Pope Francis (born 1936; reigned 2013–2025) issued four encyclicals during his twelve-year pontificate. An encyclical is a formal letter issued by the pope, addressed in modern practice to the world's Catholic bishops and, increasingly, to all people regardless of faith.[1] Titles are drawn from the incipit—the opening words of the Latin text.
Francis used the form sparingly. Four encyclicals in twelve years places him among the least prolific encyclical-writers of the modern papacy, yet each document attracted unusual attention outside Catholic circles. The first, Lumen fidei (2013), was substantially drafted by Pope Benedict XVI before his resignation; Francis completed it and described the result as "written with four hands"[2] The second, Laudato si' (2015), addressed environmental ethics and the link between ecological destruction and global inequality; it became one of the most discussed Catholic documents in decades. COP21 delegates and climate officials credited it with providing the moral framework for the negotiations that produced the Paris Agreement. Laurence Tubiana, France's climate change ambassador at the Paris negotiations and a key architect of the Agreement, said Francis "reframed totally the faith message around nature" and that his leadership "played a crucial role for leading us to the success at COP21".[3][4]Fratelli tutti (2020) took human fraternity as its subject, invoking the example of Francis of Assisi and engaging directly with contemporary nationalism and populism.[5] The fourth, Dilexit nos (2024), departed from Francis's previous encyclicals in scope and audience, focusing on the Sacred Heart of Jesus as a symbol of divine and human love and addressing itself primarily to Catholics rather than to all people.[6]
Read together, the four documents share a consistent concern with what Francis has called the "peripheries": the poor, the marginalised, the natural world. Where earlier modern encyclicals often addressed Catholics alone, three of Francis's four were directed explicitly beyond the Church: Laudato si' to "every person living on this planet",[7] and Fratelli tutti to "all people of good will, regardless of their religious convictions".[8]
Encyclicals
| Title | English rendering | Principal theme | Addressees | Date | Text |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lumen fidei | The Light of Faith | Faith as a communal and historical gift; completed from a draft by Pope Benedict XVI | Bishops, priests, deacons, religious, and the lay faithful | 29 June 2013 | English · Latin |
| Laudato si' | Praise Be to You | Environmental ethics, integral ecology, and climate justice | Every person living on this planet | 24 May 2015 | English · Latin |
| Fratelli tutti | All Brothers | Human fraternity, social friendship, and rejection of nationalism | All people of good will | 3 October 2020 | English · Latin |
| Dilexit nos | He Loved Us | The Sacred Heart of Jesus; love as the centre of the Gospel | Bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons, and the lay faithful | 24 October 2024 | English · Latin |
References
- 1.Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Ecclesiastical Letters". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
- 2.Pope Francis (29 June 2013). "Encyclical Letter Lumen Fidei, §3". Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
- 3.Roewe, Brian. "Digital wake remembers Pope Francis' global impact on the climate movement". National Catholic Reporter. Archived from the original on 14 October 2025. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
- 4.Massaro, Thomas (2 October 2023). "What Precisely Did Pope Francis Contribute? Parsing Key Terms and Claims in Laudato Si'". Social Sciences. 12 (10): 552. doi:10.3390/socsci12100552.
- 5."Fratelli tutti". Holy See. Archived from the original on 1 May 2025. Retrieved 1 May 2025.
- 6."Dilexit nos". Holy See. Archived from the original on 9 November 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2025.
- 7.Pope Francis (24 May 2015). "Encyclical Letter Laudato Si', §3". Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
- 8.Pope Francis (3 October 2020). "Encyclical Letter Fratelli Tutti, §56". Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Archived from the original on 4 June 2026. Retrieved 12 June 2026.