Diocese Launches Jubilee Year of Hope

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UPDATED December 29, 2024, Worcester, Mass.— As the Diocese of Worcester joins with the Universal Church in a Jubilee Year, it will also be recognizing its 75 years as a diocese.
At the heart of a Jubilee Year is the concept of pilgrimage. “We are all on a journey of faith in this life, but a pilgrimage, even made locally, makes us more conscious of that faith journey as we physically move in prayer from one place to the next,” said Bishop McManus. He explained that whether someone visits local pilgrimage sites or designated Roman Basilicas for the Jubilee, that person has a chance to experience the power of pilgrimage and, if properly disposed, gain plenary indulgences.
 
Major Liturgies
The Holy Father, Pope Francis, will open the Jubilee Year on Christmas Eve with the opening of the Jubilee Door at St. Peter’s Basilica. The Holy See asked that the jubilee year open and close in dioceses worldwide on the Feast of the Holy Family on December 29. And, unlike in Rome, there are no designated Holy Doors in local churches or cathedrals.
The Diocese of Worcester will open with a Procession beginning at the Cathedral Chapel at 3:45 and proceed to the Upper Church for Mass at 4:00 pm. This follows the recommendations from the Vatican that the liturgy be “stational,” moving prayerfully from one location to another.
Antiphons and litanies will be prayed while these local “pilgrims” are in procession, carrying lit candles along the way signifying Christ the light, a symbol of hope in the darkness of the winter evening.
At one point in the Mass, the decrees will be blessed announcing the ten local pilgrimage churches, to be displayed at the local pilgrimage sites. Those churches will also receive Jubilee crosses and banners following the Mass. The International Jubilee Hymn will also be sung as part of the Mass.
The following are being designated by Bishop McManus as local Pilgrimage Churches:
The Cathedral of Saint Paul, Worcester
Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church at Annunciation Parish, Gardner
Our Lady of the Rosary Church at Mary, Queen of the Rosary Parish, Spencer
Notre Dame Church at Saint John Paul II Parish, Southbridge
Saint Cecilia Church, Leominster
Saint Paul Church at Divine Mercy Parish, Blackstone
Saint John the Evangelist Church at Saint John Guardian of our Lady Parish, Clinton
Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Milford
Saint Matthew Church, Southborough
Saint Joseph Basilica, Webster
 
All are invited to the opening liturgy. For those who would like to take part in the procession, a shuttle will be available from the Cathedral parking lot to St. John Church.
Other major events for the Holy Year include an Ecumenical Celebration on Sunday, June 29 at 4:30 pm, the Solemnity of Ss. Peter and Paul, with Evening Vespers at the Cathedral.
On Saturday, September 20, there will be a Multicultural Marian Celebration inviting all the diverse ethnic communities with Marian patronal feasts to take part in a procession downtown and Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul.
On Friday, September 26, 2025 there will be a Parish Ministry Awards Banquet at the DCU Grand Ballroom. This will also be a major celebration of the Diocesan 75th Anniversary to include displays of historic photos and objects.
Throughout the year, Bishop McManus will lead evening prayer at each of the local jubilee churches. There will also be time for people to avail themselves of Confession.  Bishop noted, “A major aspect of a jubilee year is reconciliation or restoring one’s relationship to God and the Church.” That schedule will be announced soon and will be posted on the diocesan website’s Jubilee page.
The Holy Year will conclude on the Feast of the Holy Family,  Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025 at 4:00 pm with a Closing Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul.
 
Jubilee Resources
The Diocese is distributing Jubilee Prayer cards with a local prayer to use before or after Mass in all our churches. The Prayer is specific to our diocese and recognizes the diocesan anniversary as well as the international Jubilee Year of Hope.
A Pilgrim’s Guide, acting as a “passport,” has also been produced which highlights each of the ten Churches and includes an introduction from Bishop McManus, a copy of the decree and an explanation about plenary indulgences which can be gained during this Jubilee.
Assistance with the cost of production of the various materials as well as public receptions was made possible thanks to Jubilee Fund donors including The Bafaro Family, Henry and Pamela Camosse, Raymond and Kathryn Delisle, Robert and Janice Donahue, Marilyn and Gerald Fels, The Kenary Family, Jack and Cynthia Monahan, John Smithhisler, and Lynda Young and Robert Sorrenti.
 
Celebrating 75 years as a diocese
While liturgies are focused primarily on the Jubilee Year, specific initiatives have been underway to recognize the Diocesan Diamond Jubilee. A special calendar was produced in English and in Spanish which features different topics including oldest parishes, ethnic diversity, Catholic education, the impact of communities of men and women religious, and our diocesan bishops. Parishes had the option of asking their local sponsors to reserve these calendars late last spring for local distribution. A digital version of each month will be available on the diocesan Jubilee website. The calendars are produce by Catholic Extension Society, and the proceeds from their printing operation supports the many poor Mission Dioceses in the United States. “It is gratifying to know that as we commemorate our diocesan history, we are also helping support in some small way diocesan families in great need in the US,” said Raymond Delisle, Chancellor and Director of Communications who is coordinating the Jubilee and Diocesan Anniversary events.
For 75 weeks beginning last July, The Catholic Free Press has been carrying a “Did you Know?” feature with an historic photo and caption of unique and significant moments in our diocesan history, produced from the archives of the diocesan newspaper which began publishing in 1951. These are also being shared on social media and the CFP website.
“It is fitting that we celebrate our past during a Jubilee Year focused on hope,” said Bishop McManus. “Our history as a diocese is filled with examples of proclaiming the hope that comes from our faith as manifested in areas of education, social outreach and spiritual growth. I pray that by learning more about our past  we can, as a local church, be more conscious of carrying on our mission of evangelization in the future in Worcester County.”
 
What are indulgences?
On May 9, 2024 when Pope Francis announced the Jubilee year in the Bull of Indiction, Spes non confundit, (Hope does not disappoint), he referred to indulgences as “a Jubilee grace which allows us to discover how limitless God's mercy is.” There are many ways in which a special jubilee indulgence can be obtained which can remove the residual effects of sin through the grace of Christ.
The official website of the International Jubilee of Hope 2025, iubilaeum2025.va, offers resources explaining how to gain indulgences during the Holy Year. “All the ‘truly repentant’ faithful, moved by a spirit of charity, who, purified through the sacrament of penance and refreshed by Holy Communion, will be able to receive the indulgence, with the remission and forgiveness of sins” say the Norms adding that they should also pray for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff. Following the provisions of the Penitentiary, signed by the Major Penitentiary, His Eminence, Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, the indulgence can be applied ‘in the form of suffrage to the souls in Purgatory’.”
 
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