noun
definition
A papal letter, intended for general circulation in the Catholic Church.
Examples of encyclicals in a Sentence
Meanwhile the papacy, as soon as the news reached Rome, despatched encyclicals throughout Europe; and soon a new Crusade was in full swing.
Other encyclicals, such as those on Christian marriage (Arcanum divinae sapientiae, 10th February 1880), on the Rosary (Supremi apostolatus oficii, 1st September 1883, and Superiore anno, 5th September 1898), and on Freemasonry (Humanism genus, 20th April 1884), dealt with subjects on which his predecessor had been accustomed to pronounce allocutions, and were on similar lines.
From the first he had shown great interest in social questions; and his encyclicals deal much less with theology than with citizenship, g?'
In 1869 the first Vatican Council issued five great encyclicals which would determine the role of the Roman Catholic Church in a modern society.
He also supported the fascist tyranny of Pilsudski in Poland, while writing erudite encyclicals on moral and political principles.
Fortunately, they had access to three social encyclicals.
This is a theme to which the pope himself constantly returns, and not only in major encyclicals.
If first encyclicals set the tone for a new papacy, then this one has begun quite brilliantly.
Those who hold the latter opinion have been able to assert that since the Vatican Council no infallible definition had yet been formulated by the popes, while recognizing the supreme authority of the encyclicals of Leo XIII.