Thousands Of Homeless Babies Rescued By George Frideric Handel And His Messiah

George Frideric Handel

A wealthy shipbuilder, Thomas Coram, retired early in an upscale district in London. He stayed fit by vigorous walks, but had no idea that something he found on these walks would change his life. Babies... he found dead and dying babies left on the streets. They were called foundlings.

Foundlings were babies born to unmarried women. These women where in a horrible situation since there were no homes to take their babies and no jobs for an unmarried woman with a child at her breast. It was starvation for both mother and child. So in the early morning hours these heartbroken mothers took their babies to the upscale areas of London to leave them on the doorsteps of well-off families who they hoped would have pity on their innocent infants. The babies who survived were usually taken to workhouses where the death rate for foundlings was over 90%.

Thomas was appalled and committed his remaining years to rescuing foundlings. There were homes for orphans, but foundlings were considered a different class because of how they were born. Orphan homes, like the famed homes of George Mueller, would not take in a foundling. Before George Mueller would receive a child into his homes evidence had to be provided that the child was born to parents who were married when the child was conceived. Adoption was not a legal option on either side of the Atlantic at the time.

Mr. Coram faced great difficulty getting permission to open a foundling's home (called a Foundling's Hospital). But permission was not enough. There were thousands of foundlings born each year... where would the money come from to feed, house, and cloth these children? Where would he get enough wet-nurses and other caregivers for the babies?

Enter George Frideric Handel, the Kapellmeister to the future King George of Great Britain. George Handel became a life-long supporter of the efforts of Thomas Coram to rescue foundlings. He was a beloved friend of the children, a governor of the Foundling's Hospital, and opened the doors for Thomas Coram to British aristocracy which led to the founding and survival of this great endeavor to rescue children. There is a permanent exhibit in the Foundling Museum in London dedicated to George Handel.

Thousands of children were rescued! Hundreds of babies were placed into the care of the home by heartbroken mothers. In the first few years, after the age for entrance to the Home was raised from 2 months to 12 months, the home received 15,000 babies!

George Handel annually performed the Messiah at the Foundling's Home and donated all the income to the home. He was the chief fundraiser for the chapel, built so the children could learn of this great Messiah's love for them. He bequeathed a full copy of the Messiah to the home which can be seen today in the museum along with the organ he presented to the home.

His music legacy in the home was great. One of the most popular choirs of the day was a choir filled with blind children from the home. Many of the foundlings made successful careers as musicians playing in orchestras and bands throughout Britain.

This Christmas don't forget the foundlings and orphans. Give to a Children's Home. If you don't know of one you are welcome to give to the home sponsored by our Church. It is Amazing Grace Children's Home (Formerly Rivers Of Mercy). Every cent given to the home goes directly to the home, we take nothing out for administrative costs. If you want to be placed on our mailing list simply send me your e-mail at blawrencejones@hotmail.com. Make your checks payable to Santa Fe Baptist Church with children's home in the memo of your check. The mailing address is:

Santa Fe Baptist Church

12902 6^th Street

Santa Fe, Texas 77510

A Homeless Child's Prayer Answered

Blanca was standing in the park on a weekend morning. It was a good time and place for a 9 year old to beg, and her little sisters needed food. But today the pain overwhelmed her as she watched the fathers and mothers all around her. The families... Why can't I have a mother and father? Someone to love me like that? She turned her face to heaven and said, “If there is a God will you give me --give us-- a father and mother to love and take care of us.”

Ah... but the Father Of The Fatherless was listening. Blanca didn't know He had already prepared a father and mother for her. But it hadn't been easy. He had to first give His own Son so she could have parents. The father He had chosen for her, Leonardo, had seriously fought Him to retain his old empty life. But his resistance had given way to God's loving Spirit, and God had given him a new heart and new eyes. Leonardo was ready now to be the answer to a parent-less, homeless child's prayer. Can you imagine being an answer to a prayer like that one?

He gave Leonardo a father's heart and wisdom, and new eyes to see the pain in hearts like Blanca's. This M.D. who had lived for himself, until God gave him some of His own heart, was working with street addicts when he first saw Blanca and her three sisters. He brought his wife, whose heart had also been changed, and they took the girls home... beloved daughters they became... all because the Father of the Fatherless is still doing His work. Now they are the beloved legal parents of almost 30 children, and have made a home for them and any others who need a safe haven: Rivers Of Mercy.

Blanca will be graduating from college this coming Spring (2011) with a degree in sacred music. And she knows how blessed she is to have two fathers: the God of heaven, who calls Himself the Father of the Fatherless, and Leonardo Rivas.

Video: Blanca singing a solo at the dedication of a new facility at Rivers Of Mercy. Girls Ensemble: Blanca on the left and her three sisters in blue tops beside her... of course she sees and treats every girl in this ensemble as a sister. Sorry the video is so poor and shaky, but I took this Video by hand.

