“The pilgrim who has crossed the door is sent to return to the world as a witness, bringing the gift received into daily life.” Cardinal James Michael Harvey, archpriest of the Papal Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, closes the last of the Jubilee doors before that, the six January, Pope Leo do the same with the Holy Door of St. Peter, officially putting an end to the celebrations for the Holy Year. In the homily of the mass, which was well attended, he recalled, however, that hope does not stop there. And indeed, the pilgrim «is he who, beyond the physical journey, agrees to undertake an interior journey. Crossing the Holy Door meant recognizing one’s limits, welcoming the incompleteness of one’s gaze and entrusting oneself to the guidance of the Lordjust as in prayer we are given the opportunity to walk step by step, in the confidence that each step is sufficient.” And so now «as the Holy Door closes, a responsibility opens before us: we are called to be credible witnesses of hope. In a world marked by divisions and fears, the Church is called to be a humble but luminous sign of the presence of God.”
He recalls the saints who «throughout the centuries, have been these signs. We too are entrusted with this task: to stay, persevere and remain faithful to the place that the Lord has entrusted to us in history.”
On the day on which the Holy Family is celebrated, chosen to close the Jubilee Year in all the dioceses of the world, we are called to contemplate, says the archpriest, «a hope lived in the simplicity of daily life. In Nazareth, hope became visible in the faithfulness of the days, in the silent work, in mutual care, in listening to the will of God within the ordinary folds of existence”.
Looking at the Holy Family we learn «that small gestures, repeated with love, become luminous signs. A presence that remains, a patience that sustains, a trust that perseveres even in the darkness. Thus hope takes flesh in history and becomes credible testimony, capable of orienting the path of men even in discretion, like a gentle light that indicates the way.” Finally, the cardinal invites, “as the Holy Door closes”, to keep “the door of faith, charity and hope open in our hearts”. That “the door of mission remains open”, is his hope, “because the world needs Christ”.
