SLAVORUM APOSTOLI

Pope john paul ii's fourth encyclical letter, "The Apostles of the Slavs," issued June 2, 1985, commemorating the eleventh centenary of the evangelizing work of Sts. Cyril and Methodius. In the Introduction, Pope John Paul recalls and expands on his apostolic letter Egregiae virtutis (1980), in which he named the brother-saints as co-patrons of Europe along with St. Benedict, as well as letters of his predecessors. In a personal note, John Paul acknowledges that he felt "a particular obligation" to pay tribute to Cyril and Methodius, being "the first Pope called to the See of Peter from Poland, and thus from the midst of the Slav nations" (3).

The encyclical looks back at the apostolic lives and work of evangelization of Cyril and Methodius. Part 2 presents a biographical sketch of the two saints. Part 3 recalls their evangelizing activity. Part 4 emphasizes their vision of the Church as one, holy, and universal. Part 5 proposes that their catechetical and pastoral method remains "instructive for the Church today." Part 6 cites their work as a model of inculturation—"the incarnation of the Gospel in native culture and also the introduction of these cultures into the life of the Church" (21). Part 7 explains the significance of the Christian millennium to the common culture of the Slavic world. Cyril and Methodius "made a decisive contribution to the building of Europe not only in Christian religious communion but also to its civil and cultural union" (n. 27).

Woven throughout the encyclical are reflections on the method the brothers used in evangelizing Europe and the contributions they made to Slavic culture. The words of Christ, "Preach the Gospel to the whole creation" (Mk 16:15) inspired their missionary work, and they tried to adopt the customs and language of the people to whom they were preaching. Among their principal contributions were the composition of a new alphabet and their translation of the sacred literature into the Old Slavonic language. Their profound work in orthodox doctrine and their zeal gained a great deal of admiration from Roman pontiffs, patriarchs of Constantinople, and Byzantine emperors. Because of their ability to stay in touch with both the patriarch of Constantinople and the Roman See, Cyril and Methodius bridged the Eastern and Western traditions which come together in the one, universal Church.

Despite misunderstandings—the price they had to pay for their work—Cyril and Methodius served as instruments of unity in places where there was not unity between individual communities. Their approach was based on the reality that every individual and all cultures and nations have their place in God's mysterious plan of salvation.

In the conclusion of the encyclical Pope John Paul states that Cyril and Methodius by their words and life, sustained by the charism of the Holy Spirit, gave an example of a fruitful vocation not only for past time, but also for the centuries that are to come.

Bibliography: For the text of Slavorum apostoli, see: Acta Apostolicae Sedis 77 (1985): 779–813 (Latin); Origins 15, no. 8 (18 July 1985): 113–25; The Pope Speaks 30 (1985): 252–75 (English).

[d. clooney]