Pope Closes Holy Door, Ending Jubilee Year

V A T I C A N  C I T Y, Jan. 6, 2001 -- With one tug and then another, Pope JohnPaul II pulled shut the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica today,solemnly ending the Vatican’s Jubilee Year of repentance that drewsome 25 million pilgrims to Rome.

The Holy Year, usually proclaimed every 25 years by pontiffs,this time coincided with both the change of centuries andmillenniums. John Paul had looked with anticipation toward theevent for much of his 22-year-long pontificate as a chance torejuvenate the Catholic Church and its billion members.

An aide held on to the left arm of the pope, who is 80 andailing, to support him as he closed the right side of the bronzedoor in the atrium of St. Peter’s.

When he closed the left side of the door, applause thunderedoutside in St. Peter’s Square, where many of the faithful,estimated by Vatican officials at about 100,000, were watching theceremony on TV screens.

Last-Minute RushOn Friday, pilgrims passed through the door at the rate of about100 a minute as part of a Holy Year ritual granting them remissionfrom punishment for sin.

“We know with certainty,” prayed the pope, who knelt down withdifficulty on the steps outside the door, “that the door of yourclemency is never shut for those who believe in your love andproclaim your mercy.”

Later, during a Mass, John Paul reflected on the Holy Year’smajor events, including a week in August when 2 million youngpeople camped out in Rome and a day when he publicly askedforgiveness for the church’s wrongdoings over its history.

“The great Jubilee offered us a providential occasion to carryout the purification of memory, asking pardon of God for theinfidelities carried out in these 2,000 years by the children ofthe Church,” the pope told the crowd.

Solemn CeremonyIn comparison to Christmas Eve 1999, when the pope opened thedoor in a joyous ceremony of dance, song and colorful costumes,today’s closure was solemn and subdued. John Paul, who at theopening wore a shiny, multicolored wrap, this time donned elegant,gold-colored robes.

John Paul knelt in reflection for several minutes before theaide helped him up and he hobbled out to the square to lead a Mass.At one point during the door ceremony, his hands trembled as heclasped them together and sat in a chair.

The pope has long struggled to stay active despite a persistenthand tremor and difficulty in walking and delivering speeches. Thesymptoms are widely attributed to Parkinson’s disease, adebilitating neurological disorder, but the Vatican has never saidexactly what ails him.

Also today, the Vatican released a letter from John Paul tohis churches reflecting on the challenges of the new millennium. Hesigned it on a small table brought to him on the steps of thebasilica.

Hoping to Invigorate the FaithfulIn it, John Paul expressed hope that the enthusiasm shown byCatholics during the Holy Year will invigorate the church andattract nonbelievers.

“What awaits us, therefore, is an exciting work of pastoralrevitalization,” the pope wrote. He urged followers to help himcombat “a shallow religiosity.”

He also wrote that he regretted not being able to go to Iraq ashe had hoped to retrace the steps of Abraham, the Biblicalpatriarch. Iraq’s government canceled the trip in January, sayingit couldn’t arrange it.