Vatican
City, 1 October 2013 (VIS) – The “International Day of Older
Persons” is celebrated today, 1 October, and the Pontifical Council
for Health Care Workers (for Health Pastoral Care) has marked the
event by publishing a message from its president, Archbishop Zygmunt
Zimowski, entitled “The value of the life of the elderly”.
“This
international day”, the prelate writes, “constitutes an important
occasion, destined to assume ever greater relevance, considering that
there estimated to be over 600 million older people in the world, and
that the progressive ageing of the world population could, within a
decade, bring this figure to over a billion elderly people. Therefore
we are all called to collaborate everywhere, Christians and persons
of good will, in the pursuit of a juster and more equitable society,
enriched also by the effective participation of those who are at
times considered 'not useful' or even as a 'burden', but who may
instead offer a contribution based on the experience and wisdom
acquired throughout life”.
“In
many societies in so-called 'rich' countries, ensuring that the
elderly are and remain 'co-protagonists' in social life means, in
addition, facing the reality of increasing longevity, due to various
factors including the growth of knowledge in medical and scientific
fields. This longevity cannot, therefore, simply be a question of
greater survival time, but should rather be accorded its due value in
a respectful and appropriate manner, starting with the wishes and
characteristics of the elderly and considering the context to which
they belong”, continued the archbishop.
Solidarity
between the young and the elderly leads to the understanding that
“the Church is effectively the family of all generations, in which
everyone must feel at home, which must not be guided by the logic of
profit and of 'having', but rather by that of gratuitousness and
love. When during old age life becomes fragile, it never loses its
value nor its dignity; everyone is wanted and loved by God, everyone
is important and necessary. … In this way there enters the value of
a specific pastoral care, which includes first and foremost the
fundamental element of communion between generations. … It regards
the promotion of a culture of unity: unity between generations, which
must not regard each other as detached or indeed opposed; a vision of
life that allows new generations to grow, immersed daily in this
culture of unity, to which each person brings an indispensable
contribution”.
Archbishop
Zimowski emphasises that this form of pastoral care should be a
pastoral 'of' rather than 'for' the elderly, as “the older person
is not first of all the object of care and charitable pastoral
attention, but rather a subject and potential agent of pastoral
action”, and insists that “religious assistance to the elderly
should, indeed, be a commitment made by the Christian community as a
whole”. To this end, the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers
(for Health Pastoral Care) has organised an International Conference
dedicated to “The Church in the service of the elderly patient: the
care of persons affected by neurodegenerative pathologies”.
“From
a Christian perspective, indeed, old age is not the decline of life,
but rather its fulfilment: the synthesis of what one has learnt and
lived, the synthesis of how much one has suffered, rejoiced, and
withstood”.
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