Sneak Peek! The Rhema Project will be selling Christmas cards this season. Six different cards. Artwork by Indian students. 30 cards for $30.

All proceeds will be used to support education in southern India and PenPal program between Indian and students from Indiana and Michigan.

Limited supply. Pre order on website (www.therhemaproject.org). Click donate. Note – Christmas Cards.

Demographics:

Female infanticide is so widely practiced that India has one of the most skewed sex ratios in the world at 929 females for 1000 males. The natural birth ratio worldwide is approximately 1050 women to 1000 males. Alarmingly, several districts in South India have now fallen below 800 females for 1000 males.

There is a handful of driving factors that cause a society to devalue the life of a person that has little or no value. Yesterday, I received this demographic overview of India. As I read through the list it seemed there were overwhelming odds stacked against the chance of India changing its culture from one that views women as an expense or liability to one of value and worth. But somewhere deep down inside I know The Rhema Project will be a part in helping India prevail.

To summarize Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, states you must be willing to address to brutal facts to become a great organization. Greatness is not about size of the organization but its ability to face reality and preserve with disciplined people that have disciplined thought and disciplined action over and over.

Population 1,013,662,000
Pop density: 320.2/ sq. km (829.3/sq. mi).
Under 15 years 337,651,000
Life expectancy: 64
Household size 5.6 (Floor area per person sq.m: 12.0)
Languages: Hindi and English, Assamese, Bengali,
Gujarati, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu
Labor Force: 38 %

Economy:

National income p.a. per person: US$ 340; per family $1,904

Education:

Adult literacy: 52% (male 65%, female 37%). Schools: 812,975.
Universities: 7,958. School enrolment: female 62% male: 83%

Health:

Access to health services: 85%
Access to safe water: 81%.
Hospitals: 15,067 (8 beds per 10,000)
Doctors 405,253
Blind: 9,000,000
Deaf: 60,406,200.
Lepers: 5,500,000.
Underweight prevalence under 5: 53%

Communication per (1,000 people)

Phones: 13 (4% mobile)
Radios: 121
T.V. Sets: 61
Daily newspaper circulation 21
Computers 6

-Life expectancy is 64 years but a variety of diseases ravage the impoverished villagers, cutting their productive years to no more than 40.
·Per capita income is $240 but many unemployed individuals in cities scrape by on a mere 10 cents a day.
·Daily calorie supply is 2,229, but the average diet is so deficient in vital nutrients and proteins that it can be described as only a little better than fasting.
·In villages, most people still live in one-room hovels, which in many instances, also house the cattle and in the cities, millions live in slums in shacks built of cardboard or tin.
·Sanitation facilities are nonexistent in villages and small towns except for open latrines serviced by the untouchable class of scavengers.
·Nearly 41% of the urban population and 51% of the rural population live below the poverty level.
·While three fourths of Indians who live in rural areas live in unrelieved misery most of their lives, the other 25 percent make up a sector of people who benefit from India’s reasonably good, British-built infrastructure, making it the 10th largest in the world for industrial output and one of the best systems of higher education in the world.
·India has one of the longest constitutions in the world. It guarantees all basic liberties and these liberties have basically been upheld and respected even in the worst of times. In terms of human rights violations per capita, India ranks lowest in the world and is applauded by Amnesty International. Excesses and abuses are related to India’s political troubles, particularly the violent, ethnic, religions, caste communal and secessionist activities and the need to contain these activities by force.
·Discrimination of various kinds are built into Indian society and while the government is pledged to reduce them, social pressures have continued to sustain them. Gender discrimination is the most flagrant. Female bondage, forced prostitution, dowry deaths (killing of young brides by the husband or his family because they do not bring enough money as dowry), and child marriage remain common in many parts of India. Child prostitution is rampant in the large urban areas. In Bombay there are over 100,000 prostitutes—most of them minors. Female infanticide is so widely practiced that India has one of the most skewed sex ratios in the world at 929 females for 1000 males.

We have a busy season in front of us at The Rhema Project. Who’s in for the challenge? This is your reward.

Last month when I met with these two teachers at Bethel Community College it was evident that they were inspired to be a part of giving hope to other Indian women. Twelve months from now twenty-two village women will be quipped as nursing assistants and be earning an income two to three times what they could earn as day laborers. More importantly, they will be respected and valued by their husbands, their children, their family and their community. They will also use their income to better educate their children.

This is how we stop the killing of 1.5 million girl babies each year – rescue… then educate… and give them an economic opportunity. Within a generation female infanticide will be eliminated.

This is an email I received from Rajendran, director of Aroma Ministries. The Rhema Project is working through AM in a small village in southern India where previously 35 to 40 girl babies were killed each year. We have hired Malar to lead our prenatal and infant care program. She is an amazing women of God. Pastor Phillip is leading the effort on our community transformation efforts. He worked for World Vision for 15 years prior to becoming a pastor in a nearby village. He is from the same social caste as this village so he understands their thinking and is well accepted. We are blessed to have a man with such talent.

