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Pope Benedict XVI- Addresses |
Benedict XVI on Role
of Grandparents
"A Living Presence in the Family, in the Church and in Society"
H.H. Pope Benedict XVI
April 5, 2008
Here is the
address Benedict XVI gave upon meeting with participants of the
plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council of the Family. The
theme of the assembly was "Grandparents: Their Witness and
Presence in the Family."
Your Eminences,
Venerable Brothers in the Episcopate and in the Priesthood,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I am pleased to meet you at the end of the 18th Plenary Assembly
of the Pontifical Council for the Family on the theme:
"Grandparents: their witness and presence in the family". I
thank you for accepting my suggestion at the Meeting in Valencia
when I said: "In no way should [grandparents] ever be excluded
from the family circle. They are a treasure which the younger
generation should not be denied, especially when they bear
witness to their faith" (Address at the Fifth World Meeting of
Families, Valencia, 8 July 2006). I greet in particular Cardinal
Ricardo Vidal, Archbishop of Cebu and a member of the Committee
of the Presidency, who has expressed your common sentiments, and
I address an affectionate thought to dear Cardinal Alfonso López
Trujillo who has guided this Dicastery with passion and
competence for 18 years. We miss him and offer him our best
wishes for a prompt recovery, together with our prayers.
The theme you have discussed is very familiar to all. Who does
not remember their grandparents? Who can forget their presence
and their witness by the domestic hearth? How many of us bear
their names as a sign of continuity and gratitude! It is a
custom in families, after their departure, to remember their
birthdays with the celebration of Mass for the repose of their
souls and if possible, a visit to the cemetery. These and other
gestures of love and faith are a manifestation of our gratitude
to them. They gave themselves, they sacrificed themselves for
us, and in certain cases also gave their lives.
The Church has always paid special attention to grandparents,
recognizing them as a great treasure from both the human and
social, as well as religious and spiritual viewpoints. My
venerable Predecessors Paul VI and John Paul II - we have just
celebrated the third anniversary of the latter's death -
emphasized on various occasions the Ecclesial Community's
respect for the elderly, for their dedication and their
spirituality. In particular, during the Jubilee of the Year
2000, John Paul II summoned the world's elderly to St Peter's
Square in September and said on that occasion: "Despite the
limitations brought on by age, I continue to enjoy life. For
this I thank the Lord. It is wonderful to be able to give
oneself to the very end for the sake of the Kingdom of God!".
These words were contained in the Letter that about a year
earlier, in October 1999, he had addressed to the elderly and
which have preserved intact their human, social and cultural
timeliness.
Your Plenary Assembly has discussed the theme of grandparents'
presence in the family, the Church and society with a look that
can include the past, present and future. Let us briefly analyze
these three moments. In the past, grandparents had an important
role in the life and growth of the family. Even with their
advancing age they continued to be present with their children,
their grandchildren and even their great-grandchildren, giving a
living witness of caring, sacrifice and a daily gift of
themselves without reserve. They were witnesses of a personal
and community history that continued to live on in their
memories and in their wisdom. Today, the economic and social
evolution has brought profound transformations to the life of
families. The elderly, including many grandparents, find
themselves in a sort of "parking area": some realize they are a
burden to their family and prefer to live alone or in retirement
homes with all the consequences that such decisions entail.
Unfortunately, it seems that the "culture of death" is advancing
on many fronts and is also threatening the season of old-age.
With growing insistence, people are even proposing euthanasia as
a solution for resolving certain difficult situations. Old age,
with its problems that are also linked to the new family and
social contexts because of modern development, should be
evaluated carefully and always in the light of the truth about
man, the family and the community. It is always necessary to
react strongly to what dehumanizes society. Parish and diocesan
communities are forcefully challenged by these problems and are
seeking today to meet the needs of the elderly. Ecclesial
movements and associations exist which have embraced this
important and urgent cause. It is necessary to join forces to
defeat together all forms of marginalization, for it is not only
they - grandfathers, grandmothers, senior citizens - who are
being injured by the individualistic mindset, but everyone. If
grandparents, as is said often and on many sides, are a precious
resource, it is necessary to put into practice coherent choices
that allow them to be better valued.
May grandparents return to being a living presence in the
family, in the Church and in society. With regard to the family,
may grandparents continue to be witnesses of unity, of values
founded on fidelity and of a unique love that gives rise to
faith and the joy of living. The so-called new models of the
family and a spreading relativism have weakened these
fundamental values of the family nucleus. The evils of our
society - as you justly observed during your work - are in need
of urgent remedies. In the face of the crisis of the family,
might it not be possible to set out anew precisely from the
presence and witness of these people - grandparents - whose
values and projects are more resilient? Indeed, it is impossible
to plan the future without referring to a past full of
significant experiences and spiritual and moral reference
points. Thinking of grandparents, of their testimony of love and
fidelity to life, reminds us of the Biblical figures of Abraham
and Sarah, of Elizabeth and Zechariah, of Joachim and Anne, as
well as of the elderly Simeon and Anna and even Nicodemus: they
all remind us that at every age the Lord asks each one for the
contribution of his or her own talents.
Let us now turn our gaze towards the sixth World Meeting of
Families which will be celebrated in Mexico in January 2009. I
greet and thank Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, Archbishop of
Mexico, present here, for all he has already done in these
months of preparation together with his collaborators. All
Christian families of the world look to this Nation, "ever
faithful" to the Church, which will open the doors to all the
families of the world. I invite the Ecclesial Communities,
especially family groups, movements and associations of
families, to prepare themselves spiritually for this event of
grace. Venerable and dear Brothers, I thank you once again for
your visit and for the work you have done during these days; I
assure you of my remembrance in prayer and cordially impart the
Apostolic Blessing to you and to your loved ones.
© Copyright 2008 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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