World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly - Sunday, July 23

The third World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly will be celebrated this year on Sunday, 23 July 2023. Pope Francis inaugurated this World Day to be celebrated by the universal Church each July, either on or near the liturgical Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, grandparents of Jesus, to help “treasure the spiritual and human wealth that has been handed down from generation to generation.”

The theme chosen by Pope Francis for this year’s World Day is “His mercy is from age to age” (Luke 1:50), highlighting the relational interconnection between old and young. This theme is particularly well suited to the upcoming World Youth Day in Lisbon, August 1-6, 2023.

The CCCB Standing Committee for Family and Life, in collaboration with its corresponding Office, produced a 30-second video that captures a group of high school students visiting a retirement home. This heart-warming interaction between young people and the elderly illustrates this year’s theme and encourages us to find concrete and creative ways of drawing closer to the elderly. Click here to view the video and resource kit from the CCCB. Click here for information from the Vatican.