Faith

Pope Leo XIV speaks about the true value of giving on World Mission Sunday (October 19) and how it affected him as a bishop in Peru. Watch at propfaithboston.org

Propagation of the Faith

It's World Mission Sunday: Give to the Missions!

Friday, October 17, 2025Faith

With World Mission Sunday upon us (October 19), I write this with a sense of urgency: this is our largest celebration of the year, helping to replenish the General Solidarity Fund that will support missionaries in 1,124 territories across the world. What you may not know is that because we are completely at the service of the Holy Father and his missionary work, each year we surrender all the funds we have worked diligently to raise, keeping only what we need to support our small staff. (My running joke about working for the Church: the pay isn't great, but the retirement plan is eternal!)
That means that what you gave last year on World Mission Sunday has already been disbursed to priests, religious, and lay catechists for more people to be brought to Christ. Can they count on you again this year?
Pope Leo released a video just this week asking all Catholics to be as prayerfully generous as they can on World Mission Sunday. He recalled the help he received when he was bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo, Peru and described it as, "transforming entire communities." He pleads, "Help me help missionaries throughout the world!"
Here in the Archdiocese of Boston, many of our 19th century parishes were birthed with the help of untold western European Catholics who marshaled their sacrifices to help us through our own "toddler" years. Now, grown and able to lift others, it is our turn to show our care to the world. Indeed, the United States contributes close to forty percent of the funds supporting the young mission Church in places where it is struggling or persecuted.
Your gifts helped make it possible for us to support the education of 82,498 mission seminarians last year. Also, 258,540 religious sisters were sustained as they ministered in 8,749 shelters and orphanages and 11,992 health clinics. In the absence of priests, 843,785 catechists were trained so they could walk or ride bicycles to rural outstations to properly form the faithful, young and old.
Aren't those numbers staggering?
Google says there are 1.8 million people who call themselves Catholics in the Archdiocese of Boston. If we had a dollar from each, every year, imagine what could be accomplished! Of course, not all will be at Mass on October 19. Let's pray they come home soon. The missions need them, and YOU -- on World Mission Sunday, and every day.
Did you miss your chance to give? Go to propfaithboston.org, watch the Holy Father's video, then, give to the missions.

- Maureen Crowley Heil is Director of Programs and Development for the Pontifical Mission Societies, Boston.