Pope John Paul II talked about the new evangelization, to proclaim the Gospels again in ‘new ardor, new expression, new style’. In Ecclesia in America, John Paul II spoke of the starting point of evangelization as an ‘encounter with the living Jesus Christ’. Pope Benedict echoed virtually the same.
Pope Francis takes it even a little further saying, ‘We must create a ‘culture of encounter’ with Christ…in which we can also speak with those who think differently…’ (St Peter’s Square Saturday, May 18 2013). A big part of Francis’ agenda is communicating, speaking, articulating and proclaiming the Gospels again in new ways, not only to those who haven’t yet heard it, but also to those in our communities who are no longer living out their Catholic faith.