Pope Leo XIV urges Jesus Youth to keep missionary zeal at first full audience
Illustration: Press Pass USAPope Leo XIV urged members of the Jesus Youth movement to sustain their missionary zeal and help young people around the world discover the love of Jesus Christ, as he received participants in the Jesus Youth International Conference on Saturday, October 24, in the Paul VI Hall.
The audience marked the first time the movement — its leaders and delegates together — has met with the Successor of Peter, and it celebrated the movement's 40th anniversary. Jesus Youth began in 1986 in Kerala, India, as a spontaneous initiative of young people within the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, and the Holy See recognized it as an international association of the faithful in May 2016.
“The starting point for every authentic renewal in the Church is one's own discovery of Jesus' love,” the Pope told the delegates, recalling how members of various prayer groups came together to channel their enthusiasm into a common mission. He encouraged them to embrace new challenges and produce greater spiritual and missionary fruit, and he highlighted the witness of Ajna George, whose love for Jesus in the Eucharist sustained her through illness and personal trials.
The audience came one day after the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life granted definitive approval of the movement's revised statutes on October 23, following a three-year synodal-style consultation across the association.
Sources: Holy See Press Office (Oct 24, 2026); CathoNews (Oct 24, 2026); Vatican News (Oct 24, 2026).
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