Orphans

Section 1- Biblical Foundations

Quote 1. Deuteronomy 10:18 God says “He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.” 

Quote 2, “Leave your orphans behind, I will keep them alive; and let your widows trust in me.” Jeremiah 49:11.

Quote 3, Isaiah 1:17 says, “Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.” 

Quote 4, Job 31:17 states, “Or have eaten my morsel alone, and the orphan has not shared it.” 

Quote 5, Exodus 22:22-24, God orders, “You shall not afflict any widow or orphan.” God realizes that the widows and orphans are vulnerable and decides to give laws that defend them. 

Quote 6, John 14:18 Christians are given an assurance. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” 

Quote 7, Deuteronomy 24:17, “You shall not pervert the justice due an alien, or an orphan, nor take a widow’s garment in pledge.” 

Section 2- Societal need

UNICEF define an orphan as a child, below 18 years of age, who is has lost one (single orphan), or both parents (double orphan) to any cause of death (UNICEF, 2017). According to a report given by UNICEF in April 2016, there was an estimated 140 million orphaned children worldwide (UNICEF, 2016). A range of 13.9 to 19.2 million children had lost one parent or both to AIDS. 80% of the children lived in sub-Saharan Africa. In the US, there are about 24 million orphans, with 4.6 of them having lost their parents to HIV/AIDS. Cancer is also responsible for about 3.3% of orphans in the U.S. It is a reflection of the global data, as cancer has killed many people, especially those in developing countries, due to late diagnosis of the disease, or poverty leading to failure to access quality healthcare.

The most common driver to the situation is HIV/AIDS pandemic. As explained above, close to 20 million children had lost parent(s) to AIDS (UNICEF, 2016). Poverty is another cause, as there are parents who fall ill, but due to poverty, they are not able to access quality healthcare and end up losing their lives to the diseases. Maternal mortality has also caused the death of very many mothers, thus leaving behind children with no mothers. An example is that in Rwanda, chances of a mother dying during childbirth are 1 in 60 births. Unwanted pregnancies have also led to children being abandoned after they are born. Another issue is war and conflict. In such cases, many people fall victims, lose their lives and leave behind young children. Men have a higher chance of dying during a war or conflict when compared to women. Accidents are also responsible for a significant number of children worldwide.

There are different after effects of children who are left as orphans. Some fail to attend school, or have to drop out from school. An example is Congo, where a non-orphaned child has 0.5 more probability of attending school in comparison to an orphaned child. There are other children who turn to crime. Mostly, it is as a result of poverty (UNICEF, 2016). They lack qualifications to acquire jobs, and indulge in crime for survival. While in crime, they begin to abuse drugs, and end up becoming addicts. However, not all children change for the worse after being orphaned. There are those that decide to put more effort in their school work so as to have a better future for themselves. Most firstborns also become more responsible, as they are left with the task to care for their younger siblings.

Section 3- Ministries

UNICEF is one organization that looks out for orphans. Its mission is to offer children who are in crisis humanitarian aid. They conduct research to identify the number of orphaned children, try to reach the ‘unreachable’ children, and also give suggestions to willing parties on how they can help the children. Due to its popularity, and having managed to win the people’s trust, there are individuals and institutions that make donations through them to reach the affected children. UNICEF evaluates its effectiveness by conducting frequent researches. It helps them know the number of children they have helped; they can keep track of the effects of their actions. Also, since it is an international organization, they have to be accountable for their actions and finances as well.

Another organization is the Miracle Foundation. It is a non-profit organization. Its mission is to help orphaned children thrive in real time. According to the Miracle Foundation, their intention is to have the children get education, food, love and ensure that they are safe. When there is a possibility, they explore avenues to reunite the children with their parents or relatives. They achieve this by guiding leaders when resettling children with relatives or families. They also help them stay together. It is also their responsibility to ensure the 12 rights of the child are met by other organizations, as well as ensuring that orphanages meet the required operational international standards. To evaluate their work, they do follow ups on children who have already been resettled to see how well they fit-in, and to ensure that they get the right treatment.

A third organization is The Orphan Society of America. It deals with orphans orphaned by violence. Its mission is supporting individuals orphaned by violence by providing educational and social support. They manage it by providing programs aimed at helping children orphaned by violence. They also work with partners to improve the quality of the programs, offer financial support to the organization so that they can reach many children, and also help in identifying the children who need the organization’s help. They also work with well wishers who donate funds to help the children. They evaluate they work by evaluating the effect the programs have on the children. If the children have an easier time coping and fitting in, they know that the programs have had a positive impact on the children.

References

UNICEF. (2016). The State of the World’s Children: A Fair Chance for Every Child. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/UNICEF_SOWC_2016.pdfUNICEF. (2017). Orphans. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/media/media_45279.html