Dilexi Te: A Summary on Love for the Poor

Introduction: "I Have Loved You"

Pope Leo XIV begins his Apostolic Exhortation, "Dilexi Te," by continuing the reflections of his predecessor, Pope Francis. The title itself, meaning "I have loved you," is presented as Christ's own words spoken to every poor and powerless person. The document aims to show the unbreakable link between our love for Christ and our sacred duty to care for the poor. It is not just a call for social action, but a fundamental path to holiness, because in recognizing Christ in the suffering, we discover His very heart.

Chapter 1: The Essential Connection

The exhortation establishes that love for the Lord is inseparable from love for the poor. Recalling the woman who anointed Jesus with expensive oil, the Pope highlights Jesus's response: "You always have the poor with you." This is not a dismissal, but a profound teaching. We encounter and serve Christ directly when we serve "the least of these."

Poverty is described as a multifaceted reality. It is not only a lack of material resources but also social marginalization, a lack of rights, and moral or spiritual emptiness. The document critiques a modern "throwaway culture" that creates a growing gap between a wealthy elite and the millions who live in destitution. This indifference is often justified by ideologies that wrongly suggest the poor are responsible for their own condition. The Church, however, must listen to the "cry of the poor," which is truly the cry of God.

Chapter 2: God's Preferential Love

The document provides a strong theological foundation for the Church's "preferential option for the poor." This is not an exclusive choice against the rich, but a reflection of God's own heart. God consistently reveals Himself in scripture as the defender of the weak, the orphan, and the widow.

Jesus Christ is the ultimate embodiment of this preference. His entire life was marked by poverty: born in a stable, living as a refugee, having no place to lay his head, and dying as an outcast. He not only served the poor, but He became poor. His proclamation, "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God," is the cornerstone of a faith where our love for God is proven by our tangible love for our neighbour. The parable of the Last Judgment (Matthew 25) is presented as the final criterion on which we will all be judged: did we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit the imprisoned?

Chapter 3: A Church Living for the Poor

This chapter provides a sweeping overview of the Church's two-thousand-year history of serving the poor, demonstrating that this mission is not a modern idea but is central to its identity. Pope Francis's desire for "a poor Church for the poor" echoes the earliest Christian communities.

• The Church Fathers: Figures like Saint Lawrence declared the poor to be the "true treasures of the Church." Saint John Chrysostom passionately preached that one cannot honour Christ at the altar while neglecting Him in the hungry person at the church door.
• Care for the Sick and Vulnerable: The Church has always seen Christ in the sick. This is shown through the work of saints like Camillus de Lellis and countless congregations of religious women who built hospitals and provided care with motherly affection.
• Monasticism and Mendicant Orders: Monasteries became havens of solidarity, while mendicant orders like the Franciscans and Dominicans embraced poverty to live among and serve the marginalized.
• Education and Liberation: The Church pioneered free education for the poor through saints like John Bosco and John Baptist de La Salle. It also established orders like the Trinitarians to ransom those enslaved, a mission that continues today in the fight against human trafficking.
• Modern Witnesses: The legacy continues with modern saints like Teresa of Calcutta and Dulce of the Poor, who found Christ in the "poorest of the poor" and served them with radical love.

Chapter 4: A Continuing History of Social Teaching

The exhortation recaps the development of the Church's formal Social Doctrine over the last 150 years. From Pope Leo XIII's defence of workers' rights to the Second Vatican Council's vision of a "Church of the poor," the Magisterium has consistently called for justice.

A key concept discussed is "structures of sin." These are unjust economic, political, and social systems that create and perpetuate poverty. The Church has a duty to denounce these structures, such as a global economy that prioritizes profit over people.

Crucially, the document stresses that the poor are not merely objects of charity. They are the primary subjects, or agents, of their own development and liberation. They possess a unique wisdom and a deep faith from which the entire Church must learn. We are called not just to serve the poor, but to be evangelized by them.

Chapter 5: The Constant Challenge to Our Hearts

The final chapter is a pressing call to action. Caring for the poor is not an optional extra for Christians; it is an essential part of our tradition and faith. The parable of the Good Samaritan is presented as a direct challenge to our modern tendency to "look the other way" from suffering. Indifference is a sickness that we must overcome.

The Pope reminds us that the poor are the very "flesh of Christ." To have a relationship with Jesus means we must be willing to touch His suffering flesh in those who are hungry, thirsty, imprisoned, or sick. A faith that remains in the private sphere and does not engage with social problems risks becoming an empty, worldly spirituality.

Finally, the exhortation defends the practice of almsgiving. While the ultimate goal is to create a just society where everyone has dignified work, almsgiving remains a necessary and powerful act. It is a moment of personal encounter where we can stop, look into the eyes of another, and share a part of ourselves. It is a concrete gesture that softens our hearts and makes Christian love real, ensuring the poor hear Christ's words personally: "I have loved you."