Cando lucis aeternae

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Candor lucis aeternae (Splendor of Light Eternal) is an apostolic letter from Pope Francis, published on 25 March 2021 to mark the 700th anniversary of Dante Alighieri’s death. It is one of several papal letters about Dante, following writings by Benedict XV, Paul VI, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI. The date also matches the Catholic Feast of the Annunciation and Italy’s Dante Day (Dantedì).

To celebrate, the Pontifical Council for Culture held commemorations such as a virtual exhibit “Viaggiare con Dante” (Traveling with Dante), a Vatican Museums online education project on Dante, and a Florence conference on Dante’s theology.

In the letter, Francis invites both Catholics and non-Catholics to read Dante’s Divine Comedy. The letter has nine paragraphs: it begins with a look at what earlier popes thought about Dante, then tells Dante’s life. Francis calls the Divine Comedy “an integral part of our culture” and a source of values the Church and civil society continue to share.

Francis describes two main pillars of Dante’s work: an innately felt longing in the human heart and fulfillment in the happiness seen in the Love who is God. He discusses three key female figures in the poem—Mary, Mother of Jesus (charity); Beatrice Portinari (hope); and Saint Lucy (faith)—and also mentions Saint Francis of Assisi, the pope’s namesake, and his role in the poem.