Keynote to Southwest MN Synod of the ELCA
7 April 2002
I am grateful that I can be with you at your first Assembly held in Redwood Falls. It takes quite a structure to accommodate one of the largest Synodical Assemblies in the national Church. You are to be congratulated! Perhaps it's just me but I have the sense that we are meeting in a field house. Meeting in a field house…across the hall from an exercise and weight room…displays in a hockey arena…and meals in a gymnasium…now let's see, what is the underlying, subliminal message? Could it be EXERCISE? Now I have been looking at many of you…and I want to tell you we need to nip this idea in the bud! I'm personally involved in research on a daily basis and I know that 87% of all heart attacks happen to people who are exercising.
Yesterday I sat in the back few tables and the advantages for the speaker are obvious. You can't see the speaker…so let me describe myself. First, I am thin. [Now if this is to work, everyone in the front tables needs to learn how to keep a confidence.] However, for me, keeping slender doesn't come naturally. I have been on many diets and this assembly room reminds me of one of them. One of my longest diets was called the "Onion and Garlic Diet." My doctor explained it to me this way. He said, "Cliff, on this diet you can eat anything you want and as much as you want provided that the first thing you do every morning is to eat a whole raw onion and a whole clove of garlic." I said to my doctor, "That sounds great but will I actually lose weight on this diet?" He said, "Well actually NO but your friends will think you're thinner from further away."
My doctor now has me on another diet. He calls it the "Mirror Diet." This diet begins like the last one, "I can eat anything I want and as much as I want provided that I eat it stark naked in front of a mirror." Let me tell you, this is an effective diet. The only draw-back is for those (like myself) who travel a lot. [Don't get ahead of me here.] It is really difficult to find restaurants that will cooperate. That is also true for synod Assemblies. So, if you want to have lunch…just shine a mirror in my direction.
In our opening worship yesterday, Bishop Olson reflected on the faith realities of our Assembly theme: "Generation to Generation." He referenced the faith development of young Timothy and he asked us to reflect on the question, "Who was the Lois, Eunice and Paul for you?" That is, who nurtured you in the faith? As Bishop Olson paused--making the question more than rhetorical--I found myself writing on my pad of paper the names of my parents and my Grandma Anna; my aunts and uncles--Hilda, Clara and Art, Clarice and Hjalmer, Grace and Alvin, Beulah and Alfred, Luella and Eddie.
Outside of their service in World War II my uncles and aunts never strayed far from Hendricks or the neighboring metropolis of Astoria, SD. After we moved to Minneapolis I would return during the summers to work on the farms of my uncles and aunts and to play with cousins.
Close to half a century has passed since my parents moved from the farm nine miles north of Hendricks. Our farm was right on the SD border. My father always would say that he enjoyed having a farm bordering on SD "because pheasant hunting season opens in SD two weeks before MN." My father claimed that "in SD they were such poor shots that they would only scare the pheasants to MN." Now that I think about it, my father would only make that boast when he was in the presence of my SD uncle and other SD farmer friends. Obviously I come to my gift for taunting naturally.
Of course, the primary difference between the time when I left the farm to now is the difference that 40+ years makes. I am now 57, I am considerably older… and feeling it.
I want to think that my signs of wear are not all that visible…but then reality strikes. For example, last summer I was speaking at Mt. Carmel Family Camp on lake Carlos near Alexandria, Minnesota. A young mother walked up to me and complimented me on my alligator shoes. Under normal circumstances I would have welcomed the compliment…but at the time I was barefoot.
Of course there are benefits to aging. For example, my secrets are increasingly safe with friends like Pastor Wohlrabe because the older he gets, he can't remember them either. And of course, when my wife Janelle and I have a party our neighbors don't even realize it.
For 20 years I served the Lutheran Bible Institute in California, six years as a faculty member and 14 years as president. The LBI community was "graying" like most segments of our Lutheran church. When I joined the faculty in 1976 our core supporters were nearing retirement age and during my 20 years at the school, many of our faithful constituents moved from "able-old" to "frail-old" with all the attendant challenges.
