Papal preacher devotes final Lenten sermon to freedom, sister death

March 28, 2026

Father Roberto Pasolini, the Preacher of the Papal Household, devoted his fourth and final weekly Lenten sermon to “the freedom of God’s children: perfect joy and death as a sister” (full text, video).

The Capuchin Franciscan friar’s sermon—preached in Paul VI Audience Hall on March 27, in the presence of Pope Leo and the Roman Curia—had five sections:

• Perfect joy
• The fullness of life
• The consequences of love
• Sister death
• Naked on the bare ground

The papal preacher customarily preaches sermons to the Pope and the Curia on the Fridays of Advent and Lent; he also customarily delivers the homily in St. Peter’s Basilica on Good Friday. The overarching theme of this year’s Lenten sermons is “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation (2 Cor 5:17): Conversion to the Gospel, according to Saint Francis.”

Father Pasolini’s first Lenten sermon was entitled “Conversion: Following the Lord Jesus on the Path of Humility”; the second, “Fraternity: The Grace and Responsibility of Fraternal Communion”; and the third, “The Mission: Proclaiming the Gospel to Every Creature.”

 

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Further information:

• The freedom of God’s children: Perfect joy and death as a sister (Vatican News, 3/27/26)