CHARLOTTE DIOCESE — Prayer, song and words of hope and joy welcomed the Jubilee Year to the Diocese of Charlotte over the weekend as standing-room only crowds attended Opening Masses in three locations.
The Jubilee Year 2025: “Pilgrims of Hope” was formally inaugurated by Pope Francis on Christmas Eve as he opened the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The tradition of a Holy Year – or jubilee - is based on the Old Testament concept of a year of rest, forgiveness and renewal. During holy years, Catholics make pilgrimages to designated churches and shrines, recite special prayers, go to confession and receive Holy Communion to receive a plenary indulgence, which is a remission of the temporal punishment due for one’s sins.
Bishop Michael Martin was originally scheduled to celebrate the diocese’s three Jubilee Masses but could not because of illness. Priests stepped in to take his place and called on the faithful to embark on the Jubilee Year with hearts focused on trusting and loving God.
The liturgies coincided with the Feast of the Holy Family, and the theme of God’s Church as a family carried through much of the weekend.
Asheville opens Jubilee Year
At St. Lawrence Basilica in Asheville, 450 people attended the Dec. 28 Jubilee Mass in the historic church’s splendid sanctuary, further bedecked with red and white poinsettias.
Monsignor Roger Arnsparger started the Mass with a prayer at the Basilica’s front doors and then blessed the congregation with holy water.
He reminded the congregation that they are not only members of their own families but are part of the larger family of the Diocese of Charlotte and the worldwide Church.
“You’ve made a pilgrimage here to celebrate the most sacred mysteries as we, God’s holy family, get ready for this Jubilee Year of multiple graces” he said, emphasizing, “the profound changes that will be ours, the positive growth in virtue that’s going to happen as we tend our souls. Every step that we take in this journey through the year will be important for us.”
Father Arnsparger said Jubilee years offer Catholics a special chance to commit not only to their own spiritual growth but to sharing God’s love.
“Let’s thank the Lord for the wonderful privilege to be able to assist each other in this great gift of building up our family and inviting others on the way to show them there’s a plan and a purpose” he said. “The joy of the Gospel, which is the joy of our lives, calls us to this wonderful pilgrimage.”
Renewing hope in Greensboro
Father David McCanless, chaplain at Wake Forest University, opened the Jubilee year with a full house at St. Pius X in Greensboro on Dec. 29.
He began at the front door to suggest a new beginning and welcomed people to the once-every-25-year-occasion, with its promise of forgiveness.
“I reminded people that this is a chance for us to perceive a new relationship with Jesus,” he said. “Part of what we’ll focus on is renewing our own hope, whether we need God’s mercy or confession, and on the other side of the coin, we will be giving hope to others through acts such as feeding the hungry and visiting the lonely.”
Sharing the message in Huntersville
Close to 1,000 people attended the 5 p.m. Jubilee Mass at St. Mark’s in Huntersville on Dec. 29. They gathered outside before Mass to listen to prayers read by celebrant Father Chinonso Nnebe-Agumadu, parochial vicar, then processed into the church to the joyful tones of the Christmas carol, “O Come All Ye Faithful.”
The choir at St. Mark performed the official Jubilee Year hymn, which offers simple lyrics speaking of hope, faith and a commitment to follow Christ: “Like a flame my hope is burning, may my song arise to you. Source of life that has no ending, on life’s path I trust in you.”
Father Nnebe-Agumadu’s homily offered the Holy Family as examples of how people can embrace the year’s theme.
“The Holy Family we celebrate today are pilgrims of hope…travelers throughout their lives clinging on to God’s promise,” he said. “We seek the intercession of the Holy Family today that through the pain they suffered in their own journey that they would accompany us in the journey of hope, of faith, of love, and ultimately that they would accompany us on the journey we are making to eternity.”
He reminded the congregation that the Jubilee Year offers a chance and a duty for people to share their jubilee message as “tangible signs of hope to the prisoner, to the sick, to migrants, to the elderly.”
Hope speaks to our world
The theme of hope was important to many in the pews.
“It is so easy to get lost in the daily avalanche of bad news, lose hope and even get into despair,” said Wojtek Lachowski, a parishioner at St. Mark. “But the Jubilee Year compels us to reflect and refocus on what is most important in our lives – the relationship with our savior Jesus Christ.”
Brad and Laura Olson, parishioners at St. Lawrence, felt a connection to history in experiencing a Jubilee.
Retirees living in Candler, the Olsons also noted a connection between the Jubilee’s theme of hope with what they’ve witnessed in the aftermath of Helene across Western North Carolina.
“The support this region has received ever since the storm is amazing – it’s helped people realize there is hope,” Brad Olson said. “It’s going to take a long time, especially for those who lost everything, but the hope is there. The faith is there.”
Laura Olson said the Jubilee Year offers a chance to become more committed to her faith.
“I was very inspired by this Mass – my heart is full,” she said. “I just feel like I have a renewed spirit. I think our practices will be more thoughtful and more intentional this year, and that we’ll look for ways to grow spiritually.”
Father McCanless said sharing that inspiration beyond the church doors is essential.
“These are difficult times around the world,” he said. “I think the message of hope resonates with people. It will be important for parishes to find things for people to do that will help them take advantage of the Jubilee Year so that they may feel hope and bring hope to others.”
— Christina Lee Knauss, Catholic News Herald. Photos and videos by Troy C. Hull, César Hurtado, MaryAnn Luedtke, Gabriel P. Swinney and Edward F. Chaplinsky, Jr.