The New Millennium: Catholic Style

The Millennium means different things for different people. For some it is a time to join friends for the biggest party in years. For others it is a time to hunker down and wait for the worst. Most will spend the time at home with their families. And finally, some will spend their time reminding the world that the millennium doesn't really begin until 2001. However, for Catholics it is an opportunity to respond to Pope John Paul II's call to celebrate, reconcile and rejuvenate their faith.

That call will be answered with enthusiasm here in the Archdiocese of Newark. Catholic Churches in the Archdiocese will herald the 2000th anniversary of birth of Jesus with the ringing of their bells at 6p.m on Christmas Eve. At Midnight Mass, Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick will open the Holy Door that was sealed at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Newark, in May of 1998.

The Mass and ceremony here will follow a similar celebration in Rome where Pope John Paul II will take a hammer, knock three times on the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica and say, "open to me the gates of justice." The gesture will connect the faithful of the Archdiocese with the Jubilee celebration in Rome.

Archbishop McCarrick has designated the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart and two parishes in each county as Jubilee Pilgrimage Churches. Each of the designated county churches is either a Marian Church or a Church named for an Apostle. He will celebrate Mass at each of the designated parishes when they open their Holy Doors over Christmas week. The Jubilee Churches are:

Bergen County - St. John, Bergenfield; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Ridgewood
Essex County - St. Peter, Belleville; Immaculate Conception, Montclair
Hudson County - SS. Peter and Paul, Hoboken; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Bayonne
Union County - St. John the Evangelist, Linden; St. Mary of the Assumption, Elizabeth

The Archbishop has also declared that all the faithful who visit the Jubilee Pilgrimage Churches can receive the Plenary Indulgence of the Jubilee, granted by the Holy Father, if they have fulfilled certain norms. The Plenary Indulgence may be gained once a day on the days between Christmas Eve 1999 and the Epiphany of 2001.

To gain the Plenary Indulgence, which may be applied to the Souls in Purgatory, the faithful must:

* Celebrate Sacramental Confession;
* Attend a Mass and receive the Eucharist or participate in another liturgical celebration such as Morning Prayer or Evening Prayer or in some pious exercise (e.g., The Stations of the Cross, pray the Rosary);
* Spend some time in meditation;
* Recite the "Our Father," a prayer to the Virgin Mary, and the Profession of Faith in any approved form during the visit to the church.
* Pray for the intentions of the Holy Father
* Perform acts of charity and penance.

The Holiday Season will conclude on New Year's Eve when many parishes will remain open until midnight for "Pray and Party" programs. Archdiocesan Jubilee Commission Chairman, Msgr. Timothy Shugrue, said the Holiday Season is a good time to rejuvenate people's faith and sense of community. "The Jubilee year is a spiritual opportunity for us to focus on the birth, life, ministry, death and resurrection of Christ," he said.

He added that it will allow people to reflect on the role "we have in history and what we are called to be as Christians."

 

1999 News Releases