He added, “125 years of evangelization is an opportunity for us to take stock of our pastoral options. Since 1942, when we had our first Priests, our father Bishops, the clergy has taken on a very estimable dimension, and we have Bishops who, as guides of the people of God, have always met to see how to orientate the people of God.”
He said that the occasion, like every jubilee, is an opportunity to look back. “This retrospection allows us to celebrate the present and look forward to the future. At the same time as we take stock of pastoral options, there's also a perspective to see what the church will be like tomorrow, especially in Burkina Faso,” the Burkinabe Catholic Priest said.
He noted that the Church's growth from a single believer to thousands of faithful is a testament to the enduring power of evangelization.
The Jubilee of Evangelization in Burkina Faso coincides with the Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year, commemorating 2025 years since the Incarnation and Redemption of Jesus Christ.
Pope Francis officially launched the 2025 Jubilee Year on the Eve of Christmas 2024 with the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Announcing the start of a Year of Prayer on 21 January 2024 in preparation for the Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year, the second in his Pontificate after the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in 2015, the Holy Father said that the 2025 Jubilee Year will be “a year dedicated to rediscovering the great value and absolute need for prayer in one’s personal life, in the life of the Church, and in the world.”
In Burkina Faso’s Archdiocese of Ouagadougou, Archbishop Prosper Kontiébo issued a decree for the opening of the cathedral’s holy door and additional doors in various parishes and sanctuaries, including Yagma.
“This year is truly a celebration of joy, marked by retrospection, gratitude, and a vision for the future of the Church,” Fr. Zabré said.
The celebration has unfolded in stages since 2021, including jubilees for Priests, Consecrated Persons, and Catechists.
On February 16, the entire people of God will come together to offer collective thanksgiving.