A Vision for the Aging Church: Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors by James M. Houston and Michael Parker

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Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors

James m. Houston & micHael Parker



InterVarsity Press

P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515-1426

World Wide Web: www.ivpress.com

E-mail: [email protected]

©2011 by James M. Houston and Michael Parker

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from

InterVarsity Press.

InterVarsity Press ® is the book-publishing division of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA ® , a movement of

students and faculty active on campus at hundreds of universities, colleges and schools of nursing in the United States

of America, and a member movement of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. For informationabout local and regional activities, write Public Relations Dept., InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, 6400

Schroeder Rd., P.O. Box 7895, Madison, WI 53707-7895, or visit the IVCF website at <www.intervarsity.org>.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Hly Bble, New Itet l Ve®.

niv®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing

House. All rights reserved.

While all stories in this book are true, some names and identifying information in this book have been changed to

protect the privacy of the individuals involved.

Design: Cindy Kiple

Images: senior woman portrait: © Martina Ebel/iStockphotoelderly African man: © MShep2/iStockphoto

senior woman with glasses: © Özgür Donmaz/iStockphoto

male Japanese senior: © Roberto A Sanchez/iStockphoto

ISBN 978-0-8308-3948-3

Printed in the United States of America ∞

InterVarsity Press is committed to protecting the environment and to the responsible use of natural resources. As a member of Green Press Initiative we use recycled paper whenever possible. To learnmore about the Green Press Initiative, visit <www.greenpressinitiative.org>.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Houston, J. M. (James Macintosh), 1922-

A vision for the aging church: renewing ministry for and by seniors

/ James M. Houston and Michael W. Parker.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-8308-3948-3 (pbk.: alk. paper)

1. Church work with older people. 2. Older Christians—Religious

life. I. Parker, Michael W., 1947- II. Title.

BV4435.H68 2011

259’.3—dc23

2011023156

P 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Y 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11



Contents

Pa 7

Pl: Distressed Communities 15

part one: an ageist Z eitgeist

1 T A C: A Future Katrina? 27

2 I Sy Ppad I A Ppla? 34

3 T Cd Clal Rl S

Sla Sy ad C 45

part two: BiBliCal and HistoriCal tHemes of aging

4 A a Bblal Cx 55

5 Bblal Rl S-Eld 64

6 T Pa a Ma Ca S-Eld 72

7 Eld a Exmpla ad M Ca Rwal 79

8 T Lvd Wdm Ca Eld 91

9 H Eld Ealy Cay 97

part tHree: solutions for an aging CHurCH

10 T Pmay Tlal Aply

a A C 105

11 A Sl ly: Myths and Realities 111

12 Cav: The Twenty-First Century’s

Greatest Test of Character 126



13 Lal S My Aa

ad Emal Pap 139

14 Impa Sp Uy O Cmm 150

part four : l ate l ife signifiCant l iving

15 Fa I All Ab Rlap a

Cl Dably ad Dp 169

16 Fa Alzm’ Da ad O Dma w

Hp Gd’ Rmmba 185

17 Ca, S ad a M Pal Sy 206

18 T Val Rl Rpa 216

19 I Smmay: Becoming a Christian Elder

in Rebuilding the Churc 223

part five: finisHing w ell

20 Fa Da ad Bavm 231

Epl: Dying Elders, Living Church 241

Appdx A: “The Life Review” Preparation Tips and Questions 249

Appdx B: Church Survey Questions 257

Appdx C: Parent Care Readiness Program 261

Appdx D: Sample Senior Ministry Association Correspondence 264

Appdx E: State Agencies on Aging 266

Ab A 273

Idx 275



1

The aging church

A Future Katrina?

Storms like Hurricane Katrina wash away the surface of society,

the settled way things have been done. They expose the underlying

power structures, the injustices, the patterns of corruption

and the unacknowledged inequalities.

