Pope Francis has announced a Jubilee Year for our Universal Church in 2025, the 2,025th anniversary of the Incarnation of our Lord. The theme for Jubilee 2025 is “Pilgrims of Hope.” The Jubilee Year begins Dec. 29 in dioceses worldwide.
“Everyone knows what it is to hope. 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.”
What Is the Jubilee Year 2025?
A Jubilee Year is a special time in the Church’s tradition encouraging holiness through acts of reconciliation and communion with our brothers and sisters. The Church celebrates an Ordinary Jubilee every twenty-five years, with the last celebration having taken place in 2000. Jubilee Year 2025 will be marked by special opportunities for grace through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, local pilgrimages and the Jubilee Indulgence. Seeking forgiveness and growing in repentance are special fruits to cultivate during a Jubilee Year.
The concept is rooted in the biblical tradition found in the Old Testament, where a jubilee year occurred every 50 years, and was marked by the forgiveness of debts, liberation of slaves, and the return of land to its original owners. The occasion is set by counting off “seven Sabbaths of years,” or seven times seven years. The fiftieth year, then, is to be the Year of Jubilee (Leviticus 25:8-10). Christian Jubilee formally began in the Roman Catholic church in 1300, instituted by Pope Boniface VIII.
The Papal Bull: Spes non confundit, Hope does not disappoint
SPES NON CONFUNDIT. “Hope does not disappoint” (Rom 5:5). In the spirit of hope, the Apostle Paul addressed these words of encouragement to the Christian community of Rome. Hope is also the central message of the coming Jubilee that, in accordance with an ancient tradition, the Pope proclaims every twenty-five years. My thoughts turn to all those pilgrims of hope who will travel to Rome in order to experience the Holy Year and to all those others who, though unable to visit the City of the Apostles Peter and Paul, will celebrate it in their local Churches. For everyone, may the Jubilee be a moment of genuine, personal encounter with the Lord Jesus, the “door” (cf. Jn 10:7.9) of our salvation, whom the Church is charged to proclaim always, everywhere and to all as “our hope” (1 Tim 1:1).
What Is the Jubilee Indulgence?
An indulgence is a special grace given by God, through the Catholic Church, for the removal temporal punishment for sins already forgiven in the Sacrament of Confession. While Confession absolves guilt, temporal punishment due to sin still remains. Through an indulgence, God’s mercy “reaches the sinner and frees him or her from every residue left by the consequences of sin,” as Pope Francis says. The Jubilee Indulgence is a special grace offered during a Holy Year, freeing the faithful from the spiritual effects of past sins. To receive it, Catholics must be truly repentant, go to Confession, receive Holy Communion, pray for the Pope’s intentions, and perform a spiritual act.
What constitutes as a spiritual act?
- Pilgrimages: Visit a designated sacred site chosen by the local bishop. Participate in Mass, pray the Rosary, meditate on the Scriptures, or join in Eucharistic Adoration.
- Acts of Mercy and Charity: Help those in need by performing acts of kindness like feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, or supporting charities. These acts count when done with sincere love and repentance.
- Prayer from Home: If you are unable to travel due to illness, age, or confinement, you can still receive the indulgence by praying at home, following Mass through media, and offering your struggles to God.
By fulfilling these spiritual and charitable acts with a heart open to God’s mercy, Catholics can receive the Jubilee Indulgence, experiencing forgiveness and spiritual renewal. In the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, perform a pilgrimage to either of the pilgrimage sites, the Cathedral of Saint Paul in St. Paul or the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis. An indulgence can also be obtained by acts of charity, for example for migrants, elderly, someone in prison or living in poverty. “Any of those things, you would have the opportunity to get those graces of the Jubilee Year, provided that you made a good confession, went to holy Communion and then offered a prayer for the intention of the Holy Father,” Archbishop Hebda said.
Prayer for the Jubilee Year of Hope
Find the Jubilee Year of Hope prayer on the Jubilee website in many languages.
Opening Masses for the Jubilee Year of Hope
Archbishop Hebda opened the Jubilee Year of Hope with two Masses on the feast of the Holy Family. At the Saturday evening vigil Mass at the Basilica of Saint Mary Dec. 28 and at the Sunday morning Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Paul Dec. 29.
Hymn for the Jubilee Year of Hope
Find the Jubilee Year of Hope hymn on the Jubilee website in many languages.
Cathedral of Saint Paul
Basilica of Saint Mary
News from The Catholic Spirit:
Resources
- Jubilee website (English, Español)
- USCCB website
- Jubilee Mobile App (iOS, Android)
- Exploring themes of papal bull for groups
- Notes of prayer (books for sale)
- Preparation for Year of Hope
