A Message from His Excellency
Dear Fathers, Brothers and Sisters,
Grace and peace to you in our Lord Jesus Christ.
As we enter the sacred season of Lent, the Church once again invites us to a time of repentance, renewal, and return to the Lord. “Return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning” (Joel 2:12). Lent is not merely a liturgical period; it is a spiritual journey — a movement from superficial religiosity to authentic conversion, from external observance to interior transformation.
A Pastoral Concern: Devotion and Discernment
In my message last month, I reflected on the right ordering of sacred images in our churches and the need for moderation. During this Lenten season, I wish to deepen that reflection by drawing attention to the biblical understanding of fasting and almsgiving, especially in light of certain pastoral trends that require discernment and catechesis.
In recent years, there has been a growing tendency in some of our parishes for individuals or families to voluntarily sponsor the erection of sacred images or statues of their choice, often as votive offerings or in fulfilment of personal devotion. While generosity and gratitude are praiseworthy, it is imperative to clarify that the Church cannot entertain every such request arising from personal preference. Church space is not a private devotional domain but a sacred, ecclesial, and liturgical space governed by theological, canonical, and pastoral norms. The multiplication of statues cannot become a substitute for deeper Christian commitment.
It is the duty of the presbyterium — and all of us in pastoral ministry — to instruct and catechize the faithful that true Lenten sacrifice is not primarily about adding religious symbols, but about becoming living witnesses of charity and justice.
Biblical Fasting
The Word of God speaks with striking clarity through the Prophet Isaiah:
“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of injustice,
to undo the thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free…
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover them?” (Isaiah 58:6–7)
Here the Lord rejects empty ritualism. He does not condemn fasting itself, but fasting that is disconnected from justice, mercy, and charity. True fasting leads to solidarity with the poor. True almsgiving restores dignity to the vulnerable.
Our Lord Jesus reaffirms this teaching. In Gospel of Matthew( 6:1–4), He instructs us that almsgiving must not be for display but for God alone. In Gospel of Luke (12:16–21), He narrates the parable of the rich man who, after a plentiful harvest, said to himself, “I will tear down my barns and build larger ones.” But God calls him a fool, because he stored up riches for himself and was “not rich toward God.” The Gospel warns us against accumulation without compassion. Likewise, in Gospel of Luke (16:19–31), the rich man who ignored Lazarus at his gate becomes a sobering image of indifference toward the suffering poor. And in Gospel of Matthew (25:31–46), Christ identifies Himself with the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned: “Whatever you did to one of the least of these my brethren, you did to me.” The message is unmistakable that our worship of God is inseparable from our care for the poor.
Almsgiving: The Heart of Lenten Conversion
Sacred Scripture consistently presents care for the poor as a central expression of covenant fidelity. The Book of Proverbs teaches: “He who is generous to the poor lends to the Lord” (Prov 19:17). The Book of Sirach affirms: “Almsgiving atones for sin” (Sir 3:30). The Letter of James is uncompromising: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction” (James 1:27).
The early Church Fathers echo this biblical conviction with prophetic force. Saint Basil the Great declares: “The bread you keep belongs to the hungry; the cloak in your closet belongs to the naked; the shoes rotting in your house belong to the barefoot.” Saint John Chrysostom warns: “Not to enable the poor to share in our goods is to steal from them and deprive them of life.” Saint Ambrose teaches: “You are not making a gift of your possessions to the poor person. You are handing over to him what is his.” For the Fathers, almsgiving is not optional generosity; it is a matter of justice rooted in the universal destination of goods.
Evangelical Simplicity in Celebrations
Another pastoral dimension that calls for reflection is the growing extravagance in certain celebrations — church feasts, weddings, anniversaries, house blessings, and other social functions. While joy and thanksgiving are legitimate and beautiful, excess and luxury can become a counter-witness to evangelical simplicity.
Lenten catechesis must gently but firmly invite our faithful to moderation. A meaningful portion of celebration expenses and luxury budgets can be consciously set apart for:
- Education of poor children
- Medical care of the disadvantaged
- Support of orphans and widows who have lost their livelihood
- Assistance to economically vulnerable families
In doing so, family celebrations themselves become occasions of grace and solidarity.
Dilexit Te – He Loved You
In his first Encyclical, Dilexit Te (“He Loved You”), Pope Leo XIV recalls to the Church the primacy of Christ’s love as the source and summit of our Christian life. He reminds us that we do not begin by loving; rather, “we love because He first loved us” (cf. 1 Jn 4:19). The Holy Father emphasizes that the experience of being personally loved by Christ is not a private consolation but a missionary dynamism. The love of Christ impels us toward communion, service, and generous self-gift.
In Dilexit Te, the Pope writes that “the Heart of Christ remains open to all, especially to the poor, the wounded, and the forgotten.” He insists that the Church’s credibility in today’s world depends not on structures, influence, or external display, but on a visible witness of compassionate solidarity. “Where Christian love becomes concrete,” he affirms, “there the Gospel becomes believable.”
The Holy Father further reminds us that the goods we possess — material, spiritual, and intellectual — are not merely personal achievements but gifts entrusted to us. “What we have received in love must be shared in love.” In this light, Christian charity is not optional philanthropy; it is the very expression of discipleship. When the Church bends down to serve, she reflects the Heart of Christ Himself.
Thus, Dilexit Te calls the entire People of God to renewal, a renewal of heart, a renewal of mission, and a renewal of credibility. Only a Church that loves visibly, serves humbly, and shares generously can truly proclaim the Gospel in our time.
A Special Call to Ministry
This Lenten season places upon us a sacred responsibility:
· To catechize clearly on the meaning of true fasting and almsgiving.
· To guide the faithful toward responsible and theologically sound devotional practices.
· To promote evangelical simplicity in parish life and celebrations.
· To encourage concrete structures of charity in every parish.
Lent is not fulfilled by multiplying religious expressions but by multiplying acts of mercy. Our churches must not merely display sacred images; they must form living icons of Christ in works of compassion.
May this Lenten season in our Diocese of Sivagangai be marked by authentic repentance, generous almsgiving, and renewed commitment to the poor. Then our fasting will be pleasing to the Lord, and our Church will shine as a credible witness of the Gospel.
With prayerful blessings,
✠ Most Rev. Dr. Lourdu Aanandam
Bishop of Sivagangai