Bishop Edward Malesic will conclude the Jubilee Year of Hope during the 5:30 p.m. Mass Dec. 28 in the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist.
Auxiliary Bishop Michael Woost and other priests from the diocese, including some of the 11 sacred sites, are expected to concelebrate the liturgy, which will be livestreamed.
Each of the sacred sites will bring its special Jubilee Year cross to the cathedral for the Mass. A representative from each site will process in with the cross, which be placed in the sanctuary. After Mass, the crosses will be returned to the sites, which include eight parishes – one in each county in the diocese – and three shrines.
The sacred sites designated by Bishop Malesic are: St. Edward Parish, Ashland; Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, Cleveland; St. Mary Parish, Chardon; Immaculate Conception Parish, Madison; Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Lorain; St. Colette Parish, Brunswick; Queen of Heaven Parish, Uniontown; SS. Peter and Paul Parish, Doylestown; Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, Euclid; Queen of the Holy Rosary Shrine, Parma Heights and Shrine of St. Ann, Highland Heights.
According to Father Damian Ference, diocesan vicar for evangelization and parochial vicar at the cathedral, the Vatican has instructed that the bishop of each diocese celebrate the closing Mass in the cathedral and that the summons for the liturgy reach all the faithful.
The Jubilee Year, proclaimed by the late Pope Francis, opened on Dec. 29. 2024, the feast of the Holy Family. At the opening ceremony, Father Ference read from Pope Francis’ Bull of Indiction for the Jubilee Year, “Spes non confundit” (translation: Hope does not disappoint). Typically, there is a jubilee year every 25 years.
Bishop Malesic said the hope being talked about was directed toward God, who fulfills his promise. “Our hope in God is based on the witness of those who saw a dead man being buried – Jesus – alive again three days later. He lives,” he explained.
When the Jubilee Year of Hope opened, there was a prayer service at St. Peter Church in downtown Cleveland, followed by a procession with the Jubilee Year crosses to the cathedral. The bishops met the faithful on the front steps of the cathedral for a brief service before processing into the church for the Mass.
The Jubilee Year crosses feature an emblem with the jubilee logo, four stylized figures representing all of humanity coming from the four corners of the earth. They embrace each other to indicate the solidarity and fraternity that should unite all. The figure at the front holds a cross as a sign of the faith. There are rough waves under the figures to symbolize that life’s pilgrimage does not always go smoothly in calm waters. The lower part of the cross is an anchor, a symbol of hope. At the bottom of the logo is the motto for the 2025 jubilee year: “Peregrinages in Spem,” which translated from Latin to English means “Pilgrims of Hope.”