The Jubilee Year “is time to strengthen and share hope.” –Pope Francis
Pope Francis opened the Jubilee Year of Hope for the universal Church on Christmas Even, 2024, in Rome. Pope Francis released a papal bull proclaiming the Holy Year 2025. The Bull of Indiction for the Jubilee Year is entitled Spes non confundit (“Hope does not disappoint” and can be found here). In addition, the Apostolic Penitentiary has published this decree.
The Jubilee of Hope Opened in the Diocese of Lansing on December 29, 2024, The Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
To Strengthen & Share Hope
A central aspect of the Jubilee Year is the Jubilee Year Indulgence.
FROM THE OFFICE OF THE APOSTOLIC PENITENTIARY
INDULGENCES FOR JUBILEE YEAR 2025
A plenary indulgence is a grace granted by the Catholic Church through the merits of Jesus Christ to remove the temporal punishment due to sin.
The indulgence applies to sins already forgiven. A plenary indulgence cleanses the soul as if the person had just been baptized. Plenary indulgences obtained during the Jubilee Year can also be applied to souls in purgatory with the possibility of obtaining two plenary indulgences for the deceased in one day.
To obtain an indulgence, the usual conditions of detachment from all sin, sacramental confession, holy Communion, and prayer for the intentions of the pope must be met. (Usually, an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be).
- Make a Pilgrimage to Rome and pray for the Pope's intentions in any one of the Four Major Papal Basilicas (St. Peter's Basilica, the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, or St. Paul Outside the Walls) or any of the special Jubilee churches listed by the Apostolic penitentiary in Rome.
- Make a pilgrimage to one of the following churches in Italy: Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels in Assisi, Basilica of Our Lady of Loreto Basilica of Our Lady of Pompeii, Basilica in St. Anthony in Padua, OR in the Holy Land: Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth.
- Perform an extraordinary work of mercy such as a generous gift to the poor, or visiting nursing homes or prisons
- Participate in diocesan or parish sponsored spiritual exercises, missions, or formation activities based on the documents of the Second Vatican Council or the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
- Visit any local Cathedral, Marian Shrine, or other special church designated by the local bishop for obtaining the Jubilee Indulgence.
- Fasting at least one day a week from "futile distractions" such as social media, television, video games, certain phone Holy Doors: Holy Doors are to be opened at the Papal Basilicas of St. Peter, St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, and St. Paul Outside the Walls (no. 6) and at the Rebibbia Prison in Rome. The Dicastery for Evangelization notes that the distinguishing mark of the Jubilee Year is not the Holy Door, but rather the Jubilee Indulgence, received through the Sacrament of Penance and acts of charity and hope. The various ways and many places where this indulgence may be obtained are summarized above and are outlined in the Apostolic Penitentiary’s Decree on the Granting of the Jubilee Indulgence, issued May 13, 2024.
Holy Doors:
Holy Doors are to be opened at the Papal Basilicas of St. Peter, St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, and St. Paul Outside the Walls (no. 6) and at the Rebibbia Prison in Rome. The Dicastery for Evangelization notes that the distinguishing mark of the Jubilee Year is not the Holy Door, but rather the Jubilee Indulgence, received through the Sacrament of Penance and acts of charity and hope. The various ways and many places where this indulgence may be obtained are summarized above and are outlined in the Apostolic Penitentiary’s Decree on the Granting of the Jubilee Indulgence, issued May 13, 2024.
Diocesan Events for the Jubilee Year
Corpus Christ Procession to the Cathedral
At 10 AM on June 21, 2025 Bishop Boyea will offer Mass at Jackson Field (home of the Lansing Lugnuts) and will then lead a procession with the Blessed Sacrament from Jackson Field to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception where the Jubilee Indulgence can be obtained by completing the praying of the Marian Rosary.
40 Hours of Eucharistic Adoration Leading up to Corpus Christ
From the Sunday of Pentecost to the day of the Corpus Christi Procession in Lansing on June 21st, each parish in every Deanery of the Diocese of Lansing, each in turn, will host 40 Hours of Eucharistic Adoration for the intention of bringing the Gospel of Hope to the world. This golden thread of parish throughout the Diocese of Lansing will culminate in a tapestry glory paraded through the streets of Lansing: Christ’s Real Presence in His Body and Blood!
Abstaining from Media on Fridays of the Year
On the Fridays of the Year, the Diocese of Lansing is encouraging the faithful to enter into the spirit of penance—and entering into a weekly opportunity of gaining the Jubilee Year indulgence—by abstaining from media (outside of that which is necessary for work or schooling). As Angelo Cardinal De Donatis explains, the “Jubilee Plenary Indulgence can also be obtained through initiatives that put into practice, in a concrete and generous way, the spirit of penance which is, in a sense, the soul of the Jubilee. In particular the penitential nature of Friday can be rediscovered through abstaining, in a spirit of penance, at least for one day of the week from futile distractions—real but also virtual distractions, for example, the use of the media and/or social networks” (Apostolic Penitentiary, Decree on the Granting of Indulgence during the Ordinary Jubilee Year 2025).
Places of Pilgrimage in the Diocese of Lansing
Bishop Boyea has designated the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Lansing as the place for pilgrimage in the Diocese of Lansing.
THE JUBILEE INDULGENCE
AT THE CATHEDRAL OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, LANSING
- Make a brief pilgrimage to the Cathedral as a sign of your deep desire for true conversion and hope in the Lord’s Goodness.
- Prayer. Devoutly participate in Holy Mass at the Cathedral or any of the following: a celebration of the Word of God; the Liturgy of the Hours (office of readings, lauds, vespers); the Via Crucis [Way of the Cross]; the Marian Rosary; the recitation of the Akathist hymn; a penitential celebration, which ends with the individual confessions of the penitents.
