Vatican creates clarity: Only in Rome there are sacred gates 2025!

As part of the Holy Year 2025, the Vatican emphasized that holy gates will only be accessible in Rome. This important clarification came on Sunday, December 30, 2024, and is a reaction to false reports that said, also in other dioceses worldwide, sacred gates would be opened. According to the explanation of the Vatican Dikasterium for evangelization, which is based on the bull "Spes Non Confundit", the only holy gates in St. Peter's Basilica and in the three papal basil, St. Johannes in the Lateran, St. Maria Maggiore and St. Paul, can be found. An exception is the Rebibbia prison, where a holy gate was granted to offer the occupants a sign of connection. Other places outside of Rome are not recognized in connection with the anniversary year 2025 when it comes to the conditions of previous anniversaries. Information about the Holy Year 2025 can be viewed on kathpress.at

opening of the holy gate in the Lateran Basilica

On the same Sunday, the Holy gate was also ceremoniously opened on the Roman Lateran Basilica. The Archbishop of Rome, Cardinal Baldassare Reina, carried out the ceremony because Pope Francis, who officially started the celebrations for the anniversary year 2025 on December 24, could not do this himself. The Lateran Basilica, which is considered the Pope's bishop's church, was filled with about 2,000 people on this occasion, while hundreds of others pursued the ceremony from the outside. It should be noted that Pope Francis also opened a special holy gate in Rebibbia prison on December 26, which underlines the topic of the “Pilgrim Pilgrim” Festival year.

In addition to the Lateran Basilica, the openings of the holy gates in St. Maria Maggiore, which will take place on New Year's Day by Arch priest Rolandas Makrickas, and in Sankt Paul in front of the walls, which will be opened on January 5 by Cardinal James Michael Harvey, before the four holy gates in St. St. 2026 are closed. For the Holy Year 2025, more than 30 million visitors are expected in Rome, which underlines the importance of this festive event, as katholisch.de