Flowers no longer adorn the sanctuary, the liturgical linens in our parish churches are purple, and maybe the holy water fonts have even run dry. The “Alleluia” is conspicuously absent from Mass…oh, and the “Gloria” too. It is officially Lent in the Catholic Church! What is this time really all about? 

The Meaning of Lent 

The word “Lent” comes from an Old English term that signifies springtime and lengthening days. In light of this significance, Lent calls us to slow down our busy, fast-paced, all-absorbing lives and spiritually find greater space for God. These 40 days are a time to intentionally cultivate our relationship with God so that our spiritual lives can reach a new springtime.

Why Is Lent 40 Days Long?

We usually correlate the length of Lent to the 40 days that Christ spent in the desert after his Baptism and before starting his public ministry. Just as Christ’s time in the desert strengthened and prepared him to do the will of his Heavenly Father during his public ministry, the season of Lent extends a similar opportunity to us. We are called to spiritually enter the desert with Christ by uprooting selfishness and distraction from our lives. Our Lenten penances and spiritual practices lead us into greater simplicity and silence so that we might draw closer to God, hear his voice, and combat temptation by his grace.

The number 40 also appears at other points in Scripture as a number that symbolizes trial and testing. Noah spent 40 days on the Ark when God flooded the earth to cleanse it of wickedness. In the book of Exodus, the Israelites spent 40 years wandering the wilderness before reaching the Promised Land. The number 40 also appears several other times in the Old Testament besides those main events. It is the amount of time that Jonah preached to Nineveh, that Israel was taunted by Goliath the giant before David conquered him, and that Elijah spent fasting while traveling to Mount Horeb.

Father Mike Schmitz explains what the symbolism behind the forty days of Lent means for us, specifically as it pertains to Exodus. During their time in the wilderness, God invited the people of Israel to greater trust and strength in him, to new spiritual freedom. He offers us the same. During Lent, we should strive to see how God fights with us and for us as we battle our weaknesses, increasing our faith in him. 

What are the 3 Pillars of Lent?

“Each year, Lent offers us a providential opportunity to deepen the meaning and value of our Christian lives, and it stimulates us to rediscover the mercy of God so that we, in turn, become more merciful toward our brothers and sisters. In the Lenten period, the Church makes it her duty to propose some specific tasks that accompany the faithful concretely in this process of interior renewal: these are prayer, fasting and almsgiving.”

 – Pope Benedict XVI

The three pillars of Lent are prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. These are based on Matthew chapter 6, where Christ gives his disciples directives on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Notice that these passages follow the verse where Christ states, “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” We might scratch our heads at what sounds like a tall summons to divine perfection––which remains humanly impossible––but this is not what Christ means. By these words he calls us to love: to conform ourselves more closely to God in kindness, mercy, and holiness.

All three Lenten practices––prayer, fasting, and almsgiving––are closely intertwined, as St. Peter Chrysologus reflects: "Fasting is the soul of prayer, mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others, you open God's ear to yourself.”

Common Lenten Practices

Pope Benedict XVI described Lent as “an itinerary of more intense spiritual training.” It sounds like some sort of Catholic boot camp, doesn’t it? In a way, it is. Committing to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving is no small task. During these 40 days, the Church calls us to focus more closely on penance, sacrifice, conversion, and a greater awareness of God’s mercy and love. No doubt you have heard of some common practices for Lent: Stations of the Cross, fish frys and soup suppers, and the little coin receptacles for Operation Rice Bowl. In the rest of this article, let’s dive into why Catholics are called to pray, fast, and give alms, and you will find some tips and suggestions for how to do each of these in Lent 2025!

The Purpose Of Prayer During Lent

“But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: Our Father, who art in heaven…” (Matthew 6:6-9).

Prayer is the avenue not only by which we approach God but also by which he comes to meet us. He desires to be close to us, know us, and share with us the riches of his heart. A true relationship must be built on communication and time spent together because truly knowing and loving someone involves sharing part of yourself and receiving them––this is no less true about our relationship with God. Lent, especially, is the time to focus on the price that Jesus paid to save us from our sinfulness and reconcile us to the Father, and so, we are called to greater prayer during Lent: to raise our minds and hearts to God, permitting our faith to express itself in gratitude, love, and deeper intimacy with the Lord.

How To Incorporate Prayer Into Lent 2025

Some ways to pray more during Lent 2025 are:

• Pray the Way of the Cross.
• Daily Mass (if you cannot make it every day, perhaps one or two days a week in addition to Sunday).
• Pray a daily Rosary or Divine Mercy Chaplet.
• Arrive early to Mass to prepare properly for the liturgy.
• Stay in church after Mass ends to spend more time with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.
• Begin visiting a Blessed Sacrament chapel regularly, or maybe even commit to Holy Hours.
• Make a brief, daily examination of conscience.
• Focus on a specific virtue each week, praying that God deepens the grace of that virtue in your soul and keeping on the lookout for opportunities to practice it.
• Read Scripture––you can progress through the Gospels or use the Bible in a Year!
• Deepen your experience with Scripture through Lectio Divina. This video by Fr. Josh Johnson provides a wonderful brief introduction.
• Choose a book for Spiritual Reading … perhaps a saint’s life or writings, such as The Story of a Soul by St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales, or the Confessions of St. Augustine.

