Venice, Fla., Feb 26, 2016 / 05:40 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis marked the 10th anniversary of Benedict XVI’s encyclical “Deus Caritas Est” by telling participants in a conference commemorating the document that not only is love God’s identity, but it’s also the very heart and life of the Church.

“God does not simply have the desire or capacity to love; God is love: charity is his essence, it is his nature,” the Pope said Feb. 26.