Understanding the continuity of love in salvation history through the lens of Deus Caritas Est

In Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI teaches that Christian love isn’t something radically new—it grows from the soil of Israel’s covenant. By connecting the New Testament emphasis on love with Old Testament commandments, he roots Christian charity in the very heart of divine revelation. His point is not to discard the old, but to show how Christ fulfills it with new depth and clarity.

Continuity of the Covenant

From the beginning of his encyclical, Pope Benedict makes this continuity clear:

“The Christian faith, while retaining the core of Israel’s faith, gives it new depth and breadth.” (Deus Caritas Est §1)

He quotes the great Shema of Israel:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart…” (Deuteronomy 6:4–5)

Love of God, then, was never absent from the faith of Israel—it was central. What Jesus brings is not a break from the past, but its true fulfillment.

Jesus Fulfills the Law in Love

Jesus joins this vertical command to another, found in Leviticus:

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Leviticus 19:18)

In the Gospel of Mark, He unites the two into one supreme law of love:

“There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:29–31)

Pope Benedict highlights this to show that Jesus didn’t abolish the commandments, but revealed their full meaning. Love, properly understood, is the essence of the Law.

From Obligation to Response

Why do we love? Because “God has first loved us.” (1 John 4:10)
This shifts everything. Love is no longer a heavy demand—it’s a response. Benedict writes that when love begins in God’s gift, the “command” to love is transformed into an invitation to relationship.

Thus, keeping the commandments becomes a matter not of fear or duty, but of joy. Love of God leads naturally to love of neighbor.

A Two-Fold Orientation: Vertical and Horizontal

By presenting these two commands as one, Jesus shows that Christian love must always move in two directions:

• Vertical – Toward God in worship and devotion
  
• Horizontal – Toward neighbor in service and charity
  

Pope Benedict stresses that these cannot be separated. True love of God leads to care for others, and real love for others flows from communion with God.