VATICAN/ANGELUS - Pope Leo XIV: "The strength of any apostolate, beyond techniques and tools, comes from the work of the Holy Spirit within us"

Vatican City (Fides News Agency) – The proclamation of the Gospel of Christ "is first and foremost a sharing of a personal encounter with him, which is unique to each of us." And "the strength of any apostolate, in fact — beyond techniques and tools — comes from the work of the Holy Spirit within us and from the authenticity of our response." Pope Leo XIV reminded the pilgrims and faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square this Sunday, June 21 of this during the Angelus prayer.

The Pope recalled the fundamental dynamic of all apostolic activity, drawing inspiration from the passage in the Gospel of Matthew that was read during the Sunday liturgy, in which Jesus sends his disciples out on a mission and addresses them with this exhortation: “What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops.”

Pope Leo added: “Saint Thomas Aquinas spoke of preaching as passing on to others what we have contemplated: “contemplata aliis tradere” (cf. Summa Theologiae, III, q. 40, a. 1, ad 2).” And “contemplation,” the Pope emphasized, is not “is an exclusive experience, reserved only for a few saints or for monks and hermits.” Rather, it is an experience that everyone is capable of “by striving to set aside, amidst the commitments of our daily lives, quiet moments in which to enter into silence before God, to listen to his voice, to entrust our joys and concerns to him and to review our lives with him.”

Saint Matthew, the Bishop of Rome continued, “wrote for communities whose lives were not easy. They had to face hostility and persecution, as so many Christians still do today in various parts of the world. The temptation to become discouraged and to let weariness or fear get the better of them was great.” Then as now, in the face of difficulties and conflicts, “we must deepen the roots of our faith and our mission in an intimate relationship with him.” This, the successor of Peter continued, “gives us the strength not to despair, but to continue to share with everyone, in every circumstance, his message of hope, love and peace. The world greatly needs it!” (GV) (Fides News Agency, 21/6/2026)

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