Pope Leo XIV urges youth to join the Worldwide Prayer Network, becoming intercessors for global needs rooted in the Heart of Jesus.
Newsroom (30/01/2026 Gaudium Press ) In a message resonating with urgency and hope, Pope Leo XIV has called on young people to take up the mantle of intercession, asking them to pray for the needs of the world and deepen their relationship with God. The Pope delivered this appeal during a special audience on Friday, January 30, at the Vatican, where he met with the leadership and members of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.
The pontiff expressed heartfelt gratitude to the organization’s leaders and participants for their dedication to spreading the mission of prayer and compassion. “It is especially important to invite young people to take part so that they may form the next generation of intercessors for the needs of the whole world,” he told those gathered.
Founded as a Pontifical Work and entrusted to the Society of Jesus, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network operates as a global tapestry of faith linking millions in daily prayer. Each month, it publishes the Holy Father’s intentions—challenges and causes at the heart of both humanity and the Church. The network’s spirituality is firmly anchored in devotion to the Heart of Jesus, especially through its spiritual pathway known as “The Way of the Heart.”
Pope Leo XIV praised this devotion as a means of fostering compassion and empathy. “This spirituality allows the Network and its members to know our Lord more intimately and to be more compassionate and empathetic,” he said. “It is my hope that through your apostolate you will continue to help the baptized to understand that they are friends and apostles of Christ.”
A central theme of the Pope’s address was the importance of engaging young believers through the Eucharistic Youth Movement, which forms part of the Network’s mission. Acknowledging the spiritual longing among young Catholics, he said that many are searching “for a more profound and personal relationship with the Risen Jesus.” The movement, he noted, offers them a “fruitful path to grow in deeper intimacy with our Lord.”
Pope Leo XIV also underscored the unifying nature of this mission. “I urge you to foster an even greater participation in this Network, which unites diverse cultures, languages, and charisms in the common mission,” he said, highlighting the global character of the initiative.
He extended personal thanks to the International Director, Father Cristóbal Fones; Vice Directors Bettina Raed and Father Miguel Melo; and the many members and partners who sustain this mission. Their dedication, he said, ensures the prayer intentions of the Pope reach “tens of millions of people worldwide who each day present these needs before God.”
In closing, Pope Leo XIV reminded the faithful that prayer is not separate from the Church’s evangelizing mission but woven into its very core. “Such prayer is not external to the evangelical work of the Body of Christ, but an integral part of it,” he affirmed.
As the Church looks to renew its spiritual vitality, the Pope’s appeal calls a new generation to take up an ancient task: to pray with open hearts for a world in need, uniting action and faith in service to God and humanity.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Vatican News
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