The Pope opens the Holy Door and begins the heavenly jubilee

Tiziana Campesi – L’Aquila

It is the sound of the trumpets that heralds the beginning of the heavenly jubilee. Faithful and pilgrims gathered around the Basilica of Colemaggio, where the sun rose shining after a gray morning. Also present were some inmates of Abruzzo prisons. We also want them to offer them the possibility to allow themselves to accept God’s forgiveness for them.

Francis, the first pope to open the Holy Door, surrounded by rain, knocks three times on the doors of the old aisle with an olive branch, which the first citizen of L’Aquila had given him a short time before, and opens the horizon of mercy to the faithful. On the faces the joy of the historical event. There are seven thousand people crowding into the Colemaggio Park. The indulgence given by Celestine V in 1294 to those who visited and prayed in the Basilica of Vespers from August 28 to the next day, with a harmonious heart, again.

Pope’s prayer for the renewal of the Church

The opening rite of the Celestine 728 begins with the Invocation of the Saints, which accompanies the procession with the Pope, Archbishop of L’Aquila, Cardinal Giuseppe Petrucci and other Consilbrant and Mayor Pierluigi Biondi. Then Cardinal Petrucci gave the warning to begin the rite of penance with the attached indulgence, which Saint Peter Celestine granted – the pardon granted to the bull Seriousness between clinics And his successors renewed it. Then the Pope’s solemn prayer to “the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who is rich in mercy and great in love” so that the Church “may enjoy the joy of inner renewal through the work of the Holy Spirit and walking (…) Staying in the midst of the world is a sign of salvation and redemption.” To Almighty God “to open the door of His mercy.” fully “,” to open for us one day the gates “of his dwelling place in heaven, where is Jesus. who preceded us “Grant, we implore you, to all those who, with renewed commitment and firm faith, cross this threshold to reach the salvation that comes from you and leads you,” concludes the Pope. He will enter your house, O Lord.”

The Pope enters the church after crossing the Holy Door

The Holy Door and the Embrace of Mercy

The doors of the Holy Door open wide: the figure of Francis alone emerges admirably at the side entrance to the Colemaggio and erupts in rejoicing. He sang the hymn “The Gates of Tollite”. Now a person can gain public indulgence by reciting the Creed and the Our Father, praying according to the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff, and confessing the Eucharistic Communion.

Prayer in front of the tomb of Pope Celestine V (right, bull)

Celestino V Tribute

Upon entering the desired place of worship Pietro da Moroni, the Pope performs the last act of the rite of the inauguration of the pardon. He was taken in a wheelchair to the mausoleum of Celestine V. There are preserved remains of the hermit who became pope, covered with papal vestments and with the papalum donated by Benedict XVI. In the shrine chapel, for this occasion, the bull of pardon was revealed, preserved in a reliquary. There Francis paused for a short prayer, still secluded in silence.

Farewell to the city of L’Aquila

Before leaving the Basilica of Colemaggio, Francis spoke with Cardinal Petrucci, who explained some details of the Mausoleum of Celestine V, and with other celebrants. He then saluted the authorities who attended the mass and the rite of inauguration of the pardon. Finally, he went to the athletics field in the capital, Abruzzo, from where he left at 12:23 by helicopter to return to the Vatican.

Photo Gallery

Open the holy door