General

Jubilee of the Poor USCCB Resource Packet (English)

Pilgrims on the Way of Hope: A Resource for the Jubilee of the Poor

Jubilee 2025: Pilgrims of Hope 
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 
Jubilee of the Poor: Resource Packet 

November 16, 2025 

INTRODUCTION & OVERVIEW 

A Jubilee Year is an important and historical event in the life of the Church designed for the faithful to experience God’s loving mercy in a special way. Traditionally, a Jubilee is proclaimed every twenty-five years, and the activities include pilgrimages, processions, special celebrations of Mass, and an invitation to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This year’s Jubilee theme is “Pilgrims of Hope” and it begins on Christmas Eve 2024, in Rome, and concludes the following year on the Epiphany in 2026. The Jubilee’s activities are meant to encourage Catholics to both receive God’s mercy and invite participation in acts of mercy in our daily lives and communities. Pope Francis specifically asks us to consider working for peace and an end to conflicts, promoting human life, showing amnesty to prisoners, upholding the dignity of migrants, healing the sick, and accompanying the elderly. 

The Holy See has designated a number of Jubilee Days throughout 2025 to recognize and celebrate different groups of people and various ministries in the Church. In the Catholic tradition, one of the ways we live out the call to discipleship is through honoring the inherent human dignity of each person. We are called to observe a preferential option for the poor and vulnerable, modeling our actions on the examples seen in scripture. God’s continual care for those most vulnerable in our society extends throughout salvation history and is a central tenet of the Gospel. So, in honoring the preferential option for the poor and vulnerable during the Jubilee Year, we are celebrating the dignity of each person and the contributions each person makes to this world. 

The Jubilee of the Poor will be held on Sunday, November 16, 2025, which is also the ninth World Day of the Poor; however, these resources can be used at any time throughout the Jubilee Year. 

Additional resources for the Jubilee of the Poor and other celebrations can be found online at the USCCB Jubilee Year web pages: available in English at https://www.usccb.org/committees/ jubilee-2025 and available in Spanish at https:// www.usccb.org/es/committees/jubileo-2025.

FOR MORE, PLEASE CONTNUE TO THE LINK BELOW.

Jubilee Pilgrims on the Way of Hope the Poor.pdf