Pope marks World Grandparents' Day with a call to end "loneliness of the elderly”

At the Angelus Pope Francis stresses the importance of the elderly, expressing concern for their loneliness and promoting an alliance between generations. He also prayed for the victims of the landslide in Ethiopia with hundreds of casualties. He criticised the sale of arms. On the Gospel of the miracle of the loaves and fishes, an exhortation to gratitude and sharing.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Today, the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly with the theme ‘In old age do not forsake me’ (cf. Ps 71:9), Pope Francis from the window of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, looking out from 12 noon for the recitation of the Angelus, recalled its importance. Starting with the widespread loneliness of the elderly.

‘The abandonment of the elderly is indeed a sad reality to which we must not become accustomed,’ the Pope said. "For many of them, especially in these summer days, loneliness risks becoming a difficult burden to bear. Today calls us to listen to the voice of the elderly who say: Do not abandon me. And respond: I will not abandon you,’ he said.

Francis, who established the anniversary in 2021, then urged the alliance between generations: ‘Let us strengthen the alliance between grandchildren and grandparents, between young and old. Let us say no to the loneliness of the elderly! Our future depends very much on how grandparents and grandchildren learn to live together." A round of applause for the grandparents was the seal to his words, addressed to all present in the sun-drenched St Peter's Square on this last Sunday in July.

The Pope then pledged his prayers for the victims of the landslide that hit a village in southern Ethiopia. ‘I am close to that population so tried and to those who are bringing relief.’ According to an as-yet-undetermined toll, there are 257 victims of the mountain subsidence in the Kencho Shacha Gozdi district, a landslide that occurred on Tuesday 23 July. 50,000 people are affected, more than 1,300 children in urgent need of shelter.

The Pontiff also denounced the hypocrisy of a world that, despite being afflicted by calamities and hunger, continues to build and sell weapons. ‘This is a scandal,’ he said. ‘War is a defeat!’ Pope Francis stressed how resources could be used to alleviate suffering, instead of fuelling conflicts that only bring destruction and pain, ‘which the international community should not tolerate,’ he added.

The Pope then referred to the Olympic Games that have just begun, stressing how the spirit of brotherhood they represent contradicts the reality of rampant violence in the world.

Before the recitation of the Marian prayer, Pope Francis shared with the faithful listening the commentary on the Gospel of the day (Jn 6:1-15). The passage tells of the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, a ‘sign’ that anticipates the gestures made by Jesus at the Last Supper: offering, giving thanks and sharing. "Dear brothers and sisters, Happy Sunday! Today the Gospel Liturgy speaks to us of the miracle of the loaves and fishes,’ said the Pope.

The first sign emerges from the Gospel passage that tells of a boy who has five loaves and two fish. It represents the recognition that he has something good to give, despite his apparent insufficiency. ‘It is the gesture by which we recognise that we have something good to give, and we say our “yes”, even if what we have is too little compared to what is needed,’ the Pope explained.

Also during Mass, the priest offers the bread and wine on the altar, and each person offers himself, his own life. This act, however insignificant it may seem in the face of the immense needs of humanity, becomes material for the greatest miracle: ‘God makes himself present for the salvation of the world.’

The second gesture, ‘giving thanks,’ concerns the ability to tell the Lord with humility and joy that everything we have is His gift. Pope Francis explained that we can only give back to God what He first gave us. Even the little love we can offer, however modest, is received by the Lord with gratitude. "What can I give to the Lord? What can the little one give? The poor love,’ said the Pope, emphasising the importance of our sincere, if limited, gift. The Holy Father then emphasised the importance of this gesture. ‘We poor people...our love is so small, but give it to the Lord, the Lord receives it.’

This gesture of thanksgiving and offering, according to the Pope, is an act of profound humility and gratitude to God.

Finally, the gesture of ‘sharing’. In the Mass, this is represented by Communion, when one receives the Body and Blood of Christ. ‘It is a moment of great significance, which teaches us to live every gesture of love as a gift of grace, both for the one who gives it and for the one who receives it,’ Francis explained. Sharing, according to the Pontiff, must be a moment of encounter and mutual enrichment.

He then urged the faithful to reflect on their lives: ‘Brothers and sisters, let us ask ourselves: do I really believe, by God's grace, that I have something unique to give to my brothers and sisters, or do I feel anonymously one among many? Am I a protagonist of a good to be given? Am I grateful to the Lord for the gifts with which he continually manifests his love to me? Do I live sharing with others as a moment of encounter and mutual enrichment?’ Finally, he invoked the help of the Virgin Mary: “May the Virgin Mary help us to live each Eucharistic Celebration with faith, and to recognise and savour the miracles of God's grace every day,” the Pope concluded.