VATICAN CITY – Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for World Mission Day 2023

VATICAN CITY – Message of His Holiness Pope Francis in celebration of World Mission Day 2023

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides – Today, we publish the Message from His Holiness Pope Francis in preparation for the 97th World Mission Day, which will be celebrated on Sunday October 22, 2023, on the theme “Hearts On Fire, Feet on the Move” (cf. Lk. 24:13-35).

Dear sisters and brothers!
For this year’s World Mission Sunday, I have chosen a theme inspired by the story of the disciples on the way to Emmaus, in the Gospel of Luke (cf. 24:13-35): “Hearts on fire, feet on the move”. These two disciples were confused and dismayed. However, their encounter with Christ in Christ’s word and in the breaking bread ignited in them the desire to go back towards Jerusalem and proclaim that Jesus had truly risen. We can see this transformation in the disciples through a few images from the Gospel account: their hearts were filled with the Scriptures, their eyes were opened to Jesus and they set out on their way. By meditating on these three images, which reflect the journey of all missionary disciples, we can renew our zeal for evangelization in today’s world.
1. Our hearts burned within us “when he explained the Scriptures to us”. The word of God illuminates and transforms hearts in missionary work.
The two disciples, who were on the road from Jerusalem towards Emmaus, felt their hearts sink due to the death of Jesus. v. 17). Their hopes of him being the Messiah fell apart when they saw the death of the crucified Master (cf. v. 21).
Then, “as they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them” (v. 15). As he did when he first called his disciples, so now, in their bewilderment the Lord takes initiative and approaches them to walk alongside them. So too, in his great mercy, he never tires of being with us, despite all our failings, doubts, weaknesses, and the dismay and pessimism that make us become “foolish and slow of heart” (v. 25), men and women of little faith.
As he did then, the Risen Savior is still close to his missionary disciples. He walks alongside them when they feel lost, discouraged, afraid of the mystery of sin that surrounds them, and seeks to overwhelm. So, “let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of hope!” (Evangelii Gaudium, 86). The Lord is greater that all our problems, especially if they are encountered in our mission to spread the Gospel to all people. For in the end, this mission is his and we are nothing more than his humble co-workers, “useless servants” (cf. Lk 17:10.
I would like to express my deep love and devotion to Christ to all the missionaries around the globe, especially those who are facing hardship. Dear friends, the Risen Savior is always with us. He sees your generosity, and the sacrifices that you make for the mission to evangelist in faraway lands. Not every day of our lives is serene and unclouded, but let us never forget the words of the Lord Jesus to his friends before his Passion: “In the world you will have tribulations, but be courageous: I have conquered the world!” (Jn 16:33).
After listening to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, the risen Jesus, “beginning with Moses and all the prophets, explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself” (Lk 24:27). The hearts of the disciples thrilled, as they later confided to each other: “Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?” (v. 32). Jesus, the living Word, is the only one who can make our hearts blaze as he enlightens, transforms, and transforms us.
In this way, we can better understand Saint Jerome’s dictum that “ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ” (Commentary on Isaiah, Prologue). “Without the Lord to introduce us, it is impossible to understand sacred Scripture in depth; yet the opposite is equally true: without sacred Scripture, the events of Jesus’ mission and of his Church in the world remain indecipherable” (Aperuit Illis, 1). It is clear that understanding Scripture is essential for the Christian life and for preaching Christ’s Gospel. What are you doing to pass on your ideas and projects to others? A cold heart cannot make other hearts melt!
Let us be open to the Risen Lord’s presence as he explains the meaning of the Scriptures to us. May his love burn in our hearts, may he transform us and enlighten us so that we can spread his mystery of salvation to the whole world with the power & wisdom that comes from his Spirit.
2. Our eyes were “opened and recognized him” in the breaking of the bread. The source and summit of the mission is Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.
The fact that their hearts longed for the word God caused the disciples to Emmaus to ask the Wayfarer to come along with them as evening approached. They saw Jesus when he broke bread and their eyes opened as they gathered around him. The sequence of actions Jesus took to break the bread was what opened their eyes. He blessed it, then broke it and gave it back to them. These were the typical gestures of a Jewish head, but Jesus Christ performed them with the grace and power of God. He took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. Yet at the very moment when they recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread, “he vanished from their sight” (Lk 24:31). This is where we can see the essential truth of our faith: Christ, the one who breaks the bread, now becomes that bread which is shared with the disciples and eaten by them. He is not seen anymore, for now he has entered into the hearts of the disciples to make them more ardent. This prompts them to immediately set out to share their unique experience with the Risen Lord with everyone. The risen Christ is, therefore, both the one who breaks bread and the one who has it broken for us. Every missionary disciple is therefore called to be like Jesus Christ and, through the Holy Ghost, to be one who breaks bread for the whole world.
