This weekend, Australia votes.

Polling booths will fill with parents juggling prams, teenagers casting their first ballots, elders with decades of civic participation under their belts. Democracy, for all its complexity and flaws, is still something deeply hopeful. At its core, it’s a shared belief that we can shape the world around us – that our voices matter.

And this year, the timing is sacred.

In the midst of campaign noise and policy debate, the Church invites us into something quieter but
no less powerful: the Jubilee Year. A time of pilgrimage. Of hope.

Pope Francis has called us all to be Pilgrims of Hope – not just in spiritual matters, but in the everyday choices we make, the communities we build, the future we imagine. This isn’t a theme for the pious few; it’s a vision for all of us, especially now.

Because it’s easy to feel disillusioned. Rising costs, climate uncertainty, division in our national conversations – these are real and pressing concerns. But Jubilee reminds us that hope isn’t a passive feeling. It’s a decision. A practice. A path.

As voters and as people of faith, we are called to walk that path.

So what does it mean to vote as a Pilgrim of Hope? It means asking deeper questions. Not just, “What’s good for me?” but, “What’s good for all of us?”

It means remembering the people who don’t have a voice, or whose voices are often ignored – First Nations communities, refugees, those living in poverty or isolation. It means imagining a society shaped not by fear, but by compassion, mercy, and justice.

Hope doesn’t mean blind optimism. It means choosing to believe that change is possible – and acting on that belief.

So as you step into the booth this weekend, bring your heart as well as your ballot. Bring the spirit of Jubilee. Pray. Reflect. Vote with courage. Vote with hope.

Because every step we take – every decision we make – can become part of a bigger journey.

We are pilgrims. And together, we are walking toward something new.