David Brooks , T he N ew Y ork T imes

• • •

Mj cttphe le 9/11, Huce Kt the 2008 H-

t ethque c ee weup cll t ul, fmle,

cmmute t but the ecety f beg pepe. Thee

eet l eel clely tht e uffe ppttely ug

tul te.1 Fm the w-fgtte tgey f the f le u-g hme New Ole t the be ug hme Ht, the

hghe mtlty te mg e fu Ch Jp ee

tgc eme tht u l peple e uleble ug te. D.

Pe le tecply tem New Ole tht helpe c-

1M. W. Pe, Rch Pwe, L. Rff, B. F M. Hllgwth, “Ecut f the

Fl Elely Dug Kt: Le Slut,” ppe peete t the Fec Py-chty Pt-Kt: Le Lee Pt Dte Cfeece, Tule Uety, New O-le, L., Apl 13-15, 2007; Jme Appleby, qute “Gwg Fel f Ltetue OutleNecey Step f Ele Dte Pepee Emegecy,” New-Mecl, Mch 19,2011, www.ew-mecl.et/ew/20110319/Gwg-fel-f-ltetue-utle-ecey-tep-f-ele-te-pepee--emegecy.px.



28 A Vision for the Aging Church

gegt t ue gegphc fmt ytem ble t mp ptte

f uleblty ce, llwg ft epe t teee me

effectely. Cgegt c pe help t the le membethugh pcte plg, ug “g t,” multtee ecut

pl, ctct fmt wth fmle, lt f elet helth ce

pe, wee’ upply f pecpt e-the-cute me-

ct, etc. Uftutely, h mt ecet eech cf m tht c-

gegt t th but helpg the elely membe pepe

ytemtc, pcte wy f hgh pbblty te the ge-

gphc lct (e.g., fe, pwe utge, te).Elely ble peple wth mblty lmtt e ptcully

uleble te. Dug 9/11, befe the Tw Twe cl-

lpe, peple wheelch wee wee ytemtclly ecute t

mleel tgg e, eetlly cemg them t eth. Oly

e euly ble pe w uccefully ecute befe the

twe cllpe. She lte he wht the fem wh w cyg

he w the t fte he le t the fce f peple ttg

the wheel ch: “Ly, I ’t leg yu hee!”2 We ee tht

f het emet cmmtmet t the ecey w

the chuch ty, ele hul be bt, eetl pt f

th efft.

Huce Kt w ffeet fm 9/11 the Ht

Chee ethque the me-ecet tum tht ht Jp be-

cue f ce wg. Yet epte the pptuty t peet me

f the huce’ ett, uleble membe f the cmmuty

wee lt. Whe the wte e t the ftp New Ole, my

ctze we, clug, well-publcze, the ete eet

ppult f e ug hme. Althugh my ble-be peple

h ecute fely p t Huce Kt’ lfll, thu

eme the hme, ethe efug uble t ecute. My

the e cequece f the wy they wee ecute. Th w

ptcully tue f the e xty-fe. Rughly e hlf f New O-le’ p huehl t w ehcle, mg New Ole’

2D. B, “Kt’ Sle Lg,” New York Times, Septembe 8, 2005, qute M. W.Pe et l., “Ecut f the Fl Elely Dug Kt: Le Slut.”



The Aging Church 29

elely ppult, 65 pecet wee wthut ehcle.

Whe the leee (wll) ptectg the cty fctue, lge pt f

New Ole eby Lu phe wee etye. Appx-mtely ety thu que mle f the Gulf Ct, e ughly

the ze f Get Bt, w ecle feel te e. Kt

expe the tech f cetl eglect, jutce equlty e f

u t’ pet cte. Afte the huce me lfll, ctm-

te flwte cee much f New Ole f lmt tw

mth. Helth cce wee elete f eet cleup w-

e becue the pllute wte cte mx f w ewge, ebe, bcte, mll f gll f l, hey metl, petce

txc chemcl.3

Oe thu peple the New Ole e wul e e-

ult f Huce Kt. Seety fu pecet wee e xty ye

l; 50 pecet wee e ge eety-fe. Thee ppt e

hcgly hgh, ceg the fct tht the elely cttute ly

11.7 pecet f New Ole’ ppult.

