According to the Vatican, the tradition began in 1300 when Pope Boniface VII announced the first Jubilee. Later, Jubilees came to be celebrated every 25 years.

Francis urged the Vatican inner circle to bless more and talk less badly of others. It wasn’t the first time he had used the occasion to scold them.

Pope Francis has called for a ceasefire on all war fronts in his Sunday prayer ahead of Christmas celebrations, condemning the “cruelty” of bombing schools and hospitals in Ukraine and Gaza

The Pope called for a worldwide ceasefire during Christmas. Francis, who was nursing a cold, prayed from the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta. Pope Francis recited the Angelus prayer from the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta,

Pope Francis delivered two Christmas messages at the Vatican on Saturday, warning against gossip’s “destructive effects” while celebrating the importance of family life and humble service. “An ecclesial community lives in joyful and fraternal harmony to the extent that its members walk in the way of humility,

Pope Francis told Vatican bureaucrats on Saturday to stop speaking ill of one another, as he once again used his annual Christmas greetings to admonish the backstabbing and gossiping among his closest collaborators.