Practicing Godly Devotion Toward Elderly Parents
Recall what Jesus once told the Pharisees: “Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ . . . But you men say, ‘If a man says to his father or his mother: “Whatever I have by which you may get benefit from me is corban, (that is, a gift dedicated to God,)”’—you men no longer let him do a single thing for his father or his mother, and thus you make the word of God invalid by your tradition.”—Mark 7:10-13.
5 If a Jew did not care to assist his destitute parents, he needed only to declare his belongings “corban”—a gift set aside for temple use. (Compare Leviticus 27:1-24.) He was evidently under no immediate compulsion, however, to hand over this supposed gift. Thus he could hold onto (and no doubt use) his belongings indefinitely. But if his parents needed financial help, he could wriggle out of his duty by piously declaring that all he owned was “corban.” Jesus condemned this fraud.
6 A Christian who uses empty excuses to evade his duty is thus not fooling God. (Jeremiah 17:9, 10) True, financial problems, failing health, or similar circumstances may greatly limit how much one can do for one’s parents. But some may simply value assets, time, and privacy more than their parents’ welfare. How hypocritical it would be, though, to preach the Word of God but make it “invalid” by our inaction toward parents!
The Watchtower 1987, June 1, page 14 pars. 4-6
Caring for the Aged—A Growing Problem
The elderly have their aches and pains, and understandably they can at times be complaining and crotchety, not always congenial and of a sunny disposition. None of which means that a strenuous effort should not be made to care for an elderly parent in the home.
Awake! 1991, March 22, page 5
