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Summer Slam 1 church's attempt to reach youth
Pastoral Pondering: Lincoln's religious
thinking still worthy of close study
Religion Briefs
Foreign
adoptions
change face of church |
Newberg Friends church dedicates five overseas natives adopt by members in
the last two years |
By Christie Scotty, Newberg Graphic
Reporter
Email Christie at cscotty@eaglenewspapers.com
|
 Newberg Friends Church is growing fast and growing diverse, but not through
the sort of typical evangelical methods one may think.
Instead, it’s a deluge of foreign adoptions by NFC members that has
contributed to the new young, multiethnic face of the church.
Five children were dedicated at baby dedications held June 8 at the church.
Zachary, Meghan and John hailed from India, Benjamin from Vietnam and Sicily from Korea.
As pastor of children’s ministries, Irene Rice works with the children
usually once a week, on Sundays. During some parts of the year, she said, she’ll also
see children on Wednesday nights.
“They ask so many questions,” Rice said. “They don’t just
take it for granted ... and it makes the other children wonder too.”
Rice said that’s because the children are coming to her fresh, with no
religious background to shade their opinions. However, Rice admitted that she doesn’t
know whether some of the children had atheist, Hindu, or other faith backgrounds in their
earlier lives in orphanages.
Now, however, weekly attendance at a Christian church is part of many of
their lives. Still, Rice said, “nothing’s being forced on them.”
Many of the children at the church have come through Project Hope, a program
run by International Family Services (IFS), which has a Newberg office.
Besides the five children dedicated with the parents this month — some
of whom are still close to their first birthday and others as old as six — NFC counts
children from Guatemala, Korea, and Russia among their ranks.
When Project Hope brings two dozen Russian orphans to Newberg this summer for
an introductory trip, more international faces may enter the NFC congregation. A handful
of NFC families expect to be among those welcoming a child into their homes, according to
Debbie Hawblitzel, the NFC administrative secretary whose family adopted Erik in April,
2002, and Alexei in December, 2002. |
|
From June 21,
2003, Newberg Graphic
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