SOCAL CATHOLICS TO TAKE TO THE STREETS OF LOS ANGELES FOR ‘PILGRIMAGE OF HOPE’ CELEBRATING GLOBAL JUBILEE YEAR
March 27, 2025  |  By:   |  Press Releases  |  

Thousands of faithful have registered to take part in the local “Pilgrimage of Hope” on Saturday, April 5 when Catholics will take to the streets with Archbishop José H. Gomez to celebrate the Jubilee Year on a 7.5-mile walking pilgrimage from Alhambra to downtown Los Angeles organized by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

 

“Pope Francis is calling us in this Jubilee Year to become “pilgrims of hope,” wrote Archbishop Gomez in his latest column to the faithful published in Angelus. “This means living our faith in Jesus with humility, joy, and love, and it means being active in seeking ways to share the hope that we have in him.”

 

The Holy Father Pope Francis has designated the 2025 Jubilee Year as a time for Catholics throughout the world to renew as “Pilgrims of Hope.” The global Catholic Church celebrates a jubilee, or holy year, at least every 25 years as a time of prayer, pilgrimage, and pardon.

 

“Everyone knows what it is to hope,” the Pope wrote in the introduction to the Bull. “In the heart of each person, hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future will bring.” Expressing his desire that the Jubilee might be “an opportunity for us to be renewed in hope, Pope Francis recalled that pilgrimage is “a fundamental event of every Jubilee event,” traditionally associated with the human quest for the meaning of life.

 

The relics of more than 10 saints and soon-to-be-saints will accompany the faithful along the journey led by Archbishop Gomez – including St. Francis of Assisi, St. Francis Xavier Cabrini, St. John Vianney, St. Maria Goretti, Blessed Carlo Acutis and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati.

 

“Sharing our hope is an important dimension of being apostles and missionary disciples in our time and place. So many of our neighbors are struggling and searching for meaning in the midst of the difficulties of their lives,” wrote Archbishop Gomez.  “So, in this Jubilee Year, let’s look for ways to share our hope with those who are discouraged. Let’s let them know, through our words and deeds, that they are never abandoned and that they are loved.”

 

The “Pilgrimage of Hope” on April 5 will begin at 8 a.m. at All Souls Catholic Church in Alhambra to the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles. Stops along the way will include Our Lady of Guadalupe (Rose Hill) and Our Lady Help of Christians (Los Angeles) parishes. Upon arrival at the Cathedral, Archbishop Gomez will celebrate Mass for the pilgrims.

 

Preceding the “Pilgrimage of Hope” is internationally recognized “24 Hours for the Lord” in which more than 20 parishes spanning the entire Archdiocese will join Catholic churches around the world in opening their doors for 24 hours from Friday morning, March 28 through Saturday morning March 29 for confession and adoration. Parishes across the Archdiocese from Santa Barbara to Glendale and Hollywood to Hacienda Heights and Long Beach will participate. The full list of participating parishes in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties is available at hope.lacatholics.org/24-hours.

 

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About the Archdiocese of Los Angeles

Under the spiritual leadership of Archbishop José H. Gomez, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles is the largest in the United States, serving the counties of Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara, covering approximately 9,000 square miles in 120 cities. The more than five million Catholics in the Archdiocese come from some 70 countries and from every continent. Weekly Masses are celebrated in 42 languages throughout 288 parishes, and more than 67,000 students attend an Archdiocesan Catholic elementary or high school. For the latest news, events and to subscribe for media alerts, visit https://media.la-archdiocese.org/.