The pptte umbe f elely eth ug Huce

Kt my eem uelte t the chuch t lge. But ce, hw-

ee, tht mt cmmute, me th 95 pecet f the elely

t le ug hme, yet ppxmtely 80 pecet e membe f

elgu cgegt. I ubequet chpte, we peet me

thugh exmt f the pblem f cectg elely chuch

membe wth the yuge membe chuch. Yet the exmple f

Kt beg the quet, why wee fl elely ble peple

wthut the cpcty t ecute themele ug Huce Kt

t helpe by me ble-be membe f the cgegt? If the

ftet-gwg ge gup eghty-fe le, lmt hlf

th ge gup uffe fm emet, why ’t the cgegt f

the elely wh eelely pehe ug Kt ply me p-

cte le ecug the w the the cty f New Ole?

3M. W. Pe et l., “Ecut f the Fl Elely Dug Kt: Le Slut”; Jme Appleby, qute “Gwg Fel f Ltetue Outle Necey Step f EleDte Pepee Emegecy”; B, “Kt’ Sle Lg,” New York Times, Sep-tembe 8, 2005, M. W. Pe et l., “Ecut f the Fl Elely Dug Kt.”




Pehp t becue the effect f gg pe, fmly,

cgegt, cmmuty t e typclly expeece me

ubtly uly. Pehp, le the ttut (pltcl, me-cl, metg etepeeul), the chuch bth ctely

cletely get. Le the “m” (uch cm), ageism elf-

efetg cetl ll tht h my fm f expe. Smply tte,

t the peece f egte teetype, cect umpt

tte chctezt but le peple the cpcte.

Chpte twele ebu me myth but gg by exmg the

ltet eech, but hee we exple wht eeche he fu metce: the peece f get tttue pctce ctully ht-

e the qulty legth f the le f le pe the ct-

but t cety. Huce Kt peet eee ce, whch

my mppely ecute le ble pe e.

Examples of Ageism

D me chuche—, t let, peple pt f pwe flu-

ece wth them—ew le peple elfh, epeet, helple

uble t ctbute? I tuth, the t mjty f e e

cte cume wh he me et th yuge peple p-

e get el f lble tlet, tg (pehp) tme. Mt

mptt, my le pe he ye f expeece lg ut

the fth. Th ge them uque cpcty t epeet the le f

Cht t the. Ou eech cte clely tht thugh gem

ext the me chuch, my chuch lee wt t me-

thg but t.4 Agem t jut the ue chuche ee t be

ccu f but eglectful tht h eulte the l f lfe f

le membe.

Oe pecfc exmple f gem wepe teecy t eg

mte Suy chl cle u ge-ge thg.

4L. Du et l., “Bulg Sutble Cmmuty Ptehp t Pmte Succeful Agg:A Pelmy Stuy f Lcl Cgegt Agece,” Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship (fthcmg); M. W. Pe, J. Bell, M. Hpe, P. Bhp, C. Me,P. Thmp R. A. Allm, “Multcply Mel f Helth Pmt Icpt-g Sptulty t Succeful Agg Iteet wth Afc Amec Whte El-ely,” The Gerontologist 42, . 3 (2002): 405-15.



The Aging Church 31

Whle eghty-fe-ye-l c be “yuge” (me cu) th

me eghtee-ye-l bth pychlgclly ptully, eptg

belee by the ge epe eeye f the chce t le fm ce f ech the c ge. Le the ec t plce ble peple

mleel fl fte the 9/11 ttc, uch ec h p-

fuly egte effect le t me fteg tegee-

tl cect lmt mpble ug the Suy chl hu.

