What You Need to Celebrate the Holy Year
2027 is a special year for the Camino de Santiago. It marks the Xacobeo 2027, a year filled with celebrations and activities along the Camino de Santiago routes that will draw thousands of pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela.
Concerts, exhibitions, conferences, talks… and gatherings about the different routes of the Camino de Santiago are just some of the activities included in the Xunta de Galicia’s Xacobeo 2027 Plan. But they won’t be the only ones. We’ll tell you everything you need to know to celebrate the upcoming Holy Year.
What is the Xacobeo?
The Xacobeo, also known as the Holy Year, Jubilee Year, Xacobeo Year, or Jacobean Year, allows pilgrims who visit the tomb of the Apostle in the Cathedral of Santiago to receive a plenary indulgence—that is, forgiveness of all sins. The Catholic Church refers to this as “earning the Jubilee,” something that can only be done in five cities around the world: Compostela, Rome, Jerusalem, Santo Toribio, and Caravaca de la Cruz.
The Xacobeo is celebrated every year when the Feast of St. James the Apostle (July 25) falls on a Sunday, as established by Pope Callixtus II in 1126, coinciding with the laying of the cornerstone of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. For this reason, the Xacobeo is usually celebrated about 14 times each century.
When is the next Xacobeo year?
The next Xacobeo, or Holy Year of Santiago de Compostela, will be in 2032. It will bring to a close a decade of the Xacobeo marked by the pandemic and featuring one of the most unusual Holy Years in history: the extension of the 2021 Xacobeo into 2022. As we’ve already mentioned, a year is considered a Xacobeo when July 25—the Feast of St. James the Apostle—falls on a Sunday. And this happens every few years.
Specifically, Holy Years follow a pattern familiar to all pilgrims, which is as follows: 6-5-6-11. That is, Holy Years occur every 6, 5, 6, and 11 years.
Are you going to walk the Camino de Santiago during Xacobeo 2027?
Walking the Camino de Santiago is not a requirement for celebrating the Xacobeo, but many pilgrims take advantage of this celebration to do so. It’s worth it because, in addition to the experience the Camino de Santiago offers, at the end of the journey they will be rewarded with the “purification” of their soul.
If you, too, are thinking about walking the Camino de Santiago during Xacobeo 2027, we invite you to discover the different routes, such as the French Way, the Primitive Way, the Winter Way, the English Way, the Northern Way, and the Portuguese Coastal Way, among others.
How to Earn the Jubilee? Requirements for Celebrating the Xacobeo
To gain the Jubilee, or to obtain forgiveness of sins during the Year of St. James, pilgrims and the faithful must fulfill three requirements:
- Visit the tomb of the Apostle in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
- Say a prayer and pray for the Pope’s intentions.
- Receive the sacraments of Confession and Holy Communion within the fifteen days before or after the visit to the Cathedral.
In addition, it is recommended to attend Holy Mass during the visit to the Cathedral of Santiago.
Rites of the Holy Year: Opening of the Holy Door
The Holy Year of Santiago has its own rituals. The best known is the opening of the Holy Door, the moment when the Jubilee Year officially begins.
This event takes place on the afternoon of December 31, when the Archbishop of Santiago opens this door located at the rear of the Cathedral of Santiago, which leads out to the Plaza de la Quintana. With a silver hammer, the archbishop strikes the wall blocking the Holy Door three times as a symbol of the hardship of the Camino leading up to it.
After this ritual, he asks the Apostle for permission to enter, and then the wall is torn down. The Holy Door remains open for the following 12 months, and, as tradition dictates, all pilgrims who reach Santiago that year must use that door to enter the Cathedral.
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