Pope Leo XIV sends message urging renewal at Los Angeles Religious Education Congress

ROME — Pope Leo XIV said he was confident the 70th Los Angeles Religious Education Congress would be “an opportunity for true spiritual renewal,” according to a message conveyed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state.

The message to Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gómez was delivered during the annual four-day Catholic gathering sponsored by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles’ Office of Religious Education in Anaheim, California, Feb. 19–22.

Addressing educators and catechetical leaders, the message said: “The authentic teacher arouses the desire for truth,” citing the apostolic letter Drawing New Maps of Hope as the pope encouraged deeper discipleship rooted in Jesus, “who is the Truth.”

The message also urged young people to remain open to God’s love, saying love led Christ “to give himself for us on the cross” and to remain present in the Eucharist. Pope Leo XIV prayed that the event would help them discover the Lord’s Eucharistic presence as “an unfailing source of comfort and strength in all of life’s circumstances,” according to Parolin’s letter.

By deepening relationship with Jesus “and continuing to be faithful and joyful disciples in your daily lives, your authenticity as educators and catechetical leaders will enable you to transmit the Gospel in such a way that it leads to a true encounter with the Lord and contributes to building up a lasting and life-giving culture,” the letter said.

The meeting, which features workshops, liturgies, prayer, keynote talks, and ministry training, includes both an adult congress and a large youth event to support and train those involved in religious education, evangelization, and ministry.

It is the largest annual Catholic gathering of its kind in the United States and in past years has brought together tens of thousands of participants including catechists, teachers, clergy, youth, parish leaders, and lay Catholics.

The theme of this year’s youth day is “Real Love Carries the Cross,” and the theme of the adult gathering is “Wrapped in Mercy, Hope Renewed.”

“This mercy is not distant or abstract — it is tender, deeply personal, and transformative. It meets us in our brokenness, in our questions and weariness, breathing new life into our hearts. In a world often weighed down by fear, division, and uncertainty, God’s mercy breaks through as a light that renews our hope and invites us to share that hope with our sisters and brothers,” Sister Rosalia Meza, director of the office of religious education for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, said in a statement.