Cardinal Tobin:
Lent helps us come to know the depth of God’s love for us
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Vol. 7. No. 15
My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Lent is the time of year when the Church encourages us to do a thorough examination of our spiritual health, and then to take whatever steps are necessary to let the healing power of Jesus make us whole again. The six and a half weeks of Lent provide a structure for diagnosing the symptoms and the root causes of our sinfulness. During this special time of year, the Church encourages us to take advantage of the healing power of the sacraments, especially the sacrament of reconciliation, to admit our selfishness and sin, to experience a change of heart, to deny ourselves, and to change the way we live.
In his message for Lent 2026 (see below), Pope Leo XIV writes, “Every path towards conversion begins by allowing the word of God to touch our hearts and welcoming it with a docile spirit.” Openness to God’s word is the first step we must take to experience the healing power of God’s love. By listening to what God has to say to us, and by recognizing and responding to the cry of those who are anguished and suffering, we discover who we are called to be as missionary disciples of Jesus.
The sacrament of reconciliation is like an oil change for the soul. It’s like moving the furniture of our souls and getting to the places that escape everyday cleaning. Through this great sacrament, we allow Jesus to enter our hearts and cleanse us of all the impurities—large and small—that have built up over time. We present ourselves to him for the healing of both our symptoms and their root causes.
Jesus Christ is the Divine Physician of body and soul. In his Incarnation, Jesus reached out, by word and deed, to heal those with illnesses of the body and sicknesses of the soul. In his passion, death, and resurrection, he conquered sin and death, becoming the source of ultimate healing for all. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus gave his disciples a share in his very life, so that the healing power of his words and deeds might continue to be present to the world through them. And through the sacraments, Jesus himself continues to be present in every time and place, healing us and drawing us into the communion that he shares with the Father and the Spirit.
During this Lent, this season of healing, I want to remind every baptized Catholic in the Archdiocese of Newark of the great gifts of cleansing and healing that are available to us in the sacrament of reconciliation. Through this great sacrament, our Redeemer invites us to a healing that brings reconciliation and communion—with God, with each other, and with ourselves in our inmost being.
When we examine our consciences in preparation for confessing our sins, let’s keep in mind what Pope Leo teaches about “a very practical and frequently unappreciated form of abstinence: that of refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbor.” We, sinners, can be very cruel to others—especially those who are different from us or who disagree with us. To change our ways, the Holy Father admonishes us:
Let us begin by disarming our language, avoiding harsh words and rash judgement, refraining from slander and speaking ill of those who are not present and cannot defend themselves. Instead, let us strive to measure our words and cultivate kindness and respect in our families, among our friends, at work, on social media, in political debates, in the media and in Christian communities. In this way, words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace.
I sincerely hope that each of us will use this time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to come to know the depth of God’s love for us. And, in a special way, I hope this Lent will be a time when each of us rediscovers the healing power available to us through the sacrament of reconciliation.
Sincerely yours in Christ the Redeemer,
Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R.
Archbishop of Newark
God’s Gift of Forgiveness: A Pastoral Exhortation on the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
“Peace be with you!” With these words, the Risen Lord greeted his frightened Apostles in the Upper Room on the day of his Resurrection. They were troubled, anxious, and fearful—much like each one of us at some point in our lives. Christ repeated the words, “Peace be with you.” But then he added, “Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them” (Jn 20:19-23).
What an extraordinary gift! The Risen Lord was proclaiming that all the suffering he had just endured was in order to make available the gifts of salvation and forgiveness. He wanted the Apostles to receive these gifts. He wanted them to become apostles of this forgiveness to others.
In the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, also called confession, we meet the Lord, who wants to grant forgiveness and the grace to live a renewed life in him. In this sacrament, he prepares us to receive him free from serious sin, with a lively faith, earnest hope, and sacrificial love in the Eucharist. The Church sees confession as so important that she requires that every Catholic go at least once a year.1 The Church also encourages frequent confession in order to grow closer to Christ Jesus and his Body, the Church. By the grace of the Holy Spirit, we seek forgiveness and repentance, let go of patterns of sin, grow in the life of virtue, and witness to a joyful conversion. Since the graces of the sacrament are so similar to the purpose of the New Evangelization, Pope Benedict XVI has said, “The New Evangelization . . . begins in the confessional!”2
We bishops and priests are eager to help you if you experience difficulty, hesitation, or uncertainty about approaching the Lord in this sacrament. If you have not received this healing sacrament in a long time, we are ready to “He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’” (Lk 15: 31-32) welcome you. We, whom Christ has ordained to minister this forgiveness in his name, are also approaching this sacrament, as both penitents and ministers, throughout our lives and at this special moment of grace during Lent. We want to offer ourselves to you as forgiven sinners seeking to serve in the Lord’s name.
