As I’m sure you know, on Christmas Eve, Pope Francis opened a special door at St. Peter’s Basilica to launch the Jubilee Year of Hope 2025. A Jubilee Year in the Catholic Church is held every 25 years and is rooted in the Jewish tradition where every 50 years, debts were forgiven, slaves were freed, wrongs were made right, and any lands misappropriated were returned. This Jubilee Year 2025 has been set apart by the Holy Father for special prayer, pilgrimage, and graces.
Over time, the Jubilee Year tradition died out until 1300 AD when, Pope Boniface VIII, in the midst of a year of great suffering marked by wars and illness hoped that in declaring a Jubilee Year, people would return to a more holy way of life and turn back to God. Many Christians began to travel to Rome, visiting the tombs of the saints and seeking the blessing of the Pope. In response, the Pope offered “indulgences,” from the word “favor” or “release,” originally the release of a slave or prisoner. In a spiritual sense, an indulgence is a “release” from the temporal punishment due to sins. When I confess my sins, I am forgiven but I am still responsible for the consequences of my sins. Through a spiritual favor or “indulgence,” flowing from the spiritual treasures of the Church, i.e., flowing from the pierced heart of Jesus on the Cross, the Holy Father offers a partial or plenary (complete) indulgence.
A Jubilee Year traditionally involves some type of a pilgrimage to a sacred place or shrine; crossing a threshold and entering through a doorway to symbolize a renewed relationship with God. In Rome there is a door “Holy Door” at each of the major basilicas. And in our diocese, our two cathedrals become the Holy Doors by which one crosses the threshold and enters into the cathedral. The journey to the cathedral becomes a time of conversion, reconciliation. By entering through the doors of the either St. Agnes Cathedral, in Springfield, or St. Mary of the Annunciation Cathedral, in Cape Girardeau, we spiritually open up the doors of hope. To gain a plenary indulgence requires a visit to the cathedral, prayers for the Holy Father, and the reception of Reconciliation and Holy Communion within a 20-day period.
RESTORING A CLIMATE OF HOPE
When Pope Francis announced the 2025 Jubilee Year, he stated, “We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart, and far-sighted vision. The forthcoming Jubilee can contribute greatly to restoring a climate of hope and trust as a prelude to the renewal and rebirth that we so urgently desire.”
There seems to be a lack of hope in our world today, and without hope we lose a sense of purpose and meaning to life. There seems to be an existential despair that says we’re doomed. The Christian, on the other hand, is always marked by hope, called to be “pilgrims of hope.” The Good News of the Gospel has something to say to our world today. The joy of the Gospel and our encounter with Christ allows us to look beyond any particular difficulties we may be facing at the moment and believe that life can be better. A Christian proclaims that life is better with Christ. Christ gives meaning to every little act of kindness done in His name and to every work of mercy. While some may despair of so many poor in our world, the Christian is privileged to see Christ disguised in the poor and sees an opportunity to better love and better serve. Jesus gives a greater motivation to every act of kindness or forgiveness. With hope, we have confidence that things can be better.
As part of the Jubilee Year for our diocese, Springfield’s St. Agnes Cathedral has a special crucifix displayed while our Cathedral of St. Mary of the Annunciation, in Cape Girardeau has a True Relic of the Cross in a reliquary. I invite everyone to visit one of our cathedrals for Mass, partaking in the Eucharist, pray the Creed, pray the “Prayer before a Crucifix,” along with the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be for the intentions of the Holy Father. Then, within a 20-day span, to celebrate Reconciliation.
Lunar New Year 2025 is the Year of the Snake. For Catholics, it is also the Jubilee Year of Hope. Our Holy Father reminds us that hope flows from the pierced heart of Jesus on the Cross. Those born in the Year of the Snake are known to be intelligent, charming, and have a need for solitude. May these special attributes help all of us to come closer to Jesus on the Cross, the source of our hope.
OUR DIOCESAN PRESS
Speaking of evangelization and encounter: On Feb. 8-9, we celebrate the annual collection for The Mirror. This is my principle means of contact with the people of the diocese and I hope it is a source of community and connection in our far-flung One Church, East to West. A subscription to The Mirror, which remains at a mere $14 a year, also helps us be present on diocesan social media—which I hope you follow us on Facebook and Instagram!—and all the resources present on the Website. Please support my evangelization efforts via print and digital by subscribing to The Mirror. As delayed USPS delivery continues across the country, please consider also getting the paper digitally or solely as a digital subscription. If you want to sign up to receive the paper before you get it in the mail, or instead of the USPS delivery, please Email Debbie Thompson at [email protected] or drop me a note. Thank you for supporting our diocesan publication and outreach!
“O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine, all praise and all thanksgiving be every moment Thine.”
Published in the January 31, 2025 issue of The Mirror.
Photo Credit: Nina H Nguyen, Cộng Đoan CG Springfield (Đức Mẹ lên Trời)