Vatican publishes book commemorating key Encyclical of Paul VI on nature of the Church

Vatican City, Aug 5, 2004 / 22:00 pm

The official Vatican publisher, “Liberia Editrice Vaticana,” has published a new work commemorating the 40th anniversary of the historic first encyclical of Paul VI, “Ecclesiam Suam,” which was issued in August 6, 1964, and emphasized faithfulness to Christ over dissent from Church teaching.

In the Encyclical, which was issued on the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, Pope Paul VI recalled that the Church is “His,” (Ecclesiam Suam) that is, belonging to Jesus and not to men, and that therefore her mission in the world should be according to God’s plans and not human plans.

The author of the book entitled, “Paul VI, Spiritual Master,” originally published in French, is Patrice Mahieu, a monk from the Abby of Solesmes and curator of the collection by the publisher Sarment-Fayard, entitled “What the Pope Says.”

“The teaching of Paul VI is brought back through an extensive and unique excursion into his letters, meditations, discourses and homilies, from which the human, in addition to the pastoral quality, if a spiritual master powerfully emerge,” says the press release of the Vatican publisher.