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Pope Benedict's encyclical on faith will not be completed

CWN - February 12, 2013

Pope Benedict XVI will not publish a 3rd encyclical in a series on the theological virtues, which had originally been scheduled for release early this year, the papal spokesman has announced.

Last year the Vatican had announced that the Pontiff was drafting an encyclical on faith, to complement his two previous encyclicals on hope and on love. But the text is not complete, Father Federico Lombardi told reporters, and will not be completed before the Pope's resignation on February 28.

The planned encyclical would have been the 4th of Benedict's pontificate. In addition to his encyclicals on hope (Spe Salvi) and charity (Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict also produced a "social encyclical" on the world's economic crisis, Caritas in Veritate.

(An earlier version of this report created the impression that Pope Benedict was drafting the 3rd encyclical of his pontificate, rather than the 3rd in a series. We regret the confusion.)

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  • Posted by: Marty01 - Feb. 13, 2013 1:13 PM ET USA

    Crushingly disappointing news. I can only hope that his successor will finish it.

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