December 26, 2024

Bishop Byrne to celebrate inaugural Mass of Jubilee Year this Sunday, Dec. 29

REGIONAL
Staff report

SPRINGFIELD – Bishop William D. Byrne will celebrate the Jubilee 2025, Pilgrims of Hope Diocesan Inaugural Mass this Sunday Dec. 29 at 10 a.m. at St. Michael’s Cathedral in Springfield. The Mass will be broadcast live on “Chalice of Salvation,” which airs on WWLP-22 News. In the Catholic Church, Jubilee Years are marked every 25 years and are rooted in Jewish tradition. In the Old Testament, jubilees were a call to come back to God and stood as a reminder of his mercy. Pope Francis has called on Catholics to be “Pilgrims of Hope,” for Jubilee 2025, which began Dec. 24 and will run through Jan. 6, 2026, the Solemnity of the Epiphany.

“For more than 700 years, the church has been celebrating jubilees. It’s just a moment to pause, to receive grace,” said Bishop Byrne. “There will be indulgences, real grace to be received in this moment if we follow the celebration of the jubilee. So it’s an opportunity to pause, to draw closer to our Lord. But the pope has said make this a jubilee of hope. What a great message that we need for our world that Jesus Christ is the King of the universe. He’s the victor over sin and death. Now we need to let that take over our lives,” he said.

Pope Francis opened the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Eve to mark the opening of the jubilee year. Other holy doors will be opened at the Rome basilicas of St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major and St. Paul Outside the Walls. These basilicas are designated places where pilgrims will receive special graces after prayer, confession and receiving the Eucharist. For those who cannot travel to Rome, other cathedrals have been designated locally as special places of prayer for pilgrims including St. Michael’s Cathedral in Springfield; St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr Basilica in Chicopee; Dominican Nuns Adoration Chapel in West Springfield; National Shrine of the Divine Mercy is Stockbridge; Our Mother of Perpetual Help Chapel at Thomas Aquinas College in Northfield; the Monastery Chapel at the Sisters of Visitation in Tyringham; and the Newman Catholic Center at UMass in Amherst.

Bishop Byrne said his goal for the jubilee year is evangelization.

“One of the calls that we’re making here in the Diocese of Springfield for the jubilee is called ‘Walk with One.’ It’s simple. You figure out who is the Lord asking me to invite back to the church, back to Mass, even back to having a cup of coffee and talking about it. The first step is you pray. Lord, who should I bring home? Then you say Lord, how should I do that? Let it all be divine initiative, and then bring them back. So it’s an incredible opportunity,” he said.

Several events are planned for the jubilee year including pilgrimages to Rome, a diocesan men’s and women’s conference and a youth event. For more information, go to diospringfield.org.