ASIA/MYANMAR – Sharing the Gospel following the example of Carlo Acutis: Children and young people celebrate World Mission Sunday

Yangon – They want to be “missionaries of hope” in a country torn by civil war, drawing inspiration from Saint Carlo Acutis. Burmese children and young people celebrated World Mission Sunday with a gathering of over 1,500 people at the Catholic Church of Saint Mark in the village of Yemon, in the Archdiocese of Yangon. Children and young people from 32 parishes gathered on October 18 as part of an event organized by the Pontifical Mission Societies of the archdiocese. As Fr. Stephen Chit Thein, National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Myanmar, emphasized, children, young people, and young adults reaffirmed their support for the Church’s evangelizing mission, recognizing that “missionary work includes proclamation and is carried out through prayer, exemplary living, and acts of generosity.” “The celebration in Yangon was a living testimony to the missionary zeal that burns in the youngest faithful,” noted the National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies. Next to the altar in the church was an image of Carlo Acutis, canonized by Pope Leo on September 7, 2025, and considered a source of inspiration for young faithful. Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, Archbishop of Yangon, presided over the Eucharistic celebration, in the presence of Archbishop Andrea Ferrante, Papal Representative in Myanmar, along with approximately 15 concelebrating priests, and addressed the children and young people, emphasizing “their important role as young missionaries of the Church.” Cardinal Bo noted that the celebration coincided with the feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, who, as a Greek doctor and convert, became a faithful missionary of Christ, and recalled that “every Christian is called to be a missionary.” Cardinal Bo reflected on the short but exemplary life of the young Saint Carlo Acutis, who died of leukemia at the age of 15, echoing one of his famous sayings: “All people are born originals, but many die as copies.” He exhorted those present “not to seek worldly glory, but to seek true happiness in God.” “Happiness means looking to God; sadness means looking to oneself,” Cardinal Bo said, inviting the children and young people “to live in communion with the Lord and follow Carlo Acutis’ example of holiness, prayer, and joy.” Before the final blessing, Msgr. Andrea Ferrante read a message and conveyed the greetings and blessing of Pope Leo XIV. He thanked the children and young people for their commitment to spreading the Gospel and encouraged them to be “missionaries of hope among the peoples,” especially in a context like Burma’s, marked by suffering and pain.

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