Pope Francis asked not to marginalize the elderly in our lives and families, warning about the danger of crowded cities turned into ” concentrates of loneliness,” on 23 July, Sunday.
At 10:00 this morning, the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, the Holy Father presided over the Eucharistic Celebration in St. Peter’s Basilica on the occasion of the 3rd World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly.
In his homily, the Pontiff illustrated the parable of the yeast and the flour that invites us to live united and mixed, overcoming “individualism and selfishness”.
“In this way,” Francis said, “today the Word of God is a call to be vigilant so that our lives and our families do not marginalize the elderly.”
“Let us be vigilant so that our crowded cities do not become concentrations of loneliness,” Pope Francis said during the Holy Mass that was attended by 6,000 people, including numerous elderly people from all over Italy.
Thus, he urged politics, “which is called to provide for the needs of the most fragile”, so that it does not forget “the elderly, letting the market relegate them to unproductive discards”.
“It is not going to happen that, by dint of following the myths of efficiency and performance at full speed, we are incapable of braking to accompany those who find it difficult to keep up. Please, let’s mingle, let’s grow together,” the Pope said before an audience, mostly elderly, who were accompanied by their grandchildren and families.
In his preaching, Pope Francis invited new generations and older adults to grow together “Let us listen, dialogue, support each other. Let’s not forget grandparents and the elderly”.
He recalled that “many times, thanks to a caress” from grandparents and the elderly “we have risen again, we have resumed the path, we have felt loved, healed from the inside”.
“They have sacrificed for us and we cannot remove them from the agenda of our priorities. Brothers, and sisters, let’s grow together, let’s go forward together. The Lord will bless our path,” he indicated.
During Mass, these seniors presented the “Pilgrim’s Cross” to five young people who will attend WYD in Lisbon (August 1-6), Portugal.
All the dioceses of the world today are invited by Pope Francis to celebrate the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly through Masses dedicated to them and by visiting the elderly who are alone.
Likewise, the Pontiff granted a plenary indulgence on the occasion of Grandparents Day 2023, with the usual conditions to obtain it, under the theme: “His mercy extends from generation to generation”, inspired by a passage from the Gospel according to Saint Luke (Lk 1,50).