''Deus caritas est'' ( en, "God is Love"), subtitled ''De Christiano Amore'' (''Of Christian Love''), is a 2005 encyclical, the first written by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereig ...

, in large part derived from writings by his late predecessor,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. Its subject is

love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

, as seen from a Christian perspective, and God's place within all love. Charity is one of the three theological virtues; and the other two ( hope and

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people ofte ...

) were treated in two successive encyclicals, one signed by Benedict ('' Spe Salvi'') and one written substantially by him but signed by his successor

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013 ...

('' Lumen fidei''). This text begins with a reflection on the forms of love known in Greek philosophy—'' eros'' (possessive, often sexual,

), '' agape'' (unconditional, self-sacrificing

), '' philia'' (friendship)—and their relationship with the teachings of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

. The encyclical contains almost 16,000 words in 42 paragraphs. The first half is said to have been written by Benedict in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, his mother tongue, in the summer of 2005; the second half is derived from uncompleted writings left by John Paul II. The document was signed by Pope Benedict on

Christmas Day Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

, 25 December 2005. Some reports attribute the delay to problems in translating the original German text into

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

, others to disputes within the Vatican over the precise wording of the document. The encyclical was promulgated on 25 January 2006, in Latin and officially translated into seven other languages (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, and Spanish). It is the first encyclical to be published since the Vatican decided to assert

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, educatio ...

in the official writings of the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Title

The

title of an encyclical is taken from its first few words. This encyclical begins with a quotation from the

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

, First Epistle of John, translated from the original Greek, (''Ho Theos agape estin''). The Douai Bible translates this into English as , while in most contemporary English translations it reads "God is love" (even if "charity" is the most accurate translation of “caritas.”). The Latin version of the First Epistle of John uses the same formulation, ''Deus caritas est'', at the end of translating . This second biblical reference is not mentioned in the encyclical.

Summary

In this encyclical, Benedict reflects on the concepts of ''eros'', ''agape'', and ''philia'', and their relationship with the teachings of Jesus. ''Eros'' and ''agape'' are two of the various Greek words for love, each of which has a slightly different shade of meaning: '' agape'' is descending, oblative love in which one gives of oneself to another; '' eros'' is ascending, possessive love which seeks to receive from another; '' philia'' is the mutual love between friends. For Benedict, ''agape'' purifies ''eros''. The document explains that ''eros'' and ''agape'' are both inherently good, but that ''eros'' risks being downgraded to mere sex if it is not balanced by an element of spiritual Christianity. The opinion that ''eros'' is inherently good follows a school of thought in the Catholic Church known as the "''Caritas'' tradition", and contrasts with the view expressed, for example, by Anders Nygren, a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

bishop, in his mid-20th century book '' Eros and Agape'', that ''agape'' is the only truly Christian kind of love, and that ''eros'' is an expression of the individual's desires and turns us away from God. These two positions have been an ongoing cause for debate in both Catholic and Protestant

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

. The continuity of these two forms of love follows the traditional Catholic understanding, which is influenced by the philosophy of

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Afr ...

, Bonaventure and ancient

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

tradition. The Nygren position was favoured by the Reformed theologian Karl Barth while the Caritas position was supported by the liberal Protestant theologian

Paul Tillich Paul Johannes Tillich (August 20, 1886 – October 22, 1965) was a German-American Christian existentialist philosopher, religious socialist, and Lutheran Protestant theologian who is widely regarded as one of the most influential theolo ...

. The first half of the encyclical is more philosophical, tracing the meaning of the Greek words for "love". In considering ''eros'', Benedict refers to a line from

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

's ''

Eclogues The ''Eclogues'' (; ), also called the ''Bucolics'', is the first of the three major works of the Latin poet Virgil. Background Taking as his generic model the Greek bucolic poetry of Theocritus, Virgil created a Roman version partly by offer ...

'', Book X, line 69, "Omnia vincit amor, et nos cedamus amori" ("Love conquers all, let us also yield to love"), and the opinion of

Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...

that Christianity has poisoned ''eros'', turning it into a vice. He refers to the conjugal love exhibited in the '' Song of Songs'', and analyzes passages from the First Letter of St. John which inspired the title. The encyclical argues that ''eros'' and ''agape'' are not distinct kinds of love, but are separate halves of complete love, unified as both a giving and receiving. The second half, based on a report prepared by the Pontifical Council ''Cor Unum'', is less abstract, considering the charitable activities of the Church as an expression of love which draws its power from contemplative union with God. The second half also refers to the Church's threefold responsibility: proclaiming the word of God (''kerygma-martyria''), celebrating the

sacrament A sacrament is a Christian rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the rea ...

s (''leitourgia''), and exercising the ministry of charity (''diakonia''). The encyclical says that

social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals ...

is the primary responsibility of politics and the laity; the church itself should inform the debate on social justice with reason guided by faith, but its main social activity should be directed towards charity. Charity workers should have a deep prayer life, and be uninfluenced by

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featu ...

and

ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied pri ...

