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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Vatican grants plenary indulgence for visiting the elderly on Grandparents' Day

Vatican grants plenary indulgence for visiting the elderly on Grandparents' Day

Published Jul 19, 2024 08:21 am

The Vatican has granted a plenary indulgence to all those who will visit the elderly, the sick, lonely, or disabled on World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly on July 28.

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World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly on July 28 (Photo courtesy of Vatican News)

Grandparents and the elderly may also receive a plenary indulgence, as well as anyone who participates in religious functions connected to the celebration, as long as the usual conditions such as detachment from sin, going to confession, receiving Holy Communion and praying for the intentions of the Holy Father are fulfilled.

A Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines News post Friday, July 19 said, Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, sent a decree July 18 granting the plenary indulgences,.

A plenary indulgence is a grace granted by the Catholic Church through the merits of Jesus Christ to remove the temporal punishment due to sin. It applies to sins already forgiven and cleanses the soul as if just baptized..

“A person who cannot leave his or her home due to sickness, infirmity, or another serious reason can also obtain the plenary indulgence if they unite themselves spiritually to the sacred functions of the day, offering to the merciful God the prayers, pains, or sufferings of their lives, especially during the various celebrations which will be broadcast through the media,” De Donatis decreed.

The major penitentiary also asked priests to open the confessional for longer hours on July 28.

Now on its fourth year, the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, was initiated by Pope Francis in 2021. Observed annually on the fourth Sunday of July, the celebration falls near the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus, on July 26.

Sts. Joachim and Anne are the patron saint of grandparents.

The theme for this year’s celebration is “Do Not Cast Me Off in My Old Age” — taken from Psalm 71 to remind everyone to give importance and to value the elderly.

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