Remember that sharing our food with the hungry in Christ’s Name is already a Christian mission. The breaking of the Eucharistic Bread, which is Christ himself, is a work of mission par excellence. It is the source and summit for the life and mission the Church.
As Pope Benedict XVI pointed out: “We cannot keep to ourselves the love we celebrate in the Sacrament [of the Eucharist]. It is a simple fact of its nature that it needs to be shared with everyone. The world needs the love of God, the ability to meet Christ and believe in him. For this reason the Eucharist is not only the source and summit of the life of the Church; it is also the source and summit of her mission: ‘An authentically Eucharistic Church is a missionary Church’” (Sacramentum Caritatis, 84).
We must be united with Jesus Christ in order to bear fruit (cf. Jn 15 :4-9 This union is achieved through daily prayers, especially Eucharistic Adoration. We remain silent in the presence and presence of the Lord, who is with us in Holy Sacrament. The missionary disciple can become a mystic by lovingly cultivating this relationship with Christ. May our hearts always yearn for the company of Jesus, echoing the ardent plea of the two disciples of Emmaus, especially in the evening hours: “Stay with us, Lord!” (cf. Lk 24.29
3. With the joy of sharing the Risen Christ with others, our feet set out on the path. The eternal youth and vitality of a Church that is always going out.
After their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus “in the breaking of the bread”, the disciples “set out without delay and returned to Jerusalem” (cf. Lk 24:33. This setting out in haste, to share with others the joy of meeting the Lord, demonstrates that “the joy of the Gospel fills the heart and the whole life of those who meet Jesus. Jesus Christ saves us from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness, isolation. With Jesus Christ, joy is always born and reborn” (Evangelii Gaudium, 1). You cannot meet the risen Jesus Christ without being excited to share it with others. The primary and most important resource for the mission are those who have been able to come to terms with the risen Christ through the Scriptures and the Eucharist and who carry his light in their eyes and his fire in their hearts. They can be witnesses to the life that never ends, even in the most difficult situations and darkest moments.
The image of “feet setting out” reminds us once more of the perennial validity of the missio ad gentes, the mission entrusted to the Church by the risen Lord to evangelize all individuals and peoples, even to the ends of the earth. Today’s human family, which has been ravaged by so many injustices, divisions and wars is in desperate need of the Good News about peace and salvation in Christ. I take this opportunity to reiterate that “everyone has the right to receive the Gospel. Christians have the duty to announce it without excluding anyone, not as one who imposes a new obligation, but as one who shares a joy, signals a beautiful horizon, offers a desirable banquet” (Evangelii Gaudium, 14). Missionary conversion remains the principal goal that we must set for ourselves as individuals and as a community, because “missionary outreach is paradigmatic for all the Church’s activity” (ibid., 15).
Paul, the Apostle of Christ, confirms that the love of Christ captures and inspires us (cf. 2 Cor 5:14. This love is not just one-sided. It includes the love Christ has for us, which inspires and arouses us to love him. The Church is made ever younger by this love, which keeps it going, and making it possible to set out again every day. For all her members are entrusted with the mission of proclaiming the Gospel of Christ, in the conviction that “he died for all, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him who died for them and was raised again” (v. 15). We all can contribute to this missionary movement with our prayers, activities, material offerings, and the offering our sufferings and our personal witness. The Pontifical Mission Societies provide a unique opportunity to foster this missionary cooperation at both the spiritual as well as the material levels. This is why the World Mission Sunday collection goes to the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith.
The urgency of the Church’s missionary activity naturally calls for an ever closer missionary cooperation on the part of all her members and at every level. This is the central goal of the synodal journey the Church has taken, guided by the key words communion, participation and mission. This journey is not about the Church turning in on herself. It is also not about what we should believe or practice. It is more about setting out on the journey and listening to the risen Savior. He is always present to explain the Scriptures to us and to share his bread with us so that we can carry out his mission in this world through the Holy Spirit.
As the Emmaus disciples told each other what had happened along the way (cf. Lk 24.35). Our proclamation will also be a joyful account of Christ the Savior, his life, death and resurrection, as well as the wonders that his love has brought to our lives.
Let us now set out again, illumined and inspired by our encounter with Jesus Christ and prompted by his Spirit. Let us go again, with our hearts ablaze and our feet moving. Let us set out again to make others’ hearts blaze with the word God, to open others’ eyes to Jesus in the Eucharist and to invite everyone on the path to peace and salvation that God has bestowed upon humanity.
Our Lady of the Way, Mother of Christ’s missionary disciples and Queen of Missions, pray for us!
Rome, Saint John Lateran (6 January 2023), Solemnity at the Epiphany.

FRANCIS
(Agenzia Fides, 25/1/2023)

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