By Devin Watkins

The Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life is hosting the Second International Congress on the Pastoral Care of the Elderly in Rome on October 2-4.

On Friday, Pope Leo XIV met with participants in the event which bears the theme: “Your elders shall dream dreams!”

In his address, the Pope recalled Pope Francis’ desire for an alliance between the elderly and young people, so that those who have lived many years and experiences may assist those who are just beginning “the great adventure of life.”

However, noted Pope Leo, our own times have seen deep divisions between generations, as the elderly are accused of not making space in employment for young people or consuming too many economic and social resources that could be used for the young.

Such pessimistic attitudes treat longevity as if it “were a fault,” he said, noting that modern medicine has allowed many people to live much longer than ever before.

“The elderly are a gift, a blessing to be welcomed, and a longer life is something positive,” he said. “Indeed, it is one of the signs of hope in our time, everywhere in the world.”

Pope Leo said society’s rejection of the elderly stems from our unwillingness to admit that “the human being is always a limited creature with needs,” rather than fully self-sufficient.

“The fragility that appears in the elderly reminds us of this common truth,” he said. “It is therefore hidden or removed by those who cultivate worldly illusions, so as not to have before their eyes the image of what we will inevitably become.”

Rather, noted the Pope, the elderly remind the young that, in the universal dynamic of life, humanity finds salvation in recognizing our own need for God and one another.

“The measure of our humanity is not given by what we can achieve, but by our ability to let ourselves be loved and, when necessary, even helped,” he said.

Old age can even catch us unprepared, said the Pope, inviting the elderly to learn from Scripture and the saints how to live in a Christian way, without letting ourselves give in to discouragement.

Pope Leo XIV then turned to people who minister to the elderly, saying they can find essential allies in the “young elderly,” those who have recently finished their working years and have more free time to lead parish activities and to pray.

“It is important to find an appropriate language and opportunities for them,” he said, “involving them not as passive recipients of evangelization, but as active subjects, and to respond together with them, and not in their place, to the questions that life and the Gospel pose to us.”

Many old people, he said, drifted away from the faith in their youth or had never received the proclamation of the Gospel, yet the Church has the task of offering them salvation in Christ, no matter their age.

“Where elderly people are alone and discarded,” he said, “this will mean bringing them the good news of the Lord’s tenderness, to overcome, together with them, the darkness of loneliness, the great enemy of the lives of the elderly.”

In conclusion, Pope Leo invited the Church’s pastoral ministers to help the elderly rediscover the meaning of existence, so that they may find an authentic relationship with God and become missionaries of hope themselves.

“May no one be abandoned! May no one feel useless!” urged the Pope. “Even a simple prayer, recited with faith at home, contributes to the good of the People of God and unites us in spiritual communion.”