Lausanne World Pulse – Urban Articles – The Roma (Gypsy) Community in Bucharest, Romania
Orphans and Homeless Children
One of the biggest problems social workers within the metropolitan area face is the large number of abandoned orphans and pre-teen homeless children who wander the streets and reside in sewers and canal systems. The Council of Europe estimates there are approximately one thousand street children in Bucharest; however, estimates from social agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working the streets state the figure at ten thousand or more in the city. Roma or Gypsy children account for about eighty percent of all children abandoned in Romania.1 Gypsies often leave their infant and toddler children at orphanages for a “provisional” length of time, which often becomes permanent. The practice was actually encouraged during the rule of Nicolae Ceausescu (the leader of Romania from 1965-1989), who promised that children would have a place in an orphanage if families could not afford to support them. Since the collapse of Communism, poverty has only worsened for the Roma people. Eventually, many orphaned and neglected children find their ways to the alleys and sewers of Bucharest.
Because of the elimination of social work programs under Ceausescu, post-Communist Romania had no trained social workers or adoption or family advocate services. It was not until 1997, under the Constantinescu government, that policies were enacted to establish a universal social welfare program, a domestic adoption and foster care service program. It was into this void that foreign agencies entered to stem the tide of human right abuses widely circulated by Western media in the early 1990s.
Since the collapse of Communism, poverty has only worsened for the Roma people. Eventually, many orphaned and neglected children find their ways to the alleys and sewers of Bucharest.
Today, there are a significant number of social programs being carried on by these foreign-sponsored, faith-based NGOs. Although evangelism is at the heart of these programs and the workers are spiritually motivated, the ministries primarily have the appearance of social and behavioural interest as opposed to overt evangelism. Because the Church is neither ready nor prepared to receive wounded souls to nurture and restore, organizations all-too-often absorb them within the agency or place them in group homes established by the organizations. These are often in areas of the country distant from Bucharest, which discourages the residents from returning to the streets. The significant role carried out by the NGO has the potential, even greater than the Church, to promote justice and economic equality for marginalized groups within a country which has long been marginalized by the rest of the world community.
Evangelism and the Roma People
In the late 1990s, HCJB Global founded seven radio stations, the Vocea Evangheliei (Voice of the Gospel), in principal cities of Romania. Although primarily directed to the Romanian and Hungarian-speaking populace, both the Bucharest and nearby Ploiesti station carry several hours of programming each week for the Roma people. The content is primarily Romanian text, translated and delivered by Roma-speaking broadcasters. The station does not receive, nor does it expect, a large mail response from its Roma listeners. It must be remembered the vast majority of Roma are illiterate. The stations do, however, point to the favourable response to the broadcast by comments echoed by members of the local Roma church.
The task of evangelizing the Roma community is not an easy one. It can be accomplished only from within and not through the “here’s how” textbook method of missions. The needs of the Roma people are legendary. Scars need to be removed, discrimination needs to be resolved and poverty, human rights and justice need to be remedied. It will not be done overnight and will require the prayers and teamwork of many. We can only look to the biblical example of the woman at Sychar’s well in John 4.
Christ is able to change lives, one at time: one person, one family, one village. When approached and ministered to effectively, the Roma too shall exclaim, “We know this man is really the Saviour the world!” (John 4:42).
Endnote
1. Pierre Poupard, UNICEF’s top representative in Romania (United Nations Foundation, 2003).
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Simona Grigore ministers to Roma children in cities in the central region of Romania. She works with congregations seeking to do integral mission in these communities. She is also completing a degree in religious education. |