I remember the day when I overheard a conversation between two of our elderly constituents--both women. They had both been widowed for approximately 15 years, and they lived in adjoining apartments at a church sponsored retirement community. They had been friends most of their adult lives and were members of the same congregation. They were standing together and one said to the other, "I am so embarrassed but I have a question to ask you. You know that I consider you to be closer than a sister and I don't want anything to ruin our friendship…but for the life of me I can't remember your name. Would you please tell me your name?"
Her friend looked shocked at this request. It was as though she couldn't believe what she just heard and a truly sad look came over her face. Finally, after a long time she responded, "When do you need to know?"
Our laughter at this kind of story reflects our own experience of those senior moments, and our own forgetfulness--increasing at it may be. Aging affects us all and the expansive nature of these affects will only increase as we enter the 21st century…and this is especially true when we consider the comprehensive nature of our congregation's ministry.
And if the effects of aging are not currently challenging your life, they are probably present for your parents and grandparents, congregation members and neighbors. The median age in the ELCA is just under 57. This means that half of all ELCA baptized members are over the age of 57. This representation of mass aging within the ELCA is characteristic of our nations aging population.
The expansive growth of the senior community is the demographic magnifying lens that focuses our attention upon the needs of seniors. The 21st century will be a century of age marked by an even more dramatic increase in the numerical growth of the older population as the leading edge of the baby-boomers reach retirement age beginning in 2011.
Picture this scenario: (2) If you were a member of a Lutheran congregation with 100 members in 1900, there would have been only 4 members over 65--not much of a senior ministry challenge. It would take 58 years for the percentage of seniors to double. It wasn't until 1958, thirteen years after I was born and shortly after my parents left Lincoln County, that for every 100 members in our congregations, on average only 8 members would be over 65. The Lutheran Church remained a young church.
However, the next doubling would take less than half the time. In twenty-two years, by 1980, the number of adults over 65, in a congregation of 100 members, would increase to 16. Then, only 15 years later, by 1995 the number would double again to 32.
Now as we meet at the beginning of the 21st century what does the future hold? By 2030, when the trailing edge of the baby-boomers will reach retirement age, more than 51 of every 100 members will be over the age of 65. More than half of all our members--over 65. And I'm sure you are aware from personal experience that almost all rural and small town congregations will run significantly ahead of this schedule. Why should the Southwest Minnesota Synod consider yourself to be running ahead of this aging curve? Because, in fact, rural America is older than our cities. For example, in 1998 the average age of the non-farming labor force was 38, while the average age of full-time farmers was 57.(3)
An increase in the number of older adults will mark a corresponding increase in age-related illnesses and the need for family crisis intervention. Home based care-giving will dramatically increase over the next 40 years as the frail-old (85+) are being cared for by the able old (65+). 15% of all seniors today have kids that are seniors. The oldest-old are the fastest growing segment of America's senior population and the most vulnerable to the challenges we associate with old age--widowhood, declining health, and the difficulty of going about daily life without assistance. (4)
There are an ever-increasing number of articles and reports in our newspapers, magazines and on radio and television concerning the growing list of senior needs. However, I have yet to read a report that identifies the greatest need within the senior community…the need for spiritual life and growth.
It is projected that by 2015 the largest population group in the United States will be single women 85 years old and older. Fifteen years later, by 2030, our nation will have a greater number of adults over 65 than youth under 18. There will be about 70 million older persons, more than twice the number in 1994, and many of these older persons will be over 90…and many will not know of Christ's redemptive love.
Mass aging and the large group of functionally old-old will be a marked difference for the 21st century. For the sake of comparison, in 1920 for every 100 individuals between 60 and 64 there were only 21 who were 80 years or older. However, by 2030 for every 100 individuals 60-64 there will be 80 people in their 90's. And it doesn't take great powers of observation to notice that many of you will be among them--and many of you will arrive at age 90 way ahead of this schedule.
