Many families in the United States observe National Grandparents Day on the first Sunday of September after Labor Day. This year it is celebrated on September 8, 2024. Pope Francis established a World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly that is celebrated each year during the month of July. In recognition of these celebrations, the Office of Family and Sanctity of Life of the Eparchy of St. Josaphat Parma would like to present a series of reflections grouped around events in the early life of Jesus as He engaged with His elders.
Reflection #.2 – The Visitation
Reciprocity
In the Visitation we see Mary go in haste to serve her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, who is also with child. But Elizabeth also has a lot to give. She shares in Mary’s joy and offers her a safe place to reveal her secret and come to terms with the awesome mission God has given her.
“Authentic love needs to be able to receive the other … Man cannot always give, he must also receive,” Pope Francis writes. “The Church can be a place where the generations are called to share God’s plan of love, in a relationship of mutual exchange of the gifts of the Holy Spirit … If young people and the elderly can manage to meet, they can bring into the body of society that new sap of humanism that would make society more supportive.”
- Do you find it easier to help others or to receive assistance? Have you experienced these words, “It is in giving that we receive”?
- If you are young, do you take time to reach out to elderly relatives or neighbors who may need your help? What do you receive from them?
– Sr. Constance
Little Sisters of the Poor
St. Jeanne Jugan Communications
