Pope: Church's mission is to help people look at profound questions of life

Pope Leo greets crowds today

Source: Vatican Media

The Church's first mission in the contemporary world "is to help people be attentive to the profound questions of life: those of our origin and destiny, as well as those concerning the meaning of love and suffering," Pope Leo XIV said in his catechesis during the weekly General Audience.

Continuing his reflection on the Second Vatican Council's Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, the Pope contrasted that mission with the pressure felt in the modern world to conform "to a lifestyle centred on the consumption of material goods". Instead, he insisted, "our hearts are made to look upwards".

Building up the earthly city

At the same time, the Church fulfils her mission also by contributing to "the construction of the earthly city," not primarily through political action, but by "bearing witness to faith and charity, together with commitment for justice, peace, and fraternity."

The Church, he continued, cannot accept "the oppression of the weak and the poor, nor the unjust structures that perpetuate conditions of dependence and injustice." Guided by the Church's doctrine, Christians collaborate with all people of good will in pursuit of the common good.

Consistency between faith and daily life

Following the Council Fathers, Pope Leo highlighted the need for Christians to live their lives consistently with their faith, and noted that a discrepancy between "professed faith and daily life 'deserves to be counted among the more serious errors of our age'."

He noted, too, the emphasis of Gaudium et spes on the mission of the lay faithful, called to bring evangelical values into the world, not only in the family and the workplace, but in "every sphere of life."

Personal sanctity and fraternal charity

The whole People of God, he continued, and especially pastors and theologians, are called to consider and evaluate the cultures of our times in view of the Word of God and the Tradition of the Church. This, the Holy Father said, "requires a balanced mind, free from cultural trends, capable of viewing the world in a positive light whilst remaining steadfast in presenting the Gospel message in its entirety", without watering it down or "softening" the demands it makes.

Finally, Pope Leo insisted that the Church's single intention of bringing about the Kingdom of God and the salvation of the whole human race is accomplished "above all through personal holiness fraternal love." He concluded, "let us therefore be open to the action of the Holy Spirit, that He may help us to live in holiness and charity, so that the world may believe and hope.

Read the full text of Pope Leo's address: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2026/10/07/0791/01470.html

Watch today's Audience on Vatican Youtube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFhDXcpPvls