Addressing a Vatican conference on the pastoral care of the elderly, Cardinal Kevin Farrell said that “while many view the phenomenon of the increase in the elderly with concern, as if it were a burden on society, we, as a Church, recognize longevity as a gift from God.”
“It is not an emergency to be managed, but a new opportunity,” said the prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life. “In the light of faith, a greater number of years to live should be considered a time of grace to open oneself enthusiastically to the proclamation of the Gospel, and as an enrichment for the entire community.”