What happened to old people in this country before Social Security? Did a lot of them starve to death? Did they get sick and die alone with no one to look after them? I ask this, because I once heard a politician bragging about what a good thing social security was for the American people and it surely looks like a good thing.

But I asked some friends of mine who were old enough to remember, What was it like before Social Security? They looked at me like I wasn’t all there and explained what seemed obvious enough. No, old people didn’t starve to death. For the most part, they were cared for by family.

What brought this to mind was reading Paul’s first letter to Timothy, chapter five, and the discussion about what to do about the elderly in the church.