LUMEN FIDEI (POPE FRANCIS)

Summary of the introduction:

The encyclical starts with what the ancients put their faith in and proceeds to move directly to what our
culture believes about faith that it is something for the blind, those driven by emotion. But, at the
same time, our culture is discovering that reason is not enough. Confusion has set in on what is good
and evil, right and wrong. Faith in Jesus and love in Him gives us a new vision to see the world.
Summary of Chapter 1:
Chapter 1 reviews Salvation Historythe story of Gods peopleto see faith throughout history. It
begins with Abraham who St. Paul often quotes and uses as an example in the New Testament. It is
noted that God speaks and acts towards Abraham as one in a relationship, not as a god who is far
away. Our faith in Him calls us to make a step forwardto go on a journey with Him, just like Abraham.
In this journey, our relationships with God are not just about our faith in Him, but in His faith in us! We
can jeopardize this relationship with idolatry. The story of Israel points to the temptation of idolatryto
worship that which we make with our own hands. Finally, the story of faith finds its summation in Jesus.
He is the fulfillment of all of Gods promises and at the same time shows us why we can trust HimHe
died for us! Because He came into our reality, we can now truly see reality. God is not something
beyond us; He is someone who acts in the here and now.
Summary of Chapter 2:
Chapter 2 seeks to understand the relationship between faith and several other aspectsreason, love,
truth, and theology. Lumen Fidei shows that truth is necessary for faith so that it can remain grounded.
Faith is rooted in reality when it is rooted in truth. Similarly, our love for God has to have this truth as
well or it be fleeting like emotions. Love is needed with faith so that truth does not become cold and
impersonal.
Our culture often believes that truth that is meant for everyone is by its very nature like a dictator. But,
truth for everyone can reveal a common good for everyone and when it is done in love it can be
personalized to each individual.
In the end, truth in the Catholic faith possesses us; we do not possess truth. As we become more
possessed by truth, we grow in humility and in the knowledge of the faith. By taking on knowledge and
humility, we are more capable of sharing this truth with others who are seeking it. A truth that will truly
fulfill what they are ultimately searching for.
Summary of Chapter 3:
Ultimately, faith and truth are received in community. The nature of our lives forces us to have faith in
the truth others are giving usfrom our names to our language. The same is for our Christian faith
which is passed on from one generation to the next. We accept this faith in a community and in the
communion of the Church.
Specially, the sacraments allow us to experience this faith. We are received into the community of the
Church through Baptism and encounter the love and gift of Jesus in the Eucharist. In the Eucharist, we
experience the past gift that God has given us while seeing the future of our eternal home. In addition
to the sacraments, the Our Father and the Decalogue gives us a new vision and a new path to live
while united to our community. This community stays unified through the apostolic tradition and
apostolic succession which safeguards truth and allows our faith to be handed on. Believers must
believe in all of what the Church teaches or they endanger unity.
Summary of Chapter 4
In this final chapter, Lumen Fidei shows how faith should be the foundation of our society. Faith is
needed for the foundation of our society, marriage and family. In marriage, men and women have faith

in a common good and a hope beyond themselves. In this faith and in this love, they provide a model of
faith and a place with faith grows as children place their trust in their parents.
This foundation of family helps form our other relationships as well. Men and women cannot have true
brotherhood without a common father. Faith in God provides this common faith so that our societies can
endure. It also provides the dignity of the human person which is needed in our societies as well.
Faith also provides strength in suffering. Faith does not answer every question, but provides a lamp to
help us navigate through the darkness and the presence of God who is with us personally in our
suffering.
In the end, faith should provide us with joy. Just as Mary accepted Jesus with joy, we too should follow
her example. The sign of our faith lives should be a joy in Jesus.
LUMEN FIDEI (POPE FRANCIS)
Overall, it is helpful to recognize some of the key themes running throughout each chapter of the
encyclical. These concepts arise again and again, reiterating the importance of faith in our world today.
Among these themes, the ones that most stand out are:

faith is light

an encounter with God

hearing and seeing

journey, profess, and build

A Lumen Fidei Summary

Lumen Fidei (The Light of Faith) is divided up into four chapters and an introduction. The introduction
briefly describes the reasons that this encyclical was written and introduces the key themes that will be
presented throughout the encyclical, particularly the themes of light and journey.
From there, Pope Francis lays out an argument for the relevance and importance of faith in the modern
world in a strategic way. He starts with Gods revelation to the world recounted and passed on through
Scripture and the Church and then relates the gift of faith to our lives today.
Briefly, each chapter addresses the following topics:
1. Chapter 1: Faith in the Old Testament, New Testament, and the Church
2. Chapter 2: Faith in the modern world (philosophy, science, world religions)
3. Chapter 3: The essentials of faith (creed, sacraments, prayer, morality)
4. Chapter 4: Faith and society / Faith and the common good
Summary: Introduction to Lumen Fidei
In the short introduction to Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis states the reasons that both he and Pope
Benedict XVI before him focus on the topic of faith, especially during the Year of Faith and the fiftieth
anniversary of the Second Vatican Council. There is an urgent need today to understand the value and
importance of faithnot just to Christians but all humankind.

