THE ORDINARY JUBILEE 2025
THE JUBILEE OF HOPE
"For all of us, may the Jubilee be an opportunity to be renewed in hope"
Pope Francis, SPES NON CONFUNDIT n.1
On Thursday, May 9, 2024, the Holy Father, Pope Francis, officially convoked the Ordinary Jubilee 2025, with the Bull "SPES NON CONFUNDIT", under the motto "Pilgrims of Hope". Beginning with the opening of the Holy Door on December 24, 2024, until its conclusion on the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6, 2026.
A Jubilee is…
The word jubilee, derived from Hebrew, refers to the use of the instrument that indicates a beginning, "yobel" (ram's horn), used, for example, at the beginning of the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Hence the term Jubilee refers to the beginning of a special time of grace.
Jubilees in the Bible…
The Bible speaks of the establishment of a Jubilee, as an occasion to reestablish the correct relationship with God, with people and with creation; the way to celebrate it is the forgiveness of debts and the restitution of alienated lands and the rest of the land (Lv 25,8-13).
In accordance with this, Jesus presents his mission as a Jubilee when he quotes the prophet Isaiah: «The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because he has anointed me. He has sent me to preach the gospel to the poor, to proclaim freedom to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind; to set at liberty the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor" (Lc 4:18-19. Is 61:1-2).
That is why the Church celebrates a Jubilee as an act of the presence of God, as a moment of grace, conversion and reconciliation for all the faithful.
Convocation of the "Holy Year"…
In 1300, Boniface VIII convoked the first Jubilee, also calling it the "Holy Year" and it was to be convoked every 100 years; However, in 1343 Pope Clement VI modified the convocation to every 50 years and in 1470 Pope Paul II reduced it to 25.
Signs of the Jubilee …
The signs that accompany the celebration of a Jubilee are: the pilgrimage to the Holy Places, the passage through the Holy Door, Reconciliation, Prayer, the Eucharistic celebration and the Profession of Faith. The result is the obtaining of the plenary indulgence.
That is to say, in this "Holy Year", through pilgrimage, the Church experiences a path of conversion that directs its own life towards the holiness of God. With the passage through the Holy Door, it is remembered that Jesus is the only door of salvation and the passage that leads to the interior of the Church. With the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the forgiveness and love of God for all believers is manifested. With Prayer, the openness of the faithful to the presence of God is evident. With the Profession of Faith, the content of the faith that allows us to enter into communion with the Trinity is expressed. And with the reception of the Body of Christ in the Eucharistic celebration, the journey of Jesus among us is confirmed. Thus obtaining the Plenary Indulgence as a concrete manifestation of God's mercy and the liberation of one's heart from the weight of sin.
Jubilee 2025…
This "Holy Year" will begin with the opening of the "Holy Door" by the Holy Father in St. Peter's Basilica on December 24, 2024, in the Basilica of St. John Lateran on Sunday, December 29, in Santa Maria Maggiore on January 1, 2025, and in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls on January 5.Likewise, on December 29, 2024, in all cathedrals and co-cathedrals, the bishops will celebrate the Eucharist as the solemn opening of the Jubilee Year. The Jubilee will conclude with the closing of the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica on 6 January 2026, the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.
Hope is born of love and based on the lve springing from the pierced heart of Jesus upon the cross: "For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life" (Rom 5:19).
SPES NON CONFUNDIT n.3
"The coming Jubilee will thus be a Holy Year marked by the hope that does not fade, our hope in God. May it help us to recover the confident trust that we require, in the Church and in society, in our interpersonal relationships, in international relations, and in our task of promoting the dignity of all persons and respect for God's gift of creation. May the witness of believers be for our world a leaven of authentic hope, a harbinger of new heavens and a new earth (cf.2 Pet3:13), where men and women will dwell in justice and harmony, in joyful expectation of the fulfilment of the Lord's promises".
SPES NON CONFUNDIT n.25
