Advent: Preparing to be Pilgrims of Hope
Sunday 1st December 2024This weekend, we enter into the first week of Advent – a season of preparation for the birth of Christ.
Over the coming weeks, Christians wait in hopeful anticipation, growing ever closer to God through prayer, reflection, and repentance.
As we light our first Advent candle this weekend, we are invited to reflect on the theme of hope; a fire that burns far brighter than mere optimism and founded in the trust we have in the coming Christ child.
This year, hope has a special meaning as we make our preparations for the Pilgrims of Hope Jubilee Year – an ancient tradition celebrated by the modern Church once every 25 years, inviting us to renew our relationship with God, each other, and all of creation.
For the year 2025, the Jubilee Year will have a special focus on hope as Pope Francis challenges Catholics the world over to share the hopeful light of our faith with those in darkness.
Reflecting on the upcoming year of Jubilee, Bishop John said: “As we look around our world today, it can be rather difficult to find that sense of hope. From war, climate change, and the plight of refugees, to poverty around the world and here in our own Diocese, there is so much pain and suffering in our world today that often, things can all seem rather hopeless. But however overwhelming that all might feel, we need to remind ourselves that we are Pilgrims of Hope with our own role to play.”
As we journey through this Season of Advent, we invite you to rediscover the themes and meaning of Jubilee with us as we prepare ourselves to welcome the Christ child this Christmas as true “Pilgrims of Hope”.
Join us each week as we unpack the key messages of Jubilee through the lens of our Advent themes of hope, peace, joy, and love and find out more about how we will be marking this important year in our own diocese.
What is a Jubilee?
The concept of Jubilee is one rooted in the earliest days of Judeo-Christian tradition.
In the Book of Leviticus, we read that the people of Israel celebrated this tradition every 50 years.
Its purpose was to re-establish a proper relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation. It involved the forgiveness of debts, the return of misappropriated land, and a fallow period for the fields.
Today, the Catholic Church celebrates this tradition once every 25 years as a year of grace, offering the faithful the opportunity to renew faith through prayer, pilgrimage, acts of charity, and by asking for a plenary indulgence – a special grace that strengthens our wounded souls in the fight against sin.
Ultimately, Jubilee is the very essence of hope; offering each of us the chance to reset, to forgive and be forgiven, to restore our relationship with one another and the world around us, and to find true peace and happiness by rediscovering God’s boundless love for each of us.
Want to know more?
We now have a wide range of information available on how you can observe the Year of Jubilee in our diocese. Explore the links below to find out more:
Celebrating as a Diocese – A Calendar of Jubilees
Tagged | Catholic Church | Diocese | Jubilee 2025 | Pope Francis
