Release from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB)
The fourth World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly will be celebrated this year on Sunday, July 28, 2024.
Pope Francis inaugurated this World Day to be celebrated by the universal Church each July, either on or near the liturgical Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, grandparents of Jesus, to help “treasure the spiritual and human wealth that has been handed down from generation to generation.”
In his message for the fourth World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, Pope Francis shares this year’s theme for the Day: “Do not cast me off in my old age” (Psalm 71:9). He invites the Catholic faithful to reflect on the loneliness of the elderly, encouraging us to “take a new path” and to spend time with them, “acknowledging their unique role in the family, in society and in the Church…”
The Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life at the Vatican issued a press release about the celebration, along with resources, available on the CCCB website: English / French.
“In the message, the Holy Father emphasises how – due to the crisis of communal belonging and the emergence of an increasingly individualistic mentality – the loneliness of the elderly is often not perceived as a problem. But the Church is called to build something different, to rediscover the taste for fraternity, and to build bonds between generations,” said Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life.
“Our hope is that, as a result of this, the elderly become permanent protagonists in the life and pastoral care of the Church, and that attention be devoted to them every day of the year,” said Gleison De Paula Souza, Secretary of the Dicastry.
Pope Francis – Message for the IV World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly – LINK
-30-
NEWS ITEM:
World Day of Grandparents: Vatican grants plenary indulgence for visiting the elderly
[Vatican City] – The Vatican has granted a plenary indulgence to anyone who visits a sick, lonely, or disabled elderly person on the fourth annual World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly on Sunday, July 28, 2024.
Those who are grandparents or elderly themselves can also receive a plenary indulgence, as well as anyone who participates in religious functions connected to the celebration, as long as the usual conditions are fulfilled.
The usual conditions to obtain a plenary indulgence are to be detached from all sin, to receive sacramental confession and Holy Communion, and to pray for the pope’s intentions.
An indulgence is a grace granted by the Catholic Church through the merits of Jesus Christ to remove the temporal punishment due to sin. It applies to sins already forgiven and cleanses the soul as if just baptized.
Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, the head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, sent a decree July 18 granting the plenary indulgences.
A person who cannot leave his or her home due to sickness, infirmity, or another serious reason can also obtain the plenary indulgence if they “unite themselves spiritually to the sacred functions” of the day, “offering to the merciful God the prayers, pains, or sufferings of their lives, especially during the various celebrations which will be broadcast through the media,” De Donatis decreed.
The major penitentiary also asked priests to make themselves available to hear confessions “in a ready and generous spirit” so that Catholics may more easily have “the opportunity to attain divine grace through the power of the keys of the Church.”
World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly
The World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021, is held on the fourth Sunday of July, which falls near the July 26 feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus.
The Vatican announced the theme in February, “Do Not Cast Me Off in My Old Age” (taken from Psalm 71), saying it was Pope Francis’ desire “to call attention to the fact that, sadly, loneliness is the bitter lot in life of many elderly people, so often the victims of the throwaway culture.
-30-
Catholic News Agency – CNA – is a service of EWTN News, Inc. offering free access to news items for Catholic dioceses, parishes, and websites, “in order to increase awareness of the activities of the universal Church and to foster a sense of Catholic thought and culture in the life of every Catholic.”