Ahead of the start of Lent, Pope Leo XIV invites Catholics to listen, build community, and cultivate kindness. He urged us to abstain from words of hate and make space for words of peace.
He writes, “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. 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.”
How may you walk through each day of Lent with an “unappreciated form of abstinence: refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbor[s]?”
For the full text, click here: https://ewtnvatican.com/articles/full-text-of-pope-leos-message-for-lent-2026