The metaphor Pope Francis introduces and expands upon throughout the encyclical is that of light.
Faith is the light that illumines our journey in life and provides clarity to all aspects of human existence.
This understanding is critical today, because modern society rejects faith as subjective and infused only
by fleeting emotion. In other words, living by faith is a dark, unenlightened pursuit.
Pope Francis, on the other hand, hopes that his encyclical will help the light of faith grow and enlighten
the present, becoming a star to brighten the horizon of our journey at a time when mankind is
particularly in need of light ( LF, 4).
Summary: Chapter 1 of Lumen Fidei
In chapter 1 of Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis outlines the development of faith through a retelling of
salvation history in the Old and New Testaments. In essence, he hopes to show that faith does not
come from an internal gaze, but rather from an encounter with God and from those people who have
come before us who have themselves encountered God.
God called Abraham and gave him a promise. God saved the Israelites and gave them a promise. God
became man and gave up his life as a promise of our salvation. We can have faith in God, because he
has shown us his love and we know he is faithful to his promises.
Summary: Chapter 2 of Lumen Fidei
In chapter 2 of Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis deals directly with the arguments from secularism and
relativism that challenge faith today. He puts faith and truth into the correct context, continuing to use
the analogy of light as it applies to philosophy, science, non-Christians, non-believers, and the study of
theology. He shows that faith, truth, and reason do not need to be opposed to each other; rather, faith is
truth, and faith enlightens human reason.
Summary: Chapter 3 of Lumen Fidei
In many ways this entire encyclical addresses the essentials of Christian faith, but this chapter in
particular focuses on the backbone of Christian faith, constituted by: the creed, sacraments, prayer, and
morality.
Pope Francis delves deeper into the necessity of the Church for Christian faith by revealing its critical
role in transmitting the faith through the creed, Baptism, the Eucharist, the Lords Prayer, and the Ten
Commandments.
Then, he briefly touches on the traditional four marks of the Church: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.
Summary: Chapter 4 of Lumen Fidei
In the final chapter of Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis describes how faith can benefit and unite all people in
society. To explain this he uses the image of building the city of God.
Faith, since it is a common trust in the loving care of God the Father, unites society in a common
brotherhood in ways that nothing else can: not truths, economies, governments, leaders, nor
ideologies. This unity begins in the family and extends to society.
Faith also gives us hope in suffering, not because it promises healing, but because it assures us of
what God has done for us and of that he is present.
Finally, in closing, the pope turns to Mary as the model of faith.
LAUDATO SI (POPE FRANCIS)

Laudato Si, mi Signore means Praise be to you, my Lord and is taken from a canticle by Saint
Francis of Assisi which reminds us earth like a sister. Our Sister, Mother Earth is now crying out
because of the way we humans have harmed her.
Nothing in this world is indifferent to us
Previous popes have also raised concerns about environmental degradation.
This encyclical is addressed to every person living on this planet with the hope of entering into
dialogue with all people about our common home.
United by the same concern
Numerous scientists, philosophers, theologians, and civic groups also share this concern.
Many of these problems have ethical and spiritual roots.
Saint Francis of Assisi
Francis helps us to better see what is required for an integral ecology.
My appeal
The concern for the Earth includes a concern to bring the whole human family together to seek a
sustainable and integral development.
We need a new dialogue, that includes everyone, about how we are shaping the future of our planet.
What this encyclical will cover:
1. Reviews the present ecological crisis based on the results of the best scientific research available
today.
2. Considers principles drawn from the Judaeo-Christian tradition related to the commitment to the
environment.
3. Considers the symptoms and causes of the crisis to provide an approach to ecology which respects
our unique place as human beings in this world and our relationship to our surroundings.
4. Offers broader proposals for dialogue and action for both individuals and international public policy.
5. Offers guidelines for human development based on the Christian spiritual experience.
CHAPTER ONE WHAT IS HAPPENING TO OUR COMMON HOME
I. POLLUTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Pollution, waste and the throwaway culture

Pollution is tied to the throwaway culture. (The phrase throwaway culture appears five fives in the
encyclical.)
Climate as a common good
The climate is a common good that belongs to all of us.
Climate change is one of the principal challenges facing humanity in our day.
The planet is warming and humans are the primary cause, particularly due to the use of fossil fuels
(which cause greenhouse gases) and deforestation for agricultural purposes. Public policy should
reduce carbon emissions and promote renewable sources of energy.
The quality of water available to the poor is a serious concern. Water is increasingly being polluted,
privatized, and wasted, which leads to problems for the poor.
The earths resources are being plundered because of short-sighted approaches to the economy,
commerce and production. Most species of animals and plant life are becoming extinct because of
humans. Our interventions in natureeven our attempts to fix what we caused further aggravates
the situation.
III. LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY
The earths resources are also being plundered because of short-sighted approaches to the economy,
commerce and production. The majority of species of plant and animals that are becoming extinct are
dying off for reasons related to human activity.
Even some of our interventions to help are causing greater problems with biodiversity. Caring for
ecosystems demands far-sightedness and preemptive action.
Greater investment needs to be made in research aimed at understanding more fully the functioning of
ecosystems and adequately analyzing the different variables associated with any significant
modification of the environment.
IV. DECLINE IN THE QUALITY OF HUMAN LIFE AND THE BREAKDOWN OF SOCIETY
Environmental deterioration, current models of development and the throwaway culture have a
detrimental affect on humans.
Cities are becoming to large We were not meant to be inundated by cement, asphalt, glass and
metal, and deprived of physical contact with nature.
Our omnipresent media and digital world can prevent us from living wisely.
V. GLOBAL INEQUALITY
Deterioration of the human and natural environments are connected, and both disproportionately hurt
the poor. To fix environmental problems we have to also fix human and social degradation.

