It is not just about migrants

The World Day of Migrants and Refugees will be celebrated on Sunday 29 September 2019. The theme of this 105th edition will be “It is not just about migrants”.

With this theme, Pope Francis wants to highlight that his frequent appeals for migrants, refugees, displaced and trafficked people should be understood as integral to his deep concern for all the inhabitants of today’s existential peripheries. The hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and the prisoner who knock on our door today are Jesus Himself, asking to be encountered and supported. As the Holy Father emphasized in his homily at Sacrofano on Friday 15 February 2019: “It is really [Jesus], even though our eyes struggle to recognise Him; with torn clothes, dirty feet, a deformed face, a wounded body, unable to speak our language.”

In order to foster a fuller and richer celebration of the day, the Migrants and Refugees Section of the Department for Promoting Integral Human Development will now launch a communication campaign, offering monthly reflections, information, and multimedia materials, taking a variety of approaches in promoting a deeper understanding of the theme chosen by the Holy Father.