Kirsty Brown
22 September 2025
Ben R Boland. Priceless People: Loving Older People & People Living with Dementia. Christian Focus Publications Ltd, 2025
Ageing is a natural part of God’s creation. In God’s good order reflected in Genesis 1, he created humankind after he created time. God, reflecting on his creation, said that it was good. We are not told that it was perfect or flawless, but that it was good. Ageing is often experienced well, and many people flourish as they age, but it can also often be hard. The deterioration of our bodies and minds can be confronting, confusing and challenging for both those ageing and those caring for the ageing. And as we live longer, the prevalence of dementia and cancer increases. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, this month dementia became the leading cause of death in Australia.
Ben Boland’s book is therefore timely. Boland writes as someone with personal and professional experience of caring for older people living with dementia. He also writes with an understanding of the regulatory and cultural environments of caring for older people within an Australian context.
Providing a theological basis for why Christians should care, Boland shows how the love of Jesus can help us love those whom others might find confronting or challenging to love. The book is full of practical tips on how to show Jesus’ love in a meaningful way to people living with dementia.
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For those who take services in aged care facilities or who have members of their congregation living with dementia, Boland provides creative ideas for several key services in the liturgical year. For those visiting family members or members of congregations living in aged care facilities or at home, he has practical tips on how to engage meaningfully, providing space for connection with God. Boland names many of the challenges of engaging with people whose reality is different from the one you yourself are experiencing and provides strategies for navigating conversations and interactions, enabling the reader to find the right approach for the right time.
In providing strategies, Boland describes how the person with dementia might be experiencing different situations and what might be triggering their reactions. For those who might be anxious about visiting a relative who is non-verbal, there is a chapter providing encouragement and reassurance that visits are still important and impactful.
Boland is not from the Anglican tradition, but his chapter on communion is helpful in assisting us to think carefully about the practicalities of making the elements accessible to all who turn to Christ.
The topics Boland covers are many and complex. At times it seems that he’s trying to cover too much in one small accessible book and so occasionally misses some of the nuances in providing care in individualised circumstances and it can feel a bit disjointed jumping from one topic to another. However, this reflects the nature of the topic of dementia and so maybe provides an immersive experience.
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At the end of each chapter is a helpful collection of further resources. These resources are contemporary and practical and provide further depth to the topics Boland covers.
This is a book that will build your confidence for going into spaces that you might currently fear, where you currently might feel inadequate. Boland’s style is chatty and easy to read – like he’s having a conversation with you. It is a book that you can dip into for reference or read in one hit. It is a book for clergy and lay, for all who might interact with someone living with dementia, for the practical support that it will provide to reader.
Boland’s book is full of hope. His passion for caring for others with the love of God shines through in every page. You cannot fail to be encouraged by his writing and to feel enabled to enter into deep connection with those living with dementia assured of God’s love for them and for you.
The Reverend Kirsty Brown is an aged care chaplain, and acting vicar at St Barnabas Balwyn.
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