After having paused to look back on the past with joy for what has been achieved, now Christmas is near, especially the door of the Holy Year 2025 is about to open, making our souls excited, urging us to do our best to fully enjoy the joy of the birth of the Son of God, and especially the  “Plenary Indulgence, a special grace of the Holy Year”.

The words of the prophet Micah draw us to Bethlehem, the small city of Judea, witness to a great event: “ But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the thousands of Judah, out of you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from everlasting” ( Mic 5:1).

Joy dawns

Malachi’s historical quotation helps us envision the day when God will come to meet his people. The people were suffering in exile from God. Now “ the cold of the winter is past, the rains have ceased ” (Song 2:11). God is about to visit and save them.

How can we not be happy, because when we mention Bethlehem, we immediately think of King David, the ancestor of the Messiah who was born here a thousand years before Christ was born, proving that God loves, forgives and brings joy to Israel.

Mother rejoices, Elizabeth rejoices

The visit of the Virgin Mary to the family of Zechariah shows that God is near. The Gospel records: “ Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town of Judea. She entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth ” (Luke 1:39-40). The visit seems to be a visit between people; but in reality, this is a historical visit, God visiting His people. God had prepared this event since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. Since then, man has longed for God to visit him; because thanks to God’s visit, man’s destiny has been changed by God: from exile to the Promised Land, from being separated from God to being reunited with Him forever, from death to eternal life.

Elizabeth represents the People of God in receiving the joy that God gives. Enlightened by the Holy Spirit, she recognized that the Child Mary was carrying was the Savior, the Source of Joy. Meeting Mary, filled with joy, Elizabeth exclaimed : “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord ” (Luke 1:42-45). Elizabeth and John the Baptist rejoiced when the Messiah came to visit them. She knew well why Mary was truly blessed: “ she believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord ” (Luke 1:45).

Mary is blessed because she believed. Faith is nourished by love. She arose and went with haste to meet Elizabeth. “ Arise ” is a gesture full of kindness. Through these gestures Mary showed that she was a disciple of the One she carried in her womb. The birth of Jesus began like that, with a simple gesture of charity: visiting, sharing joy, bringing hope to the family of Zechariah and Elizabeth. That joy, love and sharing were made concrete in Jesus Christ, the Son of God born as a human in Bethlehem.

We are happy

The opening of the Holy Year brings great joy and excitement to God’s children. With the theme ” Pilgrims of Hope”,  Pope Francis invites believers to live joy and hope amid the many difficulties in life. The “Jubilee Indulgence” is a way to discover the infinite nature of God’s mercy. Pope Francis also invites all Christians to become “pilgrims” of hope, to receive  “the Plenary Indulgence, a special grace of the Holy Year”.

Following the example of Mother Mary, she completely trusted in God. She constantly relied on and hoped in God. Although she was aware of all the difficulties that would come, she still confidently accepted and spoke up to welcome Jesus, the Hope of Israel and of all peoples, into her womb.

Mary was not disappointed, did not fall, but persevered in hope, because her soul always echoed the words of the angel who spoke to her on the day of the Annunciation: “ Mary, do not be afraid! ” (Luke 1:30). Her heart always shone with trust and hope in the Word of her Son. She is a model of hope for those who believe in Jesus Christ in this earthly pilgrimage.

She is the shining star. When she hastened with holy joy across the mountains of Judea to meet her cousin Elizabeth, she became the image of the Church that was to come, carrying in her heart the hope of the world across the mountains of history. She is thus in the midst of the Church as Mother of hope.

Mary is the hope that the Church relies on whenever her ship encounters storms, even when the wind is smooth. Mary is the guarantee of hope, the sure sign of God’s salvation for humanity.

To live this Holy Year, let us turn to Mary, asking her to help us all discover the joy of God’s tenderness. No one has entered into the profound mystery of the Incarnation like Mary. Her entire life was shaped by the presence of Jesus made flesh.

O Mary, show us the way to the Kingdom of your Son! O Woman of Hope, Star of Light, shine upon us and guide us without despair on our earthly journey.

Father Anton Nguyen Van Do