VATICAN (CNS): On December 16, the eve of his 83rd birthday, Pope Francis met with a group of his peers during an audience with members of the Italian National Association of Senior Workers —although many were a few years younger—and told them that “old age is a time of grace.”
The pope said, “Grandparents, who have received the blessing of seeing their children’s children, are entrusted with a great task: transmitting the experience of life and the history of the family, the community, the people.”
The association represents workers with at least 20 years of seniority in a company, defending the rights of older workers and promoting volunteer service by older people.
Pope Francis, who was born 17 December 1936, told association members that one’s later years should be a “season of dialogue,” because “the future of a people naturally presupposes a dialogue and encounter between the old and young to build a society that is more just, more beautiful, has more solidarity and is more Christian.”
As one grows older, he said, “the Lord renews his call to us. He calls us to preserve and hand on the faith; he calls us to pray, especially to intercede; he calls us to be alongside those who are in need.”
