Let’s look in depth at elder spirituality

I’ve been thinking about “elder spirituality” a good deal lately.

Perhaps it’s because my parents are in their mid-80s, and Mom’s cancer seems to be winning its battle with her.

Perhaps it’s because I recently left my social work with nursing home residents but haven’t been able to shake those elders from my heart.

It may also have something to do with the fact that I have attained the age when I’m considered by some to be an elder, albeit a younger one. Frankly, it’s a pretty warm feeling.

It is special to look back on 40-plus years of adult experiences and be able to attach a modicum of significance to them.

Whatever is motivating me, elder spirituality is a welcome part of my life now. And I plan to learn more about it for myself.

I hope a good number of people will join me along the way.

In the concordance I use to find key words in the Bible, I found “elders” in 184 different verses.

Genesis 50 tells the story of Joseph as he prepares to take the body of his father, Jacob, back to Canaan for burial. Elders of Joseph’s family and elders of Egypt are both referenced.

In biblical narratives elders are seen either as family/tribe leaders or religious leaders. The role of “elder” is an honored one.

Elders are seen as having wisdom needed by younger members of the family, the tribe or the religious gathering.

In our area today, Native American elders carry out that same leadership role in all of the tribes or confederations found in the Inland Northwest.

Within various Christian churches and other faith traditions, elders play significant leadership roles. Some leaders are ordained, and some are lay church members.

Men and women 60 years old and above have unofficial “elder” roles in their families, in their faith communities, in their neighborhoods.

Being an elder in those settings is sometimes great fun. Sometimes it requires wisdom that we don’t think we have until we need it.

But sometimes being an elder is both lonely and unsettling. We still live in a “youth-yearning” culture. Youthful vigor and potential are still yearned for by people of all ages.

And perhaps elders yearn for that potential in particular. We yearn to know our lives have meant something.

A few weeks ago, I was privileged to attend the annual meeting of The Interfaith Council. A potluck supper of various ethnic dishes was part of the evening.

As I ate my meal, I visited with a Christian couple across the table, a Hindu couple to my left and a young Muslim mother and her 8-year-old daughter on my right.

The “potluck” mix was far more than food. It also included the faith traditions I mentioned, plus Jewish, Buddhist and likely a few others. The mixture of new friends and their faith stays with me as I think about elder spirituality.

I wonder how elders in those traditions I know so little about deal with spirituality in their own lives and in their faith families. Even though I have a fairly good sense how elders work through their spiritual issues within the Christian tradition, there is still a great deal to learn and understand in that family, too.

So part of my life in the next many months will be directed at drawing elders from various faith traditions together to explore elder spirituality from their own faith backgrounds. I’m curious to learn how people’s spirits have changed as their birthdays have piled up, as their bodies have changed with age, as they have lived the lives they’ve lived.

I am also very curious to discover what the common values are in each of the faith traditions. My suspicion is we will all be wonderfully surprised to see what Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and whoever else have in common with each other.

When we make those discoveries of common values, then it will be time to look together for ways we can help the younger people in our own traditions to embrace those common values also.

My hope? That we will challenge ourselves to invite our own “youngers” to learn from their elders about how to get along in the matters of spirit that should matter the most. A desire to make a difference is still very strong in elders.

Maybe the elders of our faith communities can contribute something that will give us new meaning, new worth.

If you want to consider being a part of this new interfaith dialogue about elder spirituality, I would be privileged to hear from you.