Pope Benedict issues first encyclical

Pope Benedict XVI said today in his first encyclical that the Roman Catholic Church has no desire to govern states or set public policy, but at the same time cannot remain silent when its charity is needed to ease suffering around the world.

In the long-awaited document God is Love, Benedict explores the relationship between God’s love for mankind and the church’s works of charity, saying the two are intrinsically linked and the foundation of the Christian faith.