Catholic World News News Feature

John Paul remembered #7: a treasury of papal writings April 12, 2005

During his 26-year pontificate, John Paul II produced over 100 official papal documents. Although his 14 encyclical letters constitute the most prominent category, he also wrote 15 apostolic exhortations, 11 apostolic constitutions, 45 apostolic letters, and 28 motu proprio's.

Along with these official documents, which fall neatly into the traditional categories of pontifical writing, John Paul II also wrote a series of lengthy personal letters to different categories of people. Each year, on Holy Thursday, he wrote to the world's priests. He also penned letters to the bishops on the Eucharist (1980), to religious on the Marian year (1988), to families for the year of the family (1994), to children (1994), to women (1995), to artists (1999), and to the aged (also 1999).

Well before his election to the See of Peter, Karol Wojtyla had been a prolific writer, producing books, poems, and essays. Probably the most important of his full-length works, prior to becoming Pope, was his book Love and Responsibility (1960). But he also wrote dramatic works such as The Tailor's Shop (also 1960). Even as a seminarian he had offered poetry, written then under a pseudonym, for publication in Polish reviews.

This outpouring of written work continued even after his papal election. In addition to the official documents listed above, he wrote Gift and Mystery, a meditation on the 50th anniversary of his priestly ordination, in 1996, and collaborated with journalist Vittorio Messori on the book-length interview entitled Crossing the Threshold of Hope in 1994. His prose-poem Roman Triptych appeared in 2003, soon to be followed by Arise, Let Us Be on Our Way!, a book about his pastoral experiences as a bishop, in 2003. His last book, Memory and Identity, in which he shared thoughts about the 20th century with two old friends, appeared in February 2005.

The apostolic exhortations

An apostolic exhortation is similar to an encyclical, in that the Pope uses this form to address a particular issue. Of the 15 apostolic exhortations of Pope John Paul II, 13 were written to summarize the results of particular synods. When he convened synods of bishops from particular continents, Pope John Paul made it his habit to release the following apostolic exhortation during a pastoral visit to that region.

His apostolic exhortations were:

1. Catechesi Tradendae (October 1979), on catechetical instruction, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in September 1977, during the pontificate of Pope Paul VI.
2. Familiaris Consortio (December 1981), on Christian family life, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in October 1980.
3. Redemptionis Donum (March 1984), on religious life in light of the redemption-- one of the 2 apostolic exhortations not responding to a Synod meeting.
4. Reconciliatio et Penitentia (December 1984), on the sacrament of Penance, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in September-October 1983.
5. Christifideles Laici (January 1989), on the vocation of lay Catholics, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in October 1987.
6. Redemptoris Custos (October 1989), on the figure of St. Joseph in the life of Jesus and of the Church-- the other apostolic exhortations not responding to a Synod meeting, written shortly after the encyclical Redemptoris Mater, which was devoted to the Virgin Mary.
7. Pastores Dabo Vobis (April 1992), on the vocation and formation of priests, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in September-October 1990.
8. Ecclesia in Africa (September 1995), on the challenges confronting the Church in Africa, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in April-May 1995.
9. Vita Consecrata (March 1996), on the vocation of religious, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in October 1994.
10. Une espérance nouvelle pour le Liban (May 1997), on the crisis in Lebanon-- promulgated in French, in an unusual gesture for a pontifical document-- following the Synod of Bishops on that country which met in November-December 1995.
11. Ecclesia in America (January 1999), on the church in the New World, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in November-December 1997.
12. Ecclesia in Asia (November 1999), following the Synod of Bishops from that continent which met in April-May 1998.
13. Ecclesia in Oceania (November 2001), following the Synod of Bishops from that which met in November-December 1998.
14. Ecclesia in Europe (June 2003), following the Synod of Bishops from that continent which met in October 1999.
15. Pastores Gregis (October 2003), on the vocation of diocesan bishops, following the Synod of Bishops on that topic which met in September-October 2001.