In light of the imminent collision of mass aging with all of our congregations, every individual, family, congregation and synod needs to engage in a guided assessment that helps prioritize the senior needs to which they should give attention. Healthy, active, growing congregations in the 21st century will be those who gather information on their senior community and families of seniors. What short and long range plans should be implemented as they face the challenges of evangelizing an aging population in the 21st century? What facility, budget and staffing considerations need to be implemented? What ecumenical cooperation and networking among congregations is possible as they fulfill their commission as Christ's apostles, sent-ones, evangelists and fishing representatives in the 21st century?
The gathering of information to help individuals, congregations and synods make a guided assessment of senior needs is the real purpose why I have been invited to this synod Assembly. As President and Director of Research for Church Resources we are firmly committed to the task of enabling congregations to assess the needs of pre-retirement and retirement age individuals and their families.
Through the help of Dr. Merton Strommen, who serves on our Board, and other research fellows, Church Resources has developed a 174 question Senior Ministry Inventory that assists individuals and congregations to identify the life arenas that need attention as we age. This Inventory is the most comprehensive, objective senior research instrument available today and is designed to be implemented only through congregations.
You may ask, why is a Senior Ministry Inventory necessary? The answer is quite simple. Apart from the basic demographic information that we have already reviewed, most congregations have little specific, objective knowledge regarding the fastest growing segment of both their membership and the communities they serve. Actually, most congregations are still living with a ministry mindset founded upon the youth culture of the 1960's and 70's. We need not be worried about being only one hour behind because of daylight savings. If we don't aggressively pursue the ministry implications of aging in our culture, many congregations will find themselves 40 years behind-times.
Who will benefit from the Senior Ministry Inventory? First, every individual who takes the Inventory receives a four page (full color) confidential report that identifies specific life-arenas that need attention as they grow older. Every individual report is totally unique and based on the person's unique responses to the Inventory questions.
Second, every congregation that participates receives a 50+ page anonymous summary report of all Inventories. This summary report will assist the pastoral staff and church council in the preparation of budgets and programs to meet specific, identifiable needs within their congregation and community.
Third, every participating synod receives a compiled report of senior needs within participating congregations. As you have already been informed, Bishop Olson, the synod staff and synod council have recommended that every congregation give serious consideration to implementing the Senior Ministry Inventory.
What does all this cost? There is no cost for a congregation to participate or for the congregation report. There is no cost for the synod to participate or for the synodical report. There is a $10 processing fee for each Inventory and every person who takes the Inventory makes a $10 contribution to their congregation to cover this expense. This processing fee is approximately the cost of two McDonalds Happy Meals, or one ticket for a Lutefisk dinner…but the advantages of the Inventory far outweigh the value of participating in the drawn butter or white sauce debate.
If certain individuals in your congregation require assistance, Church Resources makes financial grants available, and these grants may be dispersed at the sole discretion of the pastor. We do not want the processing fee to stand in the way of any person participating in the Inventory process.
We encourage you to designate an official representative from your congregation to visit the Church Resources display and pick up the Inventory supplies for your congregation.
Already, 10-15% of all SW MN Synod congregations have implemented the Inventory. 7 other ELCA synods are currently implementing the Inventory and an additional 13 synods will begin implementing the Inventory this Fall.
The ministry implications of Inventory responses are too great to cover adequately in this plenary session. Some implications were anticipated…others were not. For example, we anticipated that there would be a necessary shift of focus as we transition from the needs of seniors in the builder generation to the needs of soon-to-be seniors from the boomer generation. And the initial Inventory responses support our anticipations. An anonymous piece of doggerel illustrates this fact, that for senior ministry, times are changing.
Times Are Changing
In the dim and distant
When life's tempo wasn't fast,
Grandma used to rock and knit,
Crochet, tat, and babysit.
When the kids were in a jam,
They could always count on Gram.
In an age of gracious living,
Grandma was the gal for giving.
