“You Are My Hope”: Pope Leo XIV’s Message for 9th World Day of the Poor

As the Church prepares to observe the Ninth World Day of the Poor on Sunday, 16 November 2025, Pope Leo XIV delivered a message focused on the theme: “You are my hope”. In his message, he expresses a deep hope that the Jubilee Year will inspire the development of policies aimed at addressing both enduring and emerging forms of poverty.

Drawing inspiration from the Psalms and the lived experiences of the impoverished, Pope Leo XIV calls on Christians to see the poor not as mere recipients of charity, but as active agents of hope. He also hopes that the Jubilee Year will serve as a catalyst for implementing “new initiatives to support and uplift the most destitute,” highlighting that “Labour, education, housing, and healthcare are the pillars of a security that cannot be achieved through the force of arms.”

The Pope’s message, delivered on the Feast of Saint Anthony of Padua, the patron saint of the poor, invites the faithful to renew their Christian hope in response to the instability that marks much of today’s world. “Hope in God never disappoints,” Pope Leo XIV affirms, echoing Saint Paul’s words that “we have our hope set on the living God.”