Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday closed out the Vatican’s 2025 Holy Year, capping a yearlong celebration of Christianity that saw some 33 million pilgrims flock to Rome and a historic papal transition from one American pope to another.
With cardinals and diplomats looking on, Leo kneeled down in prayer on the stone floor at the threshold of the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica. He then stood up and pulled the two doors shut, symbolically completing the rarest of Jubilees: one that was opened by a feeble Pope Francis in December 2024, continued during his funeral and the conclave, and then was closed by Francis' successor a year later.
