Grandparents Day

Learning the love of God through grandparents

07/26/2021

Mt 13:31-35 Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.” He spoke to them another parable. “The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.” All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet: I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

One of my favorite events of the school year is “Grandparents’ Day,” when all the grandparents visit the school and their students. And by the way, it is a great school fundraiser, too, because we can sell anything and grandparents will buy it for their grandbabies. But why is that? Well, grandparents experience a love for grandchildren that is almost more intense than a parent’s love for a child.

One new grandmother commented: “I thought I could never love another person more than I love my own children. And then I had grandchildren.” She discovered a deeper level of love when she became a grandmother. And grandparents never think they have too many grandchildren (even if parents may think that). After my parents had grandbaby number eight, my father simply stated: “Keep them coming!” Easy for him to say.

I am convinced the love of grandparents is so special it provides a unique window into the love of God. Of course, God is depicted as a loving and wise Father throughout Scripture, which is a perfect portrayal both in philosophy and theology. But social-speaking, especially in today’s society, a grandparent’s love may be closer to the mark. Why?

Well, because many modern parents have simply checked out of their role and responsibility and the grandparents are raising their grandchildren. Have you seen this? An entire generation of mothers and fathers have abdicated their roles as primary providers for their children.

As a consequence, presenting God as Father may seem scary for some modern children, whereas a grandparent fills that role more regularly and even religiously. Our grandparents have donned the mantle of primary providers for their grandchildren, and they reflect the love of God beautifully.

Today, July 26, is the feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and therefore, the grandparents of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Now, we do not know much about this couple; indeed, the two genealogies of Jesus in Mt 1 and Lk 3 do not mention them. Even their names come to us from tradition and not from Scripture.

But one thing we do know is that they were grandparents and therefore they loved their grandchildren almost more than their own parents did. Now, this following observation I am about to make is pure speculation, but I cannot help but wonder what happened after the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and announced the conception of Christ. Is it impossible to image that even after Mary uttered her faith-filled “Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum,” (May it be done to me according to your word), she ran home to her parents and asked their input?

And maybe St. Joachim answered her like my father, who said, “Keep them coming!” Of course, he meant more spiritual children not natural children in Mary’s case. In other words, the grandparents of Jesus told Mother Mary what St. Mother Teresa often said, “Saying there are too many children is like saying there are too many flowers.” May Mary saw a first glimpse of God’s love in the love of Jesus’ grandparents, Sts. Joachim and Anne.

My friends, I believe we need the love of grandparents and the intercession of Sts. Joachim and Anne, especially in the area of abortion. In other words, only if we love babies in the womb like grandparents do will we overturn the law of the land legalizing abortion.

I suspect this law is symptomatic of the deeper generational abdication by parents to be the primary providers of their children. If we as a society allow parents to relinquish that role, how can we ask them not to have access to abortion as well? They are two sides of the same coin of selfishness.

Perhaps we should pray intentionally and intensely for the Supreme Court that agreed to hear the recent Mississippi case restricting the availability of abortion so that law becomes more common in our country. What is truly at stake is not a woman’s right over her own body, but the possibility to glimpse the love of God for each new human life.

And maybe the best chance we have to love babies as God loves them is to watch our grandparents and not so much our parents. May Sts. Joachim and Anne help us overturn abortion as once they helped their daughter, Mary, to also choose life.

Praised be Jesus Christ!