Let’s give our pope emeritus the last word:
The Church of the third millennium seeks this beauty in the meeting with its Lord, and with Him, in the dialogue of love with the men and women of our times. At the heart of cultures, to respond to their anxieties, their joys and hopes, the Church never ceases to profess with Pope Benedict: “If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful and great. No! Only in this friendship are the doors of life opened wide. Only in this friendship is the great potential of human existence truly revealed. Only in this friendship do we experience beauty and liberation.” [Benedict XVI, Homily at the Mass for the Inauguration of his Pontificate, 24 April 2005]
While this way can appear one of the intellect or some emotional movement, the Lord’s desire for each of us is friendship. This is a very Ignatian reminder, though not unique to the Jesuits. During his farewell discourse in the fourth Gospel, Jesus reminds us we have been elevated into the role of friends. A good friend offers a way to a companion. The Way of Beauty is such a path. Jesus invites us to join him in many ways. One of the most profound and moving and inspiring is the Way of Beauty.
The full document is here.
Image: the rose window at Notre Dame in Paris, By Zachi Evenor based on File:North rose window of Notre-Dame de Paris, Aug 2010.jpg by Julie Anne Workman – CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60404628
Catholic Sensibility 
