Todd then uses these geographical patterns to explain something different: the pattern of de-christianization that took place over the century following the Revolution.
Basically, de-christianization is associated with the regions involving a large number of landless workers, whereas this cultural process was least virulent in regions of peasant proprietorship.
Quite different, though also supported by the Papacy, was what was referred to as Specialized Catholic Action, which argued that re-christianization could only succeed by approaching distinct groups in distinct ways, a favored slogan being that of "like evangelizing like".
The Lay Apostolate, therefore, has an important role to play in social educationâ€”especially those associations and organizations which have as their specific objective the christianization of contemporary society.
Infant baptism became a christianization of Abraham's covenant with the Lord, a ritual signifying the contact and contract between God and humanity, centering on the element of society depicted as the most vulnerable and virtuous of humankind.