In view of the ongoing challenges facing an increasingly older society and the related issues of care and pastoral care, the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK) has published the document “Caring for People – Pastoral Care of the Elderly as a Response to the Challenges of an Ageing Society”. The Church thereby responds to the data from the Federal Statistical Office, according to which the number of people in need of care will increase by about 50% by 2030. A second development linked to demographic change is the growing shortage of qualified workers in the care sector. This is particularly true for nursing professions. “We want to be with people and accompany people even when life becomes difficult and existential needs intensify”, said Bishop Peter Kohlgraf of Mainz, President of the DBK Commission for Pastoral Care, at an online press conference yesterday. The aim is not only to be present in nursing and care homes in the future, but also to open up new places and models to accompany the elderly, the sick and the cared-for persons, while analysing their pastoral needs and formulating objectives and prospects. The new DBK document addresses the social and political changes in the field of elderly care, said Kohlgraf: “The so-called fourth age is characterised by a significant increase in vulnerability and fragility”. For the bishop, it is necessary to “accompany this stage of life, discover the wisdom of the very elderly, and recognise the work they accomplished in their lives”.