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Author: Sadiri Joy Tira
Date: 06.08.2010
Category: Diasporas, Evangelism Among Children
Adoption has become a “Top Topic” for Christian circles in recent years. Propelled to the limelight by movies such as “The Blind Side” and news bastions including TIME Magazine. Christian magazines, including Christianity Today, have picked up on the trend and have highlighted “adoption” in its pages. (See this issue of Christianity Today: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/july/10.5.html).
I must delimit myself. I am neither an adoption expert, nor a childrens expert. Certainly, there are others, such as my good friend Doug Nichols of ACTION International Ministries, who can provide a better description of the global adoption landscape; but Diaspora Missions and Missiology is interdisciplinary, and the international movement of children being adopted is glaring.
Just as adults are migrating across borders, children are entering new lands.
The United Nations publication: Child Adoption Trends & Policies (Economic and Social Affairs Population Division, New York 2009) reports in its “key findings” that “although domestic adoptions far outnumber intercountry adoptions… The number of intercountry adoptions has been increasing.” It further reports that the United States, France and Spain are the top destinations for children adopted internationally. Following these top three are in order of importance: Canada, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden. According to Child Adoption Trends & Policies, “each of these countries has recorded over 1,000 foreign adoptions annually in recent years.” Major sources for international adoptees are China, Guatemala, the South Korea, Russia and Ukraine. These countries account for more than half of the children adopted abroad. Surprising, to me at least, is that “relatively few children adopted internationally originate in Africa or Latin America and the Caribbean.” Nevertheless, the fact is, children too, are on the move.
I will not attempt a treatise on Christian adoption as mission. It is a given that God requires his people to care for the “fatherless” – orphans (Deuteronomy 10:18, Psalm 146:9), but allow me to suggest some missiological implications, particularly in the context of diaspora missions.
1. Extended Family Care
Statistics indicate that it is primarily Western countries that are experiencing large inflows of children adopted from abroad. Not to say that all adoptive Westerners are Christians and will raise their adopted children with Christian values. Obviously this is not the case. But consider the increased opportunities for these children “from over there” to learn about Jesus Christ in their new countries. What does this potential imply? Perhaps we need to step up our local ministries to adoptive families, and to children adopted internationally. Reports indicate that there is a great need in assisting these families. Maybe more churches and Christian organisations need to intentionally minister to and support this growing group of people. (Read this article http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1997439,00.html for a look into the stark reality of many adoption scenarios.)
2. Diaspora Partnerships
I do not have enough knowledge to discuss the topic of adoptions out of Africa; but I still have to wonder what can be done to help 7.7 million orphans in the continent most affected by the AIDS epidemic. The UN reports:
In 2003, there were an estimated 8 million orphans in sub-Saharan Africa both of whose parents had died (UNAIDS, UNICEF and USAID, 2004). This situation has gravely strained the customary support system offered to children through extended family networks. (The United Nations: Child Adoption Trends & Policies. Economic and Social Affairs Population Division, New York 2009. p. 29).
The African diaspora is staggering any which way you look at it (whether you are looking at it from a classical diaspora perspective dating back hundreds of years, or from a modern perspective in light of recent population movements). African-diaspora churches are found throughout Europe and the Americas. Since many of these African orphans affected by AIDs cannot leave as international adoptees, diaspora churches must continue to share their vast resources (e.g. financial) to partner practically with local Christian organisations and churches to assist these orphans.
3. Retaining Roots
Finally, I recall the biblical story of Moses – who was taken from his Hebrew people and culture and raised in a “foreign” culture. One has to wonder how his Hebrew nurse (albeit his mother) instilled in him knowledge of his Hebrew roots – roots that he would retain even as an adult.
Could there be a chance that some internationally adopted children will one day return to their “roots”, and emerge as leaders of their people? Are there advantages in helping internationally adopted children retain their roots (i.e. linguistically, culturally)? For example, I have heard of some adoptive parents who have enlisted the assistance of language tutors to help their adopted children retain fluency in their mother tongue, and who purposely expose them to the cultural events reflecting their heritage. As a missiologist, I cannot help but consider the massive missiological implications that helping the child retain some of his or her roots could have. Imagine children from Russia coming to know Jesus Christ early in life and someday returning to their Russian roots and actually becoming “missionaries” or Christian-teachers, and businessmen who do business the Christian way?
Can you imagine children on the move as part of the Church on the Move?
