Stories

By Ines San Martin

In a historic video message released by the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV is making a heartfelt appeal to Catholics around the world ahead of World Mission Sunday, to be celebrated on October 19, 2025.

“Help me help the missions,” says the Holy Father, urging Catholics to pray and give generously in support of 1,124 mission territories in Asia, Africa, Oceania, the Pacific Islands and Latin America—places where the Church is young, often poor, and sometimes persecuted, but where the Gospel is alive and taking root.

The video is available in English, Spanish, and Italian, with subtitles in French and Portuguese, and can now be accessed and shared by parishes, dioceses, religious communities, and lay Catholics across the United States and beyond.

“When I served as a missionary priest and bishop in Peru, I saw firsthand how the faith, prayer, and generosity shown on World Mission Sunday can transform entire communities,” Pope Leo XIV recalls in the message. “I urge every Catholic parish in the world to take part in World Mission Sunday.”

The video marks a new level of papal involvement in promoting World Mission Sunday—and it comes from a man uniquely suited to speak to the missionary heart of the Church—and the first in modern history to have spent the majority of his priestly and episcopal life in mission territory, serving the poor and underserved in Peru.

World Mission Sunday is the only collection mandated by Canon Law (Can. 791) to be held in every parish, in every country. Overseen by the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, one of the four Pontifical Mission Societies, the yearly collection supports:

1. The formation of 82,498 seminarians

2. The missionary work of 258,540 religious sisters

3. The training of 844,000 catechists

4. The care provided by 12,000 health clinics

5. The outreach of 8,750 orphanages and homes for the elderly

6. And the building of 570 new churches

This year’s theme—“Missionaries of Hope Among the Peoples”—was chosen by Pope Francis before his death and now takes on new meaning under the leadership of his missionary successor.

What Can You Do?

1. Share the video with your parish, school, prayer group, or Catholic organization.

2. Post it on social media, your website, or parish newsletter.

3. Talk to your pastor about showing it before or after Mass on World Mission Sunday.

4. Pray, give, and invite others to be Missionaries of Hope.

Together, with Pope Leo XIV, we can help bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

For Parish Resources, visit: www.pontificalmissions.org/wms

Click here to watch Pope Leo's message to YOU!