Imbalances in population density are a concern, but the primary problem is extreme and selective
consumerism on the part of some rather than population growth.
Inequity affects not only individuals but entire countries and an ecological debt exists between the
global north and south. Poor countries (which often have natural resources) fuel the development of
richer nations. For this reason national have differentiated responsibilities when it comes to climate
change.
VI. WEAK RESPONSES
The world needs an international legal framework to set clear boundaries and ensure the protection of
ecosystems but, so far, the international political responses have been weak.
Depletion of natural resources will likely lead to new wars, albeit under the guise of noble claims.
Some countries provide positive examples of dealing with the environment but such efforts are not
sufficient.
VII. A VARIETY OF OPINIONS
Two extremes of opinion fixing the environment: (1) Ecological problems will be solved by new
technology, and (2) population should be reduced to prevent ecological harm. We need a dialogue that
finds viable future scenarios between these extremes.
CHAPTER TWO THE GOSPEL OF CREATION
Although they take different approaches to understanding reality, science and religion can enter into an
intense dialogue fruitful for solving environmental problems.
I. THE LIGHT OFFERED BY FAITH
Although simply being human is ample motivation to care for nature and vulnerable human
communities, faith also motivates Christians to care for the environment and the poor.
II. THE WISDOM OF THE BIBLICAL ACCOUNTS
The biblical narratives have much to say about the relationship of human beings with the world.
Human life is grounded in three fundamental and closely intertwined relationshipswith God, with our
neighbor and with the earth itselfyet these relationships have been broken, both outwardly and within
us, by sin. As a result, the originally harmonious relationship between human beings and nature
became broken and conflicted.
The earth was here before us and it has been given to us by God. Dominion over the earth is not an
excuse for unbridled exploitation but rather a command to be stewards of natural resources.
III. THE MYSTERY OF THE UNIVERSE

The word creation has a broader meaning than nature, for it has to do with Gods loving plan in
which every creature has its own value and significance.
The ultimate destiny of the universe is in the fullness of God, which has already been attained by the
risen Christ, the measure of the maturity of all things. All creation is thus moving toward a common
point of arrivalback to the Creator.

IV. THE MESSAGE OF EACH CREATURE IN THE HARMONY OF CREATION

Each creature has its own purpose. The Spirit of life dwells in every living creature and calls us to enter
into relationship with him.
V. A UNIVERSAL COMMUNION
Humans are linked by unseen bonds and together form a kind of universal family. Concern for the
environment needs to be joined to a sincere love for our fellow human beings and an unwavering
commitment to resolving the problems of society.
VI. THE COMMON DESTINATION OF GOODS
Every ecological approach needs to incorporate a social perspective that takes into account the
fundamental rights of the poor and the underprivileged.
Private property is not absolute or inviolable. The principle of the subordination of private property to
the universal destination of goods, and thus the right of everyone to their use, is a golden rule of social
conduct and the first principle of the whole ethical and social order
The natural environment is a collective good. We break the commandment Thou shall not kill means
when twenty percent of the worlds population consumes resources at a rate that robs the poor nations
and future generations of what they need to survive.
VII. THE GAZE OF JESUS
Jesus was able to invite others to be attentive to the beauty of creation because he himself was in
constant touch with nature. From the beginning of the world, but particularly through the incarnation,
the mystery of Christ is at work in a hidden manner in the natural world as a whole, without thereby
impinging on its autonomy.
CHAPTER THREE THE HUMAN ROOTS OF THE ECOLOGICAL CRISIS
A certain way of understanding human life and activity the dominant technocratic paradigmhas
gone awry, to the serious detriment of the world around us.
I. TECHNOLOGY: CREATIVITY AND POWER

Technology can be good, but it is also powerful and increases our power. Not every increase in power
is an increase of progress. We need a culture and spirituality genuinely capable of setting limits and
teaching clear-minded self-restraint.
II. THE GLOBALIZATION OF THE TECHNOCRATIC PARADIGM
Humanity has taken up technology and its development according to an undifferentiated and onedimensional paradigm. But science and technology is not neutral. Many environmental problems stem
from the tendency to make the method and aims of science and technology an epistemological
paradigm which shapes the lives of individuals and the workings of society.
We need to slow down and look at reality in a different way, so that we can appropriate the positive
and sustainable progress which has been made and recover the values and the great goals swept
away by our unrestrained delusions of grandeur.
III. THE CRISIS AND EFFECTS OF MODERN ANTHROPOCENTRISM
Modern anthropocentrism prizes technical thought over reality by seeing creation as mere raw material
for our use. This has affected many areas of life: When we fail to acknowledge as part of reality the
worth of a poor person, a human embryo, a person with disabilities to offer just a few examples it
becomes difficult to hear the cry of nature itself; everything is connected.
Since everything is interrelated, concern for the protection of nature is also incompatible with the
justification of abortion.
Practical relativism
A misguided anthropocentrismparticularly our culture of relativismleads to a misguided lifestyle.
When human beings place themselves at the center, they give absolute priority to immediate
convenience and all else becomes relative.
The need to protect employment
An integral ecology needs to take account of the value of human labor and a correct understanding of
work. Civil authorities have the right and duty to adopt clear and firm measures in support of small
producers and differentiated production. To ensure economic freedom from which all can effectively
benefit, restraints occasionally have to be imposed on those possessing greater resources and financial
power.
New biological technologies
We cant make general judgments about genetic modification (GM), whether vegetable or animal,
medical or agricultural. Still, there are a number of significant difficulties with GM that should not be
underestimated (e.g., destroying the complex network of ecosystems).
Those concerned about GM should also be concerned when it is applied to human embryos.

