The Jubilee of 2025 in Rome is a historic event that the Church places at the service of hope, and for which millions of pilgrims will arrive in the eternal city. 

The previous year, 2024, was dedicated to prayer at the request of Pope Francis. The Church, in anticipation the Jubilee, seeks to promote the centrality of personal and community prayer. 

This information was given during a press conference held this Tuesday, May 9, at the Holy See Press Office, where the initiatives of the preparatory phase and the significant steps towards the Jubilee Year, whose motto is “Pilgrims of Hope,” were presented. 

The pro-prefect and the undersecretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization, Archbishop Rino Fisichella along with the four organizing commissions, presented the calendar of the significant Jubilee events, the processes activated, and the objectives already achieved in the preparatory phases.    

A Jubilee to give hope to those who suffer 

Msgr. Fisichella affirmed that “the Jubilee of 2025 speaks of hope, of the joy of encountering the Risen Lord Jesus” also in those places where people “suffer”: hospitals, prisons, and soup kitchens, among others. 

Speaking to ACI Prensa after the press conference, Archbishop Fisichella explained that “for us believers, hope is the ability to look to the future with the certainty that the Lord is close to us. The Jubilee is an occasion for all of us to be pilgrims of hope”. 

After the press conference, the Archbishop indicated that the 2025 event “is a Jubilee that we want to see for peace in the world and the suffering of those in a difficult condition.”   

The Calendar of the Holy Year 

For the opening and closing dates, the bull of convocation of the Jubilee will be published, according to tradition, on the feast of the Ascension, next May 9, 2024. 

The ordinary Jubilee will begin with the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica in December 2024.   

El Greco in Rome for the Jubilee of 2025 

Archbishop Fisichella also presented the work of the Cultural Commission, which was created to contribute to the elaboration of activities for pilgrims that combine beauty, faith, and charity. 

The Commission has planned an exhibition of works by Spanish Renaissance artist El Greco, which will be held in September to officially kick off the cultural initiatives and help visitors reflect on the theme of “hope in Christ.” 

“In the exhibition, it will be possible to admire a theological triptych, made up of three masterpieces by El Greco, such as The Baptism, Christ Embracing the Cross, and The Savior Blessing,” noted Msgr. Fisichella. 

“We wish, as much as possible, that these events be free of charge to encourage the participation of citizens in the contemplation of beauty,” said the Italian Archbishop.   

The Jubilee website 

Also presented at today’s press conference was the new Jubilee 2025 website, iubilaeum2025.va, which will be active from May 10, along with the “pilgrim” app, available for both Android and IOS. 

The Jubilee’s social communication channels will also be active from next fall. Through the website and the app, it will be possible to access a platform that allows one to register and obtain the “Pilgrim’s Credential.”   

Registration 

“It is a window to the Jubilee that is agile and easily usable by everyone, teenagers, young people, and adults. On the home page, there is a video presentation,” said Msgr. Graham Bell, undersecretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization, in the section for the Fundamental Questions of Evangelization in the World. 

“Starting in September, by clicking on the ‘Participate’ button, it will be possible to register for the events and the pilgrimage to the Holy Door. Until the registration platform is active on the home page, you will find the video presentation,” he added.   

The Jubilee Hymn 

The international competition winner for the Jubilee 2025 anthem has also been selected. “It is Maestro Francesco Meneghello, from Mantova,” confirmed Msgr. Fisichella during the press conference. “There were 270 participants from 38 different countries,” he . 

“The text, which was to be set to music, was written by Professor Pierangelo Sequeri, a theologian and musicologist who has composed texts known worldwide.” 

On the occasion of this conference, the Pontifical Sistine Chapel recorded the first edition of the hymn, which was presented in advance to the press in Rome.  

Jubilee Information Point in Rome 

Thursday, June 1, will also see the inauguration of the Pilgrim Center – Jubilee Information Point at Via della Conciliazione 7, where pilgrims and tourists can request information on how to participate, volunteer or organize their pilgrimage in 2025. 

This article was originally published on ACI Prensa.