Pope Francis publishes an Apostolic Letter entitled “Candor lucis aeternae” that marks the 700th anniversary of the death of the great Italian poet Dante Alighieri and highlights the timeliness, timeliness and depth of faith in Dante’s masterpiece: “The Divine Comedy” .
By Isabella Piro
700 years after his death in 1321, when he was exiled to Ravenna from his beloved Florence, Dante still speaks to us. He speaks to men and women today, asking to be read and studied, but also heard and imitated on his way to happiness, that is, the infinite and eternal Love of God.
Thus writes Pope Francis in his Apostolic Letter “Candor lucis aeternae – Splendor of Eternal Light “, published on March 25, solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. The date is not accidental: the mystery of the Incarnation, arising from Mary’s full and total acceptance of God’s design, says the Pope, is” the true heart and inspiration of the whole poem “because he effected the prodigious exchange by which God enters our history by making himself flesh, and humanity” is elevated to God, in whom he finds true happiness. “
The popes and dante
Divided into nine paragraphs, the Apostolic Letter begins with a brief digression by the thoughts of several Pontiffs about Dante. Then, Pope Francis dwells on Alighieri’s life, calling it “the paradigm of the human condition” and emphasizing the “timeliness and importance of his work”. In fact, it is “an integral part of our culture,” writes the Pope, “Taking us back to the Christian roots of Europe and the West. It is the embodiment of that patrimony of ideals and values that the Church and civil society continue to propose ”even today as“ the basis of a human social order in which everyone can and must see others as brothers and sisters. ”
Innate desire for happiness
There are two main pillars in the “Divine Comedy” – explains the Pope – namely, “an innate desire in the human heart” and “fulfillment in the happiness granted by the vision of Love that is God”. That is why Dante is a “prophet of hope”: because with his work he urges humanity to free itself from the “black forest” of sin in order to find “the right path” and thus reach “the fullness of life and time in history “and” eternal bliss in God “. The path indicated by Dante, a true “pilgrimage” – points out the Pope – is “realistic and within reach” of all, because “the mercy of God always offers the possibility of change and conversion”.
Dante women
The Apostolic Letter also highlights three female figures from the “Divine Comedy”: Mary, the Mother of God, representative of charity; Beatrice, representing hope; and Santa Luzia, representing the faith. These three women, who represent the three theological virtues, accompany Dante in the different stages of his pilgrimage, demonstrating that “we are not saved alone”, but that the help of those “who can support and guide us with wisdom and prudence” is necessary . What moves Maria, Beatriz and Lúcia, in fact, is always divine love, “source of salvation and joy”, “to renewed life and, therefore, to happiness”.
Dante and Saint Francis of Assisi
The Pope then dedicates another paragraph to San Francisco, who in Dante’s work is depicted with the “white rose of the blessed”. He sees “a lot in common” between the Saint of Assisi and the Supreme Poet: both, in fact, addressed the people, the first “went out among the people”, the second preferred not to use Latin, but the vernacular, the tongue. of everything. In addition, both open themselves “to the beauty and value” of Creation, a mirror of their Creator. A brilliant artist, whose humanism “remains current and relevant”, Alighieri is also – he says – “a precursor of our multimedia culture, because in his work” word and image, symbol and sound, poetry and dance converge to convey a single message. . “
A message for everyone
The Pope continues to congratulate teachers who “passionately communicate Dante’s message and present to others the cultural, religious and moral riches contained in his works” and asks that this “heritage” not be closed in classrooms and universities, but be known. and widespread thanks to the commitment of Christian communities and cultural associations. He also urges artists to “give voice, face and heart, form, color and sound to Dante’s poetry, following the path of beauty that he has mastered”, to spread “a message of peace, freedom and fraternity”. A task, says the Pope, as current as ever in this historic moment, “clouded by situations of profound inhumanity and lack of confidence and prospects for the future”. The Supreme Poet – concludes the Apostolic Letter – can therefore “help us to advance with serenity and courage in the pilgrimage of life and faith that each of us is called to make, until our hearts find true peace and true joy, until we reach the ultimate goal of all mankind: The love that moves the sun and the other stars”.