My dear family in Christ:

It is my sincere hope that our celebration of the Christmas season and the new year has brought us great joy and hope for the future.

As you know, Pope Francis opened the Holy Year at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome on Christmas Eve and our own Holy Year was inaugurated on the Feast of the Holy Family at St. Joseph Cathedral. The Holy Father is inviting us all to be Pilgrims of Hope during this year dedicated to growing in this theological virtue. We are meant to strengthen our hope in the love and mercy of God and strive to share this hope with others.

Some may wonder, given the present state of the world with all of its problems, how we can possibly accept this challenge to be missionaries of hope. Wars rage around the world. Natural disasters devastate the lives of so many innocent people. Political and cultural issues still divide nations. Homelessness, drug addiction and other social problems plague our local communities. And in our own diocese, we are addressing bankruptcy, a decline in the number of active parishioners and far fewer vocations to the priesthood. To be honest, I have asked myself, is it possible to have hope? Well, I am pleased to say that I do believe we have reason to be hope-filled in spite of the problems we must address.

I am hopeful because I witnessed the faith of so many people from different cultures, countries and age groups joining together to proclaim “Joy to the World” at Christmas. The Church, gathered together to celebrate the birth of our Savior, reminds us that God does not forget His people but enters into the midst of our sorrows and burdens to strengthen us for the journey. He feeds us with His Word and His Body and Blood and never abandons us.

I am hopeful because I have witnessed that the message of hope found in Christ can penetrate the walls of prisons and the walls we construct around our hearts. Over the Christmas season I was blessed to offer Mass at three correctional facilities in Vermont and celebrate the Sacraments of Initiation with seven men who have been found by Christ behind prison walls. In a place where so many find only despair, they have found hope.

I am hopeful because I was blessed to join with thousands of college students in Washington, DC, for SEEK 2025. This four-day event, sponsored by the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) gave proof that the faith is alive and well and that young women and men still want to come to know and love the Lord Jesus Christ. It was inspiring to witness the joy on the faces of these young people and an honor to hear confessions with 100 priests for almost two hours as the students sought to be reconciled with their Lord.

I am hopeful because as I journey around the state, I am encountering people who want to accept the challenge to be missionary disciples and help grow the Church in Vermont. Not seeking to apologize for being Catholic but proudly living and sharing their faith.

Do we have challenges? Without question, yes. Will these challenges defeat us? With Christ, the answer must be no! We can do all things through him who strengthens us (cf. Phil. 4:13).

I invite all of us to embrace the call to be missionaries of hope this year. To be ready to share our faith in Jesus Christ with others. To invite those who have fallen away from the practice of their faith, or those who have no faith, to come to know the One who alone can save.

As a way of helping us receive the many graces of this Holy Year, four churches have been designated as Jubilee Churches. We may not be able to travel to Rome to pass through the Holy Doors, but we can travel to one of these churches to receive the blessings promised by Pope Francis and the Church. The churches are:

  • St. Joseph Cathedral, Burlington
  • St. Michael Church, Brattleboro
  • Christ the King Church, Rutland
  • St. John the Evangelist Church, St. Johnsbury

Information on how to receive the indulgence for the Holy Year will be provided by our Office of Worship.

Let us pray for one another during this Jubilee Year of Hope.

God alone suffices!

+John J. McDermott