Encounter’s mission is to form missionary disciples who encounter Jesus Christ in the poor and bring Him to them – most of all by being a loving, prayerful presence for our brothers and sisters experiencing homelessness. More simply, Encounter missionaries desire to more radically repent and believe the Gospel. We form missionaries chiefly through prayer, fellowship, and street ministry.
Our profound hope as Catholic Christians is ever-deeper union with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a heart that uniquely loves and identifies with the poor. He knows the destitute by name, and wants to be known by name. He is so close to the poor in their loneliness, addiction, and sickness that whatever we do for them, we do for God. As we journey into Christ’s Sacred Heart, we rely in a special way on Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart, who shows us how to stand at the foot of the Cross and share in the Suffering Servant’s passion.
So, Encounter missionaries desire friendship with people living on the margins of society, especially the chronically homeless, who are acutely afflicted by the “leprosy of loneliness.” We want to know their names and stories, and we want them to know our names and stories. In short, we want to encounter Christ in the poor.