Vatican Jubilee Updates - Beginning in December Pope Francis will Open 5 Holy Doors Including One in a Prison!

At 10.30 am today, at the Holy See Press Office, in Via della Conciliazione 54, the Press Conference for the presentation of cultural events, concerts and exhibitions took place, scheduled in Rome before the official opening of the Jubilee, on December 24, and the Pavilion of the Holy See at Expo Osaka 2025. They intervened: H.E. Mons. Rino Fisichella, Pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, Section for Fundamental Issues of Evangelization in the World; Dr. Barbara Jatta, Director of the Vatican Museums; and Dr. Davide Mambriani, Curator of the Cultural Review “Jubilee is culture”, for concerts and exhibitions.

Mons. Rino Fisichella announced:

The wait for the opening of the Holy Door, on December 24, becomes feverish. It is a deadline that will start a Holy Year that will bring millions of pilgrims to Rome. The city has prepared to offer an even more beautiful face than Rome already is and little by little you will see disappearing the construction sites that in recent months have put a strain on the patience of all.

At 7 p.m. on December 24, Pope Francis will preside at the Holy Eucharist in St. Peter’s Square and will follow with the rite for the opening of the Holy Door. He will first cross the threshold of the Door and invite us to follow his example to those who come during the Year, to express the joy of the encounter with “Christ Jesus, our hope” (1 Tim 1:1). The announcement of the opening of the celebration will be given by a short Bell Concert by the Pontifical Foundry of Campane Marinelli. The bells are the most dear sound to the people and in this case they become the expression of the joyful announcement of an event awaited for a long time and finally arrived.

Pope Francis first intends to become a “Pilgrim of hope” and, in this way, as he wrote in the Bull, on December 26, the Feast of St. Stephen, will be in the Roman prison of Rebibbia to open in that place, a symbol of all the prisons scattered around the world, the Holy Door, a tangible sign of the proclamation of hope. (The other Holy Doors (4) of the 2025 Jubilee are found in the Basilica of St. Peter, the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, the Basilica of St. Mary Major, and the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.)

As he himself kept writing, in the Bull of Indiction of the Jubilee, Spes non confundit: “In the Jubilee Year we will be called to be tangible signs of hope for so many brothers and sisters who live in conditions of discomfort. I think of the detainees who, lacking freedom, experience every day, in addition to the harshness of imprisonment, the affective vacuum, the restrictions imposed and, in not a few cases, the lack of respect. I propose to the Governments that in the Year of the Jubilee take initiatives that restore hope; forms of amnesty or condemnation of the penalty aimed at helping people to regain self-confidence and in society; paths of reintegration into the community to which corresponds a concrete commitment to the observance of the laws” (Snc 10). Starting from this horizon, in recent weeks, on September 11, we signed an Agreement with the Minister of Justice of the Italian Republic, the Hon. Carlo Nordio, and the Government Commissioner, the Hon. Roberto Gualtieri, to make effective, during the Jubilee Year, forms of reintegration for different prisoners through their use in social commitment activities.

For some days it has been available online, and constantly updated with the acquisition of the various initiatives proposed by different bodies from all over the world, the general jubilee calendar, different from that of the “big events” that had been published first to provide more immediate information. It is advisable to make the most of the portal and the Jubilee App to verify the wealth of information. This general calendar has been divided into three categories: the “Pilgrimage” category to indicate the Dioceses and the various realities that have already been inscribed; the category “Cultural Event”; and the category “Great Event”. In this way we hope that it will be easier to have a mapping, as complete as possible, of the many initiatives for the entire Holy Year.

Today’s conference has two moments: one concerns the presentation of the program of the upcoming cultural events collected under the expression: “The Jubilee is culture”; the second the Osaka, Japan Expo 2025.

