St Pauls and the Jubilee Year
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Jubilee Year 2025
On Thursday, May 9, 2024, the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Pope Francis officially proclaimed the Ordinary Jubilee of 2025 with the public reading of and delivery of a papal document which lays out the foundation for the 2025 Jubilee and its theme, “Pilgrims of Hope.” The Jubilee began with the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica on December 24, 2024, and will last until January 6, 2026.
The concept of the Jubilee originates in the Old Testament. In Leviticus God commanded the Israelites to observe a Jubilee every 50 years. It was a time of liberation: debts were forgiven, slaves were freed, and ancestral land was returned. This sacred observance symbolized God’s mercy and justice.
The Catholic Church adopted the Jubilee tradition, initiating the first Christian Jubilee in 1300 under Pope Boniface VIII. He declared it a year of grace, indulgence, and pilgrimage to Rome for spiritual renewal. Pilgrims were promised remission of sins upon fulfilling certain conditions, including confession, penance, and visiting the basilicas of St. Peter and St. Paul.
Initially celebrated every 50 years, Pope Clement VI shortened the interval to 33 years in 1343, symbolising Christ’s earthly life span. Later, Pope Paul II set the Jubilee at every 25 years in 1470 to ensure each generation could experience this profound spiritual event.
Pilgrimage, gaining a plenary indulgence, and Holy Doors are integral to the Jubilee year.
Opening of the Holy Door
The opening of the Holy Door is the most well- known and moving ritual, marking the beginning of the Jubilee. The first documented account of the Holy Door opening ceremony at St. Peter’s Basilica for the Jubilee dates back to 1500 under Pope Alexander VI. The Holy Doors are only opened during the Jubilee Year. The four papal basilicas of Rome each have a Holy Door: St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, St. John Lateran, St. Paul Outside the Walls, and St. Mary Major. A Holy Door symbolizes Christ, who declared, “I am the door” (John 10:9). Walking through the Holy Door during a Jubilee year signifies a pilgrimage of faith and a journey to reconciliation with God. It represents leaving behind sin and stepping into a renewed life of grace. The door is sealed outside Jubilee years and opened ceremonially by the pope or a bishop at the start of the Jubilee.
Pilgrimage. Rome is expecting up 39 million more visitors throughout the 2025 Jubilee Year. There will thousands of tour groups and millions of people lining up to walk through the Holy Doors of the four papal basilicas of Rome: St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, St. John Lateran, St. Paul Outside the Walls, and St. Mary Major. Due to the large volume of people, and to honour the great women saints of the Church, other churches in Rome have also been designated as pilgrimage destinations (in case you are going to Rome this year!): St. Catherine of Siena at the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva; St. Brigid of Sweden at Campo de’ Fiori; St. Teresa of Avila at the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria; St. Thérèse of Lisieux at Trinità dei Monti; and St. Monica at the Church of St. Augustine. Pilgrims to the Holy Land also can receive the Holy Year indulgence by praying at the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem or the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth.
For those who cannot travel abroad, local bishops around the world can designate their cathedral or another church or sacred place for pilgrims to obtain the indulgence, to take into account the needs of the faithful as well as the opportunity to reinforce the concept of pilgrimage with all its symbolic significance. In the Archdiocese of Perth the following churches have been designated as pilgrimage sites where a plenary indulgence can be obtained: St Mary’s Cathedral in the city, the Basilica of St Patrick in Fremantle, St John Paul II Parish, Banksia Grove Schoenstatt Shrine, Mount Richon Carmelite Monastery, Nedlands and Sacred Heart Parish, Highgate (right next door to us!).
Plenary Indulgences
At the heart of the Jubilee lies the concept of the plenary indulgence, which represents the remission of sins for the faithful who fulfill certain conditions: sacramental confession, participation in the Eucharist, prayer for to the Pope’s intentions, and performing a work of mercy or a pilgrimage. This time also serves as an invitation for personal conversion and reconciliation with God and others.
An indulgence in the Catholic Church refers to the remission of temporal punishment due to sin, granted through the Church’s authority. While sin’s guilt is absolved in confession, temporal punishment may remain, often understood as purification in this life or purgatory. Indulgences, reduce or eliminate this purification. During a Jubilee, plenary indulgences are offered to the faithful who meet specific conditions: Confession, receiving Holy Communion, praying for the pope’s intentions, and performing acts such as passing through a Holy Door or works of charity.
Stay tuned for talks, pilgrimages and events in collaboration with neighbouring parishes. In the meantime, I encourage you to focus on the central tenet of the Jubilee: reconciliation—with God and neighbour. The Sacrament of Confession (Sat: 8 -9am, 4.30-5.15pm, and Wed: 6.15-7.10pm) is key to this spiritual and personal healing.