The year 2025 will be observed as a Jubilee Year centered on the theme “Pilgrims of Hope.” As Pope Francis so beautifully expressed it: "We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us and help everyone gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision."

Jubilee Years are traditionally proclaimed by the universal Church every 25 years since the first Jubilee was instituted by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300. Since then, the Church has designated each new Jubilee as a special year of grace and forgiveness, offering the faithful an opportunity to obtain a plenary indulgence.

The Jubilee Year 2025 marks the 2,025th anniversary of the Incarnation of our Lord. Also 2025 marks the 1700th anniversary of an event of great spiritual, ecclesial, and social significance in the life of the Church: the first Ecumenical Council, the Council of Nicaea. The Trinitarian and Christological confession of that Council the Nicene Creed is recited every Sunday by the faithful and acknowledges Jesus to be “true God from true God” and “consubstantial with the Father.”

The Creed, faithful to the witness of the Scriptures, affirms that Jesus is really God, living among us, but also really a human being, born into a particular time and place in history and dying a real, historical death. This means that God did not think it compromises His power and majesty to come and share our lives. This belief informs our hope and directs us on our pilgrimage to our eternal destiny with God.

For centuries a feature of Holy Year celebrations has been the granting of an indulgence, which the Church describes as a remission of the temporal punishment a person is due for their sins. The basic conditions to gain an indulgence are that a person is "moved by a spirit of charity," is "purified through the sacrament of penance and refreshed by Holy Communion" and prays for the pope.

As “pilgrims of hope” we pray that united in one faith in Jesus Christ and enflamed with charity by the Holy Spirit this Jubilee will reawaken our hope in the coming of the Kingdom of God.

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St. Mary Star of the Sea (1010 Windsor Lane, Key West) has been designated as a special place for prayer this year.

San Pablo’s Women's Club has arranged for a trip to St. Mary’s Star of the Sea Church in Key West on April 9, 2025.

A tour of the cathedral will happen at 11:00 am followed by a Mass offered by Father Marino and Father Oscar at 11:30am.

Questions? Please call Sharon Starling (517) 474-4155

San Pablo’s mandatory Goal is $50,818.00.

We have collected $26,917 so far, which is 53% of our goal!

Please keep donating to ABCD 2025!

ABCD - The ABCD supports the essential ministries that allow the Church to serve and reach those in need. From faith formation and outreach programs to supporting our seminarians and clergy, the ABCD enables us to continue fulfilling our mission to spread the Gospel and care for our community. Your generosity helps ensure that these vital programs can continue to impact lives and bring hope to many.

Make a difference by donating to www.isupportABCD.com.

This Lent, as we reflect on God’s gifts to us, we invite you to prayerfully consider how you can make a planned gift to support the mission of the Church. Whether through a bequest in your will, a charitable gift annuity, or another option, your generosity will leave a lasting impact.

For more information on how you can make a planned gift, please get in touch with us via email at Kblanco@theadom.org or please visit www.adomgift.org.

As we continue our Lenten journey, we are invited to reflect on the ways in which we respond to God’s call to stewardship. This season of Lent, a time of prayer, penance, and sacrifice, is an opportunity for us to examine how we use the gifts God has entrusted to us: our time, talents, and treasure. Stewardship is about more than giving; it is about living in gratitude, recognizing that everything we have is a gift from God, and using those gifts for His glory.

Scripture Insights

This week’s readings include Luke’s narration of the transfiguration of Jesus into his full glory. As breathtaking as this episode is, the verse that I find most striking in today’s readings contains Paul’s description of those he calls “enemies of the cross of Christ” (Phil 3:18).

In the Letter to the Philippians, he claims, “Their God is their stomach” (3:19).

Is there a more poignant way of illustrating the instability of greed in many parts of the Western twenty-first-century world?
Paul urges the Philippians and us to seek our identity and destination in Christ. The apostle calls us to live like Jesus, a model of simplicity and generosity (the opposite of greed) for which he himself strives.

Luke’s Gospel blesses us with Peter, James and John’s glimpse of the true nature of Jesus, the Christ and Son of God. He clarifies, however, that this is not where we remain. Truth may be revealed to us on the mountain, but we cannot stay there. Our vocation is with our people humankind who needs us as we need each other. Our call is to “listen to him” (9:36) and bring this revelatory truth into the grass roots. We need the glory of God in Christ, and the Triune God asks that we listen to the One who appeared in glory.

The faithful beauty of this summons is grounded in God’s call of Abraham, our father and the model of faith, to covenant relationship. We must be open to God’s plan for us at every moment of our lives. Abraham was called to leave all he knew to follow God. The generational benefits of that new relationship are only beginning to be manifested.

Each of us have “wow” moments like the transfiguration and they can be really powerful touchpoints to help ground us, but we also cant rely on those moments to sustain us forever. It takes continuous effort and intentionality. But we can lean on memories as touchpoints when we persevere through more difficult times.

One of the shifts that Jesus brought about was to shatter the clear, bold line between holy and unholy. In Jesus we realize that to be human is to be holy. To care for the human needs in ourselves and in our neighbor is to build the kingdom of heaven.