Third Sunday of Advent

2025: A HOLY YEAR. This time next year, we will embark on a grace-filled venture: a Holy Year, a tradition celebrated by the Church since the 1300’s. With time-honored, venerable customs, Christians are invited to mark another significant milestone – a quarter of a century – with pilgrimages and prayers. Let me begin by detailing the biblical basis for a Holy Year, which is found in the 3rd Commandment: “Remember the sabbath day – keep it holy.” [Exodus 20:8] By divine mandate, every seventh day must be a day of rest and reflection, restoration, and renewal. From it we get the word ‘sabbatical:’ a paid leave, one for every seven years of work.

THE JEWISH JUBILEE YEAR. The Sabbath Day rest became the basis for a yearlong ‘sabbatical:’ “You shall count seven weeks of years – seven times seven years – such that the seven weeks of years amount to forty-nine years. You shall treat this fiftieth year as sacred. You shall proclaim liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to your own property, each of you to your own family.” [Leviticus 25:8, 10] It is doubtful that it was ever fully practiced, but it did motivate people to ‘ease up’ and get ‘more dedicated’ to the ideals presented by – and upheld in – sacred Scripture. And it also marked milestones, much
as we do with 25th, 50th and 100th birthdays and anniversaries, bicentennials, and the like.

CHRISTIAN JUBILEES. In the Roman Catholic tradition, a Holy Year, or Jubilee, is a great religious event, of which there are two types. An ‘Ordinary’ Jubilee marks a set period of years; an ‘Extraordinary’ Jubilee is proclaimed to celebrate some outstanding event. The first ‘Ordinary’ Jubilee was in 1300; Pope Boniface VIII called it to ‘uplift’ those who had suffered through a dark time in world history, caused by wars, plagues and other catastrophes. All were invited to make a pilgrimage to major Roman shrines and receive the Pope’s blessing; it was so successful the Pope was moved to grant a year of forgiveness of all sins and the punishments due to sin to those who fulfilled the Jubilee requirements: visiting certain sites; going to Confession; performing acts of peace, justice, and charity, etc.

At first, they were held every 50 years; as new shrines were built, the Lateran Basilica, which honors Saint John the Apostle and Saint John the Baptist [the Bishop of Rome or Pope’s Cathedral] and Saint Mary Major, which honors our Blessed Mother, were added to Saint Peter Basilica and Saint Paul [now ‘Outside-the-Walls’] as required pilgrimage sites. They were briefly held every 33 years, based on the time Christ lived on earth: “When Jesus began his ministry he was about thirty years of age.” [Luke 3:23] and He made three Passover pilgrimages to Jerusalem during His ministry. In 1470, Pope Paul II declared Jubilees should be every 25 years; the Sistine Chapel was built for the 1475 Holy Year. In 1500, Pope Alexander VI began the custom of having a Holy Door – an entrance kept closed, except during Jubilees – solemnly opened at the four major
basilicas. This custom spread to other Cathedrals and worship sites for those unable to travel to Rome. In 2000, we celebrated the Great Jubilee, which not only marked another 25 years, but the start of a new decade, a new century, and a new millennium. [Purists point out that these events happened on January 1, 2001, not 2000.]

‘Extraordinary’ Jubilees, which began in the 1700’s, vary in length from a few days to a year. The most recent ones have been in 1933, which marked the 1900th Anniversary of our Redemption; and in 1983, marking the 1950th Anniversary of Christ’s Passion, Death and Resurrection. In 1987, Saint John Paul II declared a Marian Year to start the preparations for the Great Jubilee; he encouraged all to follow our Blessed Mother’s example and welcome Christ into their lives as she did.

Much preliminary work must be done to have a safe and successful Jubilee Year. While the Holy Year 2025 will not begin until NEXT December 2024, with the solemn opening of the Holy Doors and other events, and will close in December 2025, now is the time to start making plans. Parishes and Dioceses around the world will be given instructions and special prayers and intentions to offer. Travel, lodging, tours, and other pilgrimage opportunities will soon be made public. Will we do a Parish pilgrimage???

With God’s love and my prayers,

Very Rev. Michael J. Kreder, VF, KCHS