Jubilee Year 2025

If you’ve been inspired as a Pilgrim of Hope in 2025, you’re invited to join Bishop Michael Kennedy on Christ the King Sunday and celebrate our Jubilee Year blessings with a Diocesan Mass and witness the commissioning of 74 young people for their journey to the Australian Catholic Youth Festival in Melbourne.

All are welcome. Don’t forget to bring your Pilgrim Passport and yourselves to receive a special Jubilee year momento.

Commissioned in Hope Mass

Sunday 23 November, 5:00pm-6:00pm

Sacred Heart Cathedral, Hamilton

Enquiries – [email protected]

The Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF) is a national gathering that brings together Catholic young people, from Year 9 students through to 25-year-olds, to celebrate their faith, deepen their relationship with Jesus, and connect with others who share their beliefs.

Hosted this year in Melbourne, the Festival will unite more than 10,000 young Catholics from across Australia for a vibrant celebration of faith, music, formation, and community. Participants will engage with inspiring speakers, musicians, youth ministers, and Bishops, all coming together to experience a renewed encounter with Christ in this special Jubilee Year.

Alongside Bishop Michael Kennedy, the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle will lead a pilgrimage of 74 youth and young adults to the Festival.

Those joining the diocesan pilgrimage are taking part in a face-to-face formation program in the lead up to the Festival and will be officially commissioned on Christ the King Sunday (Local World Youth Day) before departing for Melbourne the following week.

Our Jubilee Year is nearly over. It started with an incredible Pilgrimage of Hope from Nobby’s Beach to Sacred Heart Cathedral where we celebrated Mass before enjoying a fun festival full of family activities.

If you haven’t started yet, there is still time to journey beyond and go on our Pilgrimage through our Diocese! Our eight sites are open and ready for you. Please visit these Churches during the times listed below.

Sacred Heart Cathedral, Newcastle West

• • Tuesday 8:15 AM: Mass
  • Wednesday 8:15 AM: Mass
  • Thursday 8:15 AM- Vesper- 1^st Thursday of each month 5.00pm. 3 April, 1 May, 5 June, 3 July, 7 August, 4 September, 2 October, 6 November
  • Friday 11:00 AM: Reconciliation 12:05 PM: Mass
  • Saturday 9:15 AM: Mass (followed by Novena) 5:30 PM: Mass
  • Sunday 9:30 AM: Mass 11:30 AM: Polish Mass 5:00 PM: Mass
  • Monday 8:15 AM: Mass

St Mary Star of the Sea, Newcastle

• • • Sunday 7.30AM: Mass
    • During May- 11am- Noon- Marian Prayer and Reflect

St John the Baptist Shrine, Maitland

• • Wednesday’s 2^nd and 4^th of the month – 9.00AM- 4.00PM

St Joseph’s, East Maitland

• • Tuesday 9.30AM- 10.30AM Private Adoration Mass open from 5:00PM- 7.00PM
  • Wednesday 7:00 AM: Mass
  • Thursday 6.30AM Rosary 7:00 AM: Mass 9.30am – 10.30am Private Adoration
  • Friday 6.30AM Rosary 7:00 AM – 9.00AM Mass and Private Adoration
  • 1st Friday of the Month: 24 hour Private Adoration
  • Saturday 8:00 AM: Mass (includes Reconciliation)
  • Saturday 5:00 PM: Mass
  • 2nd Saturday’s: 8.00AM Mass followed by Marian Holy Hour, Benediction & Reconciliation – 12th April, 10 May, 14th June, 12th July, 9th August, 13th September, 11th October, 8th November, 13th December
  • Sunday 8.30AM & 6.00PM
  • Monday 9.30AM- 10.30AM Private Adoration

St Joseph’s, Murrurundi

• • Saturday 5:00 PM: Mass
  • To visit outside Mass times, contact these parishioners who all live in the same street as the church. (It helps you and them to ring ahead.):

• • • Gerard or Lindy Howard 0409 400 824
    • Karen Kimpton 0432 277 591
    • Gemma Metzker 0414 461 165

