THE GREAT JUBILEE 2000

The tradition of the Jubilee dates back to the Old Testament. For the Israelites, the year of Jubilee was a time of joy, the year of remission or universal pardon. "Thou shalt sanctify the fiftieth year," we read in Leviticus 25:10, "and shalt proclaim remission to all the inhabitants of thy land: for it is the year of jubilee."

The year of Jubilee was known then as The Great Sabbatical Year and occurred every 50 years for according to Moses' law, every seventh year, that is the Sabbatical Year, was to be consecrated to God. Also, as seven times seven years equalled a period of 49 years, the year following it (ie, the 50th year) , was to be declared the Holy Year. Thus, the number fifty was not originally arrived at because it represented half a century, but because it was the number that followed seven cycles of seven.

Therefore, the Jubilee symbolised true jubilation, a period of joy to be celebrated in God’s honour since it meant liberation. It signified the return of equality and justice, for all the Children of Israel, since equality implied the existence of righteous governments that sought to protect the weak, which according to Israel's law was the true meaning of justice.

As a consequence, the above mentioned norms that were enforced during the Jubilee Year originated theologically and were legally implemented. They had theological bases since it was generally believed that God, being the Creator, was originator of both creation and Earth. In His infinite goodness, God had given men all the gifts of His creation and had established that these gifts would be considered as common good for the whole of mankind, thus useful for everybody insofar as they created Equality and Social Justice. They were legally enforced since they made up a body of laws issued by the State, but only rarely were they applied thus only prefacing the liberation brought by the coming of Christ. In compliance with these laws, a "social doctrine" began to develop in the New Testament and became one of the main sources that influenced the social doctrine of the Church.

In this lies the biblical sense of the Jubilee: a celebration year for the coming of Christ in the world, a year of liberation and reconciliation, a year of justice and peace devoted especially to God and as a consequence, of joy, for the whole of mankind since at one time it was in favour of mankind itself.

WHICH PERIOD OF TIME DOES THE JUBILEE REFER TO ?

The Jubilee refers to the time awaited by all believers: the advent of salvation that coincides with the fullness of time since the coming of Christ on Earth. His coming has allowed God, "The one who is eternal", to be part of man’s history and his time and invest him with His greatness by assigning an eternal dimension leading him to his fullness: the eternity lying in God.

Through His revelation and His mission of hope, carried out by His words and His works, Christ gives freedom to all people and brings salvation to the whole of mankind thus making the year of grace of our Lord a time of joy to which the Jubilee refers to. The Jubilee is intended for celebrating both the coming of Christ, His works, His gifts and His words.

The Jubilee tradition greatly continued to influence the history of the Church.

WHAT DOES THE JUBILEE REPRESENT FOR THE CHURCH ?

The Church considers the Jubilee as a "year of grace": it is the year of remission of all sins" (for that reason, the granting of indulgence is more frequent during that period), a year of reconciliation, conversion and penance. Such "year of grace" is proclaimed by the Church on every Jubilee and solemnly recalls the mystery of the Incarnation and of Redemption.

The Jubilee is generally celebrated both "in Urbe"(inside Rome) and "extra Urbem"(outside Rome) to enable the believers coming from all over the world to take part in such a great event and rejoice, as members of the Church, at the salvation brought by the coming of Christ.

Such an event has always had a spiritual and very profound meaning which has always occurred in a visible, audible and tangible way. The joy arising from the celebration of this event must not only be inner, but also outward and be manifested. That is why the year 2000 refers to the date of the Great Jubilee: 2000 years have passed since the birth of Christ (the chronological computation started when Jesus came to Earth) making the Jubilee a special event for the whole of mankind given the influence of Christ's birth in man’s history.

Therefore, the Jubilee of the year 2000 differs from the past ones in its different religious meaning of the "TIME" in which it is celebrated; the presence of God and His salvation are tangible in every single moment of our lives. Within this context, the Church prays the Lord so that the Christians belonging to different churches (Protestants, Catholics, members of the Orthodox Church, Evangelicals, ...) could come closer together and become an actual community. The greatest hope is for the Jubilee to be an opportunity for a joint collaboration so as to achieve that unity everybody is longing for. That unity goes far beyond any differences existing in society and lies only within Christ.

Within such unity, the Jubilee acquires greater importance by re-awakening the world to the common will shared by all of Christ's disciples in reaching full unity which leads to unity with God.