Equipping the Saints for Mission – Announcement from Our Executive Director

Dear Members, Partners, and Friends,  

“Many people no longer feel at home, neither in the society nor in the Church.”  

These words, spoken mere weeks ago by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, deeply resonate with our current moment. As Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, Cardinal Tagle was addressing a gathering of roughly seventy-five pastoral agents and academics from across five continents, me included, commissioning us for a momentous global initiative. The Church of the Sheaves: Equipping the Saints for Mission as Gift Exchange in the Catholic Church seeks to form, inform and transform pastoral agents and Christian communities across the globe to become what both Pope Francis and Pope Leo envision: a field hospital of mercy, a spiritual home for the weary, a bridge-building community of hope, and a sacrament of God’s reconciling love in a world longing for healing and belonging.

“The missionary frontiers of our time are no longer only geographical,” Cardinal Tagle went on, “they are also relational, cultural and spiritual.” In this context—particularly amid the growing uncertainty, conflict and isolation of our time and the shifting cultural and demographic realities of our global Church—The Church of the Sheaves emerges from a deeply evangelical, Scriptural and eucharistic conviction: that the Body of Christ does not exclude, but instead builds bridges between people, cultures and generations; that a missionary Church embraces diversity as a gift, bearing witness to the uniting love of Christ in a fractured world; that the People of God must exercise compassion and attentiveness to suffering in responding to the Signs of the Times.

This initiative also attends to the pastoral reality of migration, particularly as communities in the Global North are learning to receive migrants and missionary clergy and religious from the Global South. In addition to strengthening the pastoral effectiveness, intercultural competence, and spiritual resilience of these missionaries, the project will form pastoral agents in receiving communities in intercultural humility and appreciation.

At USCMA, we are energized around this timely and prophetic undertaking and honored to represent your voice on a Churchwide scale. In an era marked increasingly by discord and discrimination, violence and exploitation, we are joined with a global collection of missionary disciples working to advance, in practical and prophetic ways, the vision laid out by Pope Leo in his Message for the 100th World Mission Day: that “the whole Church to continue its missionary journey with joy and zeal in the Holy Spirit,” with “hearts united in Christ, reconciled communities and, in everyone, a willingness to cooperate with generosity and trust.”

“As Pope Francis repeatedly reminded us, proclaiming the Gospel is an action that is always harmonious, communal and synodal.”

In the coming months, you will learn more about this project and opportunities to contribute your voice and participation. In the meantime, we are inviting our members, partners and friends to make a contribution to the initial phase. Learn more below or by visiting USCatholicMission.org/sheaves.

In mission and solidarity,

Kevin Foy
Executive Director

Other Encounter Updates from February 2026:

The Church of the Sheaves – Help Transform the Church!
Special Consultation Session – Mission Formation and Reception
Dilexi Te Reflection Series – A Lenten Journey with Francis and Leo XIV
Welcome New Board Members!
Season of Faithful Witness – Promoting Human Dignity through Public Action
Lent and Restorative Justice – A Panel Discussion
Mission Opportunities
A World of Mission – February 2026 Highlights