Spe Salvi
| Spe salvi Latin : Saved in Hope Encyclical letter of Pope Benedict XVI |
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| Date | 30 November 2007 |
| Argument | Hope and Salvation |
| Pages | 77 |
| Encyclical number | 2 of 3 of the pontificate |
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Spe Salvi (English: "Saved in Hope"), referencing the Latin phrase from Romans 8:24, Spe salvi facti sumus ("in hope we were saved"), is the second encyclical letter by Pope Benedict XVI promulgated on November 30, 2007, and is about the theological virtue of hope. Benedict has systematically touched upon the three theological virtues: love in 2005 Deus caritas est ("God is Love"), hope in this encyclical, and faith in 2013 Lumen fidei ("The Light of Faith"), written with Pope Francis.
The encyclical contains over 18,900 words, divided into fifty paragraphs, and organized into an introduction and eight chapters.
As is customary for papal encylicals, the Latin title of Spe Salvi comes from its incipit, which quotes St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans: "For we are saved by hope. But hope that is seen is not hope. For what a man seeth, why doth he hope for?" In the introduction of the encyclical, Benedict sets the tone of his text by asking about the relationship between hope and redemption.
In paragraph seven, he proceeds to link these two Christian concepts to the theological virtue of faith by analyzing the Greek and Latin translation of: Est autem fides sperandarum substantia rerum, argumentum non apparentium.
Benedict traces relationship between the Christian concept of hope and redemption. The first six chapters are theological in nature, but often use historical examples to highlight applications to daily life. Benedict starts by quoting St. Paul's reminder to the early Church community that before converting to Christianity, they were "without hope and without God in the world" (Epistle to the Ephesians 2:12). Benedict describes Christian hope as transformative because it offers assurance that "life will not end in emptiness". Benedict relates the story of Josephine Bakhita as an example of the contrast between a prior, pagan way of life and the new "hopeful" Christian life. Josephine, an African saint who lived her early life as a slave, converted to Catholicism after finding "the great hope" which had "redeemed" her. She spent the rest of her life as a nun, preaching throughout Italy and was canonized in 2000.
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