(Address of Leo XIV to the General Assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies)

The Pontifical Mission Societies are indeed the primary means of fostering missionary responsibility among all the baptized and supporting ecclesial communities in areas where the Church is young. This is evident in the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, which provides support for pastoral and catechetical programs, the construction of new churches, healthcare, and educational needs in mission territories. Similarly, the Society of the Holy Childhood supports Christian formation programs for children, in addition to attending to their basic needs and ensuring their protection. Likewise, the Society of St. Peter the Apostle helps cultivate missionary vocations, both priestly and religious, while the Missionary Union is responsible for the formation of priests, religious men and women, and all the People of God in the missionary activity of the Church.

A Church open to the world

Promoting apostolic zeal among the People of God remains an essential aspect of the renewal of the Church, as envisioned by the Second Vatican Council, and is even more urgent today. Our world, wounded by war, violence, and injustice, needs to hear the Gospel message of God’s love and experience the reconciling power of Christ’s grace. In this sense, the Church herself, in all her members, is increasingly called to be “a missionary Church, opening her arms to the world, proclaiming the Word […] and becoming a leaven of concord for humanity.” We are called to bring to all peoples, indeed to all creatures, the Gospel promise of true and lasting peace, which is possible because, in the words of Pope Francis, “the Lord has conquered the world and its constant conflicts by ‘making peace through the blood of his cross.'”

That is why we see the importance of fostering a spirit of missionary discipleship in all the baptized and a sense of urgency in bringing Christ to all peoples. In this regard, I would like to thank you and your collaborators for the effort you make each year to promote World Mission Sunday on the penultimate Sunday of October, which is of great help to me in my concern for the Churches in areas entrusted to the Dicastery for Evangelization.

Today, as in the days after Pentecost, the Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, continues her journey through history with confidence, joy, and courage, while proclaiming the name of Jesus and the salvation born from faith in the saving truth of the Gospel.

The Pontifical Mission Societies are an important part of this great effort. In your work of coordinating missionary formation and encouraging a missionary spirit at the local level, I would like to ask the national directors to give priority to visits to dioceses, parishes, and communities, so that they may help the faithful recognize the fundamental importance of the missions and support our brothers and sisters in those areas of our world where the Church is young and growing.

Communion and universality

Before concluding this morning’s address, I would like to reflect with you on two distinctive elements of the identity of the Pontifical Mission Societies, which can be described as communion and universality. As Societies entrusted with participation in the missionary mandate of the Pope and the College of Bishops, you are called to cultivate and promote among your members the vision of the Church as a communion of believers, animated by the Holy Spirit, who leads us into perfect communion and harmony with the Most Holy Trinity. Indeed, it is in the Trinity that all things find their unity.

This Christian dimension of our life and mission is close to my heart, and is reflected in the words of Saint Augustine that I chose for my episcopal service and now for my pontifical ministry: In Illo uno unum — In Him who is one, we are one. Christ is our Savior and in Him we are one, the family of God, beyond the rich variety of our languages, cultures, and experiences.

Becoming aware of our communion as members of the Body of Christ naturally opens us to the universal dimension of the Church’s evangelizing mission and inspires us to go beyond the boundaries of our own parishes, dioceses, and nations to share with every nation and people the overflowing richness of the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Renewal process

A renewed focus on the unity and universality of the Church corresponds precisely to the authentic charism of the Pontifical Mission Societies. As such, it must inspire the process of revising the statutes that you have begun. In this regard, I express my confidence that this process will confirm the members of the Societies throughout the world in their vocation to be a leaven of missionary zeal within the People of God.

Dear friends, our celebration of this Holy Year calls us all to be “pilgrims of hope.” Echoing the words Pope Francis chose as the motto for this World Mission Day, I would like to conclude by encouraging you to continue being “missionaries of hope among all peoples.”