As they faced difficult challenges that many might consider hopeless both in their native country and in their adopted homeland, thousands of Haitian Catholics from across the United States filled the largest Catholic church in North America on Dec. 6, 2025 for a pilgrimage marking the Jubilee Year of Hope.
The annual Haitian Catholic Community Pilgrimage to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., drew an estimated 5,000 pilgrims for a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, who served in that role in Haiti from 1995 until 1999.
Speaking in Creole, French and English during his homily, Cardinal Pierre praised Haitian Catholics, noting their perseverance in faith, their devotion to Mary and their courage in the face of adversity.
“We know the struggle still marks our reality today, the violence many of your families have witnessed, the instability in the Caribbean region, the wounds that come from poverty, migration and natural disasters,” the cardinal said. But he pointed to how Mary believed God’s promise, and gave birth to Jesus who brought salvation to the world.
Mary, he said, “walks with us in our struggles, not as a distant figure, but as a mother. She accompanies us in the battle and reminds us that hope is stronger than fear.”
The cardinal noted how Pope Leo XIV’s maternal grandfather of mixed race was born on the island of Hispaniola, where Haiti and the Dominican Republic are located. “I hope this is a special reminder of your bond with the pope and with the entire Catholic family,” he said.
Cardinal Pierre reflected on that day’s Gospel reading, which described how the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would give birth to Jesus, and he said the angel’s words, “Do not be afraid,” are “God’s words for us today, especially for those whose families face insecurity and who live with uncertainty about the future.”
Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, has been plagued by waves of gang violence and instability in recent years. In the United States, the Department of Homeland Security in September terminated Temporary Protective Status for Haitian immigrants who had resettled in the United States in 2010 following a devastating earthquake in their country. In June, the Trump administration announced a travel ban and restrictions against 19 countries including Haiti, and DHS in recent weeks announced a pause in processing immigration applications for people from those countries.
Noting that “today is not only a moment to remember the trials facing your beloved homeland, though those sufferings are real and remain close to our hearts,” Cardinal Pierre said the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary offered a reminder that “God is with us.”
The cardinal said that something else that the angel Gabriel said to Mary – “Nothing will be impossible to God” – offers hope to Haitians and their families and their homeland, and “for the Church and for each of us.”
“Mary believed that promise. She trusted in it, and because of her trust, the world was changed,” he said.
Concluding his homily, Cardinal Pierre encouraged Haitian Catholics to ask Mary to help them receive “the grace of a new hope, the hope that comes from knowing that God is at work, that Christ is with us, and that nothing will be impossible to God… May Mary, pure mother of hope intercede for us, protect your families, strengthen your homeland and lead us all closer to your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
The Mass began with joyful singing led by a Haitian Catholic choir, as a boy and a girl carrying flowers led a procession down the basilica’s main aisle, followed by adults carrying banners with images of Mary including Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Haiti’s patron saint, and other adults carrying small flags from their native country.
The bishops concelebrating the Mass with Cardinal Pierre included Cardinal Robert W. McElroy, the archbishop of Washington; Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA; Bishop Jacques Fabre-Jeune of Charleston, South Carolina, the first Haitian-born bishop to lead a diocese in the United States; Bishop Robert J. Brennan of Brooklyn, New York; Bishop Pierre-André Dumas of Anse-à-Veau-Miragoâne, Haiti; Auxiliary Bishop Wismick Jean-Charles of Port-au-Prince, Haiti; and Washington Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar. About 50 priests also concelebrated the Mass.
Lionel Delatour, the ambassador of the Republic of Haiti to the United States, was among the people attending the Mass.
Offering a greeting to the pilgrims, Cardinal McElroy noted that he had been looking forward to the Mass. “Many people have told me this is the most joyous Mass that takes place in the shrine in the whole of the year, and I can see that that is true,” he said.
The cardinal also praised the faith and hope of Haitian communities in the United States and in Haiti.
“For us as Christians, hope is not the belief that everything always comes out all right. Hope for us as believers is the understanding that in our moments of greatest suffering, God will find a way to stand by our side and accompany us through. That is true Christian hope,” Cardinal McElroy said.
Washington’s archbishop – who has spoken out against the U.S. government’s policy of mass deportation of undocumented immigrants – said he wanted to offer a message to them on behalf of the Archdiocese of Washington and in union with other Catholic bishops in the United States, which he said reflects “the vision of immigration and immigrants which our country was founded upon. Immigrants are a great treasure in our nation, and anyone who says they are not is offending not only our faith, but also America’s history and identity.”
Cardinal McElroy said the suffering Christ stands with immigrants in their hardships.
“All of us who know what is in your hearts, and the beauty of your lives, how you come here to this country to contribute, and to be one with the fabric of the United States. All of us join with you and embrace you and will be there for you in every way possible,” the cardinal said.
He concluded his remarks by saying, “May God bless you in this Mass, may God bless you in your life, and in your homes, and in your families, and may God bless Haiti.”
