Pope Francis has written a letter to families, parishes and religious communities in the Diocese of Rome urging them to host young pilgrims during events for the upcoming Jubilee of Hope.
In his 11 December letter, addressed to Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar of Rome, the Pope said that the 2025 Jubilee year “is rapidly approaching and our diocese is preparing for the great event”.
“The Holy Year will see the presence in Rome of many pilgrims from every part of the earth,” the Holy Father said, while also highlighting the 25-27 April Jubilee for Adolescents and the 28 July-3 August Jubilee for Young People that are scheduled in 2025.
He asked the families, parishes and religious communities of Rome to open their doors to host young people who come to Rome for the events, “offering them a sign of friendship and participation in their joy”.
The Pope acknowledged that to hold the Jubilee for Young People during the hottest months of the summer, when most Romans are vacationing at the beach or in the mountains, “certainly requires extra generosity on your part”.
However, he insisted that “much greater than the commitment will be the gift that you will receive from the encounter with the enthusiasm and the witness of these young people”.
This is especially true for families who have young children or teenagers, he said, as they “can experience how enriching the bond of friendship is that will be established between their children and the young guests”.
To this end, the Pope quoted the biblical passage from Hebrews 13:2, saying: “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some have entertained angels without knowing it.”
He continued, while invoking Rome’s most famed Marian icon: “Certain of your generosity and availability, I thank you and I bless you from the heart, entrusting you to the maternal protection of the <em>Salus Populi Romani</em>.”
Pope Francis in November 2024 announced plans to canonise two popular young saints-in-the-making during the youth-focused jubilee events.
Blessed Carlo Acutis, the so-called “techie teen” known for his Eucharistic devotion and affinity for computers, will be canonised a saint during the Jubilee of Adolescents in April 2025, while the mountaineer and outdoorsman Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, known for his social activism and love of the poor, will be canonised during the Jubilee for Young People that follows.
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Francis in his letter noted that the two events are “awaited and desired by many young people from all countries of the world”.
“The meeting I will have with them will be a great sign of hope for everyone,” the Pope said, adding: “Young people carry in their hearts the richness of faith of their churches and communities, and the commitment to building a world of peace and solidarity.”
According to a statement from the Vicariate of Rome, the Pope’s letter will be read aloud at every Mass in parishes throughout Rome on Sunday, 15 Dec., which marks the third Sunday of Advent and is less than two weeks from the inauguration of the Jubilee.
Pope Francis will officially inaugurate the Jubilee, which bears the theme “Pilgrims of Hope”, on 24 December 2024, when he will open the Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica and kick off over a year of pilgrimage and special events.
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He will formally close the Jubilee on 6 January, the feast of the Epiphany, in 2026, providing Catholics and pilgrims over a year to visit Rome and take advantage of the special graces attached to a Jubilee year.
The first-ever “Holy Year” was instituted by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300 and was initially celebrated every 100 years. Then, following biblical tradition, it marked every 50 years. It was finally decided by Pope Paul II in 1490 to observe the Jubilee year every 25 years, so that each person could experience one in his or her lifetime.
Jubilees, designed to be a time of conversion and increased emphasis on God’s mercy and forgiveness of sins, are marked by the opening of the Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica. The Holy Doors, present in each of the four papal basilicas in Rome, are destination points for pilgrims who travel to Rome during the Jubilee and then pass through the doors seeking special graces and outpourings of God’s mercy.
The last Ordinary Jubilee was the Great Jubilee of 2000, celebrated by Pope John Paul II.
Some 35 million pilgrims are expected to visit Rome during the 2025 Jubilee of Hope, which the city is preparing for with a series of ambitious renovation projects that may or may not be finished in time for the influx.
In the Vicariate of Rome’s accompanying statement, Reina said the various jubilees for adolescents and young people will be “a special occasion for our diocese, a moment of grace and renewed commitment in the faith”.
Those who wish to welcome young pilgrims for the events, he said, can write to the diocese through the email <a href="mailto:giubileo.giovani@diocesidiroma.it">giubileo.giovani@diocesidiroma.it</a> to offer their availability.
“Every act of welcome is a sign of love and hope and can be a true testimony of faith for those who come to our territory in search of a fraternal embrace,” Reina said.
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<em>Photo: Pope Francis opens the 'Holy Door' in Saint John Lateran basilica <em>at the start of a Jubilee yea</em>r, Rome, 13 December 2015. (Photo credit should read STEFANO RELLANDINI/AFP via Getty Images.)</em>
