The Papal Bull for the Jubilee begins with the phrase “Spes Non Confundit” (“Hope does not disappoint”), taken from Romans 5:5. Pope reflects on the centrality of hope for this Jubilee, an event celebrated every 25 years.

Everyone knows what it is to hope. In the heart of each person, hope dwells as the 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 trust to anxiety. Many people are discouraged and pessimistic about the future. In this context, the Pope invites everyone to let the Jubilee be a time for renewal in hope, drawing strength from God’s Word to find reasons for optimism.

In His Bull, Pope Francis quoted St. Paul who emphasizes that hope is rooted in the love of God, revealed through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This hope sustains Christians through trials and is nourished by the Holy Spirit. Christian hope is steadfast because it is based on the certainty that nothing can separate us from God’s love.

The Bull helps us to reflects on the relationship between hope and patience. Life involves both joys and suffering, and Christian hope encourages perseverance through hardships. It highlights that patience is a virtue tied to hope, helping believers endure challenges with trust in God’s promises.

The Bull emphasizes the importance of living a life of hope, founded on God’s love and promises, and extending that hope through actions that care for and support others, particularly those in need such as the sick, the poor, the elderly, the young, the prisoners, the migrants and refugees and etc. Christians are encouraged to be signs of hope through charity and justice for each other.

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”. (To Read Papal Bull, Click Here)