FINALLY! This is a GREAT sign for the orphans of Russia.
Sometimes you have to look beyond what seems like “bad news” to find some really good news. A couple of weeks ago, Russia shut down inter-country adoptions from the United States. But, there has been an interesting message resonating from the leaders of the Russian church in that short time. It is estimated that there are around 650,000 orphans in Russia with about 110,000 of them living in some type of institution.What happened yesterday (January 7th) is monumental. The head of the Russian Orthodox church called on the Russian people to adopt Russian orphans. If you knew the cultural implications of this stance, it’s pretty extreme.
But, this is exactly what needs to happen. Every church in every community should be caring for their own orphans. We know that in some cases, it is extremely difficult for that to happen (war, poverty, cultural issues,etc). But, defying the cultural norm in order to answer a Biblical call is encouraging.
Please take a look at the article: http://news.yahoo.com/russian-orthodox-church-head-urges-followers-adopt-children-002804927.html
What happened last week may be a blessing in disguise (although we are still praying for the doors to be opened to inter-country adoption!). It needs to be a both/and solution. Let’s continue to pray for the country of Russia and work hard in every country to make sure the church (and church leaders) are standing up for the most vulnerable in their own communities.
Hopeful,
Steve Gillis Founder | Exec. Director www.patchourplanet.org
