The 2025 holiday season is upon us with Thanksgiving, Advent, Christmas and New Years filling all our calendars. We even had a snowy day recently, though there was little impact.
The weather did require furnaces to be turned on and warm jackets to be found in the back of the closet. Ready or not, change to the season of winter is soon to arrive.
The last few months brought us some difficult days. The loss of government funding and changes in federal regulations disrupted a great deal of our work at Catholic Charities and impacted the lives of many of our parishioners.
The government shutdown for 43 days was a burden to many in our communities and anyone who had to travel. It is hard to accept that the most vulnerable in our country were left without assistance for food and other necessities.
The UPS airplane crash on Nov. 6 was tragic and frightening. We could hear the explosion at the Pastoral Center, and the cloud of smoke quickly reached our parking lot. The entire community has been grieving this terrible loss of life.
When we begin Advent with the hymn, “O Come Emmanuel,” it will have a more profound meaning.
I have been reflecting on the amazing timing and significance of Pope Leo XIV’s first major document, the apostolic exhortation “Dilexi Te” (“I have loved you”). It was released on Oct. 4 at a time when much of the world needed to hear this message. While readily available through the Holy See’s website, I know many of you have likely not had the opportunity to read it.
The document is a fervent call to all Christians to embrace a radical love and care for the poor as an inseparable part of their faith. It emphasizes that encountering Christ is intrinsically linked to serving the needy and addressing the structural causes of poverty. I want to use this column to provide a few key themes of “Dilexi Te:”
Inseparable link between faith and the poor — The document teaches, as Jesus did, that love for God and love for one’s neighbor, especially the poor, are two first laws. Christian charity is not optional but a core requirement of authentic discipleship.
The “Preferential Option for the Poor” — Pope Leo reiterates the church’s teaching on God’s special compassion for the vulnerable. This “preference” is not an exclusion of others but a call for the church to make a decisive and radical choice in favor of the weakest members of society.
On systemic injustice — “Dilexi Te” critiques an economy that “kills” and increases inequality, warning against a “throwaway culture.” It calls for both personal charitable actions (almsgiving) and systemic changes to eradicate unjust social and economic structures.
Recognizing the many faces of poverty — The exhortation broadens the definition of poverty beyond material deprivation to include social marginalization, lack of rights, freedom, education and the specific exclusions faced by women and migrants.
The Poor as “Teachers of the Gospel” — The pope highlights that the poor are not merely objects of compassion, but persons who can teach others through their lived experiences.
Continuity with church teaching — Pope Leo builds on a long tradition of Catholic social teaching, referencing Scripture, the Church Fathers, and modern encyclicals, such as Pope Leo XIII’s “Rerum Novarum” and Pope Francis’s “Evangelii Gaudium.”
Ultimately, the encyclical urges a change in mentality and calls on all members of the church to denounce injustice and work for a more just society, where the dignity of every human person is respected.
Perhaps as part of your Advent time of preparation you could read the full text. I believe it could enrich and renew your own reflections of what the story of the Incarnation teaches, that Jesus, our Savior, the Son of God, was born, wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger.
May you have a blessed holiday season. Let’s continue to pray for one another.
Dr. Brian B. Reynolds is the chancellor and chief administrative officer of the Archdiocese of Louisville.
Commentary — As Advent begins, take a look at ‘Dilexi Te’
The 2025 holiday season is upon us with Thanksgiving, Advent, Christmas and New Years filling all our calendars. We even had a snowy day recently, though there was little impact.
The weather did require furnaces to be turned on and warm jackets to be found in the back of the closet. Ready or not, change to the season of winter is soon to arrive.
The last few months brought us some difficult days. The loss of government funding and changes in federal regulations disrupted a great deal of our work at Catholic Charities and impacted the lives of many of our parishioners.
The government shutdown for 43 days was a burden to many in our communities and anyone who had to travel. It is hard to accept that the most vulnerable in our country were left without assistance for food and other necessities.
The UPS airplane crash on Nov. 6 was tragic and frightening. We could hear the explosion at the Pastoral Center, and the cloud of smoke quickly reached our parking lot. The entire community has been grieving this terrible loss of life.
When we begin Advent with the hymn, “O Come Emmanuel,” it will have a more profound meaning.
I have been reflecting on the amazing timing and significance of Pope Leo XIV’s first major document, the apostolic exhortation “Dilexi Te” (“I have loved you”). It was released on Oct. 4 at a time when much of the world needed to hear this message. While readily available through the Holy See’s website, I know many of you have likely not had the opportunity to read it.
The document is a fervent call to all Christians to embrace a radical love and care for the poor as an inseparable part of their faith. It emphasizes that encountering Christ is intrinsically linked to serving the needy and addressing the structural causes of poverty. I want to use this column to provide a few key themes of “Dilexi Te:”
Ultimately, the encyclical urges a change in mentality and calls on all members of the church to denounce injustice and work for a more just society, where the dignity of every human person is respected.
Perhaps as part of your Advent time of preparation you could read the full text. I believe it could enrich and renew your own reflections of what the story of the Incarnation teaches, that Jesus, our Savior, the Son of God, was born, wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger.
May you have a blessed holiday season. Let’s continue to pray for one another.
Dr. Brian B. Reynolds is the chancellor and chief administrative officer of the Archdiocese of Louisville.
Father Knott’s books, based on ‘An Encouraging Word’ column, available