Last week, Pope Leo released his first Apostolic Exhortation titled “Dilexi te” (“I have loved you”). In doing so, he completed what Pope Francis began. Francis, Leo tells us in the document’s opening lines, had been preparing the text in the final months of his life.
“I am happy to make this document my own,” Leo writes. “I share the desire of my beloved predecessor that all Christians come to appreciate the close connection between Christ’s love and his summons to care for the poor.” (3) Loving those who are vulnerable and marginalized is an essential path to holiness, Leo reminds us.
“Dilexi te” is a breathtaking tour de force tracking the historical development of the Church’s preferential option for the poor across the Christian story. Leo begins by grounding this fundamental Christian call in Scripture. He proceeds to namecheck several saints known for their work among the most vulnerable. He then offers a literature review of documents by popes and bishops’ conferences the world over that make up the backbone of Catholic social teaching. The Exhortation ends by challenging us to bring our 2,000-year-old faith-that-does-justice into dialogue with the signs of the times and the pressing needs of those living in poverty today.
“Love for the poor is an essential element of the history of God’s dealings with us,” Leo asserts. “It rises up from the heart of the Church as a constant appeal to the hearts of the faithful, both individually and in our communities.” (103) After praying through the sweeping scope of “Dilexi te,” it’s hard to disagree.
And yet, people still do. “I often wonder,” Pope Leo writes, “even though the teaching of Sacred Scripture is so clear about the poor, why many people continue to think that they can safely disregard the poor.” (23)
When I came to this sentiment — early in the document, almost a throwaway line nestled in a paragraph nominally about the integral development of society — I laughed out loud. You gotta care for the poor; haven’t you been paying attention? It felt like the equivalent of a papal eyeroll. I found myself mentally patting myself on the shoulder, agreeing along with the pope’s clear exasperation. If only we could all get on the same Gospel page!
But the more I read and the more I reflected, the more I realized that Leo’s line was for me, too. I agree wholeheartedly that foundational to the Christian life is a love for those who are struggling in poverty, cast out of society, forgotten, marginalized and vulnerable. So, how does that affect my life? How does it change the horizon of my day? These are questions for each of us to reflect upon. How we answer these questions — how we continue to grapple with them in the challenges of this present moment — are important. Have I truly risen to the moment? Have you?
Pope Leo is not simply advocating for more charity work, though he affirms its importance. He’s not solely focused on challenging unjust structures, though he’s clear that systems that rob any of God’s people of their inherent dignity and condemn them to debilitating poverty are immoral and should be torn down.
Leo sees the works of charity and justice as a given; these are integral to the Christian life and our Gospel call to care for the poor. The pope calls us to more. “No Christian can regard the poor simply as a societal problem; they are part of our ‘family,’” Leo contends. “They are ‘one of us.’” (104) We don’t just do for those in poverty; we stand with. We go to.
Pope Leo is underlining in the brightest of red markers Pope Francis’ oft-used word, encounter.
When we go to meet folks living on life’s margins, we encounter something new and essential of God. “Their experience of poverty gives them the ability to recognize aspects of reality that others cannot see; for this reason, society needs to listen to them,” Leo insists. “The same holds true for the Church.” (100)
“Dilexi te” grounds our love for one another — and our preferential option for those most in need — in a sweeping and inspiring history of the Christian people who strive to love neighbor as self. It’s hard work, and it can be tempting to ignore this foundational call.
But what Leo reminds us of — what his words have sparked in me, at least — is the renewed recollection that when we encounter folks who are struggling, marginalized or impoverished, we don’t do so as saviors, heroes or distant champions. We do so as fellow pilgrims. We do so recognizing that God’s Spirit is just as alive and at work in these “least” of society as in each of us. And God’s Spirit has something to teach us, to show us, to awaken within us.
That’s how God’s Spirit works. That’s how God’s Spirit has worked throughout all of time.
Let us not forget ourselves in the chaos of this present moment. Let us instead pray with these encouraging words with which Pope Leo concludes his Apostolic Exhortation.
“Christian love breaks down every barrier, brings close those who were distant, unites strangers, and reconciles enemies. It spans chasms that are humanly impossible to bridge, and it penetrates to the most hidden crevices of society. By its very nature, Christian love is prophetic: it works miracles and knows no limits. It makes what was apparently impossible happen. Love is above all a way of looking at life and a way of living it. A Church that sets no limits to love, that knows no enemies to fight but only men and women to love, is the Church that the world needs today.” (120)
