Archbishop closes 500YOC Jubilee Door

By JC Madrid

NAGA CITY — Caceres Archbishop Rolando J. Tria Tirona, O.C.D., D.D. presided over the closing of the Jubilee Door at the Naga Metropolitan Cathedral, officially marking the end of all celebrations on the occasion of the 500th Year of Christianity (YOC) in the Philippines. The rite was held on Saturday, 31 December 2022, as part of the Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, or the New Year’s Eve Mass.

The Cathedral was among the nine churches in the Archdiocese of Caceres designated as a Jubilee Church for the fifth centenary of the arrival of Christianity in the country. In every Jubilee Church, a Jubilee Door was identified and opened. Those who enter and visit may receive a plenary indulgence or the removal of God’s punishment for sins that have already been forgiven.

To obtain the said indulgence, those who visited Jubilee Churches and entered Jubilee Doors were requested by the Vatican to pray “for the fidelity of the Filipino people to their Christian calling, for the increase of priestly and religious vocations, and for the defense of the family, concluding with the Lord’s Prayer, the profession of faith, and an invocation to the Blessed Virgin Mary.”

The Jubilee Door at the Cathedral was opened on Easter Sunday, 04 April 2021, and was originally set to close on 22 April 2022. The Vatican decided to move the closing to 31 December 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.