CT News
Dec. 28, 2025 : Cardinal Baldassare Reina, Vicar General of Rome and Archpriest of the Basilica of St. John Lateran, presided over the closing of the Holy Door and the subsequent Mass on the morning of Saturday, December 27.
The cardinal ascended the steps in silence, then knelt on the threshold in prayer, before rising and closing the large door, while he bowed his head in a sign of reverence. Many faithful then approach the threshold and placed their hands upon it in a gesture of prayer and recollection.
The same door had been opened on December 29, 2024, feast of the Holy Family. It’s closure instead occurred on the feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist, “the disciple who became Jesus’ closest friend,” the cardinal emphasized during the Mass that followed the rite of the closing of the Holy Door.
The cardinal invited the faithful to manifest the presence of God in the places where there is no fraternity, justice, truth and peace.
Before imparting the solemn final blessing, Cardinal Reina thanked all those who worked during the Jubilee Year. He recalled the closeness of the Pope and greeted Archbishop Rino Fisichella, Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization and organizer of the Jubilee, who was present at the Mass.
The Holy Door
In the history of the Jubilees, the Holy Door of the Basilica of St. John Lateran —located on the right side of the portico—was the first to be opened, during the Holy Year of 1423.
It was Pope Martin V - whose relics now rest in the confessio in front of the main altar - who identified the crossing of the Door as what would thereafter become the quintessential sign of the Jubilee pilgrimage: passing through the true threshold, which is Christ, to receive the gift of His grace.
The current Holy Door was created by sculptor Floriano Bodini for the 2000 Jubilee. On it is depicted the Blessed Virgin with the Child, the Crucified Christ, and the coat of arms of St. John Paul II. The Mother protects the Child, who reaches toward the Cross to affirm His eternal divinity through sacrifice.
The other closing rites
The Holy Door of St. John Lateran was the second among those of the papal basilicas to be closed. On the afternoon of December 25, the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Cardinal Archpriest Rolandas Makrickas closed the Holy Door of the Basilica of St. Mary Major.
On Sunday, December 28, the feast of the Holy Family, Cardinal Archpriest James Michael Harvey will preside over the celebration for the closing of the Holy Door of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.
Lastly, on January 6, the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, Leo XIV will close the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica, thus bringing Jubilee 2025 to a close.
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