- Confess your sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation within about twenty days before or after your pilgrimage to the Cathedral.
- Receive Holy Communion, reflecting on the hope God gives.
- Pray for the Pope and for the intentions that he bears in his heart for the good of the Church and of the entire world. Any prayer may be said, according to personal devotion, but the Our Father and Hail Mary are suggested.
- The Indulgence can be applied either to oneself or to the souls of the deceased, but they cannot be applied to other persons living on earth.
- A Plenary Indulgence can be gained only once per day. Though, a second can be obtained if it is applied to the souls in purgatory.
Conditions for the Reception of Jubilee Year Indulgences
Part of the deep logic of the Jubilee Year Indulgence is the opening of the heart to the Lord to receive His Gifts. The Church has designated certain elements as necessary for this opening of the heart. In order to obtain any of the plenary indulgences for the Jubilee Year, the following conditions must be fulfilled:
- Detachment from all sin, even venial.
- Sacramental confession, holy Communion, and prayer for the intentions of the pope.
These three conditions can be fulfilled a few days before or after performing the works to gain the indulgence, but it is appropriate that the reception of Holy Communion and the prayer take place on the same day that the work is completed.
A single sacramental confession within 20 days is sufficient for several plenary indulgences, but frequent sacramental confession is encouraged in order to obtain the grace of deeper conversion and purity of heart.
For each plenary indulgence that is sought, however, a separate holy Communion and a separate prayer for the intentions of the Holy Father are required.
The prayer for the intentions of the Holy Father is left up to the choice of the individual, but an Our Father and Hail Mary are suggested. [See here for more details]
Questions Regarding Indulgences
Q. What is an indulgence?
A. An indulgence is closely linked to the sacrament of Penance. "An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven...” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1471).
Q. Why do we need indulgences?
A. To understand this doctrine and practice of the Church, it is necessary to understand that sin has a double consequence. Grave sin deprives us of communion with God and therefore makes us incapable of eternal life. This is "eternal punishment." On the other hand every sin, including venial sin, is unhealthy, which must be purified either here on earth, or after death in the state called Purgatory. This purification frees one from what is called the "temporal punishment" due to sin. (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1472). The grace of God acting in our lives inspires us to pray, do penance, and do works of mercy and charity, (1473); indeed, we love because He first loved us (cf 1 John 4:19).
Q. Why does the Church grant indulgences?
A. In the communion of saints, a “perennial link of charity” exists between the faithful who have already reached their heavenly home, those in purgatory, and those on earth. In this wonderful exchange, the holiness of one profits others (1475). We also call these spiritual goods of the communion of saints “the Church's treasury.” This does not refer to material goods, but to a treasury of infinite value, which can never be exhausted -- Christ's merits before God, offered so that the whole of mankind could be set free from sin and attain communion with the Father (1476). This treasury includes as well the prayers and good works of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints. They ... have followed in the footsteps of Christ the Lord and by his grace have made their lives holy and carried out the mission the Father entrusted to them. In this way they attained their own salvation and at the same time cooperated in saving others in the unity of the Mystical Body (1477).
An indulgence is obtained through the Church who, by virtue of the power of binding and loosing granted her by Christ Jesus [cf Mt 16:19], intervenes in favor of individual Christians and opens for them the treasury of the merits of Christ and the saints to obtain from the Father of mercies the remission of the temporal punishments due for their sins (1478).
Q. Are there different types of indulgences?
A. Yes, there are two types of indulgences, partial and plenary.
A Partial Indulgence
A partial indulgence removes some of the temporal punishment due to sin. It is granted in four general ways:
1) anytime we raise our minds in humble trust to God and make some pious invocation or prayer;
2) when, prompted by a spirit of faith, we devote ourselves or our goods in compassionate service to those in need; or
3) when, in a spirit of penitence, we voluntarily abstain from something which is licit for and pleasing to us.
4) when, in the particular circumstances of daily life, we voluntarily give explicit witness to our faith before others.
A partial indulgence can be gained multiple times a day.
A Plenary Indulgence
A plenary indulgence removes all of the temporal punishment due to sin. The Church has a list of prayers and actions which provide opportunities to gain a plenary indulgence (see Manual of Indulgences: Norms and Grants, USCCB 1999). During the seasons of Lent, the Sacred Paschal Triduum and Easter, the Church makes available even more opportunities. A plenary indulgence can be acquired only once in the course of the day. The faithful, however, may obtain the plenary indulgence at the hour of death, even if they have already gained one on the same day.
Q. What must I do to receive an indulgence?
A. In order to be capable of gaining indulgences, a person must be baptized, not excommunicated, be truly repentant and in the state of grace at least at the completion of the prescribed works. To gain the indulgence, one must have at least the general intention of doing so, and must carry out the enjoined works at the stated time and in due fashion, according to the sense of the grant.
Q. What must I do to receive a plenary indulgence?
A. For a plenary indulgence, a member of the faithful must fulfill certain additional conditions:
- To be free of attachment to sin, including venial sins;
- Perform the indulgenced work;
- Sacramental Confession within 20 days;
- Eucharistic Communion;
- Prayer for the intention of the Holy Father; Preferably, the reception of Holy Communion and prayer for the Holy Father’s intentions will take place on the same day as the indulgenced work.
Q. May I obtain an indulgence for someone else?
A. Indulgences may be applied only to oneself or to a member of the faithful departed (Norms for Indulgences, 3).
The above is based upon the Apostolic Constitution Indulgentiarum doctrina, by Pope Paul VI as quoted in the Catechism of the Catholic Church nos. 1471 -1479