His Holiness Pope Leo: Hope is source of joy no matter our age

In his Message for the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly—celebrated each year on the Sunday nearest the feast of Jesus’ grandparents, Sts Anne and Joachim—His Holiness Pope Leo reflects on hope and old age.

By Christopher Wells

Ahead of the Jubilee Year celebration of World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly—which this year falls on July 27—Pope Leo writes that “hope is a constant source of joy, whatever our age”, adding, “when that hope has also been tempered by fire over the course of a long life, it proves a source of deep happiness.”

In his Message for the Day, Pope Leo offers a scriptural meditation on old age, beginning with biblical figures such as Abraham and Sarah, Zechariah and Elizabeth, as well as Moses, all of whom were called in old age to be part of God’s saving plan.

“The Jubilee we are now celebrating helps us to realize that hope is a constant source of joy, whatever our age. When that hope has also been tempered by fire over the course of a long life, it proves a source of deep happiness.”

The elderly, signs of hope

The history of salvation recounted in Scripture shows that, in God’s eyes, “old age is a time of blessing and grace, and that the elderly are… the first witnesses of hope.” Seeing the life of the Church and the world as the passing of generations, Pope Leo says the elderly, even if they need the support of the young, can serve as a witness to the inexperience of youth, helping them “to build the future with wisdom”.

The “precious legacy” of the elderly as examples of faith, devotion, civic virtue, social commitment, and more, the Pope says, will always be “a source of gratitude and a summons to perseverance.”

“God thus teaches us that, in his eyes, old age is a time of blessing and grace, and that the elderly are, for him, the first witnesses of hope.”

Hope for the elderly

At the same time, Pope Leo says the elderly also need hope. Recalling that the Jubilee is traditionally understood as a time of liberation, he says all are called to help the elderly “experience liberation, especially from loneliness and abandonment”…

This news was originally published on the Website of Vatican News. Please click here to read the full text.