Sr Cathy Murugan, a Holy Family Sister, receives ashes from Father Rajah Arockia assisted by Father Robert Morris. The two priests are Jesuits from India and New Zealand, who have been helping at the Denis Hurley Centre and Emmanuel Cathedral. Ashes are being distributed at Catholic and Anglican churches across the city today to mark the start of Lent. Father Arockia and Father Morris are also offering ashes to homeless men and women at the Denis Hurley Centre.
Image: Tumi Pakkies/Independent Newspapers
LENT marks a new beginning - a sacred journey leading us to the ultimate triumph of Easter, Christ’s victory over death. In a world filled with wounds that can harden our hearts, we are called to immerse ourselves in the boundless sea of God’s love through prayer.
It is in this divine embrace that we experience His tenderness and mercy, as the Holy Father, Pope Francis, reminds us.
The Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday (today), a solemn reminder of our mortality, something which we imagine the pope himself is reflecting on at the moment: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
This call to repentance urges us to turn away from sin and believe in the Gospel. Lent is a time of spiritual preparation, guiding believers to reflect deeply on Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. But though a Christian season, the call of Lent is one which resonates for people of all faiths, and especially this year with Muslims as the start of Lent and Ramadaan almost coincide.
“Return to me with all your heart” (Joel 2:12) and “Create in me a pure heart, O God” (Ps 51:10).
These verses encapsulate the invitation of God - whatever name we use - to renewal and our response to the divine call. Our Creator urges us to restore our relationship with creation, with our neighbour, and with ourselves. With an unquenchable thirst for holiness, we must seek God’s grace for a renewed heart.
All sacred seasons are a time for profound transformation - one that calls for an interior conversion. True change begins with sincere repentance for our sins against God, others, and ourselves. This renewal process demands fasting, weeping, and mourning, as we seek to return to God with our whole hearts.
When we do so, we experience God’s inner strength, joy, and peace.
For Christians, Jesus highlights three essential pillars of Lent: fasting, almsgiving, and prayer.
Fasting disciplines our bodies, reminding us to depend on God rather than material comforts.
Almsgiving reshapes our hearts, helping us recognise Christ in others, especially in the poor and suffering.
Prayer transforms our souls, deepening our awareness that our very existence is rooted in God.
These are all themes that resonate across religions. This Lenten season presents a favourable time to challenge ourselves - to step beyond our limitations, to heal our own brokenness, and to extend our hands to our brothers and sisters in a wounded world.
The Holy Father, Pope Francis, offers us a profound message: “Walking Together in Hope.”
He has declared 2025 a Jubilee Year of Hope and he recalls those wandering toward the Promised Land, encouraging us to reflect on our own pilgrimage through life.
Lent invites us to walk humbly and authentically, resisting the temptation to seek recognition and instead focusing on strengthening our relationship with God. We are called to journey together, leaving no one behind, fostering a spirit of communion and solidarity within our own faith tradition and with the wider world.
By the grace of God’s love in Jesus Christ, we are sustained by a hope that never fails: “Hope does not disappoint us” (Rom 5:5).
As we continue our journey in this Jubilee Year, let us walk forward with faith - not alone, but together, hand in hand with our brethren, as we prepare our hearts for the joy of Easter.
Father Rajah Arockia is a Jesuit priest from India, who has been helping at the Denis Hurley Centre and Emmanuel Cathedral.
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