1 In Our recent encyclical We examined the disorders with which the world today struggles for the purpose of discovering a sure remedy for such great evils. At that time We pointed out that the roots of these evils lie in the souls of men and that the sole hope of curing them is to have recourse to the assistance of the Divine Healer Jesus Christ by the means which He has placed at the disposal of His Holy Church. The great need of our day is to curb the unmeasured desires of mankind, desires which are the fundamental cause of wars and dissensions, which act, too, as a dissolving force in social life and in international relations. It is no less necessary to turn back the minds of men from the passing things of this world to those which are eternal, which latter unhappily are too often neglected by the great majority of mankind. If every individual would resolve faithfully to live up to his obligations, a great social improvement would be realized almost immediately. Such an improvement is precisely the objective of the teachings and ministry of the Church, for her special mission is to instruct mankind by the preaching of truths which have been divinely revealed and to sanctify them by means of the grace of God. By the use of these methods she hopes to call back civil society to ways conformable to the spirit of Christ which once upon a time we followed. This she feels impelled to do as often as she finds society straying from the paths of righteousness.
Source: Rerum Omnium Perturbationem (Vatican.va)