What is a Jubilee Year?
In the Catholic Church, a Jubilee or Holy Year is a special year of forgiveness and reconciliation, in which people are invited to come back into right relationship with God, with one another , and with all of creation.
How often is a Jubilee Year?
A Jubilee Year is celebrated by the Church every 25 years. This has been the case since 1470, when Pope Paul II changed it from every 50 years. A pope can also proclaim an Extraordinary Jubilee, like the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy which Pope Francis inaugurated in 2015.
What is the theme of the Jubilee Year in 2025?
The theme is Pilgrims of Hope. Pope Francis has invited Catholics to renew our hope and discover a vision that can “restore access to the fruits of the earth to everyone”. We are also invited to rediscover a spirituality of God’s creation in which we understand ourselves as “Pilgrims on the Earth” rather than masters of the world.
When does the Jubilee Year start and finish?
The 2025 Jubilee Year begins on Christmas Eve 2024 and concludes on 6th January 2026.
What is a Holy Door?
A Holy Door is one of the usually sealed entrances that lead into the major basilicas of Rome. The beginning of the Jubilee Year is marked by the opening of the Holy Door of St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. It is only during a Jubilee Year that the doors are opened.
In the Diocese of Brentwood Holy Doors will be opened in:
- The Cathedral of St. Mary & St. Helen, Brentwood;
- The National Shrine of Our Lady of Light, Spouse of the Holy Spirit, Clacton;
- Saint Antony of Padua, Forest Gate.
Bishop Alan writes: “In Acts of the Apostles we hear how God opens doors of faith to gentiles and others. The astonishing truth at the heart of every successful Holy Year is that we can learn through experience that God’s mercy and forgiveness are always utterly generous. When pilgrims walk through a Holy Door – a door of faith- we will be astonished about how straightforward our reconciliation with God is:
‘Almighty God…in this year of grace…bound to Christ the rock of our salvation, may we happily attain the goal of blessed hope’. [cf Collect from the Mass of Holy Year]