CHAPTER FOUR INTEGRAL ECOLOGY

Since everything is closely interrelated we need an integral ecology, one that clearly respects its human
and social dimensions.
I. ENVIRONMENTAL, ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL ECOLOGY
Ecology studies the relationship between living organisms and the environment in which they develop.
When we speak of the environment, what we really mean is a relationship existing between nature
and the society that lives in it. We ourselves are a part of nature. Therefore, the social and
environmental crises are intertwined.
We need an economic ecology capable of appealing to a broader vision of reality. The analysis of
environmental problems cannot be separated from the analysis of human, family, work-related and
urban contexts, nor from how individuals relate to themselves, which leads in turn to how they relate to
others and to the environment.
Every violation of solidarity and civic friendship harms the environment.
II. CULTURAL ECOLOGY
Ecology also involves protecting the cultural treasures of humanity in the broadest sense. But our
consumerist vision of human beings, encouraged by the mechanisms of todays globalized economy,
has a leveling effect on cultures, diminishing the immense variety that is the heritage of all humanity.
We must look for solutions that include local people from within their proper culture.
We must show special care for indigenous communities and their cultural traditions.
The disappearance of a culture can as a serious as the disappearance of a species of plant or animal.
The imposition of a dominant lifestyle linked to a single form of production can be just as harmful as the
altering of ecosystems.
III. ECOLOGY OF DAILY LIFE
Authentic development must take into consideration the settings in which people live their lives. We
must keep this in mind when designing buildings, cities, public spaces, etc.
Human ecology also includes the relationship between human life and the moral law. Also, we must
value our own body in its femininity or masculinity. It is not a healthy attitude which would seek to
cancel out sexual difference because it no longer knows how to confront it.
IV. THE PRINCIPLE OF THE COMMON GOOD
Human ecology is inseparable from the notion of the common good, a central and unifying principle of
social ethics. Because current injustices, the common good requires solidarity with and a preferential
option for the poor.
V. JUSTICE BETWEEN THE GENERATIONS

The notion of the common good also extends to future generations. Our approach to environmental
problems must take this into account.
CHAPTER FIVE LINES OF APPROACH AND ACTION
An outline of the major paths of dialogue to stem the crisis.
I. DIALOGUE ON THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
The interdependence of humanity obliges us to think of one world with a common plan. We need a
global consensus to fix the problem.
Fossil fuels must be phased out as soon as possible. The international community needs to find a way
to make this happen.
Buying and selling carbon credits is not the right solution.
Enforceable international agreements and global regulatory norms are urgently needed.
We need to develop more efficiently organized international institutions to address global warming
and poverty. There is urgent need of a true world political authority to address these issues.
II. DIALOGUE FOR NEW NATIONAL AND LOCAL POLICIES
These issues need to be addressed not only at the international level, but at the local and national level
as well. Political and institutional frameworks need to promote best practices and avoid bad practices.
Political activity on the local level could also be directed to modifying consumption, developing an
economy of waste disposal and recycling, protecting certain species and planning a diversified
agriculture and the rotation of crops.
However, there are no uniform recipes, because each country or region has its own problems and
limitations.
III. DIALOGUE AND TRANSPARENCY IN DECISION-MAKING
We need greater transparency to access the environmental impact of business ventures and projects.
Environmental impact assessment should be included in the planning stages. A consensus should
always be reached between the different stakeholders, who can offer a variety of approaches,
solutions, and alternatives. The local population, though, should have a special place at the table.
In any discussion about a proposed venture, a number of questions need to be asked in order to
discern whether or not it will contribute to genuine integral development: What will it accomplish? Why?
Where? When? How? For whom? What are the risks? What are the costs? Who will pay those costs
and how? Profit cannot be the sole criterion to be taken into account.
Reaching consensus is not easy and the Church does not presume to settle scientific questions or to
replace politics.