The Other Children

Carol and I spent this week at a family/youth camp in East Texas. We had a great time visiting with old friends, spending time listening to the Word, and watching the children play. But for us these experiences always bring the other children closer, and I have found myself praying for them in my morning walks.

The other children are those in northern China who live the harsh winters in the tunnels around the heating pipes which run from the central heating stations to the residential buildings in the city. 

They are the children in Islamic countries who were born to unwed mothers, and are, therefore, placed permanently at the bottom of the society. 

They are the thousands of children in Mexico City, and other huge urban areas, who live on the streets and in holes in the ground. 

And the children in “orphanages” worldwide which don’t have enough income to properly provide for the children in their care. Many of these homes  are still taking more children because they have no choice... the children need a home.

For those who are working with them, and for those who should be answering the call to go to them, I have prayed for you. I have prayed that God would strengthen your hands, that the Father of the fatherless would do His paternal work through you. And… I have prayed with thanksgiving for the children here this week, but I have not forgotten the other children, so I sit here with a burdened heart this morning to do more for the other children in the coming months.

Perhaps in your youth camps this year you could give to the other children. If you don’t already have a home to give to, then perhaps you will consider giving to Rivers Of Mercy. Rivers Of Mercy is providing a home for homeless children in Mexico City, one of the top 5 most populated cities in the world. Every dime (100%) you collect will go straight to provide for the children. Nothing is taken out for stateside administration, our church joyfully provides those expenses.  You can send checks to:

Santa Fe Baptist Church

12902 6^th Street

Santa Fe, Texas 77563

Make your check payable to the church with ROM or children in the memo. We deposit the funds into a church account set up for the Children's Home. ROM's director, Leonardo Rivas, has a debit card on that account. He withdraws money as needed for the children. Send me your e-mail address and I will put you on our mailing list.

Orphan, Foundling, Or Runaway?

George Muller, the British pastor famous for starting orphanages in the 19th century, would only allow “double” orphans into his facilities. He would not take “half” orphans, foundlings, children impoverished by divorce or abandonment, or runaways. While he is to be commended for the help he gave, it must be noted that none of the money he secured by prayer was allowed to be used to feed foundlings, half-orphans, or runaways. The great London preacher, Charles Spurgeon, had an Orphanage that would take double and single orphans (paternal), but no others.

A double-orphan is a child who has lost both parents by death. George Muller wrote, “It was proposed to receive only such children as had been bereft of both parents...” All children who entered his homes had to prove that their parents were married at the time of their birth, and that both were now dead. He strictly followed this policy throughout his ministry. A single or half-orphan is a child who has lost one parent. Widows often watched their children (paternal half-orphans) starve because they were unable to support them.

“Foundling” is only one of a category of names historically placed under the catchall heading: “illegitimate”. Generally an unwed mother would be unable to provide for the child and herself, so to survive she was faced with the decision to abandon her child. These mothers would often leave their newborns on church steps, or by mansion gates hoping someone would have pity and care for their child. I know it’s hard to believe, but foundlings generally died in the streets because there was no home for them, and adoption, as it is known today in the western world, has generally been illegal throughout most of history. Historically, and in much of the world today, runaways were usually children who had been cruelly beaten and/or regularly abused sexually in their homes to the point that their only way out was to run.

British almshouses (poorhouses) were more difficult to get into than either of the other institutions mentioned in the first paragraph. Spurgeon and Muller both lamented the cruel system of gathering signatures, securing votes, and the complex paper work necessary to place a child into an almshouse. Most almshouses were notoriously horrible places. 90% of the foundlings who went into almshouses died before reaching 10 years old. It took Thomas Coram, a wealthy retired shipbuilder who was shocked to see dead babies in the streets of London, years to get legal permission to open the first home for foundlings. Afterwords his legal charter was repeatedly debated, and at one point rescinded, because saving foundlings was considered a corrupting influence on society.

It seems strange to many modern Americans that children would be categorized in such a fashion, and that homes for destitute children would choose between homeless and impoverished children based on how they came to be in such a desperate condition. Yet prejudices against these children are still deeply woven into the darker fabric of our culture and history, but, to our credit, still not as boldly woven as in much of the rest of the world. In the modern world prejudices against homeless children who are not orphans remains entrenched and open. The children in Rivers of Mercy, a home we sponsor in Mexico City, are often called “recogidos” meaning: trash you pick up in the street and take home. Many church-goers will not allow their children to play or socialize with these rescued children.

Legal adoption has been a great source of help for orphaned and non-orphaned children. In the U.S. and Britain it served to remove the opportunity for prejudice by giving a child the name of their adoptive parent. England didn’t allow couples to legally adopt children until 1926. It only became legal in the U.S. in the latter half of the 19th century. Even then it took almost a century before adopted children could get new birth certificates without an “illegitimate” stamp.