Grandma now is at the gym,
Exercising to keep slim.
She's off touring with a bunch,
Taking clients out to lunch.
Driving north to ski or curl,
All her days are in a whirl.
Nothing seems to stop or block her;
Now that Grandma's off her rocker.
An Inventory response that we did not anticipate was the percentage of seniors who indicate a strong trust in works or sincere belief as the basis of their assurance of salvation. 99% of all seniors who have completed the Inventory to date indicate that theyare a Christian and have faith in Christ as their Lord and Savior. However, 51% of all seniors indicate that their eternal hope is based on whether or not they have lived a good enough life, or on the basis that all faith roads lead to heaven…it doesn't matter what you believe as long as you are sincere.
The educational and pastoral implications of this lack of biblical assurance among seniors is far reaching.
From the mid-1960's Dr. Merton Strommen, Search Institute and other research ministries have conducted similar research on the youth and family ministry within our congregations. The Augsburg Youth and Family Institute continues to carry on this very essential research and ministry leadership.
Now as we begin the 21st century we need to focus these same questions on our ministry to seniors. The teenagers of the 1960's have grown up and are growing older...and we must remember that growing old is still growing!
Why is it necessary to gather information of the needs of seniors? Because the growing number of seniors will out-number every other age segment in American society. As appointed representatives of Christ to be "fishers of men and women" we will want to identify the streams or lakes that have lots of fish. If your congregation wants to engage in evangelism programs in the first half of the 21st century, then one of your programs should be to target un-churched seniors in your community. For the next 50 years, the most plentiful harvest will be pre-seniors and seniors 50 years of age and older. In many of our congregations it will be easier to grow our congregations through senior ministry than through ministry to youth and young families.
I say that senior ministry should become "one of your programs" because I am not suggesting that we replace our congregation's priorities for ministry to youth and family with programs to reach seniors. We merely need to add senior ministry as a priority in the 21st century.
However, while the numbers of seniors are great the difficulty of evangelizing this group is even greater. For these are the fish who for 40, 50 or 60+ years have intentionally and willfully resisted the inviting call of the gospel. They have said "No" to the invitation and promise of Christ when he said, come unto me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28). Now how do we reach them in the last half-decade of their life?
How will this happen? I want to focus briefly on the biblical model of inter-generational dependence between the young and the old. As we have consistently heard from our opening session, led by Bishop Olson, it is God's purpose to bring our generations together to both receive ministry from each other and to engage in ministry with each other.
As we consider ministry to seniors within the Assembly theme, Generation to Generation, what relational and functional roles should exist between the generations--between the young and old Christians within our congregations? What are the implications for ministry when we consider the generation gap of the 21st century--the new-young and the old-old?
Now, what lessons can we learn from how God structured the communities of faith in both the Old and New Testaments so that his name and nature would be honored and revered? It is in response to this question that I want to make a very simple affirmation. Throughout the bible, God used older men and women of faith to train the community to honor and revere God, and it was the multi-generational nature of the faith community that was so attractive to the stranger, the alien, the unbeliever. It seems to me that the very DNA of biblical faith is rooted in a multi-generation community…from generation to generation.
In both Israel and the Church, the seniors, the patriarchs, were essential to the community's understanding and rootedness in God. Older saints were not merely purveyors of good advice because they had been around-the-block more than once, they were the ones who trained the community (especially the young) how to enter the presence of God. Listen to Leviticus 19:32, You shall rise up before the grayheaded, and honor the face of an aged, and you shall revere your God: I am the Lord. (5)
Today, many of our outreach and evangelism efforts have ventured in a different direction. Instead of having one community with both grayheads and youth many congregations have chosen to nitch-market the gospel. We have whole congregations that have arisen that only focus on one generation--Boomers, X'ers, and the like. Many of our congregations have nitch-marketed their Sunday services…one service with a worship band and drums and another with the green book and organ. One service with vestments and another with polo shirts. One service with PowerPoint and another with traditional bulletin. Take your pick…one or the other. In most of these situations the youth and the grayheads never meet. Whatever design and purpose God has for their interaction is null and void.