During Lent—in addition to the various penitential services during which individual confession takes place—we bishops and priests will be making ourselves available often for the individual celebration of this sacrament. We pray that through the work of the Holy Spirit, all Catholics—clergy and laity—will respond to the call of the New Evangelization to encounter Christ in the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. Come to the Lord and experience the extraordinary grace of his forgiveness!
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 1457-1458.
- Pope Benedict XVI, Address to the Annual Course on the Internal Forum Organized by the Apostolic Penitentiary, To Participants in a Course sponsored by the Apostolic Penitentiary (March 9, 2012)
How to go to Confession
Download “How to Go to Confession” (from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ website)
Visit the USSCB’s webpage on Confession
Cardinal Tobin’s pastoral letter on “We Are His Witnesses”
March 4, 2026
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
The peace of Christ our Redeemer be with you.
As we reflect on our mission as disciples of Jesus, I am reminded of the words of Pope Leo XIV in his Apostolic Exhortation, Dilexi Te (On Love for the Poor), issued on October 4, 2025, the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. He wrote that “Christian love breaks down every barrier, brings close those who were distant, unites strangers, and reconciles enemies…It makes what was apparently impossible happen.” His words remind us that the heart of our faith is love—love that knows no limits, seeks no enemies, and calls us to reach beyond what we may think is possible.
I hope you will agree with me that this reflection provides all of us with a powerful incentive to reexamine who we are as missionary disciples of Jesus Christ called to know, love, and serve him in parish communities throughout northern New Jersey. Are we a Church that “sets no limits to love”? Are we open to making the “apparently impossible happen”? Or do we insist on limiting ourselves to the way we have always done things?
Over the past months, the Archdiocese of Newark has undertaken the initiative We Are His Witnesses as a prayerful and thoughtful response to the realities before us, so that God might renew our Church for mission. I want to share where we are and how we must move forward together, asking ourselves with renewed urgency: What does it mean to be a missionary Church in northern New Jersey today? How can we truly be “a Church that sets no limits to love?”
The leadership of the Archdiocese has listened to you. In the conversation that occurred in almost every parish, many of you spoke with conviction and hope about becoming more missionary parishes: communities ready to share responsibility for forming disciples, eager to reach beyond parish walls and live lives that invite people to Christ. Others expressed fear, uncertainty and resistance, especially about the possibility of parish mergers or closures. Some saw no need for any change at all.
It is important to say clearly that some parishes and parishioners came to believe—incorrectly—that the overall goal of We Are His Witnesses is to close churches. That has never been the purpose. This work is not driven by downsizing, but by mission: by the call to strengthen parish life so that it can truly form disciples and reach those who are not yet engaged in the life of the Church.
Continue reading Cardinal Tobin’s pastoral letter HERE.
A Message from Pope Leo XIV:
In the One Christ We are One
Listening and Fasting: Lent as a Time of Conversion
Dear brothers and sisters,
Lent is a time in which the Church, guided by a sense of maternal care, invites us to place the mystery of God back in the center of our lives, in order to find renewal in our faith and keep our hearts from being consumed by the anxieties and distractions of daily life.
Every path towards conversion begins by allowing the word of God to touch our hearts and welcoming it with a docile spirit. There is a relationship between the word, our acceptance of it and the transformation it brings about. For this reason, the Lenten journey is a welcome opportunity to heed the voice of the Lord and renew our commitment to following Christ, accompanying him on the road to Jerusalem, where the mystery of his passion, death and resurrection will be fulfilled.
Listening
This year, I would first like to consider the importance of making room for the word through listening. The willingness to listen is the first way we demonstrate our desire to enter into relationship with someone.
