The Bishop of Ghana’s Catholic Diocese of Ho, the Most Rev. Emmanuel Kofi Fianu, SVD, has assured the elderly in the Diocese of his maximum support as globally, the Church recently marked the Word Day of Grandparents and the Elderly.
Marking the Day at the St. Francis of Assisi Ho Kpevele, the Bishop also assured them that the Church would not not forsake them.
He urged Catholics in the Jo Diocese to continue to give their unflinching support to the elderly in the church, especially in this difficult times.
Bishop Fianu was joined in the Eucharistic celebration by the Parish Priest, Rev. Fr. Benjamin Gawu and his associate Rev. Fr. Samuel Eco Kornu.
Pope Francis instituted the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly to be celebtrated on the 4th Sunday of July every year close to the liturgical feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus.
Bishop Fianu reflected on the Gospel for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, which which was the Pope’s theme which recounted Jesus’ miraculous feeding of the five thousand with just five loaves of bread and two fish.
The Gospel which was the Holy Father’s reflection was on “three moments”: “Jesus sees the crowd’s hunger; Jesus shares the bread; Jesus asks that the leftovers be collected.”
These three moments, he said, “can be summed up in three verbs: to see, to share, to preserve.”
The miracle of the loaves and fishes, said Pope Francis, “begins with the gaze of Jesus, who is neither indifferent nor too busy to see the hunger felt by weary humanity.” Instead, He is concerned for everyone, and “understands the needs of each person.”
Our grandparents look on us the same way, the Pope said. Their love helped us to grow, and we, in turn, are called to share our love and attention. “Let us lift up our eyes and see them,” Pope Francis said, “even as Jesus sees us.”
The Holy Father pointed out that Jesus fed the people with the loaves and fish shared by a young person. “At the heart of the miracle,” he said, “we find a young person willing to share what he had.”
Pope Francis insisted that “Today we need a new covenant between young and old. We need to share the treasure of life, to dream together, to overcome conflicts between generations and prepare a future together.” He added that without this “covenantal sharing in life,” we risk dying of hunger.
“I have often mentioned the words of the prophet Joel about young and old coming together,” the Pope said. “Young people, as prophets of the future, who treasure their own history. The elderly, who continue to dream and share their experience with the young, without standing in their way. Young and old, the treasure of tradition and the freshness of the Spirit.”
Nana Kugbeadzor Bakateyi II, the Parish Pastoral Council Chairperson in her goodwill message to Grandparents and Elderly, expressed gratitude to all especially the elderly who always support and give them guidance.
She said grandparents epitomised the nature’s gift of wisdom,good counsel and experience.
She urged all parishioners to always appreciate Grandparents and the Elderly in society.
