Marian Inspirations for the Culture of Encounter according to Pope Francis

Abstract

Summary The culture of encounter is among favourite themes of Pope Francis’s teaching. Nowadays, in the face of ever increasing feeling of ‘spiritual orphanage’, manifested by the disappearance of closeness and tenderness, he calls for Christians to go out and meet with people. At the same time, he points to Mary as the promoter of the culture of encounter. This very article is devoted to Her. I follow in the Pope’s footsteps, who distinguishes three elements of a meeting in the Gospel scene of Mary’s visit to Elisabeth: ‘Mary goes, Mary encounters, Mary rejoices’. These elements define the fundamental structure of the reflections presented here. This is about showing that Mary inspires us to go out to others, to show them closeness and tenderness, which restore the true joy of life.