Our Holy Father is putting the virtue of hope front and center in 2025. He has proclaimed a Jubilee Year with the theme, Pilgrims of Hope. In line with ancient tradition, the Catholic Church proclaims a Jubilee every 25 years to increase opportunities to experience God’s grace. The pope inaugurated the Jubilee Year at the Vatican on December 24, 2024, with the opening of the Holy Door of the Basilica of Saint Peter. The Jubilee will conclude with the closing of the Holy Door at the Basilica of Saint Peter on January 6, 2026, the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord. 

During 2025, Pope Francis is asking each of us to strengthen our own sense of hope and to "be tangible signs of hope for those of our brothers and sisters who experience hardships of any kind."

The pope has stated that hope is the Christian vocation because it comes from having faith and love. Believing God loves us, and that nothing can separate us from God’s love, is a reason to hope.  Also, because Christians believe in everlasting life, we should never lose hope that we will be with Christ for eternity.

“The Jubilee Year, which finds its origins in the Jewish tradition, will be a time of hope, conversion, renewal, and evangelization.  Our diocese will unite with our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and Catholics all over the world in celebrating this special year of grace and favor,” said Bishop Gregory Parkes expressing his enthusiasm for the year ahead.

To officially announce the Jubilee Year, Pope Francis wrote a document entitled, Spes Non Confundit (“Hope Does Not Disappoint”). In the document, he listed various groups that have a particular need for hope, including the sick, migrants, prisoners, and the poor. The pope also made a special reference to young people. He said, “With renewed passion, let us demonstrate care and concern for adolescents, students, and young couples, the rising generation. Let us draw close to the young, for they are the joy and hope of the Church and of the world!” 

There will be celebrations in Rome for the Jubilee with many different groups of people, including the armed forces, marching bands, entrepreneurs, artists, and the disabled.

The Diocese of Saint Petersburg Office of the Diaconate is organizing a pilgrimage for deacons from February 18-27, 2025. The pilgrimage includes visits to the birthplace of St. Francis of Assisi, tours of ancient Rome and the catacombs, multiple churches, and holy sites.

Finding Hope Closer to Home

If you are not able to travel to Rome for the Jubilee, there will be many opportunities to participate here at home. The local events and activities listed below relate to the three priorities Pope Francis is focusing on for the Jubilee: Evangelization, Service/Mercy, and Reconciliation. 

24 Hours for the Lord 

During the month of March in the Lenten Season, parishes and schools will participate in a diocesan-wide campaign to grow in our understanding of the beauty of the sacrament of reconciliation. Then, all parishes will offer “24 Hours for the Lord,” an opportunity to participate in the sacrament of reconciliation and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament on the weekend of March 28-30, 2025.

Eucharistic Encounter

A Eucharistic Encounter is being planned for Saturday, September 20, 2025, at Amalie Arena, to bring thousands of Catholics together to experience hope, truth, beauty, goodness, community, peace, and joy through an encounter with the risen Lord. This event will include nationally known speakers and musicians.

Cathedral Pilgrimage

For those who cannot travel abroad, Bishop Gregory Parkes has designated the Cathedral of St. Jude the Apostle as a place pilgrims can visit to obtain an indulgence. During a Jubilee Year, Catholics are able to receive an indulgence for making a pilgrimage, as well as doing some sort of penance, going to confession, receiving Communion, making a profession of faith and praying for the intentions of the pope. The Code of Canon Law says, "An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment for sin, the guilt of which is already forgiven" (Canon 992). We learned recently that Saints Simon and Jude, the Apostles of Hope, will be the patron saints for the Jubilee 2025.  We will have an opportunity to visit and pray with the St. Jude relic at various parishes throughout the Jubilee Year.