Greensburg Diocese marks Jubilee Year of Hope and prepares for 75th anniversary

By PATRICK CLOONAN pcloonan@indianagazette.net

A Jubilee Year of Hope, “Pilgrims of Hope,” was opened on Christmas Eve at the Vatican by Pope Francis, who opened a Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica before a Mass marking the Nativity of Christ.

“O Christ, bright star of the morning, incarnation of infinite love, long awaited salvation, sole hope of the world, illumine our hearts with your radiant splendor,” the pope prayed.

As observed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Greensburg, such a jubilee year is proclaimed every 25 years, to encourage the faithful to embark on pilgrimages, repent of their sins, forgive the sins of others and renew a focus on their spiritual lives.

In the Diocese of Greensburg, Bishop Larry J. Kulick will open the local observance of the 2025 Jubilee Year with a Solemn Mass of the Jubilee Sunday at 3 p.m. at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in Greensburg.

Kulick says the Holy Father is asking the faithful to use the year to focus their hope on the future through Christian discipleship rooted in their baptism, in which their eyes are fixed on the world to come, leading to the gift of salvation, intentionally moving as pilgrims in a specific spiritual direction.

“Every Jubilee Year calls us to understand how we are disciples and how our lives must be centered on Christ,” the bishop said. “Christ is our hope. Not only is He our hope, but He also accompanies us on our pilgrimage, and He is indeed the source of hope. Christ is the destination to which our hope points — eternal life.”

The celebration surrounding that Jubilee Mass will begin in the lower level of the Westmoreland Museum of American Art, a short distance from the cathedral at 221 North Main Street.

There the blessing of a Jubilee Cross will take place, along with a reading of the Papal Bull, or decree, after which the bishop will then lead the faithful to the doors of the cathedral.

The Jubilee Cross, created by Deacon William Hisker, will be a focal point for the yearlong celebration in the Diocese, which includes Indiana, Westmoreland, Armstrong and Fayette counties, following Pope Francis’ direction that each diocese designate or create a cross that is spiritually significant and representative of each diocese.

A spokesman for the diocese said Deacon Hisker’s Jubilee Cross includes hardwood from Blessed Sacrament Cathedral and contains soil from the four counties of the Diocese.

Included on the cross is the Latin word for hope, spes. The letters are made from stainless steel manufactured at Allegheny Teledyne in Vandergrift; there are also elements of glass, aluminum and coal, all representing the industrial heritage of the diocese.

There also are seeds representing the agricultural history of the Diocese.

Kulick said he believes the church is on the cusp of renewal and prays that the faithful will take advantage of the many opportunities the diocese plans for pilgrimages, reconciliation, Eucharistic Adoration, and faith formation.

He also expressed the hope that “those who do not know Christ may find Him. That those who know Christ will love Him even more and that we, together as a Church, may go forward in a positive, energetic way with a clear vision of embracing with joy and hope the mission entrusted to us and not to have doubt, not to have fear and not to second guess ourselves.”

The upcoming jubilee year also is meant to lay the groundwork for the diamond jubilee or 75th anniversary of the diocese in 2026.

The diamond jubilee celebration will begin with the beginning of the 2025-26 church year in Advent of 2025.