TEACH US TO PRAY – Living the Year of Prayer in Preparation for Jubilee 2025
As we move closer to the Jubilee of 2025, Pope Francis wants 2024 to be dedicated to prayer. Thus, he is inviting the whole Church to a time of intense commitment in preparation for the Opening of the Holy Door.
The celebration of a Holy Year has its earliest origins in the Jewish tradition of the jubilee (yobel) as a time of forgiveness and reconciliation. Since the 1300s this has been a special time to meditate on the great gift of divine mercy that always awaits us, as well as the importance of inner conversion. Both are necessary to be able to live out the spiritual gifts lavished on pilgrims during a Holy Year, and to renew the bond that unites all who are baptized as brothers and sisters in Christ, with all of humanity, in that everyone is loved by God.
The Jubilee will involve not only the city of Rome, but will extend far beyond, as God’s mercy is proclaimed to the whole world, thus becoming a great opportunity for evangelization. As Christians, we are invited to bear witness as authentic “Pilgrims of Hope” walking toward the Lord, who opens his merciful and forgiving arms to us, as well as to our brothers and sisters who are still waiting for the Gospel to be proclaimed to them.
This resource aide, inspired by the magisterium of Pope Francis, is intended to be used by the faithful during this time of preparation for the opening of the Holy Door. It is an invitation to intensify prayer as a personal dialogue with God. It summons us to reflect on our faith, on our commitment in today’s world in the different spheres in which we are called to live, in order to foster a renewed ardor for the Evangelization of modern man. When Pope Francis announced the Year of Prayer preceding the Jubilee 2025, he encouraged the faithful as follows: «I ask you to intensify your prayer to prepare us to live well this event of grace, and to experience the strength of God’s hope. […] A year dedicated to rediscovering the great value and absolute need for prayer in personal life, in the life of the Church, and in the world» (Angelus, January 21, 2024).
On several occasions in his catecheses, the Pope has indicated how prayer is the way to get in touch with our deepest truth, where God’s own light is present, as St. Augustine taught. Pope Francis
encourages people to persevere in prayer, emphasizing how constant prayer transforms not only the person, but also the wider community, even where evil seems to have the upper hand.
Thus, for every Christian, may prayer be the compass that guides, the light that illuminates the path and the strength that sustains us on the pilgrimage that will lead to entering the Holy Door. Through prayer, may we arrive at the Holy Door with our hearts ready to welcome the gifts of grace and forgiveness that the Jubilee offers as a vivid expression of our relationship with God. Let us
immerse ourselves through prayer in an ongoing dialogue with the Creator, discovering the joy of silence, the peace of abandonment and the power of intercession in the communion of saints.
This resource aide is only meant to help renew the spirit of prayer in all those situations in which we are called to live in daily life. Each part – from the meaning of personal prayer to its practice
in community life – offers reflections, guidance, and advice for living more fully in dialogue with the Lord present in our relationship with others and in every moment of our day. There are sections
devoted to prayer in the parish community, in the family, and others are dedicated to youth, cloistered communities, catechesis and spiritual retreats.
A copy of this resource is available in each church. If you would like your own copy, please contact the parish office for it to be printed or click this link to download your own copy Teach us to Pray – Living the Year of Prayer in Preparation for Jubilee 2025