IV. POLITICS AND ECONOMY IN DIALOGUE FOR HUMAN FULFILMENT

Politics must not be subject to the economy, nor should the economy be subject to the dictates of an
efficiency-driven paradigm of technocracy. Politics and economy should serve human life.
The financial crisis of 2007-08 provided an opportunity to develop a new economy and new ways of
regulating speculative financial practices and virtual wealth. But the response to the crisis did not
include rethinking the outdated criteria that continue to rule the world. Production does not always
fairly assign value.
We need to reject a magical conception of the market, which would suggest problems can be solved
simply by an increase in the profits of companies or individuals. We cant rely on those focused on
maximizing profits to fix the problem.
Efforts to promote a sustainable use of natural resources are an investment capable of providing other
economic benefits in the medium term.
For new models of progress to arise, there is a need to change models of global development
The principle of the maximization of profits reflects a misunderstanding of the very concept of the
economy.
We need a politics that is capable of a new, integral and interdisciplinary approach to handling the
different aspects of the crisis.
Politics and the economy tend to blame each other when it comes to poverty and environmental
degradation. They need to own up to their mistakes and find ways to join together to promote the public
good.
V. RELIGIONS IN DIALOGUE WITH SCIENCE
Empirical science cant explain the whole of reality. We need also to look at the ethical and spiritual
resources produced by the worlds religions.
The majority of people living on our planet profess to be believers, and they need to dialogue with each
other and with science on these issues.
CHAPTER SIX ECOLOGICAL EDUCATION AND SPIRITUALITY
Many things have to change coursemost of all, we humans.
I. TOWARDS A NEW LIFESTYLE
The market tends to promote extreme consumerism, and compulsive consumerism is an example of
how the techno-economic paradigm affects individuals. This paradigm leads people to believe that
they are free as long as they have the supposed freedom to consume. But those really free are the
minority who wield economic and financial power.

This leads to self-centeredness, which increases greed. We buy stuff to fill the emptiness within
ourselves. This causes us to lose focus on the common good.
The effect will be social unrest. Obsession with a consumerist lifestyle, with increases inequality, will
lead to violence and mutual destruction.
The problem isnt hopeless, however, since humans have the ability to change. A change in our lifestyle
could positively influence those who wield political, economic and social power.
II. EDUCATING FOR THE COVENANT BETWEEN HUMANITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Environmental education shouldnt only be focused on scientific information and consciousness-raising.
It should help us how the transcendent gives ecological ethics its deepest meaning.
Education in environmental responsibility can encourage us to act in way that promote the common
good, such as avoiding the use of plastic and paper, reducing water consumption, separating refuse,
cooking only what can reasonably be consumed, showing care for other living beings, using public
transport or car-pooling, planting trees, turning off unnecessary lights, or any number of other
practices.
We s shouldnt worry that such efforts wont change the world. They benefit society by calling forth
goodness.
Ecological education can take place in a variety of settings: at school, in families, in the media, in
catechesis and elsewhere.
Political institutions and various other social groups are also entrusted with helping to raise peoples
awareness. All Christian communities have an important role to play in ecological education.
III. ECOLOGICAL CONVERSION
Spirituality can motivate us to a more passionate concern for the protection of our world. The ecological
crisis is thus also a summons to profound interior conversion. Some people need an ecological
conversion, whereby the effects of their encounter with Jesus Christ become evident in their
relationship with the world around them. A healthy relationship with creation is one dimension of overall
personal conversion.
Individual conversion, though, is not enough. The ecological conversion needed to bring about lasting
change is also a community conversion.
IV. JOY AND PEACE
Christian spirituality proposes an alternative to our obsession with consumption. We need to adopt the
mindset that less is more. Christian spirituality proposes a growth marked by moderation and the
capacity to be happy with little.

The change of attitude will help us develop a serene attentiveness. One expression of this attitude is
when we stop and give thanks to God before and after meals: I ask all believers to return to this
beautiful and meaningful custom.
V. CIVIC AND POLITICAL LOVE
Care for nature is part of a lifestyle which includes the capacity for living together and communion.
Loveoverflowing with small gestures of mutual careis also civic and political. Love for society and
commitment to the common good affects everyone.
VI. SACRAMENTAL SIGNS AND THE CELEBRATION OF REST
The Eucharist is a source of light and motivation for our concerns for the environment, directing us to
be stewards of all creation. The day of rest, centered on the Eucharist, sheds it light on the whole
week, and motivates us to greater concern for nature and the poor.
VII. THE TRINITY AND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CREATURES
The Trinity has left its mark on all creation. Everything is interconnected, and this invites us to develop
a spirituality of that global solidarity which flows from the mystery of the Trinity.
VIII. QUEEN OF ALL CREATION
Mary, the mother of Jesus, is also the Mother and Queen of all creation. We can we can ask her to
enable us to look at this world with eyes of wisdom. Saint Joseph too can inspire us to work with
generosity and tenderness in protecting this world which God has entrusted to us.
IX. BEYOND THE SUN
God offers us the light and the strength needed to continue on our way and carry our the task of caring
for our common home.
Francis concludes with two prayers, A prayer for our earth and A Christian prayer in union with
creation.
DEUS CARITAS EST (POPE BENEDICT XVI)
Abiding in God and God abiding in us
The following is a translation of the Summary of the Holy Father's first Encyclical,Deus Caritas
Est (God Is Love), which was published on Thursday, 26 January.
Summary
"God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him" (I Jn 4:16).

