Bishop Iffert to lead a group of faithful from the diocese on a pilgrimage to Rome

Bella Young

Multimedia Correspondent

A group of faithful from across the diocese will have the opportunity to join Bishop Iffert for a pilgrimage to Rome for the Jubilee 2025. For nine days, Oct. 22-30, in 2025 Bishop Iffert will be leading a pilgrimage to Rome, fulfilling the theme of the jubilee year — Pilgrims of Hope. Jim Hess, director of the office of Stewardship and Mission Services, says that the jubilee year is one of the primary reasons for this pilgrimage.

“The whole premise of this trip, the whole reason we’re doing this trip, is because of the Holy Year, to go to Rome together as a diocese,” said Mr. Hess.

For those able to attend, the nine-day itinerary is packed with visits to some of the Church’s oldest historical sites and the most iconic destinations in Rome. Pay your respects to St. Paul the Apostle at his resting place, venture beneath St. Sebastian Outside the Walls to the catacombs where you will be able to visit the tombs of early Christians, martyrs and saints. Attend a papal audience where you will be able to pray with Pope Francis, then explore the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica. While the majority of the pilgrimage will spent inside Rome, there is one day dedicated to visiting Assisi. There you will be able to see where St. Francis of Assisi spent most of his life.

Mr. Hess, when speaking about the itinerary said, “When we’re there we’ll be able to say the Angelus with Pope Francis at St. Peter Square which will be incredible. We’re essentially spending a vast majority of the time, like seven days, in Rome. We will get to see a lot of the beauty of the Catholic Church, of the early Church, and celebrate a jubilee year in Rome. We will take a day to visit Assisi so people can learn more about St. Francis, where he prayed and spent most of his time in ministry.”

While the attractions and experience of Rome are what make the nine-day pilgrimage exciting, the opportunity for a plenary indulgence is one that is “certainly going to be a part of our pilgrimage,” said Mr. Hess.

A plenary indulgence, as Mr. Hess explained, “removes the temporal punishment of sin as if you’re being baptized, it is a total cleansing of the person, a total forgiving of sin and its effects. It is only offered in special times and special situations and there are certain things you have to do and a certain disposition you have to have.”

One of the longest standing ways to obtain a plenary indulgence involves walking through designated Holy Doors which are only made available during jubilee years. Of these doors are the doors to St. Peter’s Basilica, St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, and St. Paul Outside the Walls. All four of these basilicas will be visited throughout the pilgrimage, giving each pilgrim ample opportunity to take part in a tradition that has taken place since the 1400s.

For those that are unable to attend Rome and walk through the Holy Doors, there are ways to receive plenary indulgences from home. These include fasting, volunteering in your community, supporting religious or social works, offering support to migrants, the elderly, the poor, young people in difficulty and abandoned children. One of the best ways to receive a plenary indulgence is to perform a work of mercy, tying into Bishop Iffert’s Campaign of Mercy that launched this year on Corpus Christi Sunday.

For more information on the Holy Year pilgrimage to Rome, refer to the brochure that has been inserted or contact [email protected]. If you are interested in reserving your spot reach out to Mr. Hess or call Collette at (800)-581- 8942 Booking #1227991. Or visit the Diocese of Covington website, www.covdio.org.