Weekend Wisdom - January 4th & 5th, 2025
Happy New Year! Happy Feast of the Epiphany!
As you may know, 2025 is a Jubilee Year!
This “Year of Hope” officially began on Christmas Eve, when Pope Francis led the ‘Rite of Opening of the Holy Door’ of St. Peter’s Basilica, followed by Midnight Mass. This sacred holy door was open twenty-five years ago for the Great Jubilee of 2000. My wife Lynn and I were blessed to make a pilgrimage to Rome during that year with Bishop Banks.
For the Great Jubilee, which marked a new millennium, Pope John Paul II said…
“The whole of the Christian life is like a great pilgrimage to the house of the Father, whose unconditional love for every human creature, and in particular for the ‘prodigal son’, we discover anew each day. The Jubilee… should encourage everyone to undertake… a journey of conversion.”
As part of our pilgrimage, we were blessed to see the Holy Father on two separate occasions. We also passed through the Holy Doors at all four Roman Basilicas. A photo of these ancient doors is shown above.
1 - St. Peter, 2 - St. John Lateran, 3 - St. Paul Outside the Walls, and 4 - St. Mary Major.
The motto for the 2025 Jubilee is “Spes non confundit” which is Latin for… “Hope does not disappoint.” As followers of Jesus Christ, our hope and our salvation, we are called to be "Pilgrims of Hope". The practice of a jubilee year began with the ancient Israelites. A ‘jubilee’ was declared every fifty years. It was a time for forgiveness, and a reminder of God's providence and mercy. In 1300, Pope Boniface VIII established the Jubilee Year for the Catholic Church, initially celebrated every 100 years. Later, Pope Clement VI reduced it to 50 years, and in 1470, Pope Paul II set the current 25-year cycle.
If a pilgrimage to Rome in 2025 is part of your plans, it would be great to hear from you when you return! Regardless, all of us are called to be “Pilgrims of Hope” throughout this new year. Consider the sense of hope and expectation that motivated the wise men from the East to follow the Star of Bethlehem in search of the newborn king. Imagine their joy when they were blessed to be in the presence of the baby Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!
I pray that throughout this Jubilee Year you may draw ever closer to Jesus as we all take another step forward on our lifelong pilgrimage to the house of our heavenly Father!
May God bless you and your family!
Deacon Mark
If you would like to view the Pope Francis' Opening Rite of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s, the video is below and here is the link to the same video. (The Holy Father’s ‘knock on the door’ begins at 8:15) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyfiTEVwQMU