Encyclical

Today I finished my (first) prayerful reading of "Deus Caritas Est," Benedict XVI's (first) encyclical. It is a masterpiece. I want to go through it a second time right away, this time with my pen in hand, to underline, to take notes, to jot down applications and connections. I also got the idea to (this is a bit beyond my reach, but it pays to try) create some kind of basic user's guide to the encyclical and its key themes. It would help me to learn the content well, and would perhaps give others a key to understanding how to read the document. One thing I did especially notice is that this is a social encyclical, right along the lines of Rerum Novarum and the commemorative encyclicals issued every 20 years since. But more about that later!