In revealing himself to Moses in the burning bush, God himself teaches us that listening is one of his defining characteristics: “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry” (Ex 3:7). Hearing the cry of the oppressed is the beginning of a story of liberation in which the Lord calls Moses, sending him to open a path of salvation for his children who have been reduced to slavery.
Our God is one who seeks to involve us. Even today he shares with us what is in his heart. Because of this, listening to the word in the liturgy teaches us to listen to the truth of reality. In the midst of the many voices present in our personal lives and in society, Sacred Scripture helps us to recognize and respond to the cry of those who are anguished and suffering. In order to foster this inner openness to listening, we must allow God to teach us how to listen as he does. We must recognize that “the condition of the poor is a cry that, throughout human history, constantly challenges our lives, societies, political and economic systems, and, not least, the Church.”
Fasting
If Lent is a time for listening, fasting is a concrete way to prepare ourselves to receive the word of God. Abstaining from food is an ancient ascetic practice that is essential on the path of conversion. Precisely because it involves the body, fasting makes it easier to recognize what we “hunger” for and what we deem necessary for our sustenance. Moreover, it helps us to identify and order our “appetites,” keeping our hunger and thirst for justice alive and freeing us from complacency. Thus, it teaches us to pray and act responsibly towards our neighbor.
With spiritual insight, Saint Augustine helps us to understand the tension between the present moment and the future fulfillment that characterizes this custody of the heart. He observes that: “In the course of earthly life, it is incumbent upon men and women to hunger and thirst for justice, but to be satisfied belongs to the next life. Angels are satisfied with this bread, this food. The human race, on the other hand, hungers for it; we are all drawn to it in our desire. This reaching out in desire expands the soul and increases its capacity.” Understood in this way, fasting not only permits us to govern our desire, purifying it and making it freer, but also to expand it, so that it is directed towards God and doing good.
However, in order to practice fasting in accordance with its evangelical character and avoid the temptation that leads to pride, it must be lived in faith and humility. It must be grounded in communion with the Lord, because “those who are unable to nourish themselves with the word of God do not fast properly.” As a visible sign of our inner commitment to turn away from sin and evil with the help of grace, fasting must also include other forms of self-denial aimed at helping us to acquire a more sober lifestyle, since “austerity alone makes the Christian life strong and authentic.”
In this regard, I would like to invite you to a very practical and frequently unappreciated form of abstinence: that of refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbor. Let us begin by disarming our language, avoiding harsh words and rash judgement, refraining from slander and speaking ill of those who are not present and cannot defend themselves. Instead, let us strive to measure our words and cultivate kindness and respect in our families, among our friends, at work, on social media, in political debates, in the media and in Christian communities. In this way, words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace.
Together
Finally, Lent emphasizes the communal aspect of listening to the word and fasting. The Bible itself underlines this dimension in multiple ways. For example, the Book of Nehemiah recounts how the people gathered to listen to the public reading of the Law, preparing to profess their faith and worship through fasting, so as to renew the covenant with God (cf. 9:1-3).
Likewise, our parishes, families, ecclesial groups and religious communities are called to undertake a shared journey during Lent, in which listening to the word of God, as well as to the cry of the poor and of the earth, becomes part of our community life, and fasting a foundation for sincere repentance. In this context, conversion refers not only to one’s conscience, but also to the quality of our relationships and dialogue. It means allowing ourselves to be challenged by reality and recognizing what truly guides our desires — both within our ecclesial communities and as regards humanity’s thirst for justice and reconciliation.
Dear friends, let us ask for the grace of a Lent that leads us to greater attentiveness to God and to the least among us. Let us ask for the strength that comes from the type of fasting that also extends to our use of language, so that hurtful words may diminish and give way to a greater space for the voice of others. Let us strive to make our communities places where the cry of those who suffer finds welcome, and listening opens paths towards liberation, making us ready and eager to contribute to building a civilization of love.
I impart my heartfelt blessing upon all of you and your Lenten journey.
(From the Vatican, 5 February 2026, Memorial of Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr)
My Prayer for You
Please join me in this Lenten prayer:
Lord Jesus, during Lent, we seek you in prayer by reading Sacred Scripture; we serve you by giving alms; and we practice self-control through fasting. Help us to remember that we are called not only to abstain from luxuries during Lent, but to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follow you more faithfully.
Amen