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Jubilee 2025 'Pilgrims of Hope'

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Jubilee 2025

'Pilgrims of Hope'

Every 25 years, the Catholic Church holds a Jubilee Year. All members of the global Church family are called to participate in this Holy Year. It is a time to grow in our faith and prayer life.

 A time too to re-establish a proper relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation.

 

The Jubilee Year began with the opening of the Holy Door in St Peter’s Basilica in Rome, on Tuesday 24 December 2024 and runs to the Feast of Epiphany 2026.

 

The official start for schools is 24th January 2025

 

During this Jubilee, Pope Francis asks us ‘to discover hope in the signs of the times that the Lord gives us. We need to recognize the immense goodness present in our world.’

 

Hope is an important virtue – it assures us that our destiny will be with God when we die.

 

 

Key aspects of a Jubilee Year include how we treat one another and how we live out the mission Jesus states in Luke 4:16-21;

 

6 Then Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath he went as usual to the synagogue. He stood up to read the Scriptures 17 and was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it is written,

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has chosen me to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
to set free the oppressed

19     and announce that the time has come
    when the Lord will save his people.”

 

20 Jesus rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. All the people in the synagogue had their eyes fixed on him, 21 as he said to them, “This passage of scripture has come true today, as you heard it being read.”

 

 

 

 

Jubilee Icon

 

 

 

In order to celebrate and commemorate the Jubilee Year 2025, Pilgrims of Hope, CAFOD commissioned an icon from artist Mulugeta Araya in Ethiopia, for the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

Ethiopia was chosen because of the strong tradition of iconography within the country and to demonstrate that this is a global Jubilee - not just something that is happening in England and Wales.

 

Mulugeta Araya, 30, is an artist and an engineer who studied at St Mary's College, Wukro, in Ethiopia, which is supported by CAFOD.

Pilgrimage

Pilgrimage is a journey to a special place of significance, with some intention in mind.  Pilgrimage has long since been a part of each Jubilee experience, and The Pope has called us to be Pilgrims of Hope and he has written:-

 

'Pilgrimage is of course a fundamental element of every Jubilee event.  Setting us on a journey is traditionally associated with our human quest for meaning in life. A pilgrimage on foot is a great aid for rediscovering the value of silence, effort and simplicity of life.  In the coming year, pilgrims of hope will surely travel the ancient and more modern routes in order to experience the jubilee to the full.'

 

 

In the Westminster Diocese, several churches have been chosen as sacred sites that we can visit.  These are:-

Our Lady of the Rosary

The Blessed Sacrament

The Tyburn Martyrs

Our Lady of Willesden

 

In addition to these sacred sites, churches across the diocese have been chosen as Jubilee Churches.  We are extremely privileged that our local parish, St Gregory the Great, has been chosen for the west of the Diocese.   Our school, will pilgrimage to the church over the course of the year, where Father Paulo will deliver different liturgies to the children.

 

Our first pilgrimage is on January 24th, where we will all walk to celebrate mass to mark the start of the Jubilee. 

 

 

 

 

Jubilee Prayer for Schools

 

God, our loving Father,

In this Jubilee year, you remind us of our call to love creation.

Help us to work together to replant, repair, and renew.

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope.

Jesus, our light,

In this Jubilee year, you remind us of our call to love our neighbours

and to set free those who suffer.

Help us to treat everyone with dignity; to be fair; forgiving; and kind.

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope.

Holy Spirit, our inspiration,

In this Jubilee year, you remind us of our call to grow in faith and love.

Help us to hear you in scripture, to see Jesus in others, and to be united as God's global family.

Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope.

 

 

Jubilee Year 2025

January 20th - Jubilee Assembly

We held a whole school assembly to explore the theme of the Jubilee.  We broke apart the Jubilee logo, reflected on the Jubilee Icon and met the Jubilee mascot 'Luce'.

 

January 24th 2025 - School Launch Day

To officially mark the launch, Nursery and Reception held a Jubilee Liturgy in the hall focusing on the scripture story from Isaiah. Years 1 to 6 gathered as pilgrims on the playground praying the Jubilee prayer together, then made our first pilgrimage journey together to St Gregory’s Church, where we celebrated Mass with the parishioners. The service was beautiful, with the children listening attentively and behaving wonderfully. Our altar servers and readers did an outstanding job! In the afternoon, the whole school wrote pledges for the Jubilee year ahead, sharing their hopes for a brighter future. They also created Jubilee flags to commemorate the occasion. A big thank you to Father Paul for giving us a special Jubilee blessing, and to the parents who joined us and helped with walking the children to and from the church.

 

Please use the links below to find out more information about the Jubilee.

 

CAFOD

 

Missio Jubilee

 

Westminister Diocese Jubilee

 

Vatican Jubilee

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