The apostolic constitutions

An apostolic constitution-- equivalent to a "papal bull" under the forms of canon law-- announces important papal decisions on matters of faith and morals, or administration of the Church. Those of John Paul II were:

1. Scripturam Thesaurus (April 1979), on the use of the Scriptures.
2. Sapientia Cristiana (May 1979), on the governance of ecclesiastical university faculties.
3. Magnum Matrimonii Sacramentum (October 1982), establishing the pontifical institute for studies on marriage and the family.
4. Sacrae Disciplinae Leges (January 1983), promulgating the new Code of Canon Law.
5. Divinus Perfectionis Magister (February 1983), revising the procedures for the beatification and canonization of saints.
6. Spirituali Militum Curae (May 1986), revising the regulations for military chaplains.
7. Pastor Bonus (June 1988), outlining changes in the jurisdiction and workings of the Roman Curia-- only the 3rd such reform since the Curia had been established by Pope Sixtus V in 1538.
8. Ex Corde Ecclesiae (September 1990), setting standards for the preservation of orthodox instruction in Catholic universities.
9. Fidei Depositum (November 1992), promulgating the new Catechism of the Catholic Church.
10. Universi Dominici Gregis (February 1996), revising the procedures to be followed when the death of the Pope causes a vacancy at the Holy See.
11. Ecclesia in Urbe (February 1998), making administrative changes in the vicariate of Rome.

Apostolic letters are generally addressed to particular persons, or groups of people, in order to advance the understanding of certain Church teachings. Often an apostolic letter is released on the occasion of an important event in the history of the Church, such as the Jubilee Year of 2000. Other apostolic letters may address issues that are the focus of particular dispute at the time they are released.

The 44 apostolic letters of John Paul II form a body of work too large to analyze-- or even to list-- in this confined space. But several of the late Pontiff's apostolic letters had a great impact on public opinion and on the life of the Church.

• Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, issued on May 22, 1994, may have been John Paul's most controversial apostolic letter. In it he announced "in a definitive mode" that the Catholic priesthood is reserved to men, and therefore the Church cannot ever ordain women. Making this announcement in unquestionable terms, the Pope also made it clear that his successors would be bound by the same restriction, since the all-male priesthood was established not by human rules by by divine command.
• Mulieris Dignitatem, issued on August 15, 1998, was a profound reflection on the dignity and role of women. The Holy Father called for a greater recognition of the particular gifts of femininity, which revolve around the capacity for motherhood (spiritual as well as physical) and the "gift of self," and urged greater opportunities for women to develop those gifts and use them in the Church and in society.
• Orientale Lumen, issued on May 2, 1995, was one of several documents in which John Paul II underlined the importance of ecumenical progress. In this apostolic letter he insisted that the Western Church should learn from the Eastern tradition, and together they should forge a new Christian culture, leaving behind the "reciprocal ignorance" that has marred past relations.
• Rosarium Virginis Mariae, issued on October 16, 2002, may have been the most personal apostolic letter of John Paul II, and perhaps the most sensational as well. In it he reflected on praying the Rosary, and took the astonishing step of introducing the five "luminous mysteries"-- the first such change in the form of the prayer since it had been introduced to St. Dominic.
• Tertio Millennio Adveniente, issued on Novermber 14, 1994, and Novo Millennio Ineunte, issued on January 6, 2001, both referred to the arrival of the year 2000, and the opening of the third millennium of Christianity. In the former, John Paul announced his intentions for the Jubilee year; the latter urged a new missionary impulse, encouraging Christians to "cast out into the deep" in promoting the faith.

The Motu Proprio's

A "motu proprio" is a canonical act by which the Pope issues an order that takes the form of canon law. Three of the 28 decrees issued in this form by Pope John Paul II had particularly noteworthy effects:

• Ecclesia Dei, signed on July 2, 1988, recognized the schism that occurred when Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre ordained four bishops for his traditionalist movement in defiance of Vatican warnings. At the same time the Holy Father set up a commission to "facilitate the full ecclesial communion" of priests, seminarians, and religious who wished to remain in full union with the Holy See while preserving their devotion to the traditional liturgy.
• Apostolos Suos, published on July 23, 1998, dwelt on the authority of episcopal conferences, making it clear that these conferences exist to help diocesan bishops, rather than to supervise them. The document warned against the "bureaucratization" of national bishops' conferences, and the unfortunate tendency to see the conference as a "filter" or mediator in relations between the individual bishops and the Holy See. The document indicated that documents issued by bishops' conference carried full teaching authority only if they received the unanimous approval of the bishops.
• Sacramentorum Sanctitatis Tutella, signed on April 30, 2001, was a confidential document, sent to the world's bishops a month after it was signed, dealing with the discipline due to priests who are guilty of "grave faults"-- a reference to the sex-abuse scandal that was shaking the Catholic Church in the US. This motu proprio confirmed that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith would have jurisdiction for the handling of offenses in three areas: offenses against the Blessed Sacrament, violations of the sacrament of Penance, and abuses of children.

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