By Amedeo Lomonaco
One of the symbolic images of every Jubilee is that of the Pontiff crossing the threshold of the Holy Door. This is a moment deeply rooted in the Middle Ages. The first pilgrim to cross the threshold is always the Bishop of Rome. According to a description from 1450 by Giovanni Rucellai of Viterbo, it was Pope Martin V in 1423 who first opened the Holy Door during a Jubilee year, at the Basilica of St. John Lateran. At the Vatican Basilica, the opening of the Holy Door was first documented on Christmas of 1499, when Pope Alexander VI ordered the Holy Door to be opened not only at St. John Lateran but also at other Roman basilicas.
The opening of the Holy Door
The opening of the Holy Door by the Pope marks the beginning of the Jubilee. The Holy Year of 2025 includes this ritual, followed by the celebration of Holy Mass on Christmas Eve inside St. Peter’s Basilica. The inner wall sealing the Holy Door was recently dismantled, and the metal box containing the key to open the door was retrieved. The Pope symbolically pushes the door open, while the traditional use of a hammer to strike the brick seal on the outside has been discontinued for safety reasons. After the ceremony, the door remains open for the entire year to allow pilgrims to pass through. This gesture signifies a complete experience of the indulgence associated with the Holy Year.
Crossing this threshold also symbolizes the journey of conversion, sealed by the encounter with Christ, the “door”, uniting us with the Father. The Jubilees are part of a profound history of faith that opens its doors to the world—a journey in which the steps of the Pontiff join those of the people of God, along the paths of forgiveness.
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