List of encyclicals of Pope John Paul II

This article contains a list of Encyclicals of Pope John Paul II. Pope John Paul II issued 14 Papal Encyclicals during his reign as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church for over 26 years, from his election on 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005.

An encyclical (from Latin "encyclia", from the Greek "en kyklo, Polytonic|ἐν κύκλῳ", meaning "general" or "encircling") was a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Christian church. For the modern Roman Catholic Church, a Papal Encyclical, in the strictest sense, is a letter sent by the Pope which is explicitly addressed to Roman Catholic bishops of a particular area or to the world, usually treating some aspect of Catholic doctrine. A Papal Encyclical is generally used for significant issues, and is second in importance only to the highest ranking document now issued by popes, an Apostolic Constitution.

The title of a Papal Encyclical is usually taken from its first few words.
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6. || "Redemptoris Mater" || "Mother of the Redeemer" || On the Blessed Virgin Mary in the life of the Pilgrim Church || March 25 1987
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7. || "Sollicitudo Rei Socialis" || "On Social Concerns" || On the 20th anniversary of Pope Paul VI's encyclical "Populorum Progressio"; on the social concerns and teachings of the Church || December 30 1987
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8. || "Redemptoris Missio" || "Mission of the Redeemer" || On the permanent validity of the Church's missionary mandate ||December 7 1990
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9. || "Centesimus Annus" || "The Hundredth Year" || On the 100th anniversary of "Rerum Novarum"; on capital and labour; and on Catholic social teaching || May 1 1991
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10. || "Veritatis
Splendor" || "The Splendor of Truth" || On fundamental questions of the Church's moral teaching || August 6 1993
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11. || "Evangelium
Vitae" || "The Gospel of Life" || On the value and inviolability of human life || March 25 1995
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12. || "Ut Unum Sint" || "That They May Be One" || On commitment to ecumenism || May 25 1995
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13. || "Fides et Ratio" || "Faith and Reason" || On the relationship between faith and reason; condemning both atheism and faith unsupported by reason; affirming the place of reason and philosophy in religion || September 14 1998
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14. || "Ecclesia de Eucharistia" || "The Church of the Eucharist" || On the Eucharist in its relationship to the Church || April 17 2003

References

* [http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/index.htm Pope John Paul II Encyclicals, with Study Tool] (most in English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish; one also in Arabic and Latin) - from the Papal Archive at the internet site of the Holy See. Retrieved 13 December 2006.

External links

* [http://www.papalencyclicals.net/JP02/ PapalEncyclicals.net - Pope John Paul II] - online copies
* [http://dmoz.org/Society/Religion_and_Spirituality/Christianity/Denominations/Catholicism/Popes/J/John_Paul_II/Works/ Open Directory Project - Works of Pope John Paul II] - online copies