The Lausanne Congress for World Evangelization aims to assist the Whole Church in Taking the Whole Gospel to the Whole World; Diaspora Missiology is concerned about taking that Gospel to diaspora children.
Sadiri Joy Tira (D.Min., D.Miss.) is the LCWE Senior Associate for Diasporas, the Global Ministries Diaspora Specialist for the Christian and Missionary Alliance in Canada, and the International Coordinator for the Filipino International Network.
*photo from Flickr.com/User:woodleywonderworks
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Comments: 10
Recommendations: 1
Conversation Post Comment
United States
While your figures for the adoption of children from Russia, China, Guatemala, S.Korea, and Ukarine were impressive, adoption from the Caribbean remains slow. At least that is the experience of my daughter. She taught in a childrens home for years and witnessed first hand the multitude of obstacles to adoption there.
11.07.2011
United States
I think it is an interesting idea to focus on reaching out to families that have just adopted. I’m sure there are a lot of adjustments that come with having just adopted a child, especially one from a foreign country, and I’m sure that people reaching out in simple ways could be very meaningful for these families.
14.03.2011
United States
At my church their are two children who are Korean, know they are adopted and that they came from Korea and love Jesus. We have been praying for countries during Sunday School and every Sunday the youngest of the brothers wants us to remember his birth country. Adoption is wonderful, and they do need to know where they came from. They also need to know of the awesome and wonderful power of God and how God affects their life.
19.10.2010
Kenya
Thank you Doug for your comment on the reflection above. My take is that the child is adopted into a family but it does no harm to let them know the truth about their past and let them make the decision what they wish to be in the future. Your assurance and mine would be that we did all that was needed to do in the assignment God gave us and now we let teh child grow up into who God desired them to be.
I love the aspect and the thoughts of seeing them as a misiionaries and leaders in their own countries- I wish to extend it further and say, we need to develop them for missionary assignment to the WHOLE WORLD!
Wonderful beautiful reflections in this paper
Carol
Kenya
19.10.2010
United States
Thank you for bringing up the orphan and vulnerable children population and how the church can bring hope. We all need to be the "voice" for these children.
There are in country solutions as well as opportunities for these children to be adopted internationally, even with HIV! I look forward to hearing from some of my friends who are in Capetown about the continued and growing movement to care for the "least of these".
18.10.2010
United States
Thank you for bringing up the issue of adoption and orphans in the midst of the much bigger conversation about world evangelization. This is a needed conversation!
Your suggested missiological implications are very helpful and Doug’s remarks add to the conversation as well.
Another missiological implication of the incredible orphan crisis and call to world evangelization is the need to see national movements of adoption happen globally.
I look forward to continuing the conversation!
17.10.2010
United States
Our oldest daughter, Grace, is adopted from China. She is 8 years old and very much in love with Jesus. As you pointed out, she and I both have talked about the possibility of her returning to China someday to share the love of Jesus with them. We tell her of her birth parents’ love for her (they could have easily had her aborted and killed when she was born when they found out she was a girl) and we have taught her much about China. She, in turn, has been the catalyst for our family’s love for Asia. She has been such a blessing to us. It is not just about saving a child from a difficult life...it is also about how that child can be used by God to incredibly bless your family. Adoption is straight from the heart of God!
12.10.2010
Nigeria
In my experience and over the years I have come across orphans and when I see these abandoned children, there is these impotence that wash over me at my inability to help out especially those that have just nobody to cater for them due to the poverty level in my part of the world. Some are even used for rituals and these are GOD’s creations. There is a great need for these children which christian leaders all over the world need to address as an important issueeven as we prepare fore the congress.
13.09.2010
Canada
@ Awe_Oluyemisi_Abiola:
Homeless and fatherless! These are twin global problems. I agree with you that we Evangelicals must act together and do something. We must do all we can to restore the boken image of God in man, particularly among the fatherless children. Indeed, it is a daunting and overwhelming task but we must stop coming up with excuses. We focus so much our missions in church planting, and proclaimation evangelism, and other strategies that makes our organizations/denominations looks big ... but we tend to run away from issues like helping children. I dont know the answer but many readers who are leaders are reading these comments. I hope our conversations will turn into actions in favour of the orphans and neglected children.
10.10.2010
Canada
This is a very interesting comment, Doug. You see I am not an expert on adoption, and that is why I mentioned your name! Thank you for posting. My treatment is from the eyes of a missiologist, and your comment rounds out the discussion quite nicely. At least now people can talk about it and we can do more to "callibrate" a strategy for reaching them.
12.08.2010
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