In 2021, Pope Francis established the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, which is celebrated on the fourth Sunday in July each year – 23rd July this year. This day is marked near the feast of Sts Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus. Discover more about the day and the Pope’s reasons for its establishment here.
This years theme, selected by the Pope, will be “His mercy is from age to age” (Lk 1:50).
According to the Vatican Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life, the theme is linked to the theme for World Youth Day 2023, which also comes from the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke: “Mary arose and went with haste” (Lk 1:39).
Pope Francis will preside over a special Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica to mark world grandparents’ day and has invited parishes, dioceses, associations, and communities around the world to celebrate the day “in their own pastoral context.”
This year, we have a special Grandparents celebration morning planned for Monday 23rd, October, which aligns with the date chosen to celebrate Grandparents here in Australia. Keep an eye out later in the year for further details.
We wish all our grandparents and grandparent figures here at St Dominic’s a very special World Grandparents day on Sunday, 23rd July, and thank them for the very special role they play in the lives of our children.
Leon Bolding
Principal