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The Archdiocese of Armagh officially launched Jubilee Year 2025, themed Pilgrims of Hope, with a special Mass celebrated at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh on Sunday. Archbishop Eamon Martin presided over the Mass, concelebrated alongside auxiliary Bishop Michael Router, and attended by His Excellency Archbishop Luis Mariano Montemayor, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland.
A Jubilee Year, celebrated every 25 years, is a time for Catholics worldwide to reflect, rejuvenate spiritually, and show mercy. It also offers the faithful an opportunity to receive a plenary indulgence. In his homily, Archbishop Martin highlighted the theme of hope, stating, “There couldn't be a better time for a Jubilee Year of Hope. We live in a world where anxiety, doubt and despair often appear to have an upper hand.” He echoed Pope Francis’s call for believers to be “fearless ambassadors of faith and hope.”
The Jubilee Year will include pilgrimages, parish prayer initiatives, and celebrations of significant anniversaries, such as the 400th anniversary of Saint Oliver Plunkett’s birth and the centenary of Venerable Matt Talbot’s death.
Looking ahead, Archbishop Martin announced preparations for a Diocesan Congress on Youth and Family Ministry in March 2026. Bishop Router noted that the Congress aims to strengthen youth and family ministry, saying, “Over the coming months, parishes and schools will select delegates to represent them, ensuring broad participation in order to shape the future of youth and family ministry in the Archdiocese of Armagh.”
Archbishop Martin concluded, “As the Jubilee Year's theme suggests, during 2025 we are all invited to be pilgrims of hope in our daily lives, renewing our commitment to faith, love, and service.”