Email from Raj. Today I had a meeting with the pregnent and newly delivered mothers meet in Kethuvarpatti. 4 women did deliver the babies in last few weeks. Out of this 2 are male babies and 2 are female. The parents of Aanandhi (means happiness – we named this baby today), tried to kill this baby as this baby weigh less than 2 kgs. When malar came to know the “early” delivery she rushed to the scene and spoke to the mother. This baby was born on 10-10-10. After the continious counselling, the baby is still alive. Today I spoke to the parents and they said they will not kill.

There was another female baby Marieswari, since it was the first child they let live. The mother is 17 years old.

We had a meeting with the other 9 pregnent women, 2 went to another village (totally 11), some of them never went to do the medical check up. Now they have agreed to go the government hospital with Malar, once in a month. On Monday Malar and Philip are meeting the doctor, since most of the women are animic, and weak, it would be good to provide some vitamin tablets and tonic. I asked them to get a prescription, so that we can bring some from the USA.

We are also starting the milk project from Tuesday 18th of October. TRP is funding the purchase of milk for both the pregnant mothers and the newborn babies so that mother and child will be stronger and healthier).

Philip and malar is short listing the poor people list and they will come up with few recommedation by next week. When I come there I will bring those to you.

I am attching the new born babies photos.

There is one women in the village, who is pregnent she already have 3 girls, now they say if the fourth one is girl, they will kill. Now malar is spending more time with this women, we are trying to convince them, if they don’t agree we may have to take this baby for foster care as they are adament to kill if the baby is girl. her name is Meenachi. Kindly uphold her in your prayer. Her husband has heart problem they are living in poverty.

*****

I truly enjoy spending time in rural India. Time seems to slow down and you can see, feel and hear the impact you are having in the lives of the girl child. But my primary role is back in America, sharing the stories of not only sorrow but the glimmer of hope seen most times in the eyes and smiles of people like Malar.

Our role in the west is to share out of our abundance – to provide a small amount of resources to provide hope and opportunity. If we do, people like Raj, Malar and Phillip will do the rest. Only then will the lives of 35 to 40 girl babies in this village be given the chance to live each year. Do it here in Kethuvarpatti and it can be replicated in thousands of villages throughout southern India and the lives of 1.5 million girl babies will no longer be lost each year. Will you join me?

Last month we were given the opportunity to help construct a hostel for pastors attending Life Mission India’s pastor training program. In the last 7 years under the leadership of Rajendran director of Life Mission India nearly 1,000 pastors have been trained on how to start and grow a church throughout southern India. Each quarter pastors return to learn how they can become better equipped on how to not only grow their church but become an agent for change within their village or community.

Over 100 of these pastors come from the Salem and Madurai districts where the highest concentration of female infanticide and gender identification feticide is occurring within the Hindu communities in all of Tamil Nadu, India.

Because of the teachings in the Bible and the Koran both Christians and Muslims do not practice the killing of their girl babies – Hindu teaching is somewhat silent about the life a girl child causing the vast majority of killings to occur within these communities. However, faith is only one of the many factors that leads to the death of between 1.5 and 3.5 million girl babies in India each year.

Consequently, these pastors when educated and equipped can become the agents of change within their neighborhoods, villages and cities – to become missional in their message by teaching their neighbors the value of the girl child, by bringing pre- and post natal care to Hindu women, by equipping their church families to become foster parents to unwanted girl babies, by being the church 24/7 not just on Sunday afternoon for a few hours.

Two years ago we wandered into a small village and celebrated the life of a newborn baby girl with the name Rhema and a small financial gift of less than $8.00 USD. It was the spark the ignited this cause. It is our hope and prayer that through this small financial gift of a borewell, kitchen and hostel will light a fire in hundreds of villages in Tamil Nadu that will directly lead to the rescue of thousands of girl babies and the changing of a cultural attitude toward the girl child.

The Rhema Project funded scholarships for 20 women (aged 17 to 35) to earn a Nursing Assistant Degree at Bethel Community College. Two of the critical keys to eliminating female infanticide (killing girl baby after birth) and gender identification feticide (abortion in 3rd trimester because of sex of fetus) are education and economic opportunity. These 20 women are gaining both and it will change not only their lives but their family’s lives forever.

Once a student has completed the twelve month nurse training program each graduate is guaranteed a job at a local hospital. Their income will not only increase two and sometimes three fold but will be consistent and reliable thus allowing their family to break free from many of the factors that keep them impoverished.

I had the opportunity to talk with several of the students and hear their stories. On of the older students was a mother of two from a near by village. Her marriage was arranged when she was 15 and their family’s primary source was her husband’s wages as a day labor. Her youngest was now in school and because of the scholarship she was able to attend college.

She began to weep as soon as I asked her the value of this opportunity. Fearing that I had somehow offended her I asked the translator to explain what was happening. The translator simply shared that this poorest of the poor village mother had always dreamed but never believed that she could add value to her family. She believed she would always be a burden to her family but now she had hope that she could help provide a better life for her family and a role model for her community.

Research tells us that she will use her income to educate her children and care for her family. This new found income will allow her son and daughter to remain in school – to become better educated. This is one way how we at The Rhema Project will help change culture from within the culture so 1.5 million girl babies are not killed each year just because she was born female.