On May 9, 2024 Pope Francis decreed that the year 2025 will be a Year of Jubilee. The holy doors of the four major basilica’s in Rome would be opened in sequence, beginning with the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica on December 24, 2024.  It will be closed again on January 6, 2026.  This symbolically marks the beginning and the end of the Jubilee Year.

Pope Francis emphasized that the Holy Door represents “Jesus, the door of salvation open to all.” By opening the Holy Door, the Church is inviting all to experience God’s mercy and grace during this special year.

The theme of the Holy Year is “Pilgrims of Hope.” Pope Francis wrote that “in the heart of each person, hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future may bring.”

Beginning with the COVID pandemic and the disruption of normal life and the hardships that followed, many people began to have increased doubts and fears about the future.  Pope Francis says, “We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us, and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision.”

What is a Jubilee Year? It is also known as a “Holy Year,” a time of spiritual renewal, pilgrimage, and the granting of indulgences.

The concept of a Jubilee year comes from the Old Testament, where we read in the 25th chapter of the Book of Leviticus that every 50 years was to be marked by the forgiveness of debts, liberation of slaves, the return of land to original owners, and allowing farmland to lie fallow. It was a time for the Israelites to re-establish a proper relationship with God, with one another, and with creation.

The first Christian Jubilee was established by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300, and initially was to occur every 100 years.  However, since 1470, Jubilees have been celebrated every 25 years, with the Pope able to call extraordinary Jubilees (as Pope Francis did in 2016).

Probably the most noteworthy feature associated with Jubilee years is the offer of an indulgence: which is a special application of the merits of Christ and the saints for the remission of the temporal punishment due for already forgiven sins. Indulgences do not forgive sins, they remit forgiven sins’ temporal punishment.  Eternal punishment, of course, is Hell; temporal, or temporary, punishment is Purgatory.

The faithful may obtain a plenary indulgence – remission of all temporal punishment – for themselves or a departed soul by meeting the normal conditions (going to Confession, receiving Holy Communion, prayers for the pope’s intentions, and having no attachment to sin) and by participating in one of the following activities:

Pilgrimages: The four major basilicas in Rome are the main pilgrimage destinations, but pilgrims may also go to the Holy Land, their diocesan cathedral, or other officially designated locations.

Pious visits to sacred places: At these locations the faithful are to engage in Eucharistic Adoration, Christian meditation, or other spiritual practices.

Works of mercy and penance: The faithful are to perform the Spiritual or Corporal works of mercy or carry out works of penance, such as abstaining from meat on Fridays.

As Archbishop Damphousse has said: “The Jubilee is a moment of grace, an invitation to renew our faith and walk together toward a brighter future. It is an opportunity for all of us to respond to God’s call to be witnesses of hope in this world…. Each of us has a role to play—together, let us make this year a powerful moment that strengthens our faith and deepens our bonds with one another.”

Here is the official Jubilee Prayer:

Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your Son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom.

May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel. May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of Evil vanquished, your glory will shine eternally.

May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth.

To you our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise for ever. Amen.

Have a blessed and beneficial Jubilee Year.

Fr. Lindsay Harrison