These words that begin the Encyclical express the core of the Christian faith. In a world in which God's
Name is sometimes linked with revenge or even with hatred and violence, the Christian message of
God-Love is very timely.
The Encyclical is divided into two main parts.
Part I presents a theological and philosophical reflection on the different dimensions of
"love" eros, philia, agape and explains certain essential facts concerning God's love for man and
the intrinsic connection of this love with human love.
Part II deals with the actual practice of the commandment to love one's neighbour.
Part I
The term "love", one of the most used and abused words in today's world, has a multiplicity of
meanings. From them, however, emerges an archetype of love par excellence: the love of a man and a
woman, which in ancient Greece was known aseros.
In the Bible, especially in the New Testament, the concept of "love" is examined closely, a development
which results in setting aside the word eros in favour of the term agape to express a self-sacrificing
love.
This new vision of love, an essentially Christian innovation, has often been judged in a totally negative
way as the rejection of eros and of bodiliness. Although these tendencies have existed, the meaning of
this deepening is different.
The eros, implanted in human nature by the Creator himself, needs discipline, purification and growth in
maturity if it is not to lose its original dignity or degenerate into pure "sex", becoming a commodity.
The Christian faith has always considered man as a being in whom there is a sort of interpenetration of
spirit and matter, from which he draws a new nobility. We can say that the challenge of the eros has
been overcome when body and mind are found to be in perfect harmony in the human being.
At that point, love indeed becomes an "ecstasy", not in the sense of a fleeting moment of intoxication
but as an ongoing exodus from the inward-looking self towards its liberation through self-giving, and
thus towards self-discovery and the discovery of God: in this way the eros can uplift the human being
"in ecstasy" towards the Divine.
In short, eros and agape somehow need to be connected to each other. Indeed, the more the two find
the correct equilibrium in their different dimensions, the more the true nature of love is realized.
Even if eros is at first mainly desire, in drawing near to the other person it becomes less and less
concerned with itself, increasingly seeks the happiness of the other, bestows itself and wants to "be
there for" the other. It is then that the element ofagape enters into this love.
In Jesus Christ, who is the incarnate love of God, the eros-agape reaches its most radical form. In
dying on the Cross, by giving himself in order to raise and save man, Jesus expresses love in its most

sublime form. He guaranteed an enduring presence of this oblative act through the institution of the
Eucharist, in which he gives himself under the species of bread and wine as a new manna that unites
us with him.
By participating in the Eucharist, we too are involved in the dynamic of his self-giving. We are united
with him and, at the same time, with all others to whom he gives himself; thus, we all become "one
body".
In this way, love of neighbour and love of God are truly united. The double Commandment, thanks to
this encounter with the agape of God, is no longer solely a precept: love can be "commanded" because
it has first been given.
Part II
Love of neighbour, grounded in love of God, as well as being a responsibility for each individual
member of the faithful, is also a responsibility for the entire Ecclesial Community, which must reflect
Trinitarian love in its charitable activity.
Awareness of this responsibility also had a constitutive relevance in the Church from the very beginning
(cf. Acts 2:44-45), and very soon the need for a form of organization became apparent, as a
presupposition for carrying it out more effectively.
Thus, the "diaconate" came into being in the fundamental structure of the Church as a ministry of love
of neighbour exercised in a communitarian and orderly way a concrete but at the same time spiritual
service (cf. Acts 6:16). As the Church gradually spread, this practice of charity was confirmed as one of
her essential responsibilities.
The Church's deepest nature is thus expressed in her three-fold duty: to proclaim the Word of God
(kerygma-martyria), celebrate the sacraments (leiturgia), and exercise, the ministry of charity
(diakonia). These duties presuppose one another and are inseparable.
Since the 19th century, a fundamental objection has been raised to the Church's charitable activity.
People claim that it is contrary to justice and will end by becoming a means of preserving the status
quo. Through individual works of charity, the Church would foster the continuance of the present unjust
system, making it appear at least to some extent tolerable and thereby slowing down the result and
potential evolution of a better world.
In this regard, Marxism saw world revolution and its preliminaries as the panacea for the social
problem, a dream that has faded in the meantime.
The Papal Magisterium, starting with the Encyclical Rerum Novarum of Leo XIII (1891) to the trilogy of
John Paul II's social Encyclicals (Laborem Exercens [1981],Sollicitudo Rei Socialis [1987]
and Centesimus Annus [1991]), persistently tackled the social question and, in confrontation with the
ever new problematic situations, developed a very comprehensive social doctrine which proposes
effective guidelines extending far beyond the Church's frontiers.

The just ordering of society and of the State, however, is a core duty of politics and therefore cannot be
an immediate responsibility of the Church. Catholic social doctrine does not seek to confer upon the
Church power over the State, but simply desires to purify and illuminate reason, making its own
contribution to the formation of consciences, so that the true requirements of justice may be perceived,
recognized and subsequently practiced.
Yet there is no ordering of the State, however just, that can make a service of love superfluous. The
State which aims to provide everything would ultimately become a bureaucracy incapable of
guaranteeing the very thing which the suffering person every person needs: loving personal
concern.
Those who wish to get rid of love are prepared to get rid of the human being as a human person.
In our time, a positive collateral effect of globalization can be seen in the fact that concern for neighbour
transcends the confines of national communities and tends to broaden its horizons to the whole world.
State agencies and humanitarian associations support in various ways the solidarity shown by civil
society: this has led to the foundation of many organizations with charitable or philanthropic aims.
In the Catholic Church as well as other ecclesial communities, new forms of charitable activity have
arisen. Among all these bodies, the hope is for fruitful collaboration.
It is, of course, important that the Church's charitable activity does not lose its own identity and become
just another form of social assistance, but that it maintain all the splendour of the essence of Christian
and ecclesial charity.
Therefore:
Christian charitable activity, as well as being based on professional competence, must be based on
the experience of a personal encounter with Christ, whose love has moved the heart of the believer,
awakening within him love of neighbour.
Christian charitable activity must be independent of parties and ideologies. The Christian's
programme the programme of the Good Samaritan, the programme of Jesus is "a heart which
sees". This heart sees where love is needed and acts accordingly.
Christian charitable activity, furthermore, cannot be used as a means of engaging in what is nowadays
considered proselytism. Love is free; it is not practised as a way of achieving other ends.
But this does not mean that charitable activity must, so to speak, leave God and Christ aside. A
Christian knows when it is time to speak of God and when it is better to say nothing about him and to let
love alone speak. St Paul's hymn to charity (cf. I Cor 13) must be the Magna Carta of all ecclesial
service to protect it from the risk of being reduced to pure activism.
In this context and in the face of the impending secularism that can also condition many Christians who
are involved in charitable work, it is necessary to reaffirm the importance of prayer.

