Resources for the Jubilee Year of Hope
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 Holy Year? 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 6 January 2026.
What is the Biblical background for the Jubilee Year? The word Jubilee comes from the Hebrew word yobel,
which is a ram's horn. This wind instrument is blown to mark the start of a
Jubilee Year in the Bible (Leviticus 25:9).
In the Bible the Jubilee Year occurred every 50 years and
involved the cancelling of debts, a period of rest for people and the earth,
and land being restored to the landless.
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus makes clear his own mission is
to bring Jubilee. In the synagogue at Nazareth he reads from the scroll of the
prophet Isaiah, proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor:
The Spirit of the Lord has been given to me, because he has
anointed me to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and
recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim
the Lord's year of favor." (Luke 4:18-19)
After reading, Jesus announces: “Today this scripture has
been fulfilled in your hearing." Jesus shows us what God's Kingdom of
justice, compassion and freedom looks like. He invites us join him in making it
a reality.
What is the Papal Bull of Indiction? The term 'bull' originates from the lead seal, known
as bulla in Latin. It refers to a Papal decree which outlines
the purpose and spirit of the Holy Year.
What does the Papal Bull for the 2025 Jubilee Year tell
us? The Bull is titled "Spes non confundit" (Hope does
not disappoint) and urges us to look for signs of hope in
the world around us and work for peace and justice. In the document
Pope Francis writes:
“If we really wish to prepare a path to peace in our world,
let us commit ourselves to remedying the remote causes of injustice, settling
unjust and unpayable debts, and feeding the hungry.” (#16)
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 these doors are opened. Three other papal
basilica doors will be opened and one prison door during the Holy Year.
What do Catholics do during a Jubilee Year? The Jubilee Year is an opportunity to respond to God's call
to turn to him and to pursue justice. Often people will go on pilgrimage during
a Jubilee year, to Rome or another holy site. Pope Francis writes:
"Pilgrimage is of course a fundamental element of every
Jubilee event. Setting out on a journey is traditionally associated with our
human quest for meaning in life. A pilgrimage on foot is a great aid for
rediscovering the value of silence, effort and simplicity of life." (Spes
non confundit #5)
