December 23, 2024, Korea entered a ‘super-aged society’ according to the UN standards, with the elderly population exceeding 20% of the total. The number of registered residents aged 65 or older is 10,244,550, more than 20% of the total registered residents 51,221,286. It has been 7 years since Korea entered an aging society in 2017 when the elderly population was 14%.
According to the “Statistics of the Catholic Church in Korea 2023”, published by the Episcopal Conference in April 2024, the percentage of believers aged 65 or older in the Korean Church was already super-aged, at 26.1%. However, now that the entire Korean society has become a super-aged society, there is a need to properly present the Church’s teachings on society.
Problems facing the Church in a super-aging society include the spread of euthanasia, alienation of the elderly, and low birth rates. What does the Church teach about these issues?
Euthanasia, whose meaning is now being distorted by calling it “death with dignity”, is currently permitted in Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, and other countries. According to a survey conducted by Korea Research’s “Public Opinion" in 2024 with 1,000 adults, 84% of respondents said that “the introduction of an assisted death system with dignity is necessary.”
However, the Church completely prohibits euthanasia. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of the Vatican stated in its April 2024 Declaration: “Infinite Dignity,” “Assisting someone about to commit suicide is an objective crime against the dignity of the person who requested it.”
In addition, the number of older adults living alone is increasing, and issues such as elderly marginalization and people dying alone is emerging. Statistics released by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on January 3, 29.6% —of single-person households were over 65 years of age. According to the “2024 Survey on the Status of Deaths from Loneliness” by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 50.3% of those dying alone in 2023 were among those over 60. [ A person dying with minimal or no social contact and often dying alone and not discovered for some time]
The Church has established the “World Grandparents and Senior Citizens Day” to focus on pastoral care for the elderly. The theme of the 2024 “4th World Grandparents and Senior Citizens Day” was “Do not abandon me in my old age” (cf. Psalm 71 [70]:9). In addition, Pope Francis emphasized at the end of the Angelus on the same day: "We should not get used to leaving the elderly alone."
One of the causes of a super-aging society is the low birth rate. In 2024, Korea’s total fertility rate will be 0.74, the lowest in the world. According to a survey of 1,000 adults conducted by Korea Research in 2024, only half of those in their 30s or younger thought they “should have children.” The reasons were the economic difficulties of raising children (61%) and the difficulty of finding happiness in our complex society (56%).
Pope Francis attended the low birth rate countermeasure conference in Rome in May 2024. He said: “Newborns are the first indicator of hope for people,” and added, “We must seriously consider and come up with family-friendly policies, and especially women should not be put in a situation where they have to choose between raising children and working.”
The priest in charge of the Seoul Archdiocese’s Elderly Ministry Team pointed out: “The speed of aging in our country is accelerating very quickly, coupled with the low birth rate. Since social systems and citizens’ awareness are not keeping up with the pace, it is expected that the problems of generational conflict and alienation of the elderly will become more prominent in the future. In line with Pope Francis’s special interest in the elderly, the Church should develop and operate integrated programs that organically connect all generations, from infants to the elderly, with the pastoral goal of ‘intergenerational connection.’”
