Teens Interceding for Orphans (TIO) discussion
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The Global Orphan Crisis
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Let's Read! The Global Orphan Crisis
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I'm super excited to be reading this book and discussing it with everyone! :)I'd say if you were to randomly ask me the answer to the second question, I would probably say I picture a child alone in a small house with a dirt floor somewhere in Africa. The child looks serious and somber and has lost both parents and has to help care for his/her other siblings. That's just my gut-reaction.
And I think I've decided to go with Eric http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_c...
and Eugene http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_c...
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts on that question. I'm curious to see if it will change at all after you read the chapter.
Looks like you have a heart for the visually impaired. Thanks for sharing. :)
I enjoyed this week's reading. :) I guess the first thing I picture when I think of an orphaned child is either a kid in Africa or in a place further North, like China or the Ukraine. In either situation, the child is lonely, hungry, and somewhere they don't want to be (whether alone in a tiny shack or stuck in an orphanage). I don't usually think of whether the child has lost both parents, one parent, or was abandoned. I usually just assume they are in need, lonely, hurting physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and have no one that loves them. (That is my definition for an "orphan." I consider any child or teenager who is in need in those areas an orphan. That might not be statistically correct, but it's what comes to my mind. I don't usually save the label of "orphan" for one specific situation.)
Here's my kid! :) Seth, a 15-year-old in New York. I don't know why he caught my eye. http://www.adoptuskids.org/_app/child...
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I think your picture of an orphan is pretty similar to mine. I have to think about it some more.
I'm sure Seth can use your prayers! It's funny how random kids do catch you're attention, isn't it?
My book is still in transit from the library, so I guess I'll be a little late on this. Oh well. :)
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I never really thought about the difference between calling a child an "orphan" and calling them "orphaned." I thought her point about that in the first chapter was definitely right. Being orphaned is a condition; it doesn't define who the child is. Yet I think it is okay to refer to someone as an "orphan" as long as we keep the perspective that he/she is also a regular person with regular abilities, talents, opinions, etc. What do you guys think?
Well, I just picked up my book from the library. :) I haven't finished the first chapter yet, but figured I'd skip ahead and do the action point. I'll be praying for Yajaira. (http://www.mare.org/ForFamilies/ViewW...) When I think of orphaned children, I tend to think of street kids in third world countries first... and then I think of Anne of Green Gables. :)
Sarah, I agree with you in thinking that it's alright to call a child an orphan in an intellectual manner (discussing the issue and ways to help, vs. talking to a child and saying, "Hey you there, orphan!", haha). To me, this isn't so different than referring to someone as introverted, or blond, or female, or whatever. It is a part of their story, although none of those things is what define them.
Galations 3:28 comes to mind when I think of words defining people... "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
Guess I should actually go read that chapter now. :)
Alright, so I have finished chapter one, and I can't say I learned anything new, although it was rather short and just a basic overview.What are the rest of you thinking so far? And are we doing one chapter a week, then?
(And on a side note, has anyone else noticed the typos and grammatical errors? Gah, I find them so distracting! Oh well.)
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1. Before reading this chapter, what did you think was the most significant cause of children becoming orphans?2. What surprising information did you discover in this chapter?
3. How might knowing this information help you as you are thinking of meeting the needs of orphaned children?
4. Giving away or selling a child seems like an unbelievable act to most of us. How do you think that a parent can justify this act? Do you consider this a cultural, economic, or biblical issue?
5. If you were talking to a friend about to plight of the orphaned child, what nugget from this chapter would you want to communicate?
:) No problem, Leah!
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I was really delayed in organizing anything this week, so I'm going to say take an extra week for chapter two and answer as many of these questions as you want. Or pick just one. Sound good?
Yes, I would appreciate that; I have not read all of chapter 2 yet!
Well, I can certainly say I never considered that the parent(s) of a child being incarcerated would make them an emotional orphan. That's an effect I never thought about before! What do you guys think about that?
Well, I had to return my copy to the library and just got it back out again... is everyone still reading this? :)Sarah, parents being incarcerated is a common cause of kids ending up in foster care... it's sad.
I'm about a third of the way through the book so far. What about the rest of y'all? What are you guys' thoughts so far?
I have finished chapter two. :) I like how factual the book is, but I like to think about it slowly; sometimes I need to "process" it a little more so I don't skim through it!
Understandable. :) I have done lots of reading on the subject, so the first half of the book is a rehash for me... therefore, I'm really hoping the second half has some good points. I'm also finding that although I appreciate statistics, I retain information so much better when it's presented in more of a narrative... I guess that's why Jesus used so many parables. :)
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I agree that this book is very statistic heavy. It makes it a little hard to get through reading, but I think it makes a great reference book to go back to little bits and pieces when you need to remember something.
Also, Rachel. For those of us who have done a lot of previous reading, there is a lot of rehash. However, the discussion points at the end of each chapter could make for some great conversations if we can get participation. ;)
And speaking of that. One of the things I was really hoping to see happen during this book discussion was for different participates to volunteer to write a 300-600 word response/essay/thoughts about different chapters/discussion points/action points to be featured on the blog. I really, really want to see this grow into more of a community thing instead of just me doing most of the talking. Just throwing that out there.
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I just finished chapter three. Wow, that was a hard one to read. It had some deep stuff in it that really made my heart ache. The world can be a bad place.
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That's totally fine, Leah! =) I agree with the break!
After you read the chapter, write a short answer to the second "Question to Ponder," which says, "When you think of an orphaned child, what do you picture in your mind? What is the setting? What does the child look like? What is the child's situation?" Post your answers here.
Try to do the action point as well. You can post a link to the one or two children who chose here. You can find some adoptable kids here. You can find children needing sponsors here and here.
Start reading!