Pope Francis has written his third encyclical entitled Fratelli tutti (On Fraternity and Social Friendship), which he addresses to all people of goodwill and offers as a proposal for a way of life ‘marked by the flavour of the Gospel’.
While the pope’s second encyclical, Laudato Si’ (On care for our common home), focused on our relationship with the natural world, Fratelli tutti focuses on our relationships with each other. The document’s release coincides with the conclusion of this year’s Season of Creation, and during this time of pandemic is offered as a contribution to ‘the rebirth of a universal aspiration to fraternity by acknowledging the dignity of each and every human person’. (FT 8).
Following the release of the new encyclical, Archbishop Peter A Comensoli encouraged the faithful to read the pope’s words: ‘Situated as we are in the latter stages of this Pandemic, Fratelli tutti offers much that we might embrace as we determine who we are as people of God in Melbourne, and how we might emerge from this time of exile to go on mission into the world with the beating heart of Jesus. I urge everyone to read it, and to then return to it with time and space to draw more deeply into the riches within.’
Read the full text of Fratelli tutti here.
Read a summary here.