Pope Francis officially proclaimed 2025 as a Year of Jubilee through the Papal Bull Spes Non Confudit (Hope Does Not Disappoint). The Jubilee Year began on Christmas Eve 2024, marked by the Holy Father’s ceremonial opening of the Holy Doors of St. Peter’s Basilica. During this sacred year, the faithful are invited to partake in pilgrimages, perform works of mercy, and undertake acts of penance to obtain an indulgence—a remission of the temporal punishment for sins whose guilt has already been absolved—granted by the Church through the merits of Jesus Christ. However, the issuance of the Decree on the Granting of Plenary Indulgence During the Ordinary Jubilee Year 2025 has reignited criticism from anti-Catholic groups, once again targeting the Church’s practice of indulgences.
Few practices of the Catholic Church have been as misunderstood, maligned, or weaponized in polemical debates as the doctrine of indulgences. For many, indulgences conjure images of medieval abuses, scandalous corruption, or the caricature of “buying” one’s way into heaven. Such misconceptions stem from historical grievances and a shallow understanding of what indulgences truly are: an expression of God’s infinite mercy and an invitation to the faithful to participate in the healing of sin and the renewal of the world.
To grasp the essence of indulgences, one must first understand the Church’s teaching on sin and its consequences. Sin, while forgiven through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, leaves behind a wounded soul and a ripple of harm across the fabric of human relationships. It is like a broken window—though the one who shattered it may be forgiven, the window remains shattered and must be repaired. This is where indulgences come into play.
Indulgences are not a “get out of jail free card” for the soul but rather a gift of grace that draws from the Church’s treasury of spiritual goods—the merits of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the saints. They are a means by which the faithful, through specific acts of prayer, charity, and penance, cooperate in the healing of these wounds.
Yet, critics often ask: Why is this necessary? Isn’t Christ’s sacrifice sufficient? The answer is unequivocally yes—Christ’s sacrifice is fully sufficient for our salvation. However, Christ’s sufficiency does not negate our responsibility. As members of the Body of Christ, we are called to share in His redemptive work, not because He needs us, but because He wills to involve us in His grace. Indulgences are a tangible way of living out this profound mystery.
The concept of indulgences underscores the communal nature of faith. Sin is never merely a personal matter; it impacts not only the individual sinner but also the entire Church. The Church has long emphasized the far-reaching consequences of sin—the social dimension—which affects all members of society. Similarly, indulgences remind us of the communion of saints, where the prayers and merits of one member benefit the whole. By participating in indulgences, we express our solidarity with one another, with those in purgatory, and with the Church universal.
Admittedly, indulgences have a complicated history. The abuses during the late medieval period, such as the selling of indulgences, were egregious and rightly condemned by the Council of Trent. But to reject the doctrine entirely because of these abuses would be akin to rejecting the Gospel because some preachers distort it. Abuse does not invalidate truth; it challenges us to reclaim and proclaim it more authentically.
Indulgences are not relics of a superstitious past but a profound testimony to God’s mercy and the Church’s authority to bind and loose (Matthew 16:19). In an age where individualism and spiritual apathy abound, indulgences call us to humility, repentance, and active participation in the spiritual life. They remind us that our actions have eternal significance and that God, in His love, desires not only to forgive but to restore us completely.
Let us, therefore, dispel the myths surrounding indulgences and embrace them as a gift, not a burden. To participate in an indulgence is to acknowledge our need for grace, our dependence on the Church, and our longing for deeper union with God. It is to say, with the psalmist, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit” (Psalm 51:12). And that, truly, is a grace worth defending.