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Holy Year begins December 24

VATICAN — Opening the Holy Door to St. Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Eve, Pope Francis will formally inaugurate the Jubilee Year 2025 with “Pilgrims of Hope” as its theme. The year will be marked by pilgrimages and celebrations focused on specific groups – from migrants to marching bands, catechists to communicators, and priests to prisoners.

A holy year – or jubilee – is a time of pilgrimage, prayer, repentance and acts of mercy, based on the Old Testament tradition of a jubilee year of rest, forgiveness and renewal. Holy years also are a time when Catholics make pilgrimages to designated churches and shrines, recite special prayers, go to confession and receive Holy Communion to receive a plenary indulgence, which is a remission of the temporal punishment due for one’s sins.

The celebration of a Holy Year every 25 years is an acknowledgment that “the Christian life is a journey calling for moments of greater intensity to encourage and sustain hope as the constant companion that guides our steps toward the goal of our encounter with the Lord Jesus,” Pope Francis wrote when announcing the jubilee.

Bishop Michael Martin notes, “I warmly urge you to embrace the Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year with open hearts. This sacred time is a profound gift, inviting us to renew our faith, seek reconciliation, and rediscover the boundless mercy of God.”

Throughout 2025, there will be jubilee events here in our diocese and around the world.

JUBILEE PRAYER
Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your Son, Jesus Christ, 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.

Diocese of Charlotte events

Bishop Michael Martin will celebrate three Opening Masses of Hope for the Holy Year at these times and locations:
Dec. 28 – 5 p.m.: St. Lawrence Basilica, Asheville
Dec. 29 – 1:30 p.m.: St. Pius X Church, Greensboro
Dec. 29 – 5 p.m.: St. Mark Church, Huntersville

What is a Jubilee Year?

A jubilee year is a special year of grace and celebration, celebrated since biblical times. In the Old Testament, a jubilee was celebrated every 50 years as a time when Hebrew slaves were set free, debts forgiven, and land returned to its original owners. The word “jubilee” comes from the Hebrew word “yobel,” a ram’s horn that was used to signal the start of the special year. It is a time for the faithful to seek spiritual renewal, forgiveness of sins, and indulgences through specific acts of devotion and mercy.

In the Catholic Church, jubilee years usually occur every 25 years. This Jubilee Year – which runs from Dec. 24, 2024 to Dec. 23, 2025 – was announced by Pope Francis in a papal bull entitled “Spes non confundit” (“Hope does not disappoint,” from Romans 5:5). The theme for the year is “Pilgrims of Hope” and is intended to promote peacebuilding and outreach through prayer, pilgrimage, reconciliation and forgiveness.

What are Holy Doors and how do they relate to a jubilee year?

Holy Doors are ceremonial doors in major basilicas, such as St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome (center photo), that symbolize the spiritual journey from sin to salvation, mercy and renewal. Most of the time these special doors remain sealed, opened by the pope only during jubilee years. A holy door is the most powerful sign of a jubilee year, since the ultimate goal of the pilgrim is to pass through it, and walking through a Holy Door during a jubilee year is one of the conditions for receiving a jubilee indulgence, which removes temporal punishment for sins.

Why is it important to celebrate a jubilee year?

Jubilee years provide a unique opportunity for spiritual growth, emphasizing God’s abundant mercy and the call to live a renewed life of faith and service. During a jubilee year, Catholics are encouraged to:

• Make pilgrimages to designated holy sites, especially in Rome
• Pass through Holy Doors, symbolizing entering God’s mercy
• Perform acts of penance and charity
• Receive special indulgences by fulfilling specific spiritual acts and prayers

More online

Learn more about the Jubilee Year: https://www.iubilaeum2025.va/en.html