Pray for our Grandparents and the Elderly with this Novena

Pray four grandparents and the elderly! They gave life to those who gave us life!

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What better way to celebrate World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly than by praying for them? In a society that often overlooks the elderly, we see the great gift that they are in our lives, in our families, in the Church, and in the world.

Pope Francis reminds us that we cannot forget the elderly, we must cherish them, reach out to them, and be with them. The Pope calls us to be angels of consolation, bringing light, hope, comfort, and joy to the elderly. They have so much to offer us and we have so much to offer them. We must build bridges across generations, not leave one another abandoned.

We can sometimes forget that Jesus himself had grandparents: Saint Anne and Saint Joachim, the parents of Mary. The World Day of Grandparents and Elderly coincides with their feast, which is celebrated each year on July 26.

Identifying himself as an elderly person, Pope Francis declared: "The whole Church is close to you – to us – and cares about you, loves you and does not want to leave you alone!"

Let us make these words become incarnate, by loving our grandparents and the elderly. We can begin by lifting them up to God in prayer, those who are still with us here on earth and those who have already gone before us. May Saint Anne and Saint Joachim, grandparents of Jesus, intercede for our grandparents and for all the elderly.

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Prayer from the novena

Prayer for Grandparents

Lord Jesus, you were born of the Virgin Mary, the daughter of Saints Joachim and Anne. Look with love on grandparents and the elderly all over the world. Protect them! They are a source of enrichment for families, for the Church, and for all of society. Support them! As they grow older, may they continue to be for their families and loved ones strong pillars of Gospel faith, guardians of noble domestic ideals, living treasuries of sound religious traditions. Make them teachers of wisdom and courage, that they may pass on to future generations the fruits of their mature human and spiritual experience. Lord Jesus, help families and society to value the presence and role of grandparents and the elderly. May they never be ignored or excluded, but always encounter respect and love. Help them to live serenely and to feel welcomed in all the years of life which you give them. Mary, Mother of all the living, keep grandparents and the elderly constantly in your care, accompany them on their earthly pilgrimage, and by your prayers, grant that all families may one day be reunited in our heavenly homeland, where you await all humanity for the great embrace of life without end. Amen! Based on the Prayer for Grandparents by Pope Benedict XVI