Deus Caritas Est
Overview
Written in 2005, Deus Caritas Est (God is Love) was Pope Benedict XVI's first encyclical letter. It focuses on Love as the central reality of existence. The letter explores the concept of love at a theological and philosophical level, discussing eros, agape, and philia. It also articulates how love should become manifest in the life of the Church, through the proclamation of the word of God, the celebration of the Sacraments, and the exercise of charity. The encyclical is divided into two sections: “The Unity of Love in Creation and in Salvation History,” and “Caritas: The Practice of Love by the Church as a ‘Community of Love.’”
Top Highlights
“Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” (source)
“True, eros tends to rise ‘in ecstasy’ towards the Divine, to lead us beyond ourselves; yet for this very reason it calls for a path of ascent, renunciation, purification and healing.” (source)
“Since God has first loved us (cf. 1 Jn 4:10), love is now no longer a mere ‘command’; it is the response to the gift of love with which God draws near to us.” (source)
“God loves, and his love may certainly be called eros, yet it is also totally agape.” (source)
“That love between man and woman which is neither planned nor willed, but somehow imposes itself upon human beings” (source)