Pope Francis’ last encyclical, “He loved us” (Dilexit Nos), subtitled “On the human and divine love of the Heart of Jesus Christ,” is a profound meditation on Jesus’ love for us, an affective love that seeks to have a personal relationship with each of us. It is deeply scriptural, exploring the meaning of “heart” not only in ordinary usage, but also in Jewish and Christian tradition.
It begins: “HE LOVED US,” Saint Paul says of Christ (cf. Rom 8:37), in order to make us realize that nothing can ever “separate us” from that love (Rom 8:39). Paul could say this with certainty because Jesus himself had told his disciples, “I have loved you” (Jn 15:9,12). Even now, the Lord says to us, “I have called you friends” (Jn 15:15). His open heart has gone before us and waits for us, unconditionally, asking only to offer us his love and friendship. For “he loved us first” (cf. 1 Jn 4:10). Because of Jesus, “we have come to know and believe in the love that God has for us” (1 Jn 4:16).
Pope Francis traces the importance of the heart as the place where the human person comes to harmonywithin oneself. And then he continues to teach that the experience of God’s love for us in Christ impels us to be truly open to others, to love them. That is the theme of this letter and the sequel he was preparing when he died. Pope Leo XIV completed that sequel and issued it in October as the Apostolic Exhortation, “I Have Loved You” (Rev 3:9), (Dilexi Te).
Taken together, these meditations on God’s love light the Christian way of life. In the first, Pope Francis explores the heart of Christ as the symbol of God’s love for us in the long tradition of Christian spirituality, quoting abundantly from the Church fathers and the writings ofthe saints. He places the revelations to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque and the subsequent Jesuit promotion of devotion to the Sacred Heart in the context of the 17th century. At that time, much Christian teaching reflected the prevalent rationalism and an intellectual approach to spirituality, one often lacking the warmth of a personal dimension. Francis remindsus that Ignatian spirituality is all about ordering our affections, and so the Jesuits embraced this new devotion wholeheartedly.
Dilexi Te is an extended meditation on love for the poor as the fruit of union with the heart of Christ. Lived love for those who are suffering is essential for the spiritual life, for our relationship with God, and fortrue discipleship. Pope Leo tells us that he has made his own the draft Francis left, adding some reflections, and joining Francis in insisting that there is no path to holiness that doesn’t include love for the poor and suffering. He recalls the Gospel vision of the last judgment in Matthew 25 (the separation of the sheep from the goats) and says, “Our Lord made it very clearthat holiness cannot be understood or lived apart from these demands” (28).
Read together, these “Dilexits” feel like a revelation of Pope Francis’ deep personal spirituality. They are accessible, inspiring, and a treasure trove of Christian spirituality.
The letters are available online, and Orbis Press plans to publish them together very soon.