The 6th World Apostolic Congress on Mercy to Be Held in Vilnius
From 7 to 12 June 2026, the 6th World Apostolic Congress on Mercy (WACOM) will take place in Vilnius.
This major global event of the Catholic Church in Lithuania will bring together approximately 5,000 faithful from various countries around the world. The Congress will offer a space for shared prayer, reflection, encounter, and dialogue, helping believers and people of good will rediscover how to bear witness to God’s mercy in the contemporary world.
The Congress is organized by the Dicastery for Evangelization in collaboration with the Archdiocese of Vilnius. Bishops, priests, consecrated persons, community leaders, lay faithful, families, and young people eager to promote a culture of mercy within their own contexts of life will take part in the event.
The theme of the Congress, “Building the City of Mercy,” invites participants to reflect on the mission of believers in building communities inspired by the spirit of the Gospel, where indifference and individualism diminish, and greater care for others grows through concrete works of love, words, and prayer.
The theme also presents an opportunity not only to reflect on mercy and once again experience in our lives how merciful God is toward each one of us, but also to renew our commitment and dedication to building an ever more credible city.
While urban life can offer many a unique opportunity to open themselves to new perspectives, fraternal sharing, and personal fulfillment, it can paradoxically also become a place of profound loneliness, disillusionment, and distrust, as well as a space where different social groups coexist while ignoring or despising one another.
This Congress represents an opportunity to foster communities of faith where, overcoming anonymity, the dignity of each person is recognized and everyone is offered the balm of Easter faith to heal wounds. By enabling people to experience genuine fraternal closeness, it reveals the maternal care of the Church and offers a concrete witness of mercy and tenderness, bringing guidance and meaning to the life of the city itself.
“Let us once again experience in our lives how merciful God is toward each one of us, and renew our commitment to building cities that increasingly become places of mercy. See you in Vilnius!”
— Rino Fisichella,
Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization