I write these words
with a heavy heart. A heart that is breaking for orphans and their families,
both biological and adoptive. A heart that is crying out for change.
There is an
organization here in Haiti that runs a creche in a town south of Port-de-Paix.
I am familiar with the organization, I know some people who have visited it and
worked there, and until recently I believed it to be a good Christian ministry.
The people in charge of this creche organize adoptions to the United States,
and claim to perform them with the utmost integrity. They claim to do their
work for the honor and glory of Jesus, and because they deeply care about the
plight of orphans. Much to my dismay, we have been deceived.
In the past few
weeks I have learned from many sources that this organization is not what they
seem. That the adoptions are performed illegally, that they charge enormous
amounts of money for their services, and that many of the children in their creche
are not even orphans. These children have families. Families who love them, and
miss them, and never wanted them to leave.
Their families were
deceived into believing their child would be given a better life, or that they
would only live at the creche temporarily. In some cases, these children were
actually purchased from their
families, for about $75. This is not
“caring for the least of these”. This is not
orphan care. This is human trafficking.
Can you imagine
being told that because you are poor, that you don’t deserve to be a parent? To
have your child stolen from you? Can you imagine the shame of not being able to
provide for your child? Feeling like you have no choice but to give your child
up, so that they can go live with someone who supposedly deserves them more
than you do? Knowing that you would never see them again?
This organization
has also been deceiving the adoptive families. Financial corruption in addition
to the illegality of their actions concerning the children makes the completion
of adoptions through this organization difficult, and in some cases, impossible.
Thankfully, this
organization is in the process of being shut down, but it leaves in its wake an
enormous amount of pain and heartbreak. Some of these adoptive families will be
able to complete their adoptions. Some won’t. Some will have to start from
scratch, and begin the adoption process all over again. Others will find out
that their child is not an orphan at all, but has a family here in Haiti who
loves and wants them. All will suffer the consequences of this organization’s
actions.
This is wrong. This
is so, so wrong. That people who claim to be Christians would deceive and hurt
others for financial gain, would steal children from their families, and do so
in the name of Christ is despicable. It is evil. Not only do they bring ruin
upon themselves, but they also dirty the reputation of Christians and mission
work in Haiti. This is why trust is such a huge issue in Haiti. Why should the
Haitian people trust American missionaries, when so often all we do is deceive
them and hurt them?
As horrible as this
is, it is not shocking. We hear this story all the time in Haiti. An orphanage
or creche is shut down because of financial corruption or because the children
were being abused. Orphans are “created” to make a profit from the rich, well
-meaning Americans. It is far too common. We are horrified, we are saddened,
and our hearts break, but we are not surprised. And it’s not just in Haiti.
This is the story of orphanages all over the world.
Is this how it
should be? Even if they are not corrupt, the condition of most orphanages is
still unacceptable. And yet, is even the greatest of orphanages really what’s
best for these children? Is that really what God meant when told us to care for
the orphan? To put them in a building together, with no real family, where
someday (if they’re young and beautiful enough) they might be adopted. Is that
what it’s supposed to be like?
How do we stop
this? How can we prevent this from happening in the future? How can we prevent children
being stolen from their families, raised in corrupt institutions and starved of
love? What is the answer?
Our hearts must be in
line with the heart of God. We have to be willing to set aside every idea we
have about how to fix things and look solely to him for our solutions. What if
we stopped planning and simply let God dictate? If it is his desire to care for
the orphans, he surely has a plan for how it can be accomplished.
What if instead of
putting children in orphanages, we worked on rebuilding families, providing
jobs and assistance for parents, so that they can keep the children they so
dearly love? God places children with the parents he planned for them. Rich or
poor, black or white, Christian or not, that is where God put them, and we do
not have the right to decide that we know better. God so often uses those who
come from imperfect circumstances to do great things for his glory, why should
we get in the way?
I’m not saying that I’m against adoption. I
have people adopting in my family right now, and I couldn’t be more excited for
them! Adoption can be a very beautiful and rewarding thing, but we have to make
sure that we want what Jesus wants above all else. We must be willing to dig
deep and make sure the agencies we use are not trafficking or abusing children.
Focusing so much on adoption that we create a market for infant “orphans” is
not okay. And we cannot place adoption up on a pedestal as the ideal. It’s not.
Children being raised in the families God gave them is the ideal. To really care
for the orphan, we must want what is truly the best thing for them. We have to
love the truth enough to put what Christ desires first.
