Why is Veritatis Splendor a controversial encyclical?

Abstract

This article seeks to answer essentially one question: why and in what sense is Veritatis Splendor a controversial encyclical? Applying the hermeneutic method, which attempts to read the text in light of the tradition in which it is embedded and its subsequent reception, the paper provides three answers. The fi rst reason why Veritatis Splendor is controversial is that it is part of a history of strong moral-theological controversies. The second answer concerns its reception: on the one hand, it provoked reactions of strong criticism in various ecclesial circles; on the other, the relationship with the subsequent Magisterium (especially Amoris laetitia) must be correctly interpreted. The third answer is no longer located outside the encyclical but within it. In fact, in chapter two, the encyclical becomes intentionally controversial because it confronts, in its work of discernment, certain tendencies in moral theology today. The conclusion attempts to interpret Veritatis Splendor more broadly. Its profound intention is to be grasped in proposing a broad and liberating vision of morality, at once Christological and rational, in obedience to the conciliar legacy and mandate.