It will be remembered the great success that the exhibition of El Greco in Sant’Agnese in Piazza Navona in September 2023 will be remembered with the presence of over 270,000 visitors. This, last June, was followed by another great event: the exhibition of the famous “Christ of St. John of the Cross” by Salvador Dali, combined with the sketch made by St. John of the Cross himself, to whom Dali had said he was inspired for his work. The exhibition was held in the church of San Marcello al Corso which collects another famous crucifix, and the event, which was more than an exhibition because it helped to reflect, contemplate and pray, saw the presence of about 330,000 people in the short period of time of 40 days. Along with these, I like to remember the symphony “From the new world” by Antonin Dvorak, performed by the orchestra “I virtuosi di Kiev” in November last year; together with Handel’s “Messiah” in the beautiful setting of the church of St. Ignazio performed by “I Musici del gran principe” of Florence. Last April we proposed a Film Festival entitled “Faces and Counter-Evolts of Hope” at the Cinema delle Province, with twelve historical and highly suggestive screenings that saw the influx of more than 2200 spectators in a week. I like to remember that this Sala, last month, won the Carlo Lizzani Prize at the Venice Film Festival, “for the commitment made in the promotion of Italian independent cinema and in the realization of initiatives aimed at inclusion in the complicated reality of the Capital”. Who knows that the proposed initiative was not also a piece to help the jury to confer the prestigious award especially in a period like ours that sees a crisis of the film system.

The way of beauty presents itself once again as a path to be pursued as a form of evangelization that manages to involve so many people, believers and not, but all eager to taste and contemplate the beauty produced by the creative genius of people who with their art still speak a universal language today.

The approach of the opening of the Jubilee Year pushes us to present new initiatives that will allow us to enter more effectively into the journey of the Holy Year. The first event will be the concert at the Auditorium in Via della Conciliazione, next Sunday, November 3rd, at 6 pm. For the occasion, the Orchestra of the Accademia di Santa Cecilia will perform the Fifth Symphony of the Russian composer Dimitri Shostakovich (1906-1975), conducted by Maestro Jader Bignamini, currently musical director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. The Symphony, made in 1937, is perhaps little known to the general public, but it is striking for its intense drama and opens up a horizon of hope. Dr. Davide Mambriani will present this event more extensively.

On December 22nd, at 6.00 p.m., at the Church of Sant’Ignazio di Loyola, you can attend the second musical event. To perform will be the Choir of the Pontifical Musical Chapel “Sistina” which, under the guidance of the conductor, Don Marcos Pavan, will perform several polyphonic compositions of Palestrina (1525-1594; next year the 500 years of his birth will be celebrated), Perosi and Bartolucci. This moment will allow us to live the days before the immediate opening of the Jubilee in the light of a genuine contemplation of the mystery of faith.

I am particularly pleased to announce that in addition to these two musical moments there will be three other exhibition events: on November 27th it will be open to the public, until 27 January 2025, the exhibition with the White Crucifixion by Marc Chagall. We managed to get from The Art Institute in Chicago the work so suggestive and unique, which for the first time arrives in Italy, in Rome, and will be hosted in the new Museum of the Corso - Polo museale, in the headquarters of Palazzo Cipolla, with free and free admission, every day from 10.00 to 20.00. I am particularly grateful to Director James Rondeau for his full availability to my request made last June and I am sure he will find a great response from the public. A word of special thanks goes to the President Franco Parasassi of Fondazione Roma who immediately came to meet our request and wanted to make the reopening of Palazzo Cipolla, as the new Museum Pole, coincide with this extraordinary event. Art has no boundaries and is positive in collaboration for the good of all. I will give the floor to Dr. David Mambriani to expose in a more extensive way.

