November Focus

The Gift of Years

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services the population of the United States is aging. The population over the age of 65 numbered 35.6 million in the year 2002. By the 2030 there will be 71.5 million.

The Rector is looking forward to it. In the year 2030 the Rector will be 70 years old. His son Jonathan will be 29 years old, hopefully well-launched in a productive life that will be characterized by love of God and neighbor. But unlike his father, and for the first time in human history, Jonathan will be living in a world populated by elders.

Advances in bio-technology, improved diet, and a better understanding of what makes for a healthy environment keep extending life expectancy. Today, if a man makes it to 65, he is likely to live another 17 years. If a woman makes it to 65, she will live another 19 years.

But this is based on today's actuarial tables. If science keeps advancing, if the environment continues to improve, and if people keep exercising, eating right, and learning how to manage the stress in their lives, life expectancy is likely to increase. Who knows how long a person might live?

According to Boston University, the fastest growing segment of the American population are centenarians, that is, people 100 years old. There are 40,000 in the United States today. Here is the good news. If you were one of those lonely 7th grade boys who couldn't get a girl to dance with you at the sock hop, be patient. If you make it to 100 its party time: 85% of the centenarians are women. Only 15% are men.

Party boy and baseball great Mickey Mantel once famously said, "If I knew I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself." Well, dear reader, you are very likely to live longer than you think. Are you taking care of yourself?

The lengthening of life is taking place today in a context of youth worship. People grow old in a culture that desperately wants to stay young. "The Youth Cult" persists despite the ticking of the clock.

Here one finds a bit of ironic justice. Those who worship at the altar of youth only do so as wrinkles deepen, the bellies sag, and hair thins and turns gray. (Thinning gray hair - these are the lucky ones.)

Plastic surgery, Botox, and hair plugs paint a thin veneer over softening wood. Everyone sees through the glaze. But when you worship at the altar of youth, the only person you are trying to fool is yourself. It is really all about maintaining the structures of denial just one more day. . . .

Is this what God intended when in the creation he included Time? As beings created in the image of God, as beings blessed to be a blessing, aging must include genuine gifts. If we fail to see the value of "old age," it must be because we are blinded by our fixation on that which begins to pass away the moment we are born - our youth.

Through the month of November we will turn our attention away from the Youth Cult and seek in God's grace the value of experience, recollection, maturity, and wisdom. Join us as we explore the Gift of Years.

Monthly Focus Archive

2006:

Easter Focus: New Covenant
Lenten Focus: A Covenantal Response to Poverty
February Focus: Moving Forward

2005:

December Focus: Longing
November Focus: The Gift of Years
October Focus: Stewardship
September Focus: Foundations
Summer Focus: The Book of Acts
Easter Focus: Tapestry
Lenten Focus: Rule of Life
January Focus: The Next Wave

2004:

December Focus: Surprising Grace
November Focus: Free Indeed
October Focus: Money Madness
September Focus: The Outrageous Promise
Summer Focus: Into the Fullness
June Focus: Thick Faith
Easter Focus: All Things New
Lent Focus: A Hungry World
February Focus: Commitment
January Focus: Unity

2003:

December Focus: Hope
November Focus: Worship
October Focus: Stewardship
September Focus: Seasons of Faith
Summer Focus: The Gospel of John
May Focus: Faith
April Focus: Resurrection
March Focus: Truth
February Focus: Covenant Groups
January Focus: Sabbath

2002:

December Focus: Shut Up and Sing
November Focus: Spiritual Gifts
October Focus: Stewardship
September Focus: Intentional Faith