Attributes of Religious Maturity in Aging People

Religious maturity, a classic problem in the psychology of religion, is reinterpreted in order to reflect the lived experience of aging people. Using an approach modeled on Erik Erikson's description of ego integrity, this paper examines attributes of religious maturity revealed in the ways aging people remember the past, experience the prescnt, and anticipate the future. While most descriptions of religious maturity appear to apply primarily to healthy, active, middle-aged adults, this paper argues that frail elderly persons need not lose their claim to religious maturity.