Pope Francis has established throughout the Church the celebration of the World Day for Grandparents and Elderly beginning in 2021 on the fourth Sunday of July, near the liturgical memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus. The announcement of this celebration coincides with the celebration of the Year of Amoris Laetitia Family, which began on the Solemnity of Saint Joseph the husband of Mary, on March 19, 2021, and will conclude at the World Meeting of Families in Rome in June of 2022.
In their 1999 pastoral message Blessings of Age, the U.S. bishops invited older persons, their families, and their faith communities to develop new initiatives that encourage the participation of older persons in society and in the Church. Recognizing the social, economic, and spiritual implications of this rapidly growing age group, the bishops encouraged a fresh perspective that embraces the gift of aging. In Blessings of Age, special words are offered for (1) older people themselves, (2) caregivers, (3) the parish faith community–pastors, staff, volunteers, and all parishioners, and (4) younger adults. The publication also includes reflection and discussion questions, current statistics, and helpful suggestions. It was released in commemoration of the United Nations’ “International Year of Older Persons.”
There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)
Arriving at an older age is to be considered a privilege: not simply because not everyone has the good fortune to reach this stage in life, but also, and above all, because this period provides real possibilities for better evaluating the past, for knowing and living more deeply the Paschal Mystery, for becoming an example in the Church for the whole People of God.1
(Pope Saint John Paul II)