the Pope opens the Holy Door of Saint Peter

As a prologue to the Christmas Eve Mass celebrated this December 24, 2024 at Saint Peter's Basilica, Pope Francis performed the rite of opening the Holy Door. He thus symbolically opened the Jubilee 2025, which will last until January 6, 2026 and should attract more than 30 million pilgrims to Rome.

It was precisely 7:17 p.m. when Pope Francis – remaining seated in his wheelchair, despite a small moment of hesitation suggesting that he would have liked to get up – symbolically knocked on a leaf and opened the Holy Door of Saint Peter's Basilica. , which was closed on November 20, 2015, at the end of the Jubilee of Mercy. His entry into the basilica took place in profound silence, before the bells rang out and then the anthem of the Jubilee 2025, “Pilgrims of Hope”.

“Let us cross the threshold of this holy temple and enter the time of mercy and forgiveness, so that the path of hope which does not disappoint may be revealed to every man and woman,” declared the Pope during the liturgical prayer opening this ceremony. This opening rite was preceded by a liturgy of the Word, with the reading of texts from the Old Testament in Italian, English, French and Spanish, and the proclamation of the Gospel in Latin. The start of the celebration took place in the atrium of the basilica, and was followed on giant screens by the thousands of faithful gathered in Saint Peter's Square.

As a sign of the universality of the people of God, 54 faithful from different states of life, including children and people with disabilities, crossed the Holy Door before the cardinals and prelates and participated in the procession until the 'altar. They wore traditional outfits from their countries of origin: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Congo, South Korea, Egypt, Eritrea, Philippines, France, India, Iran, Italy, Malta, Mexico, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Slovakia, United States, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Venezuela and Vietnam.

In addition to certain cardinals, bishops and prelates concelebrating this Mass, four 'fraternal delegates' representing other Churches were able to pass through the Holy Door. Several representatives of civil authorities were present, including the mayor of Rome Roberto Gualtieri and the head of government Giorgia Meloni. For security reasons, the Door cannot at the moment be crossed by the other faithful gathered inside the basilica. The Christmas Eve mass continues at the altar of Confession.

On December 26, Pope Francis will open a second Holy Door at Rebibbia prison, northeast of Rome, where he has already visited several times. This penitentiary establishment is famous for having welcomed Pope John Paul II in 1983 who came to pardon the terrorist Mehmet Ali Agça, who had attempted to assassinate him two years earlier.

The rite of opening the Holy Doors of the three other major basilicas will subsequently be carried out by their respective archpriests and not by the Pope: on December 29, 2024, contrary to what he had indicated in the bull Hope does not disappointit is not Francis but Cardinal Baldassare Reina who will open the Holy Door of Saint John Lateran, the cathedral of the diocese of Rome.

On January 1, 2025, it will be the turn of Polish Cardinal Stanisław Ryłko to open the Holy Door of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major. Finally, the Holy Door of the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls will be opened on January 5 by Cardinal James Michael Harvey.

Unlike the approach proposed during the Jubilee of Mercy of 2015-2016, this time it was not proposed to other dioceses to set up their own Holy Doors. Jubilee opening masses must nevertheless be celebrated in all cathedrals around the world, in principle on Sunday December 29.