GARY – With Bishop Robert J. McClory presiding, the Diocese of Gary officially opened the Year of Jubilee 2025 with a celebratory Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Angels on Dec. 29, the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
The opening rites began in the school gymnasium adjacent to the cathedral, where the bishop invited the congregation to bless and praise God: “As we gather during this festive season to open a special Jubilee Year of grace, let us give blessing to our God for his boundless mercy and love.” The people responded: “Blessed be the Lord our hope.”
Bishop McClory opened the Jubilee Year as did prelates around the world on Dec. 29 following Pope Francis’ lead at St. Peter’s basilica in Rome at Christmas Eve Mass: “In fellowship with the universal Church, as we celebrate the love of the Father that reveals itself in the flesh of the Word made man and in the sign of the cross, anchor of salvation, we solemnly open the Jubilee Year for the Church of the Diocese of Gary,” he said.
“This opening rite is for us the prelude to a rich experience of race and mercy; (and so) we are ready always to respond to whoever asks the reason for the hope that is in us, especially in this time of war and disorder.
“May Christ, our peace and our hope, be our companion on the journey in this year of grace and consolation. May the Holy Spirit, who today begins this work both in us and with us, bring it to completion in the day of Christ Jesus,” he continued.
Also as part of the opening rite, lector Paul LaReau read part of the Bull of Indiction, “Spes Non Confundit,” (“Hope does not disappoint,” Rom 5:5) issued by Pope Francis: “In the spirit of hope, the Apostle Paul addressed these words of encouragement to the Christian community of Rome. Hope is also the central message of the coming Jubilee that, in accordance with an ancient tradition, the Pope proclaims every 25 years.
“My thoughts turn to all those pilgrims of hope who will travel to Rome in order to experience the Holy Year and to all those others who, though unable to visit the City of the Apostles Peter and Paul, will celebrate it in their local churches. For everyone, may the Jubilee be a moment of genuine, personal encounter with the Lord Jesus, the ‘door’ of our salvation, whom the Church is charged to proclaim always, everywhere and to all as ‘our hope.’
“Everyone knows what it is to hope. In the heart of each person, hope dwells as desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future may bring. Even so, uncertainty about the future may at times give rise to conflicting feelings, ranging from confident trust to apprehensiveness from serenity to anxiety, from firm conviction to hesitation and doubt.
“Often, we come across people who are discouraged, pessimistic and cynical about the future, as if nothing could possibly bring them happiness. For all of us, may the Jubilee be an opportunity to be renewed in hope.”
Next came a procession into the cathedral led by the choir singing “O Come, All Ye Faithful.” Proceeding to the baptismal font, the bishop raised the Jubilee Cross, a special icon from the former St. Catherine of Siena church that will displayed at the cathedral throughout the Jubilee Year, and invited the people to venerate it.
Blessing the water, Bishop McClory said, “Let us invoke the Lord Our God, that he may bless this water which he has created; we shall be blessed with it as a memorial of our baptism. May the Lord renew our hearts. Lord God almighty, bless this water with which we shall be sprinkled. We are trustful that we shall receive the forgiveness of sin, protection from all infirmity and from the deceit of the evil one, and the grace of your protection.” He invited the congregation to bless themselves with the holy water before taking their seats as the choir sang “Water of Life/Aqua De Vida.”
In his homily, the bishop focused on the Jubilee Year’s connection to mercy and hope. “The Jubilee …it’s like a reboot, a refresh,” he said, a time when farmers would allow the land to lie fallow and regenerate itself, a time for the forgiveness of debts, a time of extended celebration, “a time to remind ourselves that it is not just one darn thing after another in our lives, it’s not just bleak and hopeless, but the Lord wants to give us seasons to celebrate, seasons to rejoice.
“Jesus comes to forgive us our debts, those things we most regret … The Jubilee Year should be a time of seeking out the mercy of God more deeply, particularly in the sacrament of reconciliation … but also we should forgive our debtors. I am not saying that the things that were done wrong to us are suddenly right and we should just forget about them, but it is freeing to enter into this year and say to God, who do I need to forgive?
“We ask ourselves … can I really wipe the slate clean, not erasing all the memory, but can I hit refresh? And the reality is that the more we do that, we become healthier, happier and holier. It’s not easy, but the Lord wants us to be healthy, happy and holy. Declaring a year of in which we forgive debts is a beautiful thing to do.
“The final theme is that of hope. The Jubilee theme that the Holy Father has given us is ‘Pilgrims of Hope.’ So, pilgrims are on the way … that’s why even though it was a short procession … we were on a journey to something. But it means we’re not stagnant, we’re not just stuck, we are going someplace, with and toward someone – none other than Jesus Christ, and we do so with hope.
“What are those things we most hope for? There are big things, like our own salvation and the salvation of those who we love. That’s primary, because we want all of us to make it into heaven. But we can begin to hope for things right now that we can really say with confidence to the Lord – here’s a situation that I don’t see much hope, give me a little glimmer, a little sign.
“To hold on to hope is to be in it for the long run … we can hope for some things … (and say) ‘Lord, I trust you enough that even if I don’t live to see it, you’re going to take care of it. It’s okay in this Jubilee Year to say, ‘Lord I’m going to let go and I’m going to hope in you.’
“Hope is rooted in the love God has for us … We know it’s going to be a brighter day for all eternity because of the resurrection of Jesus. So the encouragement that I have for all of us is to truly hope for some things that are rightly ordered, that you believe God would want to see accomplished. You know God loves you and say, “God, I’m going to hope for that.
“In this Jubilee Year … receive his mercy and give that mercy. We’ve got a whole year to reflect on these themes and to live them out, and when we do, it’s going to be … a season of hope, so let’s all turn to the Lord, fulfill this Jubilee Year and be Pilgrims of Hope,” concluded the bishop.
“What I’ll remember most about the Mass is the bishop’s sermon about forgiveness and hope, and how we should put the past behind us,” said Paula Tillman, parish council chairwoman at Ss. Monica and Luke in Gary and a member of the Catholic Charities board. “What I would like to do this Jubilee Year is participate more in the diocese and make more connections among our parishes.”
Bob Birlson, a parishioner at St. John the Evangelist in St. John, noted that “with all the stress and anxiety in daily life, you need hope. Our goal is to be in love with Christ; no matter what happens, he’ll be here for us.”
Kayla Carver, a Hanover Central High school junior and parishioner at Holy Name of Jesus in Cedar Lake, expressed joy in “the large amount of people and the beauty of the Mass. All those who participated made it special. I’m starting to realize that forgiving is something I really want to work on this year.”
Bishop McClory expressed joy in “the beautiful turnout” for the Jubilee Year’s opening Mass. “It was good to see representatives from such a variety of our parishes displaying such a spirit of joy and hope. I think the Jubilee Year is off to a beautiful start as a season of forgiving debts – sins – and letting go of old wounds and hurts.”
Caption: Bishop Robert J. McClory dips his hand in the baptismal font at the Cathedral of the Holy Angels in Gary on Dec. 29 during a procession before Mass to celebrate the anticipation of the Jubilee Year 2025, when the Catholic Church recognizes the 2,025th anniversary of the Incarnation of Our Lord. A year of pilgrimages to holy sites, stronger sacramental participation and other evangelistic commitments will be of "great spiritual, ecclesial and social significance in the life of the Church," according to the United Stated Conference of Catholic Bishops. (Anthony D. Alonzo photo)