February 22, 2026

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, As we begin the Lenten season together, I thought I would take the next few weeks in this space to discuss the basic disciplines of Lent: the way they help us offer a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to God. For this week, I wanted to spend some time talking about how the three classic practices (prayer, fasting, and generosity) work together to bring us closer to God. The classic point of reference on these practices in the Catholic tradition is from St. Peter Chrysologus, who was the bishop of Ravenna (an important city in Italy) from 433 to 450 A.D. He was especially admired as a preacher—and he had the great skill of being able to say what he needed to say without going on for too long! In a particularly memorable homily, he once said: “There are three things, my brothers and sisters, by which faith stands firm, devotion remains constant, and virtue endures. They are prayer, fasting and mercy. Prayer knocks at the door, fasting obtains, mercy receives. Prayer, mercy and fasting: these three are one, and they give life to each other. Fasting is the soul of prayer, almsgiving is the lifeblood of fasting. Let no one try to separate them; they cannot be separated.” I think everyone who’s embraced these three practices together will agree with the saint that they work together in an amazing way to bring God’s strength into our lives. With prayer, we knock on the doors of heaven. With fasting, we open the entirety of our lives to the Lord’s power, by embracing our own weakness. And with generosity (also called almsgiving), we find ourselves becoming instruments of God’s goodness towards others. Through the prayers of Our Lady and St. Thomas, let’s ask God to help us embrace the gift of the holy season of Lent and offer the Lord a worthy sacrifice of praise. God bless,

Father Jantz