A Holy Year or Jubilee is declared when St. James Day (July 25) falls on a Sunday.
"At midnight on the eve of a Holy Year (Dec 31, 2009), a public ceremony is held in which the Archbishop of Santiago knocks three times on the Puerta Santa (Holy Door), which has been walled shut since the previous Holy Year (which, prior to this year, was 2004). Afterward, the wall is knocked down and remains open throughout the year, allowing pilgrims to enter the cathedral through it. At the end of the year, the door is again walled shut and remains closed until the next Holy Year (which is not until the year 2021). St. James the Apostle is the patron saint of Spain and his remains are believed to be in the cathedral at Santiago, making it one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the world." (http://www.answers.com/topic/spain-holy-year-at-santiago-de-compostela)
The pictures I have posted are from my last trip to Santiago in the Spring of 2006 when I spent the academic year in Spain on a Fulbright Fellowship. We visited the church and the University.
For an introduction to the WAY OF SANTIAGO, please see: http://www.freehighway.99k.org/
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