The Great Jubilee Year 2000

OPEN WIDE THE DOORS TO CHRIST!
The Church of the first millennium was born of the blood of the martyrs: "Sanguis martyrum--semen christianorum." The historical events linked to the figure of Constantine the Great could never have ensured the development of the Church as it occurred during the first millennium if it had not been for the seeds sown by the martyrs and the heritage of sanctity which marked the first Christian generations. At the end of the second millennium, the Church has once again become a Church of martyrs. The persecutions of believers--priests, Religious and laity--has caused a great sowing of martyrdom in different parts of the world. The witness to Christ, borne even to the shedding of blood, has become a common inheritance of Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans and Protestants, as Pope Paul VI pointed out in his Homily for the Canonization of the Ugandan Martyrs.

This witness must not be forgotten. The Church of the first centuries, although facing considerable organizational difficulties, took care to write down in special martyrologies the witness of the martyrs. These martyrologies have been constantly updated through the centuries, and the register of the saints and the blessed bears the names not only of those who have shed their blood for Christ but also of teachers of the faith, missionaries, confessors, bishops, priests, virgins, married couples, widows and children.

WHAT IS A JUBILEE?
The origin of the Christian Jubilee goes back to Biblical times. The Law of Moses prescribed a special year for the Jewish people: "This fiftieth year you shall make sacred by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when every one of you shall return to his own property, every one to his own family estate. In this fiftieth year, your year of jubilee, you shall not sow, nor shall you reap the after growth or pick the grapes from the un-trimmed vines. Since this is the jubilee, which shall be sacred for you, you may not eat of its produce, except as taken directly from the field. In this year of jubilee, then, every one of you shall return to his own property. Therefore, when you sell any land to your neighbor or buy any from him, do not deal unfairly." The Book of Leviticus 25:10-14

The trumpet with which this year was announced was a goat's horn called Yobel in Hebrew, and the origin of the word jubilee. In the New Testament, Jesus presents himself as the One who brings the old Jubilee to completion, because he has come "To announce a year of favor from the Lord and a day of vindication by our God, to comfort all who mourn." Isaiah 61:2

JUBILEE 2000
It is interesting to note that in almost every country, time is counted as before and after Christ's coming into the world, although today few people may realize the reasons for this calculation. For Christians then, the Jubilee of the year 2000 is especially important because it will be a celebration of the 2000th anniversary of the birth of Christ ~ apart from differences of exact chronological count. What is more, it will be the first Holy Year which marks the turn of a millennium, since the first Jubilee was proclaimed by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300. For Christians then, the Jubilee of the Year 2000 should be a great prayer of praise and thanksgiving to God for the gift of the Incarnation of His Son and the Redemption He brings.

WHAT IS A HOLY YEAR?
In the Roman Catholic tradition, a Holy Year, or Jubilee, is a great religious event. It is a year of forgiveness of sins... reconciliation between adversaries, of conversion and receiving the sacrament of Reconciliation, and consequently of solidarity, hope, justice, commitment to serve God with joy and peace with our brothers and sisters. A Jubilee year is above all the year of Christ, who brings life and grace to humanity.

JUBILEE 2000, A HOLY YEAR
The Jubilee is called Holy Year, not only because it begins, is marked, and ends with solemn holy acts, but also because its purpose is to encourage holiness of life. It was actually convoked to strengthen faith, encourage works of charity and brotherly communion within the Church and in society and to call Christians to be more sincere and coherent in their faith in Christ, the only Savior.

A Jubilee can be "ordinary" if it falls after the set period of years, and "extraordinary" when it is proclaimed for some outstanding event. There have been twenty-five "ordinary" Holy Years so far: the Year 2000 will be the 26th. The custom of calling "extraordinary" Jubilees began in the 16th century and they can vary in length from a few days to a year. There have been two extraordinary jubilees in this century: 1933 proclaimed by Pope Pius XI to mark the 1900th anniversary of Redemption and 1983 proclaimed by Pope John Paul II to mark 1950 years since the Redemption carried out by Christ through his Death and Resurrection in the year 33.

SUNG AT MIDNIGHT
The well loved and heart touching song, "Auld Lang Syne," is sung at the stroke of midnight in most every English-speaking country throughout the world to bring in the New Year. This modern version that we know so well was written by Robert Burns in the 1700's, and first published in 1796 after his death. An old Scotch tune, "Auld Lang Syne" literally means "old long ago," or more simply, "the good old days." You can hear this tune being played here.

Annie's New Year's Page New Years Day -- History, Traditions, Customs TruGospel's Holiday Pages More New Year Pages from Yahoo!