When listeners to Radio Paris heard the concluding remarks of Maurice Thorez's broadcast of 17 April 1936, ‘we extend our hand to you, Catholic … ’, their reactions ranged from disbelief to satisfaction depending on their political beliefs. Anti-fascists could hardly contain their delight, while militant revolutionaries and anti-clericals scarcely believed their ears. Some Catholics welcomed this gesture of good will in a dangerously divided country, while other Christians denounced it as pure opportunism. Stalin and the Politburo looked on, hoping that the expected result would materialize: a victory for the Popular Front coalition of which the French Communist Party was a member. The Vatican prayed that it would be a mere ripple on the tranquil sea of Catholic France and therefore of little import. In fact the policy turned out not only to be a contributory factor in the Popular Front electoral victory but also qualitatively changed for about a decade the relationship between Communists and Catholics. However, rather than creating unity, as was its avowed intention, ‘la main tendue’ proved to be divisive. It split the Catholic Church and Catholics as it divided the party and its members. It is the impact of this policy which forms the subject of this essay.

In order to comprehend fully the nature of Thorez's appeal he must be quoted more extensively: