EUROPE/POLAND - Mission seeks new paths: the message that emerged from the autumn meeting of the Pontifical Mission Societies

Warsaw (Fides News Agency) – Mission cannot remain tied only to forms that belong to a bygone era. It needs new energy to involve the entire Church community. This was one of the messages that emerged from the autumn meeting of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) and missionary communities, held in Warsaw last week.
More than 80 participants gathered to reflect on the future of missionary animation in Poland and to prepare for the centenary of World Mission Day, which will be celebrated on October 18, 2026. The discussion was opened by Bishop Jan Piotrowski, President of the Commission for Missions of the Polish Bishops' Conference.
“Mission is not something added to the life of the Church; it belongs to the very essence of the Church,” Bishop Piotrowski said, calling for a renewed missionary awareness and for new ways of proclaiming the Gospel. “We cannot simply remain tied to the forms of the past,” he stressed, pointing to the ability to take another step forward as one of the challenges facing the Church today.

Not recipients, but collaborators

One of the points emphasized during the meeting concerned the way of looking at the Churches in mission territories. They are not simply recipients of aid, but collaborators in proclaiming the Gospel.
Missionary responsibility, it was recalled, is not limited to material support. It also includes prayer, formation, missionary animation and cooperation. For this reason, cooperation among dioceses, religious congregations, the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS), missionary organizations and lay people is essential.
In the words of Bishop Piotrowski, this network of relationships should make the missions not a burden for the Church, but a “star” capable of indicating the path of faith, evangelization, solidarity, and openness to others.

The importance of encounter

In an age dominated by remote communication, the meeting in Warsaw brought a simple word back to the center: encounter.
Father Maciej Będziński, national director of the Polish Pontifical Mission Societies, noted that emails, video conferences and artificial intelligence now make carrying out many activities without meeting in person possible. But true cooperation, he stressed, requires relationships and presence.

Helena Kmieć: holiness lived in everyday life

One of the most significant moments of the meeting was the reflection on the witness of Helena Kmieć, a young Polish lay woman whose cause for beatification is underway.
Born in 1991 in Libiąż, in southern Poland, Helena was killed in 2017 in Cochabamba, Bolivia, while serving in a home for children. Her missionary experience had already taken her to Hungary, Romania and Zambia, as well as Bolivia.
Her story was presented as a particularly meaningful witness for young people. A student, worker, volunteer and lay woman actively involved in the life of the Church, Helena lived her faith in the midst of everyday life.

Forming people for mission, from seminarians to children

The meeting was also an opportunity to present the activities of the PMS for the coming year.
The Pontifical Society of St Peter the Apostle (POSPA) will continue, for the fourteenth year, its “Adopt a Missionary Seminarian” initiative, which provides spiritual and material support for vocations in mission territories. In the new year, the initiative will involve the Major Seminary of the Archdiocese of Bamenda in Cameroon, as well as the seminaries of Moramanga in Madagascar and Chabua, India.
The Pontifical Missionary Union (PUM), meanwhile, presented the “Missionary Academy”, a three-semester program devoted to missionary spirituality.
The Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith placed particular emphasis on missionary animation and initiatives related to the centenary of World Mission Sunday.
For children, the Pontifical Society of Missionary Childhood (POSI) has prepared the “Universe of Holiness” program, aimed at helping them learn about saints and blesseds and growing in faith. The “Missionary Carol Singers 2026/2027” initiative will also continue; this year, it will support children in the Holy Land.
As the centenary of World Mission Sunday approaches, the meeting in Warsaw has given the Church in Poland a clear direction: to renew the missionary spirit and strengthen cooperation with local Churches, while seeking new forms of participation and new ways of proclaiming the Gospel.
A mission that is truly missionary is called to involve the entire ecclesial community.
(EG & MK) (Fides News Agency, 22/9/2026)

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