On the one hand, living contact with Christ prevents the experience of the immensity of needs and the
limitations of our own action from driving the agent towards a policy that would claim to do what God
does not seem to be doing or, on the other hand, from becoming a temptation to surrender to inertia
and resignation.
People who pray are not wasting their time, even though the situation may seem to call for urgent
action alone; nor do they claim to correct God's plans, but rather seek after the example of Mary and
the saints to find in God the light and strength of the love which overcomes all the darkness and
selfishness present in the world.

SPE SALVI (POPE BENEDICT XVI)

The world needs God, otherwise it remains without hope, said Benedict XVI when he summarized the
central message of his encyclical Spe Salvi.
The Pope said this today before reciting the midday Angelus with those gathered in St. Peters Square.
He also spoke on the meaning of Advent, which begins today.
Advent, the Holy Father said, is the propitious time to reawaken in our hearts the expectation of him
who is, who was and who is coming.'
The Pontiff regarded the First Sunday of Advent as a most appropriate day to offer to the whole
Church and all men of good will my second encyclical, which I wanted to dedicate to the theme of
Christian hope.
Benedict XVI noted that in the New Testament the word hope is closely connected with the word faith.
Hope, he added, is a gift that changes the life of those who receive it, as the experience of so many
saints demonstrates.
He asked: In what does this hope consist that is so great and so trustworthy as to make us say that in
it we have salvation?
In substance it consists in the knowledge of God, in the discovery of his heart as a good and merciful
Father.
With his death on the cross and his resurrection, added the Pope, Jesus has revealed to us his
countenance, the countenance of a God so great in love as to communicate to us an indestructible
hope, a hope that not even death can crack, because the life of those who entrust themselves to this
Father always opens onto the perspective of eternal beatitude.
Redemption
The Pope, as he also did in the encyclical, observed that the development of modern science has
confined faith and hope more and more to the private and individual sphere, so much so that today it
appears in an evident way, and sometimes dramatically, that the world needs God the true God!
otherwise it remains deprived of hope.

Science contributes much to the good of humanity without a doubt but it is not able to redeem
humanity, he continued. Man is redeemed by love, which renders social life good and beautiful.
Because of this, the great hope, that one that is full and definitive, is guaranteed by God, by God who
is love, who has visited us in Jesus and given his life to us, and in Jesus he will return at the end of
time. It is in Christ that we hope and it is him that we await!
The Holy Father concluded his address with an invitation to live this hope in Advent with works of
charity, because hope, like faith, is demonstrated in love.
CARITAS IN VERITATE (POPE BENEDICT XVI)
VATICAN CITY (VIS) - Given below is a summary of Benedict XVI's new Encyclical "Caritas in veritate"
(Charity in Truth) on integral human development in charity and truth.
The Encyclical published today - which comprehends an introduction, six chapters and a conclusion - is
dated 29 June 2009, Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles.
A summary of the Encyclical released by the Holy See Press Office explains that in his introduction the
Pope recalls how "charity is at the heart of the Church's social doctrine". Yet, given the risk of its being
"misinterpreted and detached from ethical living", he warns how "a Christianity of charity without truth
would be more or less interchangeable with a pool of good sentiments, helpful for social cohesion, but
of little relevance".
The Holy Father makes it clear that development has need of truth. In this context he dwells on two
"criteria that govern moral action": justice and the common good. All Christians are called to charity,
also by the "institutional path" which affects the life of the "polis", that is, of social coexistence.
The first chapter of the Encyclical focuses on the message of Paul VI's "Populorum Progressio" which
"underlined the indispensable importance of the Gospel for building a society according to freedom and
justice. ... The Christian faith does not rely on privilege or positions of power, ... but only on Christ". Paul
VI "pointed out that the causes of underdevelopment are not primarily of the material order". They lie
above all in the will, in the mind and, even more so, in "the lack of brotherhood among individuals and
peoples".
"Human Development in Our Time" is the theme of the second chapter. If profit, the Pope writes,
"becomes the exclusive goal, if it is produced by improper means and without the common good as its
ultimate end, it risks destroying wealth and creating poverty". In this context he enumerates certain
"malfunctions" of development: financial dealings that are "largely speculative", migratory flows "often
provoked by some particular circumstance and then given insufficient attention", and "the unregulated
exploitation of the earth's resources". In the face of these interconnected problems, the Pope calls for
"a new humanistic synthesis", noting how "development today has many overlapping layers: ... The
world's wealth is growing in absolute terms, but inequalities are on the increase", and new forms of
poverty are coming into being.
At a cultural level, the Encyclical proceeds, the possibilities for interaction open new prospects for
dialogue, but a twofold danger exists: a "cultural eclecticism" in which cultures are viewed as
"substantially equivalent", and the opposing danger of "cultural levelling and indiscriminate acceptance
of types of conduct and lifestyles". In this context Pope Benedict also mentions the scandal of hunger
and express his hope for "equitable agrarian reform in developing countries".
The Pontiff also dwells on the question of respect for life, "which cannot in any way be detached from
questions concerning the development of peoples", affirming that "when a society moves towards the
denial or suppression of life, it ends up no longer finding the necessary motivation and energy to strive