The second event sees the exhibition of some rare icons owned by the Vatican Museums that will be exhibited in the magnificent sacristy of Borromini in the Church of San’Agnese in Piazza Navona, from December 16 to February 16, 2025. Why an exhibition of icons? Because the icon represents not just a painting. It becomes an authentic scripture where you can read the history of salvation. The symbolism of the icon reflects the life of the Church; a history of traditions that from generation to generation has been able to transmit not only the faith, but with it the technique, the colors, the appearance ... and how much it served to make the icon object of prayer, worship and veneration. The icon for this becomes an instrument of universal evangelization, an evocative of a holiness that always refers to the central mystery of faith. It was necessary for the Jubilee to also welcome this experience, which is the result of two years of work among experts. I will give the floor to the Director of the Vatican Museums, Dr. Barbara Jatta, to whom a special thanks goes because, although I had to leave for the United States in a few hours, she did not want to give up this public moment.

The third event will be the now traditional Exhibition of 100 Nativity Scenes in the Vatican. In the evocative Bernini Colonnade, sall 8 December 2024 to 6 January 2025, the eighth edition of the International Exhibition will find space that every year is enriched with new Nativity scenes and increasingly numerous participation. As you know, every year a different country, depending on the historical moment, becomes a partner of this exhibition. This year, the Year of the Jubilee, Rome will be directly involved because for more than twelve months it will be the focus of the world’s attention.

Let’s now move on to the second major theme of this press conference: the Osaka Expo, the Universal Exposition in Japan to be held from April 13 to October 13, 2025. It is now usual for the Holy See to participate. He will do it on this occasion with his Pavilion. Better to say that the Holy See Pavilion will be housed in the Pavilion of Italy. It is an obligation for me to thank the Italian Government in the person of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Hon. Antonio Tajani, who immediately accepted our invitation. When on November 18, 2023, Pope Francis appointed me as Commissioner General for the Holy See, the times were now so tight that there was no longer much exhibition space. The generosity of the Government and the Minister have made it possible to resolve the issue and we are particularly grateful for this. I thank at the same time S. E. Ambassador Mario Vattani, Commissioner General of Italy for EXPO 2025, and the architect Mario Cucinella who designed the Italian Pavilion. Their almost daily attention is of great help and satisfaction. I am also pleased to greet the presence of the Ambassador to the Holy See, His Excellency Chiba Akira, who follows our steps closely and with sure support.

The theme of the Holy See Pavilion will be: “Beauty brings Hope”. represents a universal message that is intended to be shared with all visitors. Beauty is a transforming force, it is able to touch people’s hearts, to awaken the desire for a better world. We have intentionally used the verb “door” which in this case has a twofold meaning: on the one hand, it indicates a dynamic movement, because it transmits access to hope; on the other hand, it intends to recall the Holy Door of the Jubilee, the “door” that opens to welcome anyone who seeks peace and reconciliation. We know that we have played with a term that is difficult to translate into other languages; in any case, at least in Italian conveys the message that we wanted to express.

It was directly Pope Francis who wished that the representative work of the Expo was the only work of Caravaggio preserved in the Vatican Museums: The Deposition of Caravaggio. Paradoxically, we intend to convey a message of hope. Faced with the drama of death, we know that there is faith in the resurrection, the true and real life that is given to believers in Christ. The Director of Museums will entertain us on the value of the work and once again, to them, our thanks for having granted Caravaggio to the Expo in the crucial period of the Jubilee.

In this context I am pleased to inform you that I have appointed two Vice-Commissioners in the person of Mons. Pietro Bongiovanni, Parish Priest of San Salvatore in Lauro in Rome, and Rev. P. Nuno Alexandre Henriques De Lima, Parish Priest of Tamatsukuri Catholic Church, St. Mary’s Cathedral of Osaka. I proceeded, moreover, as foreseen by the Statutes of the Expo to the appointment of some Ambassadors who will give prestige and prestige in the presence of the Holy See: the sculptors Etsuro Sotoo and Cecco Bonanotte, the conductor Tonomi Nishimoto, and the cartoonist Kan Takahama. I thank everyone for the availability shown and for the work of accreditation that their persons will allow to have towards the Holy See.

Finally, I am pleased to share the official logo of Expo 2025 of the Holy See.