Blessed Virgin Mary Queen of Peace, Scone

• • The Church is open every day sunrise to sunset when Father Graham is onsite.
  • Tuesday 9:00 AM: Mass
  • Wednesday 10:00 AM (Rosary at 9:45 am)
  • Friday 9:15 AM: Mass during School Term OR 9:00 AM School Holidays.
  • Saturday 9:00 AM: Mass.  Reconciliations 9:30AM to 10:15 AM
  • Sunday 9:00 AM: Mass
  • Sunday 4:00 PM: Exposition, Adoration and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Reconciliations 4:00PM to 4:45PM during Exposition
  • Sunday 5:00 PM: Mass

Saints Patrick & Brigid, Cooranbong

• • Saturday 5:00 PM: Mass (2nd, 4th, and 5th Sunday of the month)

Our Lady of the Rosary Church, Taree

• • Tuesday 4.30pm: Reconciliation 5.30pm: Mass
  • Wednesday 9.30am: Mass (2nd ,3rd,4th Wednesday of the month)
  • Friday 9.00am: Adoration 9.30am: Mass
  • Saturday 5.30pm: Mass
  • Sunday 9.30am: Mass

Earlier this month, representatives from the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle joined almost 300 delegates from across the country at the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (NATSICC) Assembly. 

Guided by the Jubilee theme Pilgrims of Hope, the gathering was a powerful time of prayer, truth-telling, cultural exchange and reflection. 

Read more about it here or watch our highlight video below:

Our pilgrims recently returned from an 18-day journey tracing the footsteps of St. Paul and other revered saints, visiting pivotal biblical sites across Greece, Turkey, and Italy. From the ancient wonders of Athens and Corinth to the spiritual heights of Meteora and the holy grounds of Ephesus, each location offered a unique opportunity for deep spiritual reflection and connection to our rich Christian story. The pilgrimage culminated in Rome during the Jubilee Year, where pilgrims experienced the grace and blessings of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica, uniting in faith and community. The pilgrimage was a deeply enriching experience, fostering a renewed sense of faith and spiritual growth.

Read more in our Aurora article here

On Saturday 31 May over 60 people gathered in the Toohey Room to view the artwork created for our Jubilee Art Exhibition. It was evident in the creations that the artists had reflected deeply on the theme ‘Hope does not disappoint’.

In his Jubilee Year letter to us Pope Francis begins by quoting Saint Paul saying “Spes non confundit” – “Hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit” (Rom5:5). This letter encourages us to be “tangible signs of hope” for others, especially those of our brothers and sisters who experience hardships of any kind.

The artists reflected on the theme using colours, shapes, lines and symbols and transformed the words to provide a deeper meaning and provoke the thoughts and feelings of the audience.

The overall winners of the exhibition were Gwen Competente, Paige Jones and Michelle Lawson.

You can learn more and take a look at submissions, by clicking here.  

Hope, faith, and a whole lot of fun filled the air in Newcastle on Sunday 2 March as more than 1,000 people gathered to launch the Catholic Church’s Jubilee Year.

It started with a Pilgrimage of Hope from Nobbys Beach to Sacred Heart Cathedral, where Bishop Michael Kennedy and people from across the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle walked in unison, celebrating everything they receive from God and offer the world.

After the pilgrimage, the Cathedral was overflowing for an inspiring and reflective Mass before everyone enjoyed a festival of family activities, free food, and connection.

Read more about it here.

At this event, people also picked up a Pilgrim’s Passport to visit our sites of pilgrimage. To learn more about the Passport and how to obtain a Jubilee Indulgence, click here. 

At the start of March, the Diocese hosted an exhibition about Blessed Carlo Acutis, a young Italian boy who will be canonised a Saint during the Jubilee Year after living a life incredibly close to Jesus.

After his canonisation in Septemver 2025, he became known as Patron Saint of the Internet because of his unique approach to spirituality in the digital age.

Carlo’s ability to blend his deep faith with a passion for technology was remarkable. He created a website to document Eucharistic miracles and share his beliefs with the world. He was a devout Catholic and is credited as having a hand in two healing miracles after his death — the requisite number for all Catholic saints.