OFFICE OF THE CARDINAL
1011 FIRST AVENUE
NEW YORK, NY 10022
January 17, 2014
Dear Friends in the Lord:
It is a joy and an honor to welcome you to the New York Encounter, organized
by Communion and Liberation and the Crossroads Cultural Center.
As the Archbishop of New York, I believe it is most fitting to hold this public
cultural festival held here in what Blessed – soon to be Saint – Pope John Paul II called
“the capital of the world.” The New York Encounter will help to promote a society of
truth and love through its many conferences, discussions, live artistic performances, and
exhibits. Your focus on the nature of the human person, and the flourishing of the
human person in belonging to a people, is very much in keeping with Pope Francis’s
exhortation that, “it is vitally important for the Church today to go forth and preach the
Gospel to all: to all places, on all occasions, without hesitation, reluctance or fear. The
joy of the Gospel is for all people: no one can be excluded.” (Evangelii Gaudium,
23)
Please permit me to extend a special word of welcome to His Eminence, Cardinal
Sean O’Malley, and to our Nuncio, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who are just two of
the outstanding speakers who will be with you this weekend. You will all have a special
place in my Masses and prayers this weekend for a fruitful and enriching Encounter.
Faithfully in Christ,
Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York