The image represents a happy union between Christian symbols and Japanese culture. As you can see the dome of St. Peter, with the red of the rising Sun, to symbolize on one side the coming of Christ, light and redemption of the world and the sun of the flag of Japan. Below the black stripe, however, is a reference to the typically Japanese writing technique called Sumi-e. During the Expo different will be the cultural events that will be realized, but it will give timely information at a due moment after the study and implementation phase.

Last but not to go, I am pleased to present the mascot of the Jubilee and Osaka; it is Luce, created by the desire to live even within pop culture, so loved by our young people. Born from the creativity of Simone Legno, Luce is the mascot that will accompany us. As you can see, it is a pilgrim depicted with the typical elements of the pilgrim: the yellow k way to shelter from the elements; the dirty boots of earth on the road traveled; the missionary cross around the neck; the pilgrim’s stick and above all the bright eyes, symbol of the Hope of the heart.

The intervention of the Dr. by Davide Mambriani

As already said by His Excellency, the next concert of the musical festival “Harmonies of Hope” marks the third stage of the concert path that the Dicastery for Evangelization proposes in preparation for the Holy Year and the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica.

The choice of the Orchestra of the National Academy of St. Cecilia and the fifth symphony of Shostakovich are not accidental. This concert is the last of “profana” music before the beginning of the Holy Year and therefore has a particular relevance. The Orchestra of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia is one of the oldest and most renowned musical institutions in the world. It was founded in 1585 by Pope Sixtus V with the bull Ratione congruit, an official act of foundation of the Congregation of Musicians under the invocation of the Blessed Virgin and Saints Gregory and Cecilia, thus uniting among its patrons, next to the Virgin, the two musical saints par excellence. Gregory the Great is the one who traditionally established singing (Gregorian) and Cecilia, the virgin and martyr who, starting from the late Middle Ages, has progressively replaced David in the role of patroness of music. The partnership had already been formed in the mid-70s of the sixteenth century, on the pressure of a group of musicians that brought together the most important composers of the time active in Rome, among whom stands out the name of Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina of which we will celebrate the 500th anniversary of his birth during the jubilee year.

The Symphony no. 5 composed by Dmitri Sostakovic in 1937, divided into four movements for a staff of over 90 orchestra professors, will last a total of about 45 minutes. The Symphony is by far the most performed, known and beloved of the fifteen of Dmitry Šostakovič in 1937, divided into four movements for an orchestra of over 90 musicians, will have a total duration of about 45 minutes. The Symphony is by far the most performed, known and loved of Dmitri Shostakovich's fifteen. Fresh from the solemn panning of his previous work, the composer decided to withdraw the arduous, bold, expressionistic, ‘formalistic’ Symphony No. 4, which was by then completed and about to be performed, to opt, as well summarized by Franco Pulcini, for a more concise, squared and thematically simplified composition compared to the previous one.

Introduced by an incisive theme in the form of a canon, the first movement presents a very traditional bitematic shape in the exhibition section - a well-ritched theme follows a more explained and cantabile - but very complex in the development section. The strong contrasts are exacerbated in the bold Allegretto that follows, in the form of Scherzo, whose main theme is manifested by the biting prologue of a stylized Russian folk dance. The Largo, in ternary form, represents one of the most inspired and emotionally intense pages of the entire catalog of Šostakovičwhile the thunderous Allegro finale, not too much in the form of a rondo, alternates a martial theme well punctuated by the brass, with contrasting episodes, the last of which seems to constitute a pause for more intimate and private reflection, while a festive scene in the square takes place.

The composer of his symphony says: “The theme of my symphony is the development of the individual. I have considered as the central idea of the work, which is essentially lyrical from beginning to end, man with all his sufferings; the Final solves the tragedy and tension of the previous movements with a joyful and optimistic note. The concert will be held on Sunday 3 November at 6.00 p.m. at the Auditorium Conciliazione.

