Lent 2025 offers yet another favourable opportunity for renewal, both personally and communally. It signifies a period of hope that guides us towards the paschal mystery of the death and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We cherish this blessed time to rejuvenate our spirits and rekindle a vibrant hope for the foretaste of Easter joy. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we embark on a journey from the darkness of our sins into the radiant light of Christ at Easter, transitioning from the grasp of death into eternal life through the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Mother Church dedicates the season of Lent to Christian rebirth, urging us to reflect on our lives and discern where we may have strayed from God.
On Ash Wednesday, the priest or another minister has various methods to impose ashes. With the words, “Repent and believe in the Gospel,” we are reminded of the necessity to turn our lives towards God and prepare for spiritual rebirth. In this process of spiritual renewal, we must revisit our baptism as a journey of rediscovery, experiencing it deeply as we return to the essence of being truly Christian. Our conversion is never permanent; it remains an ongoing journey throughout life. Through this continual process of inner change and growth in the knowledge and love of Christ, Lent provides an opportunity for renewal in our Christian faith. Lenten sacrifices are encouraged with the hope that what we relinquish will open our hearts to God’s grace.
However, merely giving something up is not enough. To recognise where we need to grow, we must consciously reflect on our spiritual lives and devote more of our time to prayer before the Lord. Lent is fundamentally about the conversion of the heart. It encourages us not to pursue personal success but to relinquish human security and follow in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus with simplicity and trust. We need this conversion, and Lent offers the perfect opportunity to renew our efforts to allow God to reach the depths of our hearts and to be “born again” in our spiritual lives.
The first Preface of Lent in the New English Translation of the Roman Missal (2010) is titled “The Spiritual Meaning of Lent.”
For by your gracious gift each year, your faithful await the sacral paschal feasts with the joy of minds made pure, so that, more eagerly intent on prayer and on the works of charity, and participating in the mysteries by which they have been reborn, they may be led to the fullness of grace that you bestow on your sons and daughters.
As we reflect on this prayer, the tone for observing Lent is set. We are invited to look forward to the sacred Paschal feasts (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday) with the joy of renewed minds. However, it may not feel as though we are experiencing Lent joyfully, nor that this joy arises from our renewed spirits. Furthermore, it is often unclear that the fullness of grace to which we are led comes from a more fervent commitment to prayer and acts of charity. The truth is that the Lenten journey revolves around participating in the mysteries through which we are reborn.
We should commence this Lent by seeking the Lord’s guidance towards the fullness of His grace, allowing us to concentrate more on prayer and acts of charity. Through the readings and liturgies of each week of Lent, we pray to experience the mysteries of our rebirth and salvation anew. We hope our actions will bring us closer to a Lenten experience centred on what God wishes to bestow upon us rather than on what we endeavour to offer Him.
We will intentionally allow our prayers to become more personal and centred on our relationship with our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Through this, we will uncover everything we need for our Lenten journey. We will recognise who we are, reveal sources of independence, discern areas of resistance, and identify unhealthy, sinful patterns. Furthermore, we must remain receptive to the graces offered to us by the Lord Jesus, who always desires for us to cultivate a deeper connection with Him, drawing us in, reading by reading and story by story, into admiration and affection for Jesus, His ways, and His invitation to us. Lent should develop into a daily practice of deepening our awareness of the gift bestowed upon us, symbolising a person and nurturing a more intimate relationship with Him. As a result, we will be propelled towards greater freedom and profound self-sacrifice by relinquishing self-love.
The Preface suggests that the fruits of this type of prayer are acts of charity, indicating that when we seek to draw closer to the Lord Jesus in prayer, we express this not only by renouncing certain things or addressing our bad habits but also through our actions. Sacrifices emerge when we offer ourselves in the service of others, loving as the Lord Jesus loves us. Lent encourages us to consider whom we are called to love and serve. At times, opening our hearts and demonstrating compassion towards those in dire need can be both purifying and transformative.
Almsgiving enables us to practise compassion, but we must also discover ways to do more to experience greater closeness to marginalised individuals. We can engage in acts of solidarity that lead to political advocacy on behalf of others. We can choose to serve where we can connect and allow our hearts to be touched by personal encounters with those in need. Lent becomes vibrant when we fall in love with the Lord Jesus, and our hearts yearn to be more like His. Lent directs us towards celebrating God’s love, as demonstrated in the sufferings of Christ along the Way of the Cross.
Embracing Lent wholeheartedly is a journey towards becoming more fruitful, akin to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It requires discipline alongside the sacrifices of uplifting prayer, fasting, and engaging in almsgiving. The Gospel reading on Ash Wednesday (Matthew 6:1-6 & 16-18) is rife with irony. The Lord Jesus challenges his listeners—and the faithful today embarking on their Lenten journey—to reflect on their actions and the motivations behind them. The message clearly illustrates what should inspire these practices and encourages us to partake in humble acts of righteousness with a heavenly focus, preparing for the Lenten rebirth. Our Lenten practices must neither be self-serving nor designed to draw attention; they should embody a heart centred on God’s Kingdom.
