grandparents

“She took certain fundamentals seriously — her Catholic faith, the sacrament of reconciliation, marriage, education — but wasn’t afraid to take her own approach on all the less-crucial stuff. Reverence and mischief.”

Older people are not “leftovers” to be discarded; rather, they continue to be precious nourishment for families, young people and communities, Pope Francis said in the homily he wrote for the Mass marking the first World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly.

“Amid the latest debates about Communion in the Church, I’ve watched my children with their grandparents, wondering what our families might teach us about a theology of gift-giving.”

“Today, in the difficult circumstances of a Christmas still overshadowed by the pandemic, we are proposing that young people post on social media a memory, a piece of advice or a ‘gift of wisdom’ they have received from one of the elderly people with whom they have formed a bond in recent months.”

“How can we help our families when we need support for ourselves? … Where do we start when everything feels like it’s unraveling around us?”

Pope Francis urged young people to show grandparents and the elderly tenderness.

Now more than ever, grandparents have an essential role in their families, particularly when it comes to passing on the faith to future generations.

The church teaching about what happens after people die and a question about whether it is the grandparents responsibility to get grandchildren to Mass on Sunday.