Scientia potentia est Scientia potentia est The phrase "scientia potentia est"" (or "scientia est potentia" or also "scientia potestas est")" is a Latin aphorism meaning "knowledge is power". It is commonly attributed to Sir Francis Bacon, although there is no known occurrence of this precise phrase in Bacon's English or Latin writings. However, the expression ""ipsa scientia potestas est"" ('knowledge itself is power') occurs in Bacon's "Meditationes Sacrae" (1597). The exact phrase ""scientia potentia est"" was written for the first time in the 1668 version of the work "Leviathan" by Thomas Hobbes, who was secretary to Bacon as a young man. The related
Deus caritas est into English as , while in most contemporary English translations it reads "God is love" (since the word "charity" is derived from ). The Latin version of the First Epistle of John uses the same formulation, "Deus caritas est", at the end of translating . This second biblical reference is not mentioned in the encyclical. In this encyclical, Benedict reflects on the concepts of "eros", "agape", and "philia", and their relationship with the teachings of Jesus. "Eros" and "agape" are two of the various Greek words for love, each of which has a slightly different shade of meaning: "agape" is