In these situations the gifts of the seniors are never made available to the whole congregation, the young are not allowed to observe and respond to the old, and the community is divided by age--a phenomenon that the biblical communities never anticipated.
Listen again to Leviticus 19:32, You shall rise up before the grayheaded, and honor the face of an aged, and you shall revere your God: I am the Lord. Our very posture in the presence of age is connected with our honor of God's nature.
Customs of respect and deference to older people are rooted in God and the fear of God. And the loss of these manners of respect from baby-boomers and teenagers is directly related to their small view of God and the contemporary foreignness of the idea of the fear of God. If God has become a buddy, you can hardly expect people to stand when an old man enters the room.(6)
The Apostle Paul learned the lesson of honoring the elderly and passed the admonition on to young Timothy: Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity. (7) Paul clearly distinguishes between how we should treat younger and older women and men.
Promoting the distinction of age catches us by surprise because elsewhere the Apostle Paul teaches that distinctions within the body of Christ have been eliminated. For all who are in Christ there is no caste system. However, within Scripture there is a continuing recognition and affirmation of the distinction of age. This should not go without notice. The way we treat older Christians is a test of our faith maturity and our understanding of God's divine will. Older Christians--in relationship with younger Christians--are essential for congregational health and for an inviting evangelism focused community.
The community of faith, in both Old and New Testaments, learns how to honor and revere God, which is the ultimate purpose of all Christian ministry, by honoring the men and women who have born his image to old age. Consequently, showing honor to the elderly is not merely arbitrary, old-fashioned manners of a by-gone age. Rather, honoring the elderly has a pedagogic objective of divine purpose--to train us to honor, fear and revere God, to praise and worship his holy name.
Throughout the Bible, the young and the old are not pitted against each other but rather are unified in ministry by the Holy Spirit. Peter's sermon in Acts 2 illustrates this unity as he quotes the prophet Joel:
And it shall be in the last days, God says, that I will pour forth my Spirit upon all mankind; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even upon my bondslaves, both men and women, I will in those days pour forth my Spirit and they shall prophesy.(8)
The Holy Spirit draws together and unites in ministry--sons and daughters, lower class (bondslaves) and upper class, men and women, and young and old. Your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. The Holy Spirit empowers all for witness and ministry--in unity. There is no age exception, no age deferment when the Holy Spirit is involved.
The reverse of this is also true and should become a solemn warning to all of us. When there is not a unity of young and old in ministry, when the old are prematurely retired from ministry or when there is an absence of older Christians in ministry, then this is an indication of the absence of the Holy Spirit…at least in design, purpose and intent.
May God grant us his wisdom as we face the ministry challenges of the 21st century. May our congregation's service and evangelism ministries be filled with the Holy Spirit's presence and power as demonstrated in the combination of youth's vision and old men's dreams (along with the dreams of gracefully maturing women)--and may this be God's gift to us from generation to generation.
1. This paper was presented by Cliff Pederson as a plenary address for the 2002 Southwest Minnesota Synod Asembly. Cliff is a member of Grace Lutheran Church, Huntington Beach, CA and the president of Church Resources, Inc.
2. The statistics in this scenario are adapted from an illustration developed in an article titled: The Graying of the Church, Pastor Walter Schoedel (LCMS), Vital Ministry, May/June, 1998.
3. Yudelman and Kealy, "The Graying of Farmers," Population Reference Bureau, May/June 2000.
4. Judith Treas, "Older Americans in the 1990's and Beyond," Population Reference Bureau, Vol.50, No.2, May 1995.
5. Leviticus 19:32, New American Standard Bible.
6. John Piper, "The Prayer of an Old Saint," A sermon preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church, August 27, 1989.
7. I Timothy 5:1-2, New International Version.
8. Acts 2:16-18, New American Standard Bible.
--
714.846.7507