Religious leaders in the churches in my country sometimes retire from actively serving the church. Others do not retire and die in service. Often ladies who retire have translated the word 'retire' into 'lamp'. The above translation came from the swahili word 'taa' which sounds like 'retire'. Taa is a lamp. Often when they retire, they are presented by lamps.
My question remainswhether people should retire from church or not. If they are supposed to retire, what age should be the retirement age?
What is the appropriate retirement age of all people?
55 used to be the age where people retired from active employment. They could then engage themselves in farming or being self employed. What one wonders are the factors that led to this age of 55.
At 40, most people begin realizing problems associated with old age. Mostly eyes begin to fail. They are forced to wear spectacles or reading glasses to remedy the situation. Normally the limbs begin to cramp and creack. There arises problems with memory in addition to hearing ptoblems. However, their wisdom is unwavering.
Most presidents who ruled the world did it when they were above 50 years. Some ruled upto and almost 100 yrs. This is far beyond the 55 years which was supposed to be the retiring. This revelation might have aroused many from their deep slumber. The retirement age rose to 60 yrs.
Yet, different jobs need different retirement age. The army is one area that neees energetic people. A person of 65 years may be more of a liability rather than an asset in the army.
Depending on your area of specialization, your retirement age may differ from one to another. A neurodurgeon may still be needed tl perform his suggery long after retirement. It was on this background that people are supposed to sign contracts. A contract can be terminated or renewed as long as one is needed.
A person may have retired as an agricultural officer but still work actively on his farm. So if you ask me about the retirement age, my answer is I do not know.
One may need to retire in order to do his own business. He wants to be his own boss. He may retire early or late. That is upon him.
Sickness may lead to an early retirement. A sick person may not be in a position to work. It may be wise to retire them early.
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