YOUNGSTOWN — The “Jubilee of Hope” closing Mass will take place Dec. 28 at St. Columba Cathedral after a year-long celebration that began Christmas Eve 2024.

The jubilee year concludes Jan. 6, which is the feast of Epiphany.

Bishop David Bonnar of the Diocese of Youngstown will preside over the closing Mass and all diocesan parishioners are invited to attend this celebration.

Bonnar said the Jubilee year has come alive through vibrant expressions of faith.

Over the summer and fall, Bonnar, priests, deacons, religious leaders and Catholics from across the diocese gathered to celebrate Mass in all six counties.

Parishioners also embarked on pilgrimages to sacred sites within the diocese, including the Basilica of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Youngstown, the Basilica of St. John the Baptist in Canton, St. Columba Cathedral in Youngstown and Sancta Clara Monastery in Canton.

Bonnar said the diocese’s commitment to the Jubilee led to a memorable pilgrimage to Italy and Rome. The 11-day pilgrimage included Bonnar, the Rev. John-Michael Lavelle, Catholic Charities Executive Director Rachel Hrbolich and three dozen parishioners from across the diocese.

Bonnar had the honor of meeting His Holiness Pope Leo XIV and the group passed through the Holy Doors of all four basilicas in Rome: St. Paul Outside the Walls, St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major and St. Peter.

“This has been an exciting year for the Church, universal and local. And as a diocese, we’ve made every effort to embrace it, going back to the beginning where we processed in the opening Mass with the cross, which contains the emblem of the Jubilee, really signifying that we’re seeking in this Jubilee year to follow Jesus as Pilgrims of Hope,” Bonnar said.