Why Did Pope Francis Call the Jubilee Year of Mercy

Pope Francis explained in his homily during Divine Mercy Sunday, April 11, 2015. "Here, then, is the reason for Jubilee: because this is the time for mercy. It is the favorable time to heal wounds, a time not to be weary of meeting all those who are waiting to see and to touch with their hands the signs of the closeness of God, a time to offer everyone the way of forgiveness and reconciliation."

It's Pope Francis belief that the present age is an opportune moment of mercy. This is also the teaching transmitted by St. Faustina Kowalska in her Diary:

[Jesus said,] "I am prolonging the time of mercy for the sake of [sinners]. But woe to them if they do not recognize this time of My visitation" (1160). "Before the Day of Justice I am sending the Day of Mercy" (1588). "He who refuses to pass through the door of My mercy must pass through the door of My justice" (1146).

Mercy is Pope Francis's answer to evil, following the teaching of St. John Paul II who, in his last book, Memory and Identity, wrote "[T]he limit imposed upon evil, of which man is both perpetrator and victim, is ultimately Divine Mercy."

The Jubilee will be a time of special graces from God. The Pope has attached indulgences to make a pilgrimage to the Major Basilicas of Rome, cathedrals, co-cathedrals, shrines and particular local churches throughout the world in order to walk through the designated Jubilee year Holy Doors.