June 29, 2015
On the evening of the release of Pope Francis’ recent encyclical on the environment (Laudato Si), a discussion broke out at the Paulist dinner table about what authority a papal encyclical had. As in many discussions around our dinner table there were sundry opinions about the authority the pope carries when he writes.
So, just what is an encyclical? It is a formal pastoral letter written by or under the authority of the pope. It will usually concern moral, doctrinal or disciplinary issues. Most of the time the letter is addressed to all the people of God in the Church. Most recently, Pope John XXIII began the custom of addressing the encyclical to “all people of good will.” In the copy on the Vatican website the audience for Laudato Si was not identified.
Which pope began the custom? Historians say that Pope Benedict XIV was the first. (Careful about those roman numerals). The encyclical was called
Ubi Primum and was written in 1740. Nearly all the Popes since Pope Pius IX (1846-78) have used the encyclical as a way to exercise their ordinary teaching authority. The first two words of the encyclical are usually its title. In this case laudato si, in Italian means, “Praise to you.” They are words from St. Francis of Assisi.
Pope Francis’ latest encyclical has created a large amount of reaction both positive and negative; some will say that the Pope does not understand capitalism, others that he is not a scientist and should not be meddling in scientific matters, others are enraptured by his phrases and calls to the world to do all we can to enhance our environment. So, who’s right? What authority does the pope have?
The question of authority is important especially when there are many and varied responses to Laudato Si. Catholics are normally expected to give their assent to the moral and doctrinal content of papal encyclicals. But it’s important to understand that there are three issues that bear on the authority of an encyclical. (1) No encyclical has the authority of what we know as the extraordinary magisterium of the Church. That means the Pope is acting in the name of the whole Church, or when an ecumenical council issues documents which is the case of the Second Vatican Council. (2) Because the encyclical does not contain definitive or infallible teaching a Catholic may in good conscience disagree. In other words, some forms of dissent are permitted. (3) Because issues in the encyclical are taught by the pope –
as in the case of the environment – the issue is not closed to theological and other forms of discourse. Needless to say Pope Francis has a theological point of view that he expresses in Laudato Si, and we have already seen many good Catholics who disagree with parts of the encyclical, as well as many, just as learned others, who embrace it.
Does the Pope sit down and write the encyclical himself? Not usually. The process is usually a collegial process, with the Pope exercising the final written version.
What makes an encyclical worthwhile for us is that we read it, and not rely on media sources to tell us what they saw in it. Only in that way can we appreciate what has been said and decide how much we believe the Holy Father has made his mark, in this case, on the subject of the environment.