Encyclicals Archives

Let’s face it: The modern papacy is an impossible gig

Apr 25, 2021

We live in a time of instant opinion, in which perspective is generally the first casualty of war. Nevertheless, here’s a bit of perspective anyone who follows Vatican news and the Catholic scene ought to try to keep in mind: The papacy, as it’s come to be understood, is an impossible gig.

By John L. Allen Jr.

UK bishop says new encyclical on human fraternity can ‘transform the world’

Oct 5, 2020

Pope Francis is presenting the Church’s “consistent message” and is inviting individuals and nations to “slow down and to listen and to engage with our brothers and sisters,” says Bishop Richard Moth of Arundel and Brighton.

By Charles Collins

Encyclical highlights need for fraternity to counter war, cardinal says

Oct 4, 2020

Pope Francis’s social encyclical sees the need for human fraternity as more than just an abstract concept, but as a concrete path toward peaceful coexistence in a world fraught by war, said Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

By Junno Arocho Esteves

‘Fratelli Tutti’ shows need for dialogue in the church, speaker says

Oct 4, 2020

The pre-publication controversy over the title of Pope Francis’ new encyclical illustrates how the Catholic Church itself needs to engage in dialogue and listening, just like society does, said a theologian invited by the Vatican to help present the document.

By Cindy Wooden

Pope’s new encyclical offers ‘voter’s guide’ for post-pandemic world

Oct 4, 2020

Though Francis’s vision is clearly global, the pope’s words pack a clear punch for the United States, which next month will hold presidential elections at the end of a contentious and even hostile political campaign.

By Elise Ann Allen

What’s in a name? At the Vatican, a debate on inclusiveness

Sep 17, 2020

The Vatican responded Wednesday to criticism that the title of Pope Francis’ upcoming encyclical on the post-COVID world is sexist, saying the document, “Fratelli Tutti,” (“Brothers All”) in no way excludes women.

By Nicole Winfield

Whatever it is, title of new papal encyclical not ‘anti-feminist’

Sep 9, 2020

Someone who has translated parts of past Vatican and papal documents has said the choice of the title of Pope Francis’s new encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, is the result of standard Vatican protocol.

By Elise Ann Allen

The pope’s eco-bedfellows

Jul 27, 2015

You don’t always see high hosannas to Catholic popes in The New York Review of Books, a literary intellectual magazine once dubbed the ground zero of Radical Chic. But there’s the headline, in big red letters, on the cover of its August issue: “The Pope & The Planet” (subscription required).

By margeryeagan