Pope's Lenten Message: Abstain from harsh words and rash judgement + full text

Pope prays at Jubilee of Youth in Rome. 3/08/25 @Vatican Media

Source: Vatican Media

"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 neighbour."

Pope Leo XIV made that invitation at the heart of his message for Lent 2026, which was released on Friday.

As Lent begins next week, Ash Wednesday, February 18, the Pope said this liturgical season offers Christians an opportunity to place the mystery of God back at the centre of our lives.

Every journey of conversion, he said, begins by letting God's word touch our hearts, so that we may renew our commitment to follow Christ in the mystery of his saving passion, death and resurrection.

Pope Leo focused on the importance of listening to God and to those around us, allowing ourselves to enter into authentic relationships.

"In the midst of the many voices present in our personal lives and in society, sacred Scripture helps us to recognize and respond to the cry of those who are anguished and suffering," he said.

Christians can cultivate inner openness to listening, as God does, by growing in awareness that the poor challenge our lives and economic systems, as well as the church, he said.

Pope Leo XIV then turned to how fasting helps open us to the deep desire for justice, which he said frees us from complacency.

"Precisely because it involves the body, fasting makes it easier to recognise what we 'hunger' for and what we deem necessary for our sustenance," he said. "Moreover, it helps us to identify and order our 'appetites,' keeping our hunger and thirst for justice alive".

Fasting, he added, teaches us to govern our desire by purifying, freeing and expanding it to direct our desire toward God and good deeds.

However, we must fast in faith, humility and communion with the Lord, and not in a way that leads to pride, said Pope Leo, adding that other forms of self-denial also lead to a more sober lifestyle.

Pope Leo then pointed to an under-appreciated form of abstinence, which is refraining from hurtful words.

"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," he said. "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."

If we do so, we will let words of hatred "give way to words of hope and peace."

Pope Leo went on to emphasise the communal aspect of listening and fasting, which can be lived out in our parishes, families and religious communities.

By listening to the cry of the poor and setting our hearts on a path of conversion to Christ, we train our conscience and improve the quality of our lives and relationships, he said.

"It means allowing ourselves to be challenged by reality and recognising what truly guides our desires - both within our ecclesial communities and as regards humanity's thirst for justice and reconciliation."

Pope Leo XIV concluded his 2026 Lenten Message with a call for Christian communities to become places where those who suffer find welcome.

"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," he said.

Read the full Message here:

Listening and Fasting: Lent as a Time of Conversion

Dear brothers and sisters,

Lent is 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.

Every path towards conversion begins by allowing the word of God to touch our hearts and welcoming it with a docile spirit. There is a relationship between the word, our acceptance of it and the transformation it brings about. For this reason, the Lenten journey is a welcome opportunity to heed the voice of the Lord and renew our commitment to following Christ, accompanying him on the road to Jerusalem, where the mystery of his passion, death and resurrection will be fulfilled.

Listening
This year, I would first like to consider the importance of making room for the word through listening. The willingness to listen is the first way we demonstrate our desire to enter into relationship with someone.

In revealing himself to Moses in the burning bush, God himself teaches us that listening is one of his defining characteristics: "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry" (Ex 3:7). Hearing the cry of the oppressed is the beginning of a story of liberation in which the Lord calls Moses, sending him to open a path of salvation for his children who have been reduced to slavery.

Our God is one who seeks to involve us. Even today he shares with us what is in his heart. Because of this, listening to the word in the liturgy teaches us to listen to the truth of reality. In the midst of the many voices present in our personal lives and in society, Sacred Scripture helps us to recognize and respond to the cry of those who are anguished and suffering. In order to foster this inner openness to listening, we must allow God to teach us how to listen as he does. We must recognize that "the condition of the poor is a cry that, throughout human history, constantly challenges our lives, societies, political and economic systems, and, not least, the Church."

Fasting

If Lent is a time for listening, fasting is a concrete way to prepare ourselves to receive the word of God. Abstaining from food is an ancient ascetic practice that is essential on the path of conversion. Precisely because it involves the body, fasting makes it easier to recognize what we "hunger" for and what we deem necessary for our sustenance. Moreover, it helps us to identify and order our "appetites," keeping our hunger and thirst for justice alive and freeing us from complacency. Thus, it teaches us to pray and act responsibly towards our neighbor.

With spiritual insight, Saint Augustine helps us to understand the tension between the present moment and the future fulfilment that characterizes this custody of the heart. He observes that: "In the course of earthly life, it is incumbent upon men and women to hunger and thirst for justice, but to be satisfied belongs to the next life. Angels are satisfied with this bread, this food. The human race, on the other hand, hungers for it; we are all drawn to it in our desire. This reaching out in desire expands the soul and increases its capacity." Understood in this way, fasting not only permits us to govern our desire, purifying it and making it freer, but also to expand it, so that it is directed towards God and doing good.

However, in order to practice fasting in accordance with its evangelical character and avoid the temptation that leads to pride, it must be lived in faith and humility. It must be grounded in communion with the Lord, because "those who are unable to nourish themselves with the word of God do not fast properly." As a visible sign of our inner commitment to turn away from sin and evil with the help of grace, fasting must also include other forms of self-denial aimed at helping us to acquire a more sober lifestyle, since "austerity alone makes the Christian life strong and authentic."

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.

Together

Finally, Lent emphasizes the communal aspect of listening to the word and fasting. The Bible itself underlines this dimension in multiple ways. For example, the Book of Nehemiah recounts how the people gathered to listen to the public reading of the Law, preparing to profess their faith and worship through fasting, so as to renew the covenant with God (cf. 9:1-3).

Likewise, our 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. In this context, conversion refers not only to one's conscience, but also to the quality of our relationships and dialogue. It means allowing ourselves to be challenged by reality and recognizing what truly guides our desires - both within our ecclesial communities and as regards humanity's thirst for justice and reconciliation.

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.

I impart my heartfelt blessing upon all of you and your Lenten journey.

From the Vatican, 5 February 2026, Memorial of Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr

LEO PP. XIV