Also welcoming the pilgrims was Msgr. Walter Rossi, the National Shrine’s rector, who greeted them in Creole, and then said in English, “Let us lift up our beloved Haiti, and all your friends and family at home who are going through such a difficult time with gang violence as well as political instability.”
Noting “the new immigration policies which may affect you and your families,” the priest said, “We stand with you, and we love you.”
Mary is “the mother of hope,” Msgr. Rossi said, adding, “May the power of hope fill your life this day and every day.”
The Mass was preceded by a Holy Hour, that included reverent silence and joyful singing, as Haitian priests led a Eucharistic procession through the basilica. After the Holy Hour, Bishop Fabre-Jeune – who is a member of the Scalabrinian Fathers religious order and serves as the liaison of the Haitian Apostolate in the United States – spoke briefly to the pilgrims, encouraging them to rely on their faith. “We are going to build a new nation, and it’s going to start with us,” he said.
The offertory procession at the Mass included women wearing light blue gowns, who swayed as they carried baskets with fruit including grapes, oranges, bananas and pineapples.
During the intercessions, a prayer was offered for young people, that they might grow in wisdom, grace and faith, and navigate the journey to adulthood following the example of Mary by being open to God’s plan.
In an interview before the Mass, Auxiliary Bishop Wismick Jean-Charles of Port-au-Prince, who is a member of the Montfort Missionaries religious order, said the people of Haiti have a strong faith in God and devotion to the Virgin Mary.
He noted that the situation in Haiti now “is very challenging because of the violence and insecurity. The good news is, the Church stays with the people… The people feel the Church is with them. They are not alone. That keeps them moving forward.”
The Haitian Catholics’ annual pilgrimage to the National Shrine gives them an opportunity “to pray together, to be together,” he said, adding that solidarity extends throughout that community in the United States and in Haiti.
“We are one Church, one family. It’s important for people to see that, to feel that. Unity, communion makes our Church beautiful,” Bishop Jean-Charles said.
Two priests from Haiti interviewed before the Mass emphasized the pilgrimage’s importance for the Haitian Catholic community.
Father Reginald Jean-Mary, the pastor of the Notre Dame D’Haiti Catholic Mission in Miami, said, “I believe this is a great affirmation of our faith as Catholics. It is a good moment for us, especially for what we are going through both in Haiti and here, that we can come together and be united not just in a spirit of faith, but also to affirm our humanity and our motto as a nation, ‘Unity leads to strength.’”
The priest noted how Haitians in the United States “are facing great indifference and being marginalized, excluded and isolated,” while back in Haiti, people are facing “an umbrella of insecurity.” Mary, he said, offers a model of making the impossible possible.
“Being able to come together in this great moment that we are closing the Jubilee Year of Hope, it gives us a reason to hope against all hope and to become pilgrims of hope to one another,” Father Jean-Mary said.
Msgr. Pierre-André Pierre of the National Center of the Haitian Apostolate in the United States which is headquartered in Brooklyn, said the annual pilgrimage “is a way to be in solidarity with what the people in Haiti and here in this country are living, to be a part of the struggle and also of a big hope that we can overcome the hardships of the day. When we are united and living in solidarity, we reflect the true values of what made us a nation and what makes us Christian.”
The Haitian Catholics pilgrimage, he added, “is a way to recover our hope, to be united and to know our faith is our strength. We can move forward with determination, never give up, never abandon the hope that is part of our being.”
Father Pierre emphasized that Haitians “are a people of faith wherever they go, facing all kinds of challenges. God is the ground of their life and the pillar of their hope. When everything seems to be impossible, they always find a way out with the light of God.”
The priest said the gathering offered “a way for Haitians to come to the roots of their faith and keep walking with Mary in their life journey.”
The pilgrimage opened with Haitian priests now serving in the United States joining for Vespers and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament on Dec. 5 at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, and the closing Mass was celebrated on Dec. 7 at Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Takoma Park, Maryland.
Prayer cards were distributed promoting the cause of canonization of Venerable Pierre Toussaint, one of seven U.S. Black Catholics being considered for sainthood. Toussaint, who was born enslaved in Haiti, later immigrated to New York and became renowned for his devout Catholic faith and his outreach to people in need. He is buried beneath the altar in St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.
Father Luc Philogene, the chaplain to the Haitian Catholic community in the Archdiocese of Washington, said this year’s pilgrimage was the largest he has seen since he began his ministry in the nation’s capital seven years ago. He noted that even though many Haitian immigrants are afraid of traveling to Washington at this time, pilgrims came from across the United States and Canada.
“Amidst the difficulties, vicissitudes, and problems of all kinds that we experience here in the diaspora and in Haiti, the faith of Haitians is growing stronger,” Father Philogene said.
Edrige David, a member of Our Lady of Refuge Church in Brooklyn who is active in the Holy Family Association of Haitian Catholics there, said she has been joining the pilgrimage at the National Shrine for 40 years.
“Our faith gives us hope. We know God is our good God. One way, he will deliver us. We have faith in the Virgin Mary,” she said, adding, “When we pray together, God answers. We are sure among all the people who came today, someone will get the grace of God. Where there are a lot of people, God is always there.”
