Lent...
a time to go into the desert with the Lord
Lent is a season of penance, fasting, prayer, and almsgiving, lasting for 40 days, leading up to Easter. Pope Leo describes this season as "a time in which the Church, guided by a sense of maternal care, invites us to place the mystery of God back in the center 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." The purpose of Lent is to prepare us spiritually for the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ at Easter. It is seen as a time for repentance, reflection, and renewal of faith.
How to Enter into Lent:
- Attend Mass on Ash Wednesday: The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday (18 February 2026), when we attend Mass or an ecumenical liturgy and receive ashes on our foreheads as a sign of repentance. The ashes are made from the palms of the previous year’s Palm Sunday, we will hear the words "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return".
- Commit to Fasting and Abstinence: Consider what sacrifices you can make during Lent. Fasting is traditionally practiced on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and all Fridays in Lent, but many choose to give up certain foods, habits, or distractions during the entire season as a form of self-denial.
"Fasting is a concrete way to prepare ourselves to receive the word of God." Pope Leo XIV - Deepen Your Prayer Life: Find ways to engage more intentionally in prayer during Lent. You might take up daily Scripture readings, the Rosary, or other devotions like the Stations of the Cross. You can also join in parish prayer groups or attend additional Masses during the season. Lent invites us to examine our lives and our relationship with God. You might choose to journal your thoughts, set spiritual goals, and meditate on the suffering and sacrifice of Jesus. There are resources and programmes below that will assist you enter deeper into prayer this Lent.
- Give to Charity: Look for opportunities to practice almsgiving by donating to the poor, volunteering and helping those in need.
- Participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation: Lent is an ideal time to confess your sins and seek absolution through the sacrament of Reconciliation. Our parishes offer additional times for confession during Lent to prepare your heart for Easter.
By engaging in these practices, you enter into the spirit of Lent as a time for renewal, penance, and spiritual growth. The goal is not just to give up something but to grow closer to God and be transformed by His love and mercy during these 40 days.
Lent is an ideal time to explore and grow in faith. If you are not Catholic and are exploring your faith during this time of Lent, we invite you to find out more about our faith, reach out to a local parish or make contact with pastoral team member Alex Chia about the OCIA process.
Men's Lent Programmes
Following last year’s successful Exodus 40 for Men during Lent a men’s programme is to be offered again in some parishes. This will involve prayer (adoration), brotherhood (fraternity) and physical disciplines. Those men who took part in Exodus last Lent have provided wonderful feedback about the programme and helping them in their spiritual life.
Below are the parish contacts:
Cathedral Parish: Rob Farrell rob@sio.co.nz
Christ the Redeemer: Ramez Ailabouni ramez.ailabouni@gmail.com
Our Lady Queen of Peace: Steve Entwistle sentwistle@stbedes.school.nz
Stella Maris: Fr Vincent Barboza vincentbrbz7@gmail.com
Holy Family: TBC
St Peter Chanel: Danny Nichols dnleadership@gmail.com
Parish of the Good Shepherd: Steve Joyce steveandbern@outlook.com
For any queries please contact Mike Stopforth mstopforth@cdoc.nz or 027 539 8542
Women's Lenten Programmes
All women in the diocese are invited to enter into Lent by joining a Women's Lenten Programme.
Libertas is a programme to help women respond to the invitation of this season into greater interior freedom, the kind of freedom that allows us to love more fully, to be more present to those entrusted to us, and to live with hearts rooted in God rather than ruled by distraction, fear, or exhaustion.
Our culture often speaks of freedom as autonomy or control. The Christian vision is different. Freedom is a gift given so that we may receive and return love. As St Paul reminds us, “For freedom Christ has set us free” — not so that we might prove ourselves, but so that we might live as daughters who know they are held.
This journey exists to help us cooperate with grace, not to manufacture holiness through effort. Through prayer, sacramental life, and sisterhood, we seek to become more attentive to God’s presence already at work in our lives.
There are three key commitments at the heart of the Libertas journey: Daily prayer, Sisterhood and Weekly Eucharistic Adoration.
Everything else exists to support these.
For more information about Christchurch Catholic Women's Ministry contact Jacinta Nicholls jacinta@sjr.nz.
If you are in the Christ the Redeemer Parish and interested in joining a Libertas group contact Amelia Ailabouni ameliajhh@gmail.com.
The Fiat40 programme invites women who are seeking to grow closer to Christ by embracing the virtues of Mary - faith, humility and devotion. Inspired by Mary’s fiat - her whole hearted “YES” to God, the Fiat 40 programme combines daily prayer and intentional lifestyle sacrifices to create space for God’s grace and deeper spiritual growth.
"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 XIV
Other Lenten Programmes and Resources
Go Make Disciples - Archdiocese of Sydney
Formed
Brisbane Archdiocesan Ministries
Food for Faith
Caritas Lenten Programme
Bishop Robert Barron
Compassio - Diocese of Wollongong
Hallow APP
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