 Presbyterian Leaders’ Forum  May/June, 1999
A Message from the Moderator Before my election, I shared with the 210th General Assembly that, should I be elected moderator, I would be an advocate for children at risk around the world and especially in our own country. I believe the Bible makes it clear that God has a special concern for those in greatest need and that Jesus had a special love for children.It is shocking and morally outrageous to me that 21 percent of our children in America – the richest country in the world – live in poverty. That figure is up from 14 percent in 1973. Child poverty in America is higher than any other industrial country in the world and three times their average. Since this great economic expansion started about ten years ago, we have five times more millionaires in America and four million more poor children. Eleven million children in our country have no health insurance, and I find it hard to understand how we can guarantee health care to those over 65 and deny it to children who are six. I am proud of the way our country has cared for our senior members, and we certainly need to do more for some of them, but the truth is that we are taking better care of our seniors than we are our children. The poverty rate for children is more than twice what it is for seniors. The poverty rate for seniors has gone down in recent decades, while the child poverty rate for children has gone up. When you add to that the number of children who are killed by gunfire every day, abused and neglected, arrested for crimes, involved with drugs and alcohol, born to a single, teenage mother, and those who see their parents divorce – the results are shocking! As I have traveled around the church this year, I have told this sad story and urged every congregation and presbytery to begin one new mission initiative for children in need. For some, it will be a tutoring program; for others, a day-care center or the formation of a child advocacy group. Perhaps those of us who are older could urge the AARP to become a lobby for children as well as seniors. There is something all of us can do for children, regardless of our age, and I urge you to consider what God is calling you to do. Douglas Oldenburg |
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