In his speech to the general audience Wednesday, Pope Francis focused on the “obsession” of the “myth of eternal youth” and the confusion many have created between well-being and the “nurture of myth”.
He also criticized those who see old age as a natural part of life.
“Our time and culture, with an alarming tendency to view the birth of a child as a simple matter of production and human biological reproduction, still feeds the myth of eternal youth as an obsession with an incorruptible flesh – a helpless one. Because old age is despised in many ways,” he said.
“Technology is drawn to this myth in every way: in the hope of defeating death, we can keep the body alive with drugs and cosmetics that delay, hide, and eliminate aging.
Of course, well-being is one thing, nurturing myths is another. However, it cannot be denied that the confusion between the two aspects creates a mental confusion: mixing well-being with food for the myth of eternal youth,” he added.
According to the Catholic leader, today “too much cheating, too much surgery is done to look younger.” She also recalled a speech by Italian actress Anna Magnani when she was asked to “remove her wrinkles” and said “it took them many years to be there”.
“That’s it, wrinkles are a symbol of experience, of life, of maturity, of having made the way. Personality is the heart that counts, and the heart stays with the youth of a good wine, which gets better with age,” he added.
The speech returned by saying “the old are useless”, returning to a point that Francis often repeated in his speeches, a “throwaway culture” aimed at abandoning minorities and the most vulnerable in society.
Emphasizing that the elderly constitute a “path” for everyone, the Pope said, “The elderly are the ambassadors of the future, perseverance, and the wisdom of a lived life.”
“Let’s go see the grown-ups,” he concluded.
source: Noticias
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