Welcome to our Jubilee page! The Cathedral of St. Mary and St. Boniface is the mother church of our diocese and one of the four designated sites of pilgrimage for the Jubilee year. If you have not been before it is well worth a visit.
Whether you are considering visiting as an individual, with friends or family, or as part of a larger group, you will be very welcome. We hope to receive a record number of Pilgrims of Hope during this Jubilee year.
On this page you will find:
Practical tips for visiting our Cathedral including preparations you can make beforehand
Links to guides and helpful prayers
Practical tips for advance planning
It is important to remember that our Cathedral is also a parish church so checking the newsletter to avoid clashing with parish events such as weddings and funerals is important.
The Cathedral is open from 9.30 - 3.30 During these hours you will be able to get your pilgrim passport stamped if you have one. They are available from the Parish Office and the Sacristy.
There is a daily Mass at 1000. You might like to start your pilgrimage by joining us for our Eucharistic celebration.
You might also like to plan your pilgrimage around one of the special Jubilee events we are offering at the Cathedral. April 5th : Jubilee of Sick and Health Care workers : Mass, anointing of the sick and opportunity for the Sacrament of the Reconciliation- 12noon May 10th - 16th : The Jubilee IconThe Jubilee icon was painted by Mulugeta Araya from Ethiopia. In order to celebrate and commemorate the Jubilee Year 2025, Pilgrims of Hope, CAFOD commissioned an icon from artist Mulugeta Araya in Ethiopia, for the Catholic Church in England and Wales. Ethiopia was chosen because of the strong tradition of iconography within the country and to demonstrate that this is a global Jubilee - not just something that is happening in England and Wales. & National Pilgrim Virgin Statue The National Pilgrim Virgin Statue is a hand-carved Image of Our Lady of Fatima blessed by the Bishop of Fatima at the closing of the Jubilee Year on 13 May 1968, and brought to this country the following year. The National Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima, and Relics of Blessed Jacinta and Francisco travelled around the country, visiting various Cathedrals and churches in 2017, which was the Centenary year of the Fatima message, which was given by the Blessed Virgin between May and October 1917. The statue will be visiting us from the 10th 16th May- it will form part of our Jubilee Celebrations here at the cathedral. For more information on the Statue please visit: https://worldfatima-englandwales.org.uk/national-pilgrim-virgin-statue-of-our-lady-of-fatima/ June 13th: Jubilee of priests 12 noon September 25th Chapter Mass celebrating 175 Years of the Dedication of Plymouth Cathedral. 12 noon. September 27th Jubilee of Catechists 10am Mass November 20th Annual Clergy Requiem 12 noon Jan 6th 2026 Conclusion of the Jubilee Year 10am MassIf you are organizing a group visit and want access to facilities such as tea and coffee making, a place for a packed lunch and toilets then it is important that you contact the Cathedral office in advance. Complete the form below and email it to the Cathedral office. This will ensure that we are ready to welcome you.
Parking: While the Cathedral is a beacon of Hope within an inner-city community, it is not blessed with good parking. Able bodied pilgrims can use the Toys R Us carpark St Luke's Western Approach Address: Stonehouse, Plymouth PL1 1AJ We are also an easy walk from the train and coach stations. Using public transport would be a friendly way to travel. A coach can drop off and collect pilgrims. There are a limited number of disabled spaces which should be confirmed beforehand.
Links to guides and prayer resources
Plymouth Caritas, CAFOD, Vatican News/Jubilee. We will have a selection of resources available to help your experience when visiting the Cathedral. Prayer cards, children’s quiz on the QR code. Focal points such a visitors guide and the Jubilee Cross. https://youtu.be/FBi5SCO2J88
Visitors’ book. Please sign our special Jubilee visitors’ book so we can keep a record for the archives and pray for our visitors.
Booking form for large groups 15 in size
Name of parish Name of group organizer Contact number for group organizer Proposed date and time of visit Specific facilities required: e.g. use of the parish rooms, disabled parking, accompanied by a chaplain, facility for group prayer in the cathedral.
Cathedral contact for pilgrimage enquiries.
Whenever possible please email enquiries as it gives us a record and saves administration time. Email: [email protected] Telephone: 01752 662537
The Jubilee Cross at the Cathedral. JUBILEE YEAR 2025
The Jubilee Year, with the theme of ‘Pilgrims Of Hope’ has officially begun in our diocese. On the Feast of The Holy Family, the opening of the door took place at Plymouth Cathedral, presided over by Canon Paul Cummins, our Diocesan Administrator. On Christmas Eve, Pope Francis opened the Holy Door of Saint Peter’s Basilica and officially inaugurated the 2025 Jubilee of Hope. During his Christmas evening Mass, he reassured the faithful that the Christ Child of Bethlehem offers the world infinite hope and joy. Pope Francis has declared that the year 2025 will be a Holy Year of Jubilee for the Catholic Church – an event that takes place once every 25 years. The theme for the 2025 Jubilee is “Pilgrims of Hope”, an invitation to showcase the hope of our Christian faith to people right across the world at a time when there is so much suffering from the impact of war, poverty, climate change, and the lasting effects of the COVID pandemic. Canon Paul Cummins, the Diocesan Administrator says: “Whilst Rome is rightly the focus of Jubilee Years, the Pope has also asked every Diocese to designate certain places to be local centres of pilgrimage. During this year, we are encouraged to visit these places of pilgrimage and to spend some time in prayerful reflection there. In our Diocese, these places are the Cathedral in Plymouth, St Cuthbert Mayne Church in Launceston, the National Shrine of St Boniface in Crediton, and Holy Trinity Church in Dorchester. Pilgrim Passports will shortly be distributed to all parishes, which will give details of the pilgrim sites, and offer encouragement to you to visit them during the year if you are able. Also, each of the pilgrimage sites will have celebrations on specific significant days during the Jubilee Year which will be advertised nearer the time. “We invite Catholics and non Catholics alike to make a pilgrimage to these four churches. The Jubilee Year is a time to reestablish our relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation. The Jubilee Year, will be a year of hope for our world suffering the impacts of war, the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and our climate in crisis. “May this Jubilee Year be for you a time of reflection, of new insight, and of a deepening of your relationship with the Lord. May our love be a witness to those who may feel lost or hopeless, and may it encourage them on their pilgrimage to find the way, the truth and the life.” The Diocese has created a passport for pilgrims visiting the sites Pilgrims Passport and will also be creating ways for those unable to walk or travel, to visit these sacred spaces virtually. More guidance will follow.
We look forward to welcoming you. Hope does not disappoint!
LET'S MAKE THIS A YEAR OF HOPE FOR MORE MARRIAGES
Greetings in Christ in this Year of Hope In 2024, Retrouvaille England and Wales helped over 70 couples bring hope and healing back into their marriage Retrouvaille is a Catholic ministry for marriages in difficulty. We help couples whose relationships 'need a little help' to those with more serious challenges and thus are separated or considering divorce.
Decree Plenary Indulgence for the Ordinary Jubilee 2025
In the Bull announcing the Ordinary Year of Jubilee 2025, the Holy Father Pope Francis calls on all Christians to become pilgrims of hope at a time when “humanity is confronting yet another ordeal, as many people are prey to brutality and violence” (Spes non confundit, art. 8). During the Jubilee Year, the Holy Door will once more be flung open to invite everyone to a more intense experience of the love of God, and one way of discovering the unlimited nature of God’s mercy is through the gift of the Indulgence, an expression of the fullness of God’s forgiveness which knows no bounds (Spes non confundit, art. 23). The Indulgence is, therefore, a Jubilee grace.