Pray a litany that you find meaningful. This article offers an ultimate, comprehensive guide to Catholic prayers and devotions for Lent!

The Purpose Of Fasting During Lent

“But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:17-18).

When fasting, we forego something that is good and useful to our physical needs for a greater good––to detach ourselves from material things and make more space for God in our lives. It is a chance to live more fully for Christ rather than for ourselves. Denying ourselves material food and other comforts allows us to experience our hunger for God as we discover the needs of our hearts that only he can satisfy. The truest, most lasting nourishment for our souls is found in prayer, the sacraments, the Word of God, and overall in a flourishing relationship with him.

Fasting also refashions our perspective towards our own lives, teaching us not to take good things for granted and making us more sensitive to the needs of our impoverished brothers and sisters. It places certain things in our lives in perspective, as Pope Benedict XVI pointed out in a message for Lent one year: “The faithful practice of fasting contributes … to conferring unity to the whole person, body and soul, helping to avoid sin and grow in intimacy with the Lord.”

How To Incorporate Fasting Into Lent 2025

Perhaps skipping meals, or opting for bread and water in place of a full dinner is what first comes to mind when you think of fasting. But fasting does not only have to be about food, and fasting in such a substantial and austere way is not everyone’s calling. We tend to resort to a lot of little things to satisfy our subjective inclinations. Perhaps you are called to fast from…

• The snooze button in the mornings.
• Hot showers.
• Social media or other apps that absorb your time and attention excessively (this can even look like limiting your use of them to a certain, brief length of time).
• Excess noise (music, radio, shows you play in the background to fill empty time or space).
• Condiments on your food (not reaching for the salt, ketchup, sour cream).
• Coffee––with a stipulation: if eliminating coffee will be a profound trial to you or those around you (read: will make you grumpy all of Lent), perhaps simply scaling back rather than cutting it out entirely is a better idea. Maybe this means sticking to coffee you make at home, opting out of luxury coffee shop brews or fancy lattes. 

Here is a list of unique ideas for things to give up for Lent!

The Purpose Of Almsgiving During Lent

“But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:3-4). 

Faith does not merely pertain to the interior, but to the exterior as well. Almsgiving is a way to practice works of charity that we might make good on the love, faith, and service we profess to God. Pope Benedict XVI said that “Almsgiving, according to the Gospel, is not mere philanthropy: rather it is a concrete expression of charity, a theological virtue that demands interior conversion to love of God and neighbor, in imitation of Jesus Christ, who, dying on the cross, gave his entire self for us.” 

Since the command to love is at the heart of the Gospel, almsgiving is one of the most important ways of living what Christ calls us to. Almsgiving orients us towards detachment and generosity. By practicing charity, we can remember that, in reality, everything that we have is on loan from God, and we are but stewards of his providence.

How To Incorporate Almsgiving Into Lent 2025

Almsgiving is a chance to practice the corporal works of mercy. Here are some ways to give alms this Lent:

• Serve those who are less fortunate in your community through service projects––i.e. with your local Habitat for Humanity or soup kitchen. 
• Purchase and donate non-perishable food items to the nearest parish-operated food pantry
• Help your local pro-life center or pregnancy clinic by donating diapers or other baby items.
• Choose an almsgiving practice that goes hand in hand with your fasting: consider giving up shopping (aside from necessities), eating out, or ordering coffee during Lent, and direct the funds that you would have used on those things to a missionary cause in the Church. 
• Go through your closet or other belongings and set aside items to donate. While it is most helpful and natural to begin with the items you do not use or no longer need, challenge yourself and do your best to give beyond your leftovers. 
• Write letters to those who are in nursing homes or in prison.
• There are many opportunities to participate in charitable aid at the parish or diocesan level. Give generously to any extra collections taken at Sunday Masses during Lent (in most parishes, there are typically several of these: Collection for the Holy Land, for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, Catholic Relief Services, Operation Rice Bowl).

The Keys To A Stronger Lent In 2025

The 3 Lenten pillars of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are spiritual avenues that allow us to make a greater gift of ourselves to God this Lent. Through them, we can grow in imitating Christ and become better witnesses of his love. Ultimately, the sacrifice and self-denial of the Lenten season will prepare us to enter more fully into the joy of Easter.

How do you plan to practice prayer, fasting, and almsgiving this Lent?

You Might Also Like:

• What the Saints Gave Up for Lent 
• Top 15 Questions About Ash Wednesday
• Best Catholic Prayers for Lent 2025
• Fr. Josh Lent Program

Leila Joy Castillo

Leila Joy Castillo is a freelancer in communications who writes for Ascension, Blessed is She, the St. Austin Review magazine, and more. She is a graduate of Ave Maria University, where she majored in Communications and Humanities and minored in Theology and Marriage & Family Studies. Leila loves her squad of patron saints, Catholic pilgrimage (particularly in the United States), and devotion to the Blessed Mother. In her spare time, she is likely cantoring at her parish church, joyfully conversing with her three wonderful younger siblings, or lost in good literature. Find out more about Leila and her work via findjoyinthejourneyblog.com or on Instagram @leila_joyinthejourney.