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8/4/2019 A Vision for the Aging Church: Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors by James M. Houston and Michael Parker
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8/4/2019 A Vision for the Aging Church: Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors by James M. Houston and Michael Parker
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8/4/2019 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
8/4/2019 A Vision for the Aging Church: Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors by James M. Houston and Michael Parker
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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
8/4/2019 A Vision for the Aging Church: Renewing Ministry for and by Seniors by James M. Houston and Michael Parker
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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
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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
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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.
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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.”
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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.”
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30 A Vision for the Aging Church
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.
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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.
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32 A Vision for the Aging Church
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
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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.