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THE JUBILEE DOOR The Jubilee Door, or Holy Door, is of extreme significance. In John 10:7-9 Jesus says, “I am the door,” and "whoever enters through Me will be saved" (John 10:9). In other words, He is the door to everlasting life in heaven. At Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome, there is a Holy Door that was sealed until the Pope opened it on Christmas Eve, 1999, to formally begin the Great Jubilee Year 2000. It will remain open until January 6 (Epiphany), 2001. The Holy Door also represents the heart of the believer, which must be opened to Christ.
The current Holy Door was a gift by Swiss Catholics in 1949 as an offering of thanksgiving to God for being spared the atrocities of World War II. It was installed and opened in the Jubilee Year of 1950.
This Holy Door is decorated with 16 biblical scenes of redemption and forgiveness, with a special focus on the mercy parables of the Gospels. The first two scenes represent Adam and Eve and the expulsion from the Garden of Eden. This "closing of the door" is overcome, however, in the next two scenes, which depict the Annunciation of the birth of Christ. Next come a series of scenes from Jesus' public life: his Baptism, the parables of the Lost Sheep and the Prodigal Son, the curing of a paralytic, and the pardon of a sinner. The next two scenes are of St. Peter: "How many times must I forgive my brother?" and his denial of Christ and Jesus' pardon of him. The 12th scene represents the Good Thief, symbolizing that salvation is open to all who ask for it. This is followed by St. Thomas, healed of his lack of faith, and an image of the sacrament of Reconciliation. The conversion of St. Paul is shown in the second-to-last image, while the final scene is that of Pope Pius XII opening the Holy Door in 1950. In Tertio Millennio Adveniente, John Paul II addresses the symbolism of the Holy Door: "The Holy Door of the Jubilee of the Year 2000 should be symbolically wider than those of previous Jubilees, because humanity, upon reaching this goal, will leave behind not just a century but a millennium. The Church should make this passage with a clear awareness of what has happened to her during the last ten centuries. She cannot cross the threshold of the new millennium without encouraging her children to purify themselves, through repentance of past errors and instances of infidelity, inconsistency, and slowness to act." |
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