Archive for the ‘Swaziland’ Category
Swaziland’s AIDS orphans
Mark Hatfield, BGR’s area director for Sub-Saharan Africa, sent us a statistic the other day that just really rocked me back on my heels. He picked the item up from a prayer newsletter he receives.
“Concerning AIDS orphans: 30 percent of the children in Swaziland are either single or double orphans [meaning either one or both parents have died of AIDS]. The number of orphans in the country has increased from an estimated 12,000 in 1999 to 70,000 in 2005 with a projected increase to 120,000 by 2010. The number of child-headed households [children living in homes without adults] is increasing.”
It staggers the imagination to think of the grief and responsibilities these children are bearing at a time in life when they ought to be playing happily and enjoying their friends and families. I’m grateful we have ways to help them – and people who care enough to reach out to them from the United States. It’s always gratifying to see that so many believers understand that caring for orphans and widows in their troubles is “pure and genuine religion” in the sight of God the Father. (James 1:27)
Many of us can touch the lives of these orphans by giving, and some of us are in the position of actually going to help them personally. But every one of us can help them by praying.
The note Mark sent ends like this:
“Pray the many orphans in Swaziland will have someone to care for them. Pray for an intense awareness by the Swazis of the causes and problems of AIDS and the responsibility of protecting friends and family members.”
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To learn more about Baptist Global Response, visit our website at gobgr.org.
