This is one of the Ten Commandments by which Christians are supposed to abide. It is also the basis for many Americans’ belief in the sanctity of life. Some Christians have opened their hearts and homes and adopted children whose parents do not want or cannot afford to keep them; but are the majority of Christians walking the walk as well as talking the talk when it comes to adopting a child?
Look around you. How many people you know who call themselves “Christians” have adopted children or seem inclined to adopt any? My guess is that your answer is, “Not very many of them.” The reasons for not adopting, of course, are many and are the same as those among us who do not profess to be Christians. The question is, however, if Christians so value the sanctity of life, should they be more obligated than others to adopt these children to ensure their quality of life?
My answer is a resounding “YES!” Reason being, having a child requires a commitment of at least 18 years; therefore, Christians should be able to make this commitment to the children whose lives they value so greatly when they are in their mothers’ wombs.
It is not good enough for Christians to just say, “Thou shall not kill.” They have an obligation to adopt the children of parents who obeyed that Commandment yet still are unable to effectively offer their children the level of commitment needed for the subsequent 18 years. All around the country Christian churches should be operating orphanages and adoption agencies in an effort to ensure that these children understand that their lives are indeed precious.
Christians should be leading the way in adoptions in the United States. Unfortunately this is not the case. Most Christians and Christian organizations are not actively involved in a concerted effort to adopt children or to ensure that they are adopted into loving homes. This lack of action to support the words puts a lot of women in a dilemma when they have to decide whether or not to carry a pregnancy to full term.
It is one thing to advocate the preservation of an unborn child’s life; but it’s a very different thing when this is not followed up by a strong commitment to the child AFTER it is born. Christians must start adopting or helping others to adopt these children whose lives they fight to save before they were born. It is just as important for Christians to fight to save their lives after they are born.
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Well said! When my wife and I realized that we wouldn’t be able to have biological children, we decided to adopt and have two boys who look nothing like us but are our gifts from the Lord. We’re trying to raise them up in God’s site to be perpetual gifts back to Him.