On October 4th, feast of saint Francis of Assisi, Pope Leo published his first Apostolic exhortation, “Dilexi te” (I Have Loved You), dedicated to the centrality of love for the poor in the Church’s life and, hopefully, in the life of any christian. The title echoes Pope Francis’ last text (“Dilexit nos”), for a good reason: the text was started by him and finished by Pope Leo. Still, in the words of Cardinal Czerny, the text is “100% Francis and 100% Leo”. Leo’s letter exposes how Jesus has expressed God’s particular love for the poor and how the Church has tried to stay faithful to his mandate over centuries.
The text is a strong appeal for a love that is grounded in practice, echoing the radicality of the early Church, which made care for the poor the expression by excellence of God’s love in the world, as well as the development of Catholic Social teaching, which formulates principles of social actions for today’s society. It is also a text of balance, uniting complementary aspects. Actual charity goes hand in hand with prayer; personal donations complement collective welfare; individual action begs for profound changes in economic structure; spiritual care needs brotherly support.
It is particularly striking that the text finishes with an attention on alms. Far from seeing as an outdated way of practicing charity, the Pope (Popes?) insists on its relevance today. Yes, alms are not and cannot be a structural solution. But they force us to make “real”, direct our attention to the poor, to stop and meet him or her, in the flesh. They also force us to consider what exactly is necessary for our lives and what is in excess if indeed, as expressed forcefully by saint Basil: The bread in your cupboard belongs to the hungry man; the coat hanging in your closet belongs to the man who needs it; the shoes rotting in your closet belong to the man who has no shoes; the money which you put into the bank belongs to the poor.
The text of the Exhortation is available on the Vatican’s website in 8 languages.
Benoit Willemaers SJ
JESC Secretary for European Affairs