In many eastern and middle-eastern nations children still suffer under these oppressive categories and laws. For example: adoption is illegal in Islamic states because it is prohibited by Islamic Law. Children are legally categorized as: latim (double-orphans) and Laqit (foundlings). In some more secularized Muslim states Latim can be adopted, but not laqit. Laqit also are given, by law, names which identify them as “illegitimate”, or they are not allowed to use certain “clean” names. These laws essentially brand them forever as laqit thus affecting their ability to marry, be educated, and find good employment. Under Islamic law it is also illegal to remove a child from his birth country, or allow him to be placed into the care of non-Muslims. Under these laws well-meaning western or Christian organizations are prohibited from changing the legal status of these children.

In most of the world there is still little remedy for children caught in this vortex of deep poverty, abuse, and prejudice. My view… and perhaps the view of many others is simple: children who are hurting and impoverished for any reason are just simply children... in need of help. Let’s help them! Oh... just so you'll know, I was once a foundling.

They Came From A World Of Neglect And Abuse

I saw it in Marco's eyes. Something had changed. That glint, that brightness was gone... replaced by confusion... worry. Then Dr. Rivas told me: Battered Child Syndrome. These words tell me what was done to him, and his three sisters... and that the pain is not over... it may never, in this life, be completely over. The effects are different from child to child, but there are always lasting effects from child abuse.

When I first saw these four children it was clear they came from a world of neglect and abuse. The girls had to have their hair cut short because of lice and hygiene issues. They had to be taught to bath, care for themselves, and... read. But... there are things that are almost impossible to teach. Like how to get past the pain, that they don't really know is pain, because it is all they've ever known.

Childhood development... these words in the “normal” world bring warm thoughts of home, attentive parents, teachers, first words, ABCs, stuffed animals, “I wuv you”, and loving hugs. It is during the crucial developmental stages of childhood that our view of the world is molded. Our childhood experiences become as much a part of us as our own skin, and not until much later do we realize not everyone has the same early life experiences.

At every point in the development of some children all they know is abuse, until they are removed from their “home”... but even that removal, to a child, is abuse-- necessary--but still abuse. Abuse for which they, more often than not, blame themselves.

Dr. Rivas went further, with his calming voice, knowing how much I loved these kids, and how painful the news. “For two years we have tried to help Laura but we have been unsuccessful. She needs to be in a home that can give more intense psychological help than we can provide. Her attacks on the other children are becoming uncontrollable. And the other two are showing signs of the same disorder. And little Maria (the youngest) will have to go with them.” Each of us looked at the ground, shook our heads, and the tears came.

Little Maria... all smiles and joy, at least she has been spared much of the abuse her older siblings experienced. But now she must experience separation from the life and loving parents she has known at Rivers Of Mercy. Another abuse... but it is either separation from the home, or separation from her siblings. This is part of the criminality of parental child abuse, once it begins the child is put in a state of abuse that can be mitigated, but never completely overcome. Parental child abuse puts these painful, hard decisions on others, and, in that sense, broadens the abuse to an untold number of people who care for abused kids. Stop it... stop child abuse... Stop it.

I'm glad I know a God who loves children. I have seen what He can do for these kids, and I pray... I pray for Margarita, Laura, Marco, and Maria. I pray God will do what only He can do. Will you pray for them?

Thank God for children's home workers who pour their lives into these kids, but I wish the need wasn't there. I wish there was no abuse, no self-centered, abusive parents, so... not only must I pray for the children, I must pray for parents. When I pass a family or child through the day I silently pray for the parents. When I see the new born babies in the birthing centers, I pray for the parents. I pray that the abuse will stop. Will you pray?

Mercy Trains

The people of the mid and western United States have a unique heritage of meeting the needs of homeless children. This is also a Christian heritage. They called them Mercy or Orphan trains. As eastern cities grew in 19th and early 20th centuries so did the population of homeless children.

These children were a mix of foundlings and orphans who ended up on the streets with no home or parent to care for their needs. Children’s homes were filled to over-capacity. These were children of every age and gender who were not receiving what a child needs most: love and attention. They needed homes, parents, and families. Finally, a group of pastors devised a new method to get these children into loving homes: trains headed west.

The pastors and volunteers back east found and created a network of pastors and volunteers in towns along the railroads. These concerned helpers would recruit families in their region to take these children into their homes. The volunteers back east would load the children onto trains with all their earthly goods, and send them to their new homes in the west.

The west was ready for them. At every stop families and parents would be waiting at the train stations for their new child. These children were scattered all over the mid-western and plains states of the US, and their children and descendants still live there today.

I am thankful to live in one of the most caring and generous nations in the world… let’s never forget our heritage, or the needs of homeless children. Open your hearts, your homes, and your wealth to these kids worldwide. They need us.