. Benedict rejects both

Marxist Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...

arguments that the poor "do not need charity but justice", and the merger of church and state functions (

theocracy Theocracy is a form of government in which one or more deities are recognized as supreme ruling authorities, giving divine guidance to human intermediaries who manage the government's daily affairs. Etymology The word theocracy originates fr ...

); rather, he encourages ''cooperation'' between the church, the state, and other Christian charitable organizations. Paragraph 39 appears to be inspired by

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His '' Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: ...

's ''

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature a ...

'', reflecting in particular the last

canto The canto () is a principal form of division in medieval and modern long poetry. Etymology and equivalent terms The word ''canto'' is derived from the Italian word for "song" or "singing", which comes from the Latin ''cantus'', "song", from the ...

of "Paradise", which ends before "the everlasting Light that is God himself, before that Light which at the same time is the love which moves the sun and the other stars". The three concluding paragraphs consider the example of the

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...

s, ending with a prayer to the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

. The text mentions the name of

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was ...

four times, the last as a "

" (despite the fact that she was not yet canonised) in such company as

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola, S.J. (born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; eu, Ignazio Loiolakoa; es, Ignacio de Loyola; la, Ignatius de Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Spanish Catholic priest and theologian ...

, John of God, Camillus of Lellis, Vincent de Paul, Louise de Marillac, Giuseppe B. Cottolengo,

John Bosco John Melchior Bosco ( it, Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco; pms, Gioann Melchior Bòsch; 16 August 181531 January 1888), popularly known as Don Bosco , was an Italian Catholic priest, educator, writer and saint of the 19th century. While working ...

, and

Luigi Orione Luigi Giovanni Orione was an Italian priest who was active in answering the social needs of his nation as it faced the social upheavals of the late 19th century. To this end, he founded a religious institute of men. He has been declared a saint ...

. ''Deus caritas est'', like the encyclicals of many previous popes, including Pope John Paul II, uses the Royal we in the official Latin text (''"cupimus loqui de amore"''). This is the text that appears promulgated in the Vatican's official gazette of record, "Acta Apostolicae Sedis". However, in accordance with a practice initiated in the pontificate of John Paul II, the unofficial versions prepared by the Vatican in 7 other languages use the singular (''"I wish to speak of love"'').

Other events

At an audience on 18 January 2006, Pope Benedict said that ''Deus caritas est'' would discuss the concept of love "in its various dimensions, from the love between man and woman to the love that the Catholic Church has for others in its expression of charity". The Vatican, through the Pontifical Council ''Cor Unum'', sponsored a conference in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to discuss the themes of the encyclical on 23 January and 24 January 2006, involving Liliana Cavani (director of films including '' The Night Porter'' and ''

Ripley's Game ''Ripley's Game'' (1974) is a psychological thriller by Patricia Highsmith, the third in her series about the con artist and murderer Tom Ripley. Plot summary Tom Ripley continues enjoying his wealthy lifestyle in Villeperce, France, with hi ...

'') and James Wolfensohn (former head of the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

). The encyclical was published on the feast of the

Conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

and on the last day of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Pope Benedict led an ecumenical prayer service at the

Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls The Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls ( it, Basilica Papale di San Paolo fuori le Mura), commonly known as Saint Paul's Outside the Walls, is one of Rome's four major papal basilicas, along with the basilicas of Saint John in th ...

, a traditional site for such celebrations, on the evening after the encyclical was published. Presiding at

vespers Vespers is a service of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic (both Latin and Eastern), Lutheran, and Anglican liturgies. The word for this fixed prayer time comes from the Latin , mea ...

, he said in his

homily A homily (from Greek ὁμιλία, ''homilía'') is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture, giving the "public explanation of a sacred doctrine" or text. The works of Origen and John Chrysostom (known as Paschal Homily) are considered ex ...

: "God is love. On this solid rock the entire faith of the church is based."Pope says faith that God is love should help Christian unity work
(Catholic News Service, 25 January 2006)

References

External links

Full text of the encyclical of ''Pope Benedict XVI '' ''Deus caritas est'' on the Vatican Website in EnglishBenedict XVI's own introduction to the Encyclical

Title

Summary

Other events

See also

References

External links

Further reading