A Comprehensive Approach to the Orphan Crisis

by Johnny Carr

143 million is old news.

163 million is the new number.

That’s the new number of orphaned and vulnerable children in the world today according to The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). A number that large is difficult, if not impossible, for most of us to wrap our heads around. To put it into perspective, if you wanted to see all 163 million fatherless faces for just one second, it would take you over five years without a break. It’s a pretty sobering thought.

I’ve been an orphan advocate for many years now, and not just because I do it for a living. I am the father of four children—two born to me and two adopted—and I am in the process of adopting another child. I preach sermons on adoption and talk to friends and family about the importance, blessings, and theology of adoption. I’ve given my life to adoption because I believe that it is deeply rooted in the Christian scriptures and the most practical answer to the orphan crisis.

Fortunately, many other Christians are also capturing a vision for orphans and adoption. Just this week numbers were released that showed three of the largest Christian based adoption agencies are seeing record numbers of adoptions. Many well-known Christian leaders like Rick Warren are taking up the issue. Christianity Today devoted the July 2010 cover story to adoption, and reported that it was one of the top ten theology stories of 2009. The Church is embracing the call to adopt!

[For resources to begin engaging the orphan crisis in your church, check out the Q Fatherless Initiative.]

Unfortunately, we don’t always get it right. The immediate reaction by many churches to the rapid growth of orphaned children has been to build more orphanages. Many well intentioned (and well doing) churches have taken collections and sent teams to other countries to build orphanages. But this is not an acceptable long-term environment for children in their formative years. They need a family. As I often say, “Man made orphanages for children, but God made the family for children.” While an orphanage is preferable to living on the streets, we cannot and should not be satisfied with children living the majority of their childhood in an orphanage.

At the same time, inter-country adoption is not always the answer either. As a matter of fact, only a very small percentage of the 163 million orphaned children are even legally adoptable. Among those children who are eligible, a domestic adoption program might be a better option. That’s why the Church’s strategy for orphan care cannot stop with inter-country adoption. We must consider a wide array of solutions for children, keeping their needs as the priority determinant as we develop comprehensive solutions for the orphan crisis.

Local churches in Ethiopia, Russia, and even the underground church in some countries are rising up. We (the American church) can and should be partnering with them to care for the orphans in their communities by promoting foster care, kinship care, and domestic and inter-country adoption.

With God’s help and wise counsel, I’m convinced that the church can make a huge dent in the huge number of orphans worldwide. We have the resources, and most importantly, we have the Gospel. A good friend and director for Together for Adoption, Dan Cruver, made this statement the other day, “The Gospel is the answer to the orphan crisis, NOT the church. The church is the people through whom the answer is applied.” As we ground ourselves in the Gospel, the church is empowered to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of those who have no one to call “father” or “mother.”

Organizations like the one I work for (Bethany Christian Services) and other child welfare agencies help bring professionalism and best practices to the table, but the Body of Christ is an indispensable ingredient. They can rise up as a biblically-grounded, Gospel-infused force with the power to change everything. May the Body of Christ unloose His hands and feet to meet the most personal of needs: love, acceptance, belonging . . .

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Is your church involved in orphan care or adoption? Where do you think the church could do better / more / differently when it comes to orphans?

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Editor's Note: The artwork featured above is a mixed media piece by Justin Clark entitled, "Orphan Friend 2"

Comments

Dick Gilbert

As a young man I was involved in the construction of an orphanage-like facility in the States. At its best it was a good place for children to be—either for a while to give people or for a long time to give the kids themselves time to get their feet underneath themselves.

If I had to do it over, though, I would not build a campus-based program but a program dispersed into the community, normalizing those kids both in the eyes of the community and the kids' own perception of themselves.

I believe there's a place for great group care: both as a bridge to normalization and a respite for those that, because of the trauma they have suffered simply can't get whole in a "normal" family.

On the whole I agree with the article, but would call to mind the scandalous foster care situation in our own country and caution folks not to remove useful tools from the child-nurture toolbox. These kids will need a whole panoply of services and every possible service delivery option.

Sydney Berry

Thank you, Johnny -- For writing this article, but more importantly for your consistent commitment to the cause of the orphan and the widow. If you haven't already heard about the Watoto Model, I strongly encourage you to check it out (www.watoto.com). Watoto is based in Uganda and has been been building villages and providing families, education and hope for orphans in loving homes for over 16 years now. We see a very bright future for Uganda with the next generation of leaders being raised up. Even now we are beginning to see the model replicated across Africa.

We'll be at the Together for Adoption Conference in October. I look forward to connecting with you then! Wishing you the very best in your continued work and love for God's heart.

Jonathan Merritt

Sydney,

I've never heard of Watoto, but that model is fascinating! I had one question watching their promo video, though. In their video, they mention that the "families" in the Watoto village has a mother in each house, but what about fathers? Who serves as a male parent in their lives?

Jm

Johnny Carr

Dick,

I agree, there certainly is a place for great group care. I also understand the word of caution concerning the foster care situation. We are excited that in places like Ethiopia because the local pastors will be very involved in the placement of the children in foster care. This not only includes the selection and recruitment of families, but also the monitoring of the families and children.

