Introduction (The Crusader of the 20th Century: Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, by Roberto de Mattei)

“Whether we like it or not, we are all writing

our biography.

And on the day of judgement the book will be opened and read”.

The pages which follow are written to bring the European reader closer to the figure of an eminent thinker and man of action, who is destined to be remembered as a great protagonist of the century that is drawing to a close: Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.¹

Notwithstanding his writings, translated into numerous languages and his work, spread through 26 countries of the 5 continents, there is hardly any mention of Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira in the great encyclopaedias or in scholastic texts; nor is he spoken of by the mass media or intellectuals. This is the greatest proof of how foreign he was to the cultural fashions of the time and also the reason that drives me to write these pages for publication.

I do not claim to produce a complete biography of Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, which would have to be a monumental work in order to be comprehensive, nor do I claim to expound the collection of his doctrinal corpus which is still being published. Further, I do not claim to produce the history, likewise vast and still in full activity, of the Societies for the Defence of Tradition, Family and Property, inspired by him and spread today throughout the world. For all this there is neither the time nor the strength.

More simply I propose to offer the reader an introduction to the thoughts and work of Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, an introduction that will make it possible to formulate a judgement of this great personage, loved and opposed with the same passion, but mostly unknown or deliberately ignored. This then is an initial proposal to become more acquainted with him, while leaving it to others to develop all the aspects of his personality so versatile and rich in unexpected depth.

“Whether we like it or not” Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira wrote “we are all writing our biography. And on the day of judgement the book will be opened and read.”²

Every man must try to give a meaning to the book of his life, of which God is the first true author. Our existence will have a sense in time only to the extent that it corresponds to the mysterious plan outlined for us from eternity. The usefulness of biographical books is to be found in their helping us in this difficult journey, through the living examples of those who preceded us. “Verba movent, exempla trahunt”:³ the models of those men who wrote their biographies in the “lived Christianity” of their existence, can contribute to direct our lives and our future too. I hope that this may be the main fruit of my work that I have dedicated to Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.

I also wish to sincerely thank all those who contributed to the publishing of this book. Among these, for their valued help and suggestions given generously, I especially thank Armando Alexandre dos Santos, Julio Loredo, José Messias Lins Brandão, Juan Miguel Montes, Stefano Nitoglia, Francisco Javier Tost Torres, José Antonio Ureta, Guido Vignelli, Mario Navarro da Costa for his review of the English edition, as well as Philip Moran and all those who contributed to make this English edition possible.

I consider it a gift of Providence that I had the chance to personally meet Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira a number of times, between 1976 and 1995. Without this direct acquaintance, this book would not have been possible.

Roberto de Mattei

Notes:

1 This study has been carried out in an objective and scientific spirit, through a scrupulous control of the documents. The main sources consulted for studying the work of Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, apart from the nineteen books that he published, are the more than 2,500 articles and essays that appeared in the weekly O Legionário (1927-47), in the monthly Catolicismo (1951-95) and in the daily Folha de S.Paulo (1968-93). An initial overview of his main activities may be found in the books Tradition, Family, Property: Half a Century of Epic Anticommunism (The Foundation for a Christian Civilization, Inc., Mount Kisco, New York 1981), Um Homem, uma Obra, uma Gesta. Homenagem das TFPs a Plínio Corrêa de Oliveira (Edições Brasil de Amanhã, São Paulo s.d.) and in the work of João S. Clá Dias, Dona Lucilia (Artpress, São Paulo 1995), dedicated to Lucilia Ribeiro dos Santos, mother of our subject. Special mention should also be made, due to the depth of its research, of the doctorate thesis of Lizanias de Souza Lima, Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, Um cruzado do século XX, (Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas, São Paulo 1984).

Naturally, great importance must be attributed to the accessible unpublished writings: among these is a Philosophical Self-portrait published in Catolicismo, n° 550 (October 1996); also important are the numerous testimonies of all those who had the chance and the privilege to be personally acquainted with Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.

2 Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, “Seriedade”, in Catolicismo, no. 485 (May 1991).

3 Adolfo Tanquerey, Compendio di Teologia Ascetica e Mistica, It. tr., Desclée, Rome 1928, p.27.