Follow up on Operation Christmas Child

I posted previously about Samaritan's Purse and the deal about them not wanting religious gifts included in their Operation Christmas Child packages. Apparently this controversy has stirred up quite a few folks. "Annonymous" commented on my post and had this to say.

I was blog surfing today and found your post. I too had seen the article from the Daily Mail and so actually contacted Samaritan's Purse to find out what's going on as they are one of my favorite charities. Here is a copy of their response to me. I hope it eases your mind just a bit. --- Thank you for expressing your concern about the newspaper article published recently in United Kingdom. The article stated that Christian literature is banned from gift-filled shoe boxes donated to Operation Christmas Child. Please be assured that the commitment of Samaritan's Purse to evangelism is as strong as ever. Christian literature is not banned from Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes in the United Kingdom or any other sending country. However, there is a difference in the way the boxes are processed in the U.K. for overseas shipment. The U.K. program removes all religious items (Christian as well as other religions) and forwards any Christian literature to our National Leadership Teams working in countries where shoe box gifts are distributed, so the Christian literature can be used with children through the local church. Samaritan's Purse staff in the U.K. is dedicated, as we all are, to ensuring that Christian literature given by donors is used in effective ministry outreach to children through Operation Christmas Child. The Gospel is also presented locally as part of the distribution of the gifts, and wherever possible, children are offered a Gospel storybook written in their own language called The Greatest Gift of All. Many children are also invited to enroll in a 10-lesson follow-up Bible study program, and upon completion receive a New Testament as a graduation gift. In the United States, Christian literature remains inside the shoe box gifts given by donors. We are developing and implementing standard operating procedures to ensure that this practice is followed in the U.K. and other sending countries. It grieves us that this article has caused confusion at this particularly crucial time for Operation Christmas Child in the United States, as National Collection Week began Monday, November 13. On behalf of Franklin Graham, we thank you for writing and expressing your concerns. We invite you to please join us in prayer for Operation Christmas Child. Soon we will be delivering 7.8 million shoe box gifts to hurting boys and girls in over 90 countries around the world. Each box can make an eternal difference in the life of a child! Sincerely, Donor Ministries Samaritan's Purse PO Box 3000 Boone, NC 28607 828-262-1980 www.samaritanspurse.org