Sydney,

I am somewhat familiar with Watoto and I look forward to learning more. Please be sure to find me at T4A so we can discuss more.

Johnny

Aaron Brown

This is a powerful article! I would like to know what the costs for adopting in the U.S. are. Are there any organizations that assist in alleviating the costs of adopting? You can never put a price on giving a child a wonderful Christian home, but it would be nice to know that there are sources of help out there for those wanting to adopt a child. This article got me Nasser and reenforced my desire to adopt a child myself someday.

Johnny Carr

Aaron,

To the first question: costs range according to the type of adoption. Many adoptions of children that have been in the foster system are free. Contact your local agency to learn more.

The answer to your second question is “yes”. There are many organizations that assist with finances for adoptions. Here are a few places to look:

1. Employer benefits

2. Federal Tax Credit (make sure your CPA knows the changes for 2010 which are beneficial. This year the tax credit is more than $13,000.00)

3. Christian organizations (www.showhope.org, www.abbafund.org, www.lifesongfororphans.com)

4. Adoption agencies (Bethany Christian Services has the Caring Connection Fund that helps with certain types of adoptions)

5. Denominations (The Southern Baptist’s have started a fund for pastors and missionaries www.sbcadoption.org)

6. Churches

Let me say a word about churches - I believe that any church that claims that they care about orphans or preach “pro-life” sermons should have an adoption fund. The church should be encouraging adoption by helping families financially. While every believer is not called to adopt, all believers are called to participate in caring for orphans. An easy way is financially helping adopting families within a church. Having an adoption fund allows everyone to be involved and encourages believers like you to move forward in the adoption journey.

Johnny Carr

Tom Fairbanks

Aaron,

As an example, my wife and I adopted domestically (through Bethany) and, at the end of the day, we were out of pocket about $1,000.

The total fees were around $12,000 and we got a tax credit of $11,000 (the credit is now about $13,000 thanks to Obama). So, as long as you have the money to float yourself until tax time it is not too bad.

There are plenty of creative ways to come up with the initial money. Ask anyone who has adopted and they can give you a couple :)

Aaron Brown

Johnny and Tom, you guys are awesome! Thanks for all the info! I know that when the day does come for me to make this decision I can look back to you two as part of the process.

Until the day comes for me to personally adopt, I want to do more to give and help other families finance adoptions. This exchange has been very enlightening for me. Thanks again.

Rick Carter

Johnny,

I was just introduced to your blog. I wanted to let you know we are 100% on board with this message. We have been working in China for the past 5 years to deliver this message to Chinese Christians as well as providing training and resources for Chinese adoptive families.

As we come across so many groups coming to China to build another orphanage, it is good to hear someone from home asking the Church to provide the best (a family) for the orphans in their distress.

Rick

Johnny carr

Rick, please email me. Jcarr@Bethany.org

Carlene Byron

I'm a big fan of adoption and agree that God created the family as the environment in which children were to be raised. I also note that the family God created was a multi-generational extended family... not the under-resourced nuclear family that the West models and promotes. The American church in particular will not be in a strong position to take on a significant portion of the world's need for adoption as long as we are living our highly mobile, highly isolated way of life.

At the same time, I've just been to Hershey, PA, where the home for orphaned boys founded by Milton Hershey at the turn of the 20th century is now serving 1,800 at-risk youth who need to be away from their families of origin. Similar to a charter boarding school I recently learned about in DC, it makes a warm environment for personal and academic success available to young people whose homes are devastated by whatever kinds of crises.

It's very important to find the best ways to enact our theology within the particular shape of sin-stained world we have today. We can never abandon our commitment to God's truth. But our actions must be shaped in part by the resources God has seen fit to allow us. We understand that we must buy a Kia if we can't afford a Prius. Likewise, if we need homes for a certain number of orphans, and have only so many adoptive parents, perhaps we must also have quality orphanages. And maybe God is most concerned that we care for His children in love than that we wait until we can care for them (perhaps in their next generation?) in families.

Elizabeth

Another ministry that follows the same model as Watoto is New Hope Uganda (http://newhopeuganda.org/). Children are placed in family groups with a father and mother for each group.

Ka-Ming Au

I liked your article. I have lived in an orphanage in rural Cambodia for the last 8 years and have seen and lived the problems. Orphanages are definitely a bad solution to a difficult problem. Care in the community models and adoption are definitely better ways to go. However there are some cases where institutional care may still be required. For example in the case of children with certain diseases or severe behavioural problems. Some diseases carry certain social stigma which may make is difficult for them to integrate into some communities or may make is impossible to be adopted into certain countries. Children with severe behavioural problems can pose significant threats to families which adopt them. Certainly more debate and information is needed on a very difficult issue - thank you for raising it.

joe

We decided to adopt domestically so as not to be unintentionally encouraging kidnapping. But surely the international adoption need is there.

Is it true that some governments make a bussinees of offering children for adoption that have been forcefully taken from their parents?

Any suggestions for identifying and not encouraging this "buisiness"? Maybe returning these childre to their families?

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