After a moment of prayer, Pope Francis entered the Jubilee Door as the first "Pilgrim of Hope". Photo: iubilaeum2025.va
On December 24, Pope Francis opened the sacred door to launch the Jubilee Year 2025, titled 'Pilgrims of Hope'. It is a tradition of our church to celebrate Jubilee or 'Holy Year'. Though there are indications of this Jewish tradition in the Old Testament, the first Jubilee, or "Holy Year," was declared by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300. Initially held every 100 years, the frequency changed to every 50 years under Pope Clement VI and then to every 25 years under Pope Paul II. Extraordinary Holy Years, like the ones in 1933 and 2015, have also occurred. The observance has evolved from pilgrimages to the Roman Basilicas to include the Holy Door, and participants receive a plenary indulgence.
The gospel in Mark 6:35-45 speaks to a familiar challenge in our world - great need and few resources to meet them. The disciples, faced with a huge hungry crowd, urged Jesus to send them away so they could buy food for themselves, but Jesus told them, "Feed them yourselves". The financial cost just to supply a small amount of bread was enormous and well beyond the disciples' means. It seemed a hopeless situation. When Jesus asked them to determine what resources were available, they found only five small loaves and two fish. However, that seemed insufficient for such a large crowd of hungry people.
Then Jesus had the disciples have the people sit down on the green grass in groups. He took the five loaves and two fish, thanked God for them, blessed them and distributed them to the people. They had their fill and still had 12 baskets of leftovers. A situation that seemed without hope was transformed.
Pope Francis admires Marc Chagall's masterpiece “The White Crucifixion”, exhibited for the “Jubilee is Culture” exhibition. Photo: facebook.com/Iubilaeum25
Mark wrote his gospel for a persecuted community. After the feeding of the 5000, he illustrates the disciples struggling to row against a strong storm. Jesus walks on water, gets into the boat, and transforms their fear into calmness and hope. Mark’s gospel reminds us that Jesus, the Son of God, is our source of hope in overwhelming situations.
Every day in the news, there are stories about great need in our world - the threat of famine in Sudan, the destruction going on in Gaza, Myanmar, and Ukraine, the violence that is overtaking many countries like Haiti, the vast numbers of displaced people around the world, the long stream of migrants in search of a better life as well as numerous threats to the health of our planet. The scale of the problem is so enormous that it is easy to feel overwhelmed and hopeless as the disciples did. If we ever need to focus on hope, it is now. As we celebrate the Jubilee Year, let us aspire to foster a sense of calmness and peace while collaboratively seeking pragmatic solutions to the pressing challenges our world faces today.
Columban Fr Patrick O'Shea lives and works in Aotearoa/New Zealand.
Related links
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