Obituary Gazing - by the Rev. Robert Dahl

Written by my good friend, the Rev. Robert Dahl

I'm a male, a clergyperson, a senior citizen at 64 and someone who has outlived his own father by eight years and counting.  These days I'm paying more attention to obituaries and ages of the deceased.

The other morning while sitting in an auto dealer's waiting room while my car was being repaired, I glanced at the obituaries in the Chicago Tribune.  As the saying goes, you know it's going to be a bad day when you see your own name listed.  Actually, the listing was for one Gerta Dahl, 95.  Her late husband was Rev. Robert Dahl, yes, as in "reverend," like me reverend. My grandmother's name was Gerta.  After the initial shock of seeing my name with the prefix affixed, I decided that this was proving to be way too Freudian for me.  I tossed the paper onto the coffee table.  Then I got the estimate for repairs.  The saying held true.

On a more serious note, the obituary section of the April/May issue of the United Church News, a publication of the UCC, listed 32 deaths of clergy since the last listing in March.  The average age of the good parsons at death was 86, including a high of 107 and a low of 50.  Most were in their late eighties and early nineties.  They were all men.  86 from 2009 puts us at year 1923 for the approximate year of birth.

These were not men who grew up in an exercise conscious society.  They were in adolescence during the Great Depression and endured the whole thing from beginning to end, so I don't imagine the choices for food at the dinner table were numerous.  They ate what the family could afford and I don't imagine that was always lean meat, fresh vegetables and a salad.  One positive in all that is that the portions were undoubtedly smaller.

The projected average life expectancy for men in America born after 2000 is 74.5.  The average life expectancy for all men alive today is 72.  This includes all races and, statistically, whites live longer than blacks.  Undoubtedly, most of the 32 male clergy were white, so that has to be factored in, but I doubt the difference would account for the significant difference in life span.

The clergy beat the projected life expectancy of those born after 2000 by 11.5 years and by 14 years for the general male population.  That's those born around 1923 vs. those born in 2000 with all the benefits of medical science, diet, exercise, etc.  How do you account for that?

This certainly wasn't a scientific study; it was only one random sample of thirty-two men, but my guess is that if I kept records for the obituaries in the United Church News for a year or two or three, the results wouldn't be significantly different.

You think maybe there is a spiritual connection going on here?  Yes, people who describe themselves as religious live longer than those that don’t, statistically.   All factors being equal, the only variable other than race is the "religious" part.  Oh, I forgot military service.  I don't know how many of the 32 were veterans. They would have been draft eligible for WWII but they may have been deferred for religious reasons.  Those who might have served obviously were fortunate to have survived the fighting.  As a generalization, clergy aren't inclined to join the military except as a vocational calling as chaplains.  As the saying goes, "War isn't good for people and other living creatures."

I would probably reduce in significance factors such as exercise and diet in the men who died since the last issue of United Church News.  They also lived most of there lives through a time when medical technology was far less advanced than it is today in life saving factors.

And so, we are left with the unmeasured factor:  faith and the life style factors chosen because of faith (which surely includes the choice regarding military service).  This probably involves voluntary participation in a caring community, which can offer encouragement, support and love. It involves participation in a domestic family situation that, in spite of whatever hardships and conflicts might emerge, is seen to be worth keeping and working on. Values of fidelity and commitment undoubtedly play a role.  It involves a personal understanding that life holds meaning and purpose and that, in spite of evidence to the contrary, life is basically benevolent.  I imagine it also involves a life style choice of moderation in food, beverage and exercise.

I believe strongly that all of life is connected.  I think this is being shown to be true in the body, mind, and spirit connection in individuals.  I don't read the Heidelberg Catechism much these days, but I remember that the first question and answer in its question and answer format are "1. Q. What is your only comfort in life and death?
A. That I, with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ."

I might chose to reword that as "I, body, mind and spirit...," but however it is worded, that testimony does remain my profound comfort in life and in death, which I hope is still many, many years away.

Yours in the Journey,

Robert E. Dahl