Ge the hgh ce te wth the me chuch, f exmple,

ewly me yug cuple mght beeft fm ct wth le

cuple, me f whm he bee me f e ffty ye.I the exmple f gem, ecet eech ugget tht pt

tp tg elely membe f the cgegt wh ee lg

tem ce fclte ce they etect he cfme tht eet

uffeg fm emet.5 Becue lmt hlf f the wh ech

eghty-fe le wll uffe fm fm f emet, belee mut

ecuge the chuch t ew thee e membe peple wth te-

meu lue. Aye wh eee helple epeet tll

h wth the eye f Cht. Leg t le ue thee ccum-

tce c cy pce f the exteg the le, the chuch

mut be thee t help cege ce ecpet wy tht me

el ffeece. Plttue pme f pye ct eplce the e-

cety f pctcl fm f tce tte f cece ce. The

bblcl tuth tht eceg fte fllw gg hl tue uch c-

cumtce. The wh lgly ee le peple cpble f etu-

g the le wll be blee thugh the efft my tme e

becue they le hw t le uctlly. Thugh cpte

f eglect e lgely f m, ly the chuch c pech the

G-ge lue f the wh e lg the tellectul cpcte

fte the ptul gwth lble t the cege.

Oe e pt f lge Pebyte chuch chcteze h

e ctege “ g, lw g ft g: If mee no go,

he te t be fl emete, epeet up the, whle the

5M. W. Pe R. Pwe, “The Pet Ce Ree Pgm,” ppe peete t theAlbm Mecl Dect Act’ Ffteeth Aul Cfeece, Agg Amec,Det, Fl., July 25, 2009.




fast go tg epeet; slow go mewhee betwee.”

The chuch hul the h quet, wht lue t cety “

g”? A we hul we cfetly, “A ctet, epeet,pe uffeg fm lte tge Alzheme’ ee pe the pe-

’ fmly he chuch wth e f lfe’ mt mptt le,

pptuty t le hw t le pe uctlly, wthut y

expectt f methg etu.” Becue emet ce cmpl-

cte chllegg, we cu hw the chuch c help eelp

cege uppt gup mt ecte f cmmuty-be

tl euce lte chpte.

Senior Ministry: Both To and From

Althugh the helth ttu f gg membe e ffect the type f

mty extee t them expecte fm them, the chuch mut c-

ft the elty tht lmt ll membe mut be clue me type

f mty. I the cmg ye, t wll becme me me cucl t

cete cect wth gg membe; fct, t bblcl ep-

blty t mt cuttg ege mte “t” “fm” ele.

Le the fle fth-be ytem New Ole, f the chuch

ge mhle t gg membe, the effect c he e-

ttg utcme. A we wll le ubequet chpte, u cety

geel upepe f t gg ppult te he e-

ele. If u cety fl t t u elgu, mecl, legl, f-

cl etepeeul lee but thee mtte, ytem f uppt

wll be le be leee, uble t el wth the multplyg ee

ele ce. The chuch f ll ttut ee t te t. Sly t

my be the let pepe.

We ee le pe f fth t help u e the pblem we

fce ty ully, fmle, membe f u cmmute

ctze f get t. We ct ff t ey mmze the

fct cceg the elely, pepetute u tlzt but them,

pject u pel elgu epblte tw themt the peple ttut. Cht we u but the ce-

quece f lg tht whch plce peee fth hm the

Sem the Mut. “Yu e the lt f the eth. But f the lt



The Aging Church 33

le t lte, hw c t be me lty g? It lge g

f ythg, except t be thw ut tmple by me. Yu e

the lght f the wl. A cty hll ct be he. Nethe peple lght lmp put t ue bwl. Ite they put t t

t, t ge lght t eeye the hue. I the me wy, let

yu lght he befe me, tht they my ee yu g ee

pe yu fthe hee” (Mt 5:13-16). If the chuch ctue t

elegte t epblte tw t e membe t the ttu-

t cety fl t ecgze the gft tht ly wth the

membe, t wll becme le lt tht h lt t tte, t pupe t cpcty t peee tht whch g, t wll he lt t

cpcty t lght the wy. The gg chuch t ccet. It

G hmelf wh h gte lge lfe f h pupe, we

belee tht ele hl the ey t lg my, f t mt, f c-

ety’ pblem.

Documents

A Vision for the Aging Church: Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors by James M. Houston and Michael Parker