Jesus said: “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for your persecutors. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?... So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Mt. 5:44-48. This command seems impossible, and it is impossi-ble for humans alone, but not for God who gives us sanctify-ing grace to participate in the glory and perfection of Jesus Christ in heaven, by ministering in Jesus‟ Sacred name here on earth. In today‟s Gospel Jesus reads from the Prophet Isaiah about his mission including proclaiming “liberty to captives and recovery to the blind… and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” This year acceptable to the Lord is a “year of jubilation.” The Jubilee Year occurred every fifty (50) years in ancient Israel, and slaves were set free, debt reduced or eliminated, and land was given to the poor. Jesus raises this to a higher lever and brings freedom from sin-slavery and gives us a share of his heavenly homeland through his Catholic Church which has proclaimed this Year of 2025 to be a Jubilee Year, a Jubilee Year of Hope for all those on pilgrimage to the Father‟s heavenly home. To enter the fullness of heaven we must be made perfect, purified from all sin and attachment to sin, and the Jubilee Year gives us extra opportunities for this process. Thus, we increase our pray for ourselves and our deceased loved ones who we hope died in the state of grace, that is, without any unconfessed mortal sin on their soul, but who need to make reparation for the damage their sins have caused to their soul and to their relationships. An example: if a person stole your car and crashed it, but then repented and said, “Sorry”, we need to forgive him, but we should also have him pay back what he can for the damages; we offer mercy and justice for the common good, and for the healing of his soul. In a sense, an “indulgence” would be to help him pay for the damage, and his bail, if the judge allows it. Christ is the Ultimate Judge and is the one who inspires us to help with his gift of mercy. Jesus said to the servant who did not show mercy to the other servant," "Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?‟ Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt.” Mt. 18: 33-35. If we do not repair the damage that our now absolved sins have caused by doing sufficient penance, we will have to “pay back the whole debt” in purgatory. Thank God Jesus Christ gives us the opportunity to show mercy even after our brothers and sisters have died in the Lord. When Jesus gave the power of the Keys to the Kingdom of God to St. Peter, the rock on which Jesus would build his Church, the Lord Jesus said to him, “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Cf. Mt. 16:16-19 The Pope, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, has the power to write the guidelines to help those in Purga-tory, where the fiery love of God, over time, purifies people of their sins. Yet, we can reduce that time for them and for ourselves by seeking indulgences which helps us to become holier.
An “indulgence” is the remission of temporal punishment due to sin which has al-ready been forgiven, assuredly in the Sacrament of Confession. A “plenary indulgence” (complete remission) can be applied to oneself or to a deceased person once a day by a baptized Catholic by following these steps:
1) Make a good confession - which means to confess the kind and number of all mortal sins committed since your last good confession (good for 21 days);
2) Pray for the Pope‟s intentions: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be;
3) Receive the Eucharist in the state of grace on the day of doing the indulgent work;
4) Complete the indulgent work (choose one): pray a family Rosary, read Sacred Scripture for 30 minutes (I suggest reading Mt. 5-7, the Sermon on the Mount), pray the Rosary before the tabernacle;
5) And the most difficult step is to be detached from all sin, even venial sin. Every time sin comes to mind, you must detest it and seek the opposite virtue. Since it is a Jubilee Year, the indulgent work choices above in #4 can be replaced by walking through the desig-nated Holy Doors in Vatican City, Italy, or prayerfully visit-ing the Archbishop‟s designated pilgrim sites: Cathedral of St. Paul or Basilica of St. Mary. Jesus said, “I am the door.” (Jn 10:7) For those who can‟t travel for the Jubilee Indulgence, you can offer up your difficulties and receive the indulgence after calling for a priest to receive the required sacraments and thus enter more deeply into Christ‟s mercy. With the completion of the above steps 1-3, and the partial completion of steps 4 or 5, a partial indulgence is granted. This work to release the poor souls in purgatory takes much faith, hope and charity, because we do not see immediate results. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) helps us to understand this great and merciful gift: CCC #1475: In the communion of the saints, “a peren-nial link of charity exists between the faithful who have already reached their heavenly home, those who are expiating their sins in purgatory and those who are still pilgrims on earth. Between them there is, too, an abundant exchange of all good things. In this wonderful exchange, the holiness of one profits others well beyond the harm that the sin of one could cause others. Thus, recourse to the communion of saints lets the contrite sinner be more promptly and efficaciously puri-fied of the punishment of sin.” Rejoice in God‟s mercy, and help the material and spiritual poor when you can, especially during this Jubilee Year 2025: Pilgrims of Hope, by following Jesus Christ who brings about “liberty for captives and recovery to the blind,” through his living Church. After freeing your loved one by applying a plenary indulgence to them, ask them to pray for you and those who are struggling in their faith journey.
Peace through Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Fr. Thomas McCabe