Greetings my brothers and sisters,
Before turning once again to the Bull of Indiction for the Jubilee Year, Spes Non Confundit , promulgated
by Pope Francis, let us first pray for our Holy Father as he goes through his most recent health issues,
that the Lord may grant him peace of mind and heart. No doubt, His Holiness is getting ample
opportunity to live as a pilgrim of hope as endures the hospital stay and complications that have arisen
from it.
The next section of Spes Non Confundit to consider is under the heading “A Journey of Hope”. Here the
Pope begins to consider what it means to be a pilgrim, to be on a pilgrimage in this life. He writes:
This interplay of hope and patience makes us see clearly that the Christian life is a journey
calling for moments of greater intensity to encourage and sustain hope as the constant
companion that guides our steps towards the goal of our encounter with the Lord Jesus.
Such is the history of the Jubilee Year celebrations, which began in 1300: these are meant to be such
“moments of greater intensity” which give Christians a greater experience of hope amidst the ongoing
struggles and conflicts which life on this earth can provide. The Pope then writes of the various ways the
Jubilee Year has been celebrated since they began and concludes:
It is good that such “dispersed” celebrations of the Jubilee continue, so that the power of God’s
forgiveness can support and accompany communities and individuals on their pilgrim way.
In this way, Pope Francis highlights one of the hallmarks of the Jubilee Year, which is a special
experience of the forgiveness and mercy of God through the granting of a special indulgence,
particularly by making pilgrimage to a place where the Holy Door is established and passing through this
door in a spirit of repentance and conversion. The Pope says of pilgrimage:
Pilgrimage is of course a fundamental element of every Jubilee event. Setting out 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.
Perhaps taking advantage of the Jubilee Year and making a pilgrimage to a pilgrim church with a Holy
Door can be a good way to make strides in vocation discernment. In order to hear God’s call, of course,
we need to have turned away from sin and turned toward God. This is the way of conversion and a
pilgrimage can be of great assistance in this. The Pope speaks of pilgrim churches in this way:
The Jubilee Churches along the pilgrimage routes … can serve as oases of spirituality and places
of rest on the pilgrimage of faith, where we can drink from the wellsprings of hope, above all
by approaching the sacrament of Reconciliation, the essential starting-point of any true journey
of conversion.
And, one can add to this final point, not only “any true journey of conversion” but also any serious
journey of vocation discernment begins with conversion, repentance and the sacrament of
reconciliation. May God grant this grace to all who are discerning His call.
Fr. Brian, OSJ
