Strong V Encuentro Presence at Convocation of Catholic Leaders

Over 3,500 delegates which included lay leaders, bishops, deacons, priest, and religious from dioceses across the nation gathered for the Convocation of Catholic Leaders. Convened by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops under the theme Missionary Disciples and inspired by Evangelli Gaudium,the Convocation was a moment to reflect on the current reality of the Church in the United States. Alejandro Aguilera-Titus, National Coordinator for the V Encuentro, affirmed,

“The Convocation was a concrete expression of how the Church in the United States is embracing the ecclesial vision of Pope Francis, a Church that goes forth!”

Notably, there was a strong presence of V Encuentro leadership in the panels and plenary sessions. During the first day's plenary, Dr. Hosffman Ospino  encouraged participants to consider a “Language of communion" because "It's the church serving the church…We all are the church." Archbishop José H. Gomez highlighted Pope Francis’ call to go to the peripheries, not just the geographic but existential peripheries. The peripheries

“are the bitter fruits of neglect, exploitation and injustice…They are places where poverty is not only material but also spiritual…places where people are wounded, and feel their life has no meaning…This is where the Church does not like to go. Or we do not want to go…This is where the Church is called to be."

It was amazing to see the V Encuentro mentioned throughout the convocation and see the overlap between the Convocation and the process of the V Encuentro. Aguilera-Titus, stated

“The V Encuentro is a wonderful way to follow up on the Convocation's call to be missionary disciples. Many Catholic organizations and ecclesial movements have already expressed a strong interest in getting involved in the V Encuentro process and they are most welcome to do so.

Watch Videos from the Convocation Plenaries