基督教信仰對華族老人（新加坡）活躍老化的影響之研究

在高齡化的社會裡，持續上升的老年人口不斷引起社會的關注。但其實，老人還是可以有一番作為的。近年來，有許多學者想要賦予“老化”一個正向的意義。在1999年國際老人年時，WHO （世界衛生組織）提出“活躍老化”（active ageing）並開始不斷的推廣，希望使個人在老化的過程中，除生理、心理是健康外，其更能積極參與社會活動，以致能增進年老時之生活品質。本論文採用質性研究之方法，以新加坡華族老人為例，主要探討基督教信仰對華族老人活躍老化之影響。邀請三位具有基督教信仰的華族老人，以他們為研究參與對象，並用深度訪談進行資料蒐集，目的在於了解基督教信仰對華族老人在生理健康、心理健康與社會參與三方面的影響為何？研究結果顯示，華族老人因有虔誠的基督教信仰，能夠很好的活躍老化，基督教信仰對他們生理健康、心理健康與社會參與所產生的影響為：一、生理健康：聖經的教導是華族老人生活作息的指標，因著讀經、禱告和參加聚會等常規性的信仰生活和靈命操練，幫助老人建立了規律化的生活；因遵行聖經的教導，持守了健康飲食的良好習慣；在事奉上的積極投入也能促進身體上的健康，增強身體的活動量；基督教信仰能在病痛中增強病痛的承受力。二、心理健康：基督所更新的生命使華族老人充滿正向的生活態度，因更新後的生命是充滿感恩和知足的，其擁有積極的生活態度和健康心理也在實踐愛神愛人的真理上得以完全；《聖經》的應許和基督的愛能堅定人生意志，激發內在的潛能，並勇於面對生命關卡，無論是挑戰逆境生活，還是坦然面對生死，信仰也賦予了他們有力量去克服和面對。三、社會參與：基督信仰對華族老人投入社會服務有鼓勵作用，因信仰帶給他們的價值觀會令他們積極投身志願服務，主動參與社區關懷；聖經的真理也能促進人際互動與社會和睦，在信仰生活化中而流露出的美好生命見證，不僅深獲眾人尊敬，也奠定了家庭的和睦關係，而教會的人際互動平臺及社區的參與等，更提供了廣結良朋益友的機會；基督徒參與社會，無私奉獻的精神可助人亦自助，故達致雙贏之效。因此，根據上述的研究結果，提出建議以作為華族老人、助人機構、宗教團體、社區服務、老人中心，以及未來研究的參考。關鍵字：華族老人、基督教信仰、活躍老化

關鍵字

華族老人；基督教信仰；活躍老化

並列摘要

The elderly can be valuable members of the society. Recently many scholars attribute a positive value to aging. In 1999, World Health Organization raised the issue of active ageing during the International Year of Old Persons, and promotes active participation of the elderly in social activities, so as to improve their quality of life. This is a step beyond promoting their physical and mental health. This research employs qualitative analysis on the elderly in Singapore as an example of the effect of the Christian faith on active aging of Chinese elderly. The researcher conducts in depth interview with three Chinese Christian elderly to collect data for analysis. The aim is to understand the effect of Christianity on their physical and mental health, as well as their degree of participation in the society. The research concludes that the Christian faith helps Chinese elderly in active aging. The effect of Christianity on their physical and mental health, and on their participation in the society can be summarized as follows: 1. Physical health: The teaching of the Bible acts as a guide to Chinese elderly in daily living. Religious activities and spiritual disciplines, consisting of Bible reading, prayer and attending meetings, help the elderly to keep a routine life. Adherence to Bible teaching helps the elderly to keep up with good dietary habits. Active participation in ministry promotes physical health and keeps the body active. The Christian faith also helps the elderly to better endure pain during illness. 2. Mental health: An elderly whose life is renewed by Christ has a positive outlook and is full of thanksgiving and contentment. Such a person is optimistic and is healthy emotionally. He or she strives to abide by the Bible teaching to love God and man. The promises in the Bible and the love of Christ help an elderly to persevere, achieve his potential, and to face challenges and death bravely. 3. Participation in the society: The Christian faith encourages Chinese elderly to participate actively in social services. The faith promotes the value of volunteering, and encourages the elderly to volunteer for social service. The Bible teaching also promotes social interaction and harmony, and helps the elderly to live a good and respectful life, and lays the foundation for a cohesive family. Participation in the church community and in the society provides opportunities for an elderly to make many friends. Active social participation and a selfless attitude of Christians benefit both themselves and others. Based on the above research findings, the study makes proposals for the Chinese elderly, help agencies, religious organizations, social services, old folk centers, and future researchers. Keywords: Chinese elderly, Christian faith, active ageing