1
                                                                    EXHIBIT 23

                         INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT


The Board of Directors
Citizens, Inc.:


We consent to incorporation by reference in the registration statement on Form
S-3 of Citizens, Inc. of our report dated March 8, 1996, relating to the
consolidated balance sheets of Citizens, Inc. and subsidiaries as of December
31, 1995 and 1994, and the related consolidated statements of operations,
stockholders' equity, and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year
period ended December 31, 1995, and all related schedules, which report appears
in the December 31, 1995 annual report on Form 10-K/A, Amendment No. 1 of 
Citizens, Inc. Our report refers to the adoption by the Company of the 
provisions of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's Statement of Financial
Accounting Standards No. 115, "Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and
Equity Securities."



                                      /s/  KPMG PEAT MARWICK LLP               
                                      KPMG PEAT MARWICK LLP

Dallas, Texas
February 3, 1997