The Spanish Constitution of 1931 was marked by what Catholics considered a deprivation of their rights.
In the Pope's words: "Thus the Catholic Church is compelled to pay taxes on what was violently wrenched from her".
[3] The encyclical also denounced the fact that religious vestments, liturgical instruments, statues, pictures, vases, gems and similar objects necessary for worship were expropriated as well.
The encyclical pointed to greed as a motivation for the theft of the Church's artistic treasures and indicated that the government showed no regard for the dignity of country's faithful and their attachment to the religious works of art.
Although the government was heavily criticised, the Pope noted: "Universally known is the fact that the Catholic Church is never bound to one form of government more than to another, provided the Divine rights of God and of Christian consciences are safe".