Francis is offering a “plenary” or full indulgence for participants who are “truly penitential and compelled by charity,” according to an announcement by Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington and Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Va. The bishops oversee Catholic activities related to the March for Life.
Indulgences are especially associated with medieval piety. Outrage over their sale sparked the 16th-century Reformation and the enduring split between Catholics and Protestants. Though no longer for sale, indulgences have remained in practice in modern times. Francis offered them for acts of piety during a “Year of Mercy” in 2016, as his predecessors had done for past “jubilee” years.
Under Catholic teaching, a “plenary indulgence” enables a recipient to go straight to heaven after death rather than spending time in purgatory. Indulgences do not replace the need for the forgiveness of sins through confession, according to the catechism.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has issued guidelines for how participants in the march may obtain a plenary indulgence. Catholics who cannot attend because of age or sickness, or otherwise cannot participate, can also obtain a plenary indulgence.This is believed to be the first time in the 45-year history of the annual march that a pope has offered an indulgence to participants, according to the Archdiocese of Washington.