The fourth appointment of the Music Festival of the Jubilee is instead dedicated to sacred music, so to speak, of excellence. The performance of this concert, the last before the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter, was entrusted to the Sistine Pontifical Music Chapel that will perform a polyphonic concert. Sacred polyphony is the hallmarking style of the tradition of Catholic liturgical music and the Papal Musical Chapel is a first-rate institution in this field. The choir of the Sistine Chapel, officially founded in 1471 by Pope Sixtus IV - but on whose pre-existence it has now agreed - is the oldest choir in the world still in operation.

In addition to the operational role during the Papal Celebrations at St. Peter's Day, the choir carries out concert activities at an international level, both in its entirety and with the only section of white voices, thus carrying out a work of evangelization through the historical heritage of music for the liturgy. The choir of the Sistine Chapel is made up of 20 stable adult singers and about 35 children singers, the Pueri Cantores.

The concert conducted by Maestro Marcos Pavan is conceived as a musical and spiritual path that follows the liturgical year in the jubilee year and will perform antiphons, hymns, responsories, sequences and sacred motets dedicated to the particular moments of the liturgical year. The concert will also see the participation of the master Josep Solé Coll, first organist of the Papal Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican and organist for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, who will perform an interlude composed of a chapel master of the Pontifical Schola. An extraordinary concert that will allow you to pray listening to sacred music that goes from the ninth century to the twenty-first century, with a fundamental passage to the sixteenth century, composed by the masters of the Sistine Chapel and St. John Lateran.

Turning now to address the theme of the exhibitions of the Jubilee are to present the third art event, this time dedicated to Marc Chagall, which will see the White Crucifixion exhibited for the first time in Rome, a work with an extraordinary historical and symbolic value.

Marc Chagall (1887 – Saint-Paul-de-Vence, 1985), was one of the best-known French Russian painters of the 20th century. Forced to leave his homeland, he was always very close to it, although, for various reasons, he was aware that he could not establish himself. Chagall has become famous for his paintings that depict dreamlike and imaginative scenarios that are not, however, pigeonholed in a particular movement or current, but are an expression of a personal style that draws partly from the avant-gardes of the last century, and then overcome them. Reserved at the Art Institute of Chicago in the states, the painting of 1938 entitled Crocifissione Bianca represents a fundamental turning point for Chagall: it is in fact the first of an important series of compositions that present the image of Christ as a martyr and dramatically draw attention to the persecution and suffering of the Jewish people in the 1930s.

The painting shows the suffering of the Jews and Jesus. Violent conflicts are represented, such as the fire of synagogues. At the center of the image, Jesus is depicted, crucified and symbolically represented as a Jew, adorned with a prayer shawl. The Crucifixion Bianca reveals important influences of Italian art of the fourteenth century and constitutes an element of very important color value. This painting has thematic ties with the religious painting of the Renaissance, particularly with Michelangelo's works, but also brings references to the election of the Rembrandt Cross. In the White Crucifixion, Jesus crucified is surrounded by three biblical patriarchs and a matriarch, dressed in traditional Jewish clothing.

On the sides of the cross, Chagall illustrated the devastation of the pogroms: on the left, a village is looted and burned, forcing refugees to flee by boat, while the three figures bore under them, one of whom tightens the Torah, run away on foot. On the right, a synagogue and the Torah ark are on fire, while a mother comforts her child in the lower. Along with Pablo Picasso’s Guernica, the White Crucifixion is one of the most eloquent condemnations of the war and hatred of the 20th century, and his message is still dramatically current. The deep spiritual meaning of the work allows the visitor to immerse himself in a moment of extraordinary meditation that will make the fruition of the work a moment not only of exceptional artistic value but even more of introspection and reflection on the mystery of the cross that is arbor vitae and bearer of hope of redemption, resurrection after the atrocities and victory over death.

Source: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2024/10/28/0837/01663.html