Most of us are probably struggling to remain faithful to the resolutions that we made before the new year began. Usually this is because our resolutions, while sincere, are not realistic. We tend to overreach in our desire to change the way we think, act, or behave. Better to begin with something we know we can accomplish, then move gradually to more challenging resolutions.

One New Year’s resolution that we have been invited to make—and keep—this year is to be “pilgrims of hope.” This is the theme of the 2025 Jubilee Year proclaimed by Pope Francis, and it addresses the growing problems of disillusionment and despair faced by people throughout the globe.

Spes non confundit “Hope does not disappoint” (Rom 5:5) is the message that Pope Francis offers us, using the words of Saint Paul to the Romans and applying them to all nations and peoples everywhere. “For everyone,” the Holy Father says in his papal bull announcing this special year, “may the Jubilee be a moment of genuine, personal encounter with the Lord Jesus, the “door” (cf. Jn 10:7.9) of our salvation, whom the Church is charged to proclaim always, everywhere and to all as our hope” (1 Tim 1:1).

Hope does not come easily to people who have experienced the devastating effects of war, poverty, economic and social unrest, or the uncertainty caused by moral decay and political turmoil. Hope is urgently needed in every age and circumstance, but it is especially important in times of crisis. We who believe that Jesus is Lord are compelled to share this Good News with others. We dare not trust in political figures, ideologies, or secular movements. Christ alone is our hope.

By inviting us to see ourselves as pilgrims of hope, the Church reminds us that none of us is alone in facing the challenges of daily living. We are members of God’s family who travel together on a hope-filled journey. If we forget our final destination, or the mission we have been given by the risen Christ to be Spirit-filled evangelizers who proclaim his Good News to all, we are easily bogged down by despair. The world is a confusing, gloomy place. Only the light of Christ can make it clear and bright.

The “blessed hope” that we pray will be reawakened in us by the Holy Spirit is Christ himself. Our trust in him compels us to abandon the safety and security of our comfortable lives in order to “Go forth” and proclaim the resurrection of Jesus whose victory over sin and death gives us the hope of eternal life with him.

Christ alone is our hope. He is the only source of joy and peace that we can rely on in this new year and beyond.

Let’s make this Jubilee Year a time for making and keeping hope-filled New Year’s resolutions. Let’s make 2025 a year of hope for all.

Daniel Conway