Pope Francis ‘throws open’ Holy Door to inaugurate 2025 Jubilee

Deborah Castellano Lubov

By opening the holy door of St. Peter’s Basilica on the evening of December 24, 2024, Pope Francis marked the beginning of the much-anticipated Jubilee Year of Hope 2025.

With the liturgical gesture of opening the Door at the start of the Christmas Mass at night, as explained in the Papal Bull for the Jubilee Non-confidential spes, the Pope inaugurated the Ordinary Jubilee, a historic event that takes place every 25 years.

The ordinary Jubilee will end with the closing of the same Holy Door on January 6, 2026, the solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.

The meaning of the Holy Door

The Holy Door is considered “Holy” since it calls all who enter it to walk in holiness of life. Following in the footsteps of the Pope, during the singing of the jubilee hymn, representatives of all the People of God crossed the threshold, as a prelude to the countless pilgrims of hope from all countries and languages ​​who will visit St. Peter’s Basilica and will celebrate the mysteries of salvation during the Holy Year.

The origin of the custom dates back to Pope Martin V who, for the extraordinary jubilee of 1423, opened a holy door to enter the Lateran basilica. In Saint-Pierre, it was used for the first time on the occasion of the Jubilee of 1450.

Its location, the rear wall of the chapel dedicated by Pope John VII to the Mother of God, corresponds to where it is found today. Pope Alexander VI, in 1500, endowed this symbol of the opening of the Jubilee with a ritual that remained virtually unchanged over the centuries, until the turn of the millennium, when in 2000 the removal of the old brick wall was replaced by the opening ceremony of the Bronze Gate already in 1983.

The last opening of the Holy Door for an ordinary jubilee was when Pope Saint John Paul II did so in the year 2000. Pope Francis opened the Holy Door in 2015 for his Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy of 2016.

Jubilee to strengthen faith and recognize Christ among us

“During the Holy Year,” the Pope prayed, “may the light of Christian hope illuminate every man and woman, as a message of God’s love addressed to all! And may the Church faithfully witness of this message in all parts of the world!”

The Holy Father invited us to pray, to prepare ourselves throughout this year, so that this Jubilee “strengthens us in our faith, helping us to recognize the risen Christ in the midst of our lives, transforming us into pilgrims of Christian hope.

Restoring ourselves to our Father’s embrace

The Pope took up the theme of hope of the Jubilee in his homily. He began to recall the Gospel passage according to Saint Luke which recounts the moment when the angel of the Lord, bathed in light, illuminates the night and brings good news to the shepherds: “I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all people. For to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11).

At that moment, the Holy Father reflected on how Heaven bursts forth on earth, amid the wonder of the poor and the song of the angels. “God,” he emphasized, “became one of us to make us like him; he came down to us to raise us up and bring us back into the arms of the Father.”

Little Child offers hope for the world

In Emmanuel, “God with us”, the Pope repeated, we find our hope.

“The infinitely great,” he marvels, “was made small” and “the glory of heaven appeared on earth like a little child.”

“If God can visit us, even when our hearts resemble a humble manger,” the Pope continued, “we can truly say: hope is not dead; hope is alive and embraces our lives forever !”

“There is hope for you”

The Pope recalled that with the opening of the Holy Door the new Jubilee was inaugurated, which urges each of us to enter into the mystery of this extraordinary event.

“Tonight, the door of hope opened wide to the world” and “God speaks to each of us and says: ‘there is hope for you too!'”, he said. declared.

“That is why,” he said hastily, “let us set out to meet the Lord who was born for us, with joyful and attentive hearts, ready to meet him and then bring hope into our daily lives. Christian hope is not a “happy ending” that we passively wait for, but rather a promise, the promise of the Lord, to be welcomed here and now in our world of suffering and sighing. »

The end of mediocrity

Significantly, Pope Francis emphasized, the Jubilee “is a call not to delay, not to be held back by our old habits, or to wallow in mediocrity or laziness.”

The Pope recalled that the Doctor of the Church Saint Augustine had suggested that hope calls us to worry about things that are wrong and to find the courage to change them.

It is in this spirit that, as disciples of the Lord, the Holy Father encouraged us, “we are called to find in Him our greatest hope, and then, without delay, to carry this hope with us, as pilgrims of light in the midst of the darkness of this world. “.

Rediscover the joy of meeting the Lord

“Brothers and sisters,” the Pope recalled, “this is the Jubilee.”

“It is the time of hope when we are invited to rediscover the joy of meeting the Lord,” he stressed, adding that the Jubilee “calls us to spiritual renewal and commits us to the transformation of our world , so that this year can truly be a moment of jubilation.”

Pope Francis concluded by offering some avenues for reflection.

“Dear sister, dear brother, this night the “holy door” of God’s heart is open before you. Jesus, God with us, was born for you, for us, for every man and woman. With him, joy flourishes . with Him, life changes; with Him, hope does not disappoint.”

Opening of the Holy Doors

On Christmas Day, Pope Francis will deliver his Urbi and Orbi message to the people of the city of Rome and the world from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at noon.

On December 26, for the first time in the Jubilee tradition, Pope Francis will open a fifth sacred portal in a Roman prison, a gesture of hope that shows his constant closeness to the inmates.

On Sunday, December 29, the Pope will open the Holy Door of his cathedral, Saint John Lateran, which celebrated the 1700th anniversary of its consecration on November 9.

Then, on January 1, 2025, on the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, the holy door of the papal basilica of Saint Mary Major will be opened.

Finally, Sunday January 5, 2025 will mark the opening of the Holy Door of the papal basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls.

These last three Holy Doors will be closed on Sunday December 28, 2025.