Dilexi te - ‘I have loved you’
Bishop Alan McGuckian welcomes Pope Leo’s
Dilexi Te – ‘I have loved you’
Saint Francis of Assisi and Lady Poverty
Today [9th October 2025] in Rome, the first Apostolic Exhortation from Pope Leo XIV was published. Entitled Dilexi Te – I Have Loved You it is addressed to all Christians and follows from the last encyclical letter of the late Pope Francis on the love that flows from the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Pope Leo notes that much of the letter was prepared by Pope Francis in the final months of his life and that he is happy to make this document his own.
Welcoming the publication of this first major document of Pope Leo’s pontificate, Bishop Alan McGuckian SJ, Chair of the Council for Migrants, Refugees and Justice and Peace of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference, said that it provided a comprehensive overview of the Church’s teaching, tradition and practice in hearing and responding to the cry of the poor over the centuries, as well as a serious call to action in our own times.
The document places the Church’s teaching in the context of God’s eternal love for all, made manifest through the life of Jesus Christ. It then brings this to light through the lens of Scripture and history, to the teachings of the Church Fathers, the lifestyle of poverty and conversion embraced by Saint Francis of Assisi and others, to the documents and outcomes of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, and more recently, the writings of various Popes and, notably, the declarations by various bishops’ conferences, notably in Latin America.
The various forms of poverty in our world are referenced – from material poverty to loneliness and isolation, war, migration and indifference. The Pope also refers to the importance of caring for creation and its link to poverty and the vulnerable. In addition, the spiritual poverty of our world is highlighted, noting that when we open ourselves to the poor and the suffering, we re-discover our own need for mercy and discipleship – to be poor with the poor. Love for the Lord means love for the poor.
“Ultimately, this document speaks of love that becomes a mission, a mission that moves us from places of comfort to works of compassion and service in closeness with those who are poor. Pope Leo speaks of us being “asked to enter into the heart of God, who is always concerned for the needs of his children, especially those in greatest need.” (Dilexi te 8)
“The Holy Father is very clear that in dealing with the various forms of poverty in our world today, we need to be committed to eliminating the structural causes of poverty and related inflictions. He rightly notes that this cannot be delayed because “society needs to be cured of a sickness which is weakening and frustrating it and which can only lead to new crises”. (Dilexi te 94)
“At the same time, the Pope states that no Christian can simply regard the poor as a societal issue alone. The poor are part of us all, part of our Church family too and in need of accompaniment on our journey to eternal life. In this regard, he reminds us of the words of Saint John Paul II who taught that ‘the preferential option for the poor, namely the Church’s love for the poor, is essential for her and a part of her constant tradition, and impels her to give attention to a world in which poverty is threatening to assume massive proportions in spite of technological and economic progress.’ (Dilexi te 104)
“Pope Leo speaks of Christian love breaking down barriers and bringing together those who are distant, uniting strangers and reconciling enemies. The Church, he says, sets no limits to love and this is what our world needs today.”