I am returning to this theme - “missionaries of hope” - from Pope Francis’ message for World Mission Day 2025. In a previous reflection on World Mission, I noted that he wrote this homily before he died and left this message as a legacy. He called all Christians to be “missionaries of hope”.
Taking up the same theme, Pope Leo XIV wrote a message for the 111th World Day of Migrants and Refugees. He began by saying that he was taking up this theme because 2025 coincided with the Jubilee of Migrants. In his message, Leo XIV spoke specifically of migrants as “missionaries of hope”. Because it speaks very much to our present situation, I will directly quote what the pope has to say: “The current global context is sadly marked by wars, violence, injustice and extreme weather events, which force millions of people to leave their homelands in search of refuge elsewhere. The widespread tendency to look after the interests of limited communities poses a serious threat to the sharing of responsibility, multilateral cooperation, the pursuit of the common good and global solidarity for the benefit of our entire human family. The prospect of a renewed arms race and the development of new armaments, including nuclear weapons, the lack of consideration for the harmful effects of the ongoing climate crisis and the impact of profound economic inequalities make the challenges of the present and the future increasingly demanding.”
Pope Leo XIV goes on to say that, in this present global context, we all desperately seek signs of hope. He then goes on to talk about the link between migration and hope. “Many migrants, refugees and displaced persons are privileged witnesses of hope. Indeed, they demonstrate this daily through their resilience and trust in God, as they face adversity while seeking a future in which they glimpse that integral human development and happiness are possible.”
Despite having to leave their homelands because of war or famine, refugees believe there can be a future for themselves, their families and their communities. Often, they endure having to wait for years before they can be granted official status as refugees and then provided with the means and documentation that allows them to enter assigned countries of refuge. This experience can severely challenge their faith. But what our Popes Francis and Leo XIV stress is that they witness to their faith in a way whereby they can be a source of inspiration and hope in a world where we wearily wonder whether or not there is a future worth hoping for.
Migrants and refugees help to revitalise religious communities that have lost members over the years due to the pressures of secularization and loss of religious faith.
As Pope Leo XIV said, migrants and refugees also help to initiate “inter-religious dialogue based on everyday life and the search for common values”. Then there is the challenge to the welcoming communities in these countries of adoption or refuge. We are called to ensure that these newly arrived migrants are made to feel at home. In this sense, then, we are all called to be “missionaries of hope”.
Fr Tom Rouse
Regional Councillor of Oceania
Mission Intentions
Pope Leo XIV
May - That everyone might have food: Let us pray that everyone, from large producers to small consumers, be committed to avoid wasting food, and to ensure that everyone has access to quality food.
Related links
- Read more from The Far East - May 2026
