He Pope Francisborn Jorge Mario Bergoglio, left as part of his legacy various writings, among which are encyclical, speeches and homilies.
In these texts, The late Pontiff addressed the world on issues such as love in times of relativism, the care of the most disadvantaged and even ecologismin the midst of the climatic crisis.
The Holy Father published a total of four encyclicalsthe great documents with which the potatoes are directed in their time to address concrete issues.
Actually, there were three and a half, because the first, Lumen Fidei (2013), was initiated by his predecessor, Benedict XVI, as the final brooch of his trilogy about the theological virtues, although he left her unfinished after his resignation in 2013.
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What other encyclicals Pope Francis published?
Then came one of his most influential texts, Laudato yes (2015), the first encyclical completely written of his handwriting, with which he addressed a central theme of his teaching: The care of the environment, of what he called the “common house.”
The title, Praised bein Spanish, it was extracted from Canticle of creaturesby Francisco de Asís, from whom he assumed his name pontifical. In its pages he did not use half inks: the Earth “seems to become more and more an immense deposit of why,” he warned, demanding “deep changes” in life, production and consumption styles.
A five years later published his third encyclical, Fratelli Tutti (2020), A defense of fraternity and coexistence between cultures, written in the shadow of the Coronavirus pandemic.
In that confined world, Francisco advocated solidarity and, incidentally, lashed out at populisms and against the ideas set by “new forms of selfishness and the loss of social sense”, under “an alleged defense of national interests.”
In the last, Dilexit Nos (2024), He condensed all his teaching, advocating for love against the “shameful drama” of war, in the midst of conflicts such as that of Ukraine and those of the Middle Eastand warned about a consumerist world that “he is losing his heart.”
What is an encyclical?
According to Catholic.netan encyclical can be defined as A solemn letter that deals with ecclesial matters. In the ancient Christian Church, these texts were presented as circular letters that could be sent to all churches in a particular area.
That Catholic source indicates that the origin of these texts goes back to the New Testament epistles of the Bible and that they are considered the most important document that a Pope elaborates.
According to its etymology, the word encyclical derives from Latin Encyclia and from the Greek Egkyklioswhich means “wrapping in a circle.” In this regard, the Royal Spanish Academy adds that the word also comes from the Greek word Epistolḗwhose meaning is “letter.” ANDn set, it can be translated as “general letter.”
At present, the term refers to papal encyclicals. However, the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Anglican communion still retain the ancient use of these texts.
As for its elaboration, this letter is usually written in Latin – official Vatican Language – and translates into the main languages worldwide.