Pope Francis instituted a “World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly” on Sunday in the Roman Catholic Church, which would be marked once a year to honor them and emphasize their importance to society.
Francis, making the surprise announcement in his Sunday noon speech, said it would mark the fourth Sunday in July each year in Catholic communities around the world.
The Catholic Church already has a World Day of Peace, which Pope Paul instituted in 1967, a World Youth Day, which Pope John Paul II established in 1984, and a World Day of the Poor, which Francis start 2017.
These days, the World Church holds special events and religious services to draw attention to the needs and attributes of groups.
Francis, 84, has often asked society to love the elderly as a source of wisdom and experience and has lamented a “disposable culture” that leaves them out because they are no longer productive.
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