The plenary indulgence has been a key feature of Holy Years for centuries within the Church. It is a remission of the temporal punishment due to sin, obtained by adhering to the norms established for a given Jubilee Year. In the Decree on the Granting of the Indulgence During the Ordinary Jubilee Year 2025 issued by His Holiness Pope Francis, the Holy Father invites “everyone to an intense experience of the love of God.” He emphasizes that the gift of the indulgence is “a way of discovering the unlimited nature of God’s mercy.
Not by chance, for the ancients, the terms ‘mercy’ and ‘indulgence’ were interchangeable, as expressions of the fullness of God’s forgiveness, which knows no bounds” (Spes non Confundit, 23).
During the Ordinary Jubilee of 2025, all previously granted indulgences will remain in effect. Additionally, all faithful who are truly repentant, free from attachment to sin, and moved by a spirit of charity can obtain a plenary indulgence under the following conditions:
Purification through the Sacrament of Penance Reception of Holy Communion Prayers offered for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff This plenary indulgence, accompanied by the remission and forgiveness of all sins, can also be applied in suffrage for the souls in Purgatory.
The faithful may obtain it in the following ways:
1. PILGRIMAGES Visits to the four major Basilicas in Rome, the three major Basilicas in the Holy Land, or local diocesan Cathedrals (e.g., the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Joseph in the Diocese of San Jose).
2. PIOUS VISITS TO SACRED PLACES Engaging in Eucharistic adoration and meditation, concluding prayers with the Our Father, a Profession of Faith (in any legitimate form), and invocations to Mary, the Mother of God. Pope Francis highlights that during this Holy Year, all the faithful “will come to know the closeness of Mary, the most affectionate of mothers, who never abandons her children” (Spes non Confundit, 24).
3. WORKS OF MERCY AND PENANCE Participation in popular missions, spiritual exercises, or formation activities focused on the documents of the Second Vatican Council and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
These activities should be held in a church or other suitable place and follow the intentions of the Holy Father. Through these practices, the Jubilee Year 2025 becomes a profound opportunity for renewal and an invitation to immerse oneself in the fullness of God’s mercy.