At UN, Vatican diplomat emphasizes dignity of the elderly

December 14, 2016

The Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations emphasized the dignity of the elderly during an address to the UN’s Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing.

Noting that the number of persons 60 or over are projected to double to 2.1 billion by 2050, Archbishop Bernardito Auza said that “we must recognize that dignity does not disappear with age or with a decrease in market productivity.”

“It is crucial to promote values and systems of education that propose an alternative approach to the ‘throw-away culture’ of which Pope Francis speaks, which judges each human being simply by their purported usefulness,” he added, as he described the elderly as “an essential point of reference at a time when many are struggling to find their identity and are uncertain of the future.”

 

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Further information:

• ABP Auza to UN: ‘Elderly point of reference for uncertain social identity’ (Vatican Radio)