Jubilee 2025: Year of Hope
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DIVINE MERCY WILL BE MAKING PILGRIMAGES TO THE OTHER NINE (9) DIOCESAN PILGRIM CHURCHES DURING THE YEAR OF HOPEParishioners who are interested in riding by bus to these churches, the cost is $20 per person. The mini bus holds up to 27 people but if there is enough interest we will entertain renting a full size coach bus. For those interested in riding by bus, please contact Toni in the rectory to be added to the list.
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SAVE THE DATES
Diocesan Pilgrimages with Bishop McManus to each
of the ten Jubilee Pilgrim Churches During 2025Jan. 26th: Divine Mercy Parish at St. Paul’s Church, Blackstone MA
Feb. 23rd: Our Lady of the Rosary at Mary Queen of the Rosary, Spencer MA
March 23rd: St. Joseph Basilica, Webster MA
May 11th: St. Matthew, Southboro MA
June 15th: St. Cecilia, Leominster MA
June 29th: Ecumenical Vespers at St. Paul Cathedral, Worcester MA
Sept. 14th: St. John the Evangelist Church at St. John, Guardian of Our Lady, Clinton MA
Oct. 19th: Sacred Heart of Jesus, Milford MA
Nov. 2nd: Notre Dame Church at St. John Paul II Parish, Southbridge MA
Dec. 7th: Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church at Annunciation Parish, Gardner MASACRAMENT OF RECONCILATION 3PM VESPERS @ 4PM
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Jubilee PrayerDiocese of Worcester
Merciful Father,
protector of all who hope on you:
you sent your Only Son
to rescue us from sin and death,
and through his Cross have joined us
to the wonder of your mercy.
May this, our Diocesan Jubilee,
move sinners to repentance,
heal the broken and ashamed,
and restore the lost to your embrace.
Bless us on our pilgrim way,
preserve us in your love.
Defend us from all evil,
that freed from sin,
we may rejoice in
the immeasurable depth of your forgiving love.
We ask this through Christ, your Son,
for whom we wait in joyful hope
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Jubilee Year of Hope: from the Feast of the Holy Family,Sunday, December 29, 2024 to Sunday, December 28, 2025.
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Jubilee 2025: Year of Hope
Each month throughout the Jubilee year, Bishop McManus will make a pilgrimage to each of the ten designated pilgrim churches in the Worcester Diocese. His first pilgrimage will be here at Divine Mercy on Sunday, January 26th. All parishes throughout the diocese are invited to join the bishop on these pilgrimages. The visit will include Vespers at 4pm, with the Sacrament of Reconciliation offered by visiting deanery priests. Vespers will be followed by a lite meal consisting of Soup/Bread and Desserts in the Parish Center Lower Hall.
WHAT IS A JUBILEE YEAR?
The tradition of jubilee has its roots in the Old Testament and was intended to be a time to reset: to re-establish a proper relationship with God, each other, and all of creation. Jubilee years are characterized especially by prayer, good works, pilgrimages to sacred sites, cultural events and special indulgences for those who participate. Pope Francis announced that the Church’s Jubilee year 2025 “will be a Holy Year marked by a lively experience of grace and an opportunity to be renewed in the hope that does not fade, our hope in God.” Pilgrims of Hope Jubilee presents Catholics all over the world with a wonderful opportunity to be renewed in the light of Christian hope amid the challenges of our world today. This jubilee year begins on December 29, 2024 and will conclude on December 28, 2025.
JUBILEE 2025 - WE ARE PILGRIMS OF HOPE!
A pilgrimage is both an outer journey to a sacred place, and an inner journey to meet Christ and deepen our relationship with Him. For that reason, Pope Francis desires that this Jubilee Year be a time “to encourage and sustain the hope that guides our steps towards the goal of a genuine, personal encounter with the risen Lord Jesus, who is not only the destination of our earthly pilgrimage but also a constant presence in our lives. I invite everyone to place their trust in the Lord who not only guides us, but is God-with-us, who loves us and walks with us in every circumstance of life. He shows us the path of love, lifts us up when we fall and supports us in our labors, and fills us with hope.” Pope Francis also tells us, we are invited to bear witness to the faith and love that dwells in our hearts; that our faith may be joyful and our charity enthusiastic and that each of us may be able to offer a smile, a small gesture of friendship, a kind look, a ready ear, a good deed, in the knowledge that, in the Spirit of Jesus, these can become, for those who receive them, rich seeds of hope.”
CELEBRATING JUBILEE AT THE LOCAL LEVEL...
Pope Francis has asked each diocese around the globe to celebrate the jubilee in their own way, including at local parishes. Bishop McManus has announced the ten local Pilgrimage Churches within the diocese where people can pilgrim to throughout 2025. Divine Mercy has been selected as one of these ten churches! To encourage engagement and spiritual gain, in addition to welcoming pilgrims weekly, Divine Mercy is organizing an array of events at our parish throughout the 2025 Year of Hope. For the Year of Hope, Divine Mercy is erecting a Pilgrim Station in the church for both visitors and parishioners. This station will be stocked with items to maximize time spent in the church in prayer, worship, discovering our church’s history and its newly formed parish. Groups or individuals are welcome to visit during the established weekly days and times. To record each pilgrimage church visited, Jubilee of Hope Passports are available at the Pilgrim Station for you to take.
Beginning the week of January 12th, Divine Mercy will be opening its doors to Pilgrims who are making their pilgrimages to the ten Pilgrim Churches within the Worcester Diocese during the the Jubilee 2025: Year of Hope. These scheduled dates will remain constant, unless a holiday falls on any of these days -
Sunday: From 2:30 pm until 3:30 pm Pilgrims are invited to recite the Divine Mercy Chaplet @ 3:00 pm.
Tuesday: 8:45 am until 9:45 am Pilgrims are invited to attend 7:30 am Rosary and 8:00 am Mass
Thursday: 5:00 pm until 6:00 pm Pilgrims are invited to attend 6;30 pm Mass, followed by Adoration.Divine Mercy is organizing pilgrimages to the other nine Pilgrim Churches! We will be renting an executive minibus, which holds up to 27 people to visit these churches. The cost to ride the bus is $20. per person. For those who prefer to drive themselves, we can meet you there! The dates for these monthly pilgrimages will be available soon.But Wait, there is more!In addition to pilgrimage opportunities, throughout the Jubilee year, Divine Mercy will be hosting guest speakers at our parish who will speak on various topics that will surely fill us with Hope and strengthen our Faith. We are working on a trip to The Shrine of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge for later in the year, and are organizing additional events/activities to enhance our Year of Hope!