VATICAN CITY –– Pope Francis has presented his first encyclical, entitled “Lumen Fidei”, meaning “The Light of Faith.”

The document was begun by his predecessor Benedict XVI and has been described by the director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardu SJ as “not very extensive”. Encyclicals are open letters written by the pope to members of the Catholic community, usually to outline the priorities of their pontificate.

An encyclical on faith was expected as the final instalment of Benedict’s three-part series on theological virtues, following “Spe Salvi” on hope and “Deus Caritas Est” on charity. In Catholic Culture Francis is quoted as having found the unfinished text to be “a strong document” when he read it for the first time.

He told bishops meeting in Rome that it was effectively an encyclical “written with four hands”, though he admitted that “most of the work” was done by Benedict.