Pope Francis opened the doors of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome on Christmas Eve, inaugurating 2025 Jubilee.
During his Christmas evening Mass, he reassures us that the Christ Child of Bethlehem brings infinite hope and joy to the world.
The year 2025 is a Jubilee Year, in which Catholics are invited to enter the holy doors of St. Peter’s Basilica, which are usually closed to visitors. Pilgrims who travel to the Vatican during this Jubilee Year receive a special indulgence.
A Jubilee Year for Catholics occurs every 25 years. The tradition dates back to the Book of Leviticus, which stipulates that a Jubilee Year be celebrated every fifty years. In 1300, Pope Boniface VIII introduced such a jubilee, and it has been celebrated every fifty or twenty-five years since then.
In his Christmas Eve sermon, the pope made war and conflict his topic. He drew much attention in his Christmas address last year for condemning Israel’s invasion of Palestine.
“We think of wars, of children shot by machine guns, of bombs dropped on schools and hospitals,” the pope said.
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