“Dear grandmothers and dear grandfathers, dear elderly women and dear elderly men, in this world of ours we are called to be artisans of the revolution of tenderness!” It is beautiful to begin this article—almost a letter—dedicated to grandparents with these words from Pope Francis.
On July 23, the Church celebrated the III World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, and the Pope drew attention to the importance of grandparents and their role in guiding young people, in a “passing of the baton” that carries with it the awareness that no one saves themselves alone and that no one should be left behind.
A sweet memory or a very sweet gift
It is true: grandparents evoke a profound sense of tenderness. For some of us, grandparents are now a memory, distant in childhood but alive in our minds, and it is a memory full of sweetness: with grandparents, there is a different understanding than the one we have with our parents; with their grandchildren, grandparents seem almost to become children again. And how lovely it is to think back to that candy given almost secretly, with a knowing smile…
For some, grandparents are a very sweet gift who, by the grace of God, still accompany their days and are truly a gift not to be underestimated: today, grandparents provide practical support for many families in which parents work late; they are a safe haven of affection and genuine growth.
Today, the day on which the Church commemorates Joachim and Anne, Jesus’ grandparents, let us send a tender thought to our grandparents, whether they are still with us or watching over us from heaven… They deserve our thanks!
Joachim and Anne
Jesus, too, experienced the sweetness and tenderness of having grandparents: Joachim and Anne, parents of the Virgin Mary, whom the Church celebrates on July 26.
Their story is not attested in the Gospels, but information about them is drawn from apocryphal texts and tradition.
They waited so long for heaven to grant them the gift of a child; they did not lose hope, and the Lord rewarded them: Mary was born, and when the little girl turned 3, Joachim and Anne presented her at the temple to consecrate her to its service, in thanksgiving to God.
These holy figures of elderly parents and grandparents remind us of the beauty of the gift of old age, of the value of the elderly and grandparents, and teach us always to place our trust in the Lord through prayer, because we will not be disappointed.
The mission of grandparents
“We have all passed through our grandparents’ knees, who held us in their arms,” Pope Francis observes, once again displaying the profound humanity and sensitivity we know so well, and today he invites them to care for the world: “Today is the time to hold on our knees - with concrete help or even just through prayer - together with our own grandchildren, all those many frightened grandchildren whom we have not yet met.”
Grandparents are our bastion of deep tenderness, our safe haven. Let us celebrate and thank them today, on “their” day!
