The Apostolic Letter, Drawing New Maps of Hope, has been issued by Pope Leo XIV to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Conciliar Declaration Gravissimum educationis. This significant document highlights the extreme importance and current relevance of education in human life. Far from being merely a secondary task, the text emphasizes that education “forms the very fabric of evangelization” by acting as the concrete means through which the Gospel becomes an educational gesture and a relationship. Educational communities are called to be revitalized amidst a landscape of rapid change and uncertainty, choosing to build bridges rather than walls. Even in a complex, fragmented, and digitized educational environment, the original potency of Gravissimum educationis remains clear.
Confronting dramatic global emergencies, such as poverty, migration, and various forms of inequality, compels the Church to renew its educational commitment. Indeed, education, as recalled in an Apostolic Exhortation, “is one of the highest expressions of Christian charity”. The letter advocates for refocusing on the “cosmology of Christian paideia,” a vision capable of inspiring all aspects of education. Crucially, the principles outlined in the Apostolic Letter reaffirm the necessity of placing the person at the center of the educational process, thereby safeguarding human dignity. This vision is closely linked to the prophetic legacy of the Global Compact on Education by Pope Francis, which seeks to form alliances across institutions in universal fraternity. Ultimately, Drawing New Maps of Hope is presented as an urgent mandate for Catholic educational institutions navigating the difficulties of the present time.
Read The Apostolic Letter – Drawing New Maps of Hope
