Every year, as the Church prepares to begin Lent, the pope releases a letter to assist the faithful in having a holy and fruitful season. The Lenten message often conveys some area of spiritual or moral theology that is close to the heart of the pontiff and is something that he wants to stress in the life of the Church.

This year, Pope Francis’ message revolved around a verse from Saint Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians: “We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

When leaders in South Sudan missed a second deadline to implement a peace agreement and form a transitional government in November 2019, Pope Francis stepped in saying he would pay the troubled country a visit if they were able to end the country’s nearly 7-year conflict.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols offers his reflections on the painting by Italian artist Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano titled 'The Incredulity of Saint Thomas'.

During Lent we walk a path of reflection and preparation for 40 days before celebrating the Risen Christ at Easter.

The miracle of the Resurrection was too much for St. Thomas who needed to put his finger into the pierced side of Jesus before he would truly believe.

According to the U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), the guidelines for fasting and abstinence during Lent (February 26 – April 12, 2020) are as follows:

Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence.

Here are nine things to know and share...

1. What is Ash Wednesday?

Ash Wednesday is the day that Lent begins (see: 9 things you need to know about Lent).

The name comes from the fact that a particular rite is always celebrated on this Wednesday in which the faithful have ashes put on their foreheads.

According to the Roman Missal:

In the course of today’s Mass, ashes are blessed and distributed.

These are made from the olive branches or branches of other trees that were blessed the previous year [on Palm/Passion Sunday].

Say “Christianity” and “Middle East” to people who’ve been paying attention to events in the region, the and next word that would automatically come to mind for most probably would be “extinction.”

By now, the statistics on the collapse of the Christian population in the Middle East are wearily familiar. The situation is worse in the war-torn nations of Iraq and Syria, for obvious reasons, than in historic Christian strongholds such as Egypt and Lebanon, but there too the pressures are strong and the trendlines alarming.

On this day, marked by the austere symbol of ashes, we enter the season of Lent, beginning a spiritual journey that prepares us for celebrating worthily the Easter Mysteries.

There’s a line in a Christian worship song I love that says, “From the head to the heart, you take me on a journey.”

It’s referencing an oft-cited dilemma in the Church, a “separation of the head and heart” -- meaning the things you believe with your mind aren’t fully felt or realized in your soul. In my life, it feels like a precarious balance of thinking the right thing, doing the right thing, and then hoping I'm also feeling the right thing so that my beliefs can be "real".

In the face of hatred, fear, and division, Pope Francis called Sunday, February 23, on the Christian communities of the Mediterranean to recognise the inherent unity of the region’s multiculturalism.

In a message that acclaimed the beauty of diversity in the face of voices seeking to build walls — both literal and figurative — Francis February 23 concluded a five-day long conference in Bari, Italy, that sought to find new roads to peace and stability in the Mediterranean region.

Following is the Vatican-provided full text of the Pope’s Message of Lent 2020:

“We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” (2 Cor 5:20)

Dear Brothers and Sisters,