Stewardship and Gray Hair
By Mark S. Roberti
Director of Stewardship, Heartland Parishes of Ellis County

A Catholic friend of mine from Ohio called me the other day.  He is 88.  I spent a lot of time with him while I was in Ohio .  In fact, I have many good friends in their seventies and eighties.  I have great respect for what Tom Brokaw has called “The Greatest Generation.”  Conversely, I think the values of the “baby boomers” – the generation of which I am on the tail end – might rightly be called “The Lost Generation.”  The generations that have followed do not seem particularly healthy either.

My friend asked me, “Why doesn’t the Church pay more attention to its seniors?  I don’t know if you readers have an answer to that question, but I don’t.  I know some parishes make an earnest effort.

Correct me if I am wrong, but when I go to Mass, especially daily Mass, I see a very disproportionate number of gray and silver hairs. As Mass is the greatest act of stewardship on earth, they certainly seem to have their priorities right.  I also see many of our seniors on parish councils and commissions.  Yet when they become less ambulatory, homebound, or go into an assisted living home, we lose track of them.  “Out of sight, out of mind.”  They often sit home alone and lonely.  Their television set becomes both their companion and their link to the outside world.

This is a stewardship problem.  Sure, we are all busy and many of us have families for which we are responsible.  But why not adopt a senior person or couple?  Why not spend more time with our own family members who are aging?  It doesn’t take money…except maybe an occasional dinner out…they like that. It just takes a little compassion.  It just takes a little effort.

At the next opportunity, sit down with an older brother or sister in the faith.  Ask them to tell you their story.  Let them tell you about the war, or other stories from the greatest generation.  Let them share their joys and their hard times.  It is fascinating.  You may bond in a manner that you never realized you could.  You may turn out to be kindred spirits! 

Involve your children too. It is very important to the development of their value system.  They will learn to love, to respect age, and to value older people. Everyone who participates will be richer.  We become Church as it should be, person-to-person. We will become more Christ-like.  

God willing, you will be old someday too.  Your children will apply those lessons to you.  Likewise, they will value you for who you are when you are no longer strong, particularly healthy, or overly productive.

On a professional stewardship note, I’m always surprised how few people leave their Church in their wills.  I just did a nine-month study of our Heartland Parishes.  It is no better here.

People leave serious bequests to colleges, universities, hospitals, the Cancer Society, the Heart Society, etc., but generally only small memorial contributions to their Church.  Why?  Why not reach back from heaven and help your faith community? Why not help the Church evangelize and promote the Catholic faith?  Maybe at the time they needed their faith community most, we just weren’t there for them.   How unfortunate for them, for us, and for future generations of Catholics.

We can do Church better than that.