On Sunday, July 26, the Catholic Church celebrates planet Day 6 of Grandparents and Elders. Pope Leon XIV addressed a message on this occasion, in which he calls primarily on young people to return to the habit of visiting grandparents and those to whom no 1 comes. By day he made the words of the prophet Isaiah, “I will not forget you.” In an ageing Polish society, this reminder sounds uniquely current.
A Message for Grandparents’ Day
The Pope's message was signed on June 15, before planet Day of Grandparents and Elders celebrated. The feast was established by Pope Francis in 2021; it falls on the 4th Sunday of July, close to the liturgical memory of the saints Joachim and Anna, Jesus' grandparents. This year's July 26th. As a slogan, Leon XIV chose God’s words from Isaiah, in which the Creator assures man that he will never forget it.
"Return to a beautiful custom"
The core of the papal message is the appeal to the youngest generations. Leon XIV wrote: "Let this Day so be an incentive for all – especially for young people – to return to the beautiful habit of visiting their grandparents." The Pope asked to remember besides those older people, to whom no 1 is looking, but their own family.
Loneliness that touches the oldest
Many places the Pope sacrificed alone. He noted: “Unfortunately, many people have a painful sense of being forgotten and many of them are older.” He besides warned against treating dependent nursing homes in specified a way that they were stripped of their dignity when, as he warned, "the uniqueness of each individual can be brought to her bed number or to her illness." In this view, old age is not a illness or a burden, but a phase of life that demands the presence of another man.
Call to Prayer for Peace
Elders Leon XIV besides asked for spiritual support. He asked them to “reunite with me in a persistent prayer for the imminent advent of peace throughout the world.” He besides reached out to the thought of Saint Augustine, who compared God’s love to motherly tenderness.
A day with a short but strong tradition
World Day of Grandparents and Elders has only a fewer years of history, but it rapidly entered the calendar of the Church. Francis established it to appreciate the function of the oldest generation in the transmission of religion and memory, and subsequent messages make the same theme: the ties between grandparents and grandchildren as the foundation of the community. In many parishes, this day is connected with prayer for seniors and visits to the sick.
Sign for an ageing Poland
The Papal message falls on the ground, which in Poland becomes increasingly meaningful. The society is ageing, single households are growing, and a multi-generational family, for centuries the natural environment of caring for grandparents, is weakening under force from economical migration and the pace of life. respect for elders belongs to the foundations of Christian and national tradition, and weakening this bond strikes the very fabric of the community. Leon XIV's words are, therefore, not a mild appeal, but a call to rebuild relationships that no care institution will replace. How many grandparents are inactive waiting for visitors who are not coming?
