignity of every person and the common good.” The article gives the social, political, and economic context of Ozanam’s thought.