Overview

• In a video released Oct. 13, Pope Leo XIV asked every Catholic parish worldwide to participate in the 99th World Mission Sunday on Oct. 19.
• This year’s observance carries the theme “Missionaries of hope among the peoples,” aligning the annual event with the Jubilee Year of Hope.
• The pope said parish prayers and material support help spread the Gospel, fund catechesis, build churches, and address health and education needs in mission areas.
• Citing decades of service in Peru, he said he witnessed how World Mission Sunday’s faith, prayer and generosity can transform communities.
• World Mission Sunday, established in 1926 by Pope Pius XI, is coordinated by the Pontifical Mission Societies under the Vatican’s Dicastery for Evangelization, with reporting noting the appeal could energize donations often supplied by Catholics in the West.