The Colombian Church promotes a Day to combat loneliness and revalue the role of older adults

The celebration of the VI World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, scheduled for July 26, will be an opportunity for the Catholic Church in Colombia to reaffirm its commitment to older people, promoting greater closeness and a supportive response to situations of isolation and abandonment.

The Colombian Episcopal Conference reported that the Department of Lay State distributed among dioceses, parishes, movements, and communities the materials prepared by the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life with the purpose of accompanying the celebration.

Held every fourth Sunday of July since it was instituted by Pope Francis in 2021, the day will have the theme in 2026 "I will not forget you" (Is 49:15). From this biblical quote, Pope Leo XIV emphasizes the permanent closeness of God with older people, especially with those who suffer from loneliness and abandonment.

In his message, the Bishop of Rome also highlights that "the elderly are protagonists of church life and their presence is a gift that helps communities grow in faith, hope, and charity".

The Pope warns that many older adults today live in situations of invisibility or abandonment, a reality that particularly challenges the new generations. Therefore, he encourages recovering ties with grandparents and also reaching out to those who lack companionship. "I will not forget you", states the message, highlighting God's promise as indicated in the book of Isaiah.

Additionally, Leo XIV encourages older adults to live this stage as a time to renew their faith, to become "witnesses of hope for the new generations" and to walk paths of "reconciliation and true peace". He also urges them to persevere in "constant prayer for peace to soon come to the whole world".

The subsidy prepared by the Dicastery makes available to dioceses, parishes, and church communities a series of pastoral tools that include liturgical guidelines, the prayer official for the Day and proposals for the prayer of the faithful.

Likewise, it proposes to strengthen the presence of older adults in Christian communities through initiatives that recognize their pastoral contribution.. At the same time, it invites visits to those who are experiencing old age in solitude and promotes intergenerational meetings that favor dialogue, listening, and the transmission of faith.

The call of the Dicastery is for solidarity with the elderly not to be limited to a single day on the calendar, but to inspire a constant presence of the communities, marked by listening, care, and encounter.

As part of this invitation, the Dicastery proposes that the celebration motivate new generations to reconnect with their grandparents and to reach out to those who live in abandonment. "The Day should be for everyone —and especially for the younger ones— a concrete occasion to get closer to their grandparents […] and, above all, to those who have no one to accompany them". The purpose is to strengthen a culture of encounter that recognizes the elderly as references of faith and experience.

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