Pope Francis recently announced the publication of a new encyclical entitled Dilexit nos (“He loved us”), which addresses the theme of the human and divine love of the Heart of Jesus Christ. This is the fourth important text of his pontificate. The encyclical is dedicated to the spirituality of the Sacred Heart, a topic of great importance in the Catholic tradition. Among the different documents that can be signed by a Pope, such as rescripts, briefs, bulls or apostolic exhortations, the encyclical is the one that usually attracts the most attention. With an encyclical the Pope intends to attribute particular weight to his message, without involving papal infallibility. This type of document is a fundamental means of transmitting teachings and guidelines to the Church.
The term “encyclical” has roots in the Greek “enkuklios”, which means “circular”. It is a solemn letter from the Pope addressed to the entire Catholic Church or, specifically, to a part of it: bishops, clergy or faithful. This type of letter therefore serves to spread a message of particular relevance to the ecclesial community. The first encyclical in the modern sense of the term was published by Pope Benedict XIV (1740-1758), who, immediately after his election, spread Ubi primumdedicated to the episcopal ministry. During his pontificate, Benedict XIV wrote a total of 44 encyclicals, marking the beginning of a long tradition in the Church.
Over 300 encyclicals in three centuries
Encyclicals are often used to reaffirm Church doctrine on current issues. The topics addressed vary considerably: from the deviances of the carnival (Inter Caetera1748), to the religious situation of a country (Nobilissima Gallorum Gens1884), passing through social issues such as slavery (Catholicae Ecclesiae1890) or freemasonry (Guardians of that Faith1892). In less than three centuries, popes have published a total of 338 encyclicals. Some popes have made particularly frequent use of this instrument. Leo XIII, for example, during his pontificate (1878-1903), published 86 encyclicals, with an average of over three per year. Pius XII (1939-1958) and Pius IX (1846-1878) also made extensive use of this instrument, with 41 and 38 encyclicals respectively.
A less frequent use of encyclicals
In recent decades, however, there has been a progressive decline in the use of encyclicals. Paul VI (1963-1978), for example, never published any more after that Humanae vitae (1968), although his pontificate continued for another ten years. John Paul II, in 26 years of pontificate, published only fourteen encyclicals, while Benedict XVI signed three. Pope Francis published his first encyclical, Lumen fideiin July 2013, a few months after his election. This document had been partly prepared under the pontificate of his predecessor, therefore Lumen fidei cannot be considered completely attributable to him. The encyclicals actually linked to Francis’ magisterium are Praised yes (2015), focused on the care of creation, e Brothers all (2020), which deals with the theme of fraternity and social friendship. Now, with Dilexit nosthe Pope continues to reflect on the love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a theme of profound spiritual importance.