Doctrine of the Faith: Returning to kerygma amid crisis in passing on faith

In a time of epochal change marked by a crisis in passing on the faith, “believers should embark on a renewed period of proclaiming the Gospel,” placing the first proclamation, the kerygma, at its heart: “Jesus Christ loves you; He gave His life to save you; and now He is living at your side every day to enlighten, strengthen and free you” (EG 164).

This is the central appeal of Venite ad Me: Considerations on the Transmission of the Faith in an Epochal Change, a document published on Thursday, October 22, by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The document comprises eight chapters, an introduction, and a conclusion. They draw extensively on the teaching of the Popes, particularly Pope Leo XIV and Pope Francis, the Second Vatican Council, and other documents.

The text also clarifies that it is a set of Considerations, rather than a Doctrinal Note. It therefore examines “a variety of points of view without, however, claiming to settle the matter, which remains open to further analysis and development.”

Its specific aim is thus to suggest “concrete paths for proclaiming the kerygma amid the epochal change we are experiencing.”

The document was approved by Pope Leo XIV on August 21, 2026, and bears the signatures of Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, and Msgr. Armando Matteo, Secretary for the Dicastery’s Doctrinal Section.

Many Bishops’ Conferences made valuable contributions to this work, as did the testimonies—submitted by the Bishops—of people who discovered or rediscovered the Lord Jesus. These accounts appear in the final chapter of the Considerations.

The document’s starting point is Jesus’ invitation in Matthew’s Gospel: “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily laden, and I will give you rest.”

As the conclusion explains, the document “calls the faithful to return to the heart of the heritage of Christian faith. The kerygma is, in fact, its central content,” which “illuminates all the contents of the depositum fidei, drawing people toward the experience of a personal and communal encounter with the living Christ.”

This appeal also takes account of the fact that, in some parts of the world, the transmission of the faith “has all but ceased.”