Every year on the fourth Sunday of July, the Catholic Church celebrates the World Day for Grandparents and Elderly, an event initiated by Pope Francis in 2021. The date of the celebration was chosen so that it would fall near the feast day of Sts. Anne and Joachim, the grandparents of Jesus, on July 26.
This year, the World Day of Grandparents will be celebrated on July 28 with the theme: “Do Not Cast Me Off in My Old Age” — taken from Psalm 71.
When it comes to saintly grandparents, many think of Sts. Anne and Joachim, the faithful couple whose perseverance yielded the gift of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who would give birth to Jesus Christ. However, there are numerous other saints who were grandparents and are great models of virtue as well as powerful intercessors.
Photo: From left to right: St. Thomas More, St. Helena, St. Louis IX, St. Monica, and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. | Credit: Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain
St. Monica
St. Monica is known for being the mother of the great theologian St. Augustine of Hippo and for her fervent prayer life. However, she was also a grandmother. During Augustine’s wayward years, he had a concubine who gave birth to a son named Adeodatus. Adeodatus remained in Augustine’s custody and the two of them lived with Monica. The father and son were also baptized together. Despite passing away very young, at the age of 16, Adeodatus was present at his grandmother’s passing.
St. Helena
St. Helena was the mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great and was born around 248 AD in modern-day Turkey. She was a devout servant of God, built churches in several locations including Bethlehem and another on the Mount of the Ascension, and played a major role in finding the True Cross in Jerusalem. She also cared greatly for the poor and helped communities financially. Helena was also the grandmother of Constantina — also known as St. Constance — the eldest daughter of Constantine and his second wife, Fausta. St. Helena’s sarcophagus is on display in the Vatican Museum and next to her is the sarcophagus of her granddaughter.
St. Thomas More
St. Thomas More, the English lawyer and martyr who served King Henry VIII as Lord High Chancellor of England, married Joanna Colt in 1505 and the couple had four children together before Joanna died in 1511. More remarried Alice Middleton, and did not have more children, but his four children — Margaret, Elizabeth, Cecily, and John II — all went on to get married and have children of their own. In total, More had 23 grandchildren.
St. Louis IX
St. Louis IX was the King of France from 1226 to 1270 and spent much of his time in prayer. He was also known for his charity, allowing beggars to eat at his table and washing their feet. He also cared for lepers and built many hospitals. He was married to Margaret of Provence with whom he had 11 children (two died in infancy). Many of his children also went on to marry and have children. Louis IX was succeeded by his son Philip III, then by his grandson Philip IV, and then several of his great-grandsons, including Louis X, Philip V, and Charles IV.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton was born in New York in 1774 to a prominent Episcopalian family. At the age of 19, she married William Magee Seton, a wealthy businessman with whom she had five children. After William died in 1803, Elizabeth was left a widow. She discovered Catholicism while in Italy and after returning to the U.S. entered the Catholic Church in 1805 and founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph’s in 1809. Though she did not live to see her grandchildren, Seton’s son William had 9 children, one of whom was ordained to the priesthood in Rome in 1865.
