In a world marked by both spiritual hunger and deepening isolation, Pope Leo XIV is calling Catholics to take up an urgent and hope-filled mission: to evangelize families with compassion and encounter. His words come at a pivotal time, as the Church seeks to renew its outreach to those who feel distanced from the faith or alienated from their place in the Church community.
The Holy Father delivered this appeal in a message to participants of a seminar titled “Evangelizing with the Families of Today and Tomorrow.” At the heart of his message lies a profound concern: that many souls are seeking God but simply have not heard the invitation. “How many of these people,” he asked, “simply do not hear the invitation to encounter God?” (Wells, Vatican News, June 2, 2025).
Pope Leo emphasized that today’s world, despite its secularism, is also marked by a “growing search for spirituality.” This moment, he believes, presents a vital opportunity for the Church to offer not just doctrine, but relationship—an encounter with the living Christ. He warned, however, that this mission is being hindered by the modern trend of privatizing faith. “An increasingly widespread ‘privatization’ of faith often prevents these brothers and sisters from knowing the richness and gifts of the Church,” he said.
To meet this challenge, Pope Leo offered a stirring image: the Church must be a “fisher of humanity,” drawing people away from “false footholds” and toward Christ. “Too often,” he said, people turn to “illusory lifestyles often promoted by modern media – potentially good means that can prove harmful when used to convey misleading messages.” The Church, by contrast, is called to “save [humanity] from the waters of evil and death through an encounter with Christ.”
For Pope Leo, evangelization begins with remembering what faith truly is: “a response to Christ’s love.” He cautioned against reducing Christianity to “a moralistic, burdensome, and unappealing tradition.” Instead, he encouraged a Church that walks with others and helps them embrace the faith as a living relationship.
Importantly, this mission is not solely entrusted to bishops or clergy. Laypeople are just as essential to this work of evangelization. As the Pope stated, “the lay faithful, too, are called to participate in this mission, becoming fishers of couples, young people, and men and women of every age and circumstance, so that all may encounter Jesus.”
In his closing appeal, Pope Leo urged the faithful not to be discouraged by obstacles or by the unfamiliarity of new pastoral paths. “Be open to new ways of seeing things and different ways of acting,” he said, noting that such openness is “necessary to respond to the challenges of each new generation.”
As the Church continues to reflect on its mission to families, Pope Leo’s words serve as both a challenge and an invitation: to rediscover the heart of faith as encounter, and to cast our nets not merely within parish walls but into the world where families wait—often silently—for someone to bring them home to Christ.
