Dicastery for Evangelization

Section for fundamental questions regarding Evangelization in the world

PRESS RELEASE

SUNDAY OF THE WORD OF GOD – 22 JANUARY 2023

(Vatican City, 12 January 2023) - The fourth Sunday of the Word of God, a day instituted by Pope Francis on 30 September 2019, will be celebrated on 22 January 2023. The motto for this edition is taken from the Gospel of John: "Which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you" (1 Jn 1:3). At 9.30 a.m. on Sunday, 22 January, the Pope will preside over the celebration of the Holy Eucharist in Saint Peter's Basilica and, following this, with the aim of reviving the responsibility that believers have in their knowledge of Holy Scripture, he will give those present the Gospel of Matthew.

During the celebration, the ministries of Lector and Catechist will be conferred on lay men and women: three people will receive the ministry of Lector and seven that of Catechist. They are lay faithful who intend to represent the People of God, and come from Italy, the Congo, the Philippines, Mexico and Wales. The event will be broadcast live on television by Vatican Media and will be streamed on the Vatican News portal (vaticannews.va) and broadcast live by the main television stations around the world. In Italy these will include, among others, Rai1 and Tv2000.

The Section for Fundamental Questions regarding Evangelization in the World of the Dicastery for Evangelisation, entrusted by the Holy Father with the promotion of the event, has made available a liturgical-pastoral handbook on living the Word of God in the community, the family, and personally. The handbook is available in Italian in a printed version, published by Edizioni Shalom, and for the English, Spanish, Portuguese and French languages it will be downloadable online at www.evangelizatio.va, in digital format. It is a tool that offers initiatives to encourage a profound encounter with the Word of God in the community, in the family, and in daily life, and also includes articles, meditations, texts for Adoration, activities for children and pastoral suggestions.

The Sunday of the Word of God is intended to emphasize the presence of the Lord in people's lives. He truly walks with us and is present through his Word, as is expressed in the logo for the Sunday, inspired by the biblical story of the Disciples of Emmaus, on their way, to retrace the Scriptures with the Lord, allowing themselves to be taught and enlightened.

In particular then, to prepare for the Jubilee 2025, Pope Francis asked the faithful to reread the four constitutions of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council. The Dicastery planned to produce a series of small volumes in a single series entitled “Quaderni del Concilio” (Council Notebooks), released in bookshops and online stores on 8 December 2022. On the occasion of the Sunday of the Word of God, a rereading of Dei Verbum is also proposed through the first five small volumes of the series dedicated precisely to this conciliar document.

Priests may have access to concelebration in the Basilica by making a request on the site of the Office for Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff: https://biglietti.liturgiepontificie.va/. The tickets to participate in the Holy Mass may be collected from Palazzo San Pio X, entering from Via della Conciliazione no. 7, on the days Thursday 19, Friday 20 and Saturday 21 January from 8:30 to 13:30 and from 15:00 to 17:30.