On so many levels this story and the accompanying picture has challenged me and others to wonder about our own ministry and our willingness to embrace “Christ in distressing disguise” (a saying of Mother Teresa of Calcutta)
Are you among the ones challenged by the example of Francis, Bishop of Rome?
Fr. James Martin, SJ, succinctly writes about why this example so moves us. Read his essay Why the Pope’s embrace of the disfigured man is so powerful on CNN.
Image: La Stampa Media
Hear what the Spirit is saying 
As our desert neighbor, Paul Kowalewski, points out, there was another photo that went viral around the same time as this photo. In that image a younger man in a hoodie has fallen asleep on the shoulder of an older man in a yarmulke while riding the subway in New York. Paul’s reflection on both photos invites me to listen to the Spirit. His blog post “Ordinary Compassion” is here: http://desertretreathouse.blogspot.com/2013/11/ordinary-compassion.html