California Family Minute
November 5, 2010
An Orphan’s Cry
by Rebecca Burgoyne,
CFC Research Analyst
Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens’ mournful waif who endearingly cried, “Please, sir, I want some more,” tugged at the hearts of his 19th-century audience in a day when the plight of orphans was well known. An early example of a social novel, Dickens’ work brought focus to the widespread conditions of poverty and child labor in his society.
Today, while there are an estimated 140 million orphans internationally and 500,000 children in foster care nationwide, the problem is more hidden. When we think of adoption today, we think of the doe-eyed, malnourished child in Africa or Haiti – not the child in our own community being raised without parents. Christians may donate to overseas missions that help orphans whose parents succumbed to AIDS or travel to Haiti to help in an orphanage, but they often fail to consider the parentless foster children in their own community – children who only dream of having their own “forever” family. Nationally, around 26,000 teens “age-out” of foster care annually and are cast adrift in society without roots, supplies, or family support.
The good news is that there is a growing interest in adoption. Bethany Christian Services, the nation’s largest adoption agency, reported earlier this year that adoptions – both international and domestic – had increased 26 percent over last year – a rise they attributed to new attitudes and movements within the Church.
Christian Alliance for Orphans, a coalition of organizations and churches, has designated this Sunday, November 7, as Orphan Sunday to further equip, encourage and educate the Christian community about adoption and foster care. Through this campaign, thousands of participating churches will invite Christians to be part of the answer for children still waiting for a “forever family.” While not everyone is called to adopt, we can all pray for them. Others can speak for them, provide for them, mow the lawn or rake the leaves of a foster family, or take a meal to a foster family or group home. Perhaps your church can collect basic supplies for local teens aging out of the system.
November is National Adoption Month, set aside to bring focus to the children and youth in foster care who are waiting for adoptive families. This year’s theme, “You don’t have to be perfect to be a perfect parent,” underscores the message that these children only want a stable home where they can experience physical, emotional and relational stability – instead of a parade of transitional homes. One young teen, who survived 14 foster homes before finding her “forever family,” told the Washington Post, “…it goes and goes and goes, it just feels like nobody wants you. After the first six homes, it became, ‘Okay, I’m moving again, who cares?’”
Adoption matters to God. Indeed, He adopted us, grafting us in to his permanent family. Romans 8:15-16 says, “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” Just as God is vested in our adoption into his forever family, we are called to replicate his concern for the widow and the orphan. (James 1:27) We may not all be called to adopt, but we are all called to actively care.
Prayerfully consider how you and your church can be involved. Watch Answer the Cry, a video produced by Focus on the Family, Hope for Orphans, and Show Hope, addressing ways that every Christian can impact the life of an orphan. You are God’s hands and feet; you are God’s plan for the orphan.
For more information:
An Orphan’s Cry
by Rebecca Burgoyne,
CFC Research Analyst
Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens’ mournful waif who endearingly cried, “Please, sir, I want some more,” tugged at the hearts of his 19th-century audience in a day when the plight of orphans was well known. An early example of a social novel, Dickens’ work brought focus to the widespread conditions of poverty and child labor in his society.
Today, while there are an estimated 140 million orphans internationally and 500,000 children in foster care nationwide, the problem is more hidden. When we think of adoption today, we think of the doe-eyed, malnourished child in Africa or Haiti – not the child in our own community being raised without parents. Christians may donate to overseas missions that help orphans whose parents succumbed to AIDS or travel to Haiti to help in an orphanage, but they often fail to consider the parentless foster children in their own community – children who only dream of having their own “forever” family. Nationally, around 26,000 teens “age-out” of foster care annually and are cast adrift in society without roots, supplies, or family support.
The good news is that there is a growing interest in adoption. Bethany Christian Services, the nation’s largest adoption agency, reported earlier this year that adoptions – both international and domestic – had increased 26 percent over last year – a rise they attributed to new attitudes and movements within the Church.
Christian Alliance for Orphans, a coalition of organizations and churches, has designated this Sunday, November 7, as Orphan Sunday to further equip, encourage and educate the Christian community about adoption and foster care. Through this campaign, thousands of participating churches will invite Christians to be part of the answer for children still waiting for a “forever family.” While not everyone is called to adopt, we can all pray for them. Others can speak for them, provide for them, mow the lawn or rake the leaves of a foster family, or take a meal to a foster family or group home. Perhaps your church can collect basic supplies for local teens aging out of the system.
November is National Adoption Month, set aside to bring focus to the children and youth in foster care who are waiting for adoptive families. This year’s theme, “You don’t have to be perfect to be a perfect parent,” underscores the message that these children only want a stable home where they can experience physical, emotional and relational stability – instead of a parade of transitional homes. One young teen, who survived 14 foster homes before finding her “forever family,” told the Washington Post, “…it goes and goes and goes, it just feels like nobody wants you. After the first six homes, it became, ‘Okay, I’m moving again, who cares?’”
Adoption matters to God. Indeed, He adopted us, grafting us in to his permanent family. Romans 8:15-16 says, “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” Just as God is vested in our adoption into his forever family, we are called to replicate his concern for the widow and the orphan. (James 1:27) We may not all be called to adopt, but we are all called to actively care.
Prayerfully consider how you and your church can be involved. Watch Answer the Cry, a video produced by Focus on the Family, Hope for Orphans, and Show Hope, addressing ways that every Christian can impact the life of an orphan. You are God’s hands and feet; you are God’s plan for the orphan.
For more information:
- I Care About Orphans (Focus on the Family)
- Hope for Orphans (Family Life)
- Show Hope
- FAQ on Adoption, Focus on the Family
- Wait No More, Focus on the Family’s initiative to reduce the number of foster-care children.
- Ways Every Christian Can Care for the Orphan and Waiting Child, Hope for Orphans
- Child Welfare Information Gateway: Adoption
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