Pope Leo XIV has urged Catholics across the globe to join him this August in praying for evangelisation in the city. Source: Vatican News.
He released the monthly Pray with the Pope video on Friday, which is prepared by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.
In his prayer, Pope Leo asks the “Good Shepherd” who “walks through our streets and squares,” to “enter tall buildings and humble neighbourhoods” and to “silently accompany millions” of people who “seek meaning amid noise and haste”.
The Chicago-born Pope acknowledges that while cities are meant to be places of “freedom and opportunity”, they can also become “spaces of anonymity and isolation.”
Thus, he expressed his hope that urban environments may provide “fertile ground” for proclaiming the Gospel.
Pope Leo also prayed that the faithful make “simple and loving gestures,” and do so together as a community that “goes forth” and combats indifference and isolation with presence and fraternity.
Today, almost 45 per cent of the world’s population lives in urban areas. Demographic growth has led to a high concentration of people, generating social and community challenges, including loneliness that affects the mental health of many people, especially young people.
FULL STORY
Pope’s August prayer intention: ‘for evangelisation in the city’ (By Deborah Castellano Lubov, Vatican News)
