Wednesday March 19th: Trust and Obey!
March 19, 2025
Catholic women told their most important label is daughter of God
March 19, 2025
By Kaelanne Jordan
mediarelations.camsel@catholictt.org
Twenty five years ago, the Catholic Church worldwide embarked on a significant spiritual journey—the Jubilee Year celebrating the 2000th birthday of Christ. This milestone was marked by three years of preparation, culminating in a time of celebration, reflection, and reconciliation.
For Rosemary Scott, that Jubilee Year sparked a divine inspiration that led to the creation of her song ‘Time of Jubilee’.
As Scott reflected on her songwriting process, she recalled being moved by the spirit of the Jubilee and the Church’s call for celebration and healing.
“I just really felt, ‘Okay Lord, if You want something for this Jubilee, help me out’,” she said. Sitting in prayer, the words and melody for ‘Time of Jubilee’ began to flow. Although Scott isn’t a trained musician and doesn’t read music, the words “just started to come.”
“So, I started to write the words, and I started to think, ‘well, it has to be joyful, celebratory’…” said Scott, assistant director at the Living Water Community.
She turned to fellow choir member, Colette Thompson (now deceased), and together they worked on the music. Scott strummed a few chords on the guitar, and the song came naturally.
The Jubilee Year for Scott was a time of celebration, healing, and reconciliation. In 2000, there was much anticipation surrounding the concept of the Holy Doors. The song’s lyrics, which mention “the door”, allude to this significant moment.
“Because in our own Archdiocese, there were places where the doors were closed for a year before and we all looked forward in anticipation to when the door could be opened,” Scott said.
She shared her thoughts on the song’s relevance today, “…even when I was told that this was going to be used in the opening of the Jubilee time in the Cathedral [of the Immaculate Conception], I kind of thought, is it relevant today…. But it really is. As I heard it sung in the Cathedral that day, I said, ‘my goodness, jubilees are timeless in a sense’….”
Scott is “very humbled” by the song’s enduring impact, with it being sung in parishes and schools, adding “I mean, wow. To God be the glory—it’s really all glory to God.”
Looking back 25 years ago, Scott remembers the 2000 Jubilee as a “more solemn” time. “In the three years you preparing, one year was for the Father, one year was for the Spirit, one year was for Jesus,” she explained. When the Jubilee time arrived, it was celebrated with “a real reverence and solemnity.” She clarified, “Not that that hasn’t been this year, but this year I feel there’s so much joy in the Church with it.”
Scott continued, “I don’t know if we’ve learnt, we’ve grown, maybe it’s because the synod and we’ve done the work in synod, which I really feel has prepared us… to enter into this Jubilee time with a new joy, a new expectation of wow, the Church is alive!”
She expressed hope that the Jubilee Year would act as a “springboard” for how the faithful live out their lives as part of the Church. When asked about the possibility of another song this year, Scott replied, “That’s up to the Lord. And I’m open… if the Lord wants it, it’ll happen.”
Directly from scripture
Meanwhile, for Marceline Peters, a music minister from St Anthony’s RC, Point Fortin, this Jubilee Year holds a deep, personal significance. As a composer and singer, she has channelled her experiences and reflections into a powerful song titled ‘Hope Does Not Disappoint: Our Jubilee Song’.
When asked what inspired her to pen this song, Peters recounted she was moved by a passage from Romans that had spoken directly to her heart. It reads: “Hope does not disappoint.” This scripture resonated profoundly as she reflected on her own personal challenges and the power of hope in Christ.
“And so it began. A morning I got up after prayer, I sat in a quiet place and the melody came to me,” Peters said.
She explained how she was careful to draw directly from scripture in crafting the lyrics of her song.
“And if you look at the lyrical content of the chorus, it’s directly from Scripture, because in all God’s love poured into us through the power of the Holy Spirit gives us the grace to believe, to have that faith…”
The verses of the song, too, reflect the spiritual journey that is at the heart of the Jubilee Year.
“… the second verse is, ‘Jesus is the open door. Walk in and receive His love’. The first verse talks about we have to encourage each other to build our community in this pilgrim journey,” Peters highlighted.
For her, these lyrics are not just for the Jubilee Year; they are meant to be affirmations of faith that anyone can embrace at any time. “It is like a declaration of faith… that hope does not disappoint.”
Both songs can be found on the Liturgical Commission of Trinidad and Tobago YouTube page.
Do you have a song you want to share for this special Jubilee Year? Email your score sheet, MP3 file, or link to the Jubilee Secretariat of the Archdiocese of Port of Spain: jubilee2025admin@catholictt.org
