Pope Leo XIV asked Catholics to support missionaries on the occasion of World Mission Day, which is celebrated next October 19.
Through a video message, the Holy Father – who served as missionary bishop in the Peruvian diocese of Chiclayo – specified that this day is an occasion for the entire Catholic Church to unite in prayer for the missionaries “and for the fruitfulness of their apostolic work.”
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In a friendly tone, he shared his experience as a missionary in Peru, where he saw first-hand “how faith, prayer and generosity manifested on this Day can transform entire communities.”
For this reason, he invited every Catholic parish in the world to participate in World Mission Day, emphasizing that their prayers and support help to announce the Gospel, “to sustain pastoral and catechetical programs, to build new churches and to attend to the health and educational needs of our brothers and sisters in mission lands.”
The Pontiff also exhorted the faithful to reflect on our baptismal call “to be missionaries of hope among people” and to renew their commitment “to the sweet and joyful task of bringing Jesus Christ, our Hope, to the farthest corners of the world.”
The Pontiff concluded his message broadcast this Monday by thanking the faithful for their support of Catholic missionaries in the world.
Almudena Martínez-Bordiú
Graduated in Journalism and Advertising from the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid. Specialized in religious information in Spain since 2015. She has been a senior correspondent for ACI Prensa and EWTN Noticias in the Vatican for two years and is currently a European correspondent based in Spain.