Saturday, Dec. 28 will be an exciting day for the Diocese of Phoenix, as Bishop John Dolan celebrates the first of six opening Masses to kick-off his seven-year pastoral plan on evangelization throughout the diocese and officially open the 2025 Jubilee Year.
The inaugural Mass will be celebrated at 4:30 p.m. at Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral in Phoenix in tandem with Pope Francis’ decree for every diocesan bishop to “celebrate Holy Mass as the solemn opening of the Jubilee Year” in every cathedral and co-cathedral throughout the world that same weekend, which he announced in his Bull of Indiction for the Jubilee 2025, Spes non confundit.
The subsequent Masses will take place at 10:00 a.m. on Dec. 29 at St. Anthony’s in Sacaton, 4:00 p.m. on Dec. 31 at St. Mary’s Basilica in Phoenix, 10:00 a.m. on Jan. 1 at St. Mary’s in Kingman, 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 4 at Chapel of the Holy Cross in Sedona and 9:00 a.m. on Jan. 5 at Sacred Heart Parish in Prescott.
Bishop Dolan will be traveling throughout the diocese to personally celebrate and preside over all six Jubilee Site opening Masses. Photo albums capturing each special Mass will be available on the Diocese of Phoenix Facebook page.
Each parish was handpicked and decreed a Jubilee Site for the duration of the 2025 Jubilee Year by Bishop Dolan, who intentionally selected at least one church in every county of the nearly 44,000 square mile diocese so that every person of good will might have the opportunity to make an intentional pilgrimage during this special Church year.
A notable feature of the pilgrimage sites will be the Peace Pole, an 8-foot-tall pole embossed with the words “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in multiple languages—including English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Hebrew, Aramaic, Polish, O’odham (an Indigenous language of central and southern Arizona) and Ukrainian—which will be planted in the ground outside each of the designated churches. This tradition is part of the Peace Pole Project, which was founded in 1955 in Japan and has spread to almost every country in the world. Before each opening Mass, Bishop Dolan will bless the Peace Pole, and process with the congregation into the church.
When visiting the Jubilee Sites, be sure to also keep an eye out for a placard outside the church with a unique QR code. When scanned, the visitor will receive a virtual puzzle piece and when put together the six pieces from each Jubilee Site unveil a beautiful image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. As a gift from Bishop Dolan, all those who visit all six pilgrimage sites and complete the puzzle will receive a special gift related to the image.
“Making a pilgrimage to one of these sites, or to all six if you are able, is a wonderful opportunity to get to the know beauty of our diocese with friends and family and to receive the many graces our Lord has in store for us,” shared Bish1op Dolan.
“I look forward to journeying with you in these next seven years,” he continued. “Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!”
Information on making a pilgrimage during the 2025 Jubilee Year, indulgences associated with a pilgrimage to a Jubilee Site, and all other pertinent information related to Bishop Dolan’s seven-year pastoral plan on evangelization can be found at dphx.org/tilma
