On Christmas Eve, Pope Francis opened the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome marking the beginning of the Year of Hope, the 2025 Jubilee Year. This special year will end on January 6, 2026. Bishop Rhoades has designated six churches as Jubilee sites in the diocese. In our area those churches are St. Pius X (Granger), St. Matthew Cathedral (South Bend), and the Basilica of the Sacred Heart (Notre Dame). In designating these sites, Bishop Rhoades said, “The faithful of the diocese are invited to visit our jubilee churches during the Jubilee Year where they can obtain the Jubilee Indulgence by devoutly participating at Mass or making a pious visit for Eucharistic adoration and meditation with particular prayers … another condition of receiving the indulgence is to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation, though that does not have to be at the jubilee site.”
There’s a large mosaic over the front entrance of the Guardian Angel Cathedral in Las Vegas with three figures: Penance, Prayer and Peace. I was struck by this image as we move into the final days of Advent and prepare for the great solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord. I offer those words as a spiritual meditation for your personal reflection this week.
Every Tuesday morning, I celebrate Mass at a local nursing facility. I’m always humbled when I see the residents gathering. There are those who walk in on their own with the assistance of a walker or cane. In the first row is a gentleman who sits next to his mother. There are a number in wheelchairs who are brought in by the nursing staff. And then there are those whose memory is fading and have a caregiver sitting next to them. It’s a beautiful sight of God’s children coming together for prayer.
Do you take the time each day to “give thanks to the Lord?” Are you finding time to list all that has happened between waking and sleeping to thank the Lord for another day, your family, caring friends, the food on your table, good health, and your faith? Are you sitting in silence to acknowledge that we have comes from God who is love?
Advent invites us to find time to recenter ourselves on the Lord. May these four beautiful weeks be a time of spiritual renewal. Find a few minutes each day for personal prayer and reflection. Open your hearts to the Lord this Advent. Share your joys and sorrows, your struggles and triumphs. Let these weeks be a time of spiritual renewal and growth. Pray for the strength to move beyond what troubles you. And ask for spiritual peace and a greater awareness of Christ alive in your life.