The end of Benedict XVI's first encyclical reads, "Given in Rome, at Saint Peter's, on 25 December, the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, in the year 2005, the first of my Pontificate." But it took two months before the Vatican released it publicly.

The name of the encyclical is in Latin, but even the untutored in that language can make out the meaning: "Deus est Caritas," or "God is love."

Thus, the new pope known for his scholarship and intellectual rigor, a leader who was not suppose to have the "feel" for the Church of his predecessor, picks the nature of love as the subject of his first encyclical.

Who would have predicted it?

Yes, the future Benedict XVI surprised us with the emotional candor of his tribute to John Paul II at his funeral.

Yes, he further surprised us with a childlike grin when Cardinal Ratzinger, now Benedict XVI, walked onto the balcony of St. Peter's.

We should have seen it coming. And his intention to connect his discourse on love to the Nativity of the Lord promises more than an abstract analysis of Christian love in the modern world. In fact he offers both; the first part he describes as "speculative," the second "concrete," treating "the ecclesial exercise of the commandment of love of neighbor".

Just as Redemptor Hominis, the first encyclical of John Paul II, contains all the basic themes of his papacy, we can expect that his successor is trying to do the same. We should look in this encyclical for the themes that will emerge in the papacy of Benedict XVI.

Deus est Caritas is a challenging document that will require serious study before its depths can be revealed. Clearly, however, Benedict is trying to accomplish three things with this encyclical:

1. Proclaim the nature of human and divine love in the face of its various counterfeits in the popular culture where we live and in the intellectual history that influences our images of God and man.

2. Demonstrate that the Church is the one reality where our "encounter with God's agape" unites with our created human yearning [eros] enabling us to love our neighbor with God's love.

3. Insist that acts of charity should necessarily flow directly from the nature of the Church as an expression of its shared love, not from any ideology or any false hope of replacing the role of the State.

The pope's text is laced with allusions to a myriad of saints and philosophers, and references to the books of the Old Testament and the history of Israel are seen throughout.

Benedict XVI reinforces his reputation as a theologian but shows that he is adept, not only at biblical interpretation, but considers exegesis of both Testaments necessarily central to presenting his message.

Going back to his funeral homily and his appearance at the door of St. Peter's, we could ask: "How has he surprised us?"

When you read this encyclical the first time you cannot help but be impressed with his concern for those who live in poverty and suffering, whose dignity could be partially restored by individual and corporate acts of charity.

It would be a mistake to interpret Deus est Caritas as a political commentary on American politics. The pope himself warns against this several times, stating that charity should not be accompanied by ideology.

Benedict XVI helps to distinguish the work of the Church from the State by saying that faith itself should not enter the political domain. Rather, politics is a work of reason, but one that can be "purified" by faith.

"From God's standpoint, faith liberates reason from its blind spots and therefore helps it to be ever more fully itself. Faith enables reason to do its work more effectively and to see its proper object more clearly. This is where Catholic social doctrine has its place: it has no intention of giving the Church power over the State" [28 a].

This Catholic understanding of how faith strengthens reason, while allowing reason to operate in its own domain, speaks to a gaping whole in the present cultural debates. Men and women of faith can engage in public arguments yet not be guilty of advancing arguments based upon revelation.

The greatness of this first encyclical from Benedict XVI is itself a demonstration of reason purified by deep faith. He draws effortlessly on sources from all periods of civilization, both pagan and religious.

This pope represents the Catholic vision of life, the image of man and God, in a way that will undoubtedly continue and deepen the work of evangelization started by his predecessor.

If you want to read this encyclical for yourself, go the following link: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20051225_deus-caritas-est_en.html

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