Orphan Sunday
History:
On Orphan Sunday, Christians stand for the orphan. We are a people called to defend the fatherless … to care for the child that has no family … to visit the orphans in their distress.
The seeds of this united Orphan Sunday come as a gift from the Church in Africa. While attending a church service in Zambia, an American visitor was struck by the local pastor’s passionate call to care for orphans, in a community that had been ravaged by AIDS and poverty. Members of the church faced deep need themselves. But as the service ended, one after another stepped forward with money, food and other goods-some even taking off their own shoes and placing them in the offering for orphans.
The visitor, Gary Schneider, was so deeply impacted by what he had witnessed that he began to help Zambian leaders coordinate Orphan Sunday efforts across Zambia. These efforts spread to the U.S. in 2003 with the help from Every Orphan’s Hope and other organizations.
Many churches and organizations have hosted “Orphan Sundays” over the years. Through Orphan Sunday, the Christian Alliance for Orphans seeks to add a unified voice and coordinated effort to the promise of “One Day, One Voice, One Purpose” for the orphan.
Each Orphan Sunday event is locally led, and ranges from sermons to small groups, concerts to prayer gatherings, shared meals to youth activities – rousing believers by simply echoing God’s love for the orphan.
For more information go to Christian Alliance for Orphans website at www.CAFO.org
Taken from Orphan Sunday Resource Manual: A product from the Christian Alliance for Orphans.
