May 9, 2010
Reported by Lin Yi-ying
Written by Lydia Ma

"In the past decade, we've had 193 residents come to us asking to be baptized and become Christians," said Rev. Tai Yue-shin from Suan-Lien Elderly Center during a recent forum on soul care and outreach for seniors.

He added that churches planning to minister to seniors by running a senior home must shape this ministry around physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of seniors, and, most importantly, must display genuine care and interest in seniors.

Recent surveys indicate that though there are a lot of seniors in Taiwan in need of professional care, the number of senior homes isn't keeping up with the number of seniors in this aging society. However, the irony of this trend is that a survey of senior homes around the country revealed that they are far from being fully booked.

According to Ministry of Interior statistics, there were 2.4 million people above 65 years of age in 2008 in Taiwan and about 1,070 senior homes. Though these homes combined could house at most only 65,000 seniors, they were on average 74% full.

Rev. Tai pointed out that most Taiwanese seniors hope to stay and be cared for in their own homes. However, in response to social trends, many seniors are now more accepting of professional care and choosing this option to enjoy a better retirement with more dignity.

Senior homes such as Suan-Lien, which are run by churches as part of their outreach ministry, have truly nurtured to the body, soul, and spirit of seniors, helping them become healthy in all aspects, said Rev. Tai.

He added that many seniors have been blessed by daily group activities, fellowship times, and interaction with other seniors, and now display more vitality and self-confidence because of their Christian faith.

There are currently 366 residents at Suan-Lien Elderly Center and 267 of them are Christians. In other words, 73% of residents are Christians.

For more information on Suan-Lien Elderly Center, visit http://www.sleh.org.tw/.

Taiwan Church News