A time of conversion

It is always time to be converted (from the Latin convertere, meaning to turn around, to change direction, to go in the opposite way), that is, to turn away from evil and turn toward God — especially during this season of Lent, a special time given to us by the Church to help facilitate our return to God. We continually experience our human weakness and limitations, declaring with Saint Paul, "For I do the evil I do not want to do." (Romans 7:19).

We quickly realize the truth of Jesus' words: "Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). Fortunately, Jesus does not leave us without help; He even offers Himself to us through the sacraments of the Eucharist and Confession, which allow us to live in a state of grace in union with Him.

The three pillars of Lent are traditionally prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. In his message for Lent 2026, Pope Leo XIV suggests a special form of fasting: in addition to abstaining from food, he proposes "a practical and frequently unappreciated form of abstinence: that of refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbour" (see page 10).

As for prayer, in addition to the Mass and reading the Word of God, the Church offers us a very powerful prayer: the Rosary, which according to God's will is the key that binds Satan and renders his actions powerless (see page 31).

The devil is not inactive in our times, for his objective is to oppose God's plan and to bring about the loss of souls — our most precious good (see page 12). Indeed, no matter our material or temporal successes, they will last only for the time of our presence on earth. But if we lose the salvation of our soul, we lose everything — life with God for eternity.

We see how fragile the situation in the world is, whether in wars, poverty, or persecutions. The Pope recalled this in his message to the diplomatic corps at the beginning of this year (see page 20), emphasizing that war now tends to replace diplomacy, and that even the meaning of words is being manipulated, to make what is vice and falsehood appear as virtue and truth. Christian values are denied and even fought against, and the institution of the family — "the exclusive and indissoluble union between a woman and a man," as the Pope said — is under attack.

One of the important aspects of family life is the presence in the home of one parent — in most cases, the mother — to raise the children. This is what the Church teaches (see page 16), for example in the "Charter of the Rights of the Family" presented by the Holy See in 1983, which called for "the remuneration of the work in the home of one of the parents, it should be such that mothers will not be obliged to work outside the home to the detriment of family life and especially of the education of the children."

Because of the rising cost of living, increasing grocery and housing prices, and the fact that a single salary — that of the husband — is no longer sufficient, it has become in practice increasingly difficult for mothers to remain at home full-time, often obliging them to seek employment outside the home.

Of course, women are free to decide whether they wish to pursue a career in the workforce or not. But many mothers, if given the opportunity, would prefer to remain at home to care for their children — a task that is just as noble, if not even more important. For this reason, MICHAEL launched, in the 1980s, a campaign to obtain an income for stay-at-home mothers. With what is now paid in Canada in the form of child benefits, one can say that MICHAEL has won that battle (see page 14).

Returning to the loss or manipulation of the meaning of words, people no longer distinguish between what constitutes true wealth — products, goods, and services — and the sign that represents them, money (see page 4). Some even come to believe that gold gives value to money, that we should return to the gold standard, whereas it is products that give value to money (see pages 5 to 7). Even if you had tons of gold with you, if you had no food, no fruits and vegetables, no bread, no water, you would starve to death.

An honest monetary system, one that allows everyone to benefit from progress (see page 8), is possible — provided that the people are educated on the subject, so as to give governments the strength to stand up to international financiers. That is a worthy struggle in the season of Lent — and throughout the entire year!