Beth Jackson-Jordan, Director of Spiritual Health at Emory Decatur Hospital, writes, “We need a spiritual model of aging that goes beyond old age as a ‘Symbol of Blessing’ or Symbol of Loss.’ I find ‘Old Age as a Calling’ helpful.” Think about it. Surely God has a special calling for those who in later life have many fruitful years ahead with a wealth of experience, learning, and gifts. How can God use those whose bodies, though failing, retain a spirit and story that are often a hidden treasure? The Bible provides us with wonderful examples of older adults who responded to God‘s call in later life. When Abraham set out for the land of Canaan, he was already seventy-five years old. At the age of eighty, Moses led his people out of Egypt. In the New Testament, we find the story of the elders, Simeon and Anna. Anna, who was at least eighty-four years old, was so certain of her calling that “she never left the temple but worshiped there…night and day.”
I have often heard folks say: “I did that for forty years; I’ve put in my time already. Get someone younger to do it!” Unfortunately, as the late Presbyterian pastor Dieter Hessel has pointed out, even “the church does little to challenge relatively complacent older people who assume that they have pretty much fulfilled their responsibilities, and can mark time before claiming the place reserved for them at the Messianic banquet.” Still, I recall what an older woman, very active at my previous church, said to me as part of my doctoral work on spirituality and aging: “The old have an obligation to show younger people that elderly members still have worthwhile contributions to make. That will not only help the older people to be treated better but also assist the younger to deal more positively and less fearfully with their own aging.”
The truth is, there is no age limit on God’s expectation that persons contribute to the Church—on that Scripture is pretty clear. It’s also clear that as people of faith, we must begin to imagine the range of possibilities for continuing to respond to God‘s call to share our talents, ideas, and dreams in later life. What would happen if older adults and church leaders began thinking together about reclaiming the role of “elder”? The potential for creative models of ministry and outreach is truly exciting. New models must honor the need to spend reflective time looking back at our lives in spiritual reflection, while claiming the vision of “Old Age as a Calling” as we look to God’s future. We must develop creative approaches for spiritual growth and contribution in later life. Such a vision will expand the boundaries of our current aging ministries profoundly.