Visit to St Peter's Residence for the elderly (London Borough of Lambeth, 18 September
2010)
Visit to a home for older people, London Address of the Holy Father
18
September 2010
My dear Brothers and Sisters, I am very pleased to be among
you, the residents of Saint Peter’s, and to thank Sister Marie Claire and Mrs Fasky
for their kind words of welcome on your behalf. I am also pleased to greet Archbishop
Smith of Southwark, as well as the Little Sisters of the Poor and the personnel and
volunteers who look after you. As advances in medicine and other factors lead
to increased longevity, it is important to recognize the presence of growing numbers
of older people as a blessing for society. Every generation can learn from the experience
and wisdom of the generation that preceded it. Indeed the provision of care for the
elderly should be considered not so much an act of generosity as the repayment of
a debt of gratitude. For her part, the Church has always had great respect for
the elderly. The Fourth Commandment, “Honour your father and your mother as the Lord
your God commanded you” (Deut 5:16), is linked to the promise, “that your days
may be prolonged, and that it may go well with you, in the land which the Lord your
God gives you” (Deut 5:16). This work of the Church for the aging and infirm
not only provides love and care for them, but is also rewarded by God with the blessings
he promises on the land where this commandment is observed. God wills a proper respect
for the dignity and worth, the health and well-being of the elderly and, through her
charitable institutions in Britain and beyond, the Church seeks to fulfil the Lord’s
command to respect life, regardless of age or circumstances. At the very start
of my pontificate I said, “Each of us is willed, each of us is loved, each of us is
necessary” (Homily at the Mass for the Beginning of the Petrine Ministry of the
Bishop of Rome, 24 April 2005). Life is a unique gift, at every stage
from conception until natural death, and it is God’s alone to give and to take. One
may enjoy good health in old age; but equally Christians should not be afraid to share
in the suffering of Christ, if God wills that we struggle with infirmity. My predecessor,
the late Pope John Paul, suffered very publicly during the last years of his life.
It was clear to all of us that he did so in union with the sufferings of our Saviour.
His cheerfulness and forbearance as he faced his final days were a remarkable and
moving example to all of us who have to carry the burden of advancing years. In
this sense, I come among you not only as a father, but also as a brother who knows
well the joys and the struggles that come with age. Our long years of life afford
us the opportunity to appreciate both the beauty of God’s greatest gift to us, the
gift of life, as well as the fragility of the human spirit. Those of us who live
many years are given a marvellous chance to deepen our awareness of the mystery of
Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity. As the normal span of our lives
increases, our physical capacities are often diminished; and yet these times may well
be among the most spiritually fruitful years of our lives. These years are an opportunity
to remember in affectionate prayer all those whom we have cherished in this life,
and to place all that we have personally been and done before the mercy and tenderness
of God. This will surely be a great spiritual comfort and enable us to discover anew
his love and goodness all the days of our life. With these sentiments, dear brothers
and sisters, I am pleased to assure you of my prayers for you all, and I ask for your
prayers for me. May our blessed Lady and her spouse Saint Joseph intercede for our
happiness in this life and obtain for us the blessing of a serene passage to the next.
May God bless you all!