Pilgrims are lining up to walk through the great Holy Door at the entrance of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome as Christmas marks the start of the 2025 Holy Year celebration.

Pilgrims lined up to walk through the great Holy Door at the entrance of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome as Christmas marks the start of the 2025 Holy Year celebration.

ROME -- Pope Francis inaugurated his Holy Year at Rome’s main prison on Thursday, bringing a message of hope to inmates and involving them in the Catholic Church’s once every quarter-century celebration that is expected to bring about 32 million pilgrims to Rome.

Pope Francis made a visit on Thursday to one of the largest prison complexes in Italy, opening a special "Holy Door" for the 2025 Catholic Holy Year, in what the Vatican said was the first such action by a Catholic pontiff.

Pope Francis urged inmates to never give up hope as he inaugurated the Vatican’s Jubilee Year at the high-security Rebibbia prison on the outskirts of Rome on Thursday.