ROME — Pope Francis appealed to young people Sunday to reach out to the elderly, telling them that “they are your roots!”
Recalling Sunday’s celebration of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Virgin Mary and therefore Jesus’ “grandparents,” the pope invited young people “to perform a gesture of tenderness towards the elderly, especially the loneliest, in their homes and residences, those who have not seen their loved ones for many months.”
“Dear young people, each one of these elderly people is your grandparent!” the pontiff declared at the end of his weekly Angelus message in Saint Peter’s Square. “Do not leave them by themselves.”
“Use the inventiveness of love, make telephone calls, video calls, send messages, listen to them and, where possible, in compliance with the healthcare rules, go to visit them too,” he continued. “Send them a hug.”
Francis went on to say that the elderly are the “roots” of a community and an “uprooted tree cannot grow; it does not blossom or bear fruit.”
“This is why the bond and connection with your roots is important,” he concluded, before inviting the crowds present “to give a big round of applause for our grandparents, everyone!”
During his seven years as pope, Francis has often come to the defense of the elderly.
Just last month, the pope urged Christians to treasure the presence of elderly family members and not to discard them like “waste material.”
The most important thing “is to make a gift of one’s life,” he said. “And this applies to everyone, to parents towards their children and children towards their elderly parents.”
“Many elderly people come to mind,” Francis continued, “who are abandoned by their families as if they were waste material.”
Last February, the pope called the elderly “the present and future of the Church,” insisting that old age is a privilege and not a disease.
The elderly “are also the future of a Church that, together with the young, prophesies and dreams!” Francis said. “This is why it is so important that the elderly and the young speak to each other, it is so important.”
“Life is a gift, and when it is long it is a privilege, for oneself and for others,” the pope said.
“Go out into the streets of your parishes and seek out the elderly who live alone,” he urged. “Old age is not an illness; it is a privilege! Loneliness can be an illness, but with charity, closeness and spiritual comfort we can heal it.”
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