Catechesis of Pope Francis

during the General Audience of March 23, 2022

In his Wednesday catechesis, the Pope spoke of the need for children to meet the elderly during the catechism.

Sometimes I think about this strange anomaly. The catechesis of Christian initiation today relies generously on the Word of God and transmits precise information on dogmas, on the morality of the faith and the sacraments. What is often lacking, however, is a knowledge of the Church that comes from listening to and witnessing to the real history of the faith and life of the ecclesial community, from its origins to the present day. As children, we learn the Word of God in catechism classes; but the Church - the Church - young people "know" it in the classrooms and in the media of global information.

The account of the story of faith should be like the Song of Moses, like the testimony of the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. That is, a story capable of recalling with emotion the blessings of God and with loyalty our failings. It would be good if, from the beginning, the catechesis itineraries also provide for the habit of listening, from the lived experience of the elderly, to the lucid confession of the blessings received from God, which we must preserve, and the faithful witness of our own infidelities, which we must repair and correct. The elderly enter the promised land, which God desires for each generation, when they offer young people the beautiful initiation of their witness and transmit the history of faith, faith in the dialect, this familiar dialect, this dialect from the elders to the young. Then, guided by the Lord Jesus, the elderly and the young enter together into His Kingdom of life and love. But all together. All with family, with this great treasure that is the faith transmitted in the dialect. Thank you.

Wink...

In a letter to Father Awi Mello, Secretary of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life at the end of February, this is what the President wrote on behalf of LAI to prepare for the second World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, which will take place on 24 July on the theme "In old age they will still bear fruit" (Ps 92,15)".

Grandparents also want to bear witness to their faith that has underpinned their lives, with ups and downs, a faith that has given meaning to their lives; Happy are the grandparents who have the chance to introduce their grandchildren to prayer or to share with them a time of prayer! For the many grandparents who do not have this happiness, their witness of faith, within the framework of the family, passes through the witness of life, since they are not catechists; the rest does not belong to us because we do not transmit the faith: it is God who acts in the secret of hearts. But if faith, our adherence to Christ, has given meaning to our lives and continues to nourish and sustain us in old age, is this not a very strong message to convey to young people? Their catechetical formation could include the testimony of elders who remained faithful to Christ?