Democracy – Populism – Nationalism: An Attempt to Read the Encyclical “Fratelli Tutti” of Pope Francis

Abstract

The author analyzes the encyclical Fratelli Tutti (2020), focusing on Pope Francis’s description and evaluation of democracy and the related phenomena of populism and nationalism. The Pope highlights both the negative and positive aspects of contemporary populism. He also shows to what extent the principles of nationalism can be accepted, emphasizing that it should transform into healthy patriotism. Based on this, he formulates practical pastoral guidelines for the Church.