for man's true good".

Another question associated with development is that of the right to religious freedom. "Violence",
writes the Pope, "puts the brakes on authentic development", and "this applies especially to terrorism
motivated by fundamentalism".
Chapter three of the Encyclical - "Fraternity, Economic Development and Civil Society" - opens with a
passage praising the "experience of gift", often insufficiently recognised "because of a purely
consumerist and utilitarian view of life". Yet development, "if it is to be authentically human, needs to
make room for the principle of gratuitousness". As for the logic of the market, it "needs to be directed
towards the pursuit of the common good, for which the political community in particular must also take
responsibility".
Referring to "Centesimus Annus", this Encyclical highlights the "need for a system with three subjects:
the market, the State and civil society" and encourages a "civilising of the economy". It highlights the
importance of "economic forms based on solidarity" and indicates how "both market and politics need
individuals who are open to reciprocal gift".
The chapter closes with a fresh evaluation of the phenomenon of globalisation, which must not be seen
just as a "socio-economic process". Globalisation needs "to promote a person-based and communityoriented cultural process of world-wide integration that is open to transcendence" and able to correct its
own malfunctions.
The fourth chapter of the Encyclical focuses on the theme: "The Development of People. Rights and
Duties. The Environment". Governments and international organisations, says the Pope, cannot "lose
sight of the objectivity and 'inviolability' of rights". In this context he also dedicates attention to "the
problems associated with population growth".
He reaffirms that sexuality "cannot be reduced merely to pleasure or entertainment". States, he says,
"are called to enact policies promoting the centrality and the integrity of the family".
"The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly", the Holy Father goes on, and "not any ethics
whatsoever, but an ethics which is people-centred". This centrality of the human person must also be
the guiding principle in "development programmes" and in international co-operation. "International
organisations", he suggests, "might question the actual effectiveness of their bureaucratic and
administrative machinery, which is often excessively costly".
The Holy Father also turns his attention to the energy problem, noting how "the fact that some States,
power groups and companies hoard non-renewable energy resources represents a grave obstacle to
development in poor countries. ... Technologically advanced societies can and must lower their
domestic energy consumption", he says, at the same time encouraging "research into alternative forms
of energy".
"The Co-operation of the Human Family" is the title and focus of chapter five, in which Pope Benedict
highlights how "the development of peoples depends, above all, on a recognition that the human race is
a single family". Hence Christianity and other religions "can offer their contribution to development only
if God has a place in the public realm".
The Pope also makes reference to the principle of subsidiarity, which assists the human person "via the
autonomy of intermediate bodies". Subsidiarity, he explains, "is the most effective antidote against any
form of all-encompassing welfare state" and is "particularly well-suited to managing globalisation and
directing it towards authentic human development".
Benedict XVI calls upon rich States "to allocate larger portions of their gross domestic product to

development aid", thus respecting their obligations. He also express a hope for wider access to
education and, even more so, for "complete formation of the person", affirming that yielding to
relativism makes everyone poorer. One example of this, he writes, is that of the perverse phenomenon
of sexual tourism. "It is sad to note that this activity often takes place with the support of local
governments", he says.
The Pope then goes on to consider the "epoch-making" question of migration. "Every migrant", he says,
"is a human person who, as such, possesses fundamental, inalienable rights that must be respected by
everyone and in every circumstance".
The Pontiff dedicates the final paragraph of this chapter to the "strongly felt need" for a reform of the
United Nations and of "economic institutions and international finance. ... There is", he says, "urgent
need of a true world political authority" with "effective power".
The sixth and final chapter is entitled "The Development of Peoples and Technology". In it the Holy
Father warns against the "Promethean presumption" of humanity thinking "it can re-create itself through
the 'wonders' of technology". Technology, he says, cannot have "absolute freedom".
"A particularly crucial battleground in today's cultural struggle between the supremacy of technology
and human moral responsibility is the field of bioethics", says Benedict XVI, and he adds: "Reason
without faith is doomed to flounder in an illusion of its own omnipotence". The social question has, he
says, become an anthropological question. Research on embryos and cloning is "being promoted in
today's highly disillusioned culture which believes it has mastered every mystery". The Pope likewise
expresses his concern over a possible "systematic eugenic programming of births".
In the conclusion to his Encyclical Benedict XVI highlights how "development needs Christians with
their arms raised towards God in prayer", just as it needs "love and forgiveness, self-denial, acceptance
of others, justice and peace".