The Gospel message challenges our 21st-century lifestyle, in which we seek appreciation and recognition for our actions. The first verse conveys the principle applicable to the three types of religious acts: that righteousness is rewarded by God rather than by people. It warns against performing righteous deeds for show or appearance, emphasising the danger of cultivating a façade of righteousness. There is no righteousness in doing the right thing for the wrong reason. While engaging in spiritual activities without concern for others’ opinions may seem daunting, we must remember that, although we might be observed undertaking good works (Matthew 5:16), we should not perform them merely to attract attention. The righteousness necessary to enter the kingdom of heaven surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5:20). The Lord Jesus raises the standard by calling for a deeper, more radical righteousness that transcends mere compliance with the law. We need a transformation of the heart and a more profound relationship with God, rather than mere outward obedience to rules. The crucial point is that God cares about how we perform our good works and the intentions behind them.
Silent Almsgiving
Applying this principle to almsgiving may be one of the most easily transferable concepts in today’s society; however, it remains one of the most challenging to follow directly. Rewarding charitable gifts by linking the giver’s name with their contributions seems reasonable. While this may not be akin to sounding a trumpet, it still draws attention to the act of giving. Conversely, failing to do so may diminish donations to many worthy causes, precisely the hypocrisy that the Lord Jesus criticises (vs 2-4). He advises those who seek the applause of others to savour the recognition, as that is all the reward they will receive; there will be no reward in heaven for those who act solely for the sake of earthly accolades.
Jesus advises you to keep your giving so secret that even you are hardly aware you are doing anything praiseworthy. Instead, you should allow the Lord God to be present, as He is sufficient for your audience. You will receive no reward from God if no one discovers you are giving for your own glory. However, when you give for God’s glory, it matters not who finds out because the reward endures when it is presented with the right motive. Thus, while our society may understandably be impressed by grand, seemingly selfless acts, the Lord God does not appear to be.
Praying Right
Praying in public solely to attract attention is undeniably unacceptable. This may not be a concern in today’s society, where many Christians feel overly self-conscious or anxious about praying in front of others. Some often use this passage as justification to avoid public prayer altogether. Nevertheless, the fundamental principle of the guidance provided here remains highly relevant. Prayer is intended to communicate with God and to experience His presence. Therefore, praying for any other reason is akin to the hypocrisy that the Lord Jesus condemns. Mouthing words towards God while trying to impress others is using God merely as a tool. It insults God, and heaven has no reward for such prayers (vs 5).
When we pray, we should meet with God privately and aim to impress no one but Him. Privacy in prayer fosters a deeper, more personal connection with God and underscores the believer’s reliance on His grace and guidance. As treasures await each of us in that prayer closet, we will steer clear of vain repetitions and excessive words that hold no meaning, bearing in mind that there is a danger in praying for prolonged periods to the wrong god (1 Kings 18:26 & Acts 19:34).
Attempting to impress God, or worse still, others with our many words, denies that the Lord God is a loving and holy Father who is in heaven and hears us (1 Kings 18:27 & Ecclesiastes 5:2). Our prayers should be measured by weight, not length. They must be as concise as they are powerful (see the model prayer in Matthew 6:9-13). Remember, we do not pray to inform God as if He were unaware; God is all-knowing (Psalm 139:1-4). Prayer should provide insight into our human misery, humble our hardened hearts, awaken our desires, inflame our fading faith, energise our dimming hope, uplift our broken spirits, and elevate our souls to realise that heaven is home, for the Father, the Country, and the Inheritance are there.
Meaningful Fasting
Mother Church establishes fasting as a form of penance, with specific requirements for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, along with abstaining from meat on all Fridays during Lent. However, applying Jesus’ principle of righteousness to our fasting and abstinence can be challenging. The hypocritical practice of fasting in the Old Testament often involved wearing a sorrowful expression and disfiguring one’s face to make the struggles of fasting apparent. These spiritual efforts earned the admiration of others and the reward one would receive (v. 16). Today’s society praises us when we fast for noble causes, such as combating world hunger. Yet, our humanity can distort something good into something detrimental.
When our sole motive for fasting is to please those around us in the hope of receiving gratification, we succumb to hypocrisy. This is self-interest (Isaiah 58:3). We ought not to completely detach the spiritual from bodily practices. We cannot emphasise the inner heart and state of mind, whose benefits are often difficult to perceive, while neglecting the natural religious expression of physical humility before God. Lent presents us with the opportunity for self-sacrifice in our efforts to fast properly and to do so physically, adhering to Jesus’ instruction to care for ourselves as usual and to keep the fast secret before God (v. 18).
Take-Home Message
We will embrace this opportunity to draw closer to the Lord Jesus during Lent. We will participate in Lenten practices designed to encourage ongoing conversion and renewal of our lives in Christ Jesus to prepare for Easter and the Paschal feast of heaven. We will reflect on Jesus’ sacrifice and anticipate the hope of the Kingdom of God. We shall remain vigilant in our sacrifices and steadfast in resisting temptations, striving to become increasingly immersed in the love of God manifested through the Cross and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
*NB: Unless specifically stated, all Bible quotations are from the NRSVCE.
