Pope Francis proclaims the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy as a time for the Church to contemplate Jesus Christ, the definitive face of the Father’s mercy, and to become a credible witness to that mercy. Beginning on 8 December 2015, the Jubilee marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Second Vatican Council’s conclusion; Doors of Mercy are to open in Rome and throughout the world, and the year is to close on 20 November 2016, the Solemnity of Christ the King. Its theme, “merciful like the Father,” calls Christians to prayer, pilgrimage, forgiveness, and the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

Francis presents mercy as the Church’s essential mission and the measure of her credibility, urging parishes to become “oases of mercy” and warning against indifference, cynicism, corruption, and criminal exploitation. Lent and the “24 Hours for the Lord” are given a special penitential emphasis, while priests are urged to serve as humble and compassionate confessors. The Pope commissions Missionaries of Mercy with special faculties to absolve reserved sins and explains the relationship between justice, conversion, and forgiveness. Indulgences, dialogue with Judaism and Islam, devotion to Mary as Mother of Mercy, and the witness of Saint Faustina Kowalska all belong to this call to encounter and extend God’s inexhaustible love.