HOPE- the biggest gift to be given and to receive.

The Theme of 2025 World Mission Sunday

“Missionaries of Hope Among the Peoples”,

was a gift started by our late Pope Francis in February of 2025 and continued by Pope Leo XIV.    The theme serves as a call for all Christians to be messengers of Christ’s hope and love especially to communities who face hardships.

Since 2018 St Michael Parish has been messengers of hope to a small village in Guatemala. In Playa de Oro, the school is what holds the community together. The teachers that are there are amazing Christians, they are true missionaries of hope each day. They do so much with so little for the children. They also do a lot for us when we come to the village. The school is our host home for our daily mission in Playa de Oro.

In Guatemala, the teachers struggle to get funding for the needs of the school. Last year they were able to get a bit of grant money to complete two windows in the school, there are 10 more windows in the school. Grant money is extremely hard to get in Guatemala as there are many schools in need. This past July when we were in Playa de Oro, we were able to see the transformation between the new windows and the old windows and the difference it makes in the classrooms. The old windows do not have screens that would keep the dust from the dirt roads out.

World Mission Sunday began in 1926 was when the Church initiated asking all Catholic Churches to show its solidarity and to be messengers of hope by giving to parts of the world that are so desperately in need.

Give and help other mission groups in the world complete their missions. There is a big need in many parts of the world. Pick one that is close to your heart.

To give to Love is the Mission see the link QR Code below for online donations which will be gratefully accepted but we will also be selling 1 of 4 gifts of St Michael Holy Fudge (with many varieties of fudge) for Christmas Presents starting at the Parish Bazaar on November 1^st that are featured below.  Contact Rhonda at 605.361.1600 or rhonda@olvictorysd.org or loveisthemissionguatemala@gmail.com to order if you are not in Sioux Falls!