Not long ago, I unintentionally upset two elderly church workers serving in key positions. That evening, after returning home, I reflected on my words and actions.
That was the time that I hosted a communion service in a rural church and then noticed that 90% of the church members, from staff workers to believers, were over 60 years old. During lunch with them, I remarked that there were too many aged staff in rural churches, and it was urgent to find ways to retain young believers and protect young workers. Unintentionally, a 70-year-old head of the ministry team said, "The pastor just mentioned protecting our older workers." I corrected him, saying, "I meant protecting youth workers. The church has too many elderly people who are capable of protecting themselves. Some aged staff even force young ones to leave their ministry positions." After saying this, I realized that I had offended someone.
Some aged church workers become displeased when they hear terms like "old age" or "retirement," even though they know the other person was stating a fact. At an older age, their physical and mental abilities are not as good as those of younger people, which indicates that they should retire. However, they resist aging, clinging to their positions. Therefore, they hope others will overlook their age and not mention this irrefutable fact.
Those who treat "old age" as a sensitive term among elderly workers fail to accept the inevitable reality of aging. They do not appreciate the unique richness that comes with the aging process but, instead, fear the losses it brings. For example, some older workers belittle younger people, attempting to prove that it is a selfless act for the church to hold onto their positions despite aging.
But to avoid hindering the development of the church, aged church workers should not let their experience blind them to the reality of their age. With a rich inner life, an elderly person will not crave worldly fame and gain or fear losing face.
A choir leader, who is also aged, said, "If I retire and no longer lead the choir, I won't participate in the choir at all." When asked why, he said that after leading the choir for over thirty years, he would be ridiculed if he became an ordinary choir member. In the book, Tuesdays with Morrie, a professor suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has a conversation with a young student. The old professor says he has learned to transition from a healthy and dignified person to a "baby" who needs care. Therefore, in different periods of life, people must learn to switch roles.
In early 2024, all the church staff participated in the year-end summary meeting. There were a total of 130 people, with not a single worker under 30 and fewer than 40 members under 50. The oldest worker was in his seventies. If elderly people still can’t accept aging and do not earnestly retain and nurture youth workers, the future of rural churches is a cause for concern.
(The article was originally published by the Gospel Times and the author is a pastor from Jiangsu.)
- Translated by Abigail Wu
不久前，我在一天中惹了两位在主要岗位侍奉的老年同工不高兴。那天晚上回家后，我对自己的言行作了反省。
有一次我在农村教会举行圣餐礼时发现那个教会从同工到信徒90%都是60岁以上的人。中午和牧者同工们聚在一起吃饭的时候，我感言说农村教会老年同工太多了，应该想办法留住年轻信徒，保护年轻同工。没想到说者无心，听者有意。一位70来岁的教务组长在之后的谈话中说了这么一句话：“刚才牧师说要保护我们老年同工。”我纠正说：“我说的是要保护年轻同工。教会老年同工太多了，完全能自我保护。有些老年同工还把年轻同工逼到离开侍奉岗位。”说完话，我才意识到得罪人了。
有些老年同工听到“年纪大”“退休”等词不高兴，然而他们知道对方说的是事实。他们年纪大了，各方面体力和能力不及年轻人，应该退休了。但是他们不服老，还留恋位子。所以他们希望别人忽视他们的年龄，不要提这个无法改变的事实。
那些把“老”当成敏感词的老年同工没有正视人必然会衰老的事实。他们没有看重衰老过程中独有的丰富，反而恐惧衰老带来的失去。比如一些老年同工各种贬低年轻人，以此证明自己老而不退是用心良苦，是为教会鞠躬尽瘁。
老年同工不能因为自己有资历就不正视自己的年龄，阻碍教会发展。一位年老而内在生命丰富的人不会贪恋世俗的名利，不会害怕失去面子。
一个老年诗班班长说，“如果我退休，不做诗班班长了，那我也不参加诗班了。” 问他为什么，他说带了三十多年诗班，如果成了一位普通诗班员，会被人笑话的。《相约星期二》里面有一位身患肌萎缩性侧索硬化病的教授和年轻学生的对话，老教授说自己学会从健康体面变成“婴儿”被人照顾。因此在不同的时期，人要学会角色转换。
2024年初，在年底总结会上，一个教会所有的侍奉同工都参加了。一共有130位，30岁以下的同工一位没有，50岁以下的同工不足四十位，最大年龄七十多岁。如果老年同工继续不敢面对自己年龄的问题，不用心留住和培育年轻同工，那农村教会的未来是令人堪忧的。
注：本文为特约/自由撰稿人文章，作者系江苏一名牧师。
不要让“老”成为您的敏感词
Not long ago, I unintentionally upset two elderly church workers serving in key positions. That evening, after returning home, I reflected on my words and actions.
That was the time that I hosted a communion service in a rural church and then noticed that 90% of the church members, from staff workers to believers, were over 60 years old. During lunch with them, I remarked that there were too many aged staff in rural churches, and it was urgent to find ways to retain young believers and protect young workers. Unintentionally, a 70-year-old head of the ministry team said, "The pastor just mentioned protecting our older workers." I corrected him, saying, "I meant protecting youth workers. The church has too many elderly people who are capable of protecting themselves. Some aged staff even force young ones to leave their ministry positions." After saying this, I realized that I had offended someone.
Some aged church workers become displeased when they hear terms like "old age" or "retirement," even though they know the other person was stating a fact. At an older age, their physical and mental abilities are not as good as those of younger people, which indicates that they should retire. However, they resist aging, clinging to their positions. Therefore, they hope others will overlook their age and not mention this irrefutable fact.
Those who treat "old age" as a sensitive term among elderly workers fail to accept the inevitable reality of aging. They do not appreciate the unique richness that comes with the aging process but, instead, fear the losses it brings. For example, some older workers belittle younger people, attempting to prove that it is a selfless act for the church to hold onto their positions despite aging.
But to avoid hindering the development of the church, aged church workers should not let their experience blind them to the reality of their age. With a rich inner life, an elderly person will not crave worldly fame and gain or fear losing face.
A choir leader, who is also aged, said, "If I retire and no longer lead the choir, I won't participate in the choir at all." When asked why, he said that after leading the choir for over thirty years, he would be ridiculed if he became an ordinary choir member. In the book, Tuesdays with Morrie, a professor suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has a conversation with a young student. The old professor says he has learned to transition from a healthy and dignified person to a "baby" who needs care. Therefore, in different periods of life, people must learn to switch roles.
In early 2024, all the church staff participated in the year-end summary meeting. There were a total of 130 people, with not a single worker under 30 and fewer than 40 members under 50. The oldest worker was in his seventies. If elderly people still can’t accept aging and do not earnestly retain and nurture youth workers, the future of rural churches is a cause for concern.
(The article was originally published by the Gospel Times and the author is a pastor from Jiangsu.)
- Translated by Abigail Wu
Churches Will Not Develop if Senior Staff Can't Accept Aging
