Sunday October 21 is the day the Church dedicates to missions. That's why the Vatican recalled that 40 percent of the planet still do not know God.
According to 2016 data published by the Fides Agency, Catholics are 17.67 percent of the world population.
CARD. FERNANDO FILONI
Prefect, Congregation for Evangelization of Peoples
'This is important because it means that the proclamation of the Gospel has not ended; although, at times, it is perceived that the enthusiasm has waned. The pope says that life is a mission. Therefore, there are no useless lives, because each one has in itself a missionary dimension.'
FR. FABRIZIO MERONI
Director, Fides Agency
'The heart of this initiative is to reawaken the ardor, passion and zeal for the mission of the Church. It is to especially focus on putting the 'missio ad gentes,' at the center of this awakening, thus recovering the idea to evangelize non-Christians.'
The Catholic world is full of stark contrasts in faith experiences. While in Europe the evangelizing impetus seems to be diminishing, in other parts of the world, there are young people willing to die for their faith. The pope, in fact, during one of his daily Masses in Santa Marta recalled the example of a young man killed by fundamentalists.
POPE FRANCIS
'This is not something from the early centuries. This is from two months ago.'
Fides data confirms a global decline in the number of priests, religious brothers and, above all, religious sisters. Yet, the Vatican points out that there are indications of a missionary renewal even in the most unsuspected places.
MSGR. GIAMPIETRO DAL TOSO
President, Pontifical Mission Societies
'Many beautiful initiatives are being launched from the ground level that involve lay people, priests, religious. Maybe they are not visible, but there are also in countries that appear to be dechristianized.'
World Mission Day was started after the 1919 publication of the apostolic letter “Maximum Illud,” by Benedict XV. In it, he recalls that evangelizing is not the same as colonizing. It was a document that marked the spirit of the missions and will celebrate it's 100th anniversary next year. That is why the pope asked for this event be celebrated in a special way in October 2019 throughout the Church.
