Jose Morelos

I don’t condone the supposed child abduction by the Baptist group, which has been in the news recently from Haiti, but I can understand their motivation. During my trip to Haiti last week there were numerous times in which the thought crossed my mind of helping children I encountered, who were in very bad shape, and to rescue them from such horrific conditions.

I saw a little boy who could not have been more than 6 years old. He had been pinned under the rubble and his arm was badly injured. Under "normal" circumstances, in the United States, or even in Haiti, he would have had surgery to repair the badly torn arm. But in the aftermath of an earthquake with the devastating damaging effects equivalent to seven megatons of TNT or about 7000 times as powerful as the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima, "normality" was also shattered. No water and food was accessible for days. No medical supplies or doctors were readily available. No emergency first aid attention was on hand. So, an arm that in other circumstances could have resulted to be, at worst badly scarred but functional, became infected and gangrenous, and needed to be amputated. My heart flinched when I saw him. (I thought about my own Nicholas and Annie. What wouldn't I do for them?) When his eyes met mine I almost started crying. At that moment, if someone would have said to me: "…sign here and he is yours. He is your responsibility; you take care of him…" I know I would have signed that paper.

So, laws and regulations for adoption are in place, especially, for times like this. In spite of the terrible situation, we all must be protected from reflexive good intentions, which may have unintended long term consequences. 

• Did this little boy have relatives? 
• What would be the psychological impact of snatching him out of his environment? 
• What would be in the best interest for him, long term?  

These and many other questions require thoughtful and unselfish consideration, for the sake of this child.

Nevertheless, I still think about that little boy. No child should have to live through what he may be going through right now.  And for certain, please Lord, no child should have to endure this alone. I hope he is not.