A Jubilee is a Holy Year for the Catholic Church.

It is traditionally proclaimed every 25 years.

In the Philippines, there are designated Jubilee Churches, among them include Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno in Quiapo, Manila and the International Shrine of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage in Antipolo, Rizal.

The full list can be accessed here.

Marking the beginning of Jubilee Year

The 2025 Jubilee officially opened on 24 December at 7:00 PM, with the rite of Opening of the Holy Door of the Papal Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City by Pope Francis.

During the Mass presided by the Holy Father during the Night for the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord after opening the Holy Door of the basilica to officially start the 2025 Jubilee Year, he stressed the value of hope.

“This is the night when the door of hope has opened wide on the world; this is the night when God says to each one: there is hope for you too,” the 88-year-old Pope said.

“It invites us to rediscover the joy of the encounter with the Lord, calls us to spiritual renewal, and commits us to the transformation of the world, so that this may truly become a Jubilee time,” he added.

Pope Francis said the task of Christians during the Jubilee Year is to bring hope into different situations of life, because Christian hope “is not the happy ending of a movie” to be passively awaited.

“It is the Lord’s promise to be welcomed here, now, in this suffering and groaning earth,” he added.

“Let us learn from the example of the shepherds: the hope born on this night does not tolerate the indolence of the sedentary and the laziness of those who have settled into their comforts — and so many of us, we are in danger of settling into our comforts.”

“Hope,” he continued, “does not admit the false prudence of those who do not get off the hook for fear of compromising themselves and the calculation of those who think only of themselves; hope is incompatible with the quiet life of those who do not raise their voices against evil and against the injustices consummated on the skin of the poorest.”

Jubilee will continue until 6 January 2026.

History

Jubilee is rooted in Jewish tradition, it was called “the year of yobel” or “the year of the goat,” because it was proclaimed by the sound of goat’s horn.

During this time, Mosaic law mandated that land, of which God is the only master, should be given to its original owners and that slaves might reclaim their freedom.

After the first Jubilee in the Christian history in 1300, Pope Boniface VIII established a 100-year interval between Jubilee celebrations.

This was after a plea from the people of Rome to Pope Clement VI (1342), the frequency was reduced to every 50 years.

Urban VI decided to establish the Jubilee cycle at every 33 years in 1389 to commemorate the number of years in Christ's life. He also called for a Jubilee in 1390, although Pope Boniface IX didn't celebrate it until after his death.

In spite of this, Boniface IX gave the pilgrims who had gathered in Rome a Jubilee indulgence in 1400, at the conclusion of the previously set 50-year term, without first announcing a Jubilee.

In 1425, Martin V celebrated a new Jubilee, opening the holy door of St John Lateran for the first time.

Pope Nicholas V was the last to celebrate Jubilee on the 50-year cycle in 1450.

Paul II extended the inter-jubilee period to 25 years, and in 1475, a Holy Year was celebrated by Sixtus IV. From then on, ordinary Jubilees were held at regular intervals.

Unfortunately, the Napoleonic wars prevented the celebrations of the Jubilees of 1800 and 1850.

The Jubilees were resumed in 1875, after the annexation of Rome to the Kingdom of Italy, although that year it was celebrated without the traditional solemnity.

A jubilee year was typically celebrated every 50 years.