Dear friends,
Welcome to our papal insight for the month February. Naturally, with Lent being upon us, it makes sense to particularly highlight what Pope Leo XIV has said about the season.
As with the release of his exhortation Dilexi te, the Dicastery for Human Development has released a help set of infographics for the Lent 2026 papal message, we have linked that below.
As you may already know, Lent is season in which the Church calls the faithful to fast, abstain and pray. These Lenten practices allow us “put down” those things which draw us away from God and instead bring ourselves back to Him. Pope Leo says:
Lent is a time in which the Church, guided by a sense of maternal care, invites us to place the mystery of God back in the centre of our lives, in order to find renewal in our faith and keep our hearts from being consumed by the anxieties and distractions of daily life.
This year, Pope Leo XIV has called the faithful to not only fast, abstain and pray, but to also listen. Taking the time to listen to His Word and where He wants us to go. The Pope goes on to say that the path towards conversion begins by “allowing the word of God to touch our hearts and welcoming it.”
He explains that there is a relationship between the word (i.e. the scriptures), us accepting it, and then the change that occurs afterwards. He describes Lent as being a perfect opportunity for us to “renew our commitment to following Christ,” through which we can join Jesus on the road to Jerusalem, “where the mystery of his passion, death and resurrection will be fulfilled.”
“Our God is one who seeks to involve us. Even today he shares with us what is in his heart. Because of this, listening to the word in the liturgy teaches us to listen to the truth of reality. In the midst of the many voices present in our personal lives and in society, Sacred Scripture helps us to recognize and respond to the cry of those who are anguished and suffering. In order to foster this inner openness to listening, we must allow God to teach us how to listen as he does.”
In the final part of his message for Lent, the Holy Father focuses on the communal aspect of Lent. No one should go through Lent alone. Instead he calls us to “undertake a shared journey during Lent.” He explains that part of our life in community should be listening to word of God, “as well as [listening] to the cry of the poor and of the earth”.
He explains: “in this context, conversion refers not only ot one’s conscience, but also to the quality of our relationships and dialogue.”
To read the full message, click here<<
To visited the dicastery for Human Development’s website, click here<<
On Ash Wednesday, Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass (with the imposition of ashes) at the Basilica of St Sabina. He explained that, in the ashes which we receive on our heads, we perceive:
“the weight of a world that is ablaze, of entire cities destroyed by war…the ashes of entire ecosystems and harmony among peoples, the ashes of critical thinking and ancient local wisdom, the ashes of that sense of the sacred that dwells in every creature.”
Yet he does not dwell on what seems like tragedy, instead he remarks that, through these ashes, we recognise our sins in order that we can be converted: “it means that we will not remain among the ashes, but will rise up and rebuild.”
Commenting on the Gospel reading for Ash Wednesday (Mt 6:1-6, 16-18), Pope Leo explains that Lent “frees us from wanting to be seen at all costs…and teaches us instead to see what is being born, what is growing, and urges us to serve it.”
To read the full homily, click here<<
