Cardinals, bishops and pilgrims gathered in the atrium of St Peter’s Basilica to hear the moment Pope Francis officially announced the Jubilee of 2025.
“I deliver to the archpriests of the papal basilicas, some representatives of the church scattered throughout the world and the apostolic protonotaries the bull, Spes non confunit, for the Jubilee of 2025.”
This document, called a Papal Bull, revealed that the Jubilee of Hope will begin on 24 December with the opening of the Holy Door in St Peter’s Basilica and end on 6 January, 2026.
Diocesan churches around the world can hold a celebration to open the Holy Year locally on 29 December.
After the Jubilee announcement, Pope Francis presided over Vespers. In his reflection, he challenged everyone to use this Year of Prayer ahead of the Jubilee to become “singers of hope in a world marked by too much despair”.
“As injustice and arrogance persist, the poor are discarded, wars sow seeds of death, the least of our brothers and sisters remain at the bottom of the pile and the dream of a fraternal world seems to be an illusion,” the pope explained.
“Hope is needed by our young people, often confused and uncertain, yet desirous of living lives of happiness and fulfilment. Hope is needed by the elderly, no longer revered or listened to by a culture obsessed with efficiency and excess.”
In the Papal Bull, the pope reiterated this call to be tangible signs of hope during the Jubilee. Specifically, he encouraged people to visit those in hospitals and proposed governments to offer amnesty for prisoners.