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In his first Lenten message, Pope Leo XIV delivers several fairly concrete ideas on how to approach the penitential season, which begins this Wednesday.
Lent, the Holy Father says in his letter, is a time of “conversion” that allows our lives to be refocused on God, so that we can renew our faith “and keep our hearts from being consumed by the anxieties and distractions of daily life.”
Leo cites “listening” and “fasting” as two important activities during Lent.
“I would first like to consider the importance of making room for the word through listening,” he writes. “The willingness to listen is the first way we demonstrate our desire to enter into relationship with someone.”
Throughout history, the Holy Father notes, God has shared “what is in his heart” with his people, and we are called to “allow God to teach us how to listen as he does,” mainly by being aware of and responding to “the cry of those who are anguished and suffering.”
Secondly, Pope Leo teaches that “[i]f Lent is a time for listening, fasting is a concrete way to prepare ourselves to receive the word of God.”
He observes that “[a]bstaining from food is an ancient ascetic practice that is essential on the path of conversion,” and adds that such fasting not only “makes it easier to recognize what we ‘hunger’ for and what we deem necessary for our sustenance,” but also “helps us to identify and order our ‘appetites,’ keeping our hunger and thirst for justice alive and freeing us from complacency.”
Fasting, however, “must be lived in faith and humility,” the pope writes. “In this regard, I would like to invite you to a very practical and frequently unappreciated form of abstinence: that of refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbor”:
Let us begin by disarming our language, avoiding harsh words and rash judgement, refraining from slander and speaking ill of those who are not present and cannot defend themselves. Instead, let us strive to measure our words and cultivate kindness and respect in our families, among our friends, at work, on social media, in political debates, in the media and in Christian communities. In this way, words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace.
Finally, the Holy Father notes that Lent is a community experience.
“[O]ur parishes, families, ecclesial groups and religious communities are called to undertake a shared journey during Lent, in which listening to the word of God, as well as to the cry of the poor and of the earth, becomes part of our community life, and fasting a foundation for sincere repentance,” he observes. “In this context, conversion refers not only to one’s conscience, but also to the quality of our relationships and dialogue.”
“Dear friends, let us ask for the grace of a Lent that leads us to greater attentiveness to God and to the least among us,” Pope Leo concludes his letter:
“Let us ask for the strength that comes from the type of fasting that also extends to our use of language, so that hurtful words may diminish and give way to a greater space for the voice of others. Let us strive to make our communities places where the cry of those who suffer finds welcome, and listening opens paths towards liberation, making us ready and eager to contribute to building a civilization of love.”
Read Pope Leo’s entire letter here.
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