On Monday, January 23, Pope Francis explained that God’s “dream” is “a world in which we can all live as brothers and sisters in full dignity.” 

That morning in an audience at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican, the Holy Father received the Volunteers of the Work for the Promotion of Literacy in the World (O.P.A.M.).  

In his speech, Pope Francis stated that “there can be no integral human development without education.” 

In this line, he recalled the encyclical letter of Pope St. Paul VI, Populorum Progressio. He explained that when “we reread these great pontifical documents of the 1960s, we realize how topical they are and that, unfortunately, their message has not been received.” 

He also expressed his regret that “despite the numerous and generous works of solidarity at the civil and ecclesiastical levels, the causes of underdevelopment have not been eliminated.”  

For this reason, he expressed that the work of those present in the audience “is aimed at eliminating one of the causes of underdevelopment, which is precisely illiteracy.” 

The Pope explained that “the ‘dream’ of Populorum Progressio is the same as that of the encyclical Fratelli tutti.” 

“It is the dream of the Church, or rather, the dream of God, who wants a world in which we can all live as brothers and sisters in full dignity,” he said.  

Likewise, the Holy Father encouraged those present to go forward with their mission and to maintain “the quality of their action so that it may always be promotional.”  

“Nourish it continually with the sap of the Gospel so that the Holy Spirit may keep alive the inspiration, motivation, and style of your commitment,” Pope Francis advised.