Pope Francis & Encounter
by Michael Sean Winters | Aug. 19, 2013
An emerging, dominant theme of this pontificate is the word “encounter.” Pope Francis uses it repeatedly, urging Catholics to go out to the peripheries, especially to the poor and the marginalized, and encounter other persons.
Among other things, this emphasis on encounter shows the new pope’s deep indebtedness to Don Luigi Giussani, the founder of Communione e Liberazione. Encounter is a central theme of his writings and a central charism of the movement he started.
What is meant by this phrase? It is no mere pop psychology term, but touches the deepest part of the Christian vocation. The capacity to encounter is about the Christian’s stance towards the world and especially towards other persons, the ability, achieved through grace, to stand towards the world as Christ stood towards the world. In his recent video talk to his fellow Argentines on the occasion of the Feast of San Cayetano, the Pope concluded with these words, which give a precise example of what encounter is all about:
Thank you for listening, thank you for coming here today, thank you for everything you carry in your hearts. Jesus loves you very much! San Cayetano loves you very much! We ask only one thing: that you reach out! And that you go and seek out and encounter the most needy! But not alone, no. With Jesus and San Cayetano! Does this mean going to convince someone to become became Catholic? No, no, no! You are just reaching out to meet him, he is your brother! That is enough. You reach out to help them, the rest is done by Jesus, by the Holy Spirit. Remember well: with San Cayetano, we need we encounter the neediest. With Jesus, we who are in need, we reach out to those who are even more in need. And maybe Jesus will show us the path to meet with those who need it most.
http://ncronline.org/blogs/distinctly-catholic/pope-francis-encounter