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Pope Leo XIV urges hope and care for elderly on World Day for Grandparents

July 10, 2025 Catholic News Agency 0
Pope Leo XIV (pictured at St. Peter’s on June 1, 2025) issued a message of hope on July 10 in anticipation of the upcoming World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Rome Newsroom, Jul 10, 2025 / 17:29 pm (CNA).

For the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly established by Pope Francis and celebrated this year on July 27, Pope Leo XIV has issued a message of hope to the elderly.

At the beginning of his message, the Holy Father evoked the Jubilee Year to remind the faithful that “hope is a constant source of joy, whatever our age.” 

He cited some elderly biblical figures, such as Abraham and Sarah, Moses, and Zechariah, whom the Lord surprised in “an act of saving power”: “God repeatedly demonstrates his providential care by turning to people in their later years,” he explained.

The pontiff noted that by making these choices, “God thus teaches us that, in his eyes, old age is a time of blessing and grace, and that the elderly are, for him, the first witnesses of hope.”

Life is more than the present moment

He then emphasized that the increasing number of elderly people “is a sign of the times that we are called to discern, in order to properly interpret this moment of history.”

The Holy Father noted that “embracing the elderly helps us to understand that life is more than just the present moment, and should not be wasted in superficial encounters and fleeting relationships. Instead, life is constantly pointing us toward the future.”

He also emphasized that “if it is true that the weakness of the elderly needs the strength of the young, it is equally true that the inexperience of the young needs the witness of the elderly in order to build the future with wisdom.”

“How often our grandparents have been for us examples of faith and devotion, civic virtue and social commitment, memory and perseverance amid trials! The precious legacy that they have handed down to us with hope and love will always be a source of gratitude and a summons to perseverance,” he said.

In the context of the Jubilee Year, he invited the faithful to “to break through the barriers of indifference …” and to give of themselves to prevent feelings of loneliness and abandonment among the elderly.

“Our societies, everywhere in the world, are growing all too accustomed to letting this significant and enriching part of their life be marginalized and forgotten,” he lamented.

Protagonists of the “revolution” of gratitude and care

The pope emphasized that every parish, association, or church group is called to be “protagonists in a ‘revolution’ of gratitude and care,” and that this must be done “by regular visits to the elderly, the creation of networks of support and prayer for them and with them, and the forging of relationships that can restore hope and dignity to those who feel forgotten.”

“Christian hope always urges us to be more daring, to think big, to be dissatisfied with things the way they are … [and] to work for a change that can restore esteem and affection,” he explained.

The Holy Father recalled that Pope Francis wanted the faithful, and especially young people, to reach out to those who are alone. He noted that those who cannot make the pilgrimage to Rome this year will be able to obtain the Jubilee indulgence if they visit the elderly alone for an appropriate amount of time.

The freedom to love and to pray 

Addressing grandparents and the elderly, Pope Leo XIV encouraged them not to lose hope, even in those moments when they are tempted “to look not to the future but to the past.”

“We possess a freedom that no difficulty can rob us of: it is the freedom to love and to pray. Everyone, always, can love and pray,” he emphasized

The pope also recalled Pope Francis’s words during his last hospitalization: “our bodies are weak, but even so, nothing can prevent us from loving, praying, giving ourselves, being there for one another, in faith, as shining signs of hope.”

Pope Leo XIV also indicated that “affection for our loved ones – for the wife or husband with whom we have spent so much of our lives, for our children, for our grandchildren who brighten our days – does not fade when our strength wanes.”

“Indeed, their own affection often revives our energy and brings us hope and comfort,” he added.

Therefore, the pontiff continued, “especially as we grow older, let us press forward with confidence in the Lord. May we be renewed each day by our encounter with him in prayer and in Holy Mass.”

“Let us lovingly pass on the faith we have lived for so many years, in our families and in our daily encounter with others. May we always praise God for his goodness, cultivate unity with our loved ones, open our hearts to those who are far away and, in particular, to all those in need. In this way, we will be signs of hope, whatever our age,” the pope concluded.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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Leo XIV withdraws papal delegate after agreement avoids schism in Syro-Malabar Church

July 10, 2025 Catholic News Agency 0
Built in 1578, Mar Hormizd Cathedral is the Syro-Malabar cathedral church in Angamaly, India. / Credit: St. Hormizd’s Cathedral, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Vatican City, Jul 10, 2025 / 14:30 pm (CNA).

The specter of schism has hovered in recent years over the Metropolitan Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly of the Syro-Malabar Church in India—one of the 24 Eastern Churches in full communion with the Catholic Church.

Part of the clergy and faithful of Ernakulam-Angamaly, the largest Indian episcopal see in terms of the number of priests as well as the see presided over by the bishop in charge of the entire Syro-Malabar Church, did not accept the 1999 reform of the liturgical rite, which was later confirmed at the 2021 Synod of the Syro-Malabar Church.

Pope Leo XIV appears to have resolved the controversy by terminating the 2023 appointment of Archbishop Cyril Vasil’ as papal delegate to the Syro-Malabar Church to mediate the dispute.

According to Vatican News, the official Vatican website, this decision by the pope “concludes the Holy See’s mediation work among the Syro-Malabars.”

Martin Bräuer, an expert at the Ecumenical Research Institute in Bensheim, Germany, told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, that “Rome now considers the conflict over and therefore no longer needs a papal representative. Secondly, the agreement reached within the [Syro-Malabar] Church without the direct mediation of Archbishop Vasil’ is recognized.”

Indeed, the news comes after new measures to implement the liturgical reform approved by the 2021 Synod came into effect on July 3, the feast of St. Thomas the Apostle—patron saint of the Syro-Malabar Church.

The compromise now reached allows the parishes of Ernakulam-Angamaly to celebrate the liturgy with the priest facing the faithful (versus populum), adhering to the practice of the Roman Rite, provided that at least one Sunday or feast day Mass is celebrated according to the traditional form, that is, with the priest facing the altar (ad orientem) during the consecration.

According to the 2021 reform of the rite, during Mass the priest was required to address the people during the first part of the celebration, but the liturgy of the Eucharist was celebrated facing the altar.

Prior to the reform that sparked the dispute, all solemnities had to be celebrated in line with the directives issued by the Syro-Malabar Synod four years ago. Now, however, the Syro-Malabar Church accepts as sufficient that all churches celebrate just one of their Masses on Sundays and feast days according to those directives.

“This rule also applies to parishes with ongoing civil proceedings, provided they do not contravene the decisions of state courts,” the academic explained.

Furthermore, he said, it is made explicit that the synod will only address future liturgical changes “if they are discussed in a spirit of synodality with the canonical bodies of the archeparchy.”

Other points include “the use of the sanctuary in accordance with liturgical norms, the possibility of outside bishops celebrating the unified form in all churches, and that any internal conflicts be resolved in an atmosphere of respect and friendship,” Bräuer emphasized.

What was the liturgical dispute about?

While the 2021 synod promoted a return to the liturgy facing the altar as the traditional form of the Syro-Oriental rite, many priests and faithful in Ernakulam-Angamaly defended the practice of facing the people that had become widespread after the Second Vatican Council.

The Vatican then asked the 35 dioceses of the Syro-Malabar Church to eliminate elements of the Roman rite and return to their original traditions, in this case the pure Chaldean rite, present today especially in Iraq.

For Bräuer, what is remarkable is that “this agreement was reached by means of synodality, that is, through dialogue and mutual listening,” which gives legitimacy and hope to its practical application.

This case has been, according to the expert, an acid test of the delicate balance between papal authority and the autonomy of the Eastern Churches. It was St. John Paul II who, in 1998, gave the Syro-Malabar bishops authority to resolve liturgical conflicts.

According to Bräuer, “the Syro-Malabar Church first attempted to resolve the conflict internally. When that failed, Rome intervened, but that too was unsuccessful.”

The papal delegate, Archbishop Vasil’, who belongs to the Byzantine rite and had worked in the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, was widely criticized for his authoritarian style. “He didn’t know how to find the right tone with the parties in conflict,” Bräuer commented.

However, it was not an easy task. When Archbishop Vasil’ traveled to India on Aug. 4, 2023, at the beginning of his mission, some priests publicly burned photos of him and he was greeted with a shower of eggs.

In this regard, it was the metropolitan vicar, Archbishop Joseph Pamplany, successor to the apostolic administrator Bishop Bosco Puthur, who managed to move toward a solution thanks to a strategy of open communication and active listening.

Finally, the consensus—which relaxed the norms that the communities of this rite in the Metropolitan Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly were required to adopt a year ago, following an ultimatum from Pope Francis—was forged in a meeting between Archbishop Pamplany and the Major Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Archdiocese, Raphael Thattil.

Another new rule that has softened positions is that deacons may be ordained without having to commit in writing not to celebrate according to the previous form of the rite.

Is the ghost of schism laid to rest forever?

Although the threat of schism has been dispelled for now, there is still work to be done. According to Bräuer, even priests who opposed the unified liturgy have accepted the agreement, although not without reservations.

Their spokesman, Father Kuriakose Mundadan, expressed in a letter his willingness to support the agreement, although he harshly criticized both the way in which the liturgical reform was adopted and the repressive attitude of some of those previously in authority. 

“In addition to criticizing the way the synod imposed the liturgical reform, he also criticized the treatment of those opposed to the reform. He also felt that the papal delegate exacerbated the situation,” Bräuer noted.

 “Pope Francis constantly called for unity, but ultimately did not succeed in resolving the conflict. It became clear that the problem could not be resolved solely by means of authority and discipline. Now a synodal solution has been found, which we hope will be lasting,” the expert added.

Bräuer emphasized that how the agreement is implemented in the coming months will be decisive: “Only then will we see if the agreement is stable and lasting.”

For priests currently facing disciplinary proceedings, amicable solutions will be sought, and the Metropolitan Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly will also undertake to resolve disputes in civil courts.

Those who prefer the Roman Rite practice of facing the people to the traditional one are a minority: they represent only about 450,000 people, or 10% of Syro-Malabar believers, who total about five million. However, they are quite vocal. Videos of attacks on bishops and clashes between groups of Catholics circulate online.

The special tribunal created to resolve these types of liturgical disputes will not be dissolved, at least for now.

Lessons for the entire Catholic Church

Asked about the value of this experience for other liturgical conflicts in the Church, Bräuer said that the liturgy is “prayed dogma,” that is, an “expression of the Church’s faith” that can take many forms, as seen in the Catholic Church: for example, “in the West, with the ancient Mozarabic rite, and also with inculturated forms of the Mass in the Congo, Australia, or Mexico.”

“Liturgical diversity enriches the Church, but fidelity to tradition does not mean stubbornly clinging to the past, but rather accepting change with discernment,” he stated.

This story was first publishedby ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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