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Now we are sixty- six

Una Kroll on a book about how Christians can deal with ageing

It’s No Sin to be Sixty: A positive look at the Third Age
Neville Smith

Redemptorist Publications £9.95 (978-0-85231-342-8)
Church Times Bookshop £9

THESE short reflections on aspects of later-life experiences, written by a former hospital chaplain, himself now in the Third Age of life, are within the tradition of pieces for daily meditation.

They cover a wide range of subjects, such as self-esteem, bodily diminishments, gentleness, and decision-making in the later years. They are personal and positive; many are interesting; some are wise. I enjoyed them, largely because I come from the same strand of society, and the same generation, as the author.

I now, however, live in an era, and an area, peopled with many less-well-off citizens from other faiths — and none. And I felt that many of his comments reflected an educated and affluent, middle-class, Caucasian Christian perspective that no longer resonates with most people in our troubled world.

This book, pleasant as it was for me to read, raises important ques-tions for readers and publishers of Christian authors. How far can personal reflection connect with universal experience?

For an answer, I turned straight to the writings of Christians such as Daniel O’ Leary or Eric James, and of men of faith such as the Chief Rabbi, Sir Jonathan Sacks. They also publish short pieces for general reflection, some of which concern old age. How does this book compare with their writings?

This book is written specifically for Christians. Each reflection concludes with a Trinitarian prayer. So its audience is restricted. The strength of O’Leary’s, James’s, and Sacks’s writings is that, though they come from committed men of faith, they speak to the human condition in such a way that they can apply to all.

I was left hoping that Christian writers will more often write for those outside their own faith than only for insiders.

The Revd Una Kroll is a retired priest of the Church in Wales, now living in England.

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