The Art of Accompaniment Book | Page 36

26 The Art of Accompaniment the truth that the unconditional love of Christ cannot be defeated. At certain times, these challenges and difficulties may discourage or distract the faithful from the Church’s mission. However, these realities should not prevent the sharing of the Gospel through accompaniment. The apostolate of accompaniment is a way by which love, communion, unity, and healing can be cultivated at every level of the Church. Through a re- commitment to healing, mercy, and compassion through relationships of accompaniment, the Church witnesses that “where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more” (Romans 5:20). Summary Thoughts Accompaniment is the apostolate of intentional relationship orient- ed towards growth in faith, transformation in the Person of Christ, and the mission of evangelization. As we have seen, accompaniment has been first given as a gift to humanity by God through his own example of loving relationship, patient walking with, and unwaver- ing commitment through covenant with his people. In the ministry of Jesus, accompaniment became incarnate, taking a more particular form of an apostolate that inspires action and mission in the heart of the one accompanied. Through Jesus’s example and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, this model of relationship and accompaniment con- tinues through Church tradition up through the Church today. In our time, accompaniment is well-suited to heal and restore humanity by confronting challenges such as spiritual pluralism, identity formation, cultural isolation, and the weakened state of Catholic institutions to- day. The rest of this resource will explore in depth the practical com- ponents of the apostolate of accompaniment based on the theological and cultural basis of accompaniment discussed above. In addition to defining the qualities, roles, and formation of those involved in ac- companiment, this resource will also outline existing opportunities for spiritual accompaniment in our churches and communities, give suggestions for the implementation of accompaniment in Catholic in- stitutions, and identify challenges to the model of accompaniment as an implemented apostolate.