By Hannah Brockhaus Vatican City, Dec 24, 2024 / 14:10 pm Pope Francis opened the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica before Mass on Christmas Eve, officially launching the Jubilee Year 2025. “O Christ, bright star of the morning, incarnation of infinite love, long awaited salvation, sole hope of the world, …

In the first ages, during the night before every feast, a vigil was kept. In the evening the faithful assembled in the place or church where the feast was to be celebrated and prepared themselves by prayers, readings from Holy Writ (now the Offices of Vespers and Matins), and sometimes …