Pope Francis prepares special Jubilee for Prisoners Mass

The Jubilee program will be held with 'serenity and trust.'

Pope Francis will see inmates and their families on November 6 for a special Jubilee for Prisoners.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The Jubilee for Prisoners will be held at St. Peter's Basilica, followed by a special Mass with Pope Francis and a reception.

Archbishop Rino Fisichella told CNA: "For the first time it will be possible for a large number of detainees from different parts of Italy and other countries to be present in St. Peter's Basilica to live the Jubilee with Pope Francis.

"We know that the Pope takes great care of detained persons," he added, noting how in each of his trips abroad, the Pontiff "has repeatedly wanted to visit prisoners and leave the detained a message of closeness and hope."

Archbishop Fisichella told journalists the Jubilee for Prisoners, along with the Jubilee for the Socially Marginalized set for November 13, will coincide with the closure of the Holy Door at St. Peter's Basilica, thus marking the end of the Jubilee of Mercy.

Between November fifth and sixth, the Jubilee of Prisoners will take place in Rome and will be part of the wider Jubilee of Mercy.

On Saturday, celebrations will begin with Eucharistic Adoration and Confessions in the following churches: The Roman churches of S. Salvatore in Lauro, S. Maria in Vallicella (Chiesa Nuova) and S. Giovanni Battista dei Fiorentini.

Saturday's final event will be pilgrimages to the Holy Door.

On Sunday, St. Peter's Basilica will open at 7:30 a.m. and prisoner, victim and guest testimonies will be given beginning at nine.

Prisoners, their families, prison employees, chaplains and others associated within and without the prison system will benefit from the Jubilee of Prisoners.

Over 4,000 people have already signed up for the Jubilee, 1,000 of whom are prisoners from England, Italy, Latvia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain, the United States, South Africa, Sweden and Portugal.

Everyone from people on house arrest to minors is invited, particularly those carrying sentences offering "a future and hope other than condemnation and the length of that sentence," Archbishop Fisichella announced.

Pope Francis has regarded death row inmates with a special attention and has repeatedly called for an end to the death penalty, but reports indicate none will be present during the event.

Archbishop Fisichella shared the inmates who will be attending have been hand-picked by prison chaplains and the bishops conferences. Some will even participate in the liturgy.

The hosts used during Communion will be made by prisoners from the Opera Maximum security prison in Milan as part of "The Meaning of Bread" project created specifically for the Jubilee of Mercy.

No extra security measures will be taken and Archbishop Fisichella believes the events will move "like normal."

Archbishop Fisichella shared the closure of the Holy Doors, which will conclude the Jubilee of Mercy, "does not exhaust the commitment of the Church, but in the light of the Jubilee experience, strengthens her witness."

The Jubilee for Prisoners and the Jubilee for Marginalized persons "are certain...[to] be lived with the same intensity and experience of prayer with which we have seen the entire Jubilee [of Mercy]," the Archbishop shared.

He explained the events are "a meaningful horizon of the jubilee program which looks forward to Nov. 20 with serenity and trust."

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