An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin (originally from the Latin , a Latinization of Greek (), meaning "circular", "in a circle", or "all-round", also part of the origin of the word encyclopedia).

The term is now primarily associated with papal encyclicals from the Catholic Church for letters outlining the church's perspective on a topic, but is also used among Anglicans and the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Catholic usage

Although the term "encyclical" originally simply meant a circulating letter, it acquired a more specific meaning within the context of the Catholic Church. In 1740, Pope Benedict XIV wrote a letter titled Ubi primum, which is generally regarded as the first encyclical. Papal encyclicals usually take the form of a papal brief because of their more personal nature as opposed to the formal papal bull.

Like most papal documents the title of the encyclical is usually taken from its first few words (its incipit). They are usually written in Latin unless particularly addressed to the Bishops or the church of one region. Papal encyclicals not in Latin include the 1931 Italian Non abbiamo bisogno against Italian fascist suppression of groups like Catholic Action, and the 1937 German Mit brennender Sorge against the Nazi idolization of race and nation.

Papal use

In the encyclical Humani generis, Pope Pius XII held that papal encyclicals, even when they are of ordinary magisterium, can nonetheless be sufficiently authoritative to end theological debate on a particular question:

As part of Catholic social teaching, popes have issued at least 19 encyclicals, over more than a century. On social issues and workers rights, Pope Leo XIII promulgated the encyclical Rerum novarum (1891), which was followed by Quadragesimo anno (1931) of Pius XI and Centesimus annus (1991) of John Paul II. Pope Pius XII issued ten encyclicals, mostly after 1945, three of them protesting against the Soviet invasion of Hungary which suppressed the Hungarian Revolution in 1956: Datis nuperrime, Laetamur admodum and Luctuosissimi eventus. Pope Paul VI published an encyclical Humanae Vitae on the topics of birth control and euthanasia.

In the 21st-century, in May 2026, Pope Leo XIV issued the encyclical letter Magnifica Humanitas on safeguarding humans in the age of artificial intelligence.

Anglican usage

Amongst Anglicans the term encyclical was revived in the late 19th century. It is applied to circular letters issued by the English primates.

Eastern Orthodox usage

In Eastern Orthodoxy encyclicals can be issued by the Patriarh of Constantinople, Synods of Bishops, and even by individual bishops.

Important Eastern Orthodox encyclicals

  • Encyclical of the Eastern Patriarchs (1848)
  • Patriarchal encyclical of 1895
  • Patriarchal encyclical of 1920
  • Patriarchal encyclical of 2012

See also

  • Apostolic letter (disambiguation)

References

Sources

  • The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (3rd. ed.), p. 545.
  • List of papal documents at the Theology Library
  • Papal Encyclicals at GCatholic
  • www.papalencyclicals.net, texts of most of the encyclicals from recent centuries