VATICAN CITY – Catholics should use the season of Lent to look for signs and symptoms of being under the spell of false prophets and of living with cold, selfish and hateful hearts, Pope Francis said.
Together with “the often bitter medicine of the truth,” the church – as mother and teacher – offers people “the soothing remedy of prayer, almsgiving and fasting,” the pope said in his message for Lent, which began for Latin-rite Catholics on Feb. 14, Ash Wednesday.
Released at the Vatican Feb. 6, the pope’s message looked at Jesus’ apocalyptic discourse to the disciples on the Mount of Olives, warning them of the many signs and calamities that will signal the end of time and the coming of the Son of Man.