United with the Universal Church, we here in the Holy Land have also begun 2025 with renewed spiritual vigor, supported by the graces of the Jubilee Year. On 24 December, in Rome, the Holy Father, Pope Francis, inaugurated a Holy Year—a year of exceptional forgiveness and mercy from God—by opening the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica. Subsequently, as planned, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, launched the Jubilee in the Holy Land on 29 December with a solemn celebration at the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, accompanied by a long procession of Catholic Bishops, priests, religious men and women, and faithful from various orders and parishes of the Holy Land.

"Pilgrims of Hope" is the Holy Father's central theme for this Jubilee, detailed in the Bull of Indiction issued on 9 May 2024. This official document not only announces the dates of the Holy Year's opening and closing and its guidelines but also presents the themes of the Jubilee and the terms under which the Pontiff convokes it.

The first words of the Bull already convey profound meaning. They are taken from St. Paul's Letter to the Romans: "Hope does not disappoint" (Romans 5:5).

"The verb used by the Apostle Paul indicates that Christian hope has a solid foundation in that God has welcomed and justified us by giving His Son for us and pouring His love into our hearts. This love is an absolute and undeserved gift granted through the Holy Spirit. For this reason, our Christian hope should not be confused with a vague desire for a better future rooted in an optimistic view of life. Instead, it must be understood as the fruit of the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus and the gift of the Spirit that the Risen Lord has bestowed upon us. The hope that does not disappoint arises from the empty tomb—from Jesus' Easter and His resurrection." (Pierbattista Pizzaballa)

In the message of the AOCTS (Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land) to the faithful of the Holy Land on 27 December 2024, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, in addition to explaining the concept of hope, highlighted several signs of hope specific to our context:

“(...) The first and most important sign is the longing for peace. In our communities, afflicted by endemic conflicts and the scourge of war, the yearning for peace runs deep.

It is a sign of hope that even in such difficult economic and social times, many young couples in our communities have chosen to start families, marry, and remain in our land.

It is a sign of hope that we have been able to welcome migrants, displaced persons, and refugees, showing the welcoming and supportive face of the Christian community, which transcends the boundaries of religious nationalism to live openly to Catholicity—that is, universality.

The testimony of priests and religious people who have shared in the people's suffering and who stay close to their communities has also been a sign of hope.

Another sign of hope for us has been the solidarity shown by the Universal Church toward the Church living in the Holy Land through prayers and concrete material gestures.

In the same vein, the closeness of Pope Francis to all those involved in the conflict and, in particular, to Christians in the Holy Land, through numerous gestures, has been a source of encouragement to hope."

Dear friends, the Jubilee of 2025 is an opportunity to rediscover the value of Christian hope in our lives and live it deeply by embracing the authentic paths that lead us to it. It is also a moment to give thanks for the constant signs of hope that God—in His Divine Providence—grants us daily and to respond to grace by becoming signs and witnesses of hope for others in the ordinary circumstances of life.

We share the Jubilee Prayer below as an invitation to prayer during this Holy Year. May these words open our souls to receive the graces God wishes to bestow upon us:

Jubilee Prayer

Heavenly Father,

the faith you have given us in your Son Jesus Christ, our brother,

and the flame of charity infused into our hearts by the Holy Spirit,

awaken in us the blessed hope of the coming of your Kingdom.

May your grace transform us into devoted cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel,

leavening humanity and the cosmos in confident expectation of new heavens and a new earth,

when, with evil overcome, your glory will be revealed forever.

May the grace of the Jubilee rekindle in us, Pilgrims of Hope,

the longing for heavenly treasures and spread throughout the world

the joy and peace of our Redeemer.

To you, O God blessed eternally,

be praised and glory forever.

Amen. (Pope Francis)