Pope Francis, who opened the Jubilee Year 2025 on the evening of December 24, has arranged for the rest of the world's dioceses to do so on December 29, as a sign of communion with Rome. In the case of the Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela, the Cathedral hosted the liturgical ceremony for the opening of the Jubilee. "Pilgrims of Hope" is the motto chosen for the occasion, since, as the Pope indicates in the letter for the Jubilee 2025, "we must keep the flame of hope that has been given to us alight, and do everything possible so that everyone recovers the strength and certainty to look to the future with an open mind, a trusting heart and a broad vision. The next Jubilee can do much to reestablish a climate of hope and trust, as a sign of a new rebirth that we all perceive as urgent." The celebration, which began at 4:30 p.m. in the convent church of San Francisco, was presided over by the Archbishop of Santiago, Monsignor Francisco Prieto, and the first rites were performed, under the name of "Collectio". Then, the liturgical procession set off to the Plaza del Obradoiro, to access the Cathedral through the Portico of Glory. The procession was headed by the jubilee cross, which in this case was the same cross that was inaugurated for the opening of the Holy Door on December 31, 2020. It is a work made by the Ramón González Orfebres workshop, designed by the goldsmith from Santiago de Compostela Antonio R. González Porto. The figure of the cross arises from an apparently casual crossing of links in a chain, evoking the encounter between cultures, races, languages ​​and also individuals who make up a cross that wants to welcome them all. Once inside the Cathedral, the Solemn Mass took place, also presided over by Archbishop Francisco Prieto, with the participation of the Cardinal Archbishop Emeritus of Buenos Aires, Mons. Mario Aurelio Poli; the Archbishop Emeritus of Santiago de Compostela, Mons. Julián Barrio; the Archbishop Emeritus of Tangier, Mons. Santiago Agrelo Martínez; as well as the Vicar General, the Vicar of Pastoral, the territorial Vicars, rectors and trainers of the Major and Minor Seminaries, archpriests, priests, members of the Cathedral Chapter, deacons, members of the Consecrated Life and lay people from all over the Diocese. In his homily, the archbishop stressed that hope has only one name, Christ the Lord, and invited the diocesans to reflect on the reasons for maintaining hope, even in difficult times: “We can continue to harbor hope in the heart of each one of us, in the heart of our families, of our communities, in the heart of this humanity.” Bishop Prieto invited the faithful to look to Bethlehem and Nazareth as symbols of hope and incarnate love: “Every Christmas is the door that God opens again to the hope of humanity and reminds it that in the eyes and hearts of the simple is where salvation awaits us.” He highlighted the hope harbored by Joseph and Mary, and how God placed definitive hope in the hearts of Mary and Joseph to care for and accompany. The archbishop encouraged those present to be sowers of hope and to carry the pilgrim’s backpack only with the seeds of the Gospel. “Let us load our backpack only with the seeds of that Kingdom of God that invites us to sow like true artisans. “Peace and justice, truth and love.” In his message, the prelate from Santiago de Compostela stressed the importance of synodality and of walking together in communion: “During this Jubilee year, let us truly be sowers, witnesses, disciples, doors of hope that are Christ the Lord.” And he invited the faithful to be facilitators of encounter and reconciliation, becoming open doors and not walls. “May hope be reborn in each one of you as the gift of God. May hope be reborn as the task entrusted to us. The door is open, it is a door of grace. Let us go through it, let us open it, let us open the doors of our lives, because the grace and gift of God are poured out abundantly,” said Monsignor Prieto. The archbishop concluded by inviting the diocesans to embrace the Jubilee with joy and dedication. Throughout 2025, the Cathedral will be a Jubilee temple, where the Plenary Indulgence can be obtained by fulfilling the established requirements (sacramental confession; celebration of the Holy Eucharist and Communion; and prayer for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff). The Jubilee is the Holy Year that the Pope periodically convenes since 1300 and which makes Rome a destination for millions of pilgrims from all over the world. The interval between Jubilees has changed several times throughout history, but is currently 25 years.