Dilexi Te is Pope Leo XIV’s first apostolic exhortation, building upon Pope Francis’ fourth encyclical, Dilexit Nos. This exhortation is an invitation to contemplate Christ’s love, that we may be inspired to become attentive to the suffering and needs of others, and to share in the work of liberation that flows from his love.
“I am happy to make this document my own – adding some reflections – and to issue it at the beginning of my own pontificate, since 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. I too consider it essential to insist on this path to holiness, for “in this call to recognize him in the poor and the suffering, we see revealed the very heart of Christ, his